Alion tests commercial tech for Army combat ops

Alion Science and Technology Corp. will work with the Army to find commercial and government technologies that will improve the ability of soldiers to succeed in combat.

Under a three-year, $30 million contract, Alion will serve as systems integrator and evaluator of system performance for the Rapid Equipping Force (REF), performing a full range of engineering, reliability and risk assessments of commercial-off-the-shelf and government-off-the-shelf products, according to a Jan. 4 company announcement.

The employee-owned company also will conduct operational tests in a combat environment within six to nine months from the REF’s receipt of an urgent U.S. Central Command requirement.

Alion will be seeking solutions that enhance survivability, effectiveness and more efficient fuel use in theater, Chris Amos, senior vice president and manager of the Technology Solutions Group, explained in the news release.

“Whether these technologies are off-the-shelf or still in the latter stages of development, our team of experts will recommend the systems that can best support warfighters in combat,” he said.

The work was awarded as a task order under a contract from the Defense Technical Information Center’s Weapon Systems Technology Information Analysis Center.

WSTIAC, which is operated by Alion, is one of nine such centers that house libraries of information focused on specific technology areas.

Alion Science and Technology, of McLean, Va., ranks No. 51 on Washington Technology’s 2011 Top 100 list of the largest federal government contractors.