Summary: Challenges Of Department Of Defense System

Words: 1349
Pages: 6

Challenges of Department of Defense Weapon System Acquisition

Tim Muliett

DNSC 6234

Procurement and Contracting

23 March 2015

Contents

1.) ABSTRACT
2.) BACKGROUND
3.) OVERVIEW OF THE DEFENSE ACQUISITION PROGRAM
4.) ANALYSIS OF POLICY, LAW, AND REGULATIONS THAT DRIVE THE DEFENSE ACQUISITION PROCESS
5.) COMPARISON OF GOVERNMENT ACQUISITION CONSTRAINTS TO PRIVATE SECTOR
6.) DEFENSE UNIQUE ITEMS AND LIMITED SOURCES OF PROCUREMENT
7.) ANALYSIS OF SUCCESSFUL ACQUISITION PROGRAMS AND FACTORS THAT LED TO SUCCESS
8.) ANALYSIS OF UNSUCCESSFUL/TERMINATED ACQUISITION PROGRAMS AND FACTORS THAT LED TO TERMINATION
9.) CONCLUSION
10.) WORKS CITED

Abstract
Easily the largest consumer in the world, the Department of Defense spends between $150-$170
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The DoD budget makes up an astounding 16% of the entire U.S. budget. (DoD Budget 2014) This U.S. Department of Defense Budget Overview (2014) defines this budget as the money that “pays the salaries, training, and health care of uniformed and civilian personnel, maintains arms, equipment and facilities, funds operations, and develops and buys new equipment”. While payroll, health care, and housing are a huge portion of the defense fund, these entities are relatively simple to budget for by using market prices and trends. The acquisition process, however, is an entirely different monster. Acquisition encompasses not only purchasing goods or services from contractors, but also developing, engineering, producing, testing, and maintaining these purchased items. It is important to note this, due to the fact that acquisition and procurement are sometimes used interchangeably when discussing federal directives.
Overview of The Defense Acquisition Program
Once the need for a new weapons system is presented by the military, the initiative must go through a rigorous, three part process to bring these ideas to existence. These three steps are as follows:
1.) Identify the requirements for the weapons system: Referred to as The Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS)
2.) Budget and distribute resources: Referred to as The Planning, Programming, Budgeting,
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The PPBE process contains four steps: planning, programming, budgeting, and execution. First, the military need presented in the ICD is intensly analyzed. The PPBE must find the best solution of equipment and support while keeping in mind fiscal limits. During the time that the proposed program is being investigated, a budget is projected simultaneously. The program and the budget are then presented for review. During this time, a set of metrics is also established to measure the performance of the new program. If all the components of the proposed program are approved, it moves to the DAS