/
USSF Kicks Off Commit Phase of Space Force Generation Model; Gen. Chance Saltzman Quoted
Published on
USSF Kicks Off Commit Phase of Space Force Generation Model; Gen. Chance Saltzman Quoted

The U.S. Space Force has started the commit phase of a readiness model designed to deliver optimized, tailored mission readiness to service-assigned and combatant command missions to help meet the demands of great power competition.

The service branch said Monday implementation of the Space Force Generation model kicked off in October 2022.

Under the SPAFORGEN model, combat squadrons and combat detachments rotate through three phases: prepare, ready and commit.

“Day-to-day space operations, while critical, do not routinely offer Guardians the opportunity to practice for the challenges they will face in a combat environment,” said Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations for the Space Force.

“Rotating force elements through Prepare, Ready, and Commit phases creates the opportunity to deliberately build the high-end readiness we need,” added Saltzman, a 2024 Wash100 awardee.

The start of the first synchronized commit cycle came after the service branch completed the prepare and ready phases.

Under the commit phase, Guardians in force elements are fully validated, resourced and ready to perform combat operations, supporting combatant commanders in conducting operational missions.

/
NASA Issues White Papers Regarding Moon to Mars Architecture
Published on
NASA Issues White Papers Regarding Moon to Mars Architecture

NASA has published two white papers addressing considerations for the Moon to Mars architecture, an initiative that seeks to articulate the elements necessary for long-term, human-led deep space exploration.

The first, titled “Lunar Mobility Drivers and Needs,” focuses on the issue of moving cargo and assets on the surface of the moon as well as factors that might affect mobility systems, NASA said Friday.

Dubbed “Lunar Surface Cargo,” the second white paper tackles the expected requirements of any effort to transport cargo to the moon’s surface as well as the current gaps in capabilities that these endeavors may need.

These white papers were released by the space agency to communicate relevant information across different areas of interest to stakeholders.

White papers are usually released on a yearly cycle but are sometimes released mid-cycle, as is the case with these two documents.

SBA Launches Funding Solicitation for Emerging, Mature Regional Innovation Cluster Networks; Isabel Casillas Guzman Quoted
Published on
SBA Launches Funding Solicitation for Emerging, Mature Regional Innovation Cluster Networks; Isabel Casillas Guzman Quoted

Isabel Casillas Guzman, administrator of the Small Business Administration, has announced a new funding opportunity to drive small business development.

Awards made through the solicitation will support the SBA’s Regional Innovation Cluster, or RIC, initiative and will be issued at both the emerging and mature cluster levels, the agency said Friday.

“Our two new funding levels will support both emerging and mature industry clusters and help ensure small business innovators have access to the technical assistance, industry knowledge, and capital products necessary to start and grow their businesses,” Guzman explained in a statement.

Launched in 2010, the RIC program seeks to establish and promote networks of clusters, or geographically concentrated teams of interconnected businesses, suppliers and associated entities, to help small businesses grow in their respective industries.

Emerging clusters provide small business assistance in their specific regions and industries, while mature clusters include organizations with experience in creating and implementing programming to support small businesses.

The Office of Investment and Innovation’s Investment and Innovation Ecosystem Development will hold a webinar on July 9 to discuss the funding opportunity. The RIC solicitation is open until July 26.

/
DCMA Stands Up New Contract Management Office in Central Region
Published on
DCMA Stands Up New Contract Management Office in Central Region

The Defense Contract Management Agency has established a new contract management office as part of its reorganization effort in the Central Region.

DCMA Ohio River Valley, or ORV, is the primary CMO supporting the Air Force Simulators program and contracts for the Special Operations Command and the joint nuclear enterprise programs, the agency said Thursday.

The new office was activated in June and replaces DCMA Dayton. It has over 380 employees responsible for the management and oversight of $41 billion in contract obligations, 16,000 contract actions and 1,200 contractors in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and Ohio.

Moreover, the reorganization involved realigning subordinate commands DCMA Lexington and DCMA Cleveland under ORV and moving some employees from DCMA Chicago and DCMA Detroit, now known as DCMA Land Systems, to the new office.

“Standing up a new organization brings with it an uncertainty that could create a negative environment,” said Air Force Col. Thomas Clohessy, director of DCMA ORV. “We had planned accordingly to mitigate this threat and ensure as smooth a transition as possible for everyone involved.”

The restructuring process was done in support of the DCMA vision to be a team of trusted professionals delivering value to the warfighters throughout the acquisition lifecycle.

Navy, Army Test Hypersonic Missile to Inform Weapon System Development
Published on
Navy, Army Test Hypersonic Missile to Inform Weapon System Development

The U.S. Navy and Army have concluded an end-to-end flight test of a hypersonic missile to gather data on the performance of the military services’ long-range missile programs.

The results will inform the development of the Conventional Prompt Strike, or CPS, and the Long Range Hypersonic Weapon All Up Round, known as LRHW, programs, the Department of Defense said Friday.

“This flight test of the common hypersonic missile marks a milestone for our nation in the development of this capability,” said Vice Adm. Johnny Wolfe, director of the Navy’s Strategic Systems Programs.

CPS is a Navy-managed project to build and test a boost-glide hypersonic missile. The LRHW surface-to-surface hypersonic weapon system is built to launch the common hypersonic all up round from the CPS program.

“Through our joint efforts, we are developing new equipment and adopting new defense concepts that will enable the Army to maintain superiority over any potential adversaries,” said Lt. Gen. Robert Rasch, director of the Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office.

The test was conducted at the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii.

DIU Issues Commercial Solutions Opening for UxV Networking Tools
Published on
DIU Issues Commercial Solutions Opening for UxV Networking Tools

The Defense Innovation Unit has begun accepting proposals for commercial communication technologies for unmanned vehicles to enable maritime domain awareness.

The agency said the technology should be capable of establishing connectivity across a heterogeneous swarm of unmanned vehicles to enable reliable operations in disconnected, denied, intermittent and low-bandwidth communications environments while maintaining network awareness and routing across different radio frequency transmission paths.

DIU is seeking a low-latency tool that can push one-way updated commands through a broadcast using line-of-sight and beyond-line-of-sight radio frequency and data networks. It is expected to include security measures such as advanced encryption, authentication and intrusion detection to protect data against cyber threats.

Interested parties have until July 19 to respond to the solicitation.

/
NRO, SpaceX Launch New Mission for Agency’s Proliferated Architecture; Chris Scolese Quoted
Published on
NRO, SpaceX Launch New Mission for Agency’s Proliferated Architecture; Chris Scolese Quoted

A new National Reconnaissance Office mission for its proliferated architecture of satellites lifted off Friday aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from a launch complex at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

The agency said Saturday the NROL-186 mission is the second launch of its proliferated system and a reflection of the consistent pace of the platform’s deployment.

“Our new, proliferated systems enhance our ability to collect and deliver critical information at the speed our users demand,” said NRO director Chris Scolese.

“The diversity of our overhead architecture allows us to remain agile and resilient amid increasing competition and emerging threats, ensuring we are well positioned now and in the future to deliver on our mission of keeping our nation safe,” added Scolese, a four-time Wash100 awardee.

The first mission, NROL-146, was launched by the NRO and SpaceX in May.

Approximately six launches supporting the NRO’s proliferated architecture are set to occur in 2024, and the agency forecasts additional launches to take place through 2028.

/
HHS Appoints Jennifer Freese as Deputy Director for OCIO Operations
Published on
HHS Appoints Jennifer Freese as Deputy Director for OCIO Operations

Jennifer Freese has become deputy director of the Office of the Chief Information Officer operations within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Freese, who previously served as CIO of the National Institutes of Health, assumed her new position on June 30, according to a recent post on LinkedIn.

Prior to the NIH, Freese was a CIO for the Department of the Army, a customer relations manager at the Department of Homeland Security and a program manager at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

She holds several degrees, including a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix, a master’s degree in health administration informatics and health informatics from the University of Maryland Global Campus and a doctorate degree in healthcare administration and management from Franklin University.

/
Antony Blinken: State Department Launches ‘Central Hub for All Things AI’
Published on
Antony Blinken: State Department Launches ‘Central Hub for All Things AI’

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the State Department has established a “central hub” for all artificial intelligence technologies.

AI.State is “a home for all of our internal State Department AI tools – libraries of prompts and use cases,” Blinken, a previous Wash100 awardee, said at an event Friday in Washington, D.C.

The hub “offers formal and informal training, including already videos that are up there to help folks get started,” according to Blinken, who called on everyone to try the new AI central hub.

“I’d encourage everyone to test it out, to try it out, to explore it, to try to learn from it, and also lend your own ideas and input, because this is something that will continue to be iterative and a work in progress,” he said.

Blinken also cited the release of the Enterprise AI Strategy in November and the two major reasons for advancing AI initiatives – freeing up staff to focus on more strategic work and enhancing analysis to glean new insights – as examples of the State Department’s AI-focused work.

/
GovCon Index Fell Back Into Negative Territory Last Week
Published on
GovCon Index Fell Back Into Negative Territory Last Week

On Friday, Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index dropped by 0.47%, a shift back to the downward trend that characterized most of June. Despite a positive start to the week, a four-day streak of losses brought the overall average down.

GovCon Index is an aggregate index that tracks and presents data on the stock market performance of 30 notable government contracting organizations in real time. With this information, users can gain key insights into each company’s status in the market and assess the broad trends shaping today’s GovCon landscape.

Last week’s decline was consistent with overall GovCon Index performance last month, in which decreases occurred three out of four weeks. These losses have not impeded overall growth, as GovCon Index has risen by 5.92% year-to-date.

Check out last week’s market reports for additional information about daily GovCon Index performance. To access the full list of tracked companies, click here.

1 … 273 274 275 276 277 … 2,630