The U.S. Army has completed the implementation of a data center as-a-service, also known as DCaaS, for service members at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, or JBLM, in Washington state.
The U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command is expected to authorize JBLM’s move from the installation’s data center to the new environment in the coming days, the service said Monday.
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How Did the Army Build a DCaaS at Joint Base Lewis-McChord?
The Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Enterprise Systems and Services, or ALTESS, product office within the Program Executive Office Enterprise built the compute and store stack that will provide a virtual computing environment for the JBLM.
ALTESS also equipped the JBLM’s data center with a backup generator, hot aisle containment system, 40-ton chillers and new flooring to enhance the facility’s efficiency and reliability for the installation’s area of responsibility.
“A lot of data passes through and is hosted by JBLM,” commented Barry Nichols, acting product lead for ALTESS. “By providing redundant power and cooling systems and a better space for IT equipment, we’re positively impacting the services soldiers get from that AOR.”
ALTESS also supports NETCOM’s DCaaS rollout and facility improvement at Fort Bragg in North Carolina and U.S. Army Garrison Grafenwoehr in Germany.
Why Is the Army Building a Shared IT Environment?
The effort is part of a service-wide initiative to transition to shared compute and store services in 2026.
A 2016 directive issued by then-Army-Secretary Eric Fanning called for the consolidation of 1,157 Army Enterprise Data Centers across the nation. According to A.J. Bognar, who led the service’s data center consolidation in 2017, the initiative is expected to increase efficiency and mission efficacy.
