Early Testing Key to Significant R-TOC for DoD Weapon Systems

Program Manager, July-August, 2001 by Patrick Swan

Army Test & Evaluation Command Highlights R-TOC Initiatives at 14th Test Technology Symposium

Examining how test and evaluation contributes to Reduction in Total Ownership Costs (R-TOC) in program management was the theme for the 14th Test Technology Symposium. Sponsored by the Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC), this year's event was held May 1-2 at the Turf Valley Resort and Conference Center in Ellicott City, Md.

From a diversity of speakers and presentations, two strategies emerged as most effective in significantly reducing total ownership costs:

* Early, well-planned and well-executed testing can reduce total ownership costs for proposed weapon systems.

* By using instrumentation embedded into vehicles, aircraft, and other military equipment, today's technology permits continuous data collection. As a result, continuous performance evaluation helps predict and collect the true total ownership costs.

National-International Presence

A record 170 participants attended, including representatives from Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD); testers and evaluators; program managers; experts in science and technology and battle labs from all Services; private industry; academia; and representatives of Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Conferees listened to presentations from distinguished panelists, including Walt Hollis, Deputy Under Secretary of the Army for Operations Research; John Gehrig, Deputy Director of Resources and Ranges, Defense Operational Test and Evaluation; Dr. Ernest Seglie, Science Advisor to the Director for Operational Test and Evaluation, OSD; and Mike Novak, Strategic and Tactical Systems, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics).

Variety of Perspectives

The presentations and panel discussions considered R-TOC from a variety of perspectives. Setting the stage in his May 1 keynote address, Gehrig posed the question, "How can you manage something if you don't know what it costs?"

Gehrig stated that effective test and evaluation actually drives down total ownership costs when it detects problems early, thereby providing early corrections to flaws. Besides early testing and continuous performance evaluation, he spoke of two additional means to reduce total ownership costs:

* Combining developmental testing with operational testing and operational testing with training, where appropriate.

* Supplementing test and evaluation with modeling and simulation.

Hollis described the dilemma program managers face in scheduling tests even as they strive to reduce costs. If tests are successful, program managers may feel they have wasted limited dollars to prove something they already knew was right. And if tests fail, he countered, they now have a problem they must fix that may throw them off schedule.

Adding his support to the idea that test and evaluation can contribute significantly to R-TOC, Hollis said that there will be considerable focus on R-TOC to help finance the Objective Force. He also called attention to Reliability, Availability, and Maintainability testing as an area for concentration and opportunity for payoff.

Hollis stressed the need for a decent data collection system for components to achieve specific R-TOC, along with computer programs to sort the data. PMs, he said, should "drive systems to the red line" with early testing. Last, he noted that systems would benefit from the involvement of more warrant officers and noncommissioned officers in maintenance of systems before field testing.

While supportive of R-TOC efforts, Seglie said they may prove ineffective without regulatory "teeth" that help force/support the program. Citing three testing criteria, he said systems should be tested until failure, designed for growth, and be subject to durability testing throughout.

In panel discussions, Seglie reminded his colleagues that increased developmental testing will reduce total ownership costs if the program manager is given incentives. He also advocated simulations, stating that they not only ensure that a system is ready for a test but also contribute to the overall success of testing.

Novak discussed how R-TOC is adversely impacted by budgeting and operational trends on force structure and readiness. The failure of DoD to keep pace with private sector improvements in logistics and the supply chain, he said, also contributes to problems in achieving R-TOC. Novak outlined a pilot program to maintain and improve readiness by reducing total ownership costs 20 percent by fiscal 2005. Calling for increased sharing of R-TOC among complementary DoD programs, he concluded that overall, a small amount of seed money will reap large benefits in R-TOC.

Symposium Chair Dr. C. David Brown, Director for Test and Technology, U.S. Army Developmental Test Command gave voice to the OSD perspective on R-TOC. It has OSD's attention, he stated, and the Department believes that test and evaluation, particularly early direct testing, can contribute significantly to R-TOC.