# Systems Engineering

**R-2A activity** of project 142 — Systems Engineering  
**Program element:** 0605142D8Z — Systems Engineering  
**Component:** Defense-Wide · **Budget Activity:** 6  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605142D8Z/142/a0  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0605142D8Z/142

## Summary

This activity requests $18.9M in FY2027, 100% of project 142, down 4.6% on FY2026. The R-2A exhibit describes it across FY2025–FY2027, including what the FY2027 money is planned to buy.

## What the FY2027 request buys

**FY2027 planned work.** • Continue to assist the practitioner in the development of their capabilities in the digital engineering ecosystem. • Continue to advance the implementation of the Secretary’s Acquisition Transformation Strategy (ATS) by modernizing systems engineering practices and enabling the Department to better leverage rigorous technical assessments that inform the calculated risk decisions, trade-offs, and transformative outcomes the ATS demands. • Continue to modernize systems engineering processes and tools as directed by the Acquisition Transformation Strategy section 4.2. • Continue to develop frameworks and tools that support the implementation of MOSA into acquisition strategies as directed by the Acquisition Transformation Strategy section 4.4. • Develop the engineering workforce by increasing the Engineering and Technical Management (ETM) and Test & Evaluation (T&E) training curriculum and credentials. • Provide engineering staff support to assess and manage risk through OUSW(R&E)’s critical technical reviews and ITRAs. • Prototype methods of standards based digital thread capabilities connecting pre-acquisition engineering with procurement and sustainment engineering efforts. • Promote the adoption of operational imperatives for open system standards and architectures as directed by the Tri-Service MOSA Memo. • Continue to modernize software engineering, tools and industry engagement as directed by SecWar guidance on enhancing software lethality and increasing the speed of capability deliveries. • Continue to advance MOSA software implementation to enable interoperability and data integration using Application Programming Interfaces (API) consistent with SecWar guidance and DoDI 5000.87, Operation of the Software Pathway. • Continue to modernize the DoW’s approach to interoperability. • Develop practitioner guidance for transitioning from DoW Architecture Framework into Unified Architecture Framework as required by section 811 of the 2024 NDAA. • Continue to revitalize the value engineering discipline by issuing updated guidance and recognizing achievements. • Continue to advance engineering practices to support rapid and effective transition of innovative technologies into development programs.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** Decrease from FY 2026 to FY 2027 for $2.409M due to realignment of DoW priorities per EO 14222 "Implementing the President's ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Cost Efficiency Initiative."

## Before the request year

**FY2026 plans — current year.** • Continue to support model-based systems engineering (MBSE) to enable faster adoption and deployment of the critical technology areas by developing organizational, workforce, project, and model transition guidance to lead the Department in transitioning to a data and application programming interface (API)-first MBSE approach. • Continue to coordinate software engineering modernization in areas of enterprise cloud services, software factories, DevSecOps (Development, Security, and Operations), continuous delivery pipelines, and applications of artificial intelligence in the warfighting domain. • Support the DoW in its efforts to advance its digital engineering (DE) and modeling and simulation (M&S) efforts to align with industry leading practices. • Continue to identify gaps in engineering policy and guidance. Develop updates or new policies to address gaps. • Update the digital engineering guidance documents. • Revitalize the value engineering discipline by issuing updated guidance and recognizing achievements. • Update the Systems Engineering Guide for Systems of Systems. • Continue to develop the workforce of tomorrow by working with Military Departments, Warfighting Acquisition University, and other DoW Agencies to identify critical workforce competencies and deploy essential training and credentials in critical technical skill areas. • Continue to lead the DoW Digital Talent Management Forum. Support collaboration across the Office of the Secretary of War (OSW) and the Military Services to enhance workforce management by unifying and streamlining Department-wide digital talent (e.g., software engineering) efforts. • Serve as OUSW(R&E)’s lead representative on the DoW Talent Management Executive Council, providing input on workforce development and recruiting initiatives. • Continue to build a resilient Joint Force and defense ecosystem by engaging with technology demonstration efforts to develop next-generation data analytics and rapid prototypes; collaborating within OSW to address the digital transformation needs of independent technical risk assessments (ITRAs); and executing prototyping efforts in the area of APIs to modernize the DoW’s approach to interoperability. • Continue to provide engineering expertise to OUSW(R&E)’s critical technical reviews and ITRAs. • Continue to advance foundational engineering practices (including reliability and maintainability, manufacturing and quality, system safety, human systems integration, and value engineering) to improve readiness and enhance lethality and effectiveness. • Continue to serve as the Defense Standardization Executive, coordinating standards activities with the DoW community and the Defense Standardization Program Office.

**FY2025 accomplishments.** • Promote the adoption of operational imperatives for open system standards and architectures as statutorily directed and emphasized in the Tri-Service MOSA Memo. • Support model-based systems engineering (MBSE) to enable faster adoption and deployment of the critical technology areas. • Serve as Lead Standardization Activity for systems engineering specifications and standards, modular and open systems standards and specifications (MOSS), and modeling and simulation (M&S) standards and methodologies. • Update the DoD Modeling and Simulation Strategy. • Develop a DoD MOSA implementation guide. • Update DoDI 4245.14, DoD Value Engineering Program. • Develop additional combat efficiencies by reducing failure modes, hazards, and defects early and throughout the capability life cycle of weapon systems. • Identify gaps in engineering policies and guidance. Develop updates or new policies to address identified gaps. • Coordinate software engineering modernization in areas of enterprise cloud services, software factories, DevSecOps (Development, Security, and Operations), continuous delivery pipelines, and applications of artificial intelligence in the warfighting domain. • Support the DoD in its efforts to advance digital engineering (DE) and M&S efforts to align with industry practices. Promote the integration of physics-based models into campaign-level system-of-systems models. Support modeling efforts that enable standardizing engineering data to serve as authoritative sources of truth for the digital threads of DoD capabilities. • Develop the workforce of tomorrow by working with Military Departments, Defense Acquisition University, and other DoD Agencies to identify critical workforce competencies and deploy essential training and credentials in critical technical skill areas. • Lead the DoD Digital Talent Management Forum. Support collaboration across the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and the Military Services to enhance workforce management by unifying and streamlining parallel Department-wide digital talent (e.g., software engineering) efforts. • Build a resilient Joint Force and defense ecosystem by: engaging with technology demonstration efforts to develop next-generation data analytics and rapid prototypes; collaborating within OSD to address the digital transformation needs of independent technical risk assessments; and executing prototyping efforts in the area of application programming interfaces (APIs) to modernize DoD’s approach to interoperability. • Provide engineering expertise to OUSD(R&E)’s critical technical reviews and independent technical risk assessments. • Advance foundational engineering practices (including reliability and maintainability, manufacturing and quality, system safety, human systems integration, and value engineering) to improve readiness and enhance lethality and effectiveness. • Serve as the Defense Standardization Executive, coordinating standards activities with the DoD community and the Defense Standardization Program Office.

## Funding

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 21.0 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 19.8 |
| FY2027 | Request | 18.9 |

> Prior, current and budget year only — an R-2A activity carries no five-year plan. It sums exactly into its project in the request year and not necessarily in any other.

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Office of the Secretary of Defense RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibit R-2A, PE 0605142D8Z project 142 (PB PB2027). Narrative is the government's own text.
- **No marks, no contractors at this grain** — congressional marks land on the program element and R-3 performers on the project.
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_activity`.

*HitchAI is an independent intelligence service, not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense. Budget figures are requests/estimates, not obligations.*