Rapid Fielding Initiative an Important

¶ … Rapid Fielding Initiative an Important Program for the Army? Today's military must meet an ever-changing arrays of challenges. Ensuring America's deploying soldiers are equipped with the best and most effective equipment possible is critical to any unit's mission success. As such, the Rapid Fielding Initiative (RFI) program was developed. The RFI program transforms the Army's fielding efforts from unit-based equipment decisions to role-based equipment decisions. This is in accordance with the Soldier-as-a-System philosophy.

As such, the RFI program is an important program for the Army, as it allows for effective fielding, to enhance the soldier's capabilities, improving their survivability, lethality and mobility, while also reducing fielding turnaround, making the process more nimble and also realizing a significant cost savings in the process. During the five-month period between May 2008 and September 2008, $28.5 million was saved due to increased efficiencies in fielding.

Average equipping times have been reduced from taking months to years to get equipment out to deployed soldiers, to it only now taking days or weeks at the very most. All of these reasons clearly lead to the conclusion that the RFI program is an important program for the Army, the soldiers it serves, and the missions the military undertakes. Outline I. Introduction/Abstract 1. The RFI program is an important program for the Army, soldiers and missions 1. Ever-changing challenges for military must face 2.

Soldiers must have best and most effective equipment for mission success 3. RFI transforms unit-based to role-based equipment decisions 4. Enhance soldier's capabilities 5. Increase survivability, lethality, mobility 6. Savings of $28.5 million form May 2008 -- September 2008 7. Reduction in equipping times from months and years to days and weeks II. RFI Overview 1. Primary goal of RFI is to enhance capabilities 1. Improve survivability, lethality, and mobility 2. List is updated regularly to ensure current and relevant equipment 3. U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command creates this list 4. List approved by Headquarters, Department of the Army 5.

Two categories of equipment 1. The equipment that every soldier receives no matter what their duties 1. Clothing items, helmets, boots, etc. 2. Additional unit equipment fielded only to Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs) 6. Second category is specialty equipment 7. Example 1. Military Operations on Urban Terrain kits and weapons optics. There are a variety of other items that are issued with these two types of equipment categories, but are not part of the RFI program. These include items such as: Thermal Weapon Sights, Interceptor Body Armor, Army Combat Uniform, and Night Vision Goggles 2.

RFI is role-based strategy 1. Highest capability equipment is given to every soldier deployed 2. Soldier is assessed as a system 3. Mission specific equipment is issued 4. Example 1. "Every M249 squad automatic rifleman receives the appropriate optics, short barrels, collapsible butt-stock, Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment, and ammo packs required by a light machine gunner" ("Rapid fielding," 2009) 5. RFI program was to end FY 2007 but extended indefinitely III. Benefits of the RFI program 1. Procedures for 2nd or 3rd tour soldiers in place 1. Avoid redundant equipment for soldiers 2. Third quarter FY 2008 began lean fielding 1.

Soldiers are allowed to decline items that they have in their possession 2. Lessens equipment to be accounted for and returned 3. $28.5 million savings May -- September 2008 2. RFI soldiers are quipped more effectively 1. Role-based vs. unit-based fielding 2. Soldier's function and unit mission taken into account 3. "This focus prioritizes available resources to equip the Deployment Expeditionary Forces in the Army Force Generation (ARFORGEN) force pool. This distribution process ensures the Army's ability to meet near-term equippming requirements of deploying forces while it implements the ARFORGEN cycle for sustained capabilities over time" ("Rapid fielding," 2009). 3.

Efficiency is improved with RFI 1. PEO Soldier responsible for best and latest equipment for deploying soldiers 2. RFI has improved warehouse to foxhole times 1. Months or years to days or weeks 3. Centralized planning, programming and delivery coordinates 400 pieces of equipment 4. PEO Soldier moving from supplemental funding-based resource model to Program Objective Memorandum-based support for Solder-as-a-System 4. Enhances capabilities 1. Equip soldiers to enhance capabilities 2. Largest equipment fielding effort since WWII 3. Equipment is selected to ensure success in Overseas Contingency Operations 4. Enhances both Active and Reserve forces by modernization IV. Conclusion 1.

RFI program is critical for today's Army for several reasons 1. Soldiers are deployed with effective and highest quality equipment 2. Improves soldier's lethality, survivability and mobility 3. Soldier-as-a-System instead of unit-centric philosophy 1. Specific roles are assessed 4. Lean fielding minimizes duplicate equipment 5. Time to field is reduced 6. Substantial cost savings realized Is the Rapid Fielding Initiative an Important Program for the Army? Today's military must meet an ever-changing arrays of challenges. Ensuring America's deploying soldiers are equipped with the best and most effective equipment possible is critical to any unit's mission success.

As such, the Rapid Fielding Initiative (RFI) program was developed. The RFI program transforms the Army's fielding efforts from unit-based equipment decisions to role-based equipment decisions. This is in accordance with the Soldier-as-a-System philosophy. As such, the RFI program is an important program for the Army, as.