Select Committee on Defence Minutes of Evidence



MEMORANDUM SUBMITTED BY THE MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

JARIC AND MILITARY SURVEY AND THEIR PROPOSED MERGER

Q1.   Justification for merger and planning assumptions

  1.  The case for merger was primarily based on the need to align geographic and imagery processes more efficiently and effectively to exploit future Defence concepts such as Joint Battlespace Digitisation.

  2.  The decision to merge was taken on the basis of recommendations from various detailed studies going back to work in support of the Defence Costs Study in1994. More recent studies have examined the perceived common technologies in both Agencies' future equipment programmes and the opportunities for improving business processes across Military Survey and JARIC.

  3.  The final study, which was completed by independent consultants in September 1998, concluded that a number of business areas across the Agencies, if brought together, would provide either operational benefit, in terms of effectiveness gains and improved customer service, and possible efficiency savings.

  4.  Although a large proportion of the current core production processes were assessed to be too different to justify merger on that basis alone, convergence in a number of common areas was identified as desirable to position the Agencies the better to meet the future needs of customers. Convergence in these areas would:

    —  allow a common tasking and production management function to better control all available resources, giving improved surge capability in crises and improved responsiveness to tasking;

    —  facilitate interoperability of softcopy products and information, which will become key in the softcopy era; and

    —  allow rationalisation of Agency level overhead functions.

  5.  A total of 12 organisational options was assessed in terms of exploiting future opportunities, which included relocation at one or either of the existing sites, or to a new site. On the basis of a detailed cost benefit analysis it was concluded that the preferred and most cost-effective option was for a converged Agency located on the current sites (Feltham, Hermitage and RAF Brampton), to be put in place on 1 April 2000. This option is now being taken forward by an implementation team led by the Chief Executive (designate) of the new Agency, to be called the Defence Geographic and Imagery Intelligence Agency (DGIA).

  6.  As part of the implementation work the team are developing strategies to better position the new Agency to meet the future demands of Defence and its customers. These will be clearly laid out in the new Corporate Plan for the Agency. Under this Plan the Agency also intends to keep the collocation option under review.

  7.  Certain LTC savings (£1.45 million) have already been taken from the budgets of Military Survey and JARIC prior to, and in anticipation of, the decision to merge. Further efficiencies will be dependent on future triggers for change and will need to be developed under the Agency's new efficiency plan.

Q2.   Operational support

  8.   JARIC *** and increasingly it is being called upon to be available. the requirement of the agency's key Target One is to respond to 98% of the high priority (Priority One) tasks within 24 hours, and this target has been consistently achieved or exceeded. JARIC has played a very active rule in providing intelligence support to all recent operations involving UK forces and particularly to Kosovo operations.

  9.   Mil Svy Mil Svy's Force Elements continue to support current operations in Kosovo, Bosnia and Northern Ireland ***. The Agency also provided production support to the Kosovo operation amounting to the printing and distribution of 3.5 million geographic products over a period of six weeks. In addition Mil Svy continues to provide geographic support to operations in Northern Ireland and more recently the crisis in East Timor.

Q3.   Post-SDR changes

  10.   JARIC JARIC's role as an operational enabler was significantly enhanced by SDR. The Agency was extensively reorganised early in 1999 to bring a closer alignment with post-SDR customer requirements and to take full advantage of new technology. The reorganisation was undertaken on the basis of an internal Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) study, commissioned by the CE, and aimed at improving the Agency's effectiveness. SDR also, under its efficiency initiative, led to the decision to merge with Mil Svy.

  11.   Mil Svy SDR's identification and articulation of the revised Defence Missions for UK Armed Forces will lead to increased demands on the Agency to deliver timely, accurate and up-to-date geographic support. Whilst this has not forced any major organisational change within the Agency, the Field Support Directorate has re-written its Concept of Operations, establishment and equipment tables, in line with the SDR planning assumptions, and conducted a review of its trade training. As noted above, the decision to merge with JARIC also arose from SDR.

Q4.   Capability development

  12.   JARIC Phase One of the programme to enhance JARIC's ability to exploit *** was implemented in late 1998. This gave JARIC an ability to respond to customers' requirements. *** The final Phase Two of the programme is being managed by the Defence Procurement Agency (DPA), which, subject to scrutiny, will be taken forward as part of a joint submission with the Mil Svy's MDS project (Mil Svy Digital Geographic Information and Production Management System), and is planned to be implemented in 2001. It will replace all JARIC's legacy systems with state-of-the-art technology and ***. To enable JARIC to respond to these new demands, there is a continuing need for connection to modern defence communications systems. External programmes will also undoubtedly have an impact on JARIC's work.

  13.   Mil Svy Mil Svy's MDS project, referred to above, is planned to be implemented in 2001-03, and will significantly enhance the digital data production, warehousing and distribution capabilities of the Agency. External programmes will have a significant impact on the Agency's ability to respond effectively from both the baseplant and within the battlefield, As with JARIC, improved Defence networks and communications systems will be critical to ensuring effective and efficient dissemination and use of the Agency's digital outputs.

Q5.   Co-operation with allies

  14.   JARIC ***.

  The possibilities for information/product sharing with these allies is written into JARIC's long-term plans, and opportunities for data sharing, co-operation etc are actively pursued.

  15.   Mil Svy Mil Svy is dependent on an extensive number of arrangements with allies to meet Defence requirements cost effectively, particularly with NATO, PfP nations and ***.

  In addition, the Agency has a large number of bilateral arrangements for geographic product exchange. Most recently bilateral arrangements have been concluded with the Republic of Korea and the Sultanate of Oman with negotiations at an advanced stage with the Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Portugal, Slovenia and South Africa. Notwithstanding overseas co-operation arrangements, the Agency has also recently signed a Partnership Arrangement with the Ordnance Survey of Great Britain (OSGB) to provide geographic data over Great Britain.

Q6.   Relationship with customers

  16.   JARIC For Resource Accounting and Budgeting (RAB) purposes JARIC is in the process of developing Customer Supplier Agreements (CSAs) with its main customers. It also works closely with those customers through the JARIC Customer Tasking Group (JCTG) where improved procedures are now being introduced to manage and prioritise requirements placed on JARIC. Customer surveys were conducted in 1996 and 1997, the latter by the Defence Analytical Services Agency (DASA). A further survey is currently under way, under the sponsorship of the JARIC Customer Tasking Group (JCTG). Additionally, each product dispatched from JARIC is accompanied by a mini-questionnaire inviting comments from the recipients. The results from successive surveys have shown a high level of customer satisfaction with the Agency's products and services.

  17.   Mil Svy Mil Svy is also in the process of developing CSAs with its main customers and also works very effectively through its own Joint Customer Group. In addition to the CSAs a number of other formal arrangements are being developed with Defence customers. These include Regional Support Agreements which detail geographic product coverage and System Support Statements defining geographic information required for new weapons systems. Mil Svy issued its first Customer Satisfaction Survey earlier this year. The results are currently being processed but early indications are that there is general satisfaction with the products and services Mil Svy provides.

Q7.   Manpower

  18.   JARIC Total staff numbers at JARIC have varied between 475 and 500 since the inception of the Agency. The last full manpower audit by DMCS in 1996 endorsed an establishment of 500, of whom two thirds are Service personnel. ***.

  19.   Mil Svy Mil Svy staff numbers over the past four years have been relatively stable with only a small decline from 1,210 in 1995-96 to 1,150 in 1998-99. Civilian staff has accounted for the small decline, which as been offset in part by recruitment of junior grades during 1999. ***.

Q8.   Estate development

  20.   JARIC JARIC has been involved in three major estate relocation/rationalisation studies since 1996. The first, in January-July 1996, the Collocation of Defence Intelligence Units (CDIU) Phase Two study, employed outside consultants to determine the viability of moving JARIC to the DIS site at Chicksands. The cost of relocation *** was deemed to be too expensive and the decision was taken to leave JARIC in situ. The subject was revisited in connection with the SDR programme in early 1998. The two main options in this study were the relocation of JARIC to either Feltham or a green field site. Once again, the substantial costs of relocation, re-calculated to a 1998 cost base militated against a move and the decision, once again, was taken to leave JARIC at Brampton. More recently, JARIC has been involved in discussion on the future use of the Brampton estate post the demise of RAF Logistics Command in November 1999.

  21.   Mil Svy Mil Svy produced an Estate Development Plan (EDP) in January 1999 to address problems associated with ***. The EDP sets out a land use plan for the Agency for the next 15 years and includes rationalisation of Mil Svy's estate from four to two sites at Feltham and Hermitage. *** except for the relocation of eight Map and Chart Depot from Guildford to Feltham during 2000 ***.

  Defence Estates is currently exploring strategies to assist resolution of this issue. In addition to rationalising UK activities, Mil Svy will complete a review of its map stock holdings in British Forces Germany Map Depot by the end of October 1999 and also finalise the closure of the Survey Production Centre in Germany by the end of December 1999.

Q9.   Accounts direction for JARIC

  22.  The National Audit Office (NAO) are currently visiting JARIC to conduct a priority audit of the national FY98-99 Departmental Resource Accounts (DRAc). From this, the NAO will be in a position to determine whether JARIC is likely to receive an accounts direction during their scheduled November audit of the FY98-99 Agency accounts.

Q10.   RAB development

  23.   JARIC JARIC is currently producing Resource Accounts, using the CAPITAL core solution. The FY98-99 DRAc was prepared, in accordance with the Department's Resource Accounting Policy Manual (RAPM), ready for NAO audit in September. The implementation of the Project CAPITAL programme at JARIC has been subject to a number of technical teething problems, many of which arose from the Agency's participation as an early Implementation site for the Project. A rudimentary output costing methodology was implemented at JARIC in December 1997 and data has been collected ever since. An officer from the Management Accountancy Services (Army) is currently attached to JARIC to carry out a feasibility study into the basis for a more refined output costing procedure. Output costs will be communicated to customers via CSAs which are currently being developed, although CDI is effectively JARIC's principal customer.

  24.   Mil Svy Mil Svy has made good progress in implementing Resource Accounting and Budgeting (RAB) as part of Project CAPITAL. In preparation for improved management under RAB the Agency has been re-structuring it's resource information into an output orientated form. Output costings will be communicated to customers via Customer/Supplier Agreements, which are currently being developed with its TLB customers.

Q11.   Private sector involvement

  25.   JARIC All JARIC's IT and non-IT hardware maintenance is contracted-out. All infrastructure, cleaning, transport, etc services are provided by SERCO under the RAF Brampton/Wyton contracting-out arrangements.

  26.   Mil Svy Mil Svy has a number of contracts with the private sector. Contracts supporting the Agency's infrastructure include the ICL/COMAX PPP contract for IT and media support (which includes support to the DIS Old War Office Building) and separate building maintenance, catering and cleaning contracts. The Agency has external contracts to achieve some of its map production outputs.

Q12.   Efficiency programme

  27.   JARIC JARIC has met its annual efficiency Key Target each year since the Agency's inception. The targets have been met through a number of measures, each of which is recorded in the annual Efficiency Plan. Major efficiencies have been effected through rationalisation measures, some civilianisation of Service posts, the re-negotiation of the hardware maintenance contract and technological improvements.

  28.   Mil Svy Mil Svy continues to meet its annual efficiency Key Target through in-house rationalisation of production flow-lines, reduction of overheads, utilisation of new technology (MDS, see para 12), civilianisation of military posts and estate rationalisation.

Q13.   Year 2000 compliance

  29.   JARIC All critical IT systems at JARIC, ***, are already Y2K compliant ***.

  30.   Mil Svy A substantial Y2K programme has been addressed, partly in conjunction with the US National Imagery and Mapping Agency. The programme is scheduled for completion in October 1999. Many constituent projects are already complete, ***.

  The Agency is optimistic that this project will be completed on time but if not a contingency plan has been developed to meet any operational demands placed on the system.

AGENCY KEY TARGETS

JARIC—1998-99

  Key Target 1: To provide operational intelligence support as follows:

    —  98% of Priority 1 tasks to be completed within 24 hours of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

    —  92% of Priority 2 tasks to be completed within 48 hours of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

    —  88% of Priority 3 tasks to be completed within seven days of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

  Key Target 2: To provide detached Service personnel as required up to a total of 22 at any one time.

  Key Target 3: To complete strategic, non-operational intelligence requirements and other tasks as follows:

    —  92% of Priority 1 tasks to be completed within 24 hours of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

    —  88% of Priority 2 tasks to be completed within 48 hours of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

    —  80% of Priority 3 tasks to be completed within seven days of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

    —  75% of Priority 4 tasks to be completed within six weeks of the receipt of appropriate imagery.

  Key Target 4: To revise the methodology of measuring the degree of customer satisfaction with the service provided.

  Key Target 5: To achieve a 2.5% improvement in efficiency.

  Key Target 6: To conduct evaluation of reconnaissance systems for MoD and other Governments within agreed times and allocated resources.

  Performance: All targets were achieved.

JARIC—1999-2000

  Key Target 1: To satisfy 95% of operational requirements for imagery, imagery intelligence (IMINT) and imagery-derived products within the timescales specified in the Customer Agreement.

  Key Target 2: To provide detached Service personnel for intelligence-related support to operations duties (up to a maximum of 6% of the Service strength at any time).

  Key Target 3: To satisfy 85% of non-operational requirements for imagery, imagery intelligence (IMINT) and imagery-derived products and services within the timescales specified in the Customer Agreement.

  Key Target 4: To achieve a 3% improvement in efficiency.

  Key Target 5: To establish the baseline for measurement of customer satisfaction with the Agency's products and services.

  Performance: Key Target 3 has been exceeded and Key Target 4 could not be sustained during Kosovo.

MIL SVY—1998-99

  Key Target 1: To satisfy 100% of requirements for geographic support to current operations within the timescales agreed between the Agency and its customers.

  Key Target 2: To agree with the Joint Customer Group by March 1999, a process for measuring the degree of customer satisfaction with the service provided.

  Key Target 3: To complete the agreed annual production programme on time and to cost.

  Key Target 4: To establish by March 1999 a process for measuring the degree of satisfaction the Library service provides.

  Key Target 5: To maintain the readiness state of the required Field Support elements of the Agency as required by the Department.

  Performance: All targets were achieved with the exception of Key Target Two.

MIL SVY—1999-2000

  Key Target 1: To satisfy 100% of requirements for geographic support to current operations within the timescale agreed between the Agency and its customers.

  Key Target 2: To establish the baseline for measurement of customer satisfaction with the Agency's products and services.

  Key Target 3: To complete the agreed annual production programme on time and to cost.

  Key Target 4: To establish the baseline measurement of the effectiveness of the Agency's geographic information holdings in meeting customer requirements.

  Key Target 5: To maintain the readiness state of the required Field Support elements of the Agency as required by the Department.

  Key Target 6: To achieve a 3% improvement in efficiency.

  Performance: All targets currently on schedule.


 
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