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Accenture Acquires VanBerlo to Improve Build Smart Connect Solutions; Thomas Paulen Quoted
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Accenture Acquires VanBerlo to Improve Build Smart Connect Solutions; Thomas Paulen Quoted
Accenture Acquires VanBerlo to Improve Build Smart Connect Solutions; Thomas Paulen Quoted

Accenture has acquired VanBerlo, an award-winning product design and innovation agency headquartered in Eindhoven, Netherlands, to strengthen capabilities and improve build smart connect solutions, the company announced on Wednesday. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

“The number of smart connected products is increasing rapidly and the speed of digitization is challenging our clients’ design and development processes…Bringing VanBerlo’s creative team into our Industry X.0 practice will enable us to help our clients develop new business models and generate new revenues from smart connected products and services,” said Frank Rennings, managing director and Accenture Digital Lead in the Netherlands.

With the acquisition, Accenture will gain VanBerlo’s innovative products and services for companies in a variety of industries, including fast-moving consumer goods, mobility, healthcare, banking and high-tech. 

VanBerlo’s technologies combine physical objects with digital services, using technologies like internet of things (IoT) sensors, artificial intelligence and data analytics. Accenture will integrate the technology to provide more personalized products to customers while offering companies  insights to expand businesses.

VanBerlo has deep experience in innovation and product strategy; product, software and user experience design; and prototyping, with a focus on sustainable solutions. The team will join Accenture’s digital technologies division, Industry X.0, to improve how companies design, engineer and manufacture products and services and operate industrial facilities.

Thomas Paulen, CEO of VanBerlo, said: “Our multidisciplinary team is passionate about creating forward-looking solutions that meet humans’ needs and generate growth for clients. We are looking forward to joining Accenture Industry X.0 and driving innovation for global clients.”

Accenture also announced the acquisition of Icon Integration, a privately held Australian technology consultancy that provides SAP digital supply chain solutions and services and specialized business intelligence (BI) solutions, to improve Accenture’s growing technology initiatives and number of SAP professionals in the region in Feb. 2020.

Icon Integration, consisting of 70 employees in Australia and New Zealand, works with some of the regions’ largest retail, consumer goods and government organisations. With the acquisition, Accenture will gain Icon’s differentiated capabilities in supply chain execution, particularly warehouse management. 

Accenture will also improve its data optimisation, as well as designing, developing and delivering bespoke enterprise technology solutions that help clients improve business performance and operational efficiencies with the purchase.

“We are excited by the opportunity to join forces with Accenture and to tap into their breadth of capabilities and specialisations that will significantly build on the success we have achieved in our business to date,” said Paul Roddis, co-founder and co-managing director at Icon Integration.

About Accenture

Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions — underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network — Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With 505,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives.

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White House Seeks $70M in FY 2021 Funds to Back OPM-GSA Merger
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White House Seeks $70M in FY 2021 Funds to Back OPM-GSA Merger
White House Seeks $70M in FY 2021 Funds to Back OPM-GSA Merger

The White House has requested $70M in “no-year” appropriated funds to support the proposed transfer of Office of Personnel Management functions to the General Services Administration, Federal News Network reported Tuesday.

The funds will be used to procure new information technology equipment, move OPM staff and incorporate OPM’s business processes and systems into GSA’s networks, according to the administration’s budget request for fiscal year 2021.

With no-year appropriations, GSA would not be required to spend the entire budget in FY 2021.

The National Academy of Public Administration is set to conduct a study in FY 2020 to analyze the potential merger of OPM with GSA and recommend options for the former. The NAPA study could take at least a year to complete.

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DHS Waives Contracting Laws to Accelerate Border Wall Construction
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DHS Waives Contracting Laws to Accelerate Border Wall Construction
DHS Waives Contracting Laws to Accelerate Border Wall Construction

The Department of Homeland Security has decided to waive some federal contracting laws to speed up the construction of a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border.

A notice released Tuesday says a section in the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 provides DHS the waiver authority to expedite the construction of additional barriers and roads at the U.S. border to prevent illegal entries into the U.S. and address drug-related events between border crossings.

Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf identified several areas of high illegal entry and those are the San Diego and El Centro sectors in California; the Yuma and Tuczon sectors in Arizona; the Del Rio sector in Texas; and the El Paso sector covering west Texas and New Mexico.

The DHS document is set to be published Thursday on Federal Register. FCW reported the move seeks to expedite construction projects in those areas through a waiver of the use of pricing data, wage determination, open competition and other parts of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

"Today we are going to start waiving those for procurement regulations and laws as well," Wolf said Tuesday on Fox and Friends. "It allows to us speed up a lot of our contracts that the Army Corps [of Engineers has. Anywhere from 30 to 45 to 60 days."

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Report: DoD to Adopt Rules for AI Development, Use
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Report: DoD to Adopt Rules for AI Development, Use
Report: DoD to Adopt Rules for AI Development, Use

The Department of Defense will soon implement a set of rules that would guide DoD’s development and use of artificial intelligence, Defense One reported Tuesday.

Sources said the Pentagon will use the Defense Innovation Board’s recommended ethical principles for the use of AI as basis for its set of policies. Under these recommendations, the department should ensure that its use of use of AI platforms is responsible, equitable, traceable, reliable and governable.

“The Department of Defense is in the final stages of adopting AI principles that will be implemented across the U.S. military. An announcement will be made soon with further details,” said Lt. Cmdr. Arlo Abrahamson, a spokesman for DoD’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center.

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DARPA Seeks to Use Atmosphere as Geolocation Sensor
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DARPA Seeks to Use Atmosphere as Geolocation Sensor
DARPA Seeks to Use Atmosphere as Geolocation Sensor

The Defense Advanced Projects Agency is pursuing an effort to study the atmosphere's feasibility for use as a geolocation sensor. DARPA said Thursday that its Atmosphere as a Sensor or AtmoSense program aims to determine whether the atmosphere can function as a global detector for catastrophes and incidents on or over Earth.

The effort would look into the energy trails that disastrous events would leave across parts of the atmosphere, including the mesosphere and ionosphere.

“Perhaps I can learn what occurred from information in the atmosphere," said Maj. C. David Lewis, AtmoSense program manager at DARPA. "I want to find out how much information is available and if I can disaggregate the signal I’m interested in from other natural phenomena creating noise in the background," he added.

The program will include a 27-month concept development phase and a 12-month field testing phase. DARPA held a proposer's day for the program last Friday in Arlington, Va.

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GSA FAS Seeks Asst Commissioner for Assisted Acquisition Services
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GSA FAS Seeks Asst Commissioner for Assisted Acquisition Services
GSA FAS Seeks Asst Commissioner for Assisted Acquisition Services

The General Services Administration's Federal Acquisition Service is looking for an assistant commissioner for assisted acquisition services based at the agency's Washington, D.C. headquarters.

GSA said in a job posting that the assistant commissioner will handle acquisition, financial, technical and project management functions to support FAS in its efforts to deliver commercial information technology and other offerings to government customers.

The selected candidate will also serve as head of contracting activity for the Federal Systems Integration and Management Center, manage collaborations with client service centers, determine new business initiatives and sustain electronic service delivery technologies in partnership with the GSA’s IT office.

Other responsibilities include coordinating with national and regional CSCs and directing GSA’s AAS program aimed at promoting best practices in government procurement.

GSA will accept applications for the position through Feb. 26.

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DHS Seeks Creation of New Cyber Coordination Unit
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DHS Seeks Creation of New Cyber Coordination Unit
DHS Seeks Creation of New Cyber Coordination Unit

The Department of Homeland Security is looking to create a group for department-wide cybersecurity coordination, Fifth Domain reported Friday.

The potential Joint Cyber Coordination Group would operate under DHS' Office of Policy, Strategy and Plans, with six full-time personnel.

JCCG would serve as a central medium through which DHS components can communicate with each other for operational plans, investigative efforts and other cyber-related pursuits.

DHS requested $2.6M for the group's creation under the fiscal 2021 budget. The department told Congress that JCCG is needed to oversee "all aspects of associated risk" amid the growth of cyber threats.

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DHS Allots Over $1B for Fiscal 2020 Public Safety Projects
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DHS Allots Over $1B for Fiscal 2020 Public Safety Projects
DHS Allots Over $1B for Fiscal 2020 Public Safety Projects

The Department of Homeland Security is investing almost $1.8B in grants under a new funding opportunity for fiscal year 2020 public safety efforts. The FY 2020 grants support security projects across transportation authorities; local, tribal, territorial and state government bodies; nonprofits and commercial firms, DHS said Friday.

These projects aim to prevent, deter, respond to and recover from emergency events such as natural disasters and acts of terrorism. FY 2020 focuses on the areas of intelligence and information sharing, soft targets and crowded places, emerging threats and cybersecurity.

DHS also requires participants of the Urban Area Security Initiative and the State Homeland Security Grant Program to allot 20 percent of grant awards for the FY 2020 focus areas. The investment also supports Operation Stonegarden that aims to foster collaboration across all levels of government for boosted border security.

The department will review the effectiveness of FY 2020 projects. Interested parties may submit applications via the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Non-Disaster grants system.

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Cyberspace Solarium Commission to Issue Congress Recommendations in March
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Cyberspace Solarium Commission to Issue Congress Recommendations in March
Cyberspace Solarium Commission to Issue Congress Recommendations in March

The Cyberspace Solarium Commission plans to submit to Congress 75 recommendations on matters such as information sharing and cyber incident reporting by March 11, Defense One reported Monday.

The 2020 National Defense Authorization Act requires the congressionally chartered commission to issue their recommendations by April. The recommendations cover areas for improvement such as congressional oversight and industry-driven incident reporting.

The group also plans to improve the collection of data on the types of cyberattacks and stolen information to help inform the development of regulations for certification bodies and private insurance firms.

Mark Montgomery, the commission’s executive director, noted at a BSA-hosted event that most of the commission’s recommendations require congressional action.

“Depending on how you count it, there are around 80 different committees and subcommittees that have some kind of jurisdiction over cybersecurity, way too many,” said Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I. “We need to streamline this process somehow."

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Mark Esper Calls for Int’l Action in Efforts to Combat China
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Mark Esper Calls for Int’l Action in Efforts to Combat China
Mark Esper
Mark Esper

Mark Esper, defense secretary and 2020 Wash100 Award recipient, has urged European allies to "wake up to the challenges presented by China” as the country continues to manipulate international order, CNN reported Saturday.

Esper told attendees at this year’s Munich Security Conference that while the U.S. does not intend to exacerbate conflict with China, defending international rules should also be the priority of Europe and the larger international community.

"We can only do this by making greater investments in our common defense; by making the hard economic and commercial choices needed to prioritize our shared security and by working together to maintain a ready and capable alliance network that is prepared to deter any threat, defend any ally, and defeat any foe," he noted.

According to Esper, China has often expressed its progress as a global superpower in “threatening and coercive” ways and should adhere to international norms.

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