PRODUCT SUPPORT
Te Ofce of the Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment’s 2025 Acquisition Transformation Strategy includes an initiative to modernize systems engineering and build and sustain our Joint Force weapon systems bet- ter, faster, and cheaper by using advanced acquisition and physics-based models. Te strategy states, “Te Department will integrate and scale adoption and investment in digital engineering and model-based engineering … which will fuel rapid, iterative designs and technology insertion to maxi- mize mission outcomes.”
It’s important to understand and remember the promising sustain - ment benefits of physics-based mod - els and simulations. Digital engineering (DE) employs digital models and data to support the development, test and evalua - tion (T&E), and sustainment of a sys - tem. Nearly all new Department of War (DoW) systems—ships, aircraft, ground vehicles, weapons, satellites, etc.—are now designed, developed, produced, and tested using DE meth - odologies and processes. This in - cludes but is not limited to graphical modeling languages, three-dimen - sional computer-aided design (3D CAD) models, and simulations. Other elements of a program’s DE capabil - ity include a DE Ecosystem (DEE) (e.g., infrastructure and tools), digital arti - facts (products), digital twins (virtual replicas of physical entities synchro - nized across time), and digital threads (analytical frameworks). Employing DE requires significant investment to establish the DEE, train and upskill personnel, and create new processes and workflows. Po - tential benefits of DE include but are not limited to increased speed and efficiency, higher first-pass quality,
reduced rework, better traceability, better trade-off analysis, improved risk reduction, and “sought-after in - tangibles” such as flexibility, adapt - ability, and agility. Unlike traditional programs that can be reactive, manual, and stove - piped, DE programs are often more predictive, automated, and inte - grated. These benefits have been studied by various think tanks and boards, and no single program has yet accrued all the benefits. How - ever, programs are now beginning to report, with increased clarity, empiri - cal, quantitative benefits, particularly in terms of time saved. DoD Instruction (DoDI) 5000.97, Digital En- gineering requires program managers (PMs), unless excepted [exempted], to address DE in their program’s acquisi - tion strategy, including documenting how and when DE will be used and a list of expected benefits. The in - struction also directs PMs to present their DE approach at each milestone decision for Major Capability Acquisition programs and to implement DE “to the maximum extent possible” for Middle Tier of Acquisition programs. DoDI 5000.88, Engineering of Defense Systems fur - ther requires that programs include
Left: U.S. Air Force aerial port members from the 70th and 80th Aerial Port Squadrons and U.S. Marines with the Ground Based Air Defense Battery, 3d Littoral Anti-Air Battalion, 3d Marine Littoral Regiment, 3d Marine Division, offload a joint light tactical vehicle mounted Marine Air Defense Integrated System assigned to 3d LAAB from a U.S. Air Force Reserve C-17 Globemaster III at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Feb. 10, 2025. This Joint Force exercise enhances mobility and embarkation readiness, ensuring Airmen and Marines are familiarized with procedures to rapidly deploy and relocate critical weapon systems to contested areas with maximum effectiveness. Source: U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Erica Webster This image was cropped to show detail and edited using multiple flters plus dodging and burning techniques.
JANUARY FEBRUARY 2026 | DEFENSE ACQUISITION MAGAZINE 27 –
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