Purpose: Develop intelligent anticipatory tools that efficiently

manage, track, redirect, account for and distribute supplies to forward units engaged in decisive action/operations

Results: Identification & prioritization of onward movement,

leveraging and optimizing all conveyance modes, ensuring timely delivery, and allowing gaining unit to predict arrival

Visibility and accountability between multiple transit nodes irrespective of command level and class of supply

Real-time distribution management for sustainment operations in austere and remote environments

Payoff: Improved capability to tactically transport and reliably

deliver consumables to Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) and smaller satellite bases in remote, dispersed, austere locations

Reduced supplier and equipment risk, including improved efficient and safe methods for equipment retrograde operations

Milestone Schedule and Cost

Milestone FY13 ($K)

FY14 ($K)

FY15 ($K)

FY16 ($K)

FY17 ($K)

Distribution Management Tool

Distribution Modeling

Mobile-Based Planning & Assessment

Distribution Analytics

Systems Integration

6.2 T40 1143 2628 2700 2600 2000

6.2 T42 355 349

6.3 T08 600 439 436 400 500

Total 2098 3416 3136 3000 2500

Distribution Management Tool

3

63

64

6

Total$14.1M

54

4 6

Distribution Management Tool

Measure Current Objective TRL

Prediction of Delivery (FOB, COP, PB)

Not Available +/- 2 days 5

Visibility of Distribution Network

< 50% known location of transaction

95% known location of transaction

6

Mobile Applications Not Available Accessible Anytime/Anywhere

6

2

7. How are we leveraging other technology efforts? Substantial technical participation from Army and Joint movement

managers with access to their respective talent and resources Coordination with PEOs developing related logistical software applications Expanding upon the lessons learned from G4/LIA logistics data visibility

efforts such as NGWC, EBAL, VITaL and Mobile Applications

8. Other Attributes:

Technology Protection Plan: Yes

International Program: No

Endorsements:— DA G4/LIA— PEO EIS— USTRANSCOM (SDDC)— CASCOM— PEO C3T

Technology Transition Agreement: In Process; TTAs expected with labs, PEO EIS, USTRANSCOM (GTN/IGC), MTS, PEO C3T, and others as identified.

Affordability Metrics: TBD. Trade studies/Operations Analyses on going to establish value and affordability metrics.

6. Quantitative metrics: 1. What is the problem? Forward units lack the ability to accurately identify sustainment

requirements and execute distribution decisions considering force protection

Incompatible strategic and tactical distribution systems Lack of timely delivery of supplies and equipment to the Warfighter

2. What are the barriers to solving this problem? Visibility limited as items transition from strategic move into

tactical move Tactical movement information scattered throughout multiple

systems & networks and manual processes (Excel spreadsheets) are used to fill technology gaps

Information gap between strategic and tactical movements Delivery information not completely automated

3. How will you overcome those barriers? Incorporate semantic modeling to increase information

understanding across heterogeneous logistic systems Integrate mobile computing technologies across the

distribution process to extend actionable information far into the field (e.g., COP & PB)

Leverage spatial & temporal analysis to improve decision making associated with the distribution network

4. What is the capability you are developing? Identification and prioritization of onward movement so gaining

unit can predict arrival Visibility and accountability between multiple transit nodes

irrespective of command level and class of supply Capability to prioritize delivery requirements of needed material

5. What is the result/product of this effort? Synchronization of information from multiple deployment and

distribution data sources for improved tactical logistical SA Ability to match requirements to resources Distribution network model for predicting network flow Enhancement of relevancy of Legacy Systems

Distribution Management Tool

2

9. Describe any partnerships/collaborations with external organizations/companies in the execution of this program. Is ERDC considered a leader or a follower in these arrangements (OGA, Industry, or Academia?)

ERDC is the leader in the development of the DMT. The DMT will utilize LIA’s NGWC mesh network technology as a primary data source, and DA G4/LIA continues to support the effort. The DMT program is aligned with the development of the PM-TIS product TOPS.

10. Is this work considered a disruptive technology? Why?

This program is not in and of itself considered disruptive. It is utilizing basic technologies that have been developed elsewhere as well as developing complementing technologies. Various disconnected primitive tools exist at present to address some goals of this project. However, they are stove-piped and do not readily share information to achieve optimal performance of supply delivery. This project will capitalize on the introduction of innovative mobile technology to provide insight into warehouse inventory, supply transit, and delivery windows. The flexibility introduced thereby greatly enhances the tactical commander’s ability to more accurately identify troop requirements and execute distribution decisions.

11. What new intellectual property are you generating based on this activity? (Patents, new knowledge, new technologies, innovative materials, etc.)

All of the software being developed for this program will be completely government owned. Diversity of constraints drives the computational complexity of the vehicle routing problem (VRP). To meet timelines for effective sustainment of operations, this complexity may be short-circuited by the introduction of metaheuristics and various machine learning strategies, which, when properly integrated, may be patentable. Most current VRP algorithms are serially-based. As massively-multicore systems become more pervasive, optimizers may be parallelized for faster time to solution. All new technology will be robust, extensively tested, and well-documented for ease of use by all levels of command.