November 2, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY
Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Moorestown, New Jersey, is being awarded a sole-source, cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost-plus fixed-fee contract. The total value of this contract is $724,001,438, inclusive of all options. Under this follow on contract, the contractor will conduct full development and lifecycle engineering for the Aegis Weapon System (AWS) fielding for cruisers, destroyers and Aegis Ashore configurations. The AWS contract will support the following efforts: Aegis Baseline (BL) 5.4.1 (Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) 4.2) development; BL 9 (BMD 5.X) development; Aegis BMD In-Service support; BMD ground and flight test support; modeling and simulation support; Aegis Ashore Missile Defense Test Complex combat system engineering, testing, site support, modernization, technical and logistics support; and Aegis BMD ship installation and planning. The work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey, with an estimated completion date of February 2024. Fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2021 research, development, test, and evaluation; and fiscal 2021 procurement defense wide, and operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $45,036,867, will be obligated at the time of award. The Missile Defense Agency, Dahlgren, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HQ0851-21-C-0002).
Raytheon Missiles and Defense, Tucson, Arizona, is being awarded a sole-source, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for a ceiling value of $722,400,000. This contract is a hybrid of fixed-price incentive firm-target, firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-incentive fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee. This contract is for fiscal years 2021-2029. Under this contract, the contractor will provide the management, material and services associated with the sustaining engineering and product support services of the Standard Missile-3 Block missile variants for the U.S. and Foreign Military Sales partners. Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona; and Huntsville, Alabama, with an ordering period of nine years from contract award through Oct. 29, 2029. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $6,695,129 will be obligated at time of award. The Missile Defense Agency, Dahlgren, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HQ0851-21-D-0001).
DEFENSE FINANCE AND ACCOUNTING SERVICE
Ernst and Young LLP, New York, New York, is being awarded a maximum $263,438,451 labor-hour contract for financial statement audit services for the Navy. Work will be performed in Alexandria, Virginia, with an expected completion date of Dec. 31, 2021. The contract has a one-year base period with four individual one-year option periods. This contract is the result of a competitive acquisition for which one quote was received. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $50,270,811 are being obligated at the time of the award. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service, Contract Services Directorate, Columbus, Ohio, is the contracting activity (HQ0423-21-F-0002).
AIR FORCE
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Sierra Vista, Arizona, has been awarded a not-to-exceed $158,390,024 undefinitized contract action for Global Hawk (RQ-4) aircraft sustainment. This contract provides for aircraft spares and contractor logistics support. Work will be performed in the Republic of Korea and Sierra Vista, Arizona, and is expected to be completed by Feb. 29, 2024. This contract involves Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to the Republic of Korea. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. FMS funds in the amount of $33,835,878 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8690-21-C-1001).
Velocity/CFM JV LLC, San Antonio, Texas (FA3016-21-D-0002); King & George LLC, Fort Worth, Texas (FA3016-21-D-0003); Henock Construction LLC, San Antonio, Texas (FA3016-21-D-0004); JVR SouthBay JV, San Antonio, Texas (FA3016-21-D-0005); Belt Built/Con-Cor JV, San Antonio, Texas (FA3016-21-D-0006); Northcon Inc., Hayden, Idaho, (FA3016-21-D-0007); and Tejas Premier Building Contractor Inc., San Antonio, Texas (FA3016-21-D-0008), have been awarded one of seven multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts with a $140,000,000 program ceiling for non-complex construction. Subsequent task orders will be in support of real property maintenance, repair, alteration and minor construction. Work will be performed in San Antonio, Texas, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 8, 2030. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and 33 proposals were received. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,000 per basic contract will be obligated at the time of award. The 502nd Contracting Squadron, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, is the contracting activity.
Hologic Inc., Marlborough, Massachusetts, has been awarded a $119,285,089 firm-fixed-price contract for SARS-CoV-2 molecular test production and capacity expansion. This contract provides for the expansion of manufacturing capabilities through additional equipment, material/supplies and facility infrastructure. Work will be performed in Somerset, Wisconsin; Hudson, Wisconsin; Menomonie, Wisconsin; Anaheim, California; Baldwin, Wisconsin; Guilford, Maine; and San Diego, California, and is expected to be completed by January 2022. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition. Funding is authorized through Health Care Enhancement Act (H.R. 266) from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority in the full amount which is being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity (FA8656-21-C-0002).
L3Harris Technologies Inc., Clifton, New Jersey, has been awarded a $97,505,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide repair and return (R&R) services for unclassified and classified line-replaceable unit/standard equipment module assets of the ALQ-211 (V)4, (V)8, and (V)9 systems of the airborne F-16 Advanced Integrated Defense Electronic Warfare Suite (AIDEWS) weapon systems. This contract involves Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to support air forces of Chile, India, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Turkey, Iraq and Morocco. Procurement of these R&R logistical support services is necessary to restore F-16 AIDEWS systems to mission capable condition and to equip partnering F-16 FMS fleets with airborne self-defense and survivability against electromagnetic threats. Work will be performed in Clifton, New Jersey, and is expected to be completed by Oct. 29, 2025. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. FMS funds in the amount of $73,000 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, is the contracting activity (FA8523-21-D-0001).
Tyonek Services Overhaul Facility – Stennis LLC,* Kiln, Mississippi, has been awarded a $92,800,000 contract for C‐5M sustainment. This contract provides for alternative modification installation services. Work will be performed in Waco, Texas, and is expected to be completed by March 31, 2030. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. A combination of fiscal 2020 transportation working capital funds and fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $6,577,182 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, is the contracting activity (FA8525‐21‐D‐0001).
Raytheon Co., Marlborough, Massachusetts, has been awarded a $15,537,424 modification (P00120) to contract FA8705-14-C-0001 for transportable install kit/electronic equipment (IKEE) kits under already established contract line item numbers 0004, 0005 and 0006 respectively for a global aircrew strategic network terminal. Work will be performed in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and is expected to be completed by July 31, 2023. Fiscal 2019 other procurement funds in the amount of $8,011,905; and fiscal 2020 other procurement funds in the amount of $7,525,519 are being obligated at time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $559,045,880. The Air Force Material Command, Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity.
BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services Inc., Rockville, Maryland, has been awarded a $13,365,920 time and materials task order to provide time and materials for Mobility Air Forces Automated Flight Planning Service (MAFPS) Functional On-Site Support Element. This contract provides services to include support desk activities and assistance with MAFPS flight plan requests, data management, application training, creation/routing/tracking/analysis of customer requests/trouble tickets (trend analysis) and resulting products to ensure Air Operations Center mission requirements are met. Work will be performed in Rockville, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by Oct. 30, 2024. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and one offer was received. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $2,690,571 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity (FA8730-20-F-0202).
InBios International Inc., Seattle, Washington, has been awarded a $12,670,301 firm-fixed-price contract for expansion of production capability for COVID-19 Rapid test. This contract provides for expansion of production capability for the SCoV-2 IgG/IgM Detect and SCoV-2 Ag Detect tests. Work will be performed in Seattle, Washington, and is expected to be completed by April 2021. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition. Funding is authorized through Health Care Enhancement Act (H.R. 266) from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and funds in the full amount will be obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity (FA8656-21-C-8877).
PAE Applied Technologies LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, has been awarded a $12,665,242 firm-fixed-price modification (P00016) to contract FA4890-17-F-3053 for forward operating location/base operating support. The contract modification exercises Option Year Three. Work will be performed at Hato IAP, Curacao; and Reina Beatrix IAP, Aruba, and is expected to be completed by Oct. 31, 2022. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $71,784,016. The Acquisition Management and Integration Center, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, has been awarded a $7,801,213 hybrid firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable modification (P00040) to contract FA8823-17-C-0003 for system sustainment of the Meteorological Data Station. This modification provides for the exercise of the Option Year Four pre-priced contract line items for additional sustainment services under the basic contract. Work will be performed in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, and is expected to be completed by Oct. 31, 2021. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $900,000; and spectrum relocation funds in the amount of $498,822 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $63,259,109. The Space and Missile Systems Center, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Brad Hall and Associates Inc., Idaho Falls, Idaho (SPE605-21-D-4501, $53,709,214); American Energy & Fuel System,* Santa Fe Springs, California (SPE605-21-D-4502, $53,709,214); Petroleum Traders Corp.,** Fort Wayne, Indiana (SPE605-21-D-4504, $44,230,576); Mansfield Oil Company of Gainesville Inc., Gainesville, Georgia (SPE605-21-D-4503, $11,383,071); and Stonewin LLC,* Miami, Florida (SPE605-21-D-4505, $10,923,079), have each been awarded a fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment contract under solicitation SPE605-20-R-0225 for various types of fuel. This was a competitive acquisition with 57 responses received. This is a 30-month contract with one six-month option period. Locations of performance are Idaho, California, Georgia, Indiana, Florida, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin and Wyoming, with a June 30, 2023, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
Aurora Industries LLC,*** Camuy, Puerto Rico, has been awarded a maximum $49,763,100 fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for duffle bags. This was a competitive acquisition with two responses received. This is a two-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Puerto Rico, with an Oct. 29, 2022, ordering period end date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-21-D-1408).
US Foods Inc., Salem, Missouri, has been awarded a maximum $37,260,000 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 108-day bridge contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Missouri and Illinois, with a Feb. 16, 2021, performance completion 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-3300).
L3 Technologies Inc., Salt Lake City, Utah, has been awarded a maximum $21,897,981 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery requirements contract for Data Link Compatibility Module components. 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 five-year contract with no option periods. Location of performance is Utah, with an Oct. 30, 2025, performance completion date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2026 Army working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama (SPRRA1-21-D-0006).
Belleville Shoe Co.,* Belleville, Illinois, has been awarded a maximum $12,462,522 modification (P00008) exercising the third one-year-option period of one-year base contract (SPE1C1-18-D-1001) with four one-year option periods for hot-weather combat boots. This is a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. Location of performance is Illinois, with an Oct. 30, 2021, ordering period end date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Avfuel Corp., Ann Arbor, Michigan, has been awarded a $9,610,200 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment contract for jet fuel. This was a competitive acquisition with three responses received. This is an 18-month contract with one six-month option period. Locations of performance are California and Michigan, with a May 31, 2022, performance completion date. Using customer is Air National Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia (SPE605-21-D-4500).
NAVY
The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is awarded $28,912,436 for a firm-fixed-price delivery order (N00383-21-F-A30P) under previously awarded basic ordering agreement N00383-17-G-A301 for the procurement of radomes for the total quantity of 99 each in support of the F/A-18 E-G aircraft. All work will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri, and is expected to be completed by March 2025. Fiscal 2021 working capital (Navy) funds in the full amount of $28,912,436 will be obligated at the time of award and funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One company was solicited for this sole-source requirement under authority 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), with one offer received. The Naval Supply Systems Command, Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Orlando, Florida, is awarded $17,932,332 for ceiling-priced delivery order N00383-21-F-Y500 under previously awarded basic ordering agreement N00383-20-G-Y500 in support of five line items for the procurement of the electronic consolidated automated support system used on a support equipment test bench. All work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be completed by October 2021. Fiscal 2021 working capital (Navy) funds in the amount of $8,786,843 will be obligated at the time of award and funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One firm was solicited for this non-competitive requirement under authority 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), with one offer received. The Naval Supply Systems Command, Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity.
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., a Lockheed Martin Co., Stratford, Connecticut, is awarded a $16,590,126 modification (P0001) to firm-fixed-price order N00019-20-F-0256 against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-19-G-0029. This modification procures 190 spare parts and provides support for the repair and maintenance of the CH-53K Low Rate Initial Production configuration aircraft. Work will be performed in Rochester, United Kingdom (21.02%); Stratford, Connecticut (13.03%); Garden Grove, California (12.98%); Windsor, Connecticut (12.41%); Forest, Ohio (9.85%); Quebec, Canada (8.95%); Chesterfield, Missouri (8.8%); Windsor Locks, Connecticut (6.31%); Hazelwood, Missouri (2.01%); Rockmart, Georgia (1.66%); Lebanon, New Hampshire (1.18%); and various locations within the continental U.S. (1.8%), and is expected to be completed in December 2022. Fiscal 2020 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $16,590,126 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
Raytheon Co., McKinney, Texas, is awarded $14,230,773 for firm-fixed-price delivery order N00383-21-F-U203 under previously awarded long-term contract (LTC) N00383-19-D-U201 for the repair of the turret, sensor-sight in support of the H-60 aircraft. The current delivery order will exceed the total estimated value of $58,777,194. The original LTC award announcement was published on Dec. 19, 2018. Per Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement 205.303(a)(i)(B), this delivery order must be publicized as the estimated value has been reached and this delivery order has a face value of more than $7.5 million. This delivery order brings the new total amount of the LTC to $70,140,189. All work will be performed in Jacksonville, Florida, and is expected to be completed by May 2023. Annual working capital (Navy) funds in the full amount of $14,230,773 will be obligated at the time of award and funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One company was solicited for this sole-source requirement under authority 10 U.S. Code 2304 (c)(1), with one offer received. The Naval Supply Systems Command, Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity.
Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio, is awarded a $12,899,128, 18-month contract option under existing cost-reimbursement contract N66001-19-C-4019 for the development of a novel, nonsurgical, bi-directional brain-computer interface with high spacio-temporal resolution and low latency for potential human use. Exercise of this option increases the overall value of this contract to $15,804,682. Work will be performed at the contractor's facilities in Columbus, Ohio (31%); Weston, Florida (47%); Miami, Florida (11%); and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (11%). The period of performance from Oct. 30, 2020, through April 29, 2022. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $1,854,743 will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency broad agency announcement solicitation published on the beta.SAM.gov website. Nineteen proposals were received and six were selected for award. The Naval Information Warfare Center, Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N66001-19-C-4019).
General Dynamics Electric Boat, Groton, Connecticut, is awarded a $10,186,100 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract N00024-09-C-2104 for execution of USS Delaware (SSN 791) guaranty period. General Dynamics Electric Boat will perform planning and execution efforts, in preparation to accomplish the maintenance, repair, alterations, testing and other work on USS Delaware (SSN 791) during its scheduled guaranty period. Work will be performed in Groton, Connecticut, and is expected to be completed by July 2021. Fiscal 2020 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $10,186,100 will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Supervisor of Shipbuilding Conversion and Repair, Groton, Connecticut, is the contracting activity.
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Aerospace Systems, Melbourne, Florida, is awarded a $9,789,348 modification (P00004) to cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order N00019-20-F-0025 against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-15-G-0026. This modification exercises an option to provide labor to retrofit link 16 crypto-modernization/hybrid-beyond line of sight capabilities on 34 E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (39.2%); Ronkonkoma, New York (23.98%); Bethpage, New York (18.02%); Petaluma, California (6.8%); Irvine, California (6.76%); Melbourne, Florida (3.25%); Minden, Nebraska (1.5%); and various locations within the continental U.S. (0.49%), and is expected to be completed in April 2022. Fiscal 2021 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $9,789,348 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
Railroad Construction Co. Inc., Paterson, New Jersey, is awarded a $9,759,564 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity modification under previously-awarded contract N40085-19-D-9024 for the exercise of Option Two under a contract for base operations support services at Naval Weapons Station Earle, New Jersey; and Naval Support Activity Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The work to be performed provides for preventive maintenance of railroad switch turnouts, maintenance of railroad track rights-of way, to include weed control and tree trimming; ultrasonic testing of railroad track components; maintenance of railroad crossings; and the repair of railroad trackage, to include the replacement of crossties, switch timbers and rail and switch turnout components. No percentage estimates of the amount of work at each location is available, as work will be performed based on individual task orders. This modification brings the total cumulative value of the contract to $28,242,820. Work will be performed in Colts Neck, New Jersey; and Mechanicsburg Pennsylvania, and is expected to be completed by October 2021. No funding is being obligated with this award, but an anticipated task order during the option period will be awarded for recurring work at Public Works Department, Earle, New Jersey. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,841,872 will be awarded at that time under that task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic Public Works Department, Earle, Colts Neck, New Jersey, is the contracting activity.
GE Aviation Systems LLC, Dowty Propellers, Sterling, Virginia, is awarded an $8,091,000 modification (P00020) to previously awarded firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract N00019-17-D-0089. This modification adds scope to provide logistics services in support of KC-130J R391 propeller upgrades for the Marine Corps. Specifically, this effort provides durability upgrades to the propeller blade polyurethane and leading edge guard. Work will be performed in Sterling, Virginia (56%); and Gloucester, United Kingdom (44%), and is expected to be completed in May 2022. No funds will be obligated at the time of award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
ARMY
J&J Maintenance Inc., Austin, Texas, was awarded a $25,483,823 firm-fixed-price contract for healthcare housekeeping services at Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston. Bids were solicited via the internet with six received. Work will be performed in San Antonio, Texas, with an estimated completion date of Nov. 30, 2025. Fiscal 2021 Defense Health Program (Defense) funds in the amount of $25,483,823 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Health Contracting Activity, San Antonio, Texas, is the contracting activity (W81K04-21-C-0001).
Test & Evaluation Services and Technologies LLC, Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a $15,217,605 modification (P00002) to contract W900KK-20-D-0012 for threat systems operations and maintenance integrated support. Work will be performed in Herndon, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 26, 2027. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $15,217,605 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Oct. 21, 2020)
ICF Inc. LLC, Fairfax, Virginia, was awarded a $14,155,272 modification (P00040) to contract W911QX-17-C-0018 for mission critical defense cyber operation services. Work will be performed in Adelphi, Maryland; Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland; Fort Belvoir, Virginia; San Antonio, Texas; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Fort Meade, Maryland; and Columbia, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Army) funds in the amount of $2,000,000 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
National Conferencing Inc., Dumfries, Virginia, was awarded a $13,492,970 modification (P00003) to contract W9124J-20-C-0018 to provide event planning, coordination and logistical support for training requirements of Department of the Army, Chief of Chaplains. Work will be performed in Dumfries, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2021 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $9,124,231 were obligated at the time of the award. The U.S. Army Field Directorate Office, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, is the contracting activity.
*Small business
**Veteran-owned small business
***8(a) small business
https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2400904/source/GovDelivery/
July 24, 2024 | International, C4ISR, Security
An active threat campaign targeting Snowflake customers underscores an attack pattern of exploiting users’ cloud and SaaS identities and gaps in MFA coverage.
August 6, 2019 | International, Aerospace
By: Mike Gruss WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin is intricately tied to the Pentagon's future space endeavors. The giant defense contractor has deals for the Air Force's next-generation missile warning satellites, it's new batch of GPS satellites and the current generation of protected communication space vehicles. But the national security space community is changing fast. Space is now viewed as a war-fighting domain, a far cry from decades ago. Rick Ambrose heads the company's space division. He spoke with Mike Gruss, editor of Defense News sister publications C4ISRNET and Fifth Domain, about where the Pentagon is headed and how to make sense of the new realities in space. What advantages do you see with the Air Force's new missile warning satellite program over the current Space Based Infrared Program? The Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared Program is, in essence, a whole new design, which is why we're competing for payload. So it's going to have a tremendous new mission capability, built-in resiliency capabilities, much more flexibility. What does that mean, flexibility? We're going to put in some of our smart sat processing that will help with the payload. We'll make sure we can incrementally upgrade, or the Air Force can, over time. If you think about this, SBIRS [the Space Based Infrared Surveillance system] was originally designed back in the '90s. Basically it's a whole modernization of the mission — better performance across the board. We need more continuous coverage; you need better resolutions. You need a better differentiation of the threat. You need to build in the resiliency, plus the modern ability and some of the processing. So how do we upgrade algorithms on the fly? All that's going to be enabled in this design. When we talk about the smart sat part of that, is that something that today you would get an image and then have to process it on the ground? So the savings is you can do it there so you get it faster. Or is there a different advantage? This is always the trade-off. To process everything on the ground, you have to now communicate every piece of data down right away. We still may ultimately want to do that. But what if we can run some processing on the satellite versus the ground? That design's still not perfectly baked in yet, but that's the direction we're going, is to build in some of that. I think of it like adding filters on Instagram. Another way to look at it would be: There are certain things that you'll locally process on your phone not to clog the communications. We can upload patches and software like we do on most satellites. We've been doing this for decades. But now it just gives you more flexibility to do even more things. You know, a lot of times we're flying satellites for 20 years and we keep finding new ways to use them. Let's build that in up front. I would imagine the Air Force is more open to that kind of thinking. Oh, absolutely. Well, because the threat environment has changed, there are go-fast initiatives, [such as Space and Missile Systems Center] SMC 2.0. We love it because things in the past, it would take longer to prosecute changes on. Now with their new push — you know, [the assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics], Dr. [Will] Roper's push for speed and agility — now once we get the program going and get all the designs finalized, then you'll go to a more traditional —you have to prove out the concept and prove out that the system works and then deploy. We do agile develop for them, but they go: “We're going to constantly change.” Well, commercial could get away with that because if suddenly Google goes down, you don't lose lives. These systems protect lives. The men and women that serve, weather systems, even the private citizens. It's serious business. So that's where we'll always be different than some on the commercial side. If you think about timing of the program up front, at the stage we're at [a low-production rate]. Now is where we can do experimentation and try out new designs. With the Space Development Agency, how do you see that integration improving? What happens is the exact opposite of what should happen. Let's say it takes five or six or seven, eight years to get a satellite up. That's an expensive item. We have to move out and let's get the satellite going. Well, nothing ever works that simple. What we're saying is you need to put the end-to-end architecture together. That's why we brought our ground system together with us to help us help the government with this challenge. And then you get faster. And the other side of this, because it's on the ground, you go: “Oh, it's on the ground. We can always fix it.” The hope is with the Space Force, [SMC 2.0] and all this, we can synchronize better. But more importantly, how do we make a lot of technology more common to the space and ground infrastructure? If you're having to develop every element of that from scratch, it's just massive, it's costly. So what can you do? I did a study decades ago because everyone concentrates on the satellite. I said: “Well, what's the ground cost?” I ran our satellites and we've designed them to run 20 years. You go: “OK, what's the infrastructure cost around that?” And when you took a 20-year cycle of the ground and operations and processing, and think about it, every three years or so they're upgrading. Because you have people touch your computers so now they got to upgrade the machines every three or four years. The IT infrastructure and all that. Refurbish all that. The cost of that dwarfed any costs over that time period of the space asset because you paid once. It actually was more expensive than all the satellites and launches combined. We can knock the ground back a little bit by putting artificial intelligence in, ultimately machine learning, more automation, simplifying operations. You mentioned resilience at the satellite level. There's been talk: “Could a satellite evade a missile? Or evade another satellite?” People have a difficult time understanding what resilience at the space level means. If you're thinking of resilience, it's going to come in a couple of flavors. You touched on the first one. First, if you set your architecture up right, it'll inherently give you some resilience and allow you to make some different trades on the satellite level. Then the satellite itself can just be much more robust. So just inherently for mission assurance, the satellites are more robust and we've put redundant systems at higher quality, higher-reliability parts. You can think of it that way. For resiliencies, you well know there's some level of hardening on SBIRS and the Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite anyway for both environmental as well as man-made events. The best it can do. Think safety systems you've put on your cars. In the past, when there were a few cars on the road, no one really worried about it. I think the first cars didn't even have seat belts. Or you just keep adding features as you learn more things. It's like with cyber, everyone says: “When are we done with cyber?” You're not because it's a journey. Every time you do something, someone else tries to defeat it. Boeing is under contract for the Air Force's next wideband communications satellite. The company is trying to quickly build it. Are you watching that process? We can come up with our ideas, some other people have ideas. The thing that is just fantastic about space right now [is] it's no longer just competition of its traditional players. There are over a thousand new entrants now if you count the numbers. You got large players coming in like Jeff Bezos. You've got traditional competitors, you've got the supply chain forward integrating. Think of a Harris and L3 combination. Those are all competitive surfaces, which makes this industry just damn exciting right now. And it may sound crazy, but that stimulates motivation. It stimulates innovation. It simulates the thinking and those competitive spirits, where it's kind of what this country was founded on, right? So we're always watching that. We've really modernized our production. In the old days everyone would hand-lay down the solar cells. We now have robotics and automation equipment just literally laying those cells down. It's more predictable. It's more ergonomically friendly for my technicians. One cell was like art almost. Now we're trying to say: “OK, we don't want to lose performance, but let's build in the design for producibility, operability, operations [on] Day One so that we can automate it.” So let's say an electronic card, which would take a technician three months to put together, solder, fill and now we run it down the line; in under eight hours, it's done. Is the Air Force OK with that process? I think of this as pretty unforgiving. Well, it still is. You go back six years ago, I think we did a dozen [3D]-printed parts. We did over 14,000 last year. If you go through our space electronic center, we put automation in. The problem for us in space is we have some unique parts and they weren't precise enough. How do you measure it? You know it's very valuable. You know you're taking time out. If anything, you're improving the quality of work life for your employees. There's this discussion that GPS III is the most resilient GPS satellite ever. And at the same time, the Army says: “We should count on it less than we ever have before.” How can both things be true? In GPS III, it's a much higher power. The M-code coming online makes it somewhat more resilient. But you'll still — again, just like cyber — you'll have adversaries still trying to figure out engineering and different things, techniques. If you take your GPS commercial receiver and you're running in the city, you get a lot of bounce off that urban canyon. So it knows like: “What? That dude looks funky. Throw him out.” Then it processes the ones that it thinks are good. That's a form of protecting that environment if you think about it. How will this play out? There's going to be some combination of software and then maybe some other sensors like we've been toying with, some microgravity sensors, which you can then kind of tell the region you're at. And some of the — just the onboard inertial systems — are getting pretty damn good. It's like your self-driving cars. It's going to rely on not just the cameras, but the little radar sensors and some combination of sensors. For [timing], when you're running software and you have all these sensors that are nodes in the network, and they can actually talk to each other, this is maybe a nirvana future state. Then the guesses you make are better informed with more data. There could be a world where GPS is making decisions with 80 percent of data that's coming from GPS satellites, and maybe it's pulling something from some other sources. https://www.c4isrnet.com/industry/2019/08/05/lockheed-space-exec-talks-future-space-endeavors/
July 19, 2021 | International, Aerospace
The F-35 program currently has 857 deficiencies, but only seven are considered