Ministry Of Defence
The MODs Research Development Testing and Evaluation department (RDT&E) is part of the UKs rich heritage of test and evaluation (T&E). The RDT&Es world-class facilities and services help make sure our military capability is safe and fit for purpose.
As military systems and threat environments have become increasingly complex so have the demands on T&E. We must safely evaluate new technologies at pace so that front-line troops have the best kit available to them when they need it.
What is the T&E Transformation Programme?
The T&E Transformation Programme is a ten-year programme (to 2030) which will reshape the way MOD and the wider enterprise designs and conducts T&E.
Blending live testing with digital, deployable and data-driven technologies will enhance the current offer and make the T&E enterprise better, quicker and more agile.
Integrating T&E throughout the capability lifecycle will enable the move to evaluation for advantage, enable data-driven decision making and help the UK economy.
This will involve intervention across all aspects of T&E, including:
- infrastructure
- contracts
- policy
- skills
- training
- guidance
- support
The programme will mentor, guide and support command-led T&E modernisation activity with a wide range of organisations and industry partners.
The T&E Transformation Programme is based in Head Office MOD, Finance and Military Capability, within the Strategic Programmes Directorate and is part of the Research Development Testing and Evaluation RDT&E department.
Current capability
RDT&E sponsors a range of shared T&E services where it makes sense to provide these centrally. The most significant of these services is Tests, Trials, Training and Evaluation (T3E) managed by Defence contractor QinetiQ under the Long Term Partnering Agreement (LTPA) contract: encompassing services at fifteen MOD sites, including land, maritime and air ranges across the UK.
RDT&E also sponsors services for aerial targets and radar signature measurement with QinetiQ and Thales UK.
On behalf of MOD, RDT&E also manages international memoranda of understanding for T&E with the five eyes community, among others; and hosts a number of international exercises.
Approach
As military systems and threat environments have become increasingly complex so have the demands on T&E. Our current approach to T&E is focused on live acceptance testing of real equipment which, on its own, will fall increasingly short of future needs.
The main feature of the new approach is moving from evaluation for acceptance to evaluation for advantage. Key to achieving this is a blended approach, combining live and deployable testing and digital and data.
The T&E Transformation Programme exists to create and manage this change, maximise its benefits and minimise its impacts.
The T&E Transformation Programme will:
- develop a blueprint for the future with MOD, industry and regulatory stakeholders
- demonstrate, de-risk, and build confidence in digital and deployable T&E techniques
- pilot and iterate new services, leveraging UK industrial strength and collaboration with allies
- provide T&E innovation and cost of adoption funding / support to the front-line commands
- cohere the T&E enterprise and T&E acquisition
Currently (to 2024) work is focussed on planning and de-risking. Once this is complete a series of pilots will be launched to start the transformation.
The T&E Transformation Programme also manages a 30m fund to support innovation across Defence: to explore and adopt new ways of thinking about, conducting and making use of T&E.
If you have an idea about how to modernise MOD T&E facilities or how to develop new ways of working; or if you have a T&E challenge you need help to solve or could benefit from digital T&E approaches, please apply to the fund, which could help make your ideas a reality.
More information and how to apply to the fund can be found on Defence Ideas.
Benefits of the T&E Transformation Programme
The T&E Transformation Programme will enable the delivery of a UK military capability that is more:
- advanced, leveraging the latest technology
- attuned to the evolving threat environment
- agile in its development and integration
- available to users faster, for longer
- affordable to the taxpayer
- acceptable, causing less unintended harm