Chapter-1
This guide is an initiation to the Army's Manpower and Personnel Integration (MANPRINT) Program. It has been prepared specifically for those individuals (hereafter referred to as MANPRINT Action Officers (AO) who are responsible for coordinating, guiding, implementing and managing MANPRINT in the acquisition of Automated Information Systems (AIS) and/or materiel systems and for the leadership which has ultimate responsibility for MANPRINT. The term MANPRINT AO refers to a responsibility rather than an official duty title. This AO may come from any of the acquisition disciplines or domains.
DoD 5000.2-R (Paragraph 4.3.8) requires that a comprehensive management and technical strategy for human systems integration (HSI) be initiated early in the acquisition process. MANPRINT is the Army’s implementation of HSI. The program was established in 1984 with a primary objective to place the human element (functioning as individual, crew/team, unit and organization) on equal footing with other design criteria such as hardware and software. The entry point of MANPRINT in the acquisition process is through requirements documents and studies. TRADOC Pamphlet 71-9 provides excellent guidance. This handbook includes recent guidance from the MANPRINT General Officer Steering Committee (GOSC) members.
MANPRINT (Manpower and Personnel Integration) is a comprehensive management and technical program that focuses attention on human capabilities and limitations throughout the system’s life cycle: concept development, test and evaluation, documentation, design, development, fielding, post-fielding, operation and modernization of systems. It was initiated in recognition of the fact that the human is an integral part of the total system. If the human part of the system can't perform efficiently, the entire system will function sub-optimally.
MANPRINT's goal is to optimize total system performance at acceptable cost and within human constraints. This is achieved by the continuous integration of seven human-related considerations (known as MANPRINT domains) with the hardware and software components of the total system and with each other, as appropriate. Each MANPRINT domain is described in greater detail in the following paragraphs. The Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, Department of the Army (DCSPER, DA) via the Personnel Technologies Directorate (PERTEC), exercises DA staff responsibility for the MANPRINT program. This is in keeping with the DCSPER’S DA staff responsibilities for the formulation, management, evaluation, and execution of manpower and personnel policies, plans and programs for all components of the Army.
Manpower addresses the number of military and civilian personnel required and potentially available to operate, maintain, sustain, and provide training for systems in accordance with Title 10, U. S. Code Armed Forces, Sec. 2434. It is the number of personnel spaces (required or authorized positions) and available people (operating strength). It considers these requirements for peacetime, conflict, and low intensity operations. Current and projected constraints on the total size of the Army/organization/unit are also considered. The MANPRINT practitioner evaluates the manpower required and/or available to support a new system and subsequently considers these constraints to ensure that the human resource demands of the system do not exceed the projected supply.
Combat Support (CS) and Combat Service Support (CSS) requirements are typically workload driven and determined by the system itself, the mission, the operational mode summary/mission profile (OMS/MP), and Manpower Requirements Criteria (MARC). Operator/combat requirements are more frequently determined by doctrine.
Manpower and personnel are closely related. While manpower looks at numbers of spaces and people, the domain of personnel addresses the cognitive and physical characteristics and capabilities required to be able to train for, operate, maintain, and sustain materiel and information systems. Personnel capabilities are normally reflected as knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs). The availability of personnel and their KSAOs should be identified early in the acquisition process and may result in specific thresholds. On most systems, emphasis is placed on enlisted personnel as the primary operators, maintainers, and supporters of the system. Personnel characteristics of enlisted personnel are easier to quantify since the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) is administered to potential enlistees. The Armed Force Qualification Test (AFQT) determines if the individual is eligible for enlistment and the Aptitude Area scores will determine the Career Management Fields (CMFs) and Military Occupational Specialties (MOSs) the individual is qualified to enter (upon completion of basic training). Qualification requirements for Commissioned, Warrant Officers, and Enlisted are contained in DA Pamphlet 611-21. While normally enlisted personnel are operators and maintainers, that is not always the case, especially in aviation systems. In many cases, the technical and command and control demands placed on officers and warrant officers is a major concern in system acquisition. It must be remembered also that on information systems, the primary operators and maintainers may be civilians as is depot level maintenance and supply of materiel systems. X-118 contains the qualification requirements for civilian general schedule series and local crediting plans address wage grade qualifications. The system that is being acquired must be evaluated taking this into account. Early in the requirements determination process, identification of the target audience should be accomplished and used as a baseline for assessment. Cognitive and physical demands of the system should be assessed and compared to the projected supply. MANPRINT also takes into consideration personnel factors such as availability, recruitment, skill identifiers, promotion, and assignment.
Training is defined as the instruction or education, on-the-job, or self development training required to provide all personnel and units with their essential job skills, and knowledge. Training is required to bridge the gap between the target audiences' existing level of knowledge and that required to effectively operate, deploy/employ, maintain and support the system. The MANPRINT goal is to acquire systems that meet the Army's training thresholds for operation and maintenance. Key considerations include developing an affordable, effective and efficient training strategy (which addresses new equipment, training devices, institutional, sustainment, and unit collective tactical training); determining the resources required to implement it in support of fielding and the most efficient method for dissemination (contractor, distance learning, exportable packages, etc.); and evaluating the effectiveness of the training.
Training is particularly crucial in the acquisition and employment of a new system. New tasks may be introduced into a duty position; current processes may be significantly changed; existing job responsibilities may be redefined, shifted, or eliminated; and/or entirely new positions may be required. It is vital to consider the total training impact of the system on both the individuals and the organization as a whole. Clearly, the cost and considerations of system ownership include initial and sustainment training, both unit and institutional. In addition, training must consider the unique needs of commissioned officers, warrant officers, enlisted, and civilian personnel such as leadership, command and control, etc. The System Training Plan (STRAP) is developed simultaneously with the Operational Requirements Document (ORD).
1.1.5 Human Factors Engineering (HFE)
The goal of HFE is to maximize the ability of an individual or crew to operate and maintain a system at required levels by eliminating design-induced difficulty and error. Human factors engineers work with systems engineers to design and evaluate human-system interfaces to ensure they are compatible with the capabilities and limitations of the potential user population. HFE is conducted during all phases of system development, to include requirements specification, design and testing and evaluation. HFE activities during requirements specification include: evaluating predecessor systems and operator tasks; analyzing user needs; analyzing and allocating functions; and analyzing tasks and associated workload. During the design phase, HFE activities include: evaluating alternative designs through the use of equipment mock-ups and software prototypes; evaluating software by performing usability testing; refining analysis of tasks and workload; and using modeling tools such as human figure models to evaluate crew station and workplace design and operator procedures. During the testing and evaluation phase, HFE activities include: confirming the design meets HFE specification requirements; measuring operator task performance; and identifying any undesirable design or procedural features.
System Safety is the design features and operating characteristics of a system that serve to minimize the potential for human or machine errors or failures that cause injurious accidents. Safety considerations should be applied in system acquisition to minimize the potential for accidental injury of personnel and mission failure. For example, one primary concern may be electrical safety. The SS engineer should determine the requirements for grounding the system, procedures that must be followed to safely power-up or power-down the system, and the potential system malfunctions that could cause an electrical fire.
Health Hazards addresses the design features and operating characteristics of a system that create significant risks of bodily injury or death. Along with safety hazards, an assessment of health hazards is necessary to determine risk reduction or mitigation.
The goal of the Health Hazard Assessment (HHA) is to incorporate biomedical knowledge and principles early in the design of a system to eliminate or control health hazards. Early application will eliminate costly system retrofits and training restrictions resulting in enhanced soldier-system performance, readiness and cost savings. HHA is closely related to occupational health and preventive medicine but gets its distinctive character from its emphasis on soldier-system interactions of military unique systems and operations.
Health Hazard categories include acoustic energy, biological substances, chemical substances, oxygen deficiency, radiation energy, shock, temperature extremes and humidity, trauma, vibration, and other hazards. Health hazards include those areas that could cause death, injury, illness, disability, or a reduction in job performance. For example, system evaluation should ensure that there is not excessive noise nor opportunity for exposure to dangerous emissions.
1.1.8 Soldier Survivability (SSv)
Soldier survivability addresses the characteristics of a system that can reduce fratricide, detectability, and probability of being attacked, as well as minimize system damage, soldier injury, and cognitive and physical fatigue. It was added to focus attention on those aspects of the total system that can minimize the loss of friendly troops’ lives.
For example, survivability may be enhanced by ensuring the system does not have an identifiable electronic or thermal signature or create an unacceptable fratricide risk, or that there is adequate ballistic protection for crew survivability (e.g., application of anti-spalling material in crew compartments).
Although each of the MANPRINT domains has been introduced separately, in practice they are often interrelated and tend to impact on one another. Changes in system design to correct a deficiency in one MANPRINT domain nearly always impact another domain. Consider the following examples:
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Working with the systems engineer, the human factors engineer determines that a number of particularly difficult tasks, currently performed manually, should be automated (analysis of function allocation to man, machine, or a combination). The result may be one or several of the following: 1) a reduction in operator manpower requirements, 2) personnel would no longer need extensive training on these tasks, 3) it is possible that someone with less experience or fewer qualifications could perform the job, or 4) an increase in personnel capabilities and training for new maintenance tasks. (Domains: human factors engineering, manpower, personnel, and training)
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A system is being designed for operation by two people in two shifts. It must operate 24 hours/day. An HFE workload assessment determines that the 12 hour shift produces intense fatigue. At the same time, a human factors engineering assessment determines that changing the background color of the screen from lime green to pacific blue will help to reduce, but not eliminate, the fatigue. The decision is made to change the background color, and a decision will have to be made between increasing manning or accepting the potential degradation of mission performance. (Domains: manpower and human factors engineering)
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A number of conceptual designs are being considered. The least costly requires maintenance by personnel in a job classification that is currently under-strength and is projected to remain so for the next 6 years. Another design, which will cost more, contains self-diagnostics. This system will not require the skills of the highly demanded personnel. The decision is made to acquire the second system because qualified personnel simply will not be available to maintain the first system. Because of the built-in test capability, additional training will not be required for maintenance personnel. (Domains: manpower, personnel, and training)
1.2 What is Your Role in MANPRINT?
As the MANPRINT Action Officer (AO) for the Program/Project/ Product Manager (PM) on an Integrated Product Team (IPT) or on an Integrated Concept Team (ICT) supporting a Functional Proponent (FP), Training Developer (TD) or Combat Developer (CD), your role is critical! You have been entrusted with ensuring that MANPRINT issues (risks), constraints, and opportunities for enhancing total system performance are identified and given adequate consideration and analysis. To do so, you must be both a skilled MANPRINTer and a marketeer -- you must be able to do and sell.
A truly effective MANPRINT program requires both management and technical skills. On the management side, the AOs must keep track of the schedule/status of the entire acquisition program to ensure that required MANPRINT actions are being accomplished. The AOs must assist the CD, TD, FP (as the originator of requirements and system support documents) in identifying and substantively attending to MANPRINT constraints, requirements, and T&E issues and criteria. The AOs should inform the CD, TD, FP and/or PM when MANPRINT coordination meetings should be held and must keep members of the MANPRINT Team (discussed in Section 3.0) informed as the acquisition proceeds.
On the technical side, MANPRINT AOs are responsible for recommending how to address/resolve issues (risks) as they arise. This will include recommending/performing analyses and studies and reviewing the program management and technical documentation produced by other disciplines (e.g., system engineering, integrated logistics support) involved in the acquisition process. You are also responsible for ensuring that MANPRINT gets crosswalked with other ongoing efforts and is reflected accurately and consistently in the documents that are produced as a result of these efforts (see Section 4 for a discussion of crosswalking).
As professionals with day-to-day responsibilities for MANPRINT, one of the most critical things that AOs must do is COMMUNICATE AND FOLLOW UP! This is the only way to keep informed and be able to influence vital decisions. Attendance at formal meetings and participation on Integrated Concept Teams (ICTs), Integrated Product Teams (IPTs), and other working groups is necessary, but not sufficient. Many decisions are made and are irrevocable by the time meetings are held.
Finally, it is critical that MANPRINT has high visibility and leadership acceptance. It is your job to make this happen. You must keep the Program Manager (PM) and FP, TD or CD informed about the status and contributions of the MANPRINT effort, and your interaction and communication with other groups will help to gain their acceptance.
MANPRINT is the Army’s execution of DoD’s Human Systems Integration (HSI). DoD 5000.2-R, Part Four, Paragraph 4.3.8, states, "A comprehensive management and technical strategy shall be initiated early...to ensure that human performance...is considered throughout the system design and development process." Paragraph 4.3.7 states that safety and health analysis shall be conducted on all programs, regardless of ACAT, to integrate these issues into the systems engineering process and support development of the programmatic safety and health evaluation.
While many Army documents contain references to MANPRINT, the MANPRINT program is governed by AR 602-2, "Manpower and Personnel Integration (MANPRINT). AR 602-2 prescribes policies and assigns responsibilities for the program. The MANPRINT AO should be certain to obtain a copy and study it. It is currently is draft form. In addition, Appendix F of this guide provides a list of documents that contain MANPRINT relevant information (along with domain references) to include brief synopses. The MANPRINT Web Page at www.manprint.army.mil is a valuable source of information and guidance on MANPRINT.
1.4 Is MANPRINT Training Available?
Yes! The proponent for MANPRINT training is the Directorate for Personnel Technologies (PERTEC), Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel (ODCSPER). Instruction is provided by the Army Logistics Management College (ALMC). Two courses are regularly conducted: "MANPRINT for Action Officers" and "Tailored MANPRINT Training." Training primarily takes place at pre-designated Army installations. Arrangements can also be made to provide training at other locations (e.g., DoD contractor facilities, other service sites). In addition to the MANPRINT training that is available from ALMC, other DoD training courses contain information on MANPRINT and related disciplines. Appendix B provides more information on the training that is available.
Additional information on MANPRINT training is also available on the MANPRINT Web Page at: http://www.manprint.army.mil/manprint/training/training.htm
The "MANPRINT Quarterly" is a bulletin published by the PERTEC Directorate and it is available on the MANPRINT Web Page at: http://www.manprint.army.mil/manprint/references/index.htm
For those who do not have access to the Internet, the Quarterly is available by mail and is free of charge. It contains a great deal of useful, interesting information, including training schedules, and is a forum for communication among professionals in the MANPRINT community. Information on how to receive the "MANPRINT Quarterly" is below.
PPP To receive the "MANPRINT Quarterly," send the following information:
Name: Rank/Title, First, M.I., LastCompany/OrganizationComplete Mailing AddressPhone/Fax: DSN and COME-mail address:(Please indicate if you are a MANPRINT Point of Contact (POC) for your organization)
TO:
MANPRINT QuarterlyHQDA (DAPE-MR)300 Army PentagonWashington, DC 20310-0300Fax: (703) 697-1283E-mail: simmoms@hqda.army.mil
1.5 Are MANPRINT Tools Available?
Since the inception of the MANPRINT program in 1984, MANPRINT-related tools have been developed by a number of agencies. They range from paper-based to PC- and main frame-based automated tools. Some provide general guidance for conducting MANPRINT and related activities. One is a guidebook containing domain-specific checklists for the MANPRINT practitioner and assessor. The MANPRINT Guidebook is available on the MANPRINT Web Page at: http://www.manprint.army.mil/manprint/references/index.htm
Other tools offer specific domain analytical support, such as estimating manpower, personnel, and training resource requirements; identifying and rating soldier survivability issues; and performing workload, cost, and task analyses. The tools are discussed in detail in Appendix C.
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