SMART SUSTAINMENT
AS THE ARMY RIGHT-SIZES CONTRACTOR FIELD SUPPORT FOR TACTICAL COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS, TYAD INCREASINGLY WILL PROVIDE TOTAL-PACKAGE FIELDING SUPPORT TO HELP FILL THE GAP.
LEANING FORWARD For tactical communications acquisition programs, the next several years pose a combination of challenges in which we will look to the organic industrial base for help. Te Army will continue to field integrated capability sets using new equipment; “clean up” the battlefield by converging and simplifying exist- ing systems; and insert next-generation technologies to help create a robust, ver- satile network in support of Force 2025. Depending on program need, Tobyhanna may be called to take on a role previously filled by a prime contractor, serve as a subcontractor to a prime or participate in a hybrid arrangement that allows the vendor to retain control of certain infor- mation and processes while the depot does the rest.
For example, with the ongoing fielding of Warfighter Information Network – Tactical (WIN-T) Increment 2, the Army’s on-the-move tactical network backbone, to select brigade combat teams, the WIN-T Increment 1 program is transferring several functions formerly performed by its prime contractor to organic support. Working with the pro- gram office and vendor for the workforce to obtain the necessary data and train- ing, Tobyhanna has begun to overhaul WIN-T Satellite Transportable Termi- nals. About 1,800 terminals are expected
44
to flow through the depot to be returned to like-new condition, establishing a pool of systems so units can swap their old ter- minals with no downtime.
Perhaps the biggest future sustainment challenge in Army communications- electronics equipment is tactical radios. For the new software-defined Rifleman and Manpack Radios, the Army is exe- cuting a Non-Developmental Item (NDI) strategy to create a competitive “radio marketplace” that incentivizes indus- try to offer superior products at lower costs. To mitigate the logistics challenges of working with multiple vendors, the Army is working to implement standards for ancillary items
such as cables and
installation kits, as well as to obtain the necessary technical data, to enable Toby- hanna to maintain and upgrade the NDI radios over the long term. We are apply- ing sustainment lessons learned over the past several years, when the Army pur- chased several commercial off-the-shelf radio models in response to operational needs and TYAD adapted to support them, helping to shape this effort.
CONCLUSION Even as budgets decline, the demand for tactical communications technologies is not diminishing—in fact, it will increase to enable a lean but still highly capable force. As these systems become more
Army AL&T Magazine October–December 2014
integrated to form a holistic network, we must adopt a strategic approach that takes advantage of
the value provided
by the Army organic industrial base to make the most of our limited resources. It is time to bring sustainment back into the conversation, and doing that smartly goes beyond commitments at the leader- ship level. It takes an investment in the people closest to the work, and the desire to see through their eyes.
For more information, visit http://www.
tobyhanna.army.mil/.
MR. GARY P. MARTIN is the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command deputy
to the commanding general. He
holds an M.S. in engineering manage- ment from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in electrical engineering from Norwich University, and has attended the Harvard Business School, where he gradu- ated from the Program for Management Development. He is a member of the Army Acquisition Corps (AAC).
MG DANIEL P. HUGHES is the program executive officer for command, control and communications – tactical (PEO C3T). He holds an MBA in business manage- ment from Oklahoma City University, an M.S. in national resource strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces and a B.A. in political science from the Univer- sity of Texas at Arlington. He is Level III certified in program management and a member of the AAC.
COL GERHARD P.R. SCHRÖTER is the commander of Tobyhanna Army Depot. He holds an M.A. in national security policy and strategic studies from the Naval War College, a B.A. in international studies and German from Virginia Tech and a certifi- cate in International Security Policy.
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