By John Keller
BALTIMORE — Lou Kratz, the U.S. Assistant Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Logistics Plans and Programs, will deliver the keynote address of the Military & Aerospace Electronics Show–East 2004 to be held May 18 and 19 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore.
Kratz oversees the way the Pentagon buys, maintains, and transports weapons, electronics equipment, fuel, and other equipment and supplies. In this role, he helps set guidelines for using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) subsystems and components in existing and future weapons, communications, and transportation systems, and is one of those chiefly responsible in the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for dealing with the correct use of COTS, how to deal with technology obsolescence, and the use of open-systems architectures.
In his keynote address, Kratz will discuss with attendees the most current Defense Department planning for the continued use of COTS equipment, how Pentagon leaders are coming to grips with component obsolescence and diminishing manufacturing sources (DMS), and policy planning for technology procurement and maintenance in the future. Mr. Kratz will tell attendees how these issues will influence their businesses, and what they need to know to work effectively with military and government agencies in the future.
Kratz works with the military services, the Defense Logistics Agency, the Joint Staff, and the U.S. Transportation Command to procure and maintain weapons, electronics equipment, fuel, and other material needs of carrying out 21st century warfare. He also works with international allies on pressing logistics issues, and helps ensure that fighting forces and the technologies they use can work together easily.
Kratz is set to speak at 8:15 a.m. May 18. Military & Aerospace Electronics–East 2004 runs concurrently with the Homeland Security Solutions Conference and Exhibition. Attendees can go to tracks of one or both of these important conferences.
Keynoting the second day of Military & Aerospace Electronics–East 2004 is Greg Saunders, director of the U.S. Defense Standardization Office. Saunders handles issues of coordinating efforts in the Pentagon and in industry to use COTS technology most effectively.
Saunders will confront head on concerns among electronics company leaders that industry and the Pentagon do not share the same view of what constitutes COTS, and what are the driving challenges of using and supporting COTS equipment.
For those in industry who are frustrated with any aspect of DOD COTS policy, this is your chance to hear what Saunders has to say, and to ask him questions about your most pressing concerns and challenges. Saunders will speak at 8:15 a.m. May 19 at the Baltimore Convention Center.
Other pivotal speakers at the Military & Aerospace Electronics–East 2004 are:
- Dr. Bobby Junker, Chief of Electronics Concepts and Surveillance in the U.S. Office of Naval Research;
- Air Force Lt. Col. Glen Logan, Chief of the Defense Department's Open Systems Joint Task Force; and
- Joe Lawrence, Chief of the Communications and Surveillance Division of the U.S. Office of Naval Research.
The theme of Military & Aerospace Electronics–East 2004 is "A Roadmap To The Future," and presenters are set to outline future technology planning in organizations such as the VME International Trade Association, the PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group, as well as technology planning in individual companies.
Military & Aerospace Electronics–East 2004 — "A Roadmap To The Future" — is for engineers, engineering managers, and program managers who seek better, more effective ways to use COTS equipment, subsystems, and components.
The cost to attend either Military & Aerospace Electronics–East 2004 or the companion Homeland Security Solutions Conference and Exhibition is $625 before April 30, and $675 after April 30. The cost of attending both shows is $725 before April 30 or $775 after April 30. Registration for exhibits only for both shows is free until April 30, and $25 after April 30.
For more information contact Registration Coordinator Lisa Gowern by phone at 603-891-9267, by e-mail at [email protected], or online at www.maeshow.com or www.homelandsecuritysolutionsshow.com.
