The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has issued draft guidelines meant to help election officials protect election systems from cyber attacks. The Draft Cybersecurity Framework Election Infrastructure Profile applies the NIST Cybersecurity Framework’s principles to election platforms, including voting machines, voter registration databases and related networks, NIST said Monday.

Gema Howell, one of the guide’s authors from NIST, said the draft publication is structured in a way that can help with any election system.

“We start by helping you think about the election objectives you want to accomplish,” Howell said. “Then we help you think through how to prioritize your cybersecurity needs based on those objectives. Once you’re there, we provide informative resources to mitigate your cybersecurity risks.”

NIST worked with industry and government experts to develop the guide, including the Election Assistance Commission (EAC), voting system manufacturers and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).

Comments on the draft guidelines are due May 14.

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Researchers from the U.S. Army and the University of Central Florida have been collaboratively working to enhance the 3D printing of a magnesium alloy in an effort to develop lighter components for warfighters.

The efforts of the Army researchers and their academic partners are aligned with a military modernization strategy that partly aims to improve combat effectiveness of dismounted units by reducing their physical load, the service branch said Monday.

"In this work, we optimized the process to achieve higher density than previously reported and used that to produce and characterize lattice structures made up of WE43," said Brandon McWilliams, lead researcher for 3D printing metals at Army Combat Capabilities Development Command.

The Army has cited an online publication for the materials science community that reported Magnesium Elektron WE43 as a high strength casting alloy that can withstand a maximum of 300°C temperature.

According to the military, advanced additive manufacturing could cut short "lengthy logistic chains" and enable delivery of components at the point of need.

The Army plans to test the 3D-printed material's high strain rate and ballistic properties and identify which components it can be applied to.

Alion Science and Technology announced on Monday that the company had been ranked in Washington Business Journal’s List of Largest Government Technology Contractors for 2021. The list ranks companies involved in government contracting (GovCon) that are headquartered in the Washington DC metropolitan area.

“Alion is proud to be included in this industry ranking and for being recognized as a top government technology provider. Alion has seen tremendous growth over the past few years and market demands have accelerated for our cutting-edge technology in live, virtual and constructive solutions; electronic warfare; artificial intelligence; ISR; and leading cyber capabilities,” commented Steve Schorer, chairman and CEO of Alion Science and Technology as well as a 2021 Wash100 Award recipient.

The ranking followed a strong business year for Alion. In 2020 and under Schorer’s leadership, Alion secured many contract awards that expanded its technical portfolio and driven growth. For example, Alion was awarded a five-year $142 million prime task order to support the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command and Ground Vehicle Systems Center.

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The U.S. Army will establish facilities for data sharing to help the military integrate multiple weapon systems for all-domain operations, FedScoop reported Friday. The service branch aims for the All-Domain Operation Centers to boost the precision, range and deployment speeds of weapon systems.

“The nascent ADOCs…will provide combatant commanders the ability to make decisions faster from the onset,” Col. Jason Charland, military deputy for the Department of the Army‘s Management Office-Strategy, Plans and Policy, told reporters on Friday.

These centers will operate from the Army's Multi-Domain Task Forces, which implement new technologies and associated operational concepts. Joint Base Lewis-McChord houses the task forces through which the ADOCs will operate.

The U.S. Navy has virtually augmented the anti-submarine warfare of the USS William P. Lawrence or DDG 110 destroyer over two days, a rate faster than usual.

The virtual update took place in Feb. 2021 under the leadership of the Navy's Program Executive Office (PEO) for Integrated Warfare Systems (IWS), with the help of Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport, Naval Sea Systems Command said Friday.

The ship virtually features the ACB-19 software, an update to the previous ACB-13, allowing for modern and improved ASW performance.

Capt. Jill Cesari, a program manager at PEO IWS, said the milestone demonstrated reduced costs, a shortened timeline and minimized hardware changes required for ship updates. 

The demonstrated approach may shorten what would take nine months to just weeks, according to Cesari. The program manager said her team will need to address some software bugs before further applying the approach.

“We will continue to challenge the status quo of how to design, produce and deliver capability to the fleet in order to get the best ASW capability to sea faster and for less cost," Cesari said.

Join Potomac Officers Club is hosting its 2021 Navy Forum on May 12th to showcase the most notable industry and federal leaders within the federal sector and discuss the initiatives, efficiencies and solutions that will enable the Navy to become more effective in warfare. Visit PotomacOfficersClub.com or click the banner above to register for the 2021 Navy Forum on May 12th. 

Lt. Gen. John Shaw, deputy commander of U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM), said that it is crucial that Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) integration efforts also cover space operations, Breaking Defense reported Friday.

Shaw said at a National Security Space Association event that while JADC2 focuses on terrestrial activities, it is also important to coordinate operations with those under Gen. James Dickinson, who serves as USSPACECOM’s commander.

He noted that it is crucial for weapon systems to communicate with each other to prevent threats such as directed-energy platforms, anti-satellite technology and electronic warfare systems.

“In its most basic essence, JADC2 is about making sure that all operations and all domains can rapidly share information with one another; be part of some sort of common picture,” said Shaw.

Lt. Gen. Salty Saltzman, deputy chief for operations, cyber and nuclear at the U.S. Space Force, noted at a Brookings Insittution event that it is vital to integrate space capabilities and decision-making into all-domain operations.

“Think about cloud-based data structures, think about common standards and interfaces,” he noted.

A new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report states that the size of the U.S. Navy’s submarine fleet is likely to exceed shipyards’ capacity to maintain the vessels in 25 to 30 years.

CBO said Thursday that the Navy has faced delays in submarine maintenance activities due to factors such as workforce shortage and increasing demands for maintenance in line with overhaul work.

According to CBO’s report, the Navy’s modified fiscal year 2020 shipbuilding plan directs the procurement of 61 attack submarines within 30 years. The new plan also envisions a fleet of over 400 warships by 2051.

Accurate maintenance scheduling could help the Navy improve submarine deployment planning while mitigating disruptions due to delays, according to CBO.

The agency also suggests reducing fleet size, driving workforce expansion efforts and sending submarines for private shipyard servicing.

Join Potomac Officers Club is hosting its 2021 Navy Forum on May 12th to showcase the most notable industry and federal leaders within the federal sector and discuss the initiatives, efficiencies and solutions that will enable the Navy to become more effective in warfare. Visit PotomacOfficersClub.com or click the banner above to register for the 2021 Navy Forum on May 12th. 

Maj. Gen. Craig Wills, commander of the U.S. Air Force’s Air Education and Training Command (AETC), said students have been performing better with the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II aircraft through virtual reality training.

Wills said USAF determined this from data of individuals who graduated from the Pilot Training Next (PNT) program, which put trainees in virtual and augmented reality training, Military.com reported Friday.

USAF launched the PTN experiment to see how students can train in an augmented reality environment. Forty-one pilots have graduated from PTN to date.

“For whatever reason, [students] tend to do better in F-35 and F-22-type courses comparatively [to] how they’ve done in the fourth-generation fighters,” Wills said Tuesday at a roundtable meeting.

The service branch has observed the benefits of virtual reality, but is still finding an optimal way to track students’ overall training progress.