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Lt. Gen. John Thompson: Space Force Updating Contracts to Cover Advanced Cyber Measures
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Lt. Gen. John Thompson: Space Force Updating Contracts to Cover Advanced Cyber Measures

Lt. Gen. John Thompson, commander of the U.S. Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), said the service is modifying its contracts to ensure that companies implement advanced cybersecurity measures in their systems.

Thomson told attendees at a California Polytechnic State University event that the Space Force continues to add language to its contracts to include “more advanced protective measures” involving supply chain and data handling operations, FCW reported Monday.

System developers need to secure contractor technologies and ensure cyber protections from program inception to launch operations, he noted.

According to Thompson, the U.S. needs to ensure control over its satellite networks to fortify defenses against evolving cyber threats such as denial of service attacks.

"Space is becoming congested and contested and that contested aspect means that we've got to focus on cybersecurity in the same way that the banking industry and cyber commerce focus on cybersecurity day in and day out," said Thomson.

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PSC Provides FY21 NDAA Commentary; David Berteau Quoted
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PSC Provides FY21 NDAA Commentary; David Berteau Quoted

The Professional Services Council (PSC) has commented on the recent provisions in the Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The organization sent a letter to the House and Senate Armed Services Committee regarding the government’s processes and procedures for acquiring services from the contractor community, PSC reported on Monday.

“PSC appreciates the committees’ work to pass their respective versions of the NDAA and  include important provisions that will improve government-wide and Defense Department policies for soliciting, acquiring, and managing services and technology from contractors,” said PSC’s president and CEO, and Wash100 awardee, David Berteau. 

Berteau noted that the FY21 NDAA bills will better acquisition outcomes, improve the federal contracting system and support the Defense Industrial Base (DIB). PSC’s letter highlighted various provisions that are consistent with PSC priorities. 

The letter included commentary for incremental funding by the Department of Defense (DoD), better contract closeout methodologies, implementation of prior-year NDAA provisions to measure and report on wasteful Procurement Administrative Lead Time and cybersecurity and supply chain risk management initiatives.

“If enacted, the FY21 NDAA will mark 60 consecutive years that the Congress has passed this important legislation. We urge the Congress to meet this milestone with a final conference bill and report as soon as possible,” Berteau continued. 

About PSC

PSC is the voice of the government technology and professional services industry. PSC’s more than 400 member companies represent small, medium and large businesses that provide federal agencies with services of all kinds, including information technology, engineering, logistics, facilities management, operations and maintenance, consulting, international development, scientific, social, environmental services, and more. Together, the trade association’s members employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in all 50 states.

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Red Hat Launches Red Hat Accelerators to Support IT Community; Chris Wright Quoted
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Red Hat Launches Red Hat Accelerators to Support IT Community; Chris Wright Quoted

Red Hat has launched its enterprise customer advocacy program, Red Hat Accelerators, to advance the company’s customer-focused approach to its open source and enterprise product portfolio, Red Hat reported on Tuesday. 

“As open source champions and community builders, Red Hat is always interested in hearing from members within its communities, and the Red Hat Accelerators community is no exception. In my experience collaborating with the Accelerators, I’ve found that substantial innovation comes from engaging real world customers and being truly receptive to their feedback,” said Chris Wright, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Red Hat.

Red Hat Accelerators was enacted by the company to form deeper and more engaging relationships with its customers. The program will offer peer-to-peer networking with Red Hat practitioners to promote learning and educate on various products, technologies and use cases. 

Users will also gain access to products to develop domain expertise and build credibility. Red Hat Accelerators will support personal and professional development by expanding knowledge and skills to remain current in the industry and market.

Forrester published a report, Credible Empathetic Content Wins Over Elusive B2B Buyers, stating 87 percent of technology buyers at global enterprises said it’s important for vendors to understand their business, industry or market conditions. 82 percent stated they want vendors to understand what’s most important to their job. 

The company launched Red Hat Accelerators to serve enterprise customers and create a way to share and engage with like-minded peers about IT issues, remedies and solutions. The program has also integrated a continued focus on customer advocacy. Red Hat Accelerators will leverage real-world enterprise customer experience and  provide a direct line to help influence product development. 

“Customers appreciate the continuous ability to share commentary on offerings and even influence products. With Accelerators, we cherish the opportunity to pull in some of the most passionate enterprise customers in their industries to the Red Hat fold,” Wright added.

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Northrop Grumman, NASA Complete Environmental Testing of James Webb Space Telescope; Scott Willoughby Quoted
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Northrop Grumman, NASA Complete Environmental Testing of James Webb Space Telescope; Scott Willoughby Quoted

Northrop Grumman Corporation, in partnership with NASA, has completed environmental testing on the James Webb Space Telescope, the company reported on Tuesday. With the successful trials, the company has proven Webb’s ability to withstand harsh environmental characteristics. 

“The completion of environmental testing is a major step forward in our preparations for Webb’s historic launch and a testament to the remarkable dedication of the team,” said Scott Willoughby, vice president and program manager, James Webb Space Telescope, Northrop Grumman.

Webb will be able to successfully operate during its upcoming rocket launch and journey to reach its orbit at the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point (L2). The testing consisted of a series of rigorous acoustic and sine-vibration tests spanning several weeks. 

During testing, Webb was placed in Northrop Grumman’s acoustic testing chamber to undergo high frequency oscillating sound pressure levels above 140 decibels, which simulated the effects of being launched on a rocket. 

Webb’s acoustic tests and analysis validated that the hardware, science instruments, structure and electronics would survive the rocket launch in a simulated environment. The telescope also went through a series of sine-vibration tests on a shaker table to simulate vertical and horizontal accelerations in lower frequencies. 

The observatory was exposed to vibration levels that were above the flight environment, successfully demonstrating its capability to withstand the flight environment with significant margins.

NASA and Northrop Grumman teams will work to deploy the observatory’s five-layered sunshield, as well as wing deployments of its primary mirror to fully verify Webb’s flight worthiness. Webb will also undergo a full systems evaluation before it begins preparations for its Oct. 2021 launch.

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DMI Wins NIH Contract to Advance Cybersecurity; Jay Sunny Bajaj Quoted
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DMI Wins NIH Contract to Advance Cybersecurity; Jay Sunny Bajaj Quoted

DMI has been awarded a one-year $11 million contract to advance the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH), a function of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), cybersecurity posture and enhance performance, the company reported on Tuesday. 

"DMI is excited to build upon our successful track record of program delivery, similar in scope and complexity to the NIH OD cyber modernization initiative, which spans nearly a decade at NIH and 12 years at HHS," said DMI chief executive officer and founder, Jay Sunny Bajaj. 

Under the contract, DMI's Cybersecurity Center of Excellence will support the NIH Office of the Director (OD). The company will integrate its cybersecurity roadmap to advance the agency’s security posture. 

DMI will work within tasks including, conducting a Cyber Workforce Assessment, delivering a holistic cloud adoption strategy, developing best practices for cyber IT Asset management and evaluating third-party vendor security.

"We look forward to doing our part in supporting NIH with the ability to rapidly respond to public health and biomedical research issues including readiness for the agency's response to the COVID-19 pandemic," Bajaj added. 

About DMI

DMI, a leading end-to-end mobility and business transformation company, combines all of the skills and services necessary to deliver mobile enterprise solutions. Built to reinvent business for the connected world, DMI has expertise in enterprise-strength web and app development, IoT, digital commerce, analytics, brand and marketing, and secure device and app management. 

The company's unique, integrated approach to mobility has resulted in its dramatic growth as well as an expanding customer base which has included hundreds of enterprise commercial customers, more than a dozen U.S. Federal Departments and a rapidly growing number of state and local governments. 

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Octo Metric JV Wins TSA FAST Contract; Thomas Lee Quoted
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Octo Metric JV Wins TSA FAST Contract; Thomas Lee Quoted

The Octo Metric Joint Venture (JV), including Octo and Metric5, has been awarded the four-year, $25 million Mission Support Portfolio on the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) FAST contract, Octo announced on Tuesday. 

“This award reflects Octo’s commitment to support federal customers by providing leading edge Agile DevSecOps and cloud solutions,” said Thomas Lee, SVP at Octo. “We are excited about developing the relationship with TSA and working once again with Metric5 as a trusted Octo Metric JV partner.”

Under the contract, Octo will provide program and project management, subject matter and senior technology expertise, application development and application production. FAST will deliver a strategy that will support the integration, customization and development of various mission support systems and applications. 

TSA’s strategy will leverage industry and government best practices to reduce time to market, improve code quality and enhance customer service. FAST will establish a new procurement model that supports Agile development and production. This vehicle has enabled TSA to procure scalable Agile teams faster than conventional government contracting approaches. 

FAST will help TSA’s Applications Development Division adapt modern architecture standards and delivery practices such as microservices, continuous integration and delivery, automated testing, and leveraging the cloud. 

“We are confident that with the right tools, technology, and people we collectively have access to, we’re positioned to help TSA meet the demands of its important mission,” Lee added. Octo Metric was the only small business awardee and is one of only six vendors to be awarded.

GovConWire will host it’s Winning Business and FY21 Opportunities Forum on Oct. 20th. Featuring Brian Barnes, associate administrator of the Office of Small Business Utilization (OSDBU) with the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), as a keynote speaker, the event will educate and inform small to midsize GovCon professionals on the current Federal Marketplace and FY21 opportunities.

To register for the Winning Business and FY21 Opportunities Forum, as well as view future events, visit 

GovConWire Events.

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Final Rule Exempts DHS Insider Threat Program System of Records From Certain Privacy Act Provisions
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Final Rule Exempts DHS Insider Threat Program System of Records From Certain Privacy Act Provisions

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released a final rule exempting parts of the Insider Threat Program System of Records from several provisions of the Privacy Act.

Under the final rule, the updated system of records covers all individuals who have or had access to information, networks, equipment, systems or facilities of DHS as well as records from any office, component or program of the department.

The department’s Insider Threat Program System of Records is a repository of paper and electronic records and data held by DHS in line with its functions and missions, such as investigations, national security and intelligence activities and enforcement of criminal and civil laws.

The Insider Threat Program expands the collection of data for investigations and will cover “current employment and performance information, contract information, personnel files containing information about misconduct and adverse actions, and current and former security clearance status.”

The final rule took effect on Tuesday, Oct. 6th.

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Jim Smith: SOCOM Advances AI Training, Education
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Jim Smith: SOCOM Advances AI Training, Education

Jim Smith, acquisition executive at Special Operations Command (SOCOM), said SOCOM is working to educate and train leaders and personnel in artificial intelligence in support of missions and other capabilities, National Defense reported Friday.

He said during a panel at the Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict conference he envisions the use of AI in various areas such as precisions fires, next-generation intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and biotechnology.

Smith noted that SOCOM formed a new program executive office for special operations forces digital applications to help advance AI adoption.

“I want them to get the core competency,” he said during the panel. The PEO officials must understand “how do I know what I'm asking for? How do I know when they're giving me what I'm asking for? How do I assess who is best in breed? How do I get my contracting officers and my PMs comfortable in this new domain?"

The command also partnered with Carnegie Mellon University in September for a three-day AI course.

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Ross Guckert: Army’s Enterprise Info Systems Office Eyes RFP Release for Four IT Contracts
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Ross Guckert: Army’s Enterprise Info Systems Office Eyes RFP Release for Four IT Contracts

Ross Guckert, program executive officer at the U.S. Army’s enterprise information systems (EIS) office, announced at an AFCEA Belvoir event that solicitations for four information technology contracts are set for release in the last quarter of calendar year 2020 and one of those is the Information Technology Enterprise Solutions-4 Hardware contract, C4ISRNET reported Monday.

The Army intends to issue a draft solicitation in the first quarter of fiscal year 2021 for the ITES-4H contract and the final solicitation by the second quarter of FY 2021 with plans to select 17 awardees to provide servers, client, storage, network and maintenance support.

The service also plans to issue in October an RFP for a potential three-year, $200 million contract for enterprise cloud services.

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Air Force to Reduce Physical Footprint Amid New Telework Norm; Maj. James Tyhurst Quoted
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Air Force to Reduce Physical Footprint Amid New Telework Norm; Maj. James Tyhurst Quoted

The U.S. Air Force has commenced efforts to minimize the physical footprint at facilities, as the service continues to implement teleworking. The Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) coordinated with installation leaders to gather data on unit space allocations, unit telework plans, building floor plans, building condition and mission dependency, USAF said Saturday.

“With approval to press forward, AFCEC began working on pilot studies at two installations: the large installation of Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, and the smaller installation of Luke Air Force Base, Arizona,” said Maj. James Tyhurst, chief of AFCEC’s Installation Planning Branch.

The pilot effort primarily focuses on administrative functions associated with telework and facility footprint reduction. AFCEC, part of Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center, proposed the study in response to Gen. Stephen Wilson, USAF vice chief of staff, who asked about how teleworking would offset Air Force facility requirements.

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