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Pentagon Issues Instruction on Value Engineering Program
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Pentagon Issues Instruction on Value Engineering Program

The Department of Defense has released a document establishing policy and outlining the authorities for the administration of DOD’s Value Engineering Program.

The latest DOD Instruction took effect Tuesday, Oct. 1, and was approved by Heidi Shyu, DOD’s undersecretary for research and engineering and a 2024 Wash100 awardee.

Value engineering, or VE, allows DOD components to analyze the functions of projects, programs, systems, products and services, among others, and reportedly plays a key role in helping the department meet its mission of providing the military with the equipment and other systems needed to deter war and protect national security.

The issuance states that DOD components should implement a VE program to foster innovation, enhance value and reduce costs over the acquisition and operation life cycle.

A component VE program has two areas: a government-only program using VE proposals to implement changes and a government contractor process that uses contractor-initiated VE change proposals, or VECPs, to implement government-approved changes.

The instruction outlines the responsibilities of the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering—or USD R&E—and DOD component heads, as well as those of the two governance bodies: the department’s VE executive steering group and the VE management advisory group.

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Brian Mazanec on Cybersecurity Division Within HHS Administration
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Brian Mazanec on Cybersecurity Division Within HHS Administration

Brian Mazanec, deputy director for the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response’s Center for Preparedness within the Department of Health and Human Services, said a cybersecurity division within the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection serves as the focal point for ASPR’s cyber work with the healthcare sector, Federal News Network reported Tuesday.

According to Mazanec, the cyber division has employed an “initial tranche” of federal personnel and incident response is one of its core responsibilities.

For instance, the ASPR team will work with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the FBI to help respond and provide support in the event of a cyber attack on a major hospital.

“We come in and try to understand, well, what are the patient impacts, what systems are down, what things can we offer to potentially help or be monitoring, to maybe take further actions to again, blunt those patient impacts,” the deputy director said.

Mazanec noted that “communication and education” is another key facet of the cyber division within ASPR, which he said is bolstering its proactive outreach efforts on cyber issues within the health sector.

In December 2023, HHS released a concept paper outlining the planned steps to improve cyber resilience and ensure patient safety as part of its cybersecurity strategy for the healthcare sector.

Attend the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Healthcare Summit on Dec. 11, and explore the transformative trends and innovations shaping the future of the U.S. health care sector. Register now!

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NASA Launches LunaRecycle Challenge for Space Waste Management Innovations
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NASA Launches LunaRecycle Challenge for Space Waste Management Innovations

NASA has launched the LunaRecycle Challenge, a competition aimed at developing possible waste management services for deep space missions.

The agency said Monday interested teams, vying for $3 million in prizes, are expected to develop energy-efficient, low-mass and low-impact recycling systems for turning physical waste streams like food packaging, old clothes and science experiment materials into usable products.

Innovators interested in joining the competition should tackle the following technological needs:

  • Logistics tracking, clothing and trash management for habitation
  • In-space and on-surface manufacturing of parts and products
  • In-space and on-surface manufacturing from recycled and reused materials

The challenge is also intended to support NASA’s initiatives of achieving long-duration human space travel and building a sustained human presence on the Moon.

NASA’s LunaRecycle Challenge features two tracks: the Prototype Build track for developing hardware for recycling solid waste materials on the lunar surface and the Digital Twin Track, which focuses on creating a virtual replica of the recycling system.

Amy Kaminski, program executive for prizes, challenges and crowdsourcing program at NASA, said, “Operating sustainably is an important consideration for NASA as we make discoveries and conduct research both away from home and on Earth.”

Kim Krome, acting program manager for NASA’s Centennial Challenges, added, “We are eager for this challenge to serve as a positive catalyst for bringing the agency and humanity, closer to exploring worlds beyond our own.”

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Deloitte & NASCIO Release 2024 Report on Cyber Threat Landscape
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Deloitte & NASCIO Release 2024 Report on Cyber Threat Landscape

Many state chief information security officers say the increase in sophistication of cybersecurity threats is outpacing the amount of resources states are allocating to address them, according to the 2024 edition of the Deloitte-NASCIO Cybersecurity Study.

Deloitte said Monday that it and the National Association of Chief Information Officers have been conducting the study every two years since 2010 with the aim of updating state leaders concerning the cybersecurity threat landscape. The 2024 study, which was completed this spring, covers input from the CISOs of all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Of the CISOs surveyed, four said less than one percent of their state’s IT budget is allocated for cybersecurity while more than a third said they do not have a budget dedicated specifically for cybersecurity. In contrast, federal agencies allocate over 10 percent of their budgets for that purpose.

CISOs have nevertheless undertaken efforts to mitigate cyber risks, including by onboarding specialists who can focus on cybersecurity-related matters, according to NASCIO Deputy Executive Director Meredith Ward.

“In addition to growing their teams, our research found these leaders are determined to find creative solutions to protect their organizations and the public,” Ward, who co-authored the 2024 report, added.

The same report reveals that many state CISOs have turned to generative artificial intelligence to bolster security operations, even though the same technology is seen as a potential source of threats.

“The attack surface is expanding as state leaders’ reliance on information becomes increasingly central to the operation of government itself, and CISOs have an increasingly challenging mission to make the technology infrastructure resilient against ever-increasing cyber threats,” commented Srini Subramanian, the global government and public services consulting leader at Deloitte and co-author of the 2024 report.

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OSTP Report Covers Federal Implementation of Scientific Integrity Policies
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OSTP Report Covers Federal Implementation of Scientific Integrity Policies

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has released a report outlining the key achievements that federal agencies have made to implement scientific integrity policies since the release of a presidential memorandum in 2021.

In the September report, OSTP noted that 19 federal agencies have updated or issued new policies to strengthen scientific integrity in government, the White House said Monday.

One of those agencies is the Department of Homeland Security, which released in September a directive that outlines the policy and requirements to promote a culture of scientific integrity and protect scientific processes from research misconduct and political interference, among others.

The final directive came a year after DHS sought public comments on the draft scientific integrity policy.

The biennial report also provided details on key measures to strengthen federal scientific integrity policies, including a January 2022 report on safeguarding the integrity of government science and a January 2023 framework for federal scientific integrity policy and practice.

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Homeland Security Summit on Nov. 13 to learn more about technology initiatives to protect the country amid the evolving geopolitical landscape. Register now!

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GAO Says Navy’s $130B Columbia Submarine Program Plagued by Delays, Cost Overruns
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GAO Says Navy’s $130B Columbia Submarine Program Plagued by Delays, Cost Overruns

The U.S. Navy needs to better manage the risks associated with its project to acquire 12 Columbia class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines for $130 billion, according to the Government Accountability Office.

In a report published on Monday, GAO said design and construction challenges continue to plague the program, noting that the first vessel will be delivered over a year late and will cost the government more money.

The office reviewed the program’s latest construction performance and concluded that the first submarine will come out between October 2028 and February 2029.

Consequently, the late delivery would push back the initial submarine’s scheduled availability for operations in 2030 and affect the United States’ nuclear deterrence efforts, the report warned.

To address the delays and cost overruns, GAO urges the Navy to implement specific measures, such as establishing realistic program cost estimates and analysis to address the risk of further degrading the project’s performance.

It is also crucial for the service to rethink whether its investments in the supplier base led to higher production, resulted in significant cost savings and created the intended program benefits, the report stressed.

Overall, GAO submitted five recommendations, including that the Navy must direct its partner shipbuilder to revise the program’s estimated cost at completion.

For its part, the Department of Defense agreed with the suggestions and outlined the actions it would take to address them.

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HHS Issues Strategic Healthcare Roadmap
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HHS Issues Strategic Healthcare Roadmap

The Department of Health and Human Services has released its 2024–2030 Federal Health IT Strategic Plan, or PDFin, finalizing the goals and focus uses for U.S. health information technology. 

The 33-page PDFin calls for health IT and electronic data deployment to achieve four goals, including accelerating research and innovation, the HHS said Monday.   

The roadmap also calls for health IT and technology to drive health and wellness promotion, enhance care delivery and experience, and establish health system connection with health data.

The HHS Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, or ASTP, collaborated with over 25 federal agencies to develop the strategic plan and requested industry feedback after publishing it in March.

Micky Tripathi, assistant secretary for technology policy and national coordinator for health information technology, said the plan’s strategies “signal priorities to industry,” describing PDFin as “a guide” on prioritizing HHS resources, aligning and coordinating federal health IT initiatives and activities. 

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Healthcare Summit to keep pace with the trends and innovations shaping the future of the healthcare sector. Register here.

HHS Issues Strategic Healthcare Roadmap
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US Navy Awards BlackSky Contract for Data Transmission R&D
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US Navy Awards BlackSky Contract for Data Transmission R&D

The U.S. Navy has awarded BlackSky Technology a research contract to investigate technology that would provide warfighters with immediately available imagery during critical international and domestic missions.

Under the contract, BlackSky will identify uses and capabilities for advanced optical intersatellite link terminals on board its Gen-3 imaging satellites, the Herndon, Virginia-based company announced Thursday.

Brian O’Toole, BlackSky CEO, said, “BlackSky is making space a viable option for the tactical ISR mission.”

“Extending our Gen-3 satellite capabilities with optical inter-satellite link terminals will give Navy customers assured access to real-time earth imaging capabilities across the full range of warfighting scenarios both while underway and ashore,” O’Toole stated.

Optical intersatellite links are laser-based communications relays that reportedly transfer faster and more resilient data transmission rates than radio frequency systems. Through the contract, BlackSky will modernize its systems to accommodate an optical inter-satellite link terminal aligned with the Space Development Agency’s Transport Layer and commercial transport layers.

“End users will receive BlackSky data and insights ten times faster, with data volumes five times greater than current systems,” O’Toole added.

BlackSky will also look to develop innovative operating procedures that inform the acquisition of commercial transport network nodes, how data is transported and how to maintain the core Earth-imaging mission.

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NOAA Initiates TraCSS Beta Phase with 9 Satellite Operators
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NOAA Initiates TraCSS Beta Phase with 9 Satellite Operators

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under the U.S. Department of Commerce, has initiated the beta phase of the Traffic Coordination System for Space.

The Commerce Department said Monday the TraCSS program, a cloud-based information technology system that warns satellites against possible collisions through conjunction data messages—a.k.a. CDMs—has started providing spaceflight safety services to a beta group of satellite operators.

This marks the first time satellite operators are given space situational awareness and space traffic coordination services by the DOC.

The nine satellite operators currently receiving notification warnings or CDMs include:

  • Aerospace Corp.
  • Eutelsat Oneweb
  • Georgia Institute of Technology
  • Intelsat
  • Iridium
  • Maxar
  • NOAA
  • Planet Labs
  • Telesat

Don Graves, deputy secretary of Commerce, pointed out the significance of the TraCSS program to the department’s efforts to boost the nation’s presence in the global commercial space industry. “The Department of Commerce is building this system in close cooperation with industry partners to harness and promote commercial innovation in space.”

NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, added, “As space has become more congested, NOAA has risen to the challenge to prevent catastrophic collisions in space by developing TraCSS.”

Richard Dalbello, director of NOAA’s Office of Space Commerce, said, “TraCSS represents a modern approach to spaceflight safety, integrating the latest technologies and providing on-ramps for continuous improvements that will scale into the future.”

Parsons, a national security services company specializing in the space domain, serves as the system integration and cloud management services lead for TraCSS.

Mike Kushin, president of defense and intelligence at Parsons, said, “This important milestone is a significant step toward developing a robust and secure system for space situational awareness, which is vital for the safety of our shared space environment and its assets in orbit.”

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DIU Seeks Proposals for Long Range One-way UAS Platforms
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DIU Seeks Proposals for Long Range One-way UAS Platforms

The Defense Innovation Unit has issued a solicitation for long-range one-way unmanned aerial systems.

According to the DIU, the proposals will address the need for advanced one-way UAS to be utilized in modern warfare and bolster the Department of Defense’s operational capabilities.

The DOD is seeking proposals for ground-launched, one-way UAS platforms that can operate at ranges from 50 to over 300 km and navigate at low altitudes while carrying a payload of 10 to over 25 kg.

These quick-launching UAS should be able to avoid detection by broad-area search systems and stay beyond line of sight in disrupted, disconnected, intermittent and low-bandwidth and Global Navigation Satellite System-denied environments. 

Furthermore, the UAS is expected to continue operating even without stable communication with the operator.

Interested vendors have until Oct. 14 to submit their proposals.

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