Fred Lewis, USN (Ret.) President, NTSA

As has become customary in recent years, I have the pleasant duty to report that I/ITSEC 2009 exceeded by considerable margins the metrics we had set for the event. Particularly gratifying and significant was the large number of new exhibitors we hosted. This, in my view, is a clear indication that modeling and simulation is of increasing interest to new players--firms which see opportunity in an industry which, due to its inherent advantages, is swimming against a still-strong adverse economic tide.

I see no reason why this trend should not continue. In particular, modeling and simulation are becoming increasingly important to a wide variety of health care applications--from first response and battlefield conditions to clinical training of all kinds, from obstetrics to anesthesia, as well as any number of critical care areas. We are now beginning to see our larger corporate members using their long experience in other M&S applications, as well as economies of scale, to spin off healthcare units in recognition of the growth potential of this sector.

All this is a result of the continual maturation of our technology, which is now allowing modeling and simulation training, with all its attendant advantages, to move into ever-wider fields of application. In recognition of the rapidly emerging prominence of M&S healthcare training, I/ITSEC 2010 will for the first time feature a healthcare pavilion which will group together most of the exhibitors in this field. Such a concentration will facilitate the location on the exhibition hall floor of what we anticipate to be a large number of healthcare exhibitors, while at the same time providing symbolic evidence of the importance of this dynamic new application.

In fact, as our technology continues to move into other new learning areas, such as transportation and emergency preparedness planning, I foresee the possibility of several such subject matter groupings at future I/ITSECs, all mirroring the success of last year’s STEM pavilion, which united a number of STEM-related activities in a central area of the exhibit hall floor. This grouping emphasized the significance we attach to this issue of critical national importance.

The recently-concluded Modeling and Simulation Leadership Summit in Virginia Beach continued what has become a tradition of success, attracting over 200 representatives from industry, academia, research organizations, the government and military. This despite one of the worst winter storms in recent Virginia Beach history. This fifth iteration of the annual Summit had as its theme "Realizing the Promise of House Resolution 487", which recognized modeling and simulation at a critical national technology. An intellectually rigorous and stimulating keynote address was followed by an equally valuable panel discussion. Participants in the panel represented fields as diverse as electrical and computer engineering, space exploration, standards and testing, and healthcare--testimony, again, to the range of today’s M&S applications.

Later in the day, four working groups clustered around key subject matter areas reported back to the Summit as a whole, putting forth a number of well-defined and creative measures which will serve as a means of moving forward toward development of a national plan for modeling and simulation. In particular, it was decided to press the Department of Labor to include M&S as a distinct professional category in the Department’s Occupational Outlook Handbook. In light of the upcoming review and revision of the previous Administration’s No Child Left Behind program, it was further decided to incorporate this into a broad STEM initiative in the planning stages this year and next. Look for a complete report on the Summit in forthcoming Newsletters and on line at www.trainingsystems.org.

The enthusiasm, energy and creativity in evidence at the Summit were further proof that our community of practice is in robust good health. Success, no less than failure, brings challenges. If I/ITSEC 2009, the Leadership Summit, and future initiatives in the works are any indication, those challenges will be met in style.