As soon as a trial period of a new Corps Command and Control Information System SZAFRAN was accomplished on 11th July 2008, documents were signed on 16th July 2008 stating that the SZAFRAN system is compatible with the Corps’ requirements.
Final acceptance
A testing phase of SZAFRAN together with its adjustment to the exact Corps’ needs was successfully finalized with a signature of the Corps’ Commander Lieutenant General Zdzisław Goral. In the presence of Mr Andrzej M. Wilk, Managing Director of the Telecommunications Research Institute (PIT), Mr Andrzej Kątcki, C4 ISE Head, Mr. Janusz Piela, Project Director, as well as representatives of the Corps’ G-6 and G-3 Divisions, Lieutenant General Zdzisław Goral signed the documents giving a green light for integration of the system within the Headquarters. Documentation of conducted tests was presented in eight thick folders proving their complexity and detail.
General Goral expressed his hope that the implementation would follow the schedule and positive results of using the system would be visible during the upcoming Corps’ exercise Crystal Eagle 2008. Mr Andrzej M. Wilk noticed active and fruitful cooperation between the PIT Company and the Corps. Although all the gathered realized that the actual implementation of the system should only begin, Mr Andrzej M. Wilk set a certain goal to be reached in the future. The ideal would be if people worked without focusing on the system, which would effectively support their job.
In general, Command and Control Information System (C2IS) is an Information Technology-based system that provides commanders and staff officers (end users) with core and functional services helping them to accomplish their tasks at Headquarters or Command Posts in operation. C2IS enables gathering, processing and exchanging of data. This system also includes operational and technical procedures. The result is that the Corps gains ability to communicate with other C2ISs.
Testing SZAFRAN
It took several weeks to conduct a complex and demanding test of SZAFRAN. From 8th May to 11th July, people involved in the project were to prove that the system was capable of fulfilling all Corps’ technical and operational requirements, especially in compliance with the MIP (Multilateral Interoperability Programme). In order to determine pace, a scenario was created, which was based on the scenario already prepared for the Crystal Eagle exercise.
Tests were divided into two major parts; one part was dealing with the MIP issues and consisted of so-called System Level Test 3 and Operational Level Test. In this phase personnel of G-6 Division were mostly engaged as well as people of ASSECO Company.
The second part of tests was focusing on the operational use of the system matching the Corps’ requirements, including the performance phase. This part was further divided into an operational requirements test and a stress test.
"Testing operational requirements is especially important because things or functions good from the technical point of view do not have to be operational at the same time", explained Maj. Dariusz Stanek. About 20 participants from the Headquarters took part in this operational requirements test. There was a catalogue of operational requirements with about 200 test cases to be analyzed in terms of matching the Corps’ operational requirements.
A different approach to a stress test was adopted. There were about 80 robots, namely computers, and about 10 operators. The system was running for 72 hours without breaks and afterwards it was assessed. "We had over there two command posts; we had one command post which engaged about 72 robots and three operators, what means 75 work stations in total. For the second command post we used 15 work stations – about 13 robots and two operators", explained Maj. Stanek.
Test robots had to carry out a particular sequence of tests like moving the units, changing the resources in the database, saving data as Word or Excel files and sending e-mails. Each machine worked on one type of operation.
Operators, especially in the operational requirements test, were performing typical for our Headquarters tasks, like creating documents, sending them to other command posts, updating the database or moving the units. Additionally, operators were exchanging data between each other.
All in all, the results of tests were positive. Some minor obstacles related to security settings or so-called MIP mapping were successfully overcome. At the end of the testing phase, the system worked without fault.
What will be next?
Command and Control Information System SZAFRAN is going to be used during the Crystal Eagle Exercise. However, it will be used to the extent possible, especially in the Theater Task Force SZAFRAN. Those people who were already trained during a trial period will be operating the system during the exercise. As soon as the exercise comes to an end, the integration of the system at the Headquarters will start. By the end of the year, all military and chosen civilian personnel of the Multinational Corps Northeast will have been trained to use SZAFRAN. Obviously, the system will be used during exercises and missions and to the extent possible also in the daily staff work. As Maj. Stanek said, SZAFRAN would be available on every desk.
