Enterprise License Agreement
US Army Battle Command Training Capability-Equipment Support (BCTC-ES) program
Customer
U.S. Army, Mission Training Complexes (MTCs)
Application
The Enterprise License Agreement (ELA) deploys and sustains ASTi’s voice communication systems fielded for the BCTC-ES program. ASTi supports an enterprise containing several thousand users at locations across the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, Europe, and Asia.
U.S. Army AVCATT training photo by Hiro Chang
Challenges
&
Solutions
For years, the Army has relied on ASTi products to facilitate individual and collective mission command training for Army Active Component (AC), Army National Guard (ARNG) and US Army Reserve (USAR).
Over time, the size and number of training sites increased, and the government expanded training requirements. The Army needed to reduce associated ownership costs and ease acquisition, administration, and sustainment tasks.
The challenge requirements are listed in blue; ASTi's applicable components are
U.S. Army AVCATT training photo by Hiro Chang
Life Cycle Sustainment
Provide comprehensive sustainment services and create a partnership environment.
The ELA forms a partnership that integrates ASTi’s support, engineering and management resources, operating as an extension of the customer’s staff. A dedicated ASTi program manager oversees the ELA and serves as a central liaison to the Army’s program office.
The ELA’s support package maintains operational effectiveness throughout the system’s life, reducing cost without compromising support. Under the ELA, ASTi shoulders the following critical services:
- Software maintenance: provides regular updates, including the latest features, enhancements, and fixes. Releases include new and updated products, compatibility with updated operating systems, compliance with government IT standards, interoperability initiatives, and system performance advancements.
- Information Assurance (IA) maintenance: delivers critical software releases and operating system security patches. These patches minimize or eliminate cybersecurity vulnerabilities and conform to strict DoD IA standards throughout the product's life.
- Product sustainment: supplies the built-in benefits of ASTi’s life cycle sustainment processes. ASTi identifies and mitigates operating system migration, hardware compatibility, and obsolescence issues. As a result, customers are protected from unforeseen sustainment hurdles.
- Onsite fielding services: include new equipment training courses and system test and validation. These services ensure systems are properly integrated into the site infrastructure, and the site staff are technically proficient.
- Help desk: provides a point of contact for immediate assistance with mission-critical technical issues. ASTi’s staff quickly resolves tedious IT problems and decreases unplanned downtime. ASTi also gathers and archives domain knowledge to solve or prevent future problems.
- Engineering services: ASTi’s Research & Development team develops customer-defined product enhancements and troubleshoots radio infrastructure problems. Additionally, ASTi provides engineering services to support the customer’s Risk Management Framework (RMF) and Authority to Operate (ATO) accreditation.
License Expansion
Address increased demand for ASTi software to meet program expansion requirements
ASTi responded to the Army’s expansion needs by offering a subscription-based ELA that provides unlimited distribution of licenses within the program’s scope. The ELA allows authorized users to freely download software licenses to meet demands for communications growth. The ELA covers these products:
Cost Reductions and Predictability
Provide a deeply discounted, fixed-price bundle of products and support services
ASTi's ELA subscription delivers exceptional value and savings over multiple years compared to traditional methods of purchasing separate software and services. The Army benefits from predictable costs during the contract term, regardless of license expansion or use of services.
Simplified Acquisition and Administration
Consolidate licenses and services into a simplified one-stop subscription
With a single annual purchase, the ELA streamlines the Army's procurement process and removes the complexity of managing multiple contracts. Customers can also easily provision new users without the overhead and budget impacts of buying additional licenses. At renewal, they can reevaluate their investment and adjust the new agreement to align with changing needs.