Information Technology Laboratory | Focus Areas

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY

DISCOVER, DEVELOP, AND DELIVER ADVANCED COMPUTING SOLUTIONS

The Information Technology Laboratory (ITL), part of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), is a premier Department of Defense (DoD) laboratory engaged in the creation and application of advanced information technology in support of the warfighter and the Nation. ITL helps enable the missions of the ERDC, Army, DoD, and other agencies by conceiving, planning, managing, conducting, and coordinating research and development (R&D) in high-performance computing (HPC), data science, computeraided and interdisciplinary engineering, highperformance data analytics (HPDA), software engineering, computer science, systems engineering, cybersecurity, and instrumentation systems. Through a balanced program of R&D and demonstration, ITL advances the Army’s knowledge and ability to use revolutionary information technology to address a wide range of engineering and scientific challenges.

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1

ITL OVERVIEW

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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ITL SUPERCOMPUTER TIMELINE

8 PEOPLE 9 FACILITIES 10

FOCUS AREAS 12 HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING (HPC) 13 ENGINEERED RESILIENT SYSTEMS (ERS) 14 CYBERSECURITY 15 HIGH-PERFORMANCE DATA ANALYTICS (HPDA) 16 ENABLING THE REGIMENT

16 HIGHLIGHTS

19 HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING (HPC)

21 ENGINEERED RESILIENT SYSTEMS (ERS)

23 CYBERSECURITY

25 HIGH-PERFORMANCE DATA ANALYTICS (HPDA)

27 ENABLING THE REGIMENT 28 CREDITS 2

ITL Image

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1997 SP Power3 375MHz 1997-2000 Cores:512 GFlop/s:768 1990 Y-MP C916 1990-1994 Cores:16 GFlop/s:15.2 POWER CHALLENGE Array 1996 Cores:36 GFlop/s:13 ORIGIN 2000/3000 700MHz 1996-2003 Cores:512 GFlop/s:716.8 T3E1200/900 1996-2002 Cores:1,792 GFlop/s:1,999 1996

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ITL SUPERCOMPUTER TIMELINE

2005

CRAY XT3, 2.6GHz Dual Core 2005-2007 Cores:8,192 GFlop/s:42,598.4 2001

2009

AlphaServer SC45, 1GHz 2001-2002 Cores:512 GFlop/s:1,024

2015

SGI ICE 8200 Enh. LX Xeon X5560 2.8.GHz 2009 Cores:15,360 GFlop/s:172,032

CRAY X1 2003 Cores:60 GFlop/s:768 2003

CRAY XT4, Quadcore 2.1GHz 2008 Cores:8,464 GFlop/s:71,097 2008

CRAY XE6, Opteron 16C 2.500GHz, Cray Gemini Interconnect 2010 Cores:23,296 GFlop/s:232,960

Cray XC40, Intel Xeon Phi 7230 64C 1.3GHz/Xeon E5-2699v4, Aries Interconnect 2017 Cores:160,304 GFlop/s:5,865,523.2

2017 CRAY XE6, Opteron 16C 2.500GHz, Cray Gemini Interconnect 2010 Cores:150,528 GFlop/s:1,505,280 2010

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SYSTEMS RANK

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PEOPLE

ITL has more than 300 dedicated professionals executing our programs. We maintain high standards in skill, proficiency, and technical competence. We strive every day to become the masters of our profession with a passion to win and to be successful. It is about who we are and what we do. We take Extreme Ownership of everything that impacts our mission.

WE EMBRACE THE ARMY VALUES: LOYALTY, DUTY, RESPECT, SELFLESS SERVICE, HONOR, INTEGRITY, AND PERSONAL COURAGE.

OVER

USACE

of our workforce has an advanced degree

WORLD - CLASS Place To Work

40%

2019 OVER

30% 8

of our workforce has a professional certification/registration

FACILITIES ITL is growing, and our infrastructure is growing with us in order to meet our needs, as well as those of our customers. ITL currently has over 29,000 square feet of raised floor space that contains both classified and unclassified supercomputing resources. Currently under construction is a new secure computing facility that will provide an additional 10,000 square feet of raised floor space, increasing classified supercomputing capabilities.

Laboratory facilities are being revitalized to support ITL’s mission and include an innovation laboratory, an augmented reality/virtual reality laboratory, an enhanced cybersecurity service provider facility, and a high-performance data analytics center.

ITL’s facilities are supported by 15.5 megawatts of emergency diesel generation supplying three uninterruptable power systems, which are capable of supporting 12 megawatts of critical load. In addition, there are three chilled water plants with a combined capacity of 4,200 tons of process cooling.

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FOCUS AREAS

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HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING (HPC) High-performance computing amplifies the creativity, productivity, and impact of the DoD Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) community by enabling access to insight regarding the physical world and human actions within it that would otherwise be too costly, dangerous, or timeintensive to obtain through observation and experimentation alone.

Additionally, the ITL executes the DoD High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP), a Tri-Service effort and national asset that provides a comprehensive modeling and simulation ecosystem that integrates supercomputing capabilities; computational science expertise that enables DoD scientists and engineers to conduct a wide-range of focused RDT&E activities; and high-speed information assured network communications via the Defense Research and Engineering Network (DREN) and analogous Secret DREN (SDREN).

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ENGINEERED RESILIENT SYSTEMS (ERS) High-quality acquisition decisions are critical in meeting DoD mission objectives, and success relies on the ability to develop and sustain combat systems that are effective in an ever-widening range of military operations. In addition to basic functionality, major defense systems must show broad utility throughout their lifespan.

By combining advanced engineering techniques with high-performance computing, the Engineered Resilient Systems program is developing concepts, techniques, and tools that significantly amplify design options examined during early stages of the acquisition process. As a result, designs are resilient – systems are dependable, easily modified to meet future mission goals, and possess a predictable lifecycle.

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CYBERSECURITY Cybersecurity applies intelligence to security to ensure proactive protections, while also promoting a productive environment for the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) community, enabling technological advancements and maximizing RDT&E protection and defense. ITL cybersecurity includes efforts in cybersecurity assessments, cyber-physical systems, cyber analytics, and defensive cybersecurity capabilities.

Through the High Performance Computing Modernization Program, ITL is responsible for providing cybersecurity for the Defense Research and Engineering Network (DREN) and Secret DREN (SDREN), an element of the DoD Information Network. The DREN provides high-bandwidth, low-latency connectivity among DoD science and technology, test and evaluation, and acquisition engineering communities, and serves as a proving ground for new networking technologies, new cybersecurity technologies, and research to enhance the posture of DREN and cybersecurity.

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HIGH-PERFORMANCE DATA ANALYTICS (HPDA) High-performance data analytics (HPDA) is a direct result of the data explosion created through the availability of increasingly powerful high-performance computing (HPC) systems to run complex, data-intensive modeling and simulation problems; the proliferation of the Internet of Things; the transformation of scientific disciplines into data-driven sciences; the growth of iterative problem-solving methods that produce large data volumes; and the growing requirement to perform advanced analytics in near-real time.

The HPDA effort is leading the charge for innovation in the use of supercomputing for data analytics within the DoD. ITL is leveraging expertise in HPC, data science analytics, and big data to solve new classes of problems across the DoD and provide a premier forum for advancement, education, and adoption of the “science� of knowledge discovery and data mining from all types of data.

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ENABLING THE REGIMENT The focus area of Enabling the Regiment identifies the research and development efforts that directly support the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), DoD Services and agencies, and other government agencies. Efforts within this area are generally associated with large-scale enterprise software engineering following the entire lifecycle of software development, which includes requirements engineering, systems architecture, software development, systems testing, documentation, and training using agile methodology. Other efforts include mobile application development, augmented/virtual/mixed reality software development to support the warfighter, and support to the USACE Civil Works mission.

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HIGHLIGHTS

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HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING (HPC) SUPPORT TO PEO SOLDIER

PROBLEM: The Army seeks to ensure maximum safety of airborne and airdrop operations. There have been premature extractions from C-130 and C-17 aircraft, placing troops and equipment at higher risk. Military transport aircraft are designed to drop cargo and troops from the ramp located at the rear of the aircraft and through troop doors located on the sides of the aircraft. During recent and past personnel airdrop operations, warfighters have been prematurely extracted from the aircraft which, in one case, resulted in a fatality. The causes of the accidents were investigated, and questions were addressed through a composite analysis using flight test, experimental wind tunnel, and computational simulation data. The analysis included a redesign of the T-11R container.

SOLUTION: High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP) software was used to develop a systems engineering capability for virtual prototyping based on multi-disciplinary, physics-based simulation. The HPCMP tools enabled timely inputs for safety evaluations and reduction of the acquisition time required to deploy airdrop systems that implement advanced technologies by minimizing flight test requirements.

IMPACT: High-performance computing simulation results were used to validate data from two accident investigations and enhance product redesign to improve operational procedures and equipment design to amplify safety. PEO Soldier said, “We’ve been needing this capability for a long time. The data has been a critical piece of our mishap analysis and recommendation.”

“WE’VE BEEN NEEDING THIS CAPABILITY FOR A LONG TIME. THE DATA HAS BEEN A CRITICAL PIECE OF OUR MISHAP ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATION.”

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Mr. Tashfiq Salam Aerospace Engineer Personnel Airdrop Systems PM-Soldier Clothing and Individual Equipment

COLLABORATION ENVIRONMENTS

PROBLEM: Organizations such as the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) typically enlist a number of partner organizations across DoD, government, and private industry as part of its teaming efforts. Each organization utilizes different operational technology environments and governance models to secure their operational environments. The multiple environments adversely impacted the ability to provide timely products to mission partners. A common virtual operating environment that was accessible to the entire team and provided access to high-performance computing (HPC) resources was needed to foster use of consistent paradigms, processes, and practices.

SOLUTION: ITL created an environment, known as the Collaboratory, to provide an informaton technology ecosystem that would combine collaboration and information sharing, standard fast-running tools, and ease of access to HPC systems. ITL employed Virtual Desktop Interface (VDI) and virtual machine technology to deliver a familiar and consistent operating environment for team members, while also providing a common repository for shared data. The Collaboratory provides standard tools for information sharing and teaming, while leveraging automated workflows to establish consistent and responsive processes for version control and account management.

IMPACT: The Collaboratory allows users such as DTRA and their partners to rapidly develop and transition capabilities from their programs into the mission space. Experimental results can be peer reviewed and validated quickly due to reliability of results from standard tools, codes, and data which are readily accessible through collaboration resources. An unexpected benefit was the use of these capabilities to have dispersed subject matter experts collaborate to quickly create tailored training environments virtually, then export and rapidly deploy them where needed.

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ENGINEERED RESILIENT SYSTEMS (ERS) SUPPORT TO ACQUISITION

PROBLEM: The Gray Eagle unmanned aerial system (UAS) required an antenna redesign. Conducting the analysis using traditional tools would have resulted in significant costs and increased risk to the acquisition schedule and ultimately to mission performance.

SOLUTION: ITL developed high-fidelity computational models and automated workflow tools that include the entire flight envelope of the UAS. The combined tools were used in support of PEO Aviation and the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to analyze multiple antenna locations and impact to performance.

IMPACT: The tradespace analysis conducted using Engineered Resilient Systems computational and workflow tools allowed the optimal antenna location to be identified, reducing risk to cost, schedule, and mission.

Additionally, the OEM has adopted the high-fidelity models for use in internal design processes.

THE COMBINED TOOLS WERE USED IN SUPPORT OF PEO AVIATION AND THE OEM TO ANALYZE MULTIPLE ANTENNA LOCATIONS AND ITS IMPACT TO PERFORMANCE.

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SUPPORT TO ACQUISITION

PROBLEM: The current process for rotorcraft high-fidelity, physics-based simulation is not rapid enough for use during the Future Vertical Lift (FVL) down select process.

SOLUTION: ITL is working with the Aviation Development Directorate within the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation and Missile Center to dramatically reduce the time required to simulate each industry-proposed design, thus allowing results within the acquisition timeline.

IMPACT: High-fidelity computational modeling analyzes system performance and obtains key parameters 100X faster than previous methods, allowing FVL leaders to make better-informed decisions and buying down risk during the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft down select.

HIGH-FIDELITY COMPUTATIONAL MODELING ANALYZES SYSTEM PERFORMANCE AND OBTAINS KEY PARAMETERS 100X FASTER THAN PREVIOUS METHODS.

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CYBERSECURITY CYBER R&D

PROBLEM: Cybersecurity continues to grow in importance as we rely more and more on technology and as the cyber threat grows in sophistication. The DoD requires leap ahead technologies to provide a secure and robust network across the mission spectrum.

SOLUTION: ITL established the High-Perfomance Computing (HPC) Architecture for Cyber Situational Awareness (HACSAW) to leverage the HPC ecosystem to develop tools, techniques, and capabilities that provide cybersecurity overmatch. HACSAW provides a proving ground for novel, HPC-focused cybersecurity ideas, algorithms, and approaches by providing unparalleled cyber data for conducting research and development and transitioning operationally relevant, data-driven analytics.

IMPACT: Cyber R&D minimizes barriers to real-world, enterprise cyber data and computational resources, allowing DoD, other government agencies, academia, and private industry to partner in the development of next generation cybersecurity tools and techniques, securing the DoD’s Information Network.

HACSAW PROVIDES A PROVING GROUND FOR NOVEL, HPCFOCUSED CYBERSECURITY IDEAS, ALGORITHMS, AND APPROACHES

BY PROVIDING UNPARALLELED CYBER DATA FOR CONDUCTING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AND TRANSITIONING OPERATIONALLY RELEVANT, DATA-DRIVEN ANALYTICS.

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CYBER OPERATIONS

PROBLEM: As the cyber threat landscape continues to evolve at a rapid pace, so must the DoD’s capabilities in detecting its adversaries’ tactics, techniques, and procedures.

SOLUTION: The ITL created the Cybersecurity Environment for Detection, Analysis, and Reporting (CEDAR) to investigate and understand how the application of modern technologies can enhance our ability to monitor and defend the Defense Research and Engineering Network (DREN). The CEDAR framework takes an unconventional approach to network security monitoring by integrating an ecosystem of novel applications and establishes a flexible, agile monitoring and intrusion detection platform. Leveraging commercial investments and open source advancements, CEDAR capitalizes on applying industry proven technologies to defend the DREN and promote a productive and secure environment for the science and technology, test and evaluation, and acquisition engineering communities.

IMPACT: The development and maturation of CEDAR is empowering cybersecurity analysts and managers in their protection and defense of the DREN and Secret DREN. Collaborations and partnerships are extending its use across the DoD’s Information Network.

CEDAR CAPITALIZES ON APPLYING INDUSTRY PROVEN TECHNOLOGIES TO DEFEND THE DREN AND PROMOTE A PRODUCTIVE AND SECURE ENVIRONMENT FOR THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, TEST AND EVALUATION, AND ACQUISITION ENGINEERING COMMUNITIES.

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HIGH-PERFORMANCE DATA ANALYTICS (HPDA) PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE

PROBLEM: U.S. Army rotorcraft platforms collect significant amounts of operational data. The data could not be stored, viewed, or analyzed in its entirety, resulting in increased maintenance costs and reduced mission readiness.

SOLUTION: The ITL team developed an artificial intelligence (AI)/machine learning (ML) ecosystem to allow the full maintenance data set to be stored and analyzed. The AI/ML ecosystem and advancements have enabled a true predictive maintenance capability.

IMPACT: The initial impact is over $10M of cost avoidance for a single component on the rotorcraft platform. This effort has also extended the predictive maintenance eligibility from 20% of the fleet to 100% of the fleet, providing significant cost savings and improving mission readiness.

THE INITIAL IMPACT IS OVER $10M OF COST AVOIDANCE FOR A SINGLE COMPONENT ON THE ROTORCRAFT PLATFORM.

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SUPPORTING THE WARFIGHTER

PROBLEM: Soldiers are facing critical problems in managing the volume and velocity of data across the battlefield and collecting data at the tactical edge will continue to grow. The traditional approach to collecting, transmitting, analyzing, and distributing data on the battlefield is adversely impacted by network and logistical constraints on the tactical edge, and this in turn adversely impacts the ability to rapidly make accurate decisions.

SOLUTION: ITL is working with the Army Geospatial Center and ERDC Geospatial Research Laboratory to create a tactical decision-making process that leverages high-performance computing, machine learning (ML), and the Internet of Things. This moves supercomputing power and ML analytics to the tactical edge where the data originates, reducing network traffic and compressing the time required for soldiers to transform raw data into actionable information.

IMPACT: This capability will revolutionize battlefield operations by making better decisions faster.

ITL IS WORKING WITH THE ARMY GEOSPATIAL CENTER AND ERDC GEOSPATIAL RESEARCH LABORATORY TO CREATE A TACTICAL DECISION PROCESS THAT LEVERAGES HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING, MACHINE LEARNING, AND THE INTERNET OF THINGS.

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ENABLING THE REGIMENT SUPPORT TO NATURAL DISASTER RESPONSE

PROBLEM: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), under the National Response Framework, has two Emergency Support Functions (ESF) that it must execute: ESF #3 – Public Works and Engineering and ESF #9 – Search and Rescue. Time is critical when executing these missions, and technology is critical to allow automation of the processes and transmitting data from the disaster site to decision-makers.

SOLUTION: ITL developed and fielded two apps to support these efforts: the Mobile Information Collection Application (MICA), an all-purpose data collection tool that replaces paper forms and cameras, and BlueRoof, an application that allows homeowners who have lost their roofs during an event to sign up to receive temporary repair assistance.

IMPACT: The MICA and BlueRoof apps significantly reduce the time required for homeowners to receive assistance. Processes that took two weeks or longer are now being accomplished in three days.

PROCESSES THAT TOOK TWO WEEKS OR LONGER ARE NOW BEING ACCOMPLISHED IN THREE DAYS.

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SPREADING KNOWLEDGE

PROBLEM: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and ERDC technical reports and other knowledge products were not widely distributed or made available to commercial search engines. Ensuring knowledge created by engineers and scientists is digitally published, preserved, and made accessible worldwide is essential to promoting both USACE and ERDC as premier providers of engineering and scientific services and research.

SOLUTION: ITL developed and implemented a new digital repository called Knowledge Core to ensure consistent access to USACE and ERDC materials. Knowledge Core also provides search engine-specific metadata and search engine-friendly sitemaps that have significantly promoted the visibility and discoverability of the material in the repository in search engines.

IMPACT: Knowledge Core has resulted in a 400% increase of page views of materials, with more than 379,591 views from 158 countries. This has significantly increased the visibility of USACE and ERDC materials, including reports, images, videos, and datasets.

KNOWLEDGE CORE HAS RESULTED IN A 400% INCREASE OF PAGE VIEWS OF MATERIALS, WITH MORE THAN 379,591 VIEWS FROM 158 COUNTRIES.

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HARNESS THE POWER OF ERDC AT

ERDCINFO@USACE.ARMY.MIL PUBLISH DATE:

DECEMBER 2019 APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED AUTHORED BY:

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY TEAM DESIGNED BY:

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY TEAM

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