Improving the Interface between Industry and Army Science and Technology: Some Thoughts on the Army's Independent Research and Development Program

Abstract : The Army science and technology (S&T) program is conducted both in-house and in external laboratories. The program consists of basic research, applied research, and advanced development, known by their respective budget codes of 6.1, 6.2, and 6.3. All of the interfaces among the in-house laboratories, academia, and industry serve to broaden and strengthen the Army S&T program. DoD sponsorship of the Independent Research and Development (IR&D) program in industry has the same goals. This paper presents the various ways in which the Army laboratories link their work with external laboratories and looks for ways to improve these interfaces, with special emphasis on the IR&D program. The paper begins with a review of some successful interfaces between in-house efforts and those in the private sector. Examples of important interfaces leading to successful development of Army systems are taken from earlier studies. In these references, the close working relationships between Army laboratories, especially the Research, Engineering, and Development Centers, and the contractors that were building the particular systems under review are shown. We then provide important background on the IR&D program, including a discussion of efforts by the other Services to improve their IR&D interface. We also review Service participation in the IR&D program and provide commentary from interviews with selected individuals who have had experience with the IR&D programs. These include personnel from the Army, the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, other DoD components, and the private sector. The paper concludes with a review of these comments and offers conclusions and recommendations for improving the Army's ability to ally itself more closely with the IR&D program. Appendixes include a list of persons interviewed, IR&D roles and responsibilities in DoD, and a critique of the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) IR&D database.