November 9, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - November 06, 2020

AIR FORCE

Rockwell Collins Inc., Cedar Rapids, Iowa (FA8807-21-C-0005); Interstate Electronics Corp., Anaheim, California (FA8807-21-C-0006); and Raytheon Technologies Inc., El Segundo, California (FA8807-21-C-0007), have collectively been awarded contracts totaling $552,583,932 for a cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost-plus-award-fee contract for Military GPS Users Equipment Miniature Serial Interface Increment 2 Application Specific Integrated Circuit (MGUE Inc 2 MSI ASIC). This contract provides for all activities to design, develop, build, integrate, qualify the MSI receiver card with next generation ASIC to enable production of M-Code-capable GPS receiver products for various service applications identified in the MGUE Inc 2 Capability Development Document and all other user platforms that require secure positioning navigation and timing capability. Work will be performed in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Anaheim, California; and El Segundo, California, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2025. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with offers received. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $32,000,000 are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force Space Command, Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California, is the contracting activity.

Wichita State University, Wichita, Kansas, has been awarded a $13,750,000 cost-reimbursement, additional-work modification (P00005) to contract FA8650-19-C-5212 for research and development. The contract modification adds additional funding to expand various operational spectra (e.g., fighter, bomber, transport, etc.) to explore damage growth behavior representative design details such as wing-to-spar joint that exhibits multiple competing failure modes. Work will be performed in Wichita, Kansas, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 7, 2023. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $13,250,000 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $37,250,000. Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity.

Millennium Health & Fitness Inc., Scottsdale, Arizona, is awarded a $9,200,000 firm-fixed-price contract for Civilian Health Promotion Services (CHPS). This requirement provides health promotion professionals that will develop, manage, and promote CHPS to all civilian employees in Air Force Materiel Command and Air Mobility Command. The CHPS program may include depending on location, but is not limited to, individual health counseling, group health education classes, telephonic wellness coaching, cardiac risk blood profile (HDL, LDL, cholesterol ratio and glucose), body composition analysis, online health risk appraisal, wellness challenges, and health awareness campaigns. The CHPS is a mobile worksite wellness program. The CHPS health promotion professionals will provide services at twelve staffed Air Force bases (including the CHPS office) and eight un-staffed/visited base locations appropriate for mass screenings and work is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2021. This award is the result of a 100% Small Business Set-aside acquisition. Fiscal 2020 operation and maintenance funds in the amount of $1,235,167 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Installation Contracting Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8003-20-C-0004).

ARMY

Lockheed Martin Corp., Baltimore, Maryland, was awarded an Other Transaction Authority agreement with a ceiling of $339,318,582 for the Mid-Range Capability. Work will be performed in Baltimore, Maryland; Akron, Ohio; Clearwater, Florida; Moorestown, New Jersey; Owego, New York; Syracuse, New York; and Orlando, Florida, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2023. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation, Army funds in the amount of $57,959,033 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, Alexandria, Virginia, is the contracting activity (W50RAJ-2-19-0001).

InBios International Inc., Seattle, Washington, was awarded a $9,804,306 modification (P00001) to contract W81XWH-20-F-0253 for development, design controls, production and analytical studies and clinical trials for rapid human diagnostic component assays for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2) infection. Work will be performed in Seattle, Washington, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2022. Fiscal 2010 research, development, test and evaluation, Army funds in the amount of $9,804,306 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, Fort Detrick, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

NAVY

Capital Center for Credibility Assessment Corp.,* Dublin, Virginia, is awarded a ceiling-priced $29,233,903 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to conduct Counter Intelligence Scope Polygraph examinations throughout the U.S. to support the Naval Criminal Investigative Service's Polygraph Services Field Office. The contract includes a five-year ordering period with no options and is expected to be completed by November 2025. Work will be performed at various contractor facilities (95%); and various government facilities (5%) throughout the U.S. in which the percentage of work at each of those locations cannot be determined at this time. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $100,000 will be obligated to fund the contract's minimum amount and funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Individual task orders will be subsequently funded with appropriate fiscal year appropriations at the time of their issuance. This contract was competitively procured with the solicitation posted on Navy Electronic Commerce Online and beta.SAM.gov as a 100 percent 8(a) small business set-aside requirement, with three offers received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department, Philadelphia Office, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (N00189-21-D-Z010).

MNDPI Pacific JV, Honolulu, Hawaii, is awarded a firm-fixed-price task order (N6274221F0302) at $25,978,991 under an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for various structural and waterfront projects and other projects at locations under the cognizance of Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Pacific. The work to be performed provides architect-engineer services to conduct a functional analysis concept development and prepare the 35% conceptual submittal of the design-build request for proposal documents (Phase 1), including construction package consisting of project requirements, concept plans, specifications, detailed cost estimate, and other services for the Dry Dock #3 Replacement, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH), Hawaii – Design Phase 1. Work will be performed at JBPHH, Hawaii, and is expected to be completed by December 2021. Fiscal 2020 military construction (design) contract funds in the amount of $25,978,991 are obligated on this award, of which $24,848 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. NAVFAC Pacific, JBPHH, Hawaii, is the contracting activity (N62742-20-D-0004).

Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Baltimore, Maryland, is awarded a $17,509,022 cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-only modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-20-C-5392) to exercise options to provide design agent engineering services for the MK 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) electronic systems and computer programs. This option exercise is for software design, systems engineering, ship/missile integration services, and depot operations services for the MK 41 VLS module electronics and launch control system. These services include new missile integration into MK 41 VLS including launcher design, launcher integration into new ship classes and the new AEGIS shore based component, Life Cycle Support Facility depot operations, system product improvements, predictability enhancements, reliability enhancements, and failure investigations. Work will be performed in Baltimore, Maryland (35%); Norfolk, Virginia (18%); Seattle, Washington (18%); San Diego, California (18%); and Ventura, California (11%), and is expected to be completed by July 2021. Fiscal 2020 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $2,980,656 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Brantley Construction Services LLC,* Charleston, South Carolina, is awarded a firm-fixed-price task order (N6945021F0870) at $16,540,566 under a multiple award construction contract for Destroyer Slip South Quay Wall restoration at Naval Station Mayport. The work to be performed includes replacement of the entire 550-foot wharf quay wall with a new steel sheet pile bulkhead, replacement of the existing fender system and connections to water, electrical, oily waste and sanitary sewer utilities. It also includes the procurement and installation of a pedestrian turnstile and vehicular gate. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Florida, and is expected to be completed by May 2022. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance, (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $16,540,566 are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Five proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity (N69450-19-D-0916).

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is awarded a modification to exercise Option Year One to a previously awarded cost contract (N65236-19-C-8017) in the amount of $10,967,203 for Next-Generation Non-Surgical Neurotechnology (N3). Work will be performed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is expected to be completed by May 2022. This modification brings the total cumulative value of the contract to $14,079,282. Fiscal 2020 research, development, testing and evaluation (Department of Defense) funds in the amount of $1,500,000 will be obligated at time of award. Funds will expire at the end of the fiscal year. Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic, Charleston, South Carolina, is the contracting activity.

Innovative Defense Technologies LLC, Arlington, Virginia, was awarded an $8,163,883 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-20-C-6116) to exercise and fund options for Navy engineering services and material. Work will be performed in Fall River, Massachusetts, and is expected to be completed by December 2021. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of, $1,000,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Awarded Nov. 2, 2020)

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

Sysco Central Texas Inc., New Braunfels, Texas, has been awarded a maximum $24,858,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract for full-line food distribution. This was a sole-source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a 356-day bridge contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Texas, with an Oct. 30, 2021, ordering period end date. Using customers are Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting agency is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-21-D-3308).

US Foods Inc., Port Orange, Florida, has been awarded a maximum $22,500,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract for full-line food distribution. This was a sole-source acquisition using justification 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. This is a 102-day bridge contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Florida, Cuba and Bahamas, with a Feb. 18, 2021, ordering period end date. Using military services are Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting agency is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE300-21-D-3301).

MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY

Lockheed Martin Overseas, Moorestown, New Jersey, is being awarded a $14,252,771 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00031) under the Poland Aegis Ashore Engineering Agent contract. This modification increases the total cumulative contract value by $10,123,968 from $83,536,564, to $93,660,532. Under this modification, the contractor will configure the Poland Aegis Ashore REU Integration Site (POL-AARIS) and perform integration, test, maintenance and upgrades of the Aegis Combat System prior to final installation within the Aegis Ashore Ballistic Missile Defense System. This contract modification contains options which, if exercised, will increase the cumulative value of this contract to $97,789,335. The work will be performed in both Moorestown, New Jersey (15%); and in Redzikowo, Poland (85%), with an expected completion date of Jan. 26, 2022. Procurement defense wide funds in the amount of $9,892,973 (Fiscal 2019: $2,422,418; Fiscal 2020: $7,470,555), are being obligated at the time of award. This contract modification is the result of a sole-source acquisition. The Missile Defense Agency, Dahlgren, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HQ0276-16-C-0001).

*Small business

https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2408669/source/GovDelivery/

On the same subject

April 14, 2020 | International, C4ISR

Is your GPS equipment vulnerable to spoofing? The government wants to test it.
Nathan Strout This summer, the Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate is hosting an event where owners and operators of critical infrastructure, manufacturers of commercial GPS receivers, and civil industry stakeholders can see how their equipment holds up under a spoofing attack. “Accurate and precise position, navigation, and timing (PNT) information is vital to the nation's critical infrastructure,” said Bill Bryan, the senior official performing the duties of the undersecretary for science and technology. “[The Science and Technology Directorate] established this program to assess GPS vulnerabilities, advance research and development, and to enhance outreach and engagement with industry. The objective is to improve the security and resiliency of critical infrastructure.” Slated for this summer, the 2020 GPS Equipment Testing for Critical Infrastructure event will be the third of its type hosted by DHS that allows parties to test their equipment against GPS spoofing in unique live-sky environments. This event will focus mainly on fixed infrastructure applications, though there will be some support for testing ground-based mobile applications. There are no registration fees for participants, and interested parties have until April 24 to sign up. Though originally developed as a military tool, GPS technology has become a constant presence in civilian life over the decades, enabling agriculture, telecommunications, financial services, weather forecasting, the electrical grid and more. An RTI International report released last year estimated that a 30-day GPS outage could result in economic losses to the tune of $35-45 billion. U.S. adversaries are well aware of the country's reliance on GPS, both in the civilian world and by the military, and they have developed tools to degrade, deny or spoof that signal. In recent months, the U.S. government has raised concerns that relying solely on GPS for PNT data leaves the nation's critical infrastructure vulnerable to attack. To help address this, President Donald Trump signed an executive order Feb. 12 calling for the U.S. to develop alternative sources of PNT data that can supplement or replace the GPS signal, should it become unreliable. Under that executive order, the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy will be developing PNT services independent of GPS and other global navigation satellite systems, while at the same time working to increase the resiliency of critical infrastructure by having them incorporate multiple PNT sources. https://www.c4isrnet.com/battlefield-tech/space/2020/04/09/is-your-gps-equipment-vulnerable-to-spoofing-the-government-wants-to-test-it/
June 21, 2019 | International, Naval

Navy Looking for Better Ways to Share Data
By: Ben Werner WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Navy is grappling with how to securely share the vast amounts of data ship designers, operators and sustainers collect, a panel of engineers said Wednesday. Shipyards have the design systems they use to transmit plans from engineers to the shipbuilders. Once delivered, modern ships, submarines and even aircraft generate tremendous amounts of data gauging their performance. The Navy has more data than it knows what to do with, but Rear Adm. Lorin Selby wants to change this. “The problem we have is we don't do a great job of linking those together,” Selby said of the various data points. “That's what I'm driving for trying to link those together.” Selby, the chief engineer and deputy commander for ship design, integration and naval engineer at the Naval Sea Systems Command, was speaking as part of a panel discussing how the Navy and shipbuilding industry can use digital plans at the American Society of Naval Engineering's annual Technology, Systems & Ship symposium. Selby was joined by Rear Adm. Eric Ver Hage, the commander of the Naval Surface Warfare Center and Naval Undersea Warfare Center, and Zac Staples, a retired commander and current chief executive of Austin, Texas,-based maritime analytics firm FATHOM5. Staples' final tour in the Navy was the director of the Center for Cyber Warfare at the Naval Postgraduate School. “Today, we know the liability of many of our systems. We know the ship loadout. We know the type of baseline the ships have. We know the performance of tactical action officers and other key watchstanders when they're in the basic training cycle. We know the proficiency of the strike group when they go to sea,” Ver Hage said. “You have all this data; the problem is, we put missiles on ships, but the combat systems can't unlock all the capability that missile has in some instances,” he said, referring the possibility communications between ships and missiles could improve targeting. When quantum computing is developed, the ability to process this massive amount of data will become much easier, Selby said. Quantum computing is still being researched, with several nations trying to develop a way to tackle large data sets quickly, Selby explained. Within a year or two of mastering quantum computing, he predicts everyone will be able to use quantum computing. For the U.S. to have a decisive quantum computing edge, Selby said requires being ready now. “The key to being the one who can actually lever that technology and really take a huge leap forward in this century is going to be the nation that lays the foundation to be able to lever the capabilities of quantum with a software delivery mechanism,” Selby said. However, as the ability to analyze data speeds up, the importance of protecting this data also grows. “If we're going to build capabilities in the era of great power competition, we have to assume our adversaries are trying to steal them – because they're trying to steal them,” Staples said. “The exact copy Chinese joint strike fighter is a good indication that whatever our shipboard capabilities might go for will be equally targeted.” The current secure method of transferring data classified up to the secret level is over the Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet). However, SIPRNet has limitations, such as the expense of operating the network and creating secure terminals so everyone has access to a SIPRNet terminal to send and receive classified secret information. A cloud-based data vault could prove to be a good solution. Under such a program, access can be restricted, Staples said. Vault monitors will also know which adversaries are denied access to the valuable data being stored. “When you think about encrypting data, there's probably a more efficient way to do that than on SIPRNet,” Staples said. https://news.usni.org/2019/06/20/navy-looking-for-better-ways-to-share-data
August 7, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

With billions of dollars at stake, let’s responsibly and deliberately spend America’s funds
By: Sen. Dick Durbin and Rep. Adam Smith This week we broke a record: In the second quarter of 2020, the U.S. economy fell at an annual rate of 33 percent. As the largest annualized drop in our history, this staggering statistic underscores the breadth and depth of the coronavirus' effect across all industries, including the defense industrial base. As Congress considers competing proposals for COVID-19 relief, we must ensure that any additional funds provided to the Department of Defense are targeted to protecting jobs and strengthening our industrial base. But we owe it to taxpayers to apply oversight and negotiate on their behalf. We cannot panic and hand out blank checks to defense contractors. To do so would set an irresponsible precedent for years to come. Congress has acknowledged that our industrial base needs help during this pandemic. In March, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act included a provision, Section 3610, to allow employees of federal contractors with critical skills to remain paid if the federal facilities where they work closed due to the pandemic. This additional flexibility would keep workers ready to return as soon as conditions allowed. Since then, Section 3610 has taken on a life of its own, with senior administration officials estimating that agencies across the federal government could be on the hook for billions of dollars to carry out this law. With debate on the next coronavirus supplemental bill upon us, the calls for new funding are growing louder. We must explain to American taxpayers and workers what is, and is not, at stake. The confusion stems from two separate issues: whether to use the generous funding already provided to the Department of Defense to pay contractors for the time they were locked out of their workplaces; and to what extent the pandemic and economic shock will make it more expensive to build weapons and perform research now and in the coming years. The Department of Defense has unofficially asked Congress for nearly $11 billion in emergency funds to cover these costs for this year alone, split between these two purposes. The lack of detail in this request raises serious questions. For example, why are other federal agencies finding money in their regular budget to pay for their 3610 contractor pay claims, but the Pentagon cannot? Americans should know that the CARES Act appropriated $10.5 billion for defense needs, with nearly unlimited flexibility for the Department of Defense to reprogram these funds to address urgent priorities. In addition to that infusion of money, the department has numerous other ways to support defense contractors. At the outset of the coronavirus, the department worked with states and localities to deem defense contractors as essential and therefore able to continue working. In April, the department issued a regulatory change on progress payments for existing contracts, increasing the cash flow to the defense industrial base and encouraging major contractors to advance cash to the supply chain, infusing billions of dollars in cash to companies that needed near-term cash flow. And this brings us to our real problem with the $11 billion set aside for contractor reimbursements in this latest emergency appropriations bill: We do not know what it is for, what problems it will and will not fix, and why other funding and tools are not working. We also suspect that the Pentagon has not done its homework on behalf of American taxpayers before asking for this money. The proposal appears to be based on contractor requests, in the midst of a rapidly changing situation, without asking tough questions about how the funds would be used to prevent American job loss and what the long-term budgeting and recovery strategy may be. Before Congress provides many billions of dollars to make up for the work that has been lost due to coronavirus closures, we should know which programs have been impacted, how much each program may need to recover and whether taxpayers will be on the hook for more money if the disruptions continue. The Department of Defense, in particular, has a weapons budget that exceeds the highest levels of the Reagan-era defense buildup — even when adjusted for inflation. Given the amount of base and supplemental funds already at the department's disposal, Congress needs more thorough justification for additional spending, both for Section 3610 and for other needs. Generally speaking, it might make sense to appropriate additional funds to make sure that a shipbuilding program or airplane is completed on time. In other cases, however, taxpayers may reasonably question whether it is worth paying more money in light of other priorities. We have before us a unique opportunity to think strategically about future readiness risks and make the defense industrial base more resilient. Hastily throwing money at the problem is simply not the solution to a complex problem. We appreciate the hard work of the hundreds of thousands of companies, of all sizes, that make up the defense industrial base. When the Pentagon spends CARES Act dollars, or any appropriations, we depend on senior leaders to negotiate hard with defense companies to get the best deal for the taxpayers. There is nothing wrong with tough negotiating when billions of dollars are at stake; as public servants, it is our duty. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., is the Democratic whip and the ranking member on the Senate Appropriations Committee's Defense Subcommittee. Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., is the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/commentary/2020/08/06/with-billions-of-dollars-at-stake-lets-responsibly-and-deliberately-spend-americas-funds/

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