ALTERNATIVE ACQUISITION
CAPABILITY SETS INFORM A NEW BUSINESS MODEL
The two-year interval capability-set acquisition and field- ing process allows the Army to piggyback on new system and capability design developments. These can home in on how different business models for satellite commu- nications as a managed service (SAAMS) could best support the evolving unified network.
The Army has put the mechanisms and processes in place to continuously innovate and improve the network through two-year capability sets. In this end-to-end tacti- cal network approach, each capability set builds off the previous and is infused with commercial solutions informed by synchronized assessments, experimenta- tions, evaluations, and developmental and operational tests. The Army is using industry standards to conduct Soldier-driven experimentation to inform network design. This approach puts the warfighter at the center of the process, informs less prescriptive requirements and allows for incremental insertion of capabilities that keep pace with emerging threats and information technol- ogy trends.
The Army released the first SAAMS request for informa- tion to industry in October 2020 to better understand how commercially managed satellite communication services might support its logistics network moderniza- tion efforts, known as Sustainment Tactical Network. The request provided Army decision-makers with a better understanding of industry best practices, technological advances and business models that could enable the replacement of the current logistics network operating design. The request included materiel solutions, satel- lite coverage, security, logistics and training, as well as what corresponding leasing-cost models could look like, to enable the Army to maximize capabilities while balanc- ing long-term affordability.
Following the information request, Project Manager Tactical Network, at the Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications – Tactical (PEO C3T), hosted a virtual Sustainment Tactical Network SAAMS industry event in February 2021. The orga- nization’s leadership provided an overview of the Sustainment Tactical Network effort and discussed findings and lessons learned from the request for information. Then the team hosted a week of virtual one-on-one sessions with individual vendors to continue the market research efforts. In June, the Army released
a follow-on request for SAAMS capability demonstrations at no cost to the government.
Previous discussions with industry had focused on how a SAAMS model could support the Army’s Sustain- ment Tactical Network efforts to modernize its logistics network. However, while this logistics network mission was still relevant, the Army expanded the scope of its market research to understand how an end-to-end SAAMS model could support the Army’s tactical unified network as a whole. Project Manager Tactical Network received 25 industry responses, and the industry demon- strations were conducted beginning the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2021 through the first quarter of the 2022 fiscal year.
In another example, the Army assessed commercial prototype systems that may be able to integrate satellite communication links from various satellite constellations into a single commercial “box,” to enhance pathway diversity, with the potential to leverage the increased throughput from the blended and combined multiple transport links.
The effort also leveraged a SAAMS model with the prime contractor coordinating all equipment and satellite airtime. Other satellite communication moderniza- tion efforts were discussed as part of the Technical Exchange Meeting 6 in June, in support of Capability Set 25 and beyond.
With the conclusion of the demonstration phase of its initial SAAMS market research efforts in Decem- ber, Project Manager Tactical Network will share its lessons learned with industry, discuss how the intent and approach may or may not have shifted, and explain the next steps. This will be done in second quarter of the 2022 fiscal year, either through an information paper to industry or a possible return to the stage for a second SAAMS industry event. The Army will leverage all of the market research to date to inform potential future SAAMS pilot efforts and specific use cases that could support network modernization capability set efforts.
—LT. COL. NATASHIA COLEMAN, TYLER COOK AND AMY WALKER
https://asc.ar my.mil
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