Date: Jan 15, 2012 Source: MDA (
click here to go to the source)
Software from an MDA-funded company has helped inject more science into the art of cost estimation.
The company, Frontier Technology, Inc. (FTI: Beavercreek, OH), has applied its expertise to address a long-standing challenge in the realm of large acquisition projects: accurately estimating cost for complex projects in which many variables can change rapidly and often.
In the early 2000s, Frontier Technology worked under Phase I and Phase II SBIRs with MDA, to test-drive budget-analysis software populated with real-world information. Today, FTI offers two important tools that trace their lineage to MDA efforts: Integrated Cost Estimation® (ICE™) and Integrated Cost As an Independent Variable® (I-CAIV®).
ICE enables users without an exhaustive background in cost estimation to produce credible assessments of advanced programs, quickly and accurately. I-CAIV is a more sophisticated tool developed for senior managers who oversee acquisition and modernization of major systems. The tool can analyze performance, cost, and risks associated with multiple complex systems, and can provide scenarios resulting from the use of alternative architectures and technology investment strategies.
In addition to its core decision-making and data-fusion software products, the company specializes in information-technology research and engineering and also offers a range of related services—such as network services, wireless solutions, technology procurement, thin-client computing, and "virtualization" computing.
