TOBYHANNA ARMY DEPOT, Pa. -- A joint effort by depot personnel and the NETT Warrior Program Office to develop a new power source will provide seamless battery power to Soldiers in the field using NETT Warrior systems, increasing their safety and continued situational awareness during combat operations.
Several issues with the systems were uncovered during extensive Network Integration Evaluation (NIE) testing in 2013. One issue was discovered with the Soldier Wearable Integrated Power Equipment System (SWIPES) kit, which is used to charge batteries for NETT Warrior and Rifleman Radio systems in the field. Under different thermal conditions, the SWIPES kit failed to function properly and would not supply adequate charge to the systems, reducing mission capability.
Another issue was identified by users who experienced overheating and could feel significant spikes in temperature coming from the system. Stan Czock, electronics engineer and lead engineer for NETT Warrior, said the most effective solution, both in terms of mission- and cost-effectiveness, would be to develop an alternative power source.
The wearable system provides warfighters secure and mobile voice, video and data communications capabilities. With this system leaders can send information using services such as email, text messages and icons that signify different threat levels.
The Nett Warrior program pairs commercial off-the-shelf smart phones with the AN/PRC-154 Rifleman Radio transmitter/receiver to display maps, troop positions and operational updates previously restricted to vehicles or hard-wired command posts.
"The conformal batteries weren't being used because they couldn't supply power through the SWIPES kit, so Soldiers were burning through Rifleman Radio batteries every three or four hours while trying to support a 24-hour mission," he said. "We knew we needed to design a new power source that could satisfy mission capability requirements while reducing the Soldiers' carrying payload wherever possible."
The solution was an RPA (radio power adapter) that eliminated the malfunctioning charging mechanism and provided an 18- to 20-hour battery life in addition to a 4-hour battery backup, ensuring Soldiers never lose connection. By getting rid of both the charger and the need for additional Rifleman Radio batteries, a significant cost avoidance will be realized once all units are fielded.
"The benefits of this value engineering proposal allowed Tobyhanna to exceed its internal value engineering savings goal by more than $5 million," said James Waters, electronics engineer.
The majority of the cost avoidance is a result of eliminating the need for three Rifleman Radio batteries per unit, at a cost north of $1,000. Multiply that by the 7,500 units scheduled for production, added to the $50 savings per SWIPES kit eliminated, and the resulting cost avoidance totals more than $8.4 million through fiscal year 2017.
The RPAs also cut down the size of the unit and allows it to run about 10 degrees cooler than the old ones, improving comfort for warfighters during combat operations.
"These improvements have taken a system that people might not have felt 100 percent confident in using to one that everyone now wants to use," said Czock, adding that the most important improvement is increased efficiency and effectiveness for the warfighters.
One of the ways depot engineers were able to work quickly was by developing an engineering evaluation lab in Building 5. Jason Regnier, deputy product manager for NETT Warrior at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, recognized the value of having testing equipment at Tobyhanna and provided funding for testing to take place here. Czock and the other engineers initially carried out prototype, pre-production, thermal rise and round-the-clock NIE testing using Logistics Support Activity facilities. Once the new equipment arrived and was set up, the team was able to conduct similar tests in-house.
Czock says the dedicated effort of depot personnel has improved the working relationship with the program office and paved the way for additional workloads to come to Tobyhanna in the future.
The first of more than 7,000 new NETT Warrior units will begin fielding by the end of the month.
Tobyhanna Army Depot is a recognized leader in providing world-class logistics support for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems across the Department of Defense. Tobyhanna's Corporate Philosophy, dedicated work force and electronics expertise ensure the depot is the Joint C4ISR provider of choice for all branches of the Armed Forces and industry partners.
Tobyhanna's unparalleled capabilities include full-spectrum logistics support for sustainment, overhaul and repair, fabrication and manufacturing, engineering design and development, systems integration, post production software support, technology insertion, modification, foreign military sales and global field support to our Joint Warfighters.
About 3,100 personnel are employed at Tobyhanna, which is located in the Pocono Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania. Tobyhanna Army Depot is part of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command. Headquartered at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the command's mission is to research, develop, acquire, field and sustain communications, command, control computer, intelligence, electronic warfare and sensors capabilities for the Armed Forces.
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