Concurrent Technologies Corp. lands $1.4 million contract to support the Office of Naval Research

Concurrent Technologies Corp. announced on May 30 that CTC has been awarded a contract valued at over $1.4 million to build virtual, avatar-based, pre-deployment scenario training for the Office of Naval Research (ONR).

Under this contract, CTC will develop the Virtual Human Terrain Scenario Training (VHTST) program. VHTST replaces human role players (the actors portraying enemy combatants and local civilians) in a live training environment with computer generated and managed avatars.

“Marines require pre-deployment training in areas including urban patrolling, tactical questioning, tank and infantry integration, and other skills necessary for operations,” explained Edward Sheehan, Jr., president and CEO of CTC. “However, traditional live training exercises on these learning objectives — including both lodging and feeding for Marines and role-players — can be costly. This approach, leveraging modern gaming technology, can create training efficiencies.”

VHTST provides trainees with the opportunity to obtain richly contextualized human domain awareness (HDA) by interpreting both human intelligence (HUMINT) and activity-based intelligence (ABI). For example, a simulated scenario would require Marines to interact with key individuals within an operating area to assess the capabilities, limitations and needs of a village. The collected information would be provided civil affairs planners for further plan stability and support operations.

“Using VHTST can augment live training by allowing Marines to arrive ready to capitalize and participate more effectively in the expensive, highly-coordinated training exercises,” explained Dr. Kamal Gella, a CTC program manager.

CTC is an independent, nonprofit, applied scientific research and development professional services organization providing innovative management and technology-based solutions to government and industry. As a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, CTC’s primary purpose is to undertake applied scientific research and development activities that serve the public interest.