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ARMY Absolute Business Solutions Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0001); Adams Communication & Engineering Technology Inc.,* Waldorf, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0002); Augustine Consulting Inc.,* Monterey, California (W15P7T-19-D-0003); Addx Corp.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0004); Altus LLC,* Darlington, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0005); American Electronic Warfare Associates Inc.,* California, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0006); Array Information Technology Inc.,* Greenbelt, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0007); Advanced Systems Development Inc.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0008) Attain LLC,* McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0009); Avenge Inc.,* Fayetteville, North Carolina (W15P7T-19-D-0010) Axiom Resource Management Inc.,* Falls Church, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0011); B3 Solutions LLC,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0012); Barbaricum LLC,* Washington, DC (W15P7T-19-D-0013); Bennett Aerospace Inc.,* Cary, North Carolina (W15P7T-19-D-0014); Bowhead Logistics Solutions LLC,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0015); Brockwell Technologies Inc.,* Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0016); By Light Professional IT Services LLC,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0017); C4 Planning Solutions LLC,* Blythe, Georgia (W15P7T-19-D-0018); Cambridge International Systems Inc.,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0019); Carley Corp.,* Orlando, Florida (W15P7T-19-D-0020); Chimera Enterprises International Inc.,* Edgewood, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0021); Centech Group Inc.,* Falls Church, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0022); Chenega Technical Innovations LLC,* Chantilly, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0023); Clearavenue LLC,* Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0024); Client Solution Architects LLC,* Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania (W15P7T-19-D-0025); Client/Server Software Solutions Inc., doing business as Constellation,* West, Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0026); Data Matrix Solutions Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0027); Decibel Research Inc.,* Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0028); Decisive Analytics Corp.,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0029) Delan Associates Inc.,* Freeport, New York (W15P7T-19-D-0030); Data Intelligence LLC,* Marlton, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0031); Edgesource Corp.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0032); Enterprise Information Services Inc.,* Vienna, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0033); Envistacom,* LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (W15P7T-19-D-0034); Polaris Alpha Advanced Systems Inc.,* Fredericksburg, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0035); Enterprise Resource Planning International LLC,* Laurel, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0036); Enterprise Resource Performance Inc.,* Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0037); Fibertek Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0038); Five Rivers Services LLC,* Colorado Springs, Colorado (W15P7T-19-D-0039); Frontier Technologies Inc.,* Wilmington, Delaware (W15P7T-19-D-0040); Future Technologies Inc.,* Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0041); Fulcrum It Services LLC,* Centreville, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0042); Futron Inc.,* Woodbridge, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0043); GaN Corp.,* Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0044); GC&E Systems Group Inc.,* Peachtree Corners, Georgia (W15P7T-19-D-0045); Glacier Technologies LLC,* El Paso, Texas (W15P7T-19-D-0046); Global Dimensions LLC,* Fredericksburg, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0047); Global Infotek Inc.,* Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0048); GS5 LLC,* Dumfries, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0049); Gstek Inc.,* Chesapeake, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0050); Hebco Inc.,* Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (W15P7T-19-D-0051); Holmes-Tucker International Inc.,* Lexington Park, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0052); Ideal Innovations Inc.,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0053); IDS International Government Services LLC,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0054); Intelligent Decision Systems Inc.,* Centreville, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0055); Innovative Emergency Management Inc.,* Morrisville, North Carolina (W15P7T-19-D-0056); Igov Technologies Inc.,* Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0057); Information and Infrastructure Technologies Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0058); Information Management Group Inc.,* Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0059); Integral Consulting Services Inc.,* Rockville, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0060); Intelitrac Inc.,* Fort Worth, Texas (W15P7T-19-D-0061); Intelligent Waves LLC,* Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0062); Iomaxis LLC,* Lorton, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0063); IPKeys Technologies LLC,* Eatontown, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0064); Ip Network Solutions Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0065); Impact Resources Inc.,* Springfield, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0066); ISHPI Information Technologies Inc.,* Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (W15P7T-19-D-0067); Janus Research Group Inc.,* Appling, Georgia (W15P7T-19-D-0068); Karthik Consulting LLC,* Reston. Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0069); Keybridge Technologies Inc.,* Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (W15P7T-19-D-0070); Kinney Group Inc.,* Indianapolis, Indiana (W15P7T-19-D-0071); Knowledge Management Inc.,* Tyngsboro, Massachusetts (W15P7T-19-D-0072); Link Solutions Inc.,* McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0073); Linquest Corp.,* Los Angeles, California (W15P7T-19-D-0074); Lintech Global Inc.,* Farmington Hills, Michigan (W15P7T-19-D-0075); Logyx LLC,* Mountain View, California (W15P7T-19-D-0076); Lufburrow & Co. Inc.,* Havre de Grace, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0077); Middle Bay Solutions LLC,* Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0078); Millennium Corp.,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0079); Morgan Business Consulting LLC,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0080); MSK TriTech Group LLC,* Tampa, Florida (W15P7T-19-D-0081); Manufacturing Techniques Inc.,* Kilmarnock, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0082); Navmar Applied Sciences Corp.,* Warminster, Pennsylvania (W15P7T-19-D-0083); NES Associates LLC,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0084); Nexagen Networks Inc.,* Morganville, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0085); Nextgen Federal Systems LLC,* Morgantown, West Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0086); Oak Grove Technologies LLC,* Raleigh, North Carolina (W15P7T-19-D-0087); Object CTalk Inc.,* King of Prussia, Pennsylvania (W15P7T-19-D-0088); OBXtek Inc.,* Tysons Corner, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0089); Odyssey Systems Consulting Group Ltd.,* Wakefield, Massachusetts (W15P7T-19-D-0090); OST Inc.,* Washington, DC (W15P7T-19-D-0091); Paragon Research Corp.,* Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0092); PCI Strategic Management LLC,* Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0093); PD Systems Inc.,* Springfield, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0094); Peerless Technologies Corp.,* Fairborn, Ohio (W15P7T-19-D-0095); Pelatron Inc.,* Honolulu, Hawaii (W15P7T-19-D-0096); P E Systems Inc.,* Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0097); Pitech Solutions Inc.,* Durham, North Carolina (W15P7T-19-D-0098); Pluribus International Corp.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0099); Pragmatics Inc.,* Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0100); Praxis Engineering Technologies LLC,* Annapolis Junction, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0101); Premier Management Corp.,* Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0102); Professional Solutions1 LLC,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0103); Pro-Sphere Tek Inc.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0104); Polaris Alpha Cyber and Sigint LLC,* Annapolis Junction, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0105); People, Technology and Processes LLC,* Lakeland, Florida (W15P7T-19-D-0106); QBase LLC,* Beavercreek, Ohio (W15P7T-19-D-0107); Research Innovations Inc.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0108); Sabre Systems Inc.,* Warrington, Pennsylvania (W15P7T-19-D-0109); Savantage Financial Services Inc.,* Rockville, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0110); SBG Technology Solutions Inc.,* Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0111); Sealing Technologies Inc.,* Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0112); Secure Innovations LLC,* Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0113); Sev1tech Inc.,* Woodbridge, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0114); S&K Aerospace LLC,* Saint Ignatius, Montana (W15P7T-19-D-0115); SNR Systems LLC,* Ashburn, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0116); Solers Inc.,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0117); Soliel LLC,* Vienna, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0118); Sonalysts Inc.,* Waterford, Connecticut (W15P7T-19-D-0119); Spectrum Software Technology Inc.,* Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0120); Science and Technology Corp.,* Hampton, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0121); Systems Technology Forum Ltd.,* Fredericksburg, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0122); Strategic Operational Solutions Inc.,* Vienna, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0123); Subsystem Technologies Inc.,* Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0124); Superlative Technologies Inc.,* Ashburn, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0125); SURVICE Engineering Co. LLC,* Belcamp, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0126); Systems Technologies Inc.,* West Long Branch, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0127); Technology and Management International LLC,* Toms River, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0128); Total Computer Solutions Inc.,* Burke, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0129); Technatomy Corp.,* Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0130); Telesis Corp.,* McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0131) Informatics Applications Group Inc.,* Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0132); Trace Systems Inc.,* Vienna, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0133); Tribalco LLC,* Bethesda, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0134); TriHawk LLC,* Houston, Texas (W15P7T-19-D-0135); TriMech Services LLC,* Glen Allen, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0136); Truestone LLC,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0137); Unified Business Technologies Inc.,* Troy, Michigan (W15P7T-19-D-0138); Universal Solutions International Inc.,* Newport News, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0139); Validatek Inc.,* McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0140); Varen Technologies Inc.,* Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0141); Veteran Corps of America,* Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0142); Wakelight Technologies Inc.,* Honolulu, Hawaii (W15P7T-19-D-0143); Windmill International Inc.,* Nashua, New Hampshire (W15P7T-19-D-0144); WinTec Arrowmaker Inc.,* Fort Washington, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0145); WisEngineering LLC,* Dover, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0146); Zantech IT Services Inc.,* Tysons Corner, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0147); Zolon Tech Inc.,* Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0148); Abacus Technology Corp., Chevy Chase, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0149); Accenture Federal Services LLC, Arlington, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0150); AceInfo Solutions Inc., Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0151); Alion Science and Technology Corp., Burr Ridge, Illinois (W15P7T-19-D-0152); Artel LLC, Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0153); AT&T Government Solutions Inc., Vienna, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0154); Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Beavercreek, Ohio (W15P7T-19-D-0155); Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio (W15P7T-19-D-0156); CACI Technologies Inc., Chantilly, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0157); HII Mission Driven Innovative Solutions Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0158); Comtech Mobile Datacom Corp., Germantown, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0159); Cubic Global Defense Inc., San Diego, California (W15P7T-19-D-0160); DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas (W15P7T-19-D-0161); Dynetics Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0162); Engility Corp., Andover, Massachusetts (W15P7T-19-D-0163); Gryphon Technologies LC, Washington, District of Columbia (W15P7T-19-D-0164); Kbrwyle Technology Solutions LLC, Columbia, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0165); IAI LLC, Chantilly, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0166); International Business Machines Corp., Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0167); Hexagon US Federal Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0168); Information Innovators Inc., Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0169); Polaris Alpha LLC, Colorado Springs, Colorado (W15P7T-19-D-0170); Jacobs Technology Inc., Tullahoma, Tennessee (W15P7T-19-D-0171); Kforce Government Solutions Inc., Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0172); L-3 Communications Integrated Systems LP, Greenville, Texas (W15P7T-19-D-0173); Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0174); Logistics Management Institute, McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0175); Macaulay-Brown Inc., Dayton, Ohio (W15P7T-19-D-0176); NetCentric Technology LLC, Wall, New Jersey (W15P7T-19-D-0177); Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Herndon, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0178); Novetta Inc., McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0179); Oasis Systems LLC, Lexington, Massachusetts (W15P7T-19-D-0180); Parsons Government Services Inc., Pasadena, California (W15P7T-19-D-0181); Preferred Systems Solutions Inc., McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0182); QED Systems Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0183); Raytheon Co., Dulles, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0184); System Studies & Simulation Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0185); Science Applications International Corp., Reston, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0186); Salient Federal Solutions Inc., Fairfax, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0187); Smartronix Inc., Hollywood, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0188); The KEYW Corp., Hanover, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0189); Scientific Research Corp., Atlanta, Georgia (W15P7T-19-D-0190); SRC Inc., North Syracuse, New York (W15P7T-19-D-0191); SRCTec LLC, Syracuse, New York (W15P7T-19-D-0192); Strategic Resources Inc., McLean, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0193); Telecommunication Systems Inc., Annapolis, Maryland (W15P7T-19-D-0194); Vectrus Systems Corp., Colorado Springs, Colorado (W15P7T-19-D-0195); Vencore Inc., Chantilly, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0196); VSE Corp., Alexandria, Virginia (W15P7T-19-D-0197); and CAS Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (W15P7T-19-D-0198), will compete for each order of the $37,400,000,000 hybrid (cost, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-plus-incentive-fee, and firm-fixed-price) contract for provide knowledge based professional engineering support services for programs with command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR) related requirements. Bids were solicited via the internet with 388 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 14, 2022. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Navistar Defense LLC, Lisle, Illinois, was awarded a $19,700,110 modification (P00010) to contract W56HZV-15-D-0037 for sustainment technical support services for the in-production and out-of-production Mine Resistant Ambush Protected MaxxPro family of vehicles. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of March 31, 2020. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity. NAVY Austal USA, Mobile, Alabama, is awarded a $57,854,366 cost-plus-fixed-fee undefinitized contract action for procurement of long-lead-time material and production engineering for the expeditionary fast transport (EPF) 13. The EPF class provides high-speed, shallow-draft transportation capability to support the intra-theater maneuver of personnel, supplies and equipment for the Navy, Marine Corps, and Army. Work will be performed in Novi, Michigan (30 percent); Mobile, Alabama (15 percent); Houston, Texas (9 percent); Slidell, Louisiana (8 percent); Franklin, Massachusetts (8 percent); Chesapeake, Virginia (7 percent); Rhinelander, Wisconsin (5 percent); Iron Mountain, Michigan (2 percent); and Dallas, Texas (2 percent); with other efforts performed at various locations throughout the U.S. below one percent (2 percent); and at various locations outside the U.S. below one percent (12 percent). Work on EPF 13 is expected to be completed by November 2021. Fiscal 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $43,390,775 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively solicited via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with one offer received. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-19-C-2227). *Small Business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1666213/source/GovDelivery/

BY MARCUS WEISGERBER Soon after the companies announced plans to form the world's 7th-largest defense firm, the CEOs rang up for a joint interview. On Sunday, just after L3 Technologies and Harris Corp. announced their planned merger next year, I chatted with CEOs Chris Kubasik and Bill Brown about their plans to form L3 Harris Technologies, which would be the world's 7th-largest defense firm. Here are some excerpts. Q. How did this come together? Brown: Chris and I have known each other for a number of years here, and a lot of it started more socially, not from a business perspective. We work in the same space as complimentary businesses, complementary portfolios. Same [main] customer. You know we realized, given where we stack up in the defence hierarchy, this would be a great potential combination. We've been discussing it through the balance of this calendar year. [It] really picked up steam in the summer and were able to bring it forward here towards middle October. Q. Why a merger rather than an acquisition by one partner? Kubasik: Both companies are quite strong, and we're both on an upswing, and we looked at all the different stakeholders from the customers, the shareholders and the employees. And in our relative size and market value, a merger vehicle seems to be the absolute right way to go here. True partnership, as you've probably seen. 50/50 board. Bill and I have our leadership laid out clearly. It's absolutely the right way to do this. We're quite proud that we're able to pull it off. And I think it's the best way to serve all the stakeholders. Q. Bill is going to be CEO until a transition to Chris in a couple of years. How will that work? And what happens to L3's New York office if the headquarters moves to Florida? Brown: The combination in bringing these two great companies together is going to take a lot of work. So Chris and I will partner on this, in leading the company [and] clearly doing a lot of the integration. We're going to chair the integration committee together. I'll have responsibility for the enterprise functions, and Chris will keep an eye on the ball in what we do operationally in the business segments making sure that through to the integration we don't miss a beat in our growth agenda, meeting expectations of customers, delivering on programs. It's going to be a shared partnership in bringing the companies together. Kubasik: On a combined basis, we have several thousand employees in the state of New York, a lot in Rochester, of course Long Island and the surrounding areas. We got to do to what we believe is best for the business. When you look at the Space Coast of Florida, the 7,000 or so employees and infrastructure in the Melbourne area, it's an easy decision. We'll be transitioning from the headquarters from New York and taking the best of the best and moving to Florida. At some point the Manhattan office will either be significantly scaled down or ultimately closed. Q. Will the combined company divest or combine overlapping sectors? Bill Brown: Very high and complimentary portfolios. So we see very, very, very little overlap. Q. L3 has been on an acquisition spree in recent years. Should we expect more, perhaps in the maritime sphere? Kubasik: Job one is going to be the integration for the first couple years, so there will be very, very few, if any, acquisitions the first couple of years. They would have to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We're going to focus first and foremost on integrating this company. Once we get this integrated, which is a three-year program, we'll update and modify the strategy as appropriate. Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the proposed merged company's rank by revenue among global defense firms. This Q&A is part of the weekly Global Business Brief newsletter by Marcus Weisgerber. Find the rest of this week's issue here,and subscribe to get it in your inbox, here. https://www.defenseone.com/business/2018/10/q-ceos-chris-kubasik-and-bill-brown-l3-technologies-and-harris-corps/152135

BY TIM BOUSQUET In recent days, Unifor Marine Workers Federation Local 1, which represents Irving Shipyard workers, has been conducting a “Ships Stay Here” campaign that included getting Halifax council to support its efforts. The union fears that some of the shipbuilding work contracted to Irving will be shifted to Davie Shipyard in Quebec. Alex Cooke of the Canadian Press contacted the federal government to ask about that fear: In an emailed statement to The Canadian Press last week, the Department of National Defence spokeswoman Ashley Lemire said the government intends to announce any changes to planned maintenance on Halifax-class frigates in the coming weeks. “Given the planned work for the Royal Canadian Navy, an option with two maintenance and repair facilities to conduct this work beginning in the 2020 timeframe is being considered,” Lemire said. “Keeping these frigates operational is a priority for us, and being able to ensure all the maintenance is done when required is essential.” Lemire added that Irving is the prime contractor for the Canadian Surface Combatant project, which she said will result in an estimated $30 billion in build contracts for Irving Shipbuilding into the 2040s. However, “a spokesperson for Davie Shipbuilding strongly takes issue with comments that the Quebec company is stealing work from Halifax,” reports Jacob Boon for The Coast: “It's being portrayed as if Quebec will steal jobs, contracts from Irving,” says Fred Boisvert, vice-president of public affairs for Davie. “Where if you look properly, closely, there's nothing like it happening at all.” ... Boisvert says that's all a bit rich. No one in their right mind could believe there are production gaps at Irving, he says, given the sum total of $65 billion in federal contracts the shipyard has secured. “Guys, guys, you got $65 billion,” he says. “I mean, please, you won't get a tear from me. You're flush with contracts. You've got 20 years stability in terms of that shipyard.” Davie has laid off some 1,000 workers itself over the past year due to dwindling federal contracts. “We're bleeding people here,” says Boisvert. Both companies have been on a lobbying blitz in Ottawa. Davie has hired consultant Naresh Raghubeer of Elmvale Strategies Inc. to lobby the federal government with regard to “shipbuilding work for National Defence, Canadian Coast Guard, Transport Canada, as well as exports.” Raghubeer has made 32 reportable lobbying contacts this year, 11 of them in September alone (October reports are not yet published). The September contacts include conversations with multiple lobbyist targets at once (the reports don't say if they were in-person or conference calls), including with MPs Joel Lightbound, Steve MacKinnon, Remi Masse, Michel Picard, Luc Berthold, Steven Blaney, Gerard Deltell, Bernard Genereux, Jacques Gourde, Richard Marte, Alain Rayes, Jean-Yves Duclos (the minister of Employment and Social Development), Marc Garneau (the minister of Transport Canada), and François-Philippe Champagne (the minister of Infrastructure Canada). As well, in September Raghubeer talked with Senators Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu, Claude Carignan, Jean-Guy Dagenais, Larry Smith, Pierre Dalphond, Denis Dawson, Eric Forest, Rosa Galvez, and Andre Pratte. Raghubeer's September lobbyist efforts also including conversations with a range of political functionaries, including (twice with) Martin Belanger, the Policy Advisor to the Office of the Leader of the Official Opposition; Taras Zalusky, the Policy Advisor to Carla Qualtrough, the minister of Public Services and Procurement Canada; Mathieu Bouchard, a Senior Advisor at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO); Dominic Cormier, a Policy Advisor to the PMO; John Ma, a Policy Advisor to Harjit Singh Sajjan, the minister of DND; (twice with) Shane McCloskey, a Policy Advisor to Marc Garneau, the minister of Transport Canada; Christina Rettig, a Policy Advisor at the PMO; George Young, the Chief of Staff to Jonathan Wilkinson, the minister of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO); Marc-Andre Leclerc, the Chief of Staff of the Leader of the Official Opposition; Sriram Raman, a Policy Advisor to François-Philippe Champagne, the minister of Infrastructure Canada; Marc Roy, the Chief of Staff to to Marc Garneau, the minister of Transport Canada; Jenny Demers, a Policy Advisor to Jean-Yves Duclos, the minister at ESDC; and Olivier Duchesneau, Chief of Staff to minister Duclos. For its part, lobbying efforts on behalf of Irving Shipyard are conducted by James Irving, the co-CEO of the shipyard. Irving reported 70 lobbying contacts in 2018, but just six of those were in September. Unlike Raghubeer, who speaks with multiple people at once, Irving tends to speak to one or two people at a time. James Irving's September contacts were with Taras Zalusky, the director of Policy, Procurement and Parliamentary Affairs Public Services and Procurement Canada; John Ma, a Policy Advisor to Harjit Singh Sajjan at DND; Eric Dagenais, the Assistant Deputy Minister at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; John Knubley, the Deputy Minister at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; Elliott Hughes, the Director of Policy at DND; Christina Rettig, a Policy Advisor at the PMO; and Justin To, the Director of Policy at the PMO. https://www.halifaxexaminer.ca/featured/davie-and-irving-shipyards-are-in-the-midst-of-a-lobbying-blitz-in-ottawa

OTTAWA — Canada's most expensive military project is entering a critical new phase as the government is on the verge of picking its top design for the country's $60-billion fleet of new warships. Defence insiders say the government wants to select a design by the end of the month from among three options submitted by several of the largest defence and shipbuilding companies in the world. After that the government and Halifax-based Irving Shipbuilding, which will actually build the 15 new warships, will sit down with the selected bidder to hammer out the final cost and other details. The stakes will be high for both sides, with hundreds of millions of dollars in play. There will also be pressure to make up for lost time on a project already running behind schedule even though whatever decisions are taken could have ramifications on the navy — and taxpayers — for decades to come. "That's part of the tension between moving quickly and making the right choice," said defence analyst David Perry of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. The new warships will replace the navy's 12 frigates and three destroyers, the latter of which have already been retired. They will be used for most of this century. Launched in late 2016, the design competition has been the subject of rampant lobbying and complaints by defence industry players, with numerous revisions to the original request for bids and several deadline extensions. That was despite defence officials and Irving having previously warned that time is of the essence when it comes to starting construction, and that they want to shave 18 to 24 months off the project. There have also been questions about Irving's role in the competition, and anger from some companies that British firm BAE was allowed to enter its Type 26 vessel despite the ship having never been built. BAE and U.S.-based defence giant Lockheed Martin partnered together to propose the Type 26 for the design competition, which is up against separate proposals from Dutch firm Alion and Spanish shipbuilder Navantia. A joint French-Italian design was disqualified because Paris-based Naval Group and Italian firm Fincantieri, who promised to build the warships faster and for less than anyone else, did not follow the established process for submitting proposals. One of the big questions heading into the negotiations will be how much the selected design needs to be changed to reflect the navy's needs and how much the navy will have to shift its requirements because changing the design will take more time and money. Irving has warned that it could be forced to lay off hundreds of employees because of a production gap if work on the warships isn't ready to start by the time it finishes building the navy's new Arctic patrol ships in 2021 or 2022. Government negotiators are also facing a battle over the amount of intellectual property that the top bidder will be required to hand over, which Ottawa wants so it can operate and maintain the vessels on its own after they are built. Companies had originally been told that the winner would be required to turn over the full blueprints, but after significant resistance, the two sides agreed that the matter would be negotiated before a contract is awarded. The government however warned that if the winning ship designer drives too hard a bargain on the intellectual property front they face the risk of officials pulling the plug on talks and moving on to the next company. Perry said that while there are many challenges ahead before a deal for a design is signed — and before any of the new warships actually get into the water — this is a critical step forward. "You can't dance until you pick a dance partner," he said. — Follow @leeberthiaume on Twitter. Lee Berthiaume, The Canadian Press https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/canada/feds-aiming-to-select-preferred-design-for-60b-warships-by-end-of-month-250594/

NAVY Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., doing business as Northrop Grumman Mission Systems Sector, Bethpage, New York, is awarded a $697,029,788 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for system upgrades for the EA-18G system configuration sets, Airborne Electronic Attack and Electronic Warfare systems and final upgrades for the EA-6B system for the Navy and the government of Australia under the Foreign Military Sales program. Work will be performed in Pt. Mugu, California (50 percent); Baltimore, Maryland (29 percent); Bethpage, New York (20 percent); and Rolling Meadows, Illinois (1 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2023. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in amount of $996,902 are being obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, Point Mugu, California, is the contracting activity (N68936-19-D-0007). LGS Innovations LLC, Westminster, Colorado, is awarded a $15,528,008 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price contract for engineering services, materials, training, and testing to support integration and operation of information operations payloads into unmanned aerial vehicles used by the U.S. Special Operations Command and the Navy. This two-year contract includes a three-year option which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to an estimated $34,996,905. Work will be performed across three geographic zones in the areas of Westminster, Colorado (40 percent); Florham Park, New Jersey (40 percent); and Jessup, Maryland (20 percent). The work is expected to be completed Oct. 16, 2020. If the option is exercised, the period of performance would extend through Oct. 16, 2023. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funding will be obligated via task/delivery orders using anticipated types of funding to include: operations and maintenance (Navy); other procurement (Navy); and research, development, test and evaluation (Navy). Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This sole-source procurement is issued using other than full and open competition in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation Subpart 6.302-1 and 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) - only one responsible source. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N66001-19-D-3401). Wiley Wilson Burns and McDonnell JV, Alexandria, Virginia, is awarded $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price modification under a previously awarded indefinite-quantity architect-engineering contract (N40080-15-D-0452) to exercise option four for engineering and design services for general and administrative facilities within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be is $75,000,000. No task orders are being issued at this time. Work will be performed at various administrative facilities within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Washington area of responsibility, including but not limited to, Maryland (45 percent); Washington, District of Columbia (30 percent); and Virginia (20 percent). Work may also be performed in the remainder of the U.S. (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. Task orders will be primarily funded by fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy and Marine Corps); and fiscal 2019 Navy working capital funds. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. Rockwell Collins Inc. Government Systems Division, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is awarded a $7,062,238 five-year long-term contract for repair of 22 various navigation and communication items that are a part of the KC-130J, H-1, E-2C, P-3, common systems and other aircraft. Work will be performed at contractor facilities in Atlanta, Georgia; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Calexico, California; and Wichita, Kansas. The percentage of work at each of those locations cannot be determined at this time, and work is expected to be completed by October 2023. Working capital (Navy) funds will be obligated as individual task orders are issued 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) and Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. The requirement was posted to the Federal Business Opportunities website and the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with one offer received. Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (N00383-19-D-PS01). General Electric Co., Lynn, Massachusetts, was awarded $7,041,528 for modification P00012 to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-17-C-0047) for the procurement of 24 F414-GE-400 engine devices for Lot 42 F/A-18 aircraft. Work will be performed in Evendale, Ohio, and is expected to be completed in February 2019. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount $7,041,528 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. (Awarded Oct. 15, 2018) AIR FORCE The Boeing Co., Layton, Utah, has been awarded a $55,567,613 undefinitized, firm-price incentive-fee contract, for Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Cryptography Upgrade Increment II production. This contract provides for the government's minimum requirement of the production of 75 message processor drawers; 8 digital components; and program management support. Work will be performed in Huntsville, Alabama; and Huntington Beach, California, and is expected to be completed by Feb. 11, 2019. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition and one offer was received. Fiscal 2018 missile procurement funds in the amount of $17,864,050 are being obligated at the time of award. Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Contracting Division, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (FA8204-19-C-0001). ARMY TGS USA,* McLean, Virginia, was awarded a $39,543,009 firm-fixed-price Foreign Military Sales (Iraq) contract for Toyota Land Cruisers and spare parts. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 16, 2018. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity (W56HZV-19-D-0010). DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY UPDATE: US Eco Products Corp., Haverhill, Massachusetts (SPE8EC-19-D-0030), has been added as an awardee to the multiple-award contract for commercial snow removal equipment, issued against solicitation SPE8EC-17-R-0009, announced May 5, 2017. *Small Business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1664968/source/GovDelivery/

DEFENSE INFORMATION SYSTEMS AGENCY ViON Corp., Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a competitive, single award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, firm-fixed-price contract for SPARC processor capacity services with a total lifecycle contract amount of $329,586,627. The minimum guarantee for this effort, which is being met by the first delivery order under HC1084-19-D-0001, is $630,000, funded by fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation funds. Performance will be at current Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) data centers or future DISA centers in the continental U.S. (CONUS); DISA outside CONUS data centers; and other DISA or DISA-approved locations worldwide in which DISA may acquire an operational responsibility. Proposals were solicited via the Federal Business Opportunities website (FEDBIZOPPS), and two proposals were received. The period of performance is for a base period of five years beginning Oct. 17, 2018, and five one-year option periods through Oct. 16, 2028. The Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization, Scott AFB, Illinois, is the contracting activity (HC1084-19-D-0001). NAVY The Boeing Co., Seattle, Washington, is awarded $136,999,356 for modification P00002 to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, time and material, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N00019-18-D-0113). This modification provides CFM56-7B27A/3 and CFM56-7B27AE engine depot maintenance and repair, field assessment, maintenance repair and overhaul engine repair, and technical assistance for removal and replacement of engines for the P-8A Poseidon aircraft in support of the Navy and the government of Australia. Work will be performed in Atlanta, Georgia (94 percent); and Seattle, Washington (6 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Co., San Diego, California, is awarded a $136,753,425 undefinitized contract action on a not-to-exceed basis for the procurement of long lead time material, pre-production and engineering support for the Expeditionary Sea Base 6. This action allows the procurement of ship sets of the purchase specifications supporting integrated propulsion, main diesel generator engines, propeller and shafting, integrated bridge electronics, centrifugal pumps, fuel and lube oil purifiers and steering gear components. Work will be performed in San Diego, California (21 percent); Beloit, Wisconsin (19 percent); Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (17 percent); various cities in Alabama and Iowa (9 percent); Chula Vista, California (5 percent); Chesapeake, Virginia (5 percent); Iron Mountain, Michigan (4 percent); Busan, Korea (3 percent); and various other locations totaling 17 percent, and is expected to be completed by May 2019. Fiscal 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $65,876,713 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with U.S. Code 2304(c) (1) – only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. StandardAero Inc., San Antonio, Texas, is being awarded $121,890,824 for modification P00002 to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, time and material, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N00019-18-D-0110). This modification provides CFM56-7B27A/3 and CFM56-7B27AE engine depot maintenance and repair, field assessment, maintenance repair and overhaul engine repair, and technical assistance for removal and replacement of engines for the P-8A Poseidon aircraft in support of the Navy and the government of Australia. Work will be performed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (93 percent); and San Antonia, Texas (7 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. The Boeing Co., Seattle, Washington, is awarded $33,025,575 for modification P00003 to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, time and material, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award contract (N00019-18-D-0112). This modification provides P-8A Poseidon aircraft depot scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, depot in-service repair planner and estimator requirements, technical directive incorporation, airframe modifications, ground support and removal and replacement of engines in support of the Navy and the government of Australia. Work will be performed in Atlanta, Georgia (94 percent); and Seattle, Washington (6 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. AAR Aircraft Services Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana, is awarded $32,784,405 for modification P00003 to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, time and material, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award contract (N00019-18-D-0111). This modification provides P-8A Poseidon aircraft depot scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, depot in-service repair planner and estimator requirements, technical directive incorporation, airframe modifications, ground support and removal and replacement of engines in support of the Navy and the government of Australia. Work will be performed in Indianapolis, Indiana, and is expected to be completed in October 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Vectrus Systems Corp., Colorado Springs, Colorado, is awarded $28,694,621 for firm-fixed-price task order N6945019F0500 under a previously awarded global contingency service multiple award contract (N62742-16-D-3552) for base operations support services at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay. The work to be performed provides for base operations support services to include family housing, facility management, facility investment, custodial, pest control, integrated solid waste management, other (swimming pools), grounds maintenance and landscaping, utilities management, electrical, wastewater, water, and base support vehicles and equipment. The task order also contains two unexercised six-month option periods, which if exercised would increase the cumulative task order value to $59,727,709. Work will be performed in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and is expected to be completed by November 2019. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy, Army and Defense Agencies); fiscal 2019 Navy working capital funds; and fiscal 2019 Defense Health Program contract funds in the amount of $21,483,790 for recurring work will be obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Three proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity. EDO LLC, Amityville, New York, is awarded $7,751,952 for modification P00009 to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price, cost reimbursable contract (N00019-17-C-0029). This modification provides for the procurement of four carriage system simulators, nine BRU-55B/A engineering change proposal kits, 30 joint miniature munition interface / universal armament interface capable umbilical cables, and non-recurring engineering for the universal armament interface to include parts, testing, labor and travel in support of the Precision Strike Weapons program office. Work will be performed in Amityville, New York, and is expected to be completed in June 2021. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $7,751,952 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, New Jersey, is the contracting activity. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Aseptico Inc.,* Woodinville, Washington, has been awarded a maximum $28,500,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for hospital equipment and accessories for the Defense Logistics Agency electronic catalog. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. This was a competitive acquisition with 53 responses received; 16 contracts have been awarded to date. Using customers are Department of Defense and other federal organizations. Location of performance is Washington, with an Oct. 15, 2023, performance completion date. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2018 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2DH-19-D-0004). *Small Business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1663723/source/GovDelivery/

DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN Efforts are underway by Irving Shipbuilding to convince the federal government to build two more Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships at its Halifax yard. Irving also wants all Halifax-class frigate maintenance work to remain with the yard in Nova Scotia. The federal government is looking at splitting up maintenance work on the Canadian navy's frigates between Irving and Davie in Quebec. It is facing objections from Irving and its workers. The Irving employees warn the change will mean lost jobs in Nova Scotia. There are seven frigates that will need maintenance on the east coast over a five-year period. But military and Department of National Defence officials are concerned the Irving yard in Halifax won't be able to handle all the work as it will also be in the midst of building the new fleet of Canadian Surface Combatant warships. There are concerns that the navy's capabilities could suffer if the work isn't split up between Davie and Irving yards. Each of the aging Halifax-class frigates will require about a year of maintenance work, and in 2020 the navy expects maintenance will be needed on two frigates at the same time. Irving argues it needs all the Halifax-class work and the construction of two more AOPS so it doesn't face any downturn in activity at the yard. “ We are hopeful that the Government of Canada will continue the work at Halifax Shipyard,” Irving spokesman Sean Lewis said of the frigate maintenance. Asked about the need for two more AOPS, Lewis stated the following: “We continue to work closely with the Government of Canada to explore the overall transition between the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS) and Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) programs. The construction of additional AOPS for Canada or international export opportunities is being considered and various options pursued. At this time it is premature to comment further.” In response to Irving's push, Davie official Frédérik Boisvert has noted that while Irving has $ 65 billion in contracts from the federal government and 1900 workers, Davie has received less than $ 1billion in contracts and has less than 200 people working and 1400 laid off workers, waiting to be recalled. “If they (Irving) are concerned about Nova Scotian jobs, they should explain to their union workers why they are building their own tugs in Eastern Europe,” Boisvert added. https://lfpress.com/news/national/defence-watch/irving-shipbuilding-pushing-for-two-more-arctic-offshore-patrol-ships-all-halifax-class-work/

By: Daniel Cebul WASHINGTON — The Office of Naval Research awarded Lockheed Martin Oct. 1 a two-year, $5.8 million contract to explore how machine learning and artificial intelligence can make complex 3-D printing more reliable and save hours of tedious post-production inspections. In today's factories, 3-D printing parts requires persistent monitoring by specialists to ensure intricate parts are produced without impurities and imperfections that can compromise the integrity of the part overall. To improve this laborious process, the Navy is tasking Lockheed Martin with developing multi-axis robots that use lasers to deposit material and oversee the printing of parts. Lockheed Martin has multiple partners on the contract including Carnegie Mellon University, Iowa State University, Colorado School of Mines, America Makes, GKN and Wolf Robotics and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The contract covers what Glynn Adams, a senior engineer with Lockheed Martin, describes as the pre-flight model of the program's development. Initial work will focus on developing computer models that can predict the microstructures and mechanical properties of 3-D printed materials to generate simulation data to train with. Adams said the Carnegie Mellon team will look at variables such as, “the spot size of the laser beam, the rate of feed of the titanium wire [and]the total amount energy density input into the material while it is being manufactured.” This information helps the team predict the microstructure, or organizational structure of a material on a very small scale, that influences the physical properties of the additive manufactured part. This data will then be shared with Iowa State, who will plug the information into a model that predicts the mechanical properties of the printed component. By taking temperature and spot size measurements, the team can also ensure they are, “accurately controlling energy density, the power of both the laser and the hot wire that goes into the process,” Adams said.. “All of that is happening before you actually try to do any kind of machine learning or artificial neural networks with the robot itself. That's just to try to train the models to the point where we have confidence in the models,” Adams said. Sounds easy, right? But one key problem could come in cleaning up the data and removing excess noise from the measurements. “Thermal measurements are pretty easy and not data intensive, but when you start looking at optical measurements you can collect just an enormous amount of data that is difficult to manage,” Adams explained. Lockheed Martin wants to learn how shrink the size of that dataset without sacrificing key parameters. The Colorado School of Mines and America Makes will tackle the problem of compressing and manipulating this data to extract the key information needed to train the algorithms. After this work has been completed, the algorithms then will be sent to Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where robots will begin producing 3-D titanium parts and learn how to reliably construct geometrically and structurally sound parts. This portion of the program will confront challenges from the additive manufacturing and AI components of the project. On the additive manufacturing side, the team will work with new manufacturing process, “trying to understand exactly what the primary, secondary and tertiary interactions are between all those different process parameters,” Adams said. “If you think about it, as you are building the part depending on the geometric complexity, now those interactions change based on the path the robot has to take to manufacture that part. One of the biggest challenges is going to be to understand exactly which of those parameters are the primary, which are the tertiary and to what level of control we need to be able to manipulate or control those process parameters in order to generate the confidence in the parts that we want.” At the same time, researchers also will tackle AI machine learning challenges. Like with other AI programs, it's crucial the algorithm is learning the right information, the right way. The models will give the algorithms a good starting point, but Adams said this will be an iterative process that depends on the algorithm's ability to self-correct. “At some point, there are some inaccuracies that could come into that model,” Adams explained. “So now, the system itself has to understand it may be getting into a regime that is not going to produce the mechanical properties or microstructures that you want, and be able to self-correct to make certain that instead of going into that regime it goes into a regime that produces the geometric part that you want.” With a complete algorithm that can be trusted to produce structurally sound 3-D printed parts, time-consuming post-production inspections will become a thing of the past. Instead of nondestructive inspections and evaluations, if you “have enough control on the process, enough in situ measurements, enough models to show that that process and the robot performed exactly as you thought it would, and produced a part that you know what its capabilities are going to be, you can immediately deploy that part,” said Adams. “That's the end game, that's what we're trying to get to, is to build the quality into the part instead of inspecting it in afterwards." Confidence in 3-D printed parts could have dramatic consequences for soldiers are across the services. As opposed to waiting for replacement parts, service members could readily search a database of components, find the part they need and have a replacement they can trust in hours rather than days or weeks. “When you can trust a robotic system to make a quality part, that opens the door to who can build usable parts and where you build them,” said Zach Loftus, Lockheed Martin Fellow for additive manufacturing. “Think about sustainment and how a maintainer can print a replacement part at sea, or a mechanic print a replacement part for a truck deep in the desert. This takes 3-D printing to the next, big step of deployment.” https://www.c4isrnet.com/industry/2018/10/15/how-the-office-of-naval-research-hopes-to-revolutionize-manufacturing

Ian Keddie, Toronto - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly A long-awaited decision on the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) frigate replacement programme has been delayed once more, although it is unclear for how long. In the official Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) update document released on 27 September, PSPC indicated no CSC design would be chosen in third quarter 2018, after indicating to Jane's in May 2018 that a decision would be made at that time. In the update document, ‘The National Shipbuilding Strategy in 2018,' which outlines the state of the federal shipbuilding plan, the PSPC said, “Request for Proposals to select the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) design and design team has closed. https://www.janes.com/article/83808/canadian-frigate-delayed-again