Increasing the speed of delivering capabilities to warfighters is a top priority for the War Department. The U.S. Army underscored that priority this past fall by rolling out Army Acquisition Reform, an initiative which includes several changes to speed up acquisition by breaking down silos between acquisition functions. Ensuring warfighters have the best equipment available when and where they need it can save lives and maintain lethality.

To ensure that chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense capabilities get into the hands of warfighters quickly, the Capability Program Executive for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (CPE CBRND) is maximizing the use of flexible acquisition methods to accelerate the process. CPE CBRND is responsible for fielding CBRN defense capabilities to all services. The Commercial-Off-the-Shelf Modernization (COTS MOD) team, within the CPE CBRND’s Joint Project Manager for CBRN Integrated Early Warning (JPM CBRN IEW), uses a COTS MOD process to quickly field needed capabilities for chemical detection, radiological detection, decontamination, and situational awareness to National Guard CBRN Response Enterprise warfighters.
The COTS MOD approach leverages commercially available equipment and involves end users throughout the process. This acquisition method is ideal when a capability or technology already exists in the commercial market but needs minor modifications to meet military or first responder requirements. For instance, if the National Guard requires a ruggedized laptop, instead of developing a new device from the ground up, the COTS MOD team collaborates with end users to identify which commercial rugged laptops can be most efficiently adapted, procured, and deployed.

By making only minor modifications rather than designing entirely new equipment, the fielding process is significantly accelerated. Although timelines can vary based on the specific capability and user group engagement, the COTS MOD team typically achieves Full Operational Capability (FOC) (meaning the capability is fully delivered to warfighters) within 18 to 24 months. In some cases, fielding has occurred in less than a year. This is substantially faster than the traditional Program of Record process, which can take five years or more to reach FOC.

“For example, the National Guard may say ‘we need a chemical detector that can detect [target] X, Y, and Z, weighs less than 10 pounds and is easily networkable.’ Then our team will identify multiple instruments meeting most of the requirements and conduct market research outlining the capabilities which most closely meet the requirements,” said Jonathan O’Dell, assistant program manager, JPM CBRN IEW. The top two or three devices are selected and go through testing and end-user evaluation, followed by a down select for capability procurement best fitting the needs of the warfighter.

CPE CBRND leads the testing process and collaborates with government partners to conduct performance evaluations and validation with vendors. Test data for each instrument is shared with the respective service, which then selects the instrument they wish to pursue, conducts user evaluations and, upon approval, CPE CBRND procures and fields the equipment.

The COTS MOD process enables the team to work closely with end users, gathering immediate and detailed feedback to fully understand their needs, challenges, preferences and other critical considerations. In some cases, users can get hands-on experience with the equipment before it is officially fielded, even taking it back to their units to test it in mission-oriented scenarios.

“Having the services involved increases the likelihood the equipment will be used. Some capabilities end up underutilized, while others become favorites among warfighters. Early and thorough user involvement helps ensure we make informed decisions before making a purchase,” said Bruce Love, joint product manager, JPM CBRN IEW.
The COTS MOD process aligns with the current Department’s priority to “accelerate the commercial preference” by using technologies and capabilities available commercially as much as possible before embarking on a costly, new technology taking much longer to develop. “Our goal is to field quickly to meet the immediate need, rather than make tweaks or changes over years,” O’Dell said. 

Since the COTS MOD team primarily works with COTS equipment, they move at a much faster pace and often manage several projects simultaneously. The team has completed several acquisition milestones, with others on the horizon. “We finish with one and then we move on to the next one. We’ve got about seven to eight different technologies that we’re working,” said O’Dell.

For example, the CBRNE Area RAE is on track to reach FOC within months. This capability provides real-time hazardous toxic chemicals and radioactivity detection data. Commanders use the data to assess and respond quickly to the release of toxic chemicals and radioactive substances and act to mitigate the impact before the hazards enter their area and cause potential contamination. In an evolving threat environment, fielding capabilities like these quickly is critical to warfighter survival and mission preservation.

According to O’Dell, “…the team is constantly looking at new and different technologies to keep informed about the latest COTS equipment. This gives them a working knowledge of commercially available equipment modified for military use when new requirements arise.”