The U.S. Army Acquisition Executive has launched the System of
Systems Engineering (SoSE) campaign to synchronize technological
development and its delivery throughout Army systems, service officials
said.
The campaign was born of the need to closely align programs and
establish a cost effective acquisition strategy which maximizes
efficiency across the developmental spectrum by drawing simultaneously
from existing programs, commercial-off-the-shelf products and emerging
technologies generated by the Army's Science and Technology division.
"There is no well-defined process to do this right now," said Terry
Edwards, SoSE director.
The SoSE campaign synchronizes programs such as Joint Tactical
Radio Systems (JTRS), Warfighter Information Network- Tactical(WIN-T),
Unified Battle Command and elements of the former Future Combat Systems
network with emerging technology. "The need for a new method of program
analysis came about when the Army realized there was a need to assess
how systems could be integrated over the long term. It lacked an
organization that could look across the portfolio and determine what is
best in terms of a systems of systems holistic point of view," said SoSE
deputy direction, Dr.Michael J. Kwinn Jr.
The SoSE campaign, is also working to develop an Army-wide
approach to Battle Command building upon the technological advances of
the cancelled FCS program. For instance, elements of FCS' middle-ware
operating system, System of Systems Common Operating Environment
(SOSCOE), might have broader applications across the Army.
"FCS is no more but some of the investments that we made in FCS
technologies are still relevant and still provide capabilities that can
be merged into the existing architecture. SOSCOE is a good example,"
Edwards said. As a middle ware, SOSCOE has the ability to connect
software and different operating systems.. For example, a SOSCOE-like
screen might be configured to blend with Blue Force Tracker-technology
and combine elements of each into a single platform.
SoSE is designed to recognize and accommodate the fast pace of change on
today's asymmetrical battlefield. Technologies aligned with one another,
and able to maximize interoperability are better equipped to adjust to
rapidly-evolving changes and emerging technologies, according to
Edwards.
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