The Department of Defense has released a document establishing policy and outlining the authorities for the administration of DOD’s Value Engineering Program.
The latest DOD Instruction took effect Tuesday, Oct. 1, and was approved by Heidi Shyu, DOD’s undersecretary for research and engineering and a 2024 Wash100 awardee.
Value engineering, or VE, allows DOD components to analyze the functions of projects, programs, systems, products and services, among others, and reportedly plays a key role in helping the department meet its mission of providing the military with the equipment and other systems needed to deter war and protect national security.
The issuance states that DOD components should implement a VE program to foster innovation, enhance value and reduce costs over the acquisition and operation life cycle.
A component VE program has two areas: a government-only program using VE proposals to implement changes and a government contractor process that uses contractor-initiated VE change proposals, or VECPs, to implement government-approved changes.
The instruction outlines the responsibilities of the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering—or USD R&E—and DOD component heads, as well as those of the two governance bodies: the department’s VE executive steering group and the VE management advisory group.