The Army is moving quickly to strengthen its organic industrial base by addressing aging infrastructure, transforming how it works with industry and expanding its manufacturing capabilities, a senior officer said.

While many of the Army’s organic industrial base facilities have been modernized since they were established during World War II, “too much of the OIB still relies upon the aging infrastructure, legacy equipment and outdated processes combined with fluctuating workload tied to operational tempo,” Lt. Gen. Chris Mohan, commanding general of U.S. Army Materiel Command, said in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee’s tactical air and land forces and readiness subcommittees.

“These challenges now demand decisive action,” Mohan said at the Feb. 24 hearing. “The OIB not only supports operational readiness for current operations, but it preserves the nation's ability to surge during conflict, … provides strategic depth and fills production gaps while industry scales to meet wartime demand.”

Mohan pointed out that an Army Materiel Command report to Army senior leaders in November considered every policy, regulation, statute and business process impacting the health and viability of the OIB, assessing each of its sites and offering recommendations to address the challenges.

Among the key issues, he said, were the need to balance steady-state and surge capacities, improve readiness, improve efficiency and “expand industry partnerships to stabilize revenue, particularly during peace time when workload traditionally declines with strong senior leader support.”

In his first appearance before the subcommittees as assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, sustainment and technology, Brent Ingraham noted the critical role the organic industrial base plays in the nation’s defense and highlighted the immediate challenges.

Ingraham pointed to unpredictable production cycles that disrupt schedules, increase costs and hinder workforce planning; indirect costs that drive up operating rates and hinder competitiveness with commercial industry; aging infrastructure and outdated facilities that limit efficiency and the ability to support advanced technologies; and specialized skill gaps within the workforce.

“We recognize these challenges and are actively addressing them,” Ingraham said. “The Army is focused on increasing direct labor hours, fostering public private partnerships and reducing indirect costs to ensure long term sustain sustainability of [the organic industrial base].

The Army also is using modern data and analytic tools to automate and synthesize readiness data across multiple weapons systems and units, enabling more informed resourcing decisions, Ingraham said.