FUTURE GROUND COMBAT SYSTEM (FGCS) INDUSTRY BRIEFING It's a new millennium! The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Army will jointly execute an advanced technology research development and demonstration program for the Army's Future Ground Combat System (FGCS). What are your best ideas and revolutionary technologies (both military and commercial) that would provide the capability of projecting a dominant ground force anywhere in the world at a moment's notice? What are your revolutionary concepts for how we fight future adversaries? The program will provide broad latitude to Industry teams with expertise in the areas of ground systems, air systems and aerospace (missile and air vehicle sensors) in developing the FGCS designs. Our vision is a multi-functional, lighter weight, multi-element distributed system capable of providing rapid deployment and successfully conducting offensive, defensive, stability, and support operations on 21st century battlefield and demonstrate revolutionary multi-mission capability for the future Army while retaining combat overmatch. Our program goal is to use advanced technologies to meet the Army's modernization vision for 2025. It has been determined that this program will be accomplished under the authority of Section 845 of P.L. 103-160, as amended. This authority breaks down barriers that prevents COMMERCIAL COMPANIES from doing business with the government and provides flexibility for traditional defense companies to do business a new way. An industry program briefing will take place 11 January 2000, at the Eagle Crest Conference Center, Ypsilanti Marriott, Ypsilanti, Michigan from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Agenda items for the briefing will include; FGCS program strategy, FGCS vision for 2010 and beyond, systems capabilities and requirements, enabling technologies and an "Other Transaction for Prototype" business strategy briefing which will address the use and flexibility provided by the section 845 authority. A draft program solicitation will be discussed and available on the INTERNET at http://www.darpa.mil/ within one week. Questions and comments concerning Industry Day and/or the draft solicitation can be directed to the DARPA Agreements Officer, Robin Swatloski via email at rswatloski@darpa.mil or at (703) 696-0081. Questions and answers of a generic nature will be posted without identifying the source during the week of 3 January 2000. The main telephone number for the hotel is (748) 487-2000. All attendees must complete the registration form available on the NDIA website at http://www.ndia.org and return to George Schneller via email at gschneller@technologyventures.net or at (810) 573-6000, extension 205. Attendance is limited to five people per company. There is a registration fee of $125. Since teaming is an important aspect of the FGCS program, the list of attendees will be made available for public release. WEB: click here to download a draft copy of the solicitation, http://www.darpa.mil. E-MAIL: click here to contact the DARPA Agreements Officer, rswatloski@darpa.mil. Posted 12/13/99 (W-SN407975).

Loren Data Corp. http://www.ld.com (SYN# 0268 19991215\SP-0006.MSC)