Boeing [BA] subsidiary Tapestry Solutions will support training exercises for the Army in Europe as part of a five-year, $59 million contract under the Joint Multinational Simulation Center’s Battle Staff Training Contract.
“Tapestry looks to being in the forefront of preparing our U.S. and multinational forces with some new innovative training,” Sam Deford, Tapestry Solutions’ president and CEO, said in a teleconference Oct. 18.”It’s an uncertain future out there for budgets and we know that we need to be flexible and affordable and innovative in what we do.”
Deford said the company experience in simulations, experience in high tech training, out of the box approaches to training and experiences with both combat and combat support simulations is really going to offer great value to the customer.
As a leader in simulation development and exercise support worldwide, the addition of this European opportunity is a logical step for Tapestry as it expands training services internationally backed by Boeing networks in other countries.
Tapestry has developed battle command training tools and the logistics suite of simulation tools as a real plus for the company and value-added for the customer, offering them reach back from the training environment into the development world and technology world that will help facilitate training.
Greg Deiter, vice president of Boeing’s Defense & Government Services division, said the contract win supports the strategic aims of the logistics and command and control subdivision Tapestry falls under. The contract win validates the value of Boeing’s acquisition of the company, supporting adjacent opportunities in software development military readiness support and logistics command and control.
The work also supports Boeing’s international expansion objectives.
“The goal of Boeing Defense Space & Security is to grow international revenues from about 18 percent today to 25 percent over the next years,” Dieter said. The contract also means working with key partners in Europe, and improving and cementing relationships with those partners.
This large exercise support effort is expanding our training and simulation business with the U.S. Department of Defense and also puts us in a good position for potential future opportunities with the multinational forces that partner with U.S. European Command, Dieter said.
In November, Tapestry begins work on the contract with a 30-day transition period. There will not be a need for large amounts of special equipment, Deford said. Mostly, the company falls in on government furnished and left behind equipment. Additionally, a total of 64 permanent positions will be created in Germany and Italy. T
As prime contractor, Tapestry leads a team including SAIC [SAI], Capstone Corp. and Metro Productions, both of Alexandria, Va.
Deford said Tapestry wants to improve readiness in the most economical way, while facilitating live, virtual and constructive environments.
Under the contract, Tapestry will design, plan and support the conduct of exercises ranging from Army unit-level activities to large-scale events involving multinational forces, such as the European Command’s annual Austere Challenge.
The Tapestry team will support the Joint Multinational Simulation Center in Grafenwohr, Germany, and its satellites in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and Vicenza, Italy. Tapestry also will support the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany, as that center prepares U.S. and multinational brigade combat teams for missions under the U.S. Army’s Combat Training Center program.
In addition, Tapestry will supply and coordinate training capability for the Joint Multinational Training Command’s Multinational Mission Command Training program as part of U.S. European Command’s engagement plan with countries across the European Area of Operational Responsibility.