In the dynamic landscape of BAE Systems, the transition of technology from concept to application is more than an aspiration – it’s a strategic imperative that underpins the company’s continued growth and competitive edge. The journey from vision, to research and development, to transition is crucial to ensuring our innovative ideas are not just created, but effectively developed, integrated, and fielded in ways that put critical capabilities in the hands of the warfighter.
At the heart of it all is the FAST Labs™ research and development organization. Here, the impossible is put to the test. Achieving the unimaginable is the goal. And discovering ways to ensure the warfighter has the most robust and advanced technology at their disposal is the mission. But science isn’t being done on a whim in FAST Labs. This is targeted, strategic, and collaborative work that involves a two-way street between the teams in FAST Labs and the other businesses in the Electronic Systems sector.
“Our internal relationships, and strong communication between FAST Labs and our businesses, are imperative to our success,” explained Mike Roske, Electronic Combat Solutions (ECS) technical director. “There is a science component and there is a mission component. The science helps us understand the possibilities, the mission helps them understand the application.”
This strong collaboration bridges the gap between the innovations in FAST Labs and the practical use in a customer mission. The focus is not solely on the innovation itself, but how it fits within and enhances the company’s capability offerings to our customers.
“Transition isn’t a linear path,” commented Stewart Coulter, FAST Labs chief technologist, “We are taking risks – we understand there will be setbacks and failures. But our focus is creating a successful transition path to bring our early phase research and development projects to fieldable technology that helps the warfighter. This focus on impact is a huge piece of overcoming inevitable roadblocks.”
To accomplish this goal, BAE Systems creates teams that span business areas and functions, bringing together the scientists and engineers who redefine what is possible, with the production teams tasked with getting the capability to the warfighter. The company facilitates dialogue and partnership between scientists, government customers, engineers, and operations. This collaborative environment helps to pinpoint where new technologies can make the most significant impact, ensuring that the transition process is both efficient and effective for the business and its end users.
“Our most successful transitions result from early collaboration with the business area,” explained Eric Vogel, technology director for C4ISR Systems. “When we work together early, we can ensure high efficiency in shaping the technology to appropriately service our warfighter’s needs.”
For example, BAE Systems worked with a customer on a recent program to develop advanced signal processing algorithms and used one of its existing payloads to host this new capability. This benefited the warfighter because the technology instantly had a home on hardware that was already fielded across their fleet. It also ensured that BAE Systems set the pace to rapidly field disruptive technology that gives our customers an advantage.
By blending leading-edge technology and mission understanding, BAE Systems demonstrates thought leadership, partners with military services, and delivers superior products and capabilities to our customers. Flexibility, adaptability, and speed are our mantras, and FAST Labs brings all of that to the forefront of the fight.
“We are laying the groundwork and foundation for easy and effective technology transitions,” said Coulter. “Each successful integration provides key learnings and tools we can leverage for the next one. It’s a continuous cycle of improvement that keeps us moving forward, always pushing the limits of what’s possible – and bringing that possibility into reality.”
By Drew Bollea, Communication