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	Director, Operational Test & Evaluation
	FY98 Annual Report

SYSTEM DESCRIPTION & CONTRIBUTION TO JOINT VISION 2010

The Navy Tactical Command Support System (NTCSS) is a tactical command support information system for management of ships, submarines, aviation squadrons, and intermediate maintenance activities (afloat and ashore). NTCSS provides the unit commanding officer and crew with the ability to manage maintenance of the ship/aircraft, parts inventory, finances, automated technical manuals and drawings, personnel information, medical, crews mess, ships store, and unit administrative information. NTCSS also provides the intermediate level maintenance activities with the ability to manage workload and resources involved in repair actions for aviation repairables and ships repair work packages.

NTCSS is an open architecture client-server system using a common server and operating environment with the tactical systems. Personal computers and peripherals have been added for greater access and functionality. Future versions will shift more computing workload to the client as new operating system and application software technologies allow.

NTCSS is a roll-up of several independent legacy systems including the Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program and Naval Aviation Logistics Command Information System. It is the support side of the Joint Maritime Command Information System, with the Naval Tactical Command System- Afloat as the tactical side. The Joint Maritime Command Information System is the Navy input to the Global Command and Control System.

NTCSS supports Joint Vision 2010 in the area of focused logistics. The improved asset visibility and timely logistics and maintenance information flow to tactical decision makers will allow better use of available forces.

As part of the Navy's Copernicus architecture and the evolution towards the Joint Maritime Command Information System strategy, an NTCSS Program Transition Plan and Program Manager's Charter was released in May 1993. After the Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program--III was successfully fielded in 1994, the PM was moved up to the role of NTCSS PM.

Development work by the Navy Management Systems Support Office commenced in 1995 on the NTCSS software optimization. This step is essentially a software technology insertion phase following in the footsteps of the successful hardware technology insertion phase, which was the Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program--III, and the successful automation of a manual process which was the Naval Aviation Logistics Command Information System for organizational maintenance activities. Optimization will bring reengineered and ported software and minor procedural changes, including improved interfaces between the legacy systems to NTCSS.

The follow-on step will be a Business Process Improvement phase, which will result in reengineered processes and software and integration of the existing systems.

OPTEVFOR conducted the OT-IIIA (FOT&E) for the optimized Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program--III in December 1997, in accordance with the TEMP approved by DOT&E on July 14, 1997. OPTEVFOR also conducted an OA for the optimized Naval Aviation Logistics Command Information System for intermediate maintenance activities from March-May 1998, in accordance with the TEMP approved by DOT&E on November 27, 1996.

The OT-IIIA for the optimized Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program-III was conducted on board an Arleigh Burke class ship USS Stout (DDG-55). USS Enterprise, a force-level platform, was not involved in testing to date. Tests on board USS Stout evaluated the Relational Supply and Organizational Maintenance Manager Next Generation applications. Nine critical operational issues were addressed during the test: (1) functionality; (2) security; (3) reliability; (4) maintainability; (5) availability; (6) interoperability; (7) training; (8) human factors; and (9) documentation. The test results revealed one major deficiency-the functionality equivalency of the optimized Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program--III was below the required 95 percent threshold. The PMO took immediate actions to correct the problems. Subsequent verifications confirmed that the deficiency was corrected and the system achieved 95.7 percent functionality equivalency, which met the user requirements. OPTEVFOR concluded that the optimized Shipboard Non-Tactical ADP Program-III (excluding the Relational Administrative Data Management application) is both operationally effective and operationally suitable and recommended fleet introduction. DOT&E concurred with OPTEVFOR's recommendation. Because the USS Enterprise test was not conducted, testers were unable to evaluate the applications on a force-level ship as set forth in the ORD and TEMP. Future testing for the optimized Non-Tactical ADP Program-III is in planning to fulfill all program requirements. The OA results for the optimized Naval Aviation Logistics Command Information System for intermediate maintenance activities showed that the system has the potential to be operationally effective and operationally suitable.

Early and continuous involvement of DOT&E action officers and/or support personnel allowed smooth procession of test planning and program documentation despite initial differences over scope of testing and documentation requirements.