The Department of Labor is investing almost $100M in grants under a public-private apprenticeship program for multiple industries.

The program, known as "Apprenticeship: Closing the Skills Gap," would support 28 apprenticeships in a range of industries such as information technology, health care and manufacturing, DOL said Tuesday.

"This funding will bolster America's competitiveness by adding more skilled workers to fill millions of open jobs today and in the future," said Eugene Scalia, secretary of labor.

Apprenticeships under the program include work-based learning and instructional activities.

Awardees are:

• Aerospace Machinist Joint Training Committee
• AFL-CIO Working for America
• Alamo Community College District
• American Association of Port Authorities
• Argentum
• Arkansas Division of Higher Education
• Arizona Board of Regents, on behalf of Arizona State University
• Colorado Community College System
• Electrical Training ALLIANCE
• Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association
• Goodwin College
• H-CAP 
• Idaho State Board of Education
• Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana
• Missouri Chamber Foundation
• North Carolina State University
• Oakland Community College
• Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner, State of Rhode Island
• Regents of the University of Colorado/UOC-Colorado Springs
• SHRM Foundation
• Southern Utah University
• Southwest Tennessee Community College
• The Regents of the University of California (Davis)
• The Regents of the University of California (Riverside)
• University of Louisville Research Foundation
• University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
• Wireless Infrastructure Association
• Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership

The U.S. Army has saved over $1.2 billion after cutting legacy programs to shift focus into addressing top modernization goals.

The Army said Wednesday it presented a list of eliminated and reduced programs during its “night court” budget assessment to address priorities under the service’s fiscal year 2021 budget proposal.

According to the service branch, it saved over $869.9 million after reducing 39 programs and 324.1 million following 41 program eliminations. The Army seeks to save $9 billion over the next five years to meet requirements under the Future Years Defense Program.

"The [fiscal 2021] budget of $178 billion will ensure the Army will remain the most lethal ground fighting force in the world now, and in the future," said Army Secretary and 2020 Wash100 winner Ryan McCarthy. According to McCarthy, precision fires are the main modernization priority for the service which is also investing over $800 million for hypersonics technology.

The Department of the Navy recently announced a similar cost evaluation effort to support its goal of reinvesting $8 billion annually or $40 billion in five years.

Ron DeSantis, Florida Governor, has funded the last $4.8  million installment to expand the Pensacola Airport, including modernizing infrastructure, adding three hangers, a warehouse and offices, the governor reported on Wednesday. 

“The Governor, along with county and city leaders support for infrastructure investment will result in over a 1,000 new quality jobs, increasing the demand for a highly skilled workforce in the rapidly growing aviation sector of the local Pensacola community,” said  Tom Vecchiolla, President and CEO of ST Engineering North America.

DeSantis funded the upgrade to support his platform of lowering unemployment and is projected to add 1300 new employees. As part of his Florida Job Growth Job Fund, the infrastructure enhancements will include taxiways and ramps that will support additional maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities and other development.

That will “allow the airport to support ST Engineering’s plans to build one of the biggest MRO operations in North America,” DeSantis Said. “I think that this is really going to help drive not only in Escambia, but really throughout the region,” he added.

Other funding pledged for the project includes $15 million each from Escambia County and the City of Pensacola, $66 million from Triumph Gulf Coast and $20 million from the Florida Department of Transportation.

About the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund

The Florida Job Growth Grant Fund is an economic development program designed to promote public infrastructure and workforce training across the state. Proposals are reviewed by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) and Enterprise Florida, Inc. (EFI) and chosen by the Governor to meet the demand for workforce or infrastructure needs in the community they are awarded to.

Workforce training projects will provide Floridians with transferable, sustainable workforce skills applicable to more than a single employer, and for equipment associated with these programs.

Accenture Federal Services (AFS) has been awarded Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) authorization for Managed Detection and Response cyber capability, a threat monitoring and incident response cloud solution, the company announced on Thursday. 

“Our MDR solution combines the latest automation, artificial intelligence and cloud technologies to provide next-generation cybersecurity capabilities so clients can be more resilient in the face of changing threats,” said Aaron Faulkner, Accenture Federal Services’ cybersecurity lead. 

MDR will support federal agencies, state and local governments, and critical infrastructure provides defense against cyber threats as well as enact a quick response. MDR has been compliant with Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) requirements.

AFS has integrated highly scalable centralized security operations center, available on a 24x7x365 basis into MDR, and the cybersecurity technology. The company will offer the development to any agency, regardless of size, to protect against threats and secure its infrastructure. 

“It brings advanced security monitoring, response and remediation at machine speed, using the latest technologies and techniques to catch attacks before they affect an organization’s IT environment,” added Faulkner.

The authorization is a federal government-wide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services. FedRAMP authorization follows a successful security audit via an accredited third-party assessor. 

“Our fully integrated best-of-breed service, built around the MITRE ATT&CK framework, allows federal agencies and others to capitalize on advanced defenses, with the full backing of highly trained teams with critical skill sets. FedRAMP authorization will further streamline integration of this recognized service into our clients’ security fabric,” David Dalling, Accenture Federal Services’ MDR lead, concluded. 

About Accenture Federal Services

Accenture Federal Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Accenture LLP, is a U.S. company with offices in Arlington, Virginia. Accenture’s federal business has served every cabinet-level department and 30 of the largest federal organizations. Accenture Federal Services transforms bold ideas into breakthrough outcomes for clients at defense, intelligence, public safety, civilian and military health organizations.

Ball Aerospace has successfully completed the preliminary design review (PDR) of the advanced spectrometer instrument for the MethaneSAT Flight System, the company announced on Thursday. With the completion of PDR, Ball will proceed with the critical design phase.

“We are excited to be a part of a mission that aims to study and address the impact of methane on the environment and climate,” said Dr. Makenzie Lystrup, vice president and general manager, Civil Space, Ball Aerospace. “MethaneSAT fits well with Ball’s long history of earth science, our commitment to sustainability and our experience in providing highly-calibrated measurements of environmental factors related to ozone, weather and pollution.”

MethaneSAT is a 350-kilogram satellite designed to locate and measure global methane emissions. It has two extremely sensitive spectrometers that have been aligned in the center of the instrument. The sensors will enable measurement through shortwave infrared spectrum.

The spectrum will render light, which allows the sensors to detect concentrations as low as two parts per billion. MethaneSAT is expected to be launched in 2022. Ball Aerospace has also supported flight systems integration and testing, launch support and commissioning services to multiple testing devices.

“MethaneSAT is built around a set of high performance technologies and sophisticated analytics tools that when combined provide a major leap in our ability to measure and quantify even low-level methane emissions across the globe from space,” said mission co-lead Dr. Steven Hamburg, who also serves as Chief Scientist for Environmental Defense Fund. “We’re asking a lot of our technical partners and Ball Aerospace is rising to the occasion.”

About Ball Corporation

Ball Corporation (NYSE: BLL) supplies innovative, sustainable aluminum packaging solutions for beverage, personal care and household products customers, as well as aerospace and other technologies and services primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ 18,300 people worldwide and reported 2019 net sales of $11.5 billion.