Distributed Common Ground/Surface Systems

Distributed Common Ground/Surface Systems (DCGS) under the Defense Information Systems Agency, aims to provide test and evaluation (T&E) services to the DCGS Family of Systems (FoS), a major component of the Defense Intelligence Information Enterprise (DI2E). The program's specific objectives include improving battlespace awareness through modernizing and evolving how intelligence is delivered to commanders, developing DI2E test, evaluation, and assessment concepts to improve senior leader decision support, and ensuring interoperability to allow forces, units, and systems of military services and US partners to share data collaboratively and effectively. Additionally, the program supports operational testing to address critical operational issues of a system's effectiveness in combat-like environments and provides key stakeholders and decision makers an independent evaluation of a system’s operational effectiveness, suitability, and cyber-security.

The program coordinates with Military Services and Combat Support Agencies to conduct DCGS FoS testing and analysis, including event coordination, configuration, and instrumentation through the operation of the Enterprise Integration and Test Capability (EITC). It also supports data collection activities on secret, top-secret, and Coalition and Partner networks to characterize the state of DI2E capabilities. The program's accomplishments include developing testing, evaluation, assessment concepts, execution of data collection methods to determine compliance with emergent DI2E attributes and applicable interoperability standards. It also supports technology demonstrations of initiatives selected by senior intelligence representatives in support of Combatant Command intelligence priorities. The program plans to continue improving critical EITC functionality and T&E capacity by exploiting Test Resource Management Center capabilities while advancing interoperability assessments of information exchanges between users of ISR via the Common Data Fabric. Additionally, it aims to develop capabilities to advance Testing as a Service within DoD Cloud hosted environments for intelligence programs adopting agile software development practices.