FACE Conformance program now open for business
NewsJanuary 16, 2017
NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND, PATUXENT RIVER, Md. The Future Airborne Capability Environment (FACE) Conformance Program is now up and running, officials say.
Since 2010, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) members working with the Army, Air Force, academia partners, and Department of Defense (DoD) stakeholders and commercial companies have been developing the required documentation and procedures to complete the FACE Conformance program and bring it to fruition. Officials say, the procedural pieces were the last challenge before making the announment.
Rear Adm. Shane Gahagan, assistant commander for Research and Engineering, NAVAIR, says, “With The Open Group’s FACE Consortium Conformance Program now operational, NAVAIR can be assured FACE conformance requirements from our industry partners can be independently certified enabling NAVAIR to forge new partnerships in achieving rapid re-configurability through truly open technical standards. This enhanced competitive market will ensure an even more coordinated approach across NAVAIR's Software and Systems Engineering competencies with industry's leading experts in delivering innovative and affordable products to the warfighter.”
The FACE Conformance Program defines the processes to verify and certify that software products, known as FACE Units of Conformance (UoCs), meet all the requirements of the FACE Technical Standard. Once a UoC meets 100 percent of the FACE Technical Standard requirements, it can be certified “FACE Conformant.” This formal recognition provides benefit to buyers and suppliers by supporting Better Buying Power (BBP) and Modular Open Systems Architecture (MOSA) requirements.
To market an application as FACE conformant, it must receive a FACE Conformance Certificate. This certificate is obtained once a two-step process is completed. The first step is for a software supplier to submit a software component through an independent verification process. A designated Verification Authority (VA) must perform the technical verification and then the results are submitted to the FACE Certification Authority for the legal conformance certificate.
For a list of approved VAs: http://www.opengroup.org/face/approved-va.
Rockwell Collins received the first FACE Conformance Certificate for its Required Navigation Performance / Area Navigation (RNP/RNAV) capable Mission Flight Management Software (MFMS). To find out more about the FACE Conformance Program and how software can be certified, visit http://www.opengroup.org/face/conformance.
