Military adoption of COTS technologies face three significant challenges: exploiting technology at pace that matches commercial development; securely integrating any new technologies into an existing system; and ensuring that adoption does not risk operational success.
These three challenges cannot be faced in isolation as too often addressing one of these challenges often creates issues for the others to resolve.
The rapid exploitation of technology can be achieved through aggressively compressing acquisition timescales and by ensuring that the fundamental principles of the system architecture supports integration of new technologies.
Existing work on open architecture is beginning to show real benefit. This must start to address the security aspects for adoption of new technologies and open architectures should form the basis of integration for technology platforms with a standardised, scalable framework on which to introduce capabilities.
Implementing an “adopt quickly, replace imminently” solution based upon sound open guidance will deliver true operational gains with acceptable risks. The rapid adoption and replacement of technologies that fit within open principles and guidance, rather than attempting to purchase a single long-term solution, is a key change for Defence.
Defence is increasingly being asked to adopt systems in a more agile manner. That agility challenges traditional methods, including engineering approaches. Adoption of open architectures and systems is a proven way to implement agility with greater confidence.
Originally Published 1 November 2016
Digital Defence 