Over the past decade, dozens of studies, reports, directives, and commissions have recommended specific changes in the approach the Department of Defense (DoD) uses to acquire products (primarily major weapon systems). This Defense Science Board (DSB) Summer Study Task Force reviewed these prior studies and concluded that, by and large, the recommendations have ben implemented. Rather than adding to the list of 'what to do' recommendations, this Task Force concentrated on recommending 'how-to-implement' change. This is a departure from the typical technical recommendations, but the Task Force believes this 'how to' focus is urgently needed at this juncture.

Over the past decade, dozens of studies, reports, directives, and commissions have recommended specific changes in the approach the Department of Defense (DoD) uses to acquire products (primarily major weapon systems). This Defense Science Board (DSB) Summer Study Task Force reviewed these prior studies and concluded that, by and large, the recommendations have ben implemented. Rather than adding to the list of 'what to do' recommendations, this Task Force concentrated on recommending 'how-to-implement' change. This is a departure from the typical technical recommendations, but the Task Force believes this 'how to' focus is urgently needed at this juncture.

This report presents the recommendations of the Defense Science Board (DSB) Summer Study Task Force on Engineering in the Manufacturing Process. The terms of reference (TOR) for this Task Force represent a logical continuation of DSB manufacturing studies performed in prior years, particularly in the areas of integrated product and process development (IPPD)2and dual-use-manufacturing. In this study, however, the primary focus is on Science and Technology (S AND T) and the application of IPPD and dual-use concepts even earlier than previous studies have recommended. During its study, the Task Force addressed engineering and manufacturing management and technology approaches that can be used to achieve a better product and process balance in the S AND T phase, which precedes the formal acquisition process, and that result in both unit production and total life cycle cost reduction. It chose S AND T "exit criteria" and metrics as the means to demonstrate process as well as performance capability during the S AND T phase and to reduce downstream acquisition risks. The Task Force also examined a key enabler of IPPD and manufacturing enterprise control-advanced modeling and simulation technology. The work in this area by this Task Force relates to the work of another DSB Summer Study that specifically addressed simulation, the Readiness, Simulation, and Prototyping Task Force. The expanded use of best commercial products, practices, and manufacturing capabilities was also considered as an additional way to meet the Department of Defense (DOD) future needs for rapid transition to production and economic low-volume manufacturing. As a result of its deliberations, the Task Force developed specific recommendations for experiments to be conducted within S AND T Advanced Technology Demonstrations (ATDs) to validate the benefits of the new recommended approaches to S AND T contained in this report.

Globalization-the integration of the political, economic and cultural activities of geographically and/or nationally separated peoples-is not a discernible event or challenge, is not new, but it is accelerating. More importantly, globalization is largely irresistible. Thus, globalization is not a policy option, but a fact to which policymakers must adapt. Globalization has accelerated as a result of many positive factors, the most notable of which include: the collapse of communism and the end of the Cold War; the spread of capitalism and free trade; more rapid and global capital flows and more liberal financial markets; the liberalization of communications; international academic and scientific collaboration; and faster and more efficient forms of transportation. At the core of accelerated global integration-at once its principal cause and consequence-is the information revolution, which is knocking down once-formidable barriers of physical distance, blurring national boundaries and creating cross-border communities of all types.