The Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Staff collaborated on the Reliability, Availability, Maintainability-Cost (RAM-C) Report Manual to assist combat developers, project managers, and engineers to design RAM into systems early in a program. The manual supports life cycle implementation of the Sustainment metric, for which the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) issued new guidance in May 2007. The Sustainment metric consists of an Availability Key Performance Parameter (KPP) and two supporting Key Systems Attributes (KSAs): Reliability and Ownership Cost. The CJCS guidance requires programs under development to create a balance between RAM performance in the field and the related costs of providing that performance - a distinct paradigm shift within the acquisition community that, once fully implemented, should result in improved value for major acquisition programs.
