ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. — The U.S Army officially activated the Transformation Decision Analysis Center during a ceremony held Wednesday, Feb. 4, at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. The event marked the inactivation of the DEVCOM Analysis Center and The Research and Analysis Center, combining their expertise to strengthen the Army’s ability to plan and achieve future force capabilities.
Lt. Gen. Michael McCurry, commanding general, Futures and Concepts Command, served as the virtual host of the event, while Brig. Gen. Robert Born, commanding general, Combat Capabilities Development Command, provided local hosting onsite support.
The activation ceremony underscored the importance of TDAC’s role in the Army’s transformation efforts and its alignment under FCC, a three-star command under the Army’s newly established Transformation and Training Command.
“This is about delivering credible analysis, faster, and with greater impact,” said Larry Larimer, director of TDAC. “Together, DAC and TRAC give the Army unmatched ability to evaluate both the systems we build and the ways we will fight with them. By bringing DAC and TRAC together under FCC, we’re creating a single, authoritative source of analysis for the Army.”
DAC, headquartered at APG, has long provided systems-level analysis, modeling, and simulation capabilities to support acquisition and materiel decisions. TRAC, with centers across the country, specializes in formation-based research, combat simulations, and operational scenario development. The activation unites these complementary capabilities, enabling TDAC to connect materiel analysis with operational concepts more directly than ever before.
During the ceremony, McCurry emphasized the critical role TDAC will play in shaping the Army’s future.
“If Futures and Concepts Command is the architect of the future Army, then TDAC is the rational part of our brain,” McCurry said. “You are the scientists, the war gamers, the critical thinkers who will provide the intellectual horsepower and unvarnished truth required to turn our concepts and requirements into combat-credible reality.”
McCurry highlighted TDAC’s mission: "to ensure the Army’s most critical decisions are underpinned by objective evidence-based analysis. They are, in essence, our institutional safeguard against wishful thinking."
Larimer echoed McCurry’s sentiments, emphasizing the deliberate choice of the word “decision” in TDAC’s name.
“The word ‘decision’ in Transformation Decision Analysis Center was deliberate. You didn’t see that word in any of our historic organizations, but when you boil it all down, that’s what we do. We inform decisions that are made from the Chief of Staff of the Army all the way down to product managers and others on the system side,” Larimer said.
The activation of TDAC marks a significant step in the Army’s transformation journey, ensuring that future force design and operational planning are informed by rigorous and sophisticated analysis.
As the Army continues to adapt to evolving threats and technologies, TDAC will serve as a cornerstone of its transformation efforts, providing the logic and evidence needed to shape the force of tomorrow.