The U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office (PEO) Command, Control and Communications – Tactical (C3T) has established a new project office focused on ensuring interoperability between the service branch’s tactical networks.

The Army said Monday it formally inaugurated the Project Lead (PL) Interoperability, Integration and Services (I2S) unit last week at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland.

Col. Ward Roberts, former acting executive director of the Office of the Chief Systems Engineer under the Army’s assistant secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics, will lead PL I2S’s efforts to modernize networks in support of the Army Futures Command’s (AFC) Network Cross-Functional Team (CFT).

“The stand-up of PL I2S is an opportunity to work hand-in-hand with developers, users, and the Network [CFT] to achieve our mutual goal of delivering unmatched tactical network capabilities to the Army and our allies,” said PEO C3T Brig. Gen. Robert Collins.

PL I2S will include functions under various offices such as the Product Manager Capability Set Development, PL Network Enablers and Product Leads for Common Hardware Systems.

The U.S. Army's Public Health Command Europe has been testing COVID-19 surveillance with asymptomatic individuals. U.S. European Command personnel from different service branches have undergone PHCE's COVID-19 surveillance tests since the middle of May, the U.S. Army said Friday.

“Surveillance testing provides commanders and health care professionals information about the prevalence and infection rates of troops,” said Col. Jeremy Bearss, who leads PHCE’s laboratory sciences unit.

The tests inform officials for decisions on quarantine, movement restrictions and deployment amid the pandemic, Bearss noted.

PHCE conducts these tests as part of efforts to mitigate and address the pandemic. Over 19,000 samples have been tested since the effort's launch. The surveillance testing may continue into 2021.

Rep. John Katko, R-N.Y., has introduced a set of bills to boost the country's cybersecurity. The newly unveiled legislation pack contains bills designed to foster collaboration between private and public sectors towards strengthened national cybersecurity, Katko's office said Monday.

The pack features the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director and Assistant Directors Act, the CISA Public-Private Talent Exchange Act and the Strengthening the CISA Act of 2020.

"I’m introducing a comprehensive national cybersecurity improvement package that enhances national cybersecurity through the creation of a public-private workforce exchange program and empowers CISA by increasing stability in leadership positions and prioritizing the necessary funding and resources," Katko said.

The CISA Public-Private Talent Exchange Act, for example, would create a program through which government cybersecurity practitioners may switch places with private sector counterparts to exchange knowledge and experiences.

A House panel has approved a spending bill that earmarks $196.5 billion for programs under the departments of Education (DoE), Labor (DoL) and Health and Human Services (HHS) as well as agencies like the Social Security Administration (SSA).

The House Appropriations Committee voted 30-22 on Monday to pass the fiscal 2021 Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies bill which includes $24.4 billion in emergency spending to support state and local governments' public health and unemployment initiatives.

The FY 2021 figure represents a significant increase from the FY 2020 enacted level and adds $20.8 billion to President Trump’s 2021 budget request following adjustments and offsets, according to the committee. The bill additionally covers provisions for employer-sponsored health plans and coverage for mental and behavioral health.

Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., said the spending bill builds on the efforts of the House panel’s Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies to drive “critical federal investments” amid the global health crisis.

“This legislation builds upon our previous emergency and supplemental response packages and represents our critical work to defeat the coronavirus, not surrender to it,” note DeLauro, who serves as the subcommittee’s chairwoman. “With this bill, we help our constituents access new cures, new treatments, new research, and new protections to help them and their families live healthier lives.”

Accenture has been recognized by IDC MarketScape for the company’s long standing partnership with SAP, noting recent initiatives, such as its development of SAP Customer Experience solutions, Accenture reported on Tuesday.

“Our clients look to technology in order to gain agility, innovation and drive profitable growth in sustainable ways,” said Caspar Borggreve, senior managing director and global lead for the Accenture SAP Business Group.

Accenture has been recognized for the “co-development of industry-specific and business process solutions on SAP S/4HANA, SAP C/4HANA and SAP Cloud Platform.” The report also recognized the company for its transformation from business case to digital delivery and continuous improvement. 

“Accenture delivers consulting-led and industry-driven services in almost all industries to help clients transform their businesses and unlock more value from innovation and new SAP solutions and technologies,” the report stated. 

The company has integrated intelligent, data-driven platforms, such as myConcerto for enterprise transformation, myWizard for enterprise automation and myNav for cloud. Accenture has utilized preconfigured solutions and intelligent assets to drive transformation. 

“We are pleased with the IDC MarketScape reports and see them as supportive of our over 40-year track record of helping clients transform their organizations – most recently, helping them become intelligent enterprises using SAP S/4HANA and SAP cloud solutions,” Borggreve added.  

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