DOLLARS & SENSE


the reliability improvements will sig- nificantly reduce sustainment costs—for example, through a smaller inventory of spare parts.


Over the past 10 years, UAS technology transformed the battlefield by shaping new doctrine and limiting Soldiers’ expo- sure to the threat. However, many UAS capabilities were fielded rapidly with less regard for reliability and the impact of the logistic footprint. With combat oper- ations winding down in Southwest Asia, there is a renewed emphasis on reducing costs without sacrificing performance.


For more information, contact LTC


Scott Anderson, PdM Ground Maneuver, at joseph.s.anderson8.mil@mail.mil.


FEWER IS BETTER


PFC Ector Munoz, front, and SPC Matthew Williamson, UAS repairers assigned to 1st “Centurion” Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st “Ironhorse” Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division (1-1 CAV), learn maintenance steps on a new extended-wing RQ-7B Shadow Aug. 22, 2013, at Fort Hood, TX. PdM Ground Maneuver has spearheaded a reduction in the number of system configu- rations, meaning fewer repair parts and less variation in training. (U.S. Army photo by PFC Paige Pendleton, 1-1 CAV)


also means fewer repair parts and less variation in the training required.


As a result of this initiative, the Shadow went from 13 different AV configura- tions to nine. Te team’s goal is to achieve three AV configurations within the next 24 months and, ultimately, a single AV configuration within six years. Furthermore, by moving to a fleet standard configuration and using ongoing engineering change propos- als, the team expects to reduce: (a) the amount of rarely used test equipment; (b) the Soldier’s logistic footprint; (c) the man-hour requirements to calibrate the test equipment; (d) logistics admin- istrative time spent accounting for AV


110 Army AL&T Magazine


configurations and spare parts; and (e) ownership costs.


 Incentivize productivity—Te Ground Maneuver PdO has partnered with Shadow’s OEM,


AAI Corp., incentives


system deliveries associated


to


restructure the production contract. Te contract now increases incentives for successful reduces


with


other progress milestones. Tis effort reduces the government’s burden of making large progress payments based on non-material delivery milestones.


Tese efforts become even more critical with the transition to the TCDL. Te advanced components associated with it may have higher procurement costs, but


January–March 2014 and


As early as 2006, the SUAS PdO was pursuing BBP by making production rates economical and holding them stable. Consolidating system production buys with U.S. Special Operations Command, the U.S. Marine Corps, the Foreign Military Sales program and other Army buys drove down system costs, and all of the agencies benefited from the savings. Procuring Raven and Puma systems in a consolidated buy has distributed prod- uct management overhead costs over a larger purchase.


SMALL UAS, BIG SAVINGS Te Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS) PdO, under PM UAS, seeks ways to reduce cost and gain the best return on investment in five ways, by: 1) consolidat- ing buys and leveraging assets from other organizations; 2) pushing boundaries and seeking innovation; 3) moving away from sole-source or cost-plus-fixed-fee (CPFF) contracts to firm-fixed-price (FFP) con- tracts; 4) transitioning toward full and open competition; 5) keeping the orga- nization lean; and 6) reviewing potential inefficiencies in policies and procedures.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148  |  Page 149  |  Page 150  |  Page 151  |  Page 152  |  Page 153  |  Page 154  |  Page 155  |  Page 156  |  Page 157  |  Page 158  |  Page 159  |  Page 160  |  Page 161  |  Page 162  |  Page 163  |  Page 164  |  Page 165  |  Page 166  |  Page 167  |  Page 168  |  Page 169  |  Page 170  |  Page 171  |  Page 172  |  Page 173  |  Page 174  |  Page 175  |  Page 176  |  Page 177  |  Page 178  |  Page 179  |  Page 180