Army adopting a 'less is more' attitude in weapon acquisitions.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra I.
• Position: DEFENSEINSIDER - Brief article

The Army will be taking a "buy less, more often" approach to modernizing the force. The idea is to acquire smaller quantities of new systems and to accelerate technology development and testing so that equipment can be fielded faster and, if all goes well, at less cost than has historically been the case.

This is the philosophy behind what the Army calls an "affordable force modernization" effort that will seek to cure what has ailed Army acquisition programs for decades: Long development cycles, out-of-control prices and, in the end, nothing to show for it.

Another new twist in the strategy is that equipment will not be acquired in isolation but, instead, the hardware will be evaluated in the context of how Army tactical units are organized and trained, said Rickey Smith, director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center, in Arlington, Va.

Ultimately, it's all about saving money, Smith said. The Army expects budgets to tighten up in the near future, and it needs to soon change the way it...