Treffer: Argument for a Joint Safety Reporting System

On-duty operations and off-duty activities of service members, account for the majority of mishaps experienced by the Department of Defense (DOD). Due to the importance of mishap prevention, the services developed separate safety data collection and reporting systems (referred to as safety data system(s) from this point forward) to support this effort. Current systems are stovepiped with little to no linkage or standardized architecture. This paper uses a qualitative approach to illustrate the benefits of selecting the AF Safety Automated System (AFSAS) as the joint-service safety data system for the services and DOD. It presents an overview of the mishap data-collection process and the similarities and differences in why, what and how data is collected. It also conducts a macro-comparison of the specific capabilities and limitations of each system. Discussion of the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986, the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative (FDDCI), the DOD Information Technology (IT) Enterprise Strategy Roadmap, and the Cloud First policy highlight challenges of future development strategies. Finally, a future vision comparison of the AF and U.S. Navy (USN) systems clearly illustrate the AF Safety Automated System (AFSAS) is the system of choice for the joint-service safety data system.