ENSURING SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF COMMERCIAL ITEMS IN AIR FORCE SYSTEMS

摘要

Our future military programs will require an increasing use of Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) technologies. The U.S. Air Force recently sponsored a Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) to review and recommend an Air Force policy regarding the use of COTS technologies in products for their programs. This presentation will discuss the actions, findings, and recommendations of that board. During this study, the board panel members interviewed 34 programs and organizations throughout the United States. Issues, benefits, best practices, success factors and limitations in the use of COTS products as determined from these reviews will be described. Issues affecting the use of COTS will be addressed from the perspective of the product, the acquisition process, the logistics and support and the impact to industry and government personnel. Best practices and key success factors are identified in the areas of acquisition, system development and management. A fundamental cultural shift from the traditional series - parallel development in which most new technology items are built from scratch to a new spiral development approach in which we buy, integrate and continuously refresh the product will be discussed. The elements of the proposed COTS Policy for the Air Force will be described. Recommendations will include changes to the acquisition strategy and the source selection evaluation. Improved interaction between government and contractor program management, new source selection tools, and expanded education and training in COTS issues are also outlined. For additional information or to obtain a copy of the presentation and/or final report (SAB-TR-99- 03), please see the following website.