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Jessica Rosenworcel Issues Draft Order for FCC’s Mid-Band Spectrum Auction for 5G Access
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Jessica Rosenworcel Issues Draft Order for FCC’s Mid-Band Spectrum Auction for 5G Access

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plans to auction off mid-band spectrum access to support 5G implementation throughout the continental U.S. Jessica Rosenworcel, acting chairwoman of the FCC, released a draft order seeking to free up 100 megahertz in the 3.45-3.55 GHz band for federal and nonfederal use, FCC said Tuesday.

In addition to supporting low-latency network services and a potential $1.5 trillion market, the Auction 110 initiative is also meant to drive the transition to the 2.9-3.0 GHz band for radiolocation operators that do not fall under the federal government.

The auction comes as part of efforts to comply with the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which tasks the FCC to establish competitive bidding procedures for licensing 3.45 GHz band access by the year’s end.

“We need to deliver the 5G that the American people were promised,” said Rosenworcel. “That means a 5G that is fast, secure, resilient, and—most importantly—available across the country.”

The adoption of Rosenworcel’s draft order will be discussed at the FCC’s March 17th Open Meeting. Bidding activities are scheduled for October 2021.

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DOD’s Paul Lopata: Quantum Science Brings Many Military Tech Opportunities
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DOD’s Paul Lopata: Quantum Science Brings Many Military Tech Opportunities

Paul Lopata, principal for Quantum Science at the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, said quantum science may help the military develop innovative technologies, such as quantum computing and sensors. 

Lopata said in an interview that the Department of Defense (DOD) can use quantum science to more effectively decrypt or encrypt communications for network security. DOD has partnered with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and non-government parties to set new standards for cryptography, Lopata said.

The defense executive also noted that quantum sensors can help forces track missiles and aircraft, and that atomic clocks use quantum science to maintain synchronization in GPS satellites.

"We're just starting to understand the possibilities," he said about the role of quantum science in the military.

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President Biden Nominates Kiran Ahuja as OPM Director
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President Biden Nominates Kiran Ahuja as OPM Director

President Biden has nominated Kiran Ahuja, CEO of Seattle-based nonprofit network Philanthropy Northwest, as director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Government Executive reported Tuesday.

Ahuja served as chief of staff at OPM for almost two years and helped lead policy development efforts as well as over 6,000 employees, according to her LinkedIn profile.

She also served as executive director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders under the Obama administration from 2009 to 2015. She held a similar role at the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) and spent time at the Department of Justice (DOJ) as a trial attorney under the civil rights division.

If confirmed as OPM director, Ahuja would serve as the first Asian American woman and South Asian official to lead the agency.

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Sen. Roger Wicker: President Biden Must Revive National Space Council
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Sen. Roger Wicker: President Biden Must Revive National Space Council

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., has said the nation must take a “whole-of-government approach” and relaunch the National Space Council (NSC) to drive the discussion on the space domain while eliminating bureaucracy.

Wicker, who serves as a ranking member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, wrote in an opinion piece published Tuesday on SpaceNews that President Biden must reactivate the National Space Council to “keep space issues on the radar” and provide a forum for related diplomatic discussions.

The council must also have a diverse set of experts to reflect space policy's implications on commercial, military and civil customers, he noted. These applications include satellite communications technologies and on-orbit servicing which is an inherently dual-use concept.

“The Biden Administration should reenlist the proven success of the National Space Council,” said Wicker. “Space policy is too important to be delegated to mid-level interagency groups who lack the authority to make difficult and consequential decisions. The ever-expanding space domain requires the attention of the President’s appointees.”

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Redwire Acquires Deployable Space Systems; Chairman, CEO Peter Cannito Quoted
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Redwire Acquires Deployable Space Systems; Chairman, CEO Peter Cannito Quoted

Redwire, a leader in mission critical space solutions and high reliability components for the next generation space economy, has acquired Deployable Space Systems (DSS) for an undisclosed amount. 

“DSS has an unmatched reputation for innovative deployable space technologies and infrastructure, and that is a perfect fit for Redwire’s technology portfolio,” said Peter Cannito, chairman and CEO of Redwire. “These new capabilities will expand our set of space infrastructure solutions and deliver even greater value to our customers.”

DSS is the leading developer and provider of satellite mechanisms, deployable structures and booms and deployable solar array systems to the global space market. The company’s key products include deployable solar array systems, deployable structural and mechanical systems and supporting subsystems.

“Redwire has the vision, resources, reputation and relationships to take DSS to the next level, and we’re excited to join the team at this critical stage of our company growth,” said DSS President and Co-founder Brian Spence. 

“As a part of Redwire, we will be able to better serve our customers and scale our capabilities to support demand, while maintaining our innovative culture and strong commitment to provide the highest value for our customers.”

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP served as the financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as the legal advisor to Redwire. Fell, Marking, Abkin, Montgomery, Granet & Raney, LLP was the legal advisor to DSS.

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Perspecta Receives $38M to Support Defense Manpower Data Center for DOD; Jeff Bohling Quoted
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Perspecta Receives $38M to Support Defense Manpower Data Center for DOD; Jeff Bohling Quoted

Perspecta announced on Wednesday that the company has received a potential five-year, $38 million contract award to continue supporting the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) with a mission-critical program for contractor management for the Department of Defense (DOD).

Through the new award, Persepcta will modernize the Synchronized Predeployment and Operational Tracker – Enterprise Suite (SPOT-ES) to enable the DMDC to monitor threats in environments with deployed contractors.

“DMDC will benefit from Perspecta’s ingenuity and drive to optimize digital environments while ensuring cyber resiliency,” said Jeff Bohling, senior vice president of Perspecta’s Defense Group. “The SPOT-ES award is reflective of Perspecta’s growing impact on mission-critical programs within the DOD.”

The company will also work to inform DOD decision makers about the status of personnel, training and security related to humanitarian and peacekeeping missions. Perspecta will also provide cloud migration, software development, quality assurance, 24/7 help desk support and training.

About Perspecta Inc.

At Perspecta (NYSE: PRSP), we question, we seek and we solve. Perspecta brings a diverse set of capabilities to our U.S. government customers in defense, intelligence, civilian, health care and state and local markets.

Our 280+ issued, licensed and pending patents are more than just pieces of paper, they tell the story of our innovation. With offerings in mission services, digital transformation and enterprise operations, our team of nearly 14,000 engineers, analysts, investigators and architects work tirelessly to not only execute the mission, but build and support the backbone that enables it. Perspecta was formed to take on big challenges.

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Air Force Research Lab to Accept First Assembly of Directed Energy Laser Tech
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Air Force Research Lab to Accept First Assembly of Directed Energy Laser Tech

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) expects to receive later this month the first of three main subsystems for a laser weapon being developed to protect military aircraft from air-to-air and surface-to-air missile threats.

AFRL said Tuesday that its team of engineers and scientists could begin system integration work after accepting initial pod hardware for the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHIELD).

Jeff Heggemeier, SHiELD program manager at AFRL, said the laboratory partnered with Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman in the past five years to develop the technology.

He added the partnership has worked to address technical factors that may affect laser system performance such as turbulence, quick aircraft maneuvers and wind speed.

AFRL expects its industry partners to deliver the remaining subsystems in July and aims to demonstrate a complete SHiELD comprised of pod, laser and beam control systems in fiscal 2024.

The program team previously demonstrated a laser pod aboard an F-15 fighter jet and tested a ground-based capability to defeat air-launched missile targets.

GSA to Offer ID Proofing Service for Contracting Portal Entity Registration Accounts
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GSA to Offer ID Proofing Service for Contracting Portal Entity Registration Accounts

The General Services Administration (GSA) plans to implement an identity proofing tool as part of new security updates to the agency’s consolidated federal contracting website on May 24.

A GSA blog post published Thursday says the agency will initially verify the identities of SAM website users who administer entity registrations as an optional service and accept feedback on the process.

The agency will offer the ID proofing feature for voluntary use by registration administrators before making it a requirement when the government’s 2022 fiscal year starts in October.

As part of the process, registrants must submit their phone and social security numbers and upload photos from state-issued identification documents, according to the blog entry.

GSA added it will meld the legacy and beta versions of the SAM portal on the same date of new security implementation to make it easier for site users to search contract opportunities.

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Brian Goodger: NITAAC Eyes March Release of $40B CIO-SP4 IT Support Contract Solicitation
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Brian Goodger: NITAAC Eyes March Release of $40B CIO-SP4 IT Support Contract Solicitation

Brian Goodger, acting director of the National Institutes of Health Information Technology Acquisition and Assessment Center (NITAAC), said NITAAC plans to issue a request for proposals for the potential $40 billion Chief Information Officer – Solutions and Partners IV contract for IT support services by mid-to-late March, Federal News Network reported Monday.

Goodger told FNN in an interview NITAAC will accept bids through April 30 and expects to receive more than 1,000 proposals for CIO-SP4 with plans to select up to 450 large and small business vendors by early 2022.

He said NITAAC will adopt a three-phased approach to the evaluation of bids for the governmentwide acquisition contract to immediately address any potential complaints. The initial phase calls for vendors to fill out a self-scoring sheet, while the second phase is a go no-go decision. Phase three includes a technical and business proposal review.

“That will result in some total score at the bottom of the page out of 10,000 points. It’s important to note that each company based on their business size is competing to get on the GWAC only amongst companies of a similar size. So larges are only going against larges, and smalls are only going against smalls,” said Goodger, who is also CIO-SP4 program director.

“Another reason we’ve moved to the phased approach is that although the offerors will submit everything in total upfront. The phased approach allows NITAAC the opportunity to notify them immediately after the conclusion of each phase of whether or not they’ve advanced to the next phase. And in doing so, we will be able to start any protest clock immediately with those that did not make it from phase one to phase two,” he added.

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DOD Opens Aerospace Research Facility; Jagadeesh Pamulapati Quoted
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DOD Opens Aerospace Research Facility; Jagadeesh Pamulapati Quoted

The Department of Defense (DOD) has inaugurated a new facility at Tuskegee University in Alabama that will support the study of various topics under aerospace and materials sciences.

The Aerospace Education Research and Innovation Center (AERIC) was sponsored by Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., and built as part of a $2 million funding effort from Congress, DOD said Monday.

AERIC will explore how materials and components perform under harsh conditions and handle two-year undergraduate research programs in experimental aerodynamics and fatigue damage tolerance.

The center will also work with Boeing, Chevron, Dynetics and Wichita State University to drive education and research initiatives.

"The establishment of centers of excellence plays a vital role in our defense enterprise by stimulating research and innovation for the next generation of STEM leaders," said Jagadeesh Pamulapati, director at DOD's office of research, technology and laboratories.

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