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Sierra Lobo Awarded NASA Stennis Test Operations Contract
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Sierra Lobo Awarded NASA Stennis Test Operations Contract

Sierra Lobo has secured a three-year NASA contract to provide test operations support and technical system maintenance services for the agency’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

The space agency said Thursday the $47 million NASA Stennis Test Operations Contract has a one-year base term, which is set to kick off on July 1, 2025, and two option years.

The fixed-price contract includes technical systems maintenance and operations support for high-pressure gas, high-pressure industrial water and cryogenic propellant storage support areas.

The vendor will also provide fabrication, machining, welding and component processing capabilities under the contract.

Previously Awarded NASA Contract

In February, Sierra Lobo won the $282.1 million Space Flight Systems Development and Operations Contract III to support NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

Under the cost-plus-fixed-fee contract, the company will provide space flight hardware design, software development and technology testing and demonstration support.

The Fremont, Ohio-based company provides specialized space and aerospace test, evaluation and engineering support for government and industry customers. It offers research and development services through its Technology Development and Engineering Center in northern Ohio.

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Army Expands Project Athena With #CalibrateAI
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Army Expands Project Athena With #CalibrateAI

The U.S. Army is integrating #CalibrateAI into Project Athena, an initiative focused on leveraging commercially available generative artificial intelligence tools.

The Army said Tuesday the #CalibrateAI initiative, overseen by the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Data, Engineering and Software, under the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, aims to enhance military operations through the use of generative AI.

What Is Project Athena?

The Project Athena initiative, spearheaded by the Army chief information officer and the Office of Enterprise Management, examines generative AI tools and platforms to determine their features, use cases and costs, as well as develop cost mitigation strategies and understand the value of various deployment architectures.

The initiative, which runs until April 2025, involves soliciting AI prompts and developing curated library collections. These collections are utilized by AI platforms for grounding answers in Army language, facts and referenced documents. This is done to provide accurate and reliable AI-generated content.

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VA Seeks Solution to Modernize Human Capital Management Functions
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VA Seeks Solution to Modernize Human Capital Management Functions

The Department of Veterans Affairs is requesting information on qualified vendors that can support efforts to modernize the agency’s human capital management capabilities.

Through this market research, VA is looking to procure subscription licenses for a cloud-based platform solution that can be continuously modernized and enhanced to advance the department’s goal of automating its HCM functions, according to a Wednesday notice on SAM.gov.

Meeting Baseline HR Requirements

The government requires an advanced solution that can satisfy the baseline human resources requirements, keep pace with evolving business operational demands and improve the overall user experience. The HCM technology must also seamlessly function with a constantly changing HR regulatory and policy environment.

In addition, VA expects the potential contractor to deploy a platform that meets the employee lifecycle management functions of agency offices. Specifically, the desired solution should provide a single portal for employee-facing information, engagement and services.

Modern Talent Acquisition Capabilities

VA envisions that the solution will improve its human capital lifecycle management approach and enable the department to better compete with new recruitment and talent acquisition capabilities currently used across the public and private industries. Interested parties are invited to submit capability statements by Dec. 12.

POC - 2024 Healthcare Summit

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GlobalFoundries Wins $1.5B for Semiconductor Facilities
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GlobalFoundries Wins $1.5B for Semiconductor Facilities

The U.S. Department of Commerce has selected GlobalFoundries to receive up to $1.5 billion in direct funding under the CHIPS Incentives Program’s Funding Opportunity for Commercial Fabrication Facilities intended to bolster the semiconductor supply chain by supporting multiple of the company’s sites across the northeast U.S.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology said Wednesday the CHIPS investment is intended to boost U.S. competitiveness in the semiconductor industry by enhancing GF’s manufacturing facilities in New York and Vermont. 

CHIPS Investment Meant to Boost Production, Employment Rate

The $1.5 billion fund will be included in GF’s planned $13 billion investment over the next 10 years or so for the modernization of the company’s existing sites in New York and Vermont. In addition, GF will build a new facility in New York. These facilities manufacture current-generation chips utilized for critical industries such as automotive, smart mobile, aerospace, defense and communications semiconductor technologies.

Aside from strengthening the nation’s supply chain resilience, the investment is expected to generate around 9,000 construction and 1,000 manufacturing jobs. It will also support the Upstate New York Investing in America Workforce Hub, which aims to train New Yorkers for jobs in the semiconductor supply chain.  

“By investing in GF’s domestic manufacturing capabilities, we are helping to secure a stable domestic supply of chips that are found in everything from home electronics to advanced weapons systems,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. 

Thomas Caulfield, president and CEO of GF, stated, “GF’s essential chips are at the core of U.S. economic, supply chain and national security. We greatly appreciate the support and funding from both the U.S. government and the states of New York and Vermont, which we will use to ensure our customers have the American-made chips they need to succeed and win.” 

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CBO Projects 11% Increase in Defense Costs by 2039
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CBO Projects 11% Increase in Defense Costs by 2039

The Congressional Budget Office analyzed the Department of Defense’s plans between 2025 and 2029 as outlined in the 2025 Future Years Defense Program, or FYDP, and projected that defense costs under such plans would increase by 11 percent to $965 billion in 2039.

According to a CBO report published Wednesday, 64 percent of the cost increase would occur in operation and support.

Of the $99 billion increase in annual costs that CBO projects over a decade starting 2029, 32 percent would be for weapon systems development and procurement and 4 percent would be for infrastructure.

According to the 2025 FYDP, the defense budget would rise to $866 billion by 2029, reflecting a 1.9 percent increase from 2025.

CBO noted that the total costs of DOD’s plans between 2025 and 2029 would be about 4 percent or $154 billion higher than the department indicated in the 2025 FYDP.

From 2025 through 2039, the total costs would be approximately 5 percent or $677 billion higher than DOD stated in the current FYDP.

According to the report, DOD would need to reduce its plans or seek larger budgets to accommodate the higher costs.

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CISA Red Team Exercise Offers Ways to Tighten Infrastructure Cybersecurity
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CISA Red Team Exercise Offers Ways to Tighten Infrastructure Cybersecurity

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has issued an advisory on learnings from a red team cyberattack exercise and recommendations on countermeasures against the malicious activities simulated in the assessment. The exercise was conducted upon the request of a critical infrastructure organization, which also coordinated the release of the assessment, CISA said Thursday. 

Titled “Enhancing Cyber Resilience: Insights from CISA Red Team Assessment of a U.S. Critical Infrastructure Sector Organization,” the 36-page advisory reported that the assessed organization lacked sufficient technical controls for preventing and detecting malicious activity. It was heavily dependent on host-based endpoint detection and response and had insufficient network layer protection, the exercise showed. 

Software Security Challenge

Another learning from the red team activity highlighted the need for continuous staff training and support resources for implementing secure software platforms and detecting malicious activities.

The CISA advisory also lined up mitigation measures that software manufacturers should take to address the cybersecurity risks and challenges facing critical infrastructure owners and operators as demonstrated in the red team exercise. 

The remedies that the agency suggests include software manufacturers’ adherence to CISA’s Secure by Design principles and embedding security into software architecture in the product’s entire development lifecycle. 

To mitigate vulnerability to cyberattacks, the CISA document also recommends eliminating default passwords and mandating multi-factor authentication for privileged users.

US Warns Against Russia-Backed Sabotage Attacks in Europe
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US Warns Against Russia-Backed Sabotage Attacks in Europe

Joint security guidance from various U.S. agencies warned American companies about Russia’s recruitment of criminals to launch sabotage attacks against Europe’s defense industrial base, military installations, logistics facilities and public utilities to undermine allied support for Ukraine.

Authored by the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, the FBI and several Department of Defense agencies, the advisory published on Thursday by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence encouraged U.S. companies, particularly those supporting entities involved in the Ukraine conflict or other ongoing geopolitical conflicts, to remain vigilant and enhance their security efforts to defend against potential Russian sabotage activity.

Attacks on Behalf of Russia, Belarus

The guidance, titled Safeguarding the U.S. Defense Industrial Base and Private Industry Against Sabotage, cited recent arson and sabotage attacks that targeted a Ukraine-linked business in London and various infrastructure in Poland on behalf of Russia and Belarus to highlight threats posed by the engagement of the Russian intelligence services with criminals.

To secure the U.S. defense industrial base from such attacks, the document provides indicators of potential sabotage activity, mitigation steps and information on where to report incidents.

Protection Against Acts of Sabotage

Potential sabotage indicators include explicit or implied threats to facilities or personnel; online posts by individuals noting their intent to commit violence; and drone or small unmanned aircraft systems operating near facilities, staff or systems or employees who bring unauthorized cameras, tools or software into the workplace.

U.S. companies are advised to engage with law enforcement and intelligence agencies to be informed about potential threats and best security practices; enhance security posture by providing regular training on security awareness and ensuring physical security, cybersecurity monitoring and surveillance of key system nodes; and improve the security of the supply chain to deter and mitigate sabotage attacks.

The entities are encouraged to report suspicious activities to the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

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Lockheed Martin Collaborates With Iceye to Integrate ATR Tech
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Lockheed Martin Collaborates With Iceye to Integrate ATR Tech

Lockheed Martin is working with Iceye to integrate automated target recognition, or ATR, technologies into Finland’s military. 

Lockheed will use its artificial intelligence-powered ATR systems alongside Iceye’s synthetic aperture radar, or SAR, imagery satellites, to support Finland’s F-35 tactical aviation program with space-based intelligence and analytics, Space News reported Wednesday. 

Jonathon Brant, Lockheed Martin fellow for artificial intelligence, said the Finnish military would integrate the ATR algorithms into mobile intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems.

Evolution of ATR 

The next evolution of ATR algorithms will involve multi-modal data merging, allowing intelligence analysts to locate adversaries using radar and optical imagery. Brant said the initiative aims to speed up decision-making by providing operational intelligence in real-time. 

“Operators need to increase their speed to decision, and this means delivering information faster,” Brant stated.

Lockheed Martin’s Work With F-35 Fighter Jets

In May, Lockheed also partnered with Maxar Intelligence to scale the purchase and delivery of geospatial products for the F-35 fighter jets simulation platform. Through the agreement, Lockheed aimed to regulate licensing, pricing and requirements for Maxar’s various products. 

Iceye’s Recent Portfolio Growth

Iceye signed a definitive contract in April for a $93 million growth funding round, increasing the company’s total amount raised to $438 million. The microsatellite manufacturer said it would use the funding to enhance investment in SAR satellites and broaden its product portfolio.

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DIU Taps Software Vendors for Replicator Program Support
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DIU Taps Software Vendors for Replicator Program Support

The Defense Innovation Unit has selected two batches of software developers to support Replicator, a Department of Defense project seeking to advance resilient command and control and collaborative autonomy solutions for all-domain attritable autonomous—a.k.a. ADA2—systems.

Tapped for critical roles in the initiative are Aalyria, Higher Ground, IoT/AI and Viasat, which will deliver opportunistic, resilient and innovative expeditionary network topology capabilities to enhance the resilience of C2 for ADA2 systems. Meanwhile, Anduril Industries, L3Harris Technologies and Swarm Aero will provide solutions to increase swarm drones’ lethality and efficiency under the autonomous collaborative teaming effort, DIU said Wednesday.

DOD Collaboration With the Nontraditional Tech Sector

DIU Director Doug Beck noted that the government is collaborating with companies outside the traditional defense industrial base to acquire commercial software solutions for the DOD modernization efforts.

“DIU is working actively with partners across the department to bring the very best capabilities from the U.S. tech sector to bear in support of our most critical warfighter needs,” he remarked.

Improve Replicator Systems’ Effectiveness

The selected vendors will provide user interfaces, collaborative autonomy architectures and software, and network orchestration to enhance the effectiveness of Replicator systems. The technology will enable the ADA2 systems to link long-haul communications systems to redundant local mesh networks to ensure they can operate as a system of systems in disrupted environments. The combined platforms will then support “heterogeneous collaboration” between various Replicator systems and advance the Pentagon’s increasing embrace of collaborative autonomy.

Adm. Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a Wash100 Award recipient, stressed that Replicator accelerates the development of U.S. autonomous systems.

Currently, the Replicator initiative prioritizes the delivery of advanced capabilities to U.S. Indo-Pacific Command forces but the solutions are designed to eventually support the entire joint force.

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L3Harris, General Dynamics CEOs Added to AIA Board of Governors
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L3Harris, General Dynamics CEOs Added to AIA Board of Governors

U.S. aerospace and defense industry trade organization Aerospace Industries Association announced Wednesday that it has elected Chris Kubasik as chair of its board of governors and Phebe Novakovic as vice chair.

Who Is Chris Kubasik?

Kubasik is the chair and CEO of L3Harris Technologies. He is also a Wash100 Award recipient.

Commenting on his appointment on AIA’s board of governors, Kubasik said, “It’s a privilege to serve as AIA chair,” adding, “The aerospace and defense industry is the center of our nation’s arsenal, and our mission to deliver the most advanced solutions is more important than ever. I look forward to partnering with my industry colleagues, the incoming administration and Congress to harness the ingenuity of our U.S.-based, world-class talent and unleash our industry’s innovative spirit.”

Who Is Phebe Novakovic?

Another Wash100 awardee, Novakovic is the chairman and CEO of General Dynamics. Regarding her appointment on the AIA board of governors, Novakovic said, “I am very pleased to serve AIA and its leadership as we continue our important work together on behalf of the industry.”

Just like Kubasik, the General Dynamics chief executive recognizes the importance of the aerospace and defense industry to U.S. national and economic security. “As the voice of our industry, AIA helps communicate our role in the nation’s economy and defense, providing a forum for industry to share opportunities, best practices and joint challenges,” Novakovic said.

Gratitude & Praise From AIA CEO

For his part, Eric Fanning, who has been reelected as AIA president and CEO, expressed gratitude for Kubasik’s and Novakovic’s willingness to serve on the board of governors.

“Chris’ commitment to innovation and excellence coupled with his grasp of the industry’s complexities will drive our mission forward. Under his stewardship, AIA will successfully navigate these dynamic times and continue to advocate for the policies and investments that ensure the industry’s resilience, security, and prosperity,” Fanning added.

Term Length

The appointments go into effect immediately. Kubasik’s and Novakovic’s terms will last through 2025.

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