Army Creates New Capabilities Integration Center

A general order to roll out the army’s organization responsible for integrating Future Combat Systems capabilities into the force as soon as practical has been signed by the Secretary of the Army.

The Army Capabilities Integration Center, or ARCIC, was formed from the resources and organization of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command Futures Center.

With the new name and new mission, the ARCIC will be the lead Army agency for coordinating how best to integrate warfighting capabilities into the force and among the military services and with other agencies.

“We are retaining the complete mission set from the Futures Center and adding the tremendous responsibility for integrating capabilities into the modular force,” said Lt. Gen. J. Mark Curran at a media roundtable Feb. 16 during the Winter Association of the United States Army conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Curran, formerly director of the Futures Center, will serve as the ARCIC’s director.

“This integration goes beyond materiel items and includes all DOTMLPF [doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leader development, personnel and facilities] domains,” Curran said. “We must work the synchronization and coordination of agencies across the Army and the Joint community to ensure we accelerate inserting capabilities into the modular force, when these are ready, to meet an essential need.”

The ARCIC’s responsibilities will include the Future Combat Systems, the modernization program for the Army to move from the current force to the future force. The program provides Soldiers with leading-edge technologies to improve their capabilities in fighting the enemy in complex environments.

“Our role in inserting [Future Combat Systems] capabilities into the force when ready is critical to enabling the Army to evolve rapidly while engaged in this long war,” Curran said. “The Future Combat Systems program is the fastest, surest way to modernize the Army.”

The ARCIC’s work will pave the way for brigade combat teams to use Future Combat Systems technologies, according to Army senior leaders. It will provide impetus and direction from concept to capability development for full spectrum operations, as well as shape the future for the next generation of Soldiers.

The ARCIC, through the TRADOC commanding general, will be responsible to the Army Secretary and Army Chief of Staff. It will be headquartered at Fort Monroe, Va., with a forward element in Arlington, Va. The National Capitol Region office will be responsible for working with the Army Staff, Joint Staff, Office of the Secretary of Defense and other agencies.

“The ARCIC is responsible for integrating and synchronizing the activities of many separate agencies and Headquarters Department of the Army elements,” said Col. Rickey Smith, director of the ARCIC-Forward. “Currently, many segments of our Army individually provide pieces of the overall DOTMLPF composite picture. The ARCIC will lead in determining if the right force-capability requirements are being worked, or whether we are closing the gaps needed to support our Soldiers and leaders for today’s and tomorrow’s requirements.”

This represents a significant change in how the Army does business, Smith said.

“The ARCIC represents a real, tangible shift,” he said. “Here are two examples. In the very near future, the Army will establish an Evaluation Brigade Combat Team for the purpose of evaluating and testing FCS technologies in order to spin them out to the modular force. The ARCIC will have the key role in determining what the EBCT tests, and determining whether these technologies meet the requirements.

“The ARCIC will also serve as the Soldier’s representative, ensuring that requirements are being met,” he said.

Since wargaming, concept development and experimentation across DoD have implications for the fielding of needed capabilities to the current and future Joint force commander, “The ARCIC is a permanent organization designed to serve as the coordinating agent among all stakeholders involved in the force-capability requirements process, including requirements identification and integration,” Smith said.

“The ARCIC will stay engaged at all levels to ensure integrated current and future force developments are considered in the sister services, Joint Staff and Army acquisition and budget decisions,” Smith said. “Decisions that affect Army capabilities now and in the future will cause us to re-examine our operational concepts and shift our priorities and resources accordingly.”