US Army Eyes Flexibility Potential of Computing-as-a-Service

The U.S. Army is exploring the possibility of including computing-as-a-service in its network portfolio, after testing as-a-service setups for satellite communications and radio equipment, said Mark Kitz, head of the U.S. Army Program Executive Office Command, Control and Communications-Tactical. 

According to Kitz, a past Potomac Officers Club event speaker, the service is considering the arrangement for edge computing because of the rapid industry advances in compute size and power and the flexibility of as-a-service contracts, DefenseScoop reported Tuesday.    

In September 2023, the Army awarded DRS Global Enterprise Solution and Intelsat satcom-as-a-managed service contracts to pilot its capability of augmenting existing satellite communication platforms for the service branch units. Kitz said the service test has established the two contractors’ capability to build and deliver capacity on demand.

The Army is still evaluating the pilot results of its recent radio-as-a-service initiative, but Kitz is optimistic about the plan. Seeing many idle units, the “on-demand model for radios seems to make sense,” he said. 

Aside from the two pilot as-a-service efforts, the U.S. Army Program Executive Office Enterprise Information Systems has implemented the Integrated Business Planning Demand Planning software-as-a-service solution within the Logistics Modernization Program, an enterprise resource planning system that builds, sustains and generates warfighting capabilities.