The Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center has introduced a new contracting pathway to reduce the time it takes to move commercial technologies from industry proposals to operational use.
The Streamlining Procurement for Effective Execution and Delivery Commercial Solutions Opening, or SPEED CSO, provides a competitive and flexible process for identifying and acquiring innovative commercial items, technologies and services, the Air Force Materiel Command said Monday.
Dustin Dickens, program manager with AFIMSC, explained that the approach allows requirement owners to define operational gaps through an “Area of Interest” and engage industry in iterative solution development before committing to a contract award.
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How Much Time Could the SPEED CSO Save?
According to Charles Kelm, mission sustainment division chief with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center, the new process compresses timelines that previously stretched over eight to 12 months into a four- to six-week cycle to reach the prototype stage. He expects the total time to award a production contract could be shortened by more than six months.
Under SPEED CSO, initial submissions can be reviewed in about 10 days, with vendors progressing through phased evaluations. The process begins with information sharing, where vendors submit brief proposals or presentations. Selected companies then advance to demonstrations or in-depth pitches, followed by formal proposals reviewed with direct involvement from the requirement owner.
Kelm said his team is already using the pathway to examine commercial technologies that could accelerate cost estimation and military construction planning, including artificial intelligence-enabled tools intended to reduce design timelines from months to days.
How Does SPEED CSO Align With the Warfighting Acquisition System?
The rollout comes as the Department of the Air Force implements the Warfighting Acquisition System, part of the broader acquisition reform initiative introduced by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, a 2026 Wash100 Award recipient. To accelerate capability delivery under this new framework, the Air Force is replacing program executive officers with portfolio acquisition executives, a move designed to streamline decision-making and align accountability with mission outcomes.
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