NASA has begun seeking information on potential sources capable of providing construction and design-build services at five research centers under a potential $300 million multiple-award indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract.

The Northeast Regional Multiple Award Construction Contracts procurement vehicle will support future construction and design-build requirements at the Glenn Research Center, Armstrong Test Facility, Goddard Space Flight Center, Langley Research Center and Wallops Flight Facility, according to a notice posted Friday on SAM.gov.

General construction services include architectural, electrical, mechanical, structural, roofing, plumbing and building renovations, construction and demolition.

The selected contractors will also support U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design projects and design-build projects.

Responses are due March 18.

The U.S. Navy commissioned USS John L. Canley, a 784-foot expeditionary sea base — or ESB — variant of the Expeditionary Transfer Dock platform, at Naval Air Station North Island on Saturday.

The ship honors the former Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. John L. Canley, who was awarded the Medal of Honor 50 years after his actions during the Battle of Hue City, the Military Sealift Command said.

At the ceremony, Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro was joined by Canley Commanding Officer, Capt. Thomas Mays; Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, Sgt. Maj. Carlos Ruiz; Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joseph Dunford; and over a thousand other attendees.

“We can only grow as a nation and as a fighting force by learning from our history,” said Del Toro, a 2024 Wash100 awardee. “Ultimately, the strength of our maritime team is in our diversity – diversity of background, of experience, and of thought – which ensures our ability to out-think, outpace, and out-maneuver our adversaries.”

Built by General Dynamics’ NASSCO subsidiary, the ship enables logistics movement from sea to shore to support a broad range of military operations. The highly flexible platform has four core capabilities: aviation, berthing, equipment staging area and command and control.

The shipbuilder christened Canley in June 2022 and handed it over to MSC to join the fleet.

The National Science Foundation, in partnership with the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development National Coordination Office, is seeking information on the development of a national plan for spectrum research and development.

A notice published Tuesday in the Federal Register states that NSF and NITRD NCO are requesting industry input on topics related to the National Spectrum R&D Plan, which will guide government investments in spectrum-related research projects, on behalf of the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Industry members are encouraged to submit recommendations on strategies for conducting spectrum research and priority areas for spectrum research and development.

NITRD’s Wireless Spectrum Research and Development Interagency Working Group is tasked to draft and coordinate the development of the National Spectrum R&D Plan, which is scheduled for release in late 2024.

The Department of Defense introduced a strategy last week to provide sustainable living facilities that improve quality of life for service members and their families.

The Resilient and Healthy Defense Communities Strategy details three main objectives, one of which is to create environments that are policy-compliant, utilitarian and foster camaraderie, productivity and purpose for DOD’s workforce, the agency announced Thursday.

The plan will be implemented on 538 DOD installations, which include 280,000 buildings housing 2 million servicemen, civilian personnel and their families.

DOD will focus on aligning its infrastructure’s scale and scope with the needs of its personnel. It will also seek sustainment investments that will have the best impact on the condition of existing facilities and natural environment.

“This strategy focusing on improving our defense installations reflects the Department’s ongoing commitment to take care of our people and improve the quality of life of our Service members and their families,” Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said. “It ensures we put our people’s experiences at the very center of our recruit and retain approach,” the four-time Wash100 awardee added.

William LaPlante, under secretary of Defense for acquisition and sustainment, echoed the sentiment of his fellow 2024 Wash100 inductee. “We owe it to our Service members and their families to honor the sacrifices they are voluntarily making by creating environments that help our total force bring their best self to the mission—and this strategy will help ensure we are aligning our resources to outcomes which do exactly that,” he commented.

The National Nuclear Security Administration and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have kicked off the construction of a new digital infrastructure facility that would provide LLNL with upgraded networking and communications capabilities.

The 13,000-square-foot Digital Infrastructure Capability Expansion, or DICE, facility is expected to be completed in June 2025 and will replace LLNL’s pre-internet networking and communications facility to address the laboratory’s increasing demand for a modern, resilient digital infrastructure.

“Our missions require that this facility not only be scalable and reliable, but agile and modern. We’ve learned some hard lessons about reliability of infrastructure in the last few years as we work to make this transition on our site,” said LLNL Director Kim Budil.

“This facility represents more than just an infrastructure — it embodies the promise of enhanced capabilities, efficiency and the digital communication foundation that will support the NNSA mission here at LLNL far into the future,” said Sue Marlais, chief information officer of LLNL.

The facility will be adjacent to the Department of Energy Office of Inspector General building and the Exascale Facility Modernization Project and include an underground cable entrance vault that will integrate into LLNL’s information exchange infrastructure.

The Office of Management and Budget created a searchable database containing federal grants and loans information to aid potential beneficiaries looking for government assistance programs.

The Federal Program Inventory, dubbed FPI, combines the resources of SAM.gov, USASpending.gov and similar data repositories with more than 100 program subcategories, OMB announced Thursday.

FPI was created in large part to create transparency regarding government expenditures on loans, grants and direct payments to individuals and groups seeking financial support.

OMB intends to collaborate with stakeholders for the continuous improvement of the inventory, including ensuring consistency of program information across federal programs as well as additional performance data about such funding vehicles.

The budget agency is soliciting feedback to enhance the effectiveness of the new tool.