The transfer from the Navy Marine Corps Intranet (NMCI) to the Next Generation Enterprise Network (NGEN) will be a major focus of the shore-based concept of the naval networking environment for the foreseeable future, an NGEN official said May 5 during a briefing at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exposition.
“The NGEN program has been a hot topic for awhile and it may seem like things are moving slowly, but just like any other program in Department of Defense, there are things you have to go through,” said Robert Whitkop, NGEN executive director in the Office of the Assistant Chief of Naval Operations.
“There are basic milestones, there are certain procedures we have to go through and we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves,” he said. “We are making sure we are getting all the blocks checked off as we bring the network back in the Navy and the Marine Corps.”
NGEN is a follow-on to NMCI and represents the vision for the shore-based enterprise network for the Department of the Navy.
“It has advanced the Navy and Marine Corps to the point where we have been able to modernize our infrastructure over time,” Whitkop said.
The transition from NMCI to NGEN is to begin in 2011. The Navy awarded the $9.9 billion NMCI contract to EDS in 2000. HP Enterprise Services administers NMCI and will continue providing services during the transition to NGEN. The Navy is expected to award the NGEN contract in September 2011 and it will take an estimated 43 months to complete the transition.
Whitkop said the hope was to get all the legacy networks upgraded in 10 years.
“A dream does not always match up with technology when you’re talking about legacy networks,” Whitkop said.
Copyright 2010. Navy League of the United States. All Rights Reserved.
