Army Evaluation Center
Abstract
This Project provides the resources to operate the Army Evaluation Center (AEC), the Army's independent evaluator for Army Futures Command (AFC) Cross Functional Team (CFT) efforts and all other Army and Joint Service programs (currently over 700 programs in total). AEC is the lead agent to plan, direct, and evaluate all required program testing and is the unbiased, independent authority for reporting on system progress. AEC is the focal point in test strategy development, system safety verification, and data analyses from early developmental consumer tests through operational tests. AEC develops Critical Operational Issues and Criteria (COIC) in conjunction with AFC to narrow the focus of testing to what is essential. AEC reviews and shapes system requirements to ensure they do not drive unnecessary testing. AEC provides critical independent assessments on system effectiveness, suitability, survivability, and safety to include cybersecurity and electronic warfare (EW); artificial intelligence (AI); safety of materiel solutions; and viability of emerging technologies and engineering change proposals to support major acquisition/ fielding decisions including but not limited to acquisition milestones, materiel changes, and materiel releases. AEC is responsible for all assigned developmental and independent operational evaluations of Army materiel, information, and acquisition systems. AEC must remain independent from the development community. AEC assists the Chief of Staff of the Army decision making process by supporting Army Capabilities Integration Development System (A-CIDS) processes as well as supporting the AFC through the CFT concept. AEC evaluates operational effectiveness by determining if the system provides intended benefits to the Force. AEC assesses, confirms, and releases system safety for use by Soldiers upon fielding and during government sponsored experiments and demonstrations. AEC determines impacts to readiness through Human Systems Integration (HSI), Unit Systems Integration (USI), and Army Systems Integration (ASI), as well as doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership and education, personnel, facilities and policy (DOTMLPF-P) impacts. AEC evaluates ballistics survivability and lethality missions, adversarial assessments/threat computer network operations (TCNO), cooperative vulnerability and penetration assessments (CVPA), and EW (attack, support) countermeasures in support of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 2016 Section 1647, establishment of Cybersecurity and Electromagnetic Affects (CEMA). AEC manages, plans, and executes Information Assurance (IA) operational assessments during annual Combatant Command and Army Service exercises in support of the congressionally mandated Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E) assessment, and performs operational test agency (OTA) duties for the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS). This Project funds direct civilian labor and minimum non-labor requirements to include: personnel training, career development, supplies and equipment, hardware, software, temporary duty (TDY) travel, and other external Other Government Agency (OGA) support as well as methodology development required to evaluate emerging technologies and instrumentation requirements. AEC consists of seven directorates - Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, and Digital Engineering Evaluation Directorate; Aviation-Fires Evaluation Directorate; Ballistic Missile Defense Evaluation Directorate (primarily funded by the Missile Defense Agency; Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Evaluation Directorate; Mounted Systems Evaluation Directorate; Soldier Evaluation Directorate; and Survivability Evaluation Directorate - and a lean headquarters element as AEC receives staff services from the Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) Headquarters (HQ). AEC provides direct support to AFC with personnel geographically co-located with eight CFTs - Long Range Precision Fires; Next Generation Combat Vehicle; Future Vertical Lift; Network; Assured Positioning, Navigation, and Timing; Air and Missile Defense; Soldier Lethality; and Synthetic Training Environment - and the Rapid Capabilities-Critical Technology Office and the Artificial Intelligence Task Force. The AEC primary competencies are: identify what decision makers need to know; plan and direct test and evaluation (T&E) strategies; evaluate operational effectiveness, suitability, survivability, and safety; and provide senior leadership unbiased advice on Army and Joint Service programs.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Project
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2025
- Source ID
- 302_0605716A_6_2040_PB_2025
Related Documents
- Root: Army Evaluation Center
- Child Accomplishment: Army Evaluation Center Civilian Pay
- Child Accomplishment: Army Evaluation Center Operations Support