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August 9, 2018 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR

DoD Announces DESI Awards for University-Industry Collaborations

WASHINGTON --

Five university-industry teams have been selected for the Defense Enterprise Science Initiative, known as DESI, Defense Department officials announced today.

DESI is a pilot program supporting university-industry research collaboration focused on accelerating the impact of basic research on defense capabilities.

DESI's goals are twofold, officials said. First, it seeks to foster sustainable university-industry partnerships to identify and apply new discoveries and knowledge on existing capabilities and address technological gaps. DESI also aims to charter a new pathway to accelerate the transfer of basic research to innovative technologies and complement the department's other basic research programs such as the Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship, the Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative and the Defense University Research Instrumentation Program.

“Programs like DESI are vital to foster collaboration in the research ecosystem and accelerate the transition of ground-breaking basic science to transformative capabilities,” said Dr. Bindu Nair, deputy director for basic research. “I look forward to seeing how these teams can help us address our unique and challenging defense problem sets.”

Each team will receive up to $1.5 million over two years to further fundamental knowledge and understanding in the context of end-use applications.

Full Article: https://www.defense.gov/News/Article/Article/1595382/dod-announces-desi-awards-for-university-industry-collaborations/

On the same subject

  • Company plays “a long game” at NATO

    May 18, 2018 | International, Aerospace

    Company plays “a long game” at NATO

    Persistence and a long-term strategy have paid off for a Canadian space and defence company, which has won a $15 million contract to build a new system for NATO's maritime command and control operations. MDA signed a deal with NATO in December 2017 to support the military alliance's Project TRITON. The contract comes with the prospect of significant follow-on opportunities at NATO and many of its member countries, proving the value of perseverance in pursuing work with the organization. “It's a long game,” says Mike Greenley, group president of MDA president of MDA, part of Maxar Technologies, a public company listed in Canada and the United States, formerly known as MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates. MDA first became interested in the TRITON contract almost a decade ago, when it heard that NATO had plans to replace and update the command and control, or C2, system in its maritime operations centres, he says. “It's a big effort. We had a team working on this project for several years.” MDA, which was founded in 1969 and today has 1,900 employees in several centres across Canada, is best known for innovations in space robotics, such as the development of the Canadarm. It is also involved in satellite antennas, surveillance and intelligence, defense and maritime systems and geospatial radar imagery. NATO—which stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organization—is a military defence alliance signed in Washington D.C. in 1949, by several North American and European nations in the North Atlantic area. Canada is a founding member of NATO, which is headquartered in Brussels. Greenley says the three-year Project TRITON contract—which is under the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA) in Brussels—uses MDA's core expertise in maritime domain awareness and digital mapping to present a “maritime picture” that locates, tracks and analyzes the movements of ships at sea. This helps NATO and its member counties improve their situational awareness and decision-making processes. It was critical for NATO to recognize MDA's capabilities in the field, he notes, but the company also had to “stick with it” over a long time to be successful in its bid. “This is a demonstration that a Canadian firm can compete in full and open competition and win a NATO program,” Greenley comments, noting that European firms especially find it more convenient to compete at NATO than those overseas. “There's not a lot of history of Canadian companies being successful there.” NCIA general manager Kevin Scheid said in a statement that “NCIA is delighted to have an opportunity to work with a Canadian company that brings the depth and breadth of Canadian maritime command and control experience to NATO for the TRITON project.” Kerry Buck, the Permanent Representative of Canada to NATO, noted, “NATO is at the core of Canada's national security policy. We are proud that NATO will leverage Canadian technology and expertise to contribute to enhanced communications and support interoperability in NATO.” Lieutenant-Colonel Jim Bates, the former national expert, or NATEX, for Canada at NCIA, says that “MDA did everything right to win the TRITON contract.” Bates, who returned to Ottawa in 2017 to take up an assignment at National Defence Headquarters, calls it “an excellent case study” for Canadian firms interested in getting work at NATO. Bates first became aware of MDA's interest in the TRITON contract when he first started at NATO in 2012. “MDA had been tracking that project from the earliest days,” he recalls. “MDA made regular visits to NATO to meet with key stakeholders. It pursued and won other smaller NATO contract opportunities prior to the TRITON award, so it had a foot in the door and was able to introduce NATO personnel to MDA's services and expertise. That made a positive impression.” The company kept in regular contact with Bates to get business intelligence, and it attended each annual NCIA Industry Conference, where MDA officials could engage agency staff and completely understand NATO's procurement process. “There were no surprises when it came time to bid,” says Bates, adding that is not always the case. “Companies big and small agonize over whether to bid,” because it's a substantial commitment with no guarantee. “It was the norm during my time at NATO that Canadian companies would track NATO opportunities but rarely bid. But you can't win if you don't bid...MDA was confident in its position on TRITON and it won.” Greenley says that in dealing with NATO and its member countries, it's important to present the right price as well as the right technical solution. “In NATO you have to get the entire team comfortable with your approach.” Future contracts related to the TRITON deal could “highly likely” include adding functions and features to NATO's C2 systems, he says, while NATO member countries could adopt MDA's TRITON solution for their own maritime operation centres. “There's every reason to expect there will be solid follow-on business,” Greenley says. “This could easily become a persistent work story in our company for a decade or more.” He credits the Canadian representatives in Brussels at all different levels of Canada's mission to NATO, as well as in key NATO member countries, with MDA's success in winning the contract. “All the right people in the right places at the right time worked with us to win this opportunity.” MDA exports regularly and has started to become operationally present in other countries, Greenley says. Its business development activities are supported by the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service (TCS), along with Export Development Canada and the Canadian Commercial Corporation. “We use the full suite of export tools available to Canadians,” Greenley comments. “International business is based on having a good solution, it's based on having your country as a buyer and then you need whole-of-government support.” MDA will be using the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service (TCS) to promote its TRITON technology among NATO members looking to replace and update their own C2 systems, Greenley says. “We will certainly be out there working in NATO countries with the TCS encouraging those countries to adopt this solution.” Gregory Rust, the senior trade commissioner who is head of the trade program at Canada's embassy in Brussels, says “one thing that I've observed following the NATO contracting process over the years is that it's important to be persistent, patient and thorough.” Rust says MDA displayed all of those critical characteristics, and the TCS “was available to support the company's ongoing interests by offering key core services.” Jane Li, First Secretary in the Joint Delegation of Canada to NATO, who is Canada's representative on the Investment Committee that oversees the NATO Security Investment Program, says it's important to be proactive in researching and understanding NATO's needs. “Patience is also a virtue,” she says, adding that as with many large organizations, it takes time to get to know NATO and how it functions, and for the organization to understand what industry has to offer. “Taking a long-term view is necessary.” MDA took such an approach “and spent a lot of time working towards this,” she says, adding that it's important to “respond to opportunities early and often. Tracking and signalling interest to receive invitations for bids will help you understand what NATO needs and improves familiarity with its processes, which in turn can help increase your chances of success.” Greenley says now that MDA has the TRITON contract, “we want to have sustained business relationships with NATO,” but it's still not going to be easy to get contracts there. “It takes a long time for any NATO program to be organized and executed, so to stick with it is challenging,” he says, while the distance to Brussels and the extra investment needed to have a presence there is an added hurdle for Canadian firms. Canada is joining other countries in having governments and companies form partnerships to lobby for NATO work, which makes sense given the revenues that NATO contracts can bring, he says. “We're starting to step up and ensure that we get our fair share.” Greenley advises companies interested in NATO work to beware of how long the process can take. “I would not put a NATO project in my core business plan,” he says. “You shouldn't assume it's going to happen. It's a strategic, incremental business growth opportunity.” He says it's important to stay “fully engaged” with the TCS and work with Canada's delegation to NATO as well as member countries. “NATO by its definition is based on the participation and collaboration of many participants,” he explains. “You need to use Canada's relationships with multiple NATO countries to build a base of support for your solution.” Greeley hopes MDA's success “leads to other companies in Canada seeing it can be done, and adding to the list of Canadian-based NATO programs.” As the company now executes the TRITON contact, “we're going to work hard to make the most of this opportunity,” he adds. From Brussels, Belgium, this story is one example of how trade commissioners located in more than 160 cities around the world help Canadian companies succeed. http://tradecommissioner.gc.ca/canadexport/0002899.aspx?lang=eng

  • Land Systems Integration Team Is Leader in Model-Based Systems Engineering

    August 5, 2019 | International, Naval

    Land Systems Integration Team Is Leader in Model-Based Systems Engineering

    By C. Michaela Judge, Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic Public Affairs CHARLESTON, S.C. (NNS) -- The Land Systems Integration (LSI) Division at Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic continues to be an enterprise leader in Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) for their work on land systems modernization and integration. MBSE is an engineering approach that utilizes a common, digital tool suite allowing all team members – from engineer to sponsor – to have awareness, line-of-sight and an understanding of the interaction between the various moving parts across the systems engineering and project lifecycle. LSI's Vehicular Technology Transition (VTT) team incorporates the full range of MBSE techniques into their systems engineering projects to support the Marine Corps and has had great success in continuing this approach in their daily work. “What makes LSI and our team specifically successful is the depth of knowledge in implementation of using the MBSE Tool Suite,” said Tim Turner, VTT team lead. “Our engineering work isn't radically different than any other engineering groups across the Command; it's how we're putting the data in the system and making it transparent to everyone that needs to have access to it.” Though engineers have been performing systems engineering in some capacity for decades, using this model-based approach provides an added advantage to deliver effective and timely solutions to the warfighter. “Our MBSE Tool Suite is a set of seamlessly integrated engineering lifecycle management tools that work together as one,” said Jacob Witmer, VTT team Military GPS User Equipment (MGUE) project lead. “We use these tools to manage requirements and architectures, plan projects, track changes, manage quality, and provide an enterprise library management system where you catalog, organize, use, reuse, manage, and report on any type of software, technology, or business asset.” In the vehicle transition domain, the VTT team utilized MBSE techniques to solve real-world challenges for the warfighter. Most recently, they used MBSE to conduct global positioning system (GPS) integration work conducted on the Joint-Light Tactical Vehicle, the MGUE Program's lead platform. “When we look at all of the people our team has to work with on this integration project, we have to manage a lot of different data, to include where the trucks are manufactured, where GPS is managed, the performance level of the GPS card, the truck integration and more,” said Witmer. “There are a lot of players, managing a lot of data in a lot of different formats from different geographic parts of the country. That's really what the MBSE Tool Suite is designed to do – manage, connect and link the data to see how they impact each other.” One cost-avoidance benefit of using the MBSE Tool Suite, in time and man-hours, includes the ability to quickly build reports. “We can build 150-page project requirements documents in three minutes because the data is already in the Tool Suite,” said Ryan Longshore, VTT team technical lead. “There is an investment in time and energy upfront in loading the data, but a report that would take 30 to 90 days is done in a matter of minutes and everything from that project is captured in the report.” The team's use of MBSE is not only essential to connecting and maintaining data across a project, but also a necessary resource in developing physical models and solutions in a fraction of the time previously needed to fulfill a warfighter requirement. “Our team works within the Systems Integration Laboratory (SIL) to design and test on multiple vehicular platforms,” said Turner. “The lab allows us to execute MBSE across all team functions, from mission thread to risk analysis or program management.” The team maintains physical models for all of the vehicle platforms they support. When a requirement from a sponsor arrives, the team can use tools within the SIL to design and print a three-dimensional piece of hardware and test it on an existing model before they touch a physical vehicle. The team conducts engineering, mechanical and software-related integration testing and design work all within the laboratory. “It's all about testing upfront, learning upfront, failing faster and learning from it and moving on and improving on the design,” said Turner. As the team designs and tests within the lab, they also update the MBSE Tool Suite is to capture lessons learned, integration challenges and real-time project data for all team members to access. “The beauty of the suite being so integrated is that it doesn't matter what type of systems engineering methodology a project uses, the tools can be tailored to meet a myriad of engineering processes and organizing the data by methodology saves countless hours in digging around trying to find historical artifacts,” said Witmer. The team can now complete an integration project that previously took 18 to 36 months as quickly as six to nine months, without sacrificing quality, thanks to the value of MBSE. With VTT and other teams reaping the benefits of MBSE, NIWC Atlantic created a training and workforce development path to work toward a Command-wide adoption of this method. Communities of interest, industry engagements and training events on MBSE methods are a few of the efforts implemented to date. The VTT uses these training approaches, to a smaller-scale, to continue to encourage MBSE implementation and help employees understand the power of using a model-based approach to apply agility in executing warfighter solutions. “We're seeing the benefits and through MBSE my team has the flexibility to fail fast and learn a lot upfront,” said Turner. The team's success with the MBSE Tool Suite is a Command-wide example of how the transparency and connectivity of engineering data help to provide integration solutions to NIWC Atlantic customers with a high confidence of success. As a part of Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, NIWC Atlantic provides systems engineering and acquisition to deliver information warfare capabilities to the naval, joint and national warfighter through the acquisition, development, integration, production, test, deployment, and sustainment of interoperable command, control, communications, computer, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, cyber and information technology capabilities. https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=110447

  • Raytheon awarded $235.6M for production of Silent Knight Radar

    December 2, 2020 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR

    Raytheon awarded $235.6M for production of Silent Knight Radar

    By Christen McCurdy Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Raytheon has been awarded a $235.6 million multi-year contract for production and delivery of the Silent Knight Radar for U.S. Special Operations Command, according to the Pentagon. Work on this contract will be performed in McKinney and Forest, Miss., and is expected to be completed by July 2025, the Pentagon said. The Silent Knight radar is designed to be outfitted on the MH-47G Chinook and MH-60M Blackhawk helicopters, MC-130 transports and CV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft. The Silent Knight is built for safe navigation through low altitudes at night or in bad weather. In June 2019 Raytheon was awarded a $96.6 million contract for the initial production of the Silent Knight system for Special Operations Command. This summer tilt and rotary wing test squadron pilots at Eglin Air Force base logged their first CV-22 Osprey flight using the Silent Knight system, which the Air Force intends to continue testing for the next two years. https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2020/12/01/Raytheon-awarded-2356M-for-production-of-Silent-Knight-Radar/3121606871049

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