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This electronic representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for non-commercial use only. Unauthorized posting of RAND electronic documents to a non-RAND website is prohibited. RAND electronic documents are protected under copyright law. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of our research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please see RAND Permissions. This product is part of the RAND Corporation monograph series. RAND monographs present major research findings that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND mono- graphs undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity. Improving Army Basic Research Report of an Expert Panel on the Future of Army Laboratories PANEL ON THE FUTURE OF ARMY LABORATORIES Gilbert Decker, Robert A. Beaudet, Siddhartha Dalal, Jay Davis, William H. Forster, George T. Singley III RAND ARROYO CENTER ANALYTIC TEAM David E. Mosher, Caroline Reilly, Phil Kehres, Gary Cecchine, Nicholas C. Maynard Prepared for the United States Army Approved for public release; distribution unlimited ARROYO CENTER The research described in this report was sponsored by the United States Army under Contract No. W74V8H-06-C-0001. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Improving Army basic research : report of an expert panel on the future of Army laboratories / Gilbert Decker ... [et al.]. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-0-8330-5974-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. U.S. Army Research Laboratory—Evaluation. 2. Military research—United States—Evaluation. 3. United States. Army Research, Development, and Engineering Command. 4. Laboratories--United States--Evaluation. I. Decker, Gilbert F. (Gilbert Felton), 1937- II. Rand Corporation. U394.A34I53 2012 355'.070973—dc23 2012011327 The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. R® is a registered trademark. © Copyright 2012 RAND Corporation Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Copies may not be duplicated for commercial purposes. Unauthorized posting of RAND documents to a non-RAND website is prohibited. RAND documents are protected under copyright law. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit the RAND permissions page (http://www.rand.org/ publications/permissions.html). Published 2012 by the RAND Corporation 1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138 1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA 22202-5050 4570 Fifth Avenue, Suite 600, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2665 RAND URL: http://www.rand.org To order RAND documents or to obtain additional information, contact Distribution Services: Telephone: (310) 451-7002; Fax: (310) 451-6915; Email: [email protected] Preface The Army is in the midst of an unprecedented technical transformation as it rapidly adopts the cutting-edge science and technology necessary to remain an effective fight- ing force. In this era of accelerating innovation, it is likely that many of the new con- cepts needed to make the Army’s transformation a reality will only be realized through the discovery and application of breakthrough research and development (R&D). This report describes the result of an expert panel assembled to consider how current trends in R&D might unfold over time and how those trends could affect the laboratories and R&D centers that support the Army. The panel focused primarily on basic, or exploratory, research conducted at laboratories and research, development, and engineering centers run by Army Materiel Command, from which cutting-edge discovery, invention, and innovation might emerge. The panel’s inquiry was centered on the following question: “How can the Army get the best long-term value from its investments in basic research?” This research was sponsored by the Director for Research and Laboratory Man- agement within the office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logis- tics, and Technology and focused on the laboratories and research, development, and engineering centers run by Army Materiel Command. It was conducted within the RAND Arroyo Center’s Force Development and Technology Program. RAND Arroyo Center, part of the RAND Corporation, is a federally funded research and develop- ment center sponsored by the United States Army. The Project Unique Identification Code (PUIC) for the project that produced this document is SAALT08864. iii For more information on RAND Arroyo Center, contact the Director of Oper- ations (telephone 310-393-0411, extension 6419; FAX 310-451-6952; email Marcy_ [email protected]), or visit Arroyo’s website at http://www.rand.org/ard.html. Contents Preface ................................................................................................. iii Figures ................................................................................................. ix Tables .................................................................................................. xi Summary .............................................................................................xiii Acknowledgments .................................................................................. xxi Abbreviations ...................................................................................... xxiii CHAPTER ONE Introduction .......................................................................................... 1 Panel Composition and Methods .................................................................... 2 How This Report Is Organized ....................................................................... 2 The Value of Basic and Applied Research ........................................................... 3 CHAPTER TWO Science and Technology Trends .................................................................... 7 National and International Trends in Science and Technology .................................. 7 R&D Funding ....................................................................................... 8 R&D Workers .......................................................................................11 Federal, Department of Defense, and Army Trends ..............................................12 Federal Spending ....................................................................................12 The Department of Defense Scientist and Engineer Workforce ..............................16 Conclusions ............................................................................................16 CHAPTER THREE The Army Laboratory Enterprise .................................................................19 Vision and Strategy ...................................................................................19 The Evolution of the Army Laboratory System ................................................... 24 RDA Management ................................................................................. 30 Technical Workforce ...............................................................................32 Trends in the Army Laboratory System ............................................................32 Funding Trends .....................................................................................32 v vi Improving Army Basic Research: Report of an Expert Panel on the Future of Army Laboratories Workforce Trends .................................................................................. 36 Facility and Infrastructure Trends ............................................................... 40 CHAPTER FOUR Characteristics of a High-Quality Basic Research Laboratory ............................ 43 Types of Basic Research ............................................................................. 43 The High-Quality Basic Research Laboratory .....................................................45 Mission of the Corporate Basic Research Laboratory ..........................................45 Characteristics of the Researchers ............................................................... 46 Internal Management Structure of the Laboratory ............................................ 46 External Management of the Laboratory ....................................................... 48 Measuring Laboratory Quality and Success ................................................... 48 Benchmark Laboratories .............................................................................52