//
DHS Adds Two Members to Homeland Security Advisory Council; Chad Wolf Quoted
Published on
DHS Adds Two Members to Homeland Security Advisory Council; Chad Wolf Quoted

Catherine Lotrionte, a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies' (CSIS) technology policy program, has joined a federal advisory committee that makes recommendations for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

DHS appointed Lotrionte to its Homeland Security Advisory Council along with Tom Jenkins, fire chief for the City of Rogers, Arkansas, the department said Thursday.

Lotrionte also serves as a senior fellow at Auburn University's McCrary Institute for Cyber and Critical Infrastructure Security and a senior research at Georgetown University, where she led the school's CyberProject and Annual International Conference on Cyber Engagement. She has authored publications about security law, technology and international affairs.

As the Rogers Fire Department head, Jenkins is responsible for 150 firefighters who work at 10 stations across the city. He has also taught fire hydraulics, suppression tactics and administration at Drury University, Oklahoma State University and Northwest Arkansas Community College.

/
Pentagon Officials on Use of AI, Machine Learning at Tactical Edge; Alan Hansen Quoted
Published on
Pentagon Officials on Use of AI, Machine Learning at Tactical Edge; Alan Hansen Quoted

Department of Defense (DoD) officials highlighted at various events the capability of artificial intelligence, machine learning and other emerging technologies to automate the decision-making process for warfighters at the tactical edge, Nextgov reported Thursday. 

Alan Hansen, chief of intelligence systems and processing at the U.S. Army’s Intelligence and Information Warfare Directorate, cited the immediate need for AI, machine learning and other technologies at the edge.  

“The ability to take something on the very far edge where it needs natural language processing, or some forms of I say situational awareness of intent of beyond what's in front of them and have an ML trying to provide a better decision-making process on the edge of the battlespace to inform, I think those things are needed today,” Hansen said Thursday at a Booz Allen Hamilton event. 

Col. Charles Destefani, chief data architect at the U.S. Air Force’s chief data office, said he has used natural language processing in exercises to collect and put data, voice streams and text into a common platform for analysis and help facilitate the decision-making process for battlefield commanders.

//
Executive Order to Ban US Investments in Companies Backing China’s Military
Published on
Executive Order to Ban US Investments in Companies Backing China’s Military

President Trump signed Thursday an executive order that prohibits U.S. companies and individuals from investing in Chinese companies that support the Chinese military, CNBC reported. 

Starting Jan. 11th, the U.S. government will start implementing the ban on those investments in 31 Communist Chinese military companies, including Huawei, Inspur Group and China Telecommunications. 

The executive order states that Chinese civilian companies, which are being compelled by the People’s Republic of China to support the country’s military and intelligence activities, raise capital by selling securities to U.S. investors trading on domestic and international public exchanges. 

That approach allows China to exploit U.S. investors to fund its military modernization efforts, posing a threat to U.S. national security, economy and foreign policy, according to the document. 

The president has directed the secretary of the Department of the Treasury (USDT) to enforce rules and regulations to implement the provisions of the order.

///
Navy, DoD Senior Leaders Talk Accelerating Zero-Trust Efforts to Support Telework Needs; Brandon Iske Quoted
Published on
Navy, DoD Senior Leaders Talk Accelerating Zero-Trust Efforts to Support Telework Needs; Brandon Iske Quoted

Officials from the U.S. Navy and two Department of Defense (DoD) units have said that the COVID-19 crisis and the resulting need for telework drove a renewed push for zero-trust implementation, FedTech reported Wednesday.

Christopher Cleary, chief information security officer of the Navy, told the publication that the service faced challenges in deploying normal security architectures such as virtual private networks to support its teleworking staff.

“The COVID environment of mass telework has been a big driver and catalyst for accelerating some of these concepts,” noted Brandon Iske, chief engineer for the Defense Information Systems Agency's (DISA) security enablers portfolio.

Lance Cleghorn, a digital services expert at the Defense Digital Service (DDS), said the Pentagon is becoming more vocal about zero-trust and is working to accelerate cloud migration in response to remote work needs.

DDS operates a Commercial Cloud Computing Office that works to provide cloud resources to DoD organizations, according to the report.

//
Library of Congress to Hold 2020 GIS Day Focused on COVID-19 Analysis
Published on
Library of Congress to Hold 2020 GIS Day Focused on COVID-19 Analysis

The Library of Congress plans to hold this year’s GIS Day on Nov. 18th as part of efforts to promote the use of geographic information science to monitor the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

GIS Day 2020 will be held virtually and include special programs with GIS experts to discuss various initiatives aimed at leveraging GIS technologies to help hospitals, epidemiologists and the general public, the Library of Congress said Monday.

Event speakers include Esri’s Este Geraghty and Mike Schoelen, as well as Johns Hopkins University’s Ensheng Dong and John Hessler. The Library of Congress will hold the event at 1 p.m. ET and will also provide access to the presentations at a later date.

Launched in 1999, GIS Day is held annually during Geography Awareness Week.

/
Navy Conducts Undocking Activity for USS Wayne E. Meyer; Capt. Greg Burton Quoted
Published on
Navy Conducts Undocking Activity for USS Wayne E. Meyer; Capt. Greg Burton Quoted

Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard (PHNSY) and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (IMF) concluded undocking efforts for an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer. USS Wayne E. Meyer is set to launch pier-side to undergo the final stages of its dry docking selected restricted availability, the U.S. Navy said Tuesday

The Navy carries out DSRA to maintain and modernize a vessel's engineering components, hull and combat systems to ensure full technical and mission capacity.

"I’m looking forward to seeing the team finish the availability strong and get Wayne E. Meyer back to the fleet ready for tasking," said Capt. Greg Burton, commanding officer at PHNSY & IMF.

PHNSY & IMF tapped Vigor Marine to assist in undocking efforts. The service branch commissioned and designated the vessel to Destroyer Squadron 31 in 2009. 

///
Serco Recognized with 2020 HIRE Vets Medallion Award; Dave Dacquino Quoted
Published on
Serco Recognized with 2020 HIRE Vets Medallion Award; Dave Dacquino Quoted

U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia has recognized Serco as one of the 675 recipients of the 2020 HIRE Vets Medallion Award, the company reported on Tuesday. 

“Veteran’s make up 20 percent of our Serco workforce across North America, and every individual brings impressive skills, experience and values that are vital to the work we do to support our customers’ missions in all areas of the business,” said Dave Dacquino, Serco Inc.’s chairman and CEO of Serco and a two-time Wash100 Award recipient. 

Serco earned the Gold Award for its exceptional veteran support. Serco has shown a commitment to hiring veterans, as well as ensuring that they have a long-term career and growth plan that uses the diverse skills they acquired through their military service.

The Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans Act (HIRE Vets Act) Medallion Program is the only federal award program that recognizes job creators who successfully recruit, hire and retain veterans.

The HIRE Vets Medallion Award is based on a variety of criteria, ranging from veteran hiring and retention to providing veteran-specific resources, leadership programming, human resources, and compensation and tuition assistance programs. 

“We accept the 2020 HIRE Vets Medallion Award with great pride and honor,” Dacquino concluded. 

//
ECS Enters Strategic Partnership with ISM; George Wilson Quoted
Published on
ECS Enters Strategic Partnership with ISM; George Wilson Quoted

ECS has entered into a strategic partnership with Integrated Solutions Management (ISM), a business transformation accelerator that works with large organizations to drive successful Internet of Things (IoT) and IT strategies. 

“We are thrilled to partner with ISM,” said George Wilson, president of ECS and 2020 Wash100 Award recipient. “From human capital and asset management to cloud development and SecOps, this partnership will empower companies to succeed with powerful IoT and ServiceNow tools.”

ECS has designed, deployed and continues to manage major digital transformation strategies for government agencies, global hospitality companies and other large enterprises with distributed operations. 

ISM is a ServiceNow Elite Sales, Service, and Technology Partner, as well as the first Connected Operations North America Service Partner. ISM has deployed many ServiceNow deployments across the public and private sectors, including defense, healthcare, national laboratories, transportation, finance, manufacturing and managed service providers. 

Under the partnership, ECS and ISM will help large organizations leverage the ServiceNow platform and IoT capabilities to achieve new efficiencies, manage critical infrastructure and devices, and optimize operations in the post-COVID digital landscape. 

Additional bundled solutions focus on asset management, IT operations and security operations designed to meet enterprise needs for remote workforce capabilities and cloud-based operations.

“IoT represents a new frontier for government and industry alike,” said Martin Burke, president of ISM. “With ECS’ experience, scale, and program-level expertise, this partnership will allow us to bring ISM’s IoT and ServiceNow offerings to new customers across the government and commercial sectors.”

About ECS

ECS, a segment of ASGN, delivers advanced solutions in cloud, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), application and IT modernization, science, and engineering. The company solves critical, complex challenges for customers across the U.S. public sector, defense, intelligence, and commercial industries. ECS maintains partnerships with leading cloud, cybersecurity, and AI/ML providers and holds specialized certifications in their technologies. Headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, ECS has more than 3,000 employees throughout the United States.

//
Avantus Federal Acquires MissionTech Solutions; Andy Maner Quoted
Published on
Avantus Federal Acquires MissionTech Solutions; Andy Maner Quoted

Avantus Federal has acquired MissionTech Solutions, effective Nov. 12, 2020, Avantus Federal reported on Thursday. With the purchase, Avantus Federal will expand its data and technology mission areas to solve challenges within National Security and the Intelligence Community (IC).

“MissionTech’s dedication to mission success and employee growth directly align with how we do business, which is one of the many reasons why this company is a great fit here,” said Avantus Federal CEO Andy Maner.

The acquisition of MissionTech will advance Avantus Federal’s data engineering, cloud capabilities and technology adoption services. The additional services will add more robust offerings to the Avantus Federal’s federal government customers.

“Adding MissionTech to our portfolio adds to all the capabilities of our entire unified company including services, consulting and data/technology and will dramatically help us empower our eminence and create additional depth and breadth within our client delivery,” Maner added.

MissionTech will also bolster Avantus Federal’s position as a mission-focused, service-driven solutions leader in the field, providing innovative service to its clients. MissionTech joins the Avantus Intelligence Enterprise built on mission impact and technology enablement.

“Our organizations both drive growth through our mission-focused values and investment in employees. Our collective strengths provide the ability to surpass our clients’ expectations with the leading team of fully cleared technologists and the qualifications to scale while building careers,” said Matt Scott, MissionTech’s CEO.

About Avantus Federal

Avantus Federal, a NewSpring Holdings company, is a mission-focused services and solutions company headquartered in McLean, VA. E3 Federal Solutions and The Sentinel Company combined forces in 2018 and rebranded in 2020 to Avantus Federal. Avantus draws upon its heritage companies’ histories of consistent growth and high performance in the federal services market.

Avantus’s services and solutions are designed, tailored, and executed based on our long history of helping our Homeland Security, Defense, Intelligence, and Federal Civilian customers solve complex problems. Our capabilities include Project & Portfolio Management, Facilities, Acquisition & Sustainment, Systems Engineering Technical Services, Operations & Analysis, Transformation & Advisory Services, Data & Software Solutions, Digital Innovation, and Augmented Intelligence.

/
Northrop Grumman Delivers 5th NATO RQ-4D Phoenix; Jane Bishop Quoted
Published on
Northrop Grumman Delivers 5th NATO RQ-4D Phoenix; Jane Bishop Quoted

Northrop Grumman Corporation has delivered the fifth NATO Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) aircraft with a non-stop transatlantic flight, the company reported on Thursday. 

“Once the NATO AGS system achieves Handover, NATO Commanders will have greater flexibility and redundancy to support the mission of protecting ground troops, civilian populations and international borders in peacetime and times of conflict as well as humanitarian missions during natural disasters,” said Jane Bishop, vice president and general manager, autonomous systems, Northrop Grumman.

The aircraft departed on Wednesday, Nov. 11 from Palmdale, California and landed approximately 20 hours later on Nov. 12th at Sigonella Air Base, Sigonella, Italy. The air vehicle is the last of five NATO RQ-4D aircraft. 

With the recent transport, Northrop Grumman has completed delivery to the Main Operating Base (MOB) of the NATO AGS system of systems comprised of aircraft, ground and support segments. Work remains to complete Handover of the AGS System to the NATO AGS Force (NAGSF).

The NATO AGS RQ-4D is based on the U.S. Air Force wide area surveillance Global Hawk. The high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned NATO AGS system, including multi-platform radar technology insertion program radar, will provide advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capability that will deliver near real-time situational awareness. 

Led by Northrop Grumman, the NATO industry team is composed of companies from across NATO’s member nations, including Leonardo, Airbus and Kongsberg, as well as other defense companies from all AGS Procuring Nations.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman solves the toughest problems in space, aeronautics, defense and cyberspace to meet the ever evolving needs of our customers worldwide. Our 90,000 employees define possible every day using science, technology and engineering to create and deliver advanced systems, products and services.

1 … 1,257 1,258 1,259 1,260 1,261 … 2,619