Norfolk Naval Shipyard has launched a new submarine maintenance facility to boost the timeliness of ship deliveries from the U.S. Navy’s public shipyards. The two-storey facility supports the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Plan, and houses maintenance, production and support activities in a single venue beside the shipyard’s submarine drydocks, Naval Sea Systems Command said Tuesday. The 24,000-square foot building employs an open-office design to accommodate collaborative work with teams working on submarine projects.

“This facility will foster that environment by putting shops from 15 locations under one roof where they can work more efficiently with each other as they fulfill the mission,” said Capt. Kai Torkelson, shipyard commander at NNSY. 

The Navy spent $9.9 million and over three years to complete the building that meets calamity resistance and anti-terrorist protection requirements. Blast-proof windows and thick concrete walls protect the facility’s interior. The building supports maintenance efforts on Los Angeles-class submarines, and will accommodate Virginia and Colombia classes in the future, according to Pat Ensley, submarine program manager at NNSY.

The U.S. Coast Guard has selected Seattle, Wash. as the homeport for its new Polar Security Cutters due to “operational and logistical needs”, Navy Times reported Tuesday.

“The Pacific Northwest has been the home of our icebreaking fleet since 1976, and I am confident that the Seattle area will continue to provide the support we need to carry out our critical operations in the polar regions,” said Adm. Karl Schultz, commandant of the Coast Guard, in a statement to the publication.

In April, ST Engineering subsidiary VT Systems won a potential $1.94 billion contract to build a maximum of three heavy icebreakers to support USCG’s law enforcement, search and rescue, environmental response and national security missions in the polar regions. The U.S. Navy expects VT Systems to begin constructing the first of the cutters in 2021 and deliver the ship by 2024.

The Public Build Reform Board conducted its first meeting to try to identify at least five excess federal civilian properties to sell within six months to generate savings, Federal News Network reported Tuesday. The independent board, which was established through 2016 Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act, will need to send its recommendations to the Office of Management and Budget for evaluation and approval.

Some federal real property professionals said a civilian version of the Pentagon’s base realignment and closure process could help the board identify approximately $500 million to $700 million in excess facilities. Dan Mathews, commissioner of the public buildings service at the General Services Administration, said he thinks local community stakeholders would likely approve a more streamlined process for property sale and disposal.

“Unlike BRAC, I would think the recommendations would largely be embraced, because [the] economic potential is probably not being tapped into, or it’s an eyesore that’s been sitting there for a while, and it would allow us to move on to a better future state,” Mathews said. Some experts also suggest using of building data to help the board facilitate its decision-making process.

The problems with cybersecurity controls that contributed to previous data breaches at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California remain unresolved, which may put the research center at risk of cyber attacks, according to a new report by the agency’s inspector general. “Over the past 10 years, JPL has experienced several notable cybersecurity incidents that have compromised major segments of its IT network,” the IG said in the report issued Tuesday. 

The watchdog cited a 2011 incident where hackers took 87 gigabytes of data from 18 servers supporting JPL missions. Another breach in 2018 involved a compromised account that exposed nearly 500 megabytes of data from a major mission system. The cybersecurity weaknesses found at JPL include incomplete and inaccurate inventory of devices and apps on its networks, its vulnerable network gateway and the lack of defense controls and measures to deter cyber attacks. 

The IG recommends that NASA increase authorities for security officials to monitor JPL’s network security practices. The watchdog also wants the agency to review and update the center’s IT Security Database and to launch a training program for cybersecurity.