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,...
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.
Rapid Fielding Initiative (RFI) Overiview
The primary goal of the RFI is to improve the survivability, lethality and mobility of American soldiers deployed overseas, by leveraging the military's current procurement programs, as well as utilizing commercial off-the-shelf technology and benefiting from lessons they have learned for the ongoing operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The list of RFI equipment that soldiers receive in the field is updated regularly, as a means of ensuring that the equipment is both current and relevant. The U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command is charged with this responsibility and the list is then approved by Headquarters, Department of the Army ("Rapid fielding," 2009). The list is comprised of two categories of equipment.
1. The equipment that every soldier receives no matter what their duties. These items include: clothing items, helmets, boots, etc.
2. Additional unit equipment fielded only to Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs).
This second category of equipment includes specialty equipment that is not used by every soldier. Examples include: Military Operations on Urban Terrain kits and weapons optics. There are a
