The reliability analysis center: a program manager's resource - Best Business Practice

Program Manager, March-April, 2003

The Reliability Analysis Center (RAC) provides reliability, maintainability, quality, and supportability (RMQS) resources and services to program managers, the Department of Defense, the military services, other government agencies, and industry The RAC is one of 13 Information Analysis Centers (IAC) sponsored by the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). The RAC, and indeed the JAC program as a whole, can help program and project managers:

Ned Criscimagna

* Cope when short-staffed.

* Analyze large quantities of available information in a particular subject area.

* Ensure that any previous research is considered in their system design.

* Find information from analogous systems for their new systems.

* Search for applicable, and establish contact with, leading researchers and scientists in a particular field.

The RAC facilitates the cost-effective implementation of RMQS throughout all phases of a product's or system's life cycle.

Support for Program Managers and Military Acquisition RAC provides support to the defense acquisition community in general, and program managers specifically Since its creation in 1968, the RAC has worked for a wide range of organizations in the public and private sectors. Our work for acquisition programs includes developing reliability programs, conducting selective reliability analyses, developing traditional reliability and accelerated life tests, witnessing testing on behalf of the government, developing requests for proposals, and assisting in source selection.

For fielded systems, the PAC focuses on improving the availability of fielded systems. These projects include working with the Navy Depots to improve their overhaul process; with the U.S. Army Power Reliability Program to increase the availability of Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance facilities; and with the U.S. Air Force Warner Robbins Air Logistics Center to improve the readiness of electronic countermeasure pods.

By working for a wide range of customers, the RAC is able to transfer lessons learned and best practices from one industry to another, and between the commercial and government sectors.

How does the RAC support program offices? Here are just a few examples.

* A Navy program office program analyst needs information on environmental stress screening for a cost-benefit analysis. She calls the RAC. Within a few hours, she has the necessary information--and at no cost.

* A logistics engineer in an Army program office is looking for commonly used and new methods for predicting basic system reliability He sends an e-mail to the RAC and receives a reply with the information by the end of the day

* A logistics analyst with an Air Force Program Office is trying to find a standard factor by which to reduce a contractor's failure rate predictions that will be used to determine how many initial spares should be purchased. He faxes his inquiry to the RAC and is called the next morning by the RAC engineer who gives him the answer to his question.

* A program office needs support to evaluate a reliability growth test proposed by the prime contractor and to monitor the management of the growth process. Lacking the experienced staff to do these long-term tasks, the program office quickly gets the RAC to work without going through the competitive contract process.

The Reliability Analysis Center is an IAC

The RAC is an Information Analysis Center (TAC). The IACs are government organizations regulated by DoD Directive 3200.12; DoD Scientific Technical Information (STI) Program, dated Feb. 11, 1998; and DoD Instruction 3200.14, Principles and Operational Parameters of the DoD Scientific and Technical Information Program, dated May 23, 1997. The Office of the Secretary of Defense, Director of Defense Research and Engineering provides policy oversight of the IACs. Administrative and operational management is provided through the Defense Information Systems Agency by the Defense Technical Information Center (ATTN: DTIC-AI), 8725 John J. Kingman Road, Ste. 0944, Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-62 18. Appointed Contracting Officer Technical Representatives (COTRs) from technical host organizations provide technical management for the IACs.

A primary customer of the RAC and all the IACs is the military acquisition program manager. IACs have scientists, engineers, and information specialists experienced in specific technical areas to help program offices locate, analyze, and use STI. The TAC staffs establish and maintain comprehensive knowledge bases, including historical, technical, scientific, and other information collected throughout the world and pertinent to their respective technical communities. They also collect, maintain, and develop analytical tools and techniques, including databases, models, and simulations. Program and project managers can capitalize on the specific skills of their staff and maximize their tight budgets by calling on the unique and specialized skills of the IACs. The IACs can provide managers with affordable short- and long-term technical services.