The Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences bequeathed its INFORMS Prize to USAF and Walt Disney on April 3. INFORMS, a 12-thousand member organization promoting “best practices and advances in operations research, management science, and analytics” bases its awardees on their dedication to research pioneering. In this case, it was USAF’s Studies, Analysis and Assessments directorate which was recognized. “The Air Force’s commitment to operations research was forged 75 years ago in the urgency of World War II and continues today,” said Kevin Williams, director of the directorate, in a release. “These efforts sharpen the warfighter’s edge. They help identify and call attention to emerging national security challenges and they provide the analytic basis for critical decisions by senior Air Force leaders.” Past awardees include General Motors, Intel, UPS, HP, IBM, Ford, Procter & Gamble and GE Research. INFORMS awards 19 prizes on a semiannual basis, as well as chapter awards.
Reduced competition, over-reliance on legacy systems, and declining funding are all contributing to a “critical inflection point” in propulsion for the Pentagon and industry members—and things are headed in the wrong direction, the director of the Air Force’s propulsion directorate warned. Speaking with reporters at the Life Cycle Industry Days…