The DRIVE Consortium, managed by the Ohio Aerospace Institute (OAI) in collaboration with Parallax Advanced Research, is a strategic initiative designed to accelerate innovation, technology development, and operational capability for the Department of the Air Force (DAF). It operates as a collaborative agreement between government entities, industry leaders, and academic institutions, to address critical challenges in aerospace, defense, and advanced manufacturing.
Reasons to Utilize DRIVE
Risk Reduction: The consortium provides structured testing, validation, and prototyping environments, ensuring that technologies are mature and reliable before deployment.
Operational Advantage: DRIVE focuses on technologies that directly enhance DAF capabilities, such as advanced manufacturing for hypersonic systems, AI-driven decision support tools, and quantum computing for logistics optimization.
Accelerated Innovation: DRIVE enables the DAF to access cutting-edge technologies faster by leveraging the combined expertise of government, industry, and academia. This reduces development timelines and enhances mission readiness.
Technology Maturation: By focusing on digital engineering tool maturation and other critical capabilities, DRIVE ensures that technologies are operationally viable and ready for deployment, reducing risks associated with immature systems.
Cost Efficiency: By pooling resources and fostering collaboration, the consortium minimizes duplication of effort and optimizes funding utilization, delivering high ROI on investments.
Technical Areas of Interest
- Pathfinder demonstrations of AF Digital Campaign concepts.
- Digital manufacturing and engineering methodologies.
- Minimizing friction in customer-supplier relationships.
- Assessment of advanced methods for future transformation needs.
Flexible and Rapid Contracting Mechanism
Speed: Transition from problem identification to contract award in just weeks, not months.
Flexibility: Accommodates competitive solicitations or direct sole-source contracts.
Funding simplicity: Accepts all types of funding (e.g., 3400, 3600 appropriations).
Secure funding: Funds are deemed obligated and expended upon transfer.
The Ohio Aerospace Institute, which is wholly affiliated with Parallax Advanced Research, was awarded a six-year agreement to operate a consortium which facilitates the U.S. Air Force’s commitment to the transformation of digital practices across its acquisition, operations, and sustainment enterprises. Called DRIVE – Digital Research, Innovation, Validation & Experimentation – the consortium is executed in collaboration with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and the AFMC Digital Transformation Office to establish an ecosystem for mitigating transformation risks in U.S. Air Force programs and activities.
OAI welcomes all companies, academic institutions and government centers that have a passion for digital transformation, to join the DRIVE Consortium, so that collectively and individually we can help the Air Force realize the transformation that they seek. Apply to join today.
