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Tetra Tech Lands $200M USACE Contract for Architect-Engineer Services; Dan Batrack Quoted
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Tetra Tech Lands $200M USACE Contract for Architect-Engineer Services; Dan Batrack Quoted

Tetra Tech has won a $200 million, multiple-award contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deliver architect-engineer services to Army, Air Force and other U.S. government branches stationed across the Republic of Korea. 

Work under the contract will include site investigations, the preparation of engineering design documents and program management support to aid U.S. operations in the Pacific region, the Pasadena, California-based company announced on Tuesday.

“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been a valued client for almost 50 years. We look forward to using our Leading with Science approach to support the Far East District in its mission to deliver state-of-the-art engineering solutions on the Korean peninsula,” said Dan Batrack, chairman and CEO of Tetra Tech.

In conducting contracting activities, Tetra Tech will apply Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and additional sustainability factors, such as water, sanitation and electrical utilities to the design of new and renovated buildings and infrastructure.

Tetra Tech has won multiple awards from various agencies within the past year. Valued at $86 million, Tetra Tech’s previous contract win from the Space Force calls on the company to provide information technology support for the Space Systems Command.

In September, Tetra Tech received a five-year, $100 million contract from the Environmental Protection Agency under which the enterprise is currently conducting analysis on the effects of climate change on human health and ecosystems.

Earlier, Tetra Tech won an $84.4 million task order to carry out operations, maintenance and sustainment support services for the Space Systems’ Command Shared Early Warning System as well as a $16.9 million task order under the company’s $169 million Department of Labor contract to develop and upgrade applications and provide additional technical support.

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DIA Offers Visual Analysis of Iranian UAVs in Ukraine
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DIA Offers Visual Analysis of Iranian UAVs in Ukraine

A new Defense Intelligence Agency report has substantiated Russia’s use of unmanned aerial vehicles from Iran in its war in Ukraine.

The report, published Monday by DIA, presents a visual comparison of UAVs used by Russian forces against Ukraine and those of Iranian unmanned platforms used to target U.S. and partner interests in the Middle East.

The agency unveiled the analysis in support of transparency efforts and to offer insights on national security and defense issues.

The analysis offers images and descriptions of the Mohajer 6 Multirole UAV; Shahed-136 One-Way Attack UAV, renamed Geran-2 by the Russians; and the Shahed-131 One-way Attack UAV, renamed Geran-1 by the Russians.

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Roger Krone, Leidos CEO, on Company Growth & Market Performance
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Roger Krone, Leidos CEO, on Company Growth & Market Performance

Leidos, a major player in the U.S. government contracting ecosystem, serves 25 unique markets and has a global presence in 125 countries. In a recent video interview, Executive Mosaic spoke with Roger Krone, CEO and chairman of Leidos, to get an inside look at where the company is headed and which markets are growing the fastest.

“We have always managed our portfolio with a thought to where the customer’s unmet needs are going,” said Krone, a ten-time Wash100 Award winner.

While Leidos is viewed as a traditional defense contractor, Krone said the company has diversified into the healthcare and civil markets, and that strategy has led to growth across Leidos’ entire portfolio.

This diversification strategy aimed to balance Leidos’ performance across market areas — for instance, Krone shared, perhaps if defense is performing well, healthcare and civil would be down, and vice versa. But Krone said right now, a bit surprisingly, “all of our markets tend to be up.”

The recent growth in Leidos’ defense market is driven by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and by shifts in the great power competition. But for the past 12-18 months, Leidos’ healthcare and civil markets are actually growing at a higher rate than its defense market.

“The magic of Leidos is to find capabilities and technologies that cross all of our markets so that when we invest in our internal research in development, we see benefits both in the traditional defense business and then in the non-defense businesses,” Krone said.

Find out more about Leidos’ core markets and capabilities — watch Roger Krone’s video interview here. To keep up with the latest insights from GovCon’s leaders, subscribe to Executive Mosaic’s YouTube channel.

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DOD’s Craig Martell and QinetiQ’s Shawn Purvis Honored as 2023 Wash100 Award Winners
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DOD’s Craig Martell and QinetiQ’s Shawn Purvis Honored as 2023 Wash100 Award Winners

In the monumental 10th year of the distinguished Wah100 Award, Executive Mosaic highlighted the groundbreaking achievements of the Department of Defense’s Craig Martell and QinetiQ’s Shawn Purvis.

Each year, the Wash100 Award puts the accomplishments of each contender under a microscope to determine the most influential executives in the government contracting industry. This year’s selection process illuminated the triumphs of Martell and Purvis, landing both leaders a spot in the 2023 Wash100 Award cohort.

Martell was honored with his first Wash100 Award for his leadership in DOD artificial intelligence operations. After assuming the department’s newly created chief digital and artificial intelligence officer position early last year, he guided the office to its attainment of full operating capability status in June.

Data has been a key priority for Martell, who said that effective data must be “front and center for decision makers when they need it.” Moving forward, Martell also aims to further DOD collaboration with industry. To read his full profile, click here.

Since joining QinetiQ’s U.S. arm as president and CEO in February of last year, Purvis has continuously demonstrated her dedication to growing the company’s mid-size business unit into a powerful force within the contracting sector. For her successful efforts, Purvis was recognized with her third consecutive Wash100 Award.k

Under Purvis’ leadership, QinetiQ acquired Avantus Federal, a cyber and data analytics-focused company, for approximately $590 million. QinetiQ also booked a $48 million U.S. Army contract to support its C5ISR Center Research and Technology Integration Directorate’s Image Processing Division through research, development and engineering work. Click here to read Purvis’ full profile.

The highly-competitive Wash100 popular vote contest is now in full swing. To cast two of your 10 votes for Craig Martell and Shawn Purvis, please visit Wash100.com.

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IRS Expects to Deliver Report on Free Online Tax Return Filing System to Congress in May
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IRS Expects to Deliver Report on Free Online Tax Return Filing System to Congress in May

The Internal Revenue Service intends to submit a report to Congress detailing its plans to launch a free online system for filing tax returns by May, The Hill reported Wednesday.

In partnership with nonprofit organization New America, the IRS will put together a report on the potential system that could enable individuals to directly file a tax return with the agency. This system may be hosted on a web platform or application.

Ariel Jurow-Kleiman, a tax attorney and law professor at Loyola Law School, will collaborate with New America to provide a third-party analysis of the report in accordance with the country’s existing tax law.

The project is an effort ordered by the Inflation Reduction Act, which directed the IRS to carry out a study on how citizens could file their taxes through electronic means free of charge.

Last year, Congress allocated $15 million to the agency to conduct research on the development of a federal tax filing system.

GSA Office of Inspector General Cites Gaps in Performance-Based Service Contract Administration
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GSA Office of Inspector General Cites Gaps in Performance-Based Service Contract Administration

An audit conducted by the General Services Administration Office of Inspector General found gaps in the implementation of performance-based service contracts that could compromise project quality and cost-effectiveness.

In a report published Thursday, GSAIG recommended that the agency revise its policies for contract administration and retrain its personnel to ensure that they comply with such procedures.

According to the Office of Inspector General, GSA contract personnel have not been diligently following regulations in processing performance-based service agreements, including the Federal Acquisition Service internal policy. 

Lapses were found in the execution of quality assurance surveillance plans and preparation schedules of past performance reports.

The Inspector General called on the agency to create a clear and descriptive procedure that contract personnel can follow to track and enforce QASPs. It should also institute management oversight to make sure that the team is complying with regulations, GSAIG said.

GSA agreed with the recommendations and responded that it is devising an action plan to address the deficiencies.

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NASA Accelerates Mission Hardware Development With Commercial AI Software; Ryan McClelland Quoted
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NASA Accelerates Mission Hardware Development With Commercial AI Software; Ryan McClelland Quoted

Engineers are using commercial artificial intelligence software at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, to speed up the design, analysis and development of spacecraft and mission hardware, which the technicians refer to as evolved structures. 

Research Engineer Ryan McClelland, who started the creation of the structures, noted that NASA-standard validation software and processes are being used to analyze the parts and detect possible failure points in such components, the space agency said Friday.

“You can perform the design, analysis and fabrication of a prototype part, and have it in hand in as little as one week,” McClelland said. “It can be radically fast compared with how we’re used to working.”

According to the agency, McClelland has designed evolved parts in support of NASA missions—among them, the EXoplanet Climate Infrared Telescope endeavor.

The research engineer designed and built a titanium scaffold for the back of the EXCITE telescope, which is set to undergo an engineering test flight as soon as the fall of this year.

POC - 4th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit

Register now for the Potomac Officers Club’s 4th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit, where DOD and GovCon leaders will share insight into recent AI advancements as well as outlook on cutting-edge development approaches for 2023 and beyond.

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Dr. Terry Adirim to Conclude Stint as VA EHR Modernization Program Director
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Dr. Terry Adirim to Conclude Stint as VA EHR Modernization Program Director

Dr. Terry Adirim is stepping down from her role as program executive director of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Electronic Health Record Modernization Integration Office, effective Feb. 25, FedScoop reported Friday.

Adirim took on the role in December 2021 and has since helped oversee VA’s efforts to transition to a new health data storage and management software.

Prior to joining VA, Adirim served as principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for health affairs and advised DOD officials on health and force health protection policies and programs.

She also held senior leadership roles at the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services.

Deputy VA Secretary Donald Remy announced Adirim’s departure in a memo to VA employees and commended her leadership.

“I appreciate Dr. Adirim’s medical and technical expertise, diligence, and commitment in improving and implementing the EHR and for all of her work in the EHRM IO,” Remy said.

Dr. Neil Evans, senior adviser to the assistant secretary for the VA Office of Information and Technology, will assume the responsibilities of program executive director on an acting basis starting Feb. 27.

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Stephane Bouatene Named Chief of NGA Enterprise Capabilities Division
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Stephane Bouatene Named Chief of NGA Enterprise Capabilities Division

Stephane Bouatene, an information technology leader with nearly 15 years of combined government and industry experience, has been appointed chief of the Enterprise Capabilities Division at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.

Bouatene shared the news in a LinkedIn post published Monday. He assumed the new position after leading the agency’s enterprise management and security services, with responsibilities such as identity, credential and access management and cybersecurity risk assessments.

The executive joined NGA in 2016 from Hewlett Packard Enterprise where he led the company’s cybersecurity efforts for a Defense Information Systems Agency-managed collaborative development platform.

His private sector career also included roles such as senior information security analyst at Science Applications International Corp. and software engineer at Lockheed Martin.

Bouatene co-chairs the Committee on National Security Systems’ ICAM Working Group, where he contributes to the development of national policies for protecting national security information.

Senate Bill Proposes Updated Rules on Commercial BVLOS Drone Operations
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Senate Bill Proposes Updated Rules on Commercial BVLOS Drone Operations

Senators Mark Warner, D-V.A., and John Thune, R-S.D., have introduced legislation that would update rules for allowing commercial use of unmanned aerial vehicles that can fly beyond visual line of sight.

The Increasing Competitiveness for American Drones Act of 2023 would order the Federal Aviation Administration to develop a more efficient commercial drone flight approval process to allow BVLOS operations in select situations, which would help maintain U.S. standing in the global drone market, Warner’s office said Wednesday.

“Revamping the process for approving commercial drone flight will catapult the United States into the 21st century, allowing us to finally start competing at the global level as technological advancements make drone usage ever more common,” said Warner, who is a three-time Wash100 Award winner.

Drone operators and pilots are currently required to seek FAA approval before conducting BVLOS operations.

To guide the implementation of the updated rules, the bill proposes the creation of a unmanned aerial system certification unit and a new associate administrator of UAS integration position at the FAA.

“Drones have the potential to transform the economy, with innovative opportunities for transportation and agriculture that would benefit rural states like South Dakota,” Thune commented.

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