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AUKUS Members to Accelerate Hypersonic Development
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AUKUS Members to Accelerate Hypersonic Development

The defense departments of the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia have agreed to combine resources and share expertise, technical information and test facilities to accelerate the development of hypersonic vehicles under the second pillar of the AUKUS trilateral security partnership.

Through the Hypersonic Flight Test and Experimentation project arrangement, a series of hypersonic trials will be held, including up to six trilateral flight test campaigns, the U.S. Department of Defense said Monday.

The testing programs, expected to begin by 2028, are supported by a $252 million funding pool.

Indo-Pacific Security

The AUKUS Pillar 2 focuses on strengthening cooperation in advancing critical technologies that enhance integrated deterrence and boost security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Heidi Shyu, the under secretary of defense for research and engineering and a 2024 Wash100 Award recipient, said the collaborative effort will speed up the development of high-temperature materials, advanced propulsion systems, guidance and control, and other key technologies essential to improving the performance and operational capability of hypersonic weapon systems.

AUKUS Export Control Changes

In preparation for the Pillar 2 initiatives, the AUKUS members previously made changes to their export control regulations to remove hindrances to defense trade and technology sharing. The allied countries also invited Canada, New Zealand and South Korea — countries that have close bilateral defense ties with the AUKUS members — to join the Pillar 2 collaboration to improve interoperability and contribute to the development of advanced capabilities.

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GSA to Move Subaward Reporting Functions to SAM.gov
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GSA to Move Subaward Reporting Functions to SAM.gov

The General Services Administration will transfer subaward reporting capabilities to SAM.gov in March as it plans to retire FSRS.gov and deliver improved user experience to individuals who report on subaward information and executive compensation data.

GSA said Monday the agency’s Integrated Award Environment expects the transition to enable users to manage reporting for all their Unique Entity IDs from one account, share reporting responsibilities across their team and exert more control over report management.

Aims of the Transition & Who It Will Affect

With the change, IAE also aims to enhance federal funding transparency, reduce duplicate reporting, streamline systems and minimize the reporting burden by leveraging the power of data in SAM.gov.

In addition to FSRS.gov users who report data about subawards, individuals looking for subaward information on SAM.gov and entity administrators will also be impacted by the planned change.

GSA noted that it will provide training, information and materials to prepare users for the upcoming transition.

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DeltaAI Computer Opens New Possibilities for AI-Based Research
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DeltaAI Computer Opens New Possibilities for AI-Based Research

Researchers across the U.S. can now access an artificial intelligence-based computer called DeltaAI developed by the National Center for Supercomputing Applications, a unit of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. 

National Science Foundation grants of nearly $30 million funded the DeltaAI development that included advanced hardware, such as the NVIDIA GH200 Grace Hopper Superchip, NCSA said Monday in its announcement of the computer’s launch.

The center built and operates DeltaAI at the University of Illinois National Petascale Computing Facility. The new supercomputer complements the NCSA’s advanced Delta computing and data resource, which was also established with NSF support.

Computing Capacity Quadruples

With DeltaAI, NCSA said it will quadruple its AI-based computing capacity. The new computer is accessible through the NSF ACCESS program and the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource pilot projects.

NCSA Director Bill Gropp noted the explosion in researchers’ demand for AI-driven computing and data resources. “With the addition of DeltaAI to our suite of AI and machine-learning resources, NCSA is perfectly positioned to usher in a new era of innovative and responsible AI computing,” he said.

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DARPA & Partners Test CANDOR Cyber Capability Platform
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DARPA & Partners Test CANDOR Cyber Capability Platform

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the U.S. Army Cyber Command Technical Warfare Center and Project Manager-Defensive Cyber Operations recently conducted an operational test and evaluation of the Cyber Analytics for Network Defense and Response Options, or CANDOR, platform.

The Need for CANDOR

CANDOR seeks to deliver automated threat hunting and enhanced network monitoring capabilities to cyber operators, DARPA said Monday. With the help of containerization, the platform can be speedily integrated into and deployed on various kinds of infrastructure like data centers or the cloud.

Platform Test Results

During the test, CANDOR was successfully deployed in an operational test environment. Developers were then able to use the platform to deploy cyber analytic applications and detect and analyze malicious activity.

Regarding the results, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Nate Bastian, the DARPA program manager for CANDOR, said, “This test proved CANDOR’s high flexibility and adaptability as an innovative solution designed for deployment across multiple environments.”

Constellation Program

The platform is one of six projects being carried out under the Constellation program, which seeks to accelerate the development of cyber technologies so they can be delivered to users. The Constellation program is a joint effort between DARPA and U.S. Cyber Command.

“Given Constellation’s objective to accelerate the transition of research and development to capability delivery, we were able to drastically shorten the design, development, and testing of CANDOR from months to weeks with consistent user integration with ARCYBER,” Bastian noted.

ACT-IAC White Paper Promotes Framework for Automating ATO Process
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ACT-IAC White Paper Promotes Framework for Automating ATO Process

The American Council for Technology-Industry Advisory Council is calling for the adoption of Open Security Controls Assessment Language, or OSCAL, an open standard framework for automating the authority to operate risk assessment processes for software systems, Federal News Network reported Monday.

ATO-as-Code Maturity Model

In a white paper, ACT-IAC presented a five-level operational maturity model designed to help organizations adopt and scale OSCAL and implement ATO-as-code. The paper noted that the model requires market advancement of security tools and capabilities.

Dan Jacobs, the cloud portfolio manager at the Office of Personnel Management and member of the ACT-IAC Cybersecurity Community of Interest ATO-as-code project team, said the model informs organizations of the step-by-step actions needed to achieve a fully automated ATO risk management process.

Organizations committed to adopting OSCAL must integrate the automated process into their acquisition cycle in a way that vendors will support the new method, which should involve an OSCAL-ready governance, risk and compliance tool, Jacobs added.

OPM’s ATO-as-Code Adoption

OPM has begun implementing the ATO-as-code strategy. According to the cloud portfolio manager, the open standards will enable the agency to assure its federal government customers that their data collected from logging, continuous integration and continuous delivery pipeline, cloud-based application programming interfaces and other tools are treated securely.

ATO-as-code will also support OPM’s development of an integrated risk management and enterprise risk management function. “We recognize we cannot do that using manual means,” Jacobs explained. “It must be automated and that automation is not going to happen through proprietary systems because our customers are the entire federal government and any proprietary solution simply is not going to work.”

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DLA Awards Additive Manufacturing Contract for F-15 Part
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DLA Awards Additive Manufacturing Contract for F-15 Part

The Defense Logistics Agency has awarded a contract for the procurement of additively manufactured parts for the F-15 aircraft.

The agency said Monday the contract covers the production and delivery of 1,300 pylon bumpers, a critical part that prevents structural damage to the F-15 aircraft. The contract was awarded to an unnamed commercial company through an open, competitive process for the first time. The DLA previously awarded contracts for 3D-printed parts through sole-source commercial contracts and sole-source organic contracts.

Benefits of Additively Manufactured Parts

Additive manufacturing enables the production of parts right where they are needed. Through the process, troops can print the parts by themselves whenever they need them. This eliminates transportation and handling costs, storage space and longer lead times.

“Warfighters won’t have to wait for a ship to bring the parts they need across the ocean; they just need the technical data file and the machine to print them,” said Tony Delgado, additive manufacturing program manager at DLA. 

DLA Collaboration With Service Branches

DLA is working with different services to boost 3D printing for military procurement. The agency established the Additive Manufacturing Integrated Product Team to streamline the procurement of additively manufactured parts. Some examples include parachute rip cords and B-2 bomber knobs for the U.S. Air Force, fuel pump module protective caps for the Marine Corps, M1 Abrams tank tube assemblies for the Army and electronic covers for H-60 Seahawk helicopters for the Navy.

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Navy Unveils Plan for FY25 Financial Management Strategy
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Navy Unveils Plan for FY25 Financial Management Strategy

The Department of the Navy has released a plan outlining its annual goals, key performance indicators and timelines to incrementally implement its Financial Management Strategy for fiscal year 2025.

In a LinkedIn post published Friday, the DON Financial Management and Comptroller said the FM Strategy FY 2025 Implementation Plan, also known as the iPlan, aligns with the Secretary of the Navy’s strategic guidance and the Department of Defense’s Financial Management Strategy.

Leveraging Data Analytics 

One of the five strategic goals of DON’s FM Strategy is leveraging data analytics to improve the department’s financial operations.

This strategic goal has two objectives: instilling trust in FM data through governance and transparence standards and ensuring that analytics and metrics can rapidly evolve to meet the demands of changing operations.

To achieve the first objective, there are three FY 2025 goals, including expanding the use and accessibility of enterprise data, analytics and artificial intelligence and machine learning tools and developing a comprehensive FM data governance program. Delivering 15 or more financial management data and digital transformation customer training events and developing two AI and ML products are some of the KPIs for FY 2025.

Under this strategic goal, the department expects to facilitate real-time access to consolidated financial data to enable decision-making.

Other Strategic Goals of DON’s FM Strategy

The other four goals of the department’s FM Strategy are enhancing the highly skilled and engaged FM workforce to support its mission; standardizing business processes and strengthening internal controls to improve accountability; optimizing stewardship and trust in DON’s budget process; and consolidating the department’s financial systems and enhancing cybersecurity controls to improve data integrity.

GovCon Index’s Record-Setting Period is Followed by Substantial Weekly Loss
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GovCon Index’s Record-Setting Period is Followed by Substantial Weekly Loss

Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index sustained a weekly loss of 9.31%, ending the period 1.78% lower than the previous record-setting week. The index closed at an average of $5,160.07.

GovCon Index collects stock market data from 30 key government contracting companies in real time. This data is showcased in an easily accessible format that allows site visitors to make their own assessments of how each organization is performing while gaining insight into current trends shaping the government contracting landscape 

Current Stock Market Trends 

As stated by some market analysts, potential policy changes stemming from the presidential election could be the cause of the recent declines in government and defense contractors stock. Significant cuts could be expected as the newly established Department of Government Efficiency aims to reshape government spending priorities.

Weekly Performance 

Momentum is still on Palantir Technologies’ side. As GCI’s top performer in 2024, the company increased 11.14% before the weekend and 12.64% in five days.

On the other hand, Science Applications International Corporation and KBR dropped more than 14%, while ICF led Friday’s declines with an 11.48% drop. Leidos decreased 13.6% on Thursday and 19.24% in five days.

Check out last week’s market reports to get an inside look at daily GovCon Index performance. To look at the full list of tracked organizations, visit GovConIndex.com.

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Gordon Bitko Joins GSA’s Acquisition Advisory Committee
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Gordon Bitko Joins GSA’s Acquisition Advisory Committee

Gordon Bitko, a seasoned executive with over 25 years of experience in technology development and management, has been selected by the U.S. General Services Administration to be part of its Acquisition Policy Federal Advisory Committee, or GAP FAC.

The Information Technology Industry Council said Thursday Bitko will join the council and advise GSA on procurement tools and authorities to address high-priority federal acquisition challenges.

Bitko will leverage his extensive experience serving in the ITI Council in his new role. The current ITI executive vice president of public sector is knowledgeable in the development and implementation of technology policies, strategic plans and technology roadmaps.

Gordon Bitko’s Early Career

Before joining the ITI Council, Bitko served in the FBI for over 12 years. He started in 2007 as a management analyst before moving up to section chief of strategy and performance. He eventually became chief information officer for almost four years.

Bitko also had stops at Motorola, Symbian, Nanomuscle and RAND Corp.

“Technology offers federal agencies pragmatic and impactful tools to better serve the American public and tackle longstanding acquisition challenges,” said Bitko. “I’m honored to serve on GSA’s Acquisition Policy Federal Advisory Committee and look forward to working with its diverse set of experts to help ensure that the U.S. government’s adoption of emerging technologies is reasonable, actionable, secure, and efficient now and into the future.”

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House Bill Seeks Improved SBA IT Modernization Governance
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House Bill Seeks Improved SBA IT Modernization Governance

Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., has introduced the “SBA IT Modernization Reform Act of 2024.” The bill calls on the Small Business Administration, through its chief information officer, to take actions to put into effect the recommendations in a recent Government Accountability Office report about the SBA Unified Certification Platform.

Purpose of the UCP

The report, published on Nov. 6 and released publicly on Nov. 13, details the review GAO conducted regarding the platform’s implementation and rollout. The purpose of the platform is to allow the SBA to consolidate into a single system the multiple legacy IT systems used by the agency to certify whether or not a small business is eligible for contracting assistance programs.

According to the report, SBA intended to deploy UCP in September. The rollout was eventually delayed to Oct. 18 due to a need to address issued that arose during testing. Moving forward, work will have to be done to add more complex functionality, ensure system security and migrate data.

UCP Implementation Issues

In its review, GAO determined that SBA failed to fully implement leading practices for risk management, cybersecurity, and schedule and cost estimation. To address the various issues with the UCP project, GAO offered a total of 14 recommendations, including the need to address risk management and cybersecurity problems. Of the 14, SBA only concurred with three and partially concurred with three others.

Governance of IT Modernization

Under the proposed bill, the SBA administrator would have to submit to Congress a plan that details the steps the agency would take to ensure the proper governance of its IT modernization projects, including the management of cyber and other risks related to the various phases of a project’s lifecycle.

The plan would have to be submitted within 180 days of the bill’s enactment.

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