DoD focuses on IT initiatives for the rest of FY24
May 1, 2024 Leave a comment
Cybersecurity, data, AI and infrastructure lead defense spending
By Ryan Nelson, Market Intelligence Manager
Entering the second half of FY2024, it’s essential for government contractors to understand the Department of Defense (DoD) focus of its IT spending if they want to navigate the bidding process.
The DoD’s FY2024 budget emphasizes four areas where solutions are needed: cybersecurity, data analytics and storage, AI and infrastructure. These are the areas in which government contractors have the best chances for success.
Let’s look at IT priorities by military branch and agency within DoD.
Army: Commercial airtime, combat support and business systems
Commercial Satellite Airtime (COMSAT): With a budget request of $114 million, this initiative supports a centralized program for the management of COMSAT across the Army. The objective is centralized management for the procurement and execution of all COMSAT contracts.
Global Combat Support System (GCSS): With a $129 million request, GCSS streamlines supply operations, maintenance operations, property accountability, logistics management and integration procedures.
General Fund Enterprise Business System (GFEBS): Originally budgeted at $96 million, GFEBS is the core financial management system for administering the Army’s General Fund, improving performance and standardizing business processes.
Navy: Maritime maintenance, aviation logistics and personnel
Navy Maritime Maintenance Enterprise Solution (NMMES): Originally budgeted at $121 million, this program funds sustaining deployed systems, and the modernization and refreshment of ship maintenance and national systems. The program will incrementally replace legacy systems with modern commercial information management.
Navy Personnel and Pay (NP2): With a $142 million request, this program supports configuration of commercial, off-the-shelf software to meet MyNavy human resource requirements and integration with a Direct-to-Treasury pay capability to improve audits.
NAVAIR Aviation Logistics Environment (ALE): Originally budgeted at $55 million, this program delivers full lifecycle weapon system logistics and maintenance capabilities via the Naval Aviation Support Process (NASP).
Air Force: Data exploitation, cyberspace integration and command and control
Data exploitation: Originally budgeted at $119 million, this program focuses on exploitation of multiple sensor data. Key areas of technological concern include data collection, processing and fusion, data dissemination and application, algorithm development, network connectivity and sensor performance assessments.
Integrated Defensive Cyberspace System (IDCS): With a $99 million request, IDCS is a modern, containerized software-based system. IDCS will be deployed to physical, virtual and cloud-based hosts and provide for interconnectivity, management and data processing.
Air Force Command, Control and Communications (C3): Originally budgeted at $71 million, the C3 Program offers cloud-based IaaS/PaaS hosting. Funding is aimed at enablement services, data science, data engineering, machine learning, AI and process automation.
Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Priorities: Zero trust and SIPRNet Modernization
Zero trust architecture: Originally budgeted at $590 million, this program focuses on the implementation of Thunderdome. That program integrates with Policy Decision Points (PDPs) that use identity, device and environment attributes to make user access decisions by application. It also enhances cloud security analytics to support cybersecurity defense.
DODIN Engineering Services: With a $74 million request, this initiative modernizes the Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet) to improve the security of the DoD’s warfighting network, including security and defense of email traffic, within and outside of SIPRNet.
Defense Health Agency (DHA): Improved patient experience
Leveraging technology to improve patient experience: This initiative would fully integrate a military health system-wide toll-free telephone number and a portal for real-time chat and asynchronous text. Using machine learning and AI, the program will integrate with all patient-to-provider and provider-to-provider capabilities and facilitate scheduling with the TRICARE network.
Fully integrated healthcare system for the person: This program focuses on fully integrated clinical care coordination model pilots, moving patient information between direct care, purchased care and other partnerships, including the Veterans Health Administration.
By understanding these key FY24 DoD IT activities, and positioning their services and product offerings accordingly, vendors will be better set up to help meet DoD agency mission objectives.
This blog is adapted from a commentary published in Washington Technology. The complete original commentary can be found here.
Ryan Nelson is a market intelligence manager for immixGroup, the public sector business of Arrow Electronics. immixGroup delivers mission-driven results through innovative technology solutions for public sector IT. Visit www.immixgroup.com for more information.
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