Naval information and communication systems

The Information and Communication Systems (ICS) Section provides investigation, evaluation, testing, and Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V) for all aspects of information and communication systems used  on ships and submarines, as well as those used  on shore directly or indirectly supporting the ships and submarines. Similar work can be performed to support  central and common systems.

The increasing prevalence of Internet Protocol (IP) communications in all forms of equipment and systems continues to broaden the potential scope of projects where the ICS Section can help he Navy and DND, sometimes collaboration with the NETE Marine Systems or Combat Systems Sections when marine and combat equipment includes information or communication sub-systems.

Expertise by technology and services

The Information and Communication Systems Section has expertise and experience with the following technologies and services:

Network and systems engineering

• Local and Wide Area Networks
• Traffic management systems, quality of service, compression and acceleration, web caching
• Servers, clustered servers, blade servers, virtual servers
• Routers, switches, firewalls
• Enterprise, converged, hyperconverged and blade server platforms
• Virtualization infrastructure and Software Defined Data Centre (SDDC)
• Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
• Access and transfer cross-domain solutions
• Storage and back-up technologies and related software
• Windows and Linux server operating systems
• Messaging, collaboration and tactical chat software platforms
• Workstations, laptops and thin clients
• Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) and backup power systems
• IP data communications over satellite and over radio (Ultra High Frequency, High Frequency)
• Integration, interoperability, performance, functional and bandwidth testing

Information Technology (IT) security

• Support to the Security Assessment and Authorization (SA&A) process for IT and platform systems
• IT Security Risk Management
• Information Systems (IS) Risk Assessment
• System security engineering, security architecture and security solutions
• Investigation and testing of security controls for interfaces between systems
• IV&V of IT security-related contractor deliverables
• Security evaluation, assessment and testing
• Investigation of supply chain security
• Vulnerability analysis and penetration testing

Software, processes and Independent Verification & Validation

• Process modeling
• SAP and SAP Business Warehouse/Business Intelligence/Business Objects
• System/Software Independent Verification and Validation
• Requirements definition, review and/or traceability
• Evaluation of contractor test plans and test results
• Independent software testing

Expertise by project phase

The Information and Communication Systems Section can provide the following services, grouped by project phase:

Pre-definition/definition:

• Requirements investigation
• Business process modeling
• Conceptual design
• Options analysis
• Technology investigations and assessments
• Proof of concept
• Development of specifications
• Security Assessment and Authorization (SA&A) process support, including threat and risk analysis and security control tailoring

Design/implementation:

• Development of engineering guidance packages for shipboard installation of information and communication systems
• Security architecture guidance
• Security assessment of systems architecture
• Review of Engineering Changes (ECs)
• Equipment qualification (shock, vibration, temperature)
• System configuration, integration and testing
• Assessment of contractor software management processes and development methodology
• Verification and validation of contract deliverables
• Set-to-work and post-installation testing

In-service:

• Shipboard surveys and audits
• Impact assessment (technical, integration, security) for proposed changes 
• Testing and/or Independent Verification and Validation of proposed changes
• Planning of in-service trials
• Data analysis and trend monitoring
• Investigation of in-service issues and problems
• Investigation of optimization or performance tuning
• Review and validation of system configurations
• Review and validation of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) data
• Investigation and documentation of standard procedures
• Verification and validation of processes and documentation
• Policy investigations