Network Integration Evaluation

Network Integration Evaluation
Name	Network Integration Evaluation
Established	2002
Location	Fort Bliss
Agency	United States Army
Type	Evaluation exercise

Network Integration Evaluation

The Network Integration Evaluation is a series of major United States Army Capability Development and Operational Test events conducted to assess tactical communications and command and control systems. It brings together vendors, Brigade Combat Team staffs, and testing organizations such as U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command, United States Army Futures Command, and Program Executive Office Command, Control and Communications-Tactical to exercise prototypes, fielded systems, and doctrine under realistic conditions.

Introduction

The initiative began as an effort within U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command and U.S. Army Materiel Command to accelerate integration of digital network capability into formations like 1st Armored Division and 1st Cavalry Division, involving partners such as Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency contractors, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics. Exercises typically occur at test sites including White Sands Missile Range and Fort Bliss and coordinate with commands such as U.S. Army Forces Command and stakeholders like Defense Information Systems Agency.

Purpose and Scope

The primary purpose is to evaluate interoperability among systems from Raytheon, AT&T, Harris Corporation, and other suppliers while informing requirements for programs of record such as Warrior Systems, Soldier Radio Waveform, and Tactical Radios Modernization. Scope spans platform-level integration for formations—Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Infantry Brigade Combat Team—and coalition interoperability with partners including NATO nations, United Kingdom Armed Forces, and allied program offices. Objectives align with acquisition authorities in Office of the Secretary of Defense and influence decisions by Congress and Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment.

Methodologies

Methodologies combine developmental test practices from U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command with operational exercises modeled on scenarios such as those used in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Techniques include structured red team assessments, live-fly exercises with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles from contractors like AeroVironment, hardware-in-the-loop labs used by National Aeronautics and Space Administration partners, and cyber-range assessments in cooperation with U.S. Cyber Command. Participants employ iterative spiral development approaches influenced by Defense Acquisition University guidance and integrate software defined radios under configurations similar to Joint Tactical Radio System prototypes.

Metrics and Evaluation Criteria

Evaluations use quantitative and qualitative metrics drawing on standards from Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Defense standards such as Joint Capability Technology Demonstration parameters. Key measures include throughput, latency, packet loss, and mean time between failures for radios like AN/PRC-117G; command latency for mission command systems including Blue Force Tracker; spectrum sharing metrics coordinated with Federal Communications Commission; and cybersecurity posture assessed against frameworks from National Institute of Standards and Technology and Defense Information Systems Agency. Human factors metrics reference studies involving U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command and warfighter feedback collected via after-action reviews facilitated by Combined Arms Center observers.

Implementation and Case Studies

Implementation phases have included multi-week iterations at White Sands Missile Range and Fort Bliss where units such as 3rd Infantry Division and 2nd Brigade Combat Team participated. Case studies document integration of systems from Boeing and Cisco Systems into brigade architectures, demonstrations of mesh networking with technologies from Draper Laboratory, and coalition interoperability trials with units from Canadian Army and Australian Army. Results influenced procurement decisions for initiatives like Network Cross-Functional Team outputs and capability deliveries to Brigade Modernization Command.

Challenges and Limitations

Challenges include spectrum congestion when coordinating with civilian regulators like Federal Communications Commission, logistical constraints at major test sites managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and integration complexity across proprietary systems from companies such as Thales Group and Saab AB. Limitations arise from the short duration of iterative events, restrictions on live cyber testing imposed by Department of Defense policy, and difficulties in reproducing contested environments akin to Battle of Mosul urban conditions. Budgetary pressures from appropriations by United States Congress and shifting priorities at Secretary of the Army level can curtail scope.

Best Practices and Recommendations

Best practices emphasize early involvement of cross-functional teams including acquisition leads from Program Executive Office Command, Control and Communications-Tactical, operational units like Brigade Combat Team commanders, and test authorities from U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command. Recommendations include adopting open standards advocated by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and Internet Engineering Task Force, establishing persistent cyber ranges with support from U.S. Cyber Command and Defense Information Systems Agency, and institutionalizing data-driven decision frameworks informed by after-action reports from entities such as Combined Arms Center and National Defense University.

Category:United States Army