High Perf Computing Mod Pgm (HPCMP)

High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP) is an Army-managed Department of War (DoW) program that provides advanced computational services to weapons-system scientists and engineers across the military services. Its purpose is to help the defense research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) and acquisition engineering communities solve demanding scientific and engineering problems more quickly and precisely. The program deploys compute-intensive and data-intensive systems for a DoW-wide user community, supporting technological superiority through continuing advances in high-performance computing.

HPCMP supports National Defense Strategy priorities including hypersonics, directed energy, autonomy, and artificial intelligence. Its computational capabilities improve understanding of materials, aerodynamics, chemistry, fuels, acoustics, signal and image recognition, and electromagnetics, feeding results into weapons-system design and acquisition. They also enable advanced test and evaluation through synthetic scene generation, automatic control systems, and virtual test environments. These applications make high-performance computing an enabling technology for DoW science and technology, test and evaluation, and acquisition work.

The modernization effort originated in congressional direction recognizing supercomputing as a national strategic asset and calling for upgrades at defense laboratories and test centers. HPCMP consequently focuses on keeping current-generation supercomputing available to DoW science and technology and test and evaluation users as computational technology advances. In the PB 2027 Army request, it appears on P-1 line 86 under Other Procurement, Army, Budget Activity 02, Communications and Electronics Equipment, and Budget Sub-Activity 92, Electronic Equipment Automation. The FY 2027 base request covers three procurement units, following two in FY 2025 and four in FY 2026.

Defense Supercomputing Resource Centers (DSRCs) account for two of the FY 2027 units. Base procurement funding supports one high-performance computing system at each of two DoW supercomputing resource center locations: the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the Navy DSRC at Stennis Space Center. These shared resources provide the computing capacity central to HPCMP's DoW-wide service. The cost at each location depends on the selected system architecture, so the procurement plan considers local requirements rather than treating the two installations as identical purchases.

Dedicated HPC Project Investments (DHPIs) account for the third planned FY 2027 unit, which may instead be an exploratory HPC system. A DHPI can serve an Army, Navy, Air Force, or other agency initiative whose unique specifications or computing classification cannot be accommodated by shared, allocated HPC systems. The exploratory alternative would investigate workloads beyond traditional modeling and simulation, including big data, artificial intelligence, and tactical computing at the edge. This funding therefore addresses a distinct need: either specialized access for an initiative or investigation of emerging uses of high-performance computing.

HPCMP plans to use contracting mechanisms selected for the most advantageous combination of architecture requirements, cost, and schedule, with the goal of shortening the interval from award to system acceptance. Its procurements are commercial off-the-shelf or government off-the-shelf (COTS/GOTS) items. The procurement history and planning exhibit lists a November 2026 request-for-proposals date and a December 2026 award and first-delivery date for both the DSRC systems and the dedicated investment. Contractor and contracting-method selections remain to be determined in that plan.

The FY 2027 request thus combines broadly available supercomputing at two service-associated centers with one separately justified specialized or exploratory investment. The Army carries the procurement budget, while the capabilities support users throughout DoW. Planned procurement continues in subsequent budget years, reflecting the program's ongoing role in refreshing computing capacity rather than a single, fixed installation. By maintaining that capacity and considering new workloads, HPCMP supports both present engineering and test demands and future computational approaches.