WIREDGOV

At this year’s DSEI exhibition, the MOD announced the launch of its new Defence Technology Framework and its new Defence Innovation Priorities.

During DSEI, the MOD released two new policy documents which outline a renewed approach from the department  to focus on the exploitation of technology and innovation. The Defence Technology Framework and Defence Innovation Priorities both set out the MOD’s strategic assessment of which technologies it considers essential as part of its drive to modernise, and which technologies offer the greatest potential to enhance capability across internal business functions and military operations.

Defence Technology Framework

The framework will inform and shape defence policy, strategy and investment planning, and will help the MOD’s external partners to understand new its future requirements, as well as providing a foundation for deeper engagement with industry to support the UK’s security and prosperity. This comes at a time when resources within Defence are constrained, and much innovation comes from non-traditional suppliers working outside of the sector. As noted above, the framework sets out how the MOD intends to identify and focus efforts on technologies that offer the greatest potential to enhance capability across internal business functions and military operations. It also identifies the domains where the MOD expects these technologies to be utilised, and identifies seven ‘families’ of technologies to focus on as it looks to meet the following key objectives:

• Optimise the performance of military equipment;
• Reducing Cost;
• Enabling and enhancing current and future capability.

The graphic below outlines the technologies and application areas:

Defence Innovation Priorities

In tandem, the Defence Innovation Priorities will be used to drive adoption of these technologies within Defence, including assessing how MOD can better drive rapid change, including changing commercial processes to enable more rapid capability development and to make it easier for companies to do business with the department.

These 5 key priorities are:

• Integrate Information and Physical Activity Across all Domains
• Delivering Agile Command and Control
• Operate and Deliver Effects in Contested Domains
• Defence People – Skills, Knowledge and Experience
• Simulation Future Battlespace Complexity

The two documents can be accessed in full below:

Defence Technology Framework

Defence Innovation Priorities