// CASE STUDY

C-130J Super Hercules
Technical Obsolescence
Management Plan (TOMP)

VuDu Engineering was appointed by the Ministry of Defence’s acquisition organisation, Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) and British aerospace and defence company, Marshall to develop a Technical Obsolescence Management Plan (TOMP) for the Royal Air Force’s C-130J Super Hercules.

Our efforts and expertise would help to ensure the continued viability of this tactical transport aircraft, which has served the UK military for over 56 years, until its out-of-service date (OSD). This defense-exemplar project focused on proactively managing avionics obsolescence, cost efficiency, and long-term strategic planning.

CHALLENGES

  • Identifying and mitigating avionics obsolescence risks
    with the potential to impact the fleet’s longevity.

  • Aligning planned capability upgrades with global
    operators of the C-130J, including the     United States Marine Corps and the Royal Danish Air Force.

  • Integrating air traffic management milestones to maintain operational clearance in civilian airspace..

  • Strategic Roadmap Development.
    Delivered a costed solution balancing high level information for senior decision makers and detailed technical data for desk officers.

  • Industry Collaboration.
    Worked closely with     Lockheed Martin and allied
    air forces to align global obsolescence solutions.

  • Reliability-centric Maintenance.
    Integrated data-driven decision making using
    Marshall reliability assessments and supply chain insights.

  • Stakeholder Communication
    Provided a clear, structured presentation of findings
    to senior defence leadership.

SOLUTIONS & CONTRIBUTIONS

  • Optimum Operational Effectiveness
    VuDu Engineering delivered a comprehensive roadmap identifying multiple solutions for each obsolescence issue.

  • Strategic Vision and Clarity.
    Successfully briefed senior UK defence leadership
    on the future role of the C-130J in the 2020 Integrated Defence Review (IDR).

  • Client Commendation.
    VuDu Engineering’s communication and leadership
    skills were praised with recommendations for future
    high-profile strategic projects.

RESULTS

CLIENT

““We appointed VuDu to complete a TOMP study over the summer of 2020. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and the challenges presented by numerous lockdowns, VuDu delivered and to an exceptional standard.

Their management of all the respective stakeholders was excellent and they really succeeded in bringing the team together and in getting the best out of everyone involved. The flow of communication throughout was also first-rate and the presentation delivered by VuDu to the customer at the end of the project was clear, concise and professional.”

Recent Projects

Distributed Synthetic Air Land Training

VuDu Engineering led the training of a team of over thirty engineers and technicians from multiple stakeholder organisations.

Technical Obsolescence Management

VuDu delivered an exemplar project of industry supporting defence as identified by the Director Air Support, DE&S.