ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. (July 3, 2014) -- By simply adjusting the schedules of instructors who train Soldiers on an Army network management tool kit, the service is expected to conserve manpower and save significant taxpayer dollars.
The capability being trained, known as the Joint Tactical Networking Environment Network Operations Toolkit (J-TNT), was already developed around the idea of doing more with less. It consolidated 50 separate tools used to plan, manage, monitor and control the lower tactical network environment into a single laptop.
"Right now, we have 10 software applications on one platform where it used to be four or five laptops," said James Buggy, the project leader for Army Communications Engineering Software at Project Director Network Enablers. "That helps cut down on the size, weight and power requirements on the assets provided to the Soldiers."
And now its training program has followed suit, cutting the overall program from 115 to 75 days.
Diminishing the amount of time instructors spend at the training facility has lessened lodging and per diem costs.
This transformation occurred shortly after Soldiers received the J-TNT. The new system yielded fresh training requirements for its users. As a result, members of the Army Communications Engineering Software (ACES) training team made separate trips to multiple military installations to provide necessary training.
About 200 soldiers are trained during 8-10 classes per year. Trainers traveled from areas including Maryland, Georgia, California, Kentucky and Texas.
"There are a lot of moving parts that need to be coordinated," Buggy said.
Buggy reconfigured the training schedule to better consolidate the trainer's class time without cutting out any of the actual course work. Soldiers received the same level of training, while trainer deployment times diminished.
"If we needed to have a trainer on a Monday and a Friday, then he would be idle for the other three days of the week," Buggy said. "By reorganizing these training programs, we're able to move the training so the instructor is there Thursday and Friday instead and cut down on any lag time in the program."
The J-TNT training program has four primary sections that are trained at any one time, including Tactical Internet Management System, Army Communications Engineering Software, Simply Key Loaders and the Joint Tactical Radio System Enterprise Network Manager. The new process allows trainers to spend more time on their primary missions.
"A lot of these trainers have alternative missions as help desk operators and developing logistical user guides," Buggy said. "Reducing the amount of time they're away helps get them back to their jobs faster."
Social Sharing