Pentagon plans 20,000 new jobs to manage arms-buys
Reuters
(05/06/2009 11:27 AM EDT)
URL: eetimes.com
WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama's Defense Department plans to create 20,000 new jobs to manage a revamp of the way the United States buys billions of dollars of weapons each year, the Pentagon's No. 2 official told Congress.
The Pentagon also plans to tie more contract fee structures to performance and will make sure that multiyear contracts are awarded only when "real, substantial" savings result to taxpayers, Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn told the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee Wednesday.
The Pentagon's top suppliers by prime contract value, in order, are Lockheed Martin Corp, Boeing Co, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics Corp, BAE Systems Plc and Raytheon Co.
Lynn welcomed legislation moving through the House and Senate aimed at combating chronic cost overruns, schedule slips and performance shortfalls in weapons purchases -- a goal embraced by Obama.
"We agree with the strategic direction of both bills and we wish to work with the Congress to ensure that we get the beset-designed initiatives that can be implemented," he said.
Among other changes, the Defense Department plans to explore greater use of fixed-price development contracts, Lynn said. Although this may boost development costs as contractors price in "a greater degree of risk," it should make cost estimates more accurate and overruns less frequent, he added. (Reporting by Jim Wolf; editing by Gerald E. McCormick and Matthew Lewis) |
