Defense Acquisition Infrastructure: Changes in RDT&E Laboratories and
Centers (Briefing Report, 09/13/96, GAO/NSIAD-96-221BR).

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of
Defense's (DOD) research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E)
infrastructure, focusing on: (1) actions DOD took to implement previous
recommendations made about its infrastructure; and (2) RDT&E
infrastructure funding, workforce composition, and operating costs.

GAO found that: (1) studies of DOD laboratories and centers have
reported excess capacity, but generally have made recommendations
focusing on management efficiencies, rather than infrastructure
reductions; (2) since 1988, the base realignment and closure (BRAC)
process has been the primary vehicle for laboratory and center
infrastructure reductions; (3) despite four BRAC rounds, DOD
infrastructure reductions lag behind reductions in funding, personnel,
and force structure; (4) after all BRAC rounds are complete, DOD
laboratory infrastructure still will have an excess capacity of about 35
percent; (5) during the BRAC 1995 process, the military services were
unwilling to collocate or rely on each other to reduce infrastructure;
(6) since fiscal year 1990, laboratory funding has been increasing; (7)
DOD does not know the true cost of operating its laboratory and center
infrastructure because the military services have multiple systems
reporting disparate elements for analysis; and (8) a preliminary review
of private industry's and the United Kingdom's efforts to consolidate
their RDT&E infrastructure indicates the need for clearly defined,
comparable terms for RDT&E organizations and their infrastructure
elements and accurate, reliable, and comparable financial and workforce
composition data.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  NSIAD-96-221BR
     TITLE:  Defense Acquisition Infrastructure: Changes in RDT&E 
             Laboratories and Centers
      DATE:  09/13/96
   SUBJECT:  Defense cost control
             Base realignments
             Base closures
             Military downsizing
             Military research
             Research and development facilities
             Defense economic analysis
             Federal agency reorganization
IDENTIFIER:  DOD Future Years Defense Program
             United Kingdom
             DOD Vision 21 Report