Nearly two decades into the 21st Century, the United States finds itself immersed in a security environment of unprecedented complexity; one defined by re-emerging nationalism, religious radicalism, uncertainty and volatility. America faces a number of existential threats, ranging from the emergence of several capable regional peer competitors to the extension of war into cyber and space domains. The offensive cyber capabilities of America’s enemies continue to evolve and have now reached the point that the Army’s weapon systems, the industrial controls used to manufacture them and the supply chain employed to sustain them are vulnerable to compromise.
The United States has an immense array of military forces ready to defend the nation and its allies. To sustain its globally-deployed forces and rapidly replenish combat losses, the Department of Defense (DoD) possesses a materiel capacity second to none. Likewise, the Army, as an integral part of the larger joint force, maintains strategically positioned, forward-based stocks around the globe. The Army is also able to reach back and draw upon a vast industrial enterprise. This includes: the Army’s Organic Industrial Base (OIB), made up of 23 unique manufacturing and production facilities that repair and recapitalize equipment, manufacture service parts and produce many of the nation’s munitions; the larger Defense Industrial Base, encompassing both organic components and more than 100,000 private sector companies and their subcontractors who perform under contract; and a multitude of commercial service providers who supply the energy, communications, transportation and utilities required to execute military operations.
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