The buildings and permanent installations necessary for the support, deployment, and operation of a nation's military constitute its defense infrastructure. RAND research has examined the structure and needs of U.S. and allied military facilities, provided recommendations concerning base realignment, and investigated ways to maximize the capabilities and utilization of existing resources and to define future infrastructure needs.
Report
Assesses how future trends external to Army installations may affect the Army's ability to provide quality installation services and infrastructure.
Report
While the DoD is under pressure to reduce costs, meaningful savings from overseas posture changes would require choosing from a small set of options, each presenting benefit trade-offs. U.S. military presence contributes to assurance of allies, deterrence, contingency responsiveness, and security cooperation.
Research Brief
In an environment of fiscal constraints and shifting strategic needs, policymakers should carefully weigh the strategic capability effects, relative costs, and risks associated with potential changes to U.S. overseas military posture.
Report
The Department of Defense constructs, operates, and maintains numerous facilities. This report shares RAND's description and assessment of the process used to obtain life-cycle cost-effective facilities and how it affects construction options.
Report
Energy security strategies are needed because DoD installations rely on the U.S. commercial electricity grid which is vulnerable to disruption from natural hazards and actor-induced outages, such as physical or cyber attacks.
Report
The evolution of the U.S. global defense posture from 1783 to the present offers important lessons for dealing with similar problems in the future.
Report
Since World War II, the United States has relied on a global network of military bases and forces to protect its interests and those of its allies. But the international environment has changed greatly and economic concerns have risen, leading some to debate just what America's role should now be in the world.
News Release
Since World War II, the United States has relied on a global network of military bases and forces to protect its interests and those of its allies. But the international environment has changed greatly and economic concerns have risen, leading some to debate just what America's role should now be in the world.
Commentary
Technological development challenges suggest that it is highly unlikely that advanced approaches for producing hydrotreated renewable oils suitable for military applications will constitute an important fraction of the commercial fuel market until well beyond the next decade, writes Keith Crane.
News Release
Lt. Gen. Glenn A. Kent, a strategist, analyst and teacher whose career spanned World War II, the Cold War and the post-Cold War eras, died April 25.
Research Brief
The U.S. Army needs to improve its ability to command and control joint, interagency, and multinational forces in diverse environments, and to prepare Army headquarters to perform as components of, or headquarters for, joint task forces.
Report
Moore et al. provide a first-order analysis of Marine Corps purchases and Defense Logistics Agency purchases on behalf of the Marine Corps, revealing many indicators of opportunities and challenges for purchasing and supply management initiatives.
Report
Air Force range managers schedule the infrastructure and airspace needed for realistic testing and training activities, which requires adequate information about the proposed maneuvers, the acceptable context, and understanding of the goals.
Report
Passwords are proving less and less capable of protecting computer systems from abuse. Multifactor authentication (MFA) — which combines something you know (e.g., a PIN), something you have (e.g., a token), and/or something you are (e.g., a fingerprint) — is increasingly being required. This report investigates why organizations choose to adopt or not adopt MFA — and where they choose to use it.
Report
The Secretary of Defense's plans to shift Navy aircraft carrier acquisition to every five years should have little impact on force structure and the industrial base in the next decade—but after that, the force structure shrinks, as does the chance of meeting goals for the number of deployed aircraft carriers.
Report
The U.S. Air Force asked RAND Project AIR FORCE to perform a congressionally required assessment of contractor versus organic management of F-22 sustainment to determine the most cost-effective approach, the methodology for which is described here.
Report
The UK Ministry of Defence's Fixed Wing Sector Strategy Board commissioned RAND Europe to assist in the development of a strategy and sustainment plan for the military fixed wing sector.
Research Brief
The UK currently has the industrial skills needed to develop, produce and maintain its military aircraft, but predicted future demand for design engineering activity is insufficient to sustain a number of key skills beyond the 2010-2019 decade.
News Release
If the U.S. military increases its use of alternative fuels, there will be no direct benefit to the nation's armed forces.
Report
If the U.S. military increases its use of alternative fuels, there will be no direct benefit to the nation's armed forces. It makes more sense for the military to direct its efforts toward using energy more efficiently.
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