Faster processes and better-informed decisions: the Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) is helping the Dutch government in the transition to information-driven operations. “It\u2019s an interesting topic and an area where we can make a big impact,” says Antoine de Reus, programme leader of Information-Driven Operations (Dutch IGO). “Information-driven working improves safety for our country and for our allies.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Netherlands Aerospace Center (NLR) plays a vital role in conducting research and turning knowledge into value. NLR does this through nine strategic programmes. For the series \u201cThe Aviation of the Future<\/a>,\u201d Innovation Origins speaks with all programme leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the sixth episode, we spoke with Antoine de Reus (programme leader of Information-Driven Operations<\/a>) about the impact of aviation on society and the environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIGO isn\u2019t a concrete product or system. It\u2019s a concept, a way of working. Although it doesn\u2019t seem very tangible, that doesn\u2019t make it less important. On the contrary, it is really something for both the present and the future. This programme is about collecting, processing and using information. The \u2018I\u2019 of IGO \u2013 information \u2013 is all about collecting and processing relevant information from all kinds of sources. The \u2018G\u2019 part \u2013 \u2018driven\u2019 in Dutch \u2013 means taking better-informed decisions. The \u2018O\u2019 for operations represents implementation in practice and achieving an effect.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe do a lot of work on commission for the Defence Department. In the Defence Vision 2035, which dates from 2020, they committed themselves to information-driven work as the key focus point. NLR is assisting this by building up knowledge through this programme. We\u2019re doing this not just for Defence, but also for the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and the Ministry of Justice and Security.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAn example: using camera footage from an unmanned aircraft, you can see where the opponent might be. On top of that, open-source information and sources such as social media are also being used more often. All those chunks of data don\u2019t mean much individually, but combining and analysing data lets us reveal new and useful information. Decisions can be made based on that information, for example about potential targets in a conflict. Working in a more information-driven way helps you form a more complete picture of a situation, on which you can base decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Antoine de Reus is a human factors expert and the programme leader of the Information-Driven Operations programme. He has been working at NLR for over thirty years and has accumulated a lot of experience with leading national and international projects. \u201cWe\u2019re aiming for a more robust, resilient and effective government that focuses on proactive and information-supported decision-making. A government capable of responding quickly and effectively to complex security challenges. We need this for effective use of the military and for a government that can efficiently improve the safety of our society. That\u2019s our vision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe associated mission is to improve information-driven operations by developing and implementing advanced and secure information systems, artificial intelligence and data analysis methods. AI can for instance find better links in large amounts of information than people can. It can help people make decisions in certain situations. We aim to optimise the use of people and resources, increasing operational effectiveness and minimising the risks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAn important part of that is the predictive function, which is aimed more at prevention. New technology such as AI means that decisions can be made faster in urgent situations. But that\u2019s not all. Data analysis and AI also give a better picture of future scenarios in various situations. This lets us anticipate better and take preventive action if needed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cImplementing information-driven operations successfully in the working methods of government bodies and businesses is primarily about connecting people, resources and methods. Technology alone isn\u2019t enough: you also need to know how to use it correctly, and that demands well-educated people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Technology alone isn\u2019t enough: you also need to know how to use it correctly<\/p>\nAntoine de Reus<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n \u201cThanks to IGO, more data and therefore more information is becoming available, but it also means that we have to rely on automatic processing for some of the information. AI is very important technology for this. It is simply impossible to have humans analyse everything. We will probably soon come to the point that people are given several potential decisions drawn up by AI to base their final decision on. I think it\u2019s going to take a while before we get to a point where AI is allowed to take high-risk decisions by itself, though, especially in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDefence has five operational domains: land, air, sea, space and cyber. The activities of Defence always fall within one or more of these domains. The activities \u2013 such as carrying out a mission or collecting information \u2013 need to achieve an effect in one of three dimensions. The first dimension is the physical dimension, such as the destruction of a bridge on a supply route. There is also the virtual dimension, which is more about cyberattacks and disrupting information flows. The final and possibly most important dimension is the cognitive dimension, which you use to try and influence the opponent\u2019s perception, judgement and decision-making \u2013 and ultimately their will. You can do that by spreading targeted information through social media, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n \u201cThe cyber domain has become increasingly important in recent years. A lot of information is exchanged, for example between planes or between aeroplanes and devices on the ground. Everything is interconnected, and that makes the system vulnerable. Once you can no longer trust a part of the system, for example because of the risk of hacking, you\u2019ve lost that functionality. That\u2019s why extra attention is being paid to cyber-resilience and protecting information systems, planes and satellites against cyberattacks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWith IGO \u2013 as well as the Future Air & Space Power<\/a> programme \u2013 we want to help create more efficient cooperation between all domains. Information is indispensable if an operation is to succeed. It\u2019s important to connect information about the outside world, such as the opponent\u2019s location, to information from within, such as your ammunition supplies, in the right way. Only then can the correct decisions be made.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn the coming years, the government as a whole will become more information-driven. This means that we will be looking across domains more often. The Air Force will collaborate more with the cyber domain to make operations more effective, for example. But we\u2019re proceeding step by step and that takes time. One example is the war in Ukraine: it is affecting the Defence Department, the government and society as a whole. Developments like this can also change the perspective. That\u2019s why it\u2019s important to keep investigating and keep following new developments. NLR will play a major role in this. That\u2019s how we\u2019re gradually working towards information-driven, multi-domain operations.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Faster processes and better-informed decisions: the Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) is helping the Dutch government in the transition to information-driven operations. “It\u2019s an interesting topic and an area where we can make a big impact,” says Antoine de Reus, programme leader of Information-Driven Operations (Dutch IGO). “Information-driven working improves safety for our country and for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1640,"featured_media":505035,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"views\/single-partner.blade.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26049],"tags":[83492,69631,48777],"location":[6763],"article_type":[6758],"serie":[],"archives":[],"internal_archives":[],"reboot-archive":[],"class_list":["post-472994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mobility","tag-aviation-of-the-future","tag-data-2","tag-nlr","location-netherlands","article_type-interview"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":{"subtitle":"Data can help us make better and faster decisions. But how do we make sure it is reliable? An interview with Antoine de Reus, programme leader Information-Driven Operations at NLR.","text_display_homepage":false},"author_meta":{"display_name":"Linda Bak","author_link":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/author\/linda-bak\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/NLR_2023_054_02_preview.jpg","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["Mobility<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Mobility<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["Aviation of the future<\/a>","data<\/a>","NLR<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Aviation of the future<\/span>","data<\/span>","NLR<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":"0","relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 2 years ago","modified":"Updated 2 years ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on March 26, 2024","modified":"Updated on March 26, 2024"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on March 26, 2024 3:00 pm","modified":"Updated on March 26, 2024 3:00 pm"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/472994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1640"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=472994"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/472994\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505035"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=472994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"article_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_type?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"serie","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/serie?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"archives","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/archives?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"internal_archives","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal_archives?post=472994"},{"taxonomy":"reboot-archive","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/reboot-archive?post=472994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What exactly is the Information-Driven Operations knowledge programme?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
About the programme leader<\/h2>
\u201cInformation and data are becoming increasingly important in various areas within NLR. We can use this programme to bring different areas together, and help the government implement information-driven operations, which makes it an interesting field of work.\u201d<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\nWhat are the vision and the mission of the programme?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
Cooperation between man and machine<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What impact is new technology having at the Defence Department?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The future<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n