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FDA-VA Partnership Aims to Offer Standardized Testing Tools for Medical Tech Sector
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FDA-VA Partnership Aims to Offer Standardized Testing Tools for Medical Tech Sector

The Department of Veterans Affairs has teamed up with the Food and Drug Administration to create tools for medical device makers to test product efficacy and safety during the development phase.

Both agencies will assign researchers to the Seattle-based VA Ventures Innovation Institute in the hopes of bringing new medical technologies faster to veterans and civilians alike, the VA said Wednesday.

“This strategic alignment between our organizations creates a unique environment to achieve shared objectives for accelerating patient access to safe, innovative and effective medical devices,” said Jeff Shuren, director of the FDA’s  Center for Devices and Radiological Health.

The FDA will evaluate the risks and benefits of novel products from certain innovators, while the VA will provide clinical information to be studied in immersive experiences, including test development and hands-on product training.

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Senate Approves Stopgap Spending Measure to Fund Government Through Mid-December
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Senate Approves Stopgap Spending Measure to Fund Government Through Mid-December

The Senate on Thursday voted 72-25 to pass a continuing resolution that would fund the operations of government agencies through Dec. 16, Politico reported.

The stopgap spending measure is now headed to the House, which is expected to vote on the bill and send it to the White House for President Biden’s signature to prevent a government shutdown before the end of September and give lawmakers time to work on an appropriations package before the end of 2022.

The New York Times reported the bill would provide Ukraine with approximately $12.3 billion in emergency assistance as the country continues to counter Russian invasion.

The legislation would reauthorize for five years user fee programs that support a key portion of the Food and Drug Administration’s budget and provide the federal government more flexibility when it comes to spending disaster relief funds.

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Chief Diversity Officers Executive Council Holds Inaugural Meeting; Kiran Ahuja Quoted
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Chief Diversity Officers Executive Council Holds Inaugural Meeting; Kiran Ahuja Quoted

A new council launched by the Office of Personnel Management held its first interagency meeting on Thursday to help implement a national diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility strategy across the federal government.

“The inaugural meeting of the Chief Diversity Officers Executive Council marks a major milestone in this Administration’s work to build and model a federal workforce that draws from the full diversity of the American people,” OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said in a statement published Thursday. 

CDOEC will work with member agencies and other stakeholders on DEIA programs and policies and assist with establishing strategies, metrics and benchmarks for DEIA standards and accountability for implementation across the federal government, among other responsibilities.

CDOEC’s leadership team is chaired by Ahuja and includes Jason Miller, deputy director for management at the Office of Management and Budget, and Charlotte Burrows, chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, as vice chairs.

Janice Underwood, director of OPM’s office of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, will staff the new council and serve as the governmentwide chief diversity officer.

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House OKs Legislation to Extend Small Business Innovation Research, Tech Transfer Programs
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House OKs Legislation to Extend Small Business Innovation Research, Tech Transfer Programs

The House on Thursday approved a bill that would reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs through fiscal year 2025.

The lower chamber passed the SBIR and STTR Extension Act of 2022 a week after the Senate approved the measure.

SBIR “is known for its tagline of ‘America’s seed fund’ as it inspires small businesses across the country to transform their ideas into marketable products and services,” Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., said in a statement published Thursday.

“Today, I am proud to have voted to extend the SBIR and STTR to add much-needed stability to the program,” added Stevens, chairwoman of the House Science, Space and Technology’s research and technology subcommittee.

The bill would direct agencies with SBIR or STTR programs to review the security risks associated with applications with financial links to some foreign entities and require the departments of Defense, Energy, National Science Foundation and other federal agencies to evaluate the research, integrity and national security risks of the two small business programs.

Under the legislation, the Government Accountability Office to assess and report on subcontracting practices of program recipients.

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Army Unveils Prize Competition to Identify New Defense Manufacturing Technologies
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Army Unveils Prize Competition to Identify New Defense Manufacturing Technologies

The U.S. Army is inviting small businesses, sole proprietors and institutions nationwide to join a new prize competition to develop defense manufacturing technologies in areas, including directed energy, additive and smart manufacturing and hypersonic systems.

The xTechManufacture competition provides an opportunity for eligible participants to pitch their technology proposals directly to the Department of Defense’s principal manufacturing arms to secure funding for development.

The competition offers a total of $445,000 in cash prizes and consists of a short concept submission round and a final pitch event.

During the first round, the Army will select up to 10 finalists to be awarded $15,000 each and the chance to pitch their ideas at the 2022 Defense Manufacturing Conference scheduled from Dec. 5 to 8 in Tampa, Florida.

The first-place winner of the competition will receive $150,000, second-place will get $75,000 and the third-place will secure $25,000 to further develop their technologies. Other final-round participants will receive a prize of $10,000 each.

The Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology will host the competition in partnership with the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel.

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U.S. Army Awards BigBear.ai Contract for Force Management System Consolidation; Ryan Legge Quoted
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U.S. Army Awards BigBear.ai Contract for Force Management System Consolidation; Ryan Legge Quoted

BigBear.ai has won a nine-month, $14.8 million contract from the U.S. Army to repurpose and consolidate a group of the service branch’s preparation and training tools.

Through the sole-source contract award, BigBear will introduce the Global Force Information Management System, combining 14 legacy programs into one automated service aimed to strengthen the Army’s ability to man, equip, ready and resource, the Columbia, Maryland-based company said Thursday.

“This contract supports the continuation of BigBear.ai’s efforts to deliver on the Secretary [of the Army Christine Wormuth]’s goal of ensuring the Army embraces new technologies to become a more data-centric fighting force,” explained Ryan Legge, president of analytics at BigBear.ai.

Legge also described how the Army will now be able to make data-based, mission-critical choices regarding force structure, balance and readiness due to BigBear’s modifications and said the new system will impact Army leaders in a range of positions, “from senior leadership to combatant commanders.”

GFIM will be implemented across the service branch and gives users a window into the entire spread of its warfighters and participants and their roles. It delivers time-sensitive, of-the-moment information to a maximum of 160,000 endpoints and is designed to take into account risk in its reports.

Tasks that were previously manually entered such as unit readiness confirmation are now automated due to BigBear’s upgraded cloud architecture. GFIM additionally creates and pinpoints actionable mission data and is seen as potentially beneficial to the Deploy to Redeploy and Retrograde full lifecycle business transactions. This latter aspect is due to the system’s force administration isolated entry point.

BigBear is partnering with Palantir Technologies on this endeavor and received the contract due to the warm reception of its GFIM prototype, built during phase 1 of the initiative.

“Providing this critical combination of leading defense technology will drive a competitive advantage for the Army as it modernizes the most critical infrastructure supporting force planning and readiness,” enthused Bryant Choung, senior vice president leading federal business and defense technology at Palantir.

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FAA Releases Design Standards for Vertiports to Support VTOL Operations
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FAA Releases Design Standards for Vertiports to Support VTOL Operations

The Federal Aviation Administration has released design guidelines for vertiports that will support advanced air mobility aircraft capable of vertical take off and landing.

The document outlines several standards that designers and developers will need to follow in areas including markings, lighting and visual aids; safety-critical geometry and design elements; and charging and electric infrastructure, the FAA said Monday.

The guidance also includes information on the requirements for airports looking to add vertiports to an existing commercial airport and for developers that seek to build vertiports on top of existing structures.

“These vertiport design standards provide the foundation needed to begin safely building infrastructure in this new era,” said Shannetta Griffin, associate administrator for airports at FAA.

VTOL aircraft powered with electric motors will be used to transport cargo and passengers at lower altitudes in urban, suburban and rural areas.

Senate Bill to Require Foreign Funding Disclosure Reports From Think Tanks
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Senate Bill to Require Foreign Funding Disclosure Reports From Think Tanks

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has introduced new legislation to require think tanks and nonprofit social welfare organizations to disclose funding they receive from foreign governments.

In a statement published Wednesday, Grassley said that public policy nonprofits secure significant amount of funding from foreign powers, including China, Russia and Qatar, for policy research, recommendations and expert testimony.

“Those foreign powers clearly have an interest in directing American foreign, domestic and security policy to their benefit. Congress, the executive branch, and the American people deserve to know who’s influencing research and public policy in our country,” Grassley said.

The Think Tank Transparency Act requires that think tanks and nonprofits that inform U.S. policy or influence public opinion submit disclosure reports to the Department of Justice within 90 days of receiving funds from foreign governments.

Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Mich., introduced a companion bill in the House of Representatives.

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Parry Labs COO Aydin Mohtashamian Talks Federal Acquisition, Talent Development & More With Potomac Officers Club
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Parry Labs COO Aydin Mohtashamian Talks Federal Acquisition, Talent Development & More With Potomac Officers Club

Parry Labs Chief Operating Officer Aydin Mohtashamian recently spoke with the Potomac Officers Club to share his thoughts on the hurdles that exist within the Department of Defense’s acquisition processes, the best strategies for developing talent within an organization and the values that steer his career. Mohtashamian served in the U.S. Army for over eight years, and he joined Parry Labs from Qinetiq U.S. where he served as president of C5ISR Solutions. 

In this excerpt from his Executive Spotlight interview, Mohtashamian outlines some of the challenges the DOD faces as it pursues promising technologies to support the country’s warfighters:

“Many of the thought leaders within DOD, like Ms. Heidi Shyu of OUSD R&E, and Mr. Michael Brown, former head of DIU, have highlighted the ‘valley of death’ for promising technologies. These technologies are usually being delivered by small, innovative companies. 

Although the DOD has been somewhat successful in demonstrating how innovative technologies can provide a clear warfighting advantage, there has been a great deal of difficulty in moving these technologies into programs of record. I believe one of the major hurdles is the DOD acquisition process. 

This process is focused on buying hardware-centric platforms with extended lifetimes. However, today’s advanced technologies are focused on network-centric software solutions with rapid production spins and limited lifetimes. The platforms and the hardware are still important, but without the network effect, there is not a ubiquitous connection of sensors to shooters for a maximum combined arms effect.”

Click here to read the full interview with Parry Labs COO Aydin Mohtashamian, and visit PotomacOfficersClub.com to learn more about the platform’s membership options and benefits.

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GovCon Expert Mark Amtower: How Small Contractors Can Get Around Client Visibility, Credibility Issues
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GovCon Expert Mark Amtower: How Small Contractors Can Get Around Client Visibility, Credibility Issues

Mark Amtower, a managing partner of Amtower & Co. and a member of Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Expert program, recently posted his latest feature via LinkedIn to discuss the challenge that small contractors have building familiarity and favorability with customers to drive company growth in the relationship-centric federal landscape.

“There are reasons some companies win more than others, and some may be beyond your control, like the size of some companies, or the number of feet they have on the street. And other internal resources,” GovCon Expert Mark Amtower explained.

He continued, “But large companies are not the only companies that win regularly. I’ve seen and work with mid-tier and small contractors that win regularly because they do several things right.”

Amtower also detailed that the first thing a contractor should do is define a critical area of expertise and begin generating content that truly showcases the company’s deep knowledge and team in that area of expertise.

“The content needs to be relevant to the agencies you seek to work with, so don’t produce content that is too broad or general,” GovCon Expert Mark Amtower. “If you produce good content, and reach out to the right people in the target agency, the problem of ‘the customer doesn’t know us’ starts to go away.”

Click here to read the full article from GovCon Expert Mark Amtower.

About GovCon Expert Mark Amtower

Since 2009, Amtower has been coaching GovCon companies and individuals on leveraging LinkedIn. It’s not about learning how to be “on” LinkedIn. It’s about learning how to more fully leverage LinkedIn to market the Federal government in ways that were never possible before.

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