The impact of modeling and simulation on the Army acquisition process

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to identify and analyze the potential capabilities and limitations of the modeling and simulation (M&S) strategy used by the U.S. Army for acquisition purposes. This thesis considers the Army's current acquisition process, M&S technologies and the Army's organizational infrastructure to ascertain whether or not they adequately address cited goals. Specifically, the programmatics of DoD's 5000 series are evaluated to see if they support the concurrent processes afforded by M&S. The research indicates that the Army should focus on enhancing its requirements generation process by adequately supporting its Battle Labs. The degree to which M&S will impact the Army acquisition process is dependent on how well M&S and Battle Labs are represented in the Future Years Defense Plan. Recommendations in the areas of acquisition programmatics and Army organizational infrastructure are provided in an attempt to enhance the application of M&S in the Army's acquisition process.