Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook
Transcript Of Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook
July 2009
Prepared by the Director, Research Directorate (DRD) Office of the Director, Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E)
This version of the TRA Deskbook accounts for policy and guidance provided by Directive DoDD 5000.01, of May 12, 2003 and certified current as of November 20, 2007; Instruction DoDI 5000.02, dated December 2, 2008; and the online Defense Acquisition Guidebook.
Report Documentation Page
Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188
Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number.
1. REPORT DATE
JUL 2009
2. REPORT TYPE
3. DATES COVERED
00-00-2009 to 00-00-2009
4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE
Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook
6. AUTHOR(S)
7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)
Director Research Directorate,Office of the Director Defense Research and Engineering,Washington,DC
5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER
9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)
12. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
Approved for public release; distribution unlimited
10. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S ACRONYM(S)
11. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S REPORT NUMBER(S)
13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT
15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF:
a. REPORT
unclassified
b. ABSTRACT
unclassified
c. THIS PAGE
unclassified
17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT
Same as Report (SAR)
18. NUMBER OF PAGES
129
19a. NAME OF RESPONSIBLE PERSON
Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8-98)
Prescribed by ANSI Std Z39-18
Contents
Executive Summary .................................................................................................. ES-1 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Definition ............................. 1-1 1.2 TRA Authority .......................................................................................... 1-2 1.3 TRA Importance ....................................................................................... 1-3 1.3.1 Milestone B TRA .......................................................................... 1-3 1.3.2 Milestone C TRA .......................................................................... 1-5 1.4 Purpose and Organization of This Document ........................................... 1-5 2. Initiating and Conducting TRAs .................................................................... 2-1 2.1 Key Players and the TRA Timeline .......................................................... 2-1 2.2 Roles and Responsibilities ........................................................................ 2-1 3. Evolution of Knowledge on Technology Maturity ........................................ 3-1 3.1 Early Evaluations of Technology Maturity ............................................... 3-1 3.2 Summary ................................................................................................... 3-3
List of Acronyms .................................................................................................... ACR-1
Appendixes A Submitting a Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) ...................................... A-1 B. Guidance and Best Practices for Identifying Critical Technology
Elements (CTEs) .................................................................................................... B-1 C. Guidance and Best Practices for Assessing Technology Maturity ......................... C-1 D. Amplifying Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Guidance for Ships ........ D-1 E. Biomedical Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) ................................................ E-1 F Technology Maturity Policy ................................................................................... F-1 G. The Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Process ....................................... G-1 H. Easy-Reference Displays of the Hardware/Software TRLs and
Additional TRL Definitions ................................................................................... H-1
iii
Figure
2-1. Representative Schedule for TRA Activities ...................................................... 2-2
Table
3-1. Basis of Technology Maturity Assessments Throughout Acquisition ................ 3-3
iv
Executive Summary
A Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) is a formal, systematic, metricsbased process and accompanying report that assesses the maturity of critical hardware and software technologies to be used in systems. It is conducted by an Independent Review Team (IRT) of subject matter experts (SMEs).
This formal TRA complements—but does not in any way preclude—the program manager’s (PM’s) responsibility to pursue all the risk reduction efforts needed to ensure that adequate technological maturity is reached before Milestone B approval is sought. As an activity separate from the formal TRA, an early evaluation of technology maturity conducted shortly before Milestone A should be used to support the planning of these risk reduction efforts.
All Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition programs must have a formal TRA at Milestone B and at Milestone C of the Defense Acquisition System. For ships, a preliminary assessment is required at program initiation. TRAs for Acquisition Category (ACAT) ID and IAM programs must be submitted to the Director, Research Directorate (DRD) in the office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E).
Title 10 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 2366b requires, in part, that the Milestone Decision Authority (MDA) certify that the technology being used in Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs), including space MDAPs, has been demonstrated in a relevant environment before Milestone B approval. The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (USD(AT&L)) relies on the DDR&E to provide technical advice to support this certification. In addition, while 10 U.S.C. 2366b is only applicable to MDAPs, the DoD is also requiring Major Automated Information System (MAIS) acquisitions to meet the same technology maturity standard at Milestone B. Consequently, the DDR&E is also providing technical advice to the MDA for MAIS acquisitions. The DDR&E is using the approved TRA process and report as the basis of that technical advice.
This document, the Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook, provides DRD guidance for conducting TRAs. The body of this document is a concise description
ES-1
of suggested best practices, responsibilities, roles, and procedures for meeting the TRA requirements. The appendixes are designed to amplify the material in the main body. ACAT ID and IAM programs are expected to follow these best practices as a condition for certification. The processes outlined should also be used for other MDAPs.
This Deskbook is intentionally generic and non-prescriptive. The Services and agencies, given their vast organizational structures, are encouraged to establish their own implementation guidance, approved and endorsed by the Component Science and Technology (S&T) Executive. Procedures should be based upon the principles, guidance, and recommended best practices contained in this Deskbook.
ES-2
Section 1. Introduction
1.1 Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Definition
A TRA is a formal, systematic, metrics-based process and accompanying report1 that assesses the maturity of technologies called Critical Technology Elements (CTEs)2 to be used in systems. CTEs can be hardware or software. The definition of a CTE is as follows:
A technology element is “critical” if the system being acquired depends on this technology element to meet operational requirements (within acceptable cost and schedule limits) and if the technology element or its application is either new or novel or in an area that poses major technological risk during detailed design or demonstration.
This definition represents an expansion of previous definitions by adding the phrase “or in an area that poses major technological risk during detailed design or demonstration.” In the past, some confusion arose in determining whether a CTE is a “technology” or solely a matter of “engineering.” The purpose of this new phrase is to be more encompassing. If the technology represents a major risk, it should be identified as a CTE so that the TRA will include technical information that can be used to mitigate the risk.
An Independent Review Team (IRT) of subject matter experts (SMEs) uses Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) as the metric to assess CTE maturity.3 The TRL scale ranges from one through nine. The definitions are as follows:
TRL 1: Basic principles observed and reported TRL 2: Technology concept and/or application formulated TRL 3: Analytical and experimental critical function and/or characteristic
proof of concept TRL 4: Component and/or breadboard validation in a laboratory environment
1 Appendix A contains an annotated outline of the TRA report. 2 Appendix B addresses the CTE identification process in more detail. 3 Appendix C discusses TRLs and CTE maturity assessments in more detail. Appendix D provides some
amplifying guidance for ships. Appendix E addresses biomedical TRLs. Appendix H (at the end of this document) is an easy-reference display of the hardware and software TRLs and additional definitions of TRL descriptive terms.
1-1
TRL 5: Component and/or breadboard validation in a relevant environment TRL 6: System/subsystem model or prototype demonstration in a relevant
environment TRL 7: System prototype demonstration in an operational environment TRL 8: Actual system completed and qualified through test and demonstra-
tion TRL 9: Actual system proven through successful mission operations.
CTE lists of varying provenance exist during the TRA. We reserve the term “CTE” for the final list with the Director, Research Directorate (DRD) concurrence. “Possible” CTEs are on the list prepared by the program manager (PM), “potential” CTEs are from pre-Materiel Solution Analysis (MSA) early evaluations of technology maturity, and “candidate” CTEs represent the IRT product for DRD coordination.
1.2 TRA Authority
The requirement to conduct a formal TRA is established by the following documents:4,5
Department of Defense Directive (DoDD) 5000.01, The Defense Acquisition System, of May 12, 2003, and certified current as of November 20, 2007
Department of Defense Instruction (DoDI) 5000.02, Operation of the Defense Acquisition System, dated December 2, 2008
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics USD(AT&L) Memorandum on Transition of the Defense Space Acquisition Board (DSAB) Into the Defense Acquisition Board and its interim guidance attachment, dated March 23, 2009
DoDD 5000.01 authorizes the publication of DoDI 5000.02. Together, these documents provide management principles and mandatory policies and procedures for managing all acquisition programs. DoDI 5000.02 establishes a regulatory requirement for TRAs. All Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition programs must prepare a TRA at Milestone B and at Milestone C of the Defense Acquisition System. For ships, a
4 The 5000 series documents are available at https://akss.dau.mil/dapc/index.aspx. A working knowledge of the Defense Acquisition System is assumed in the main body of this document.
5 There is no such thing as an informal TRA. While many assessments of technology maturity will be conducted in the science and technology (S&T) environment and in the context of an acquisition program, the term “Technology Readiness Assessment” applies only to this regulatory requirement.
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preliminary assessment is required at program initiation. TRAs for Acquisition Category (ACAT) ID and IAM programs must be submitted to the DRD. The TRA processes presented in this document should be adapted to other ACAT programs to fulfill regulatory and statutory requirements.
The TRA complements—but does not in any way preclude—the PM’s responsibility to pursue all risk reduction efforts needed to ensure that adequate technological maturity is reached before Milestone B approval is sought. As an activity separate from the formal TRA, an early evaluation of technology maturity conducted shortly before Milestone A should be used to support the development of the Technology Development Strategy (TDS).
1.3 TRA Importance
1.3.1 Milestone B TRA
Programs that enter the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the Defense Acquisition System and have immature technologies will incur cost growth and schedule slippage. Therefore, Title 10 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 2366b requires, in part, that the Milestone Decision Authority (MDA) certify that the technology in Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs), including space MDAPS,6 has been demonstrated in a relevant environment (TRL 6) before Milestone B approval. The law allows the MDA to waive the certification requirement (i.e., the technology in the program has been demonstrated in a relevant environment) if it determines that such a requirement would hinder the DoD’s ability to meet critical national security objectives. As a matter of practice, such waivers will be granted only in extraordinary circumstances.7 The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (USD(AT&L)) has directed that all MDAs—including the Component Acquisition Executives (CAEs) and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration (ASD(NII))—for MDAPs will certify without delegation, as required by law.8
6 Statutory language refers to Key Decision Point (KDP) B for space programs. This terminology has been made obsolete by the aforementioned USD(AT&L) memorandum, dated March 23, 2009.
7 Whenever the MDA makes such a determination and authorizes such a waiver, the waiver and the reasons for the determination have to be submitted in writing to the Congressional defense committees within 30 days of waiver authorization.
8 Implementation of Section 2366a of Title 10, United States Code, as amended by the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008 (P.L. No. 110-181), USD(AT&L) Memorandum, February 25, 2008, as amended by Policy Update Due To Technical Change in Statute – Reference for Requirement for
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The USD(AT&L) relies on the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E) to provide technical advice to support certification. In addition, while 10 U.S.C. 2366b is only binding for MDAPs, the DoD is also requiring Major Automated Information System (MAIS) acquisitions to meet the same technology maturity standard at Milestone B. Consequently, the DDR&E is also providing technical advice to the MDA for MAIS acquisitions. The DDR&E is using the approved TRA process and report as the basis of that technical advice.9 DoDI 5000.02 requires Request for Proposal (RFP) language that prevents the award of an EMD contract if it includes technologies that have not been demonstrated to be mature. As such, a generic TRA not based on the planned technical solution is not acceptable. The TRA must be based on the technologies in the system. This means that TRAs must be performed on all the competitors’ proposals in a source selection. Under the DDR&E, the DRD has primary responsibility for overseeing the TRA process and reviewing TRA reports.
PMs have found that the TRA assessment process is useful in managing technology maturity. The TRA process highlights critical technologies and other potential technology risk areas that require the PM’s attention. The TRA can help identify immature and important components and track the maturity development of those components. Some programs use TRAs as an important part of their risk assessment.10
For Information Technology (IT) systems, which rely heavily on off-the-shelf components, TRAs have increased management’s focus on finding CTEs that relate specifically to IT issues (e.g., interfaces, throughput, scalability, external dependencies, integration, and information assurance). Since many IT systems have experienced problems in these areas, the TRA has proven useful in understanding potential problems earlier in the process, when solution options are easier to adopt and less costly to implement.
1.3.2 Milestone C TRA
Milestone C marks approval to enter low rate initiation production (LRIP) for hardware systems and limited deployment in support of operational testing for MAIS programs or for software-intensive systems that have no production components. TRL 7 or higher is the expected state of technology maturity at Milestone C.
Milestone B Certification becomes Section 2366b vice 2366a, Director Acquisition Resources and Analysis Memorandum, November 21, 2008. 9 Appendix F provides more information on how the TRA supports certification. 10 Early evaluations of technology maturity also assist in risk reduction. See Section 3.1.
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Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook
July 2009
Prepared by the Director, Research Directorate (DRD) Office of the Director, Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E)
This version of the TRA Deskbook accounts for policy and guidance provided by Directive DoDD 5000.01, of May 12, 2003 and certified current as of November 20, 2007; Instruction DoDI 5000.02, dated December 2, 2008; and the online Defense Acquisition Guidebook.
Report Documentation Page
Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188
Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number.
1. REPORT DATE
JUL 2009
2. REPORT TYPE
3. DATES COVERED
00-00-2009 to 00-00-2009
4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE
Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook
6. AUTHOR(S)
7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)
Director Research Directorate,Office of the Director Defense Research and Engineering,Washington,DC
5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER
9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)
12. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
Approved for public release; distribution unlimited
10. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S ACRONYM(S)
11. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S REPORT NUMBER(S)
13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT
15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF:
a. REPORT
unclassified
b. ABSTRACT
unclassified
c. THIS PAGE
unclassified
17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT
Same as Report (SAR)
18. NUMBER OF PAGES
129
19a. NAME OF RESPONSIBLE PERSON
Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8-98)
Prescribed by ANSI Std Z39-18
Contents
Executive Summary .................................................................................................. ES-1 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Definition ............................. 1-1 1.2 TRA Authority .......................................................................................... 1-2 1.3 TRA Importance ....................................................................................... 1-3 1.3.1 Milestone B TRA .......................................................................... 1-3 1.3.2 Milestone C TRA .......................................................................... 1-5 1.4 Purpose and Organization of This Document ........................................... 1-5 2. Initiating and Conducting TRAs .................................................................... 2-1 2.1 Key Players and the TRA Timeline .......................................................... 2-1 2.2 Roles and Responsibilities ........................................................................ 2-1 3. Evolution of Knowledge on Technology Maturity ........................................ 3-1 3.1 Early Evaluations of Technology Maturity ............................................... 3-1 3.2 Summary ................................................................................................... 3-3
List of Acronyms .................................................................................................... ACR-1
Appendixes A Submitting a Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) ...................................... A-1 B. Guidance and Best Practices for Identifying Critical Technology
Elements (CTEs) .................................................................................................... B-1 C. Guidance and Best Practices for Assessing Technology Maturity ......................... C-1 D. Amplifying Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Guidance for Ships ........ D-1 E. Biomedical Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) ................................................ E-1 F Technology Maturity Policy ................................................................................... F-1 G. The Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Process ....................................... G-1 H. Easy-Reference Displays of the Hardware/Software TRLs and
Additional TRL Definitions ................................................................................... H-1
iii
Figure
2-1. Representative Schedule for TRA Activities ...................................................... 2-2
Table
3-1. Basis of Technology Maturity Assessments Throughout Acquisition ................ 3-3
iv
Executive Summary
A Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) is a formal, systematic, metricsbased process and accompanying report that assesses the maturity of critical hardware and software technologies to be used in systems. It is conducted by an Independent Review Team (IRT) of subject matter experts (SMEs).
This formal TRA complements—but does not in any way preclude—the program manager’s (PM’s) responsibility to pursue all the risk reduction efforts needed to ensure that adequate technological maturity is reached before Milestone B approval is sought. As an activity separate from the formal TRA, an early evaluation of technology maturity conducted shortly before Milestone A should be used to support the planning of these risk reduction efforts.
All Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition programs must have a formal TRA at Milestone B and at Milestone C of the Defense Acquisition System. For ships, a preliminary assessment is required at program initiation. TRAs for Acquisition Category (ACAT) ID and IAM programs must be submitted to the Director, Research Directorate (DRD) in the office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E).
Title 10 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 2366b requires, in part, that the Milestone Decision Authority (MDA) certify that the technology being used in Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs), including space MDAPs, has been demonstrated in a relevant environment before Milestone B approval. The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (USD(AT&L)) relies on the DDR&E to provide technical advice to support this certification. In addition, while 10 U.S.C. 2366b is only applicable to MDAPs, the DoD is also requiring Major Automated Information System (MAIS) acquisitions to meet the same technology maturity standard at Milestone B. Consequently, the DDR&E is also providing technical advice to the MDA for MAIS acquisitions. The DDR&E is using the approved TRA process and report as the basis of that technical advice.
This document, the Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Deskbook, provides DRD guidance for conducting TRAs. The body of this document is a concise description
ES-1
of suggested best practices, responsibilities, roles, and procedures for meeting the TRA requirements. The appendixes are designed to amplify the material in the main body. ACAT ID and IAM programs are expected to follow these best practices as a condition for certification. The processes outlined should also be used for other MDAPs.
This Deskbook is intentionally generic and non-prescriptive. The Services and agencies, given their vast organizational structures, are encouraged to establish their own implementation guidance, approved and endorsed by the Component Science and Technology (S&T) Executive. Procedures should be based upon the principles, guidance, and recommended best practices contained in this Deskbook.
ES-2
Section 1. Introduction
1.1 Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Definition
A TRA is a formal, systematic, metrics-based process and accompanying report1 that assesses the maturity of technologies called Critical Technology Elements (CTEs)2 to be used in systems. CTEs can be hardware or software. The definition of a CTE is as follows:
A technology element is “critical” if the system being acquired depends on this technology element to meet operational requirements (within acceptable cost and schedule limits) and if the technology element or its application is either new or novel or in an area that poses major technological risk during detailed design or demonstration.
This definition represents an expansion of previous definitions by adding the phrase “or in an area that poses major technological risk during detailed design or demonstration.” In the past, some confusion arose in determining whether a CTE is a “technology” or solely a matter of “engineering.” The purpose of this new phrase is to be more encompassing. If the technology represents a major risk, it should be identified as a CTE so that the TRA will include technical information that can be used to mitigate the risk.
An Independent Review Team (IRT) of subject matter experts (SMEs) uses Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) as the metric to assess CTE maturity.3 The TRL scale ranges from one through nine. The definitions are as follows:
TRL 1: Basic principles observed and reported TRL 2: Technology concept and/or application formulated TRL 3: Analytical and experimental critical function and/or characteristic
proof of concept TRL 4: Component and/or breadboard validation in a laboratory environment
1 Appendix A contains an annotated outline of the TRA report. 2 Appendix B addresses the CTE identification process in more detail. 3 Appendix C discusses TRLs and CTE maturity assessments in more detail. Appendix D provides some
amplifying guidance for ships. Appendix E addresses biomedical TRLs. Appendix H (at the end of this document) is an easy-reference display of the hardware and software TRLs and additional definitions of TRL descriptive terms.
1-1
TRL 5: Component and/or breadboard validation in a relevant environment TRL 6: System/subsystem model or prototype demonstration in a relevant
environment TRL 7: System prototype demonstration in an operational environment TRL 8: Actual system completed and qualified through test and demonstra-
tion TRL 9: Actual system proven through successful mission operations.
CTE lists of varying provenance exist during the TRA. We reserve the term “CTE” for the final list with the Director, Research Directorate (DRD) concurrence. “Possible” CTEs are on the list prepared by the program manager (PM), “potential” CTEs are from pre-Materiel Solution Analysis (MSA) early evaluations of technology maturity, and “candidate” CTEs represent the IRT product for DRD coordination.
1.2 TRA Authority
The requirement to conduct a formal TRA is established by the following documents:4,5
Department of Defense Directive (DoDD) 5000.01, The Defense Acquisition System, of May 12, 2003, and certified current as of November 20, 2007
Department of Defense Instruction (DoDI) 5000.02, Operation of the Defense Acquisition System, dated December 2, 2008
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics USD(AT&L) Memorandum on Transition of the Defense Space Acquisition Board (DSAB) Into the Defense Acquisition Board and its interim guidance attachment, dated March 23, 2009
DoDD 5000.01 authorizes the publication of DoDI 5000.02. Together, these documents provide management principles and mandatory policies and procedures for managing all acquisition programs. DoDI 5000.02 establishes a regulatory requirement for TRAs. All Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition programs must prepare a TRA at Milestone B and at Milestone C of the Defense Acquisition System. For ships, a
4 The 5000 series documents are available at https://akss.dau.mil/dapc/index.aspx. A working knowledge of the Defense Acquisition System is assumed in the main body of this document.
5 There is no such thing as an informal TRA. While many assessments of technology maturity will be conducted in the science and technology (S&T) environment and in the context of an acquisition program, the term “Technology Readiness Assessment” applies only to this regulatory requirement.
1-2
preliminary assessment is required at program initiation. TRAs for Acquisition Category (ACAT) ID and IAM programs must be submitted to the DRD. The TRA processes presented in this document should be adapted to other ACAT programs to fulfill regulatory and statutory requirements.
The TRA complements—but does not in any way preclude—the PM’s responsibility to pursue all risk reduction efforts needed to ensure that adequate technological maturity is reached before Milestone B approval is sought. As an activity separate from the formal TRA, an early evaluation of technology maturity conducted shortly before Milestone A should be used to support the development of the Technology Development Strategy (TDS).
1.3 TRA Importance
1.3.1 Milestone B TRA
Programs that enter the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the Defense Acquisition System and have immature technologies will incur cost growth and schedule slippage. Therefore, Title 10 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 2366b requires, in part, that the Milestone Decision Authority (MDA) certify that the technology in Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs), including space MDAPS,6 has been demonstrated in a relevant environment (TRL 6) before Milestone B approval. The law allows the MDA to waive the certification requirement (i.e., the technology in the program has been demonstrated in a relevant environment) if it determines that such a requirement would hinder the DoD’s ability to meet critical national security objectives. As a matter of practice, such waivers will be granted only in extraordinary circumstances.7 The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (USD(AT&L)) has directed that all MDAs—including the Component Acquisition Executives (CAEs) and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration (ASD(NII))—for MDAPs will certify without delegation, as required by law.8
6 Statutory language refers to Key Decision Point (KDP) B for space programs. This terminology has been made obsolete by the aforementioned USD(AT&L) memorandum, dated March 23, 2009.
7 Whenever the MDA makes such a determination and authorizes such a waiver, the waiver and the reasons for the determination have to be submitted in writing to the Congressional defense committees within 30 days of waiver authorization.
8 Implementation of Section 2366a of Title 10, United States Code, as amended by the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008 (P.L. No. 110-181), USD(AT&L) Memorandum, February 25, 2008, as amended by Policy Update Due To Technical Change in Statute – Reference for Requirement for
1-3
The USD(AT&L) relies on the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E) to provide technical advice to support certification. In addition, while 10 U.S.C. 2366b is only binding for MDAPs, the DoD is also requiring Major Automated Information System (MAIS) acquisitions to meet the same technology maturity standard at Milestone B. Consequently, the DDR&E is also providing technical advice to the MDA for MAIS acquisitions. The DDR&E is using the approved TRA process and report as the basis of that technical advice.9 DoDI 5000.02 requires Request for Proposal (RFP) language that prevents the award of an EMD contract if it includes technologies that have not been demonstrated to be mature. As such, a generic TRA not based on the planned technical solution is not acceptable. The TRA must be based on the technologies in the system. This means that TRAs must be performed on all the competitors’ proposals in a source selection. Under the DDR&E, the DRD has primary responsibility for overseeing the TRA process and reviewing TRA reports.
PMs have found that the TRA assessment process is useful in managing technology maturity. The TRA process highlights critical technologies and other potential technology risk areas that require the PM’s attention. The TRA can help identify immature and important components and track the maturity development of those components. Some programs use TRAs as an important part of their risk assessment.10
For Information Technology (IT) systems, which rely heavily on off-the-shelf components, TRAs have increased management’s focus on finding CTEs that relate specifically to IT issues (e.g., interfaces, throughput, scalability, external dependencies, integration, and information assurance). Since many IT systems have experienced problems in these areas, the TRA has proven useful in understanding potential problems earlier in the process, when solution options are easier to adopt and less costly to implement.
1.3.2 Milestone C TRA
Milestone C marks approval to enter low rate initiation production (LRIP) for hardware systems and limited deployment in support of operational testing for MAIS programs or for software-intensive systems that have no production components. TRL 7 or higher is the expected state of technology maturity at Milestone C.
Milestone B Certification becomes Section 2366b vice 2366a, Director Acquisition Resources and Analysis Memorandum, November 21, 2008. 9 Appendix F provides more information on how the TRA supports certification. 10 Early evaluations of technology maturity also assist in risk reduction. See Section 3.1.
1-4