Weapons under fire: Marine programs need to regain credibility, says acquisition chief.

• Author: Jean, Grace
• Position: UPFRONT

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QUANTICO, Va. -- The Marine Corps must fix its troubled procurement programs and restore its reputation on Capitol Hill if it wants to secure needed funding for new equipment, said a senior acquisition official.

Problems in several big-ticket Navy and Marine Corps programs in recent years--particularly the littoral combat ship and the expeditionary fighting vehicle--have prompted lawmakers to propose major funding cuts.

The current challenges in major acquisition programs should serve as a wake-up call both for military procurement officials and contractors, said Brig. Gen. Michael Brogan, commander of the Marine Corps Systems Command.

"Right now, you and I have a credibility problem on the Hill with the leadership," Brogan warned defense contractors at the Modern Day Marine Expo.

"They're tired of development that takes longer than planned, costs more" and does not yield a system that performs well, said Brogan.

In some cases, lawmakers have responded by mandating a shift from cost-plus contracts to fixed-price contracts. Analysts have warned such congressional decisions may eventually set a precedent for all future acquisitions.

At the Pentagon, procurement officials also have begun an internal shake-up. John Young, acting undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, told the Marine Corps and the Army in late August that the joint light tactical vehicle program--the replacement for the humvee--was not technologically mature enough to advance to further development efforts. The program was sent back to the drawing board.

"We have the combined problem of the joint light tactical vehicle that is staring us right in the face," said Maj. Gen. Duane Thiessen, of the Marine Corps' programs and resources office. "We're going to need some proofs of concept. We're going to need some concept demonstrators in order to get a viable program going."

The Marine Corps acquisitions office is taking steps to comply with Young's directive.

"We're going to reduce our risk in system development and design by doing prototyping upfront and maintaining competition for as long as possible," said Brogan.

The Marine Corps will expect industry bids--including cost estimates and schedules--in future programs to be "brutally accurate," he said. New weapons systems also will require "open architecture" designs so they can be interoperable with other systems, Brogan said. "If you bring me a proprietary system, I'm going to...