Accelerating Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle Assessments

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Office of Naval Research photo

POSTED:  December 31, 2019

Customer:  Headquarters Marine Corps, Combat Development and Integration, Capabilities Development Directorate, Ground Combat Element Division (GCED)

Challenge:  The Office of Naval Research (ONR) launched a science and technology initiative to build technology demonstrators (TDs) for GCED’s emerging Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle program. The government needed a plan to assess the capabilities provided by each TD and inform the requirements development process for a future program of record. Due to resource constraints, ONR projected a limited window within which the assessments could occur, impeding the government’s ability to assess the full set of requirements. The government requested a clear, actionable strategy to thoroughly assess the TDs’ delivered performance within the time allotted.

Approach:  The task, awarded to Booz Allen, applied test and evaluation expertise, available research on technology attributes, and prior evaluation tools from ACAT I programs of record to design a process that provided timely yet thorough assessments. The team made an initial assessment of the total time required to test all the emerging draft attributes. Based on that assessment, they prioritized requirements by combat function to focus the assessment. Next, they contacted potential test sites and coordinated inputs into a down-select process, developing a decision support matrix for government use. Finally, they developed multiple courses of action and enabled the government creation of a multiphase strategy that fits within ONR’s contracting limitations.

Value:  This effort resulted in GCED and ONR possessing an executable assessment strategy that will serve as the basis for six-plus months of testing at four test sites, to inform operational requirements well before Milestone B. Booz Allen captured its approach and plan for accelerated assessments in a deliverable that is hosted on the Defense Technical Information Center.