DETRIOT ARSENAL, MI -- Marines from the Light Armored Reconnaissance (LAR) community recently participated in a maintenance demonstration of the Textron and General Dynamics Land Systems Advanced Reconnaissance Vehicle (ARV) Prototype Vehicles at the Detroit Arsenal.
LAR Marines and logisticians and engineers from related government organizations gathered for a demonstration of field-level maintenance tasks by ARV vendor Field Service Representatives. Observers provided directed feedback during the event, which the vendor will use for continued development.
ARV vendor Field Service Representatives demonstrated field-level maintenance tasks to Marines from the LAR community, as well as logisticians and engineers from PM Light Armored Vehicles LAV, PEO Land Systems, Marine Corps Logistics Command, Marine Depot Maintenance Command, and Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren. Government observers provided directed feedback during the event, and aggregated comments and recommendations will be formally provided to the vendors.
“By engaging in a Maintenance Demo well in advance of ARV’s Engineering and Manufacturing Development Phase, we intend to drive down risk and inform improved sustainability and maintainability of the fielded platform,” said Steve Myers, Program Manager, Light Armored Vehicles. “ARV is a critical component of the Marine Corps’ transformation of their LAR Battalions into the objective Mobile Reconnaissance Battalions and will act as the hub for the fusion of data to form the overall battlefield picture. Future ARV variants will provide additional capabilities.”
Marines received first-hand experience on possible maintenance for the ARV, including operator and maintainer Preventive Maintenance Check & Services (PMCS), field-level repair parts replacement, and diagnostic testing.
“The ARV demo was an enriching and valuable experience as a Marine Corporal because it allowed me to see the possibilities for the future of the Marine Corps,” said Cpl. Ethan Proper, LAV Mechanic, 1st LAR. “The contractors that orchestrated the demo were all very professional and knowledgeable on their respective vehicles. It was very interesting to learn from the engineers that actually construct the vehicles that are fielded.”
Demonstrations such as this are critical for the program office. They mitigate risk during operational testing and furnish data crucial for milestone decisions. The Marine Corps works with vendors to influence the ARV's design and maintenance procedures to increase vehicle maintainability and supportability while reducing future sustainment costs through lessons learned. This feedback may influence performance specifications and potentially drive changes in the Systems Engineering process - resulting in an improved design for the next phase of the ARV program.
“Overall, the event was a success,” said Andrew Przybylak, Logistics Branch Chief, ARV, PM LAV. “We received insight into some of the potential maintenance challenges that are inherent to the design of the vehicle that would not have been noticed otherwise. We were able to see it in time to propose design changes before the next configuration is built. These changes vary in scale, but if they are enacted, they will directly result in a platform that is more affordable and less time intensive to keep in an operational status.”
The PM LAV Logistics team will share a report with counterparts at Combat Development & Integration to gauge if there are any opportunities to update the Marine Corps’ assumptions and goals for the ARV’s capabilities. A formal report will then be provided to the vendors.
All prototyping Testing and Evaluation events to date have been performed on the Command, Control, Communications, & Computers/ Unmanned Aerial Systems (C4/UAS) prototype variant of ARV. Currently it is planned that the ARV family of vehicles will consist of six variants. Additional test and evaluation events for the ARV C4/UAS PV are slated to take place through 1QFY25.
| Date Taken: | 07.08.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 07.08.2024 11:53 |
| Story ID: | 475682 |
| Location: | DETROIT ARSENAL, MICHIGAN, US |
| Web Views: | 127 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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