Naval Research Laboratory Gets Tech Transfer Recognition; Erick Iezzi Comments
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Naval Research Laboratory Gets Tech Transfer Recognition; Erick Iezzi Comments


naval research laboratoryThe U.S. Naval Research Laboratory has received the 2016 Excellence in Technology Transfer Award from the Mid-Atlantic Region Federal Laboratory Consortium for the lab’s work on contaminant transfer analyst and siloxane-based non-skid coating technologies.

The award recognizes NRL’s effort to deliver the CT-Analyst tool to first responders at the federal, state, local and international levels and for the lab’s development of a two-component siloxane-based non-skid coating for U.S. Navy surface ship decks, the Navy said Tuesday.

Two teams at NRL that earned the award comprised of representatives from the NRL Office of Technology Transfer, Office of Counsel, Defense Department TechLink and NFC Coatings.

FLC, a network of federal laboratories and federal facilities, presented the award to the researchers during the FLC Mid-Atlantic regional meeting and industry day on Oct. 18 at the Universities of Shady Grove in Rockville, Maryland.

CT-Analyst works to help first responders predict chemical, biological and radiological agent transport in urban settings through its precomputed plume information databases called Nomografs.

The siloxane-based non-skid coating also has a longer service life-expectancy.

“Compared to legacy epoxy-based non-skids, the new siloxane-based coating provides greater color and profile retention in harsh operational environments, improved repellency of hydrocarbons, an ease of application, especially when sprayed, and most importantly, a longer life-span,” said Erick Iezzi, lead coating formulator at NRL Center for Corrosion Science and Engineering.

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DOJ Seeks Digital Services Director for CIO Office
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DOJ Seeks Digital Services Director for CIO Office


digital governmentThe Justice Department is looking for a professional to serve as digital services director at DOJ’s office of the chief information officer.

DOJ said in a USAJobs notice posted Thursday the selected candidate will lead the creation of a digital services office and work with stakeholders across the federal government to optimize digital services.

The role is a Senior Executive Service position with a maximum term of three years.

The director will lead the use of digital analytics to aid customer service; apply best practices from the consumer internet industry on technological development and management practices; and provide technical, policy, and programmatic guidance to senior DoJ leaders.

The incumbent will also evaluate progress, findings and planning approaches and documents as well as  facilitate team building and government programs to optimize applications and services.

Other duties include identification and development of support and tools to implement a common user experience and brand across government digital services.

DoJ will accept applications until Nov. 17.

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Navy Arleigh Burke Destroyer to be Named USS Frank E Petersen Jr
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Navy Arleigh Burke Destroyer to be Named USS Frank E Petersen Jr


arleigh-burke-class-destroyerThe U.S. Navy has named its DDG 121 Arleigh Burke-class destroyer as USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. after the first African-American U.S. Marine Corps aviator and general officer.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus announced the name during a ceremony held at the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, the Defense Department said Wednesday.

Petersen was assigned on 350 combat missions during the Korean and Vietnam wars and was the first African-American to have commanded a fighter squadron, an air group and a major base.

“The courage and perseverance of Lt. Gen. Petersen throughout his distinguished and ground-breaking career make him especially deserving of this honor,” said Mabus.

USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. is currently under construction at the Huntington Ingalls Industries shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi and is scheduled to enter service by 2020.

Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are designed with offensive and defensive weapons systems such as the Flight IIA modification, AEGIS Baseline 9 Combat System and Integrated Air and Missile Defense platform to support a variety of operations and allow simultaneous air, surface and subsurface engagements.

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DHS’ Dan Cotter: Smart City, Public Safety Tech Should Incorporate Geospatial Data
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DHS’ Dan Cotter: Smart City, Public Safety Tech Should Incorporate Geospatial Data


GeocodingDan Cotter, director of the first responders group within the Department of Homeland Security‘s science and technology directorate, has said public sector agencies should incorporate geospatial data in smart city and emergency response technologies.

DHS said Tuesday Cotter joined a panel discussion on how geospatial data can support smart city initiatives on Sept. 28 at the Smart Cities Week convention in Washington.

“Public safety is actually a subset of ‘Smart Cities,’ and what we’re going about is essentially interoperability,” Cotter said.

Wearable technology that feature geospatial data can help connect first responders to the environment of the area of operations, DHS noted.

FRG currently develops the Improved Structure Firefighting Glove and it could incorporate geospatial data or embedded microcomputers with sensors in the future to help firefighters control devices in a hands-free manner or detect potential hazards, according to Cotter.

Internet of Things connectivity could also support the development and use of geospatial data through sensors, devices and analytics that could provide cities with a wide range of information, DHS said.

S&T allotted $10 million to develop IoT sensor-based tools that will work to assist emergency planners during decision-making scenarios such as evacuations due to floods.

Cotter noted FRG eyes low-cost sensors that can be deployed ahead of floods to control how and when to send public alerts and warnings to prevent people from driving or walking into flooded areas.

Navy Assigns USS Bougainville Name to Next Amphibious Assault Ship
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Navy Assigns USS Bougainville Name to Next Amphibious Assault Ship


Ray Mabus
Ray Mabus

The U.S. Navy has named the next America-class amphibious assault vessel as the USS Bougainville after the Bougainville island in the northern Solomons, which served as the location of a World War II campaign.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus announced the name during a ceremony at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, the Defense Department said Wednesday.

Huntington Ingalls Industries will build the USS Bougainville as an LHA-variant of the America-class Amphibious Assault Ship.

Amphibious Assault Ships, the cornerstone of the Amphibious Readiness Group and Expeditionary Strike Group, are intended to support the Marine Corps tenets of Operational Maneuver From the Sea and Ship to Objective Maneuver.

The vessels are also designed to provide assistance during humanitarian and other contingency operations on short notice.

USS Bougainville (LHA-8) is the second ship to adopt the name following the first Bougainville – an escort carrier that debuted in 1944.

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Navy Buys Zeiss-Built Machine to Address Aircraft Manufacturing Accuracy
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Navy Buys Zeiss-Built Machine to Address Aircraft Manufacturing Accuracy


zeiss-coordinate-measuring-machineThe U.S. Navy‘s Fleet Readiness Center Southwest has acquired a Zeiss-built machine for $500,000 to help support accuracy in the manufacturing of aircraft parts.

The Navy said Tuesday the Coordinate Measuring Machine works to provide 0.001-inch manufacturing measurement precision and help measure manufactured parts ahead of installation.

FRCSW purchased CMM through the Naval Air Systems Command’s Capital Investment Program which aims to invest in new technology to aid efficiency, the Navy added.

Martha Hoffman, CIP project manager, said the project was awarded in April and completed in November ahead of a projected 12-month schedule.

Machinist Kevin Guittar said CMM runs approximately six times faster than its predecessor that was built in the 1990s.

Guittar added CMM is the manufacturing department’s third measuring machine and a fourth will arrive soon from the reverse engineering unit.

The new machine is designed to apply a computer-aided design and manufacturing software toolkit as well as adapt to future sensor and software requirements, the Navy noted.

Zeiss administered a week-long certification class to five personnel who will operate CMM, the Navy added.

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DCMA Updates Automated Contract Administration Tool
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DCMA Updates Automated Contract Administration Tool


softwareThe Defense Contract Management Agency has rolled out a new version of its automated tool that works to help DCMA personnel evaluate acquisition programs and review contracts.

DCMA said Tuesday Integrated Workload Management System 3.0 includes a program assessment reporting feature designed to support team collaboration and facilitate report generation and approval processes as well as enterprise-level data analysis functions.

The agency noted that users can attach files, enter case data, generate and distribute letters and forms to designated recipients as well as manage cases via an end-to-end process using the combined features of the IWMS platform.

Antoine McNeal, IWMS program manager, said that DCMA added three new capacities and various additional features to the tool as a result of the agency’s efforts.

“We were able to develop an enterprise PAR with minimal resources in less than six months and logic-intense contract review in less than a year,” McNeal added.

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DLA Personnel Take Part in Air Force Nuclear Weapons Mgmt Course; Terry Simpson Comments
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DLA Personnel Take Part in Air Force Nuclear Weapons Mgmt Course; Terry Simpson Comments


mentorApproximately 30 Defense Logistics Agency employees who work in support of the Defense Department’s nuclear mission participated in a two-day course conducted by a U.S. Air Force mobile training team at Fort Belvoir in Virginia.

A training group from the Air Force Nuclear College in New Mexico kicked off on Nov. 1 the Nuclear Management Executive Course that aims to help personnel manage and support nuclear weapons systems through acquisition, logistics, sustainment and maintenance activities, DLA said Tuesday.

The course also covers lifecycle planning, stockpile guidance and other issues related to nuclear weapons.

“This course gives those individuals who receive orders, process contracts or buy material a truer understanding of what they’re supporting and gives them an idea of the importance of what they do on a daily basis,” said Terry Simpson, deputy executive director of DLA’s Nuclear Enterprise Support Office.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy Busch, director of DLA, established NESO in January 2015 as part of DLA’s logistics operations division in an effort to support DoD’s nuclear triad of submarine-launched ballistic missiles, ground-based bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

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Army Wants to Hone Soldiers’ Cyber Skills; Jerry Turner, Patricia Frost Comment
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Army Wants to Hone Soldiers’ Cyber Skills; Jerry Turner, Patricia Frost Comment


cyberwarfareU.S. Army officials are looking to employ a social media-savvy force to help the military branch’s field commanders implement cyber strategies in tactical environments.

The Army said Tuesday cyber officials have begun to review results of a study conducted by the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team’s 2nd Infantry Division earlier this year with the use of virtual effects in a simulated battlefield.

The study was part of the pilot Cyber Support to Corps and Below program that seeks to facilitate the development of a guide on how maneuver commanders should use cyber in combat operations.

“I think there is a better comfort level with our young folks that understand the complexity of the environment in which we are operating,” Col. Jerry Turner, commander of the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, told a cyber discussion hosted by the Association of the U.S. Army.

“They think in a very network kind of way because that’s how they operate in their daily lives,” he added.

Brig. Gen. Patricia Frost, director of cyber for the Army’s Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, said the research showed that a team comprised of up to 15 soldiers performed best to inform a brigade commander on offensive and defensive cyber tactics, electronic warfare and information operations.

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Report: DoD Proposes Rules on Industry’s Use of Independent R&D Investments
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Report: DoD Proposes Rules on Industry’s Use of Independent R&D Investments


research and development RDThe Defense Department has proposed an amendment to a policy that would require contractors to consult with DoD on independent research and development programs, Federal News Radio reported Tuesday.

Scott Maucione writes the Pentagon also plans to introduce a new rule that would ask contract officers to take into account the use of IRAD in the final contract price when it comes to the selection of a contractor.

The two policies are part of DoD’s efforts to limit industry’s use of public funds for IRAD projects in order to achieve short-term goals like price reduction on a competitive product, Maucione reports.

“By requiring industry to tell government what it’s doing will encourage more meaningful content,” said Frank Kendall, defense undersecretary for acquisition, technology and logistics.

Comments on the proposed policy on the use of IRAD in contract assessments are due by January, according to the report.

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