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LinQuest Assists Air Force with Digital Engineering, Modeling
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LinQuest Assists Air Force with Digital Engineering, Modeling

Defense contractor LinQuest has recently deepened its digital engineering capabilities, shifting the prioritization of various technological approaches to match its U.S. Department of Defense clients’ needs.

Specifically, the LinQuest team has been tasked with duties surrounding the WeaponONE initiative at Eglin Air Force Base and a modeling-focused project to help the Air Force Research Lab modernize strategic development planning procedures, the Los Angeles, California-based company said on April 20.

“[LinQuest’s] outstanding support is critical to realizing our vision of the digital transformation of the weapons digital enterprise,” remarked James Sumpter, WeaponONE program manager at the AFRL.

The company’s role in helping shape WeaponONE has been ongoing for the last two years. W1 is a suite of programs that encompasses the weapons digital enterprise, the weapons Digital Twin Lab and a software factory/innovation center, as well as RogueONE, Data Prime and Digital Prime.

Harnessing tools such as agile project management approaches, commercial cloud and modeling, simulation and analysis, LinQuest is assisting to construct an open digital environment for the Air Force base. To do so they are collaborating with the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Armament Directorate Weapons Systems Program Office and the weapon test wings within Eglin.

LinQuest’s engineering for the W1 government reference architecture entails implementing a model-based system in order to move away from document-based weapons acquisition, in addition to creating a replicable or reusable format for future digital weapons programs.

Their efforts, which draw heavily on model-based systems engineering strategies, have been honed on similar endeavors over the past several years with the U.S. Space Force.

Since January, LinQuest has been aiding warfighters’ combat effectiveness through the evolution of the AFRL’s strategic development planning processes from document-centered to model-based. To achieve this objective, the company has distinguished process inputs and outputs, fostered rapid analysis of traceability of the organization’s initiatives to Air Force requirements and developed auto-generation for the initiative roadmap.

LinQuest recently highlighted these accomplishments at the inaugural Department of Air Force Modeling and Simulation Summit at Eglin Air Force Base.

The contractor also landed a $48 million award from the AFRL in March, committing them to five years of engineering support for the artificial intelligence-powered aircraft Skyborg Vanguard Program.

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BlueHalo Receives Army Contract for Titan C-UAS; CGO James Batt Quoted
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BlueHalo Receives Army Contract for Titan C-UAS; CGO James Batt Quoted

BlueHalo announced on Thursday that the company and its Titan Counter-Unmanned Aerial System (C-UAS) team have received a four million dollar order from the Department of Defense (DoD) to provide Titan Counter-Unmanned Aerial System (C-UAS) kits.

“It is incredibly exciting to see our Titan C-UAS solution meet and exceed the Army’s expectations in the key performance parameters of efficacy and ease of use,” said BlueHalo Chief Growth Officer James Batt. 

Through the contract award, BlueHalo will provide support to prioritize and defeat enemy drones on the battlefield internationally and in specific locations across the United States. The decision to invest in Titan systems was made after Titan out-performed competing technologies at government evaluations. 

The Titan C-UAS solution is a portable, rapidly deployable system that creates a secure perimeter anywhere, providing automated identification and mitigation of threats for all major commercial and hobbyist control protocols.

“We look forward to seeing these systems utilized on the battlefield to defeat enemy drones and provide a layer of protection to the Army warfighter and our nation in the very near-term,” Batt added. 

About BlueHalo

BlueHalo provides industry-leading capabilities in the domains of Space Superiority, Space Technology, Directed Energy/Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (c-UAS), Autonomy, Advanced Radio Frequency (RF), Cyber, and Signals Intelligence (SIGINT).  

BlueHalo focuses on inspired engineering to develop, transition, and field next-generation capabilities to solve the most complex challenges of our customers’ critical missions and reestablish our national security posture in the near-peer contested arena.

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Charles Krugh Hired as President of General Dynamics Bath Iron Works; EVP Robert Smith Quoted
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Charles Krugh Hired as President of General Dynamics Bath Iron Works; EVP Robert Smith Quoted

Aerospace manufacturing specialist Charles Krugh has been named president of the bath iron works business at General Dynamics.

In his new role, which marks a return to the GD family, Krugh is expected to oversee and strengthen General Dynamics Bath Iron Works’ high-volume delivery of ship vessels and parts to its U.S. Navy customers, the Bath, Maine-based subsidiary said Thursday.

“Chuck’s leadership, proven track record in manufacturing and expertise in managing complex supply chains will be an enabler to Bath Iron Works,” commented Robert Smith, executive vice president of General Dynamics’ marine systems division.

The executive began his career as a serviceman in the U.S. Army. Subsequently, he worked as director of quality assurance for Corporate Jets Inc. and for just shy of a decade as vice president of production at Dassault Falcon Jet, where Krugh utilized 3D engineering data for part construction and sub-assembly processes. In this position, he also encouraged his production team to actively involve themselves in engineering digital mock-up procedures.

Krugh then increased revenue streams at aerospace manufacturing company BOMBARDIER before beginning his first stint at General Dynamics in 2011, this time at the subsidiary Jet Aviation St. Louis. As senior vice president and general manager, he cut down on spending by $20 million over the course of his six years with the organization and bolstered safety policies via a safety transformation plan that reportedly mitigated OSHA events by 71 percent.

In 2018, Krugh transitioned to a position as vice president for supplier operational support at Gulfstream Aerospace, where he effectively revamped a bankrupt program and galvanized its production activities through a newly instated team that he led personally.

Krugh’s specialties lie in business process improvement, profit and loss management and strategic planning. He will combine his over three decades of industry expertise and financial knowledge for his new role at Bath Iron Works.

The new president’s appointment follows Smith’s April statement as the division’s interim president. Smith was temporarily installed after Dirk Lesko, the company’s president of over five years, retired from a 30-year career with General Dynamics.

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Executive Spotlight: Mike Bosco, SVP of Army Mission Solutions for Sev1Tech LLC
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Executive Spotlight: Mike Bosco, SVP of Army Mission Solutions for Sev1Tech LLC

Mike Bosco, senior vice president of Army Mission Solutions for Sev1Tech LLC, recently spoke with ExecutiveGov regarding the company’s recent acquisition of Geocent and how the company has adapted to the advancements in its winning culture as well as new capabilities including DevSecOps, software development, science & engineering and others like data analytics tools.

In addition, Mike Bosco also discussed the influence that IT modernization initiatives are having for the U.S. Army, Navy and other service branches to improve warfighter training and drive the new emerging technology capabilities to project our national security interests during the latest Executive Spotlight interview.

“Training is important. As a nation, we do our best to understand and predict what is coming next, but no one has a crystal ball that can predict the next global crisis. The benefit is that a lot of these capabilities are not new. We’re talking about a Joint Warfare Doctrine. We’ve been doing this for a long time and our competitors are now trying to catch up with us.”

You can read the full interview with Mike Bosco below:

ExecutiveGov: What can you tell us about the company’s recent growth initiatives and how you’re driving value for your customers through contract awards, acquisitions and other aspects across the federal sector?

Mike Bosco: “With some of our recent acquisitions like Geocent last year, we’re really excited about the milestones we’ve surpassed. We’re very excited that we integrated the company into our Sev1Tech culture. They added amazing DevSecOps, software development, and science & engineering capabilities, as well as data analytics tools to our portfolio.

For me, with the Army business unit, the question is how to expand the great Sev1Tech capabilities that have been exercised in programs within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Air Force, U.S. Navy, and Marine Corps.

The challenge is to bring innovation to legacy systems under slow acquisition processes across the Army and other service branches. We are ecstatic about the future in providing new capabilities to our clients.

While there is a lot of excitement, we need to ensure Sev1Tech capitalizes on what we have to offer and there will be a significant impact on our growth strategy moving forward. Before the recent acquisition of Geocent, Sev1Tech was a 600-person company. Now, we’re a workforce of over a thousand people. Obviously, that’s changed how we look at our growth.

We’re no longer that mid-tier small business. Sev1Tech is now competing on the large contractual landscape. We’ve moved up in weight class and we’re working to take on all these capabilities and maintain our momentum and size as well as take some big swings at larger programs within the federal landscape.

From a capability and a process perspective, Sev1Tech will have an advantage over several large integrators because of our agile and people-focused mindset to bring value to our clients and deliver on the changing mission priorities. That’s our approach. We’re homerun hitters now.

Our senior leadership team is quite good about working with people and bringing in the right talent to continue to drive our company’s growth. Last year, Sev1Tech appointed Zhenia Klevitsky as our Chief Growth Officer, and we’ve been working on the process and structure to change our mindset around our growth and redesigned our approach to taking big swings.

To drive success in this sector, Sev1Tech needs to hit on all cylinders and bring all the best talent on board. That’s how we continue to mature and deliver rockstar solutions for our clients. Unfortunately, there’s no secret sauce that you can just buy. We’re sticking to what brought us to the dance, our culture, and that’s been my focus in the Army business unit for Sev1Tech.”

ExecutiveGov: What are the core values that are important to your company’s culture? How has your team developed its workflow and ability to drive success in such a competitive market?

Mike Bosco: “As we integrated our recent rebranding, we wanted to bring the great team of Sev1Tech together and bring everyone on board following Geocent’s acquisition. It was important that everyone in our employee base felt like a part of our company. Our focus is employee-centric, and we’ve done more than update our logo. We’ve rebranded our model with the teams in place.

I believe that any great company has a culture surrounded by talent and like-minded people. It’s what supports your organization on a day-to-day basis and that passion flows from our CEO Bob Lohfeld all the way through our executive leadership team to every employee.

We’re the type of company that cares deeply about our people. If we have happy employees and a team atmosphere every day, Sev1Tech is going to benefit and that’s going to include the missions of our customers and the support we provide. At the end of the day, positivity breeds positivity and builds on how we address our clients’ missions and ensure they’re satisfied with the results.

In my first integration meeting with Geocent, one of the things I was most excited about was the innovative technologies that they brought to the table. I was impressed from the beginning with the capabilities and technical talent that Sev1Tech would be able to offer our customers.

Geocent brings some amazing capabilities in space-based technology. Our talent has worked on NASA’s Artemis next-generation Space Launched System (SLS). We have a presence in Huntsville that’s going to prove to be very important down the line. From the first meeting with their super-talented technical team, I felt great about what we can accomplish.

In addition, we didn’t find many cultural differences or barriers either. I thought the integration of our cultures went extremely well and Sev1Tech has come out of that firing on all cylinders. I give credit to everyone on our executive leadership team and our entire workforce for the successful integration. It’s worked out well and these recent milestones are just the beginning.”

ExecutiveGov: As warfare continues to be influenced by IT modernization and other initiatives, what do you believe are the most significant capabilities that are being developed for the Army, Navy, etc. to ensure our warfighters have received proper training with the latest emerging technologies to protect themselves and our nation’s national security interests?

Mike Bosco: “I’m a retired Sergeant Major with the Army. I was a Special Ops / Intelligence guy and training is something that’s been near and dear to my heart for a long time. When I came into the Army, I was training in Vietnam tactics on the ground, but these were the times of Desert Storm and the first Gulf War, which were totally different environments than we were being trained to handle.

Training is important. As a nation, we do our best to understand and predict what is coming next, but no one has a crystal ball that can predict the next global crisis. The benefit is that a lot of these capabilities are not new. We’re talking about a Joint Warfare Doctrine. We’ve been doing this for a long time and our competitors are now trying to catch up with us.

While our near-peer adversaries have watched us these past 20 years, we’re fighting in a Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) environment (Air, Ground, Sea, Space, Cyber). I’m a firm believer that the technology revolution is moving so quickly that one of the biggest challenges is to understand and identify those technologies that can meet the mission now for our troops in harm’s way.

Another significant driver of technology is about bettering our joint warfare doctrine and how to better apply it to the new Multi-Domain Operations perspective through technology and really capitalize on creating the advantage to the tactical edge. Service members we are supporting today are users of technology in their everyday lives. They’re growing up and learning to use all this new technology and expect the best to provide the advantage and win on the next generation battlefield.

Times have changed. During my military service, we were putting people in planes to support missions. Now, we’re seeing someone in Nevada flying a remote unmanned aircraft across the world. We’ll always have a need to have boots on the ground, but the challenge is about enabling our warfighters to have the proper tools and keep them from issues like data overload.

I also believe in the unified network approach that the U.S. Army has been taking. I’m still an old-school guy. Back in the day, I had six desktops and various classification levels. How can you transfer data between six desktops? In the modern-day, it’s more about changing policy and mindset to unify our networks and share data. We’re all working to get there so to better leverage technology.”

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White House to Appoint New Chair, Members of Intelligence Advisory Board
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White House to Appoint New Chair, Members of Intelligence Advisory Board

James Winnefeld Jr., a retired U.S. Navy admiral and former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has been selected to serve as chairman of the White House’s intelligence advisory board.

Winnefeld is among the four appointees to the advisory board to advise the president on the effectiveness of the U.S. intelligence community to meet the country’s intelligence requirements, the White House said Wednesday.

Janet Napolitano, who served as the secretary of the Department of Jomeland Security from 2009 to 2013, is appointed as a member of the intelligence advisory board.

She joins Gilman Louie, CEO and co-founder of America’s Frontier Fund, and Richard Verma, the general counsel and head of global public policy for Mastercard.

Victor McCrary, vice president for research and graduate programs at the University of the District of Columbia, and Julia Phillips, a materials physicist and former VP and chief technology officer at Sandia, were also appointed as members of the National Science Board, which establishes the policies of the National Science Foundation.

DOD Tells GOP Lawmakers Inflation Affects New Contract Negotiations
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DOD Tells GOP Lawmakers Inflation Affects New Contract Negotiations

Department of Defense Comptroller Mike McCord and three military department secretaries explained their observations on how inflation is affecting DOD programs and contractors in a joint letter to Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., and Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala.

The missive from McCord and the Air Force, Navy and Army leaders was in response to the two Republican lawmakers’ March 17 request for information about projected and observed consequences of the price increase on DOD’s buying power.

They wrote that inflation uncertainty has a direct impact on new contract negotiations and the department is coordinating with acquisition personnel to establish a mutual understanding between government and industry on when to use contract clauses that allow vendors to request economic price adjustments.

“It is essential that decisions about these clauses be made early enough in the negotiation process so that they can inform subcontract negotiations throughout the supply chain,” the letter states.

Inhofe and Rogers said they believe Pentagon officials need to better understand the challenges the defense industrial base faces and urged the department to take a proactive approach to address inflation’s harmful effects.

“At the very least, they should be collecting necessary data, establishing a governance framework and conducting regular touchpoints with all stakeholders,” the two lawmakers added.

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DARPA Soliciting Proposals for Phases 2 & 3 of Nuclear Thermal Rocket Demo Program; Maj. Nathan Greiner Quoted
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DARPA Soliciting Proposals for Phases 2 & 3 of Nuclear Thermal Rocket Demo Program; Maj. Nathan Greiner Quoted

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is soliciting proposals for the second and third phases of a demonstration program that seeks to design, develop, fabricate and assemble a nuclear thermal rocket engine for spacecraft use.

DARPA said Wednesday that Phases 2 and 3 of the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations program will center on the creation of a demonstration system for the nuclear thermal propulsion and its in-space flight test.

The DRACO initiative was launched in an effort to potentially expand the long-duration human spaceflight operations of NASA with the use of a nuclear thermal rocket engine, which is anticipated to provide high thrust-to-weight output and enhanced efficiency.

“Maneuver is more challenging in space due to propulsion system limitations. To maintain technological superiority in space, the United States requires leap-ahead propulsion technology that the DRACO program will provide,” said Maj. Nathan Greiner, program manager in DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office.

The first phase of the program focused on risk reduction activities. Responses to the presolicitation notice are due Aug. 5th.

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White House Seeks to Advance Quantum Information Science With Executive Order, National Security Memo
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White House Seeks to Advance Quantum Information Science With Executive Order, National Security Memo

President Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order and a national security memorandum to advance national programs in quantum information science as part of efforts to maintain the country’s competitive edge in quantum computing.

The EO calls for the establishment of the National Quantum Initiative Advisory Committee, which will advise the president and the National Science and Technology Council’s subcommittees on QIS and the economic and security implications of quantum science on the NQI program. The committee will be under the authority of the White House.

The advisory panel should conduct meetings at least twice a year; solicit ideas and information on QIS from the research community, academia, the private sector and other stakeholders; assess the national QIS strategy; and respond to requests from the president and committee’s co-chairs for information, evaluation, analysis or advice with regard to QIS and its applications.

The national security memorandum outlines the Biden administration’s plan to counter the risks posed by quantum computers to U.S. cybersecurity.

The memo will direct federal agencies to advance a whole-of-society and whole-of-government approach to maximize the scientific and economic benefits of QIS, require the National Institute of Standards and Technology to create a Migration to Post-Quantum Cryptography Project at the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence and establish requirements for agencies update cryptographic systems.

The document will also ask agencies to come up with comprehensive plans to protect U.S. research and development, intellectual property and other sensitive tech platforms from being acquired by adversaries.

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Commerce Department Announces Creation of National AI Advisory Committee
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Commerce Department Announces Creation of National AI Advisory Committee

The Department of Commerce has unveiled an advisory panel to provide the federal government with insights into matters related to artificial intelligence and complement its work with partners abroad.

The National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee consists of 27 members and is administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the department said Wednesday.

Don Graves, deputy secretary of Commerce, said NAIAC recommendations would help the country come up with a roadmap for inclusive and responsible AI that will help achieve economic equity.

Laurie Locascio, director of NIST and undersecretary of Commerce for standards and technology, introduced the members of the advisory committee during its first meeting.

Miriam Vogel, chair of NAIAC, officially created the law enforcement and AI subcommittee, and joined Vice Chair James Manyika in leading a discussion with panel members over its future activities.

POC - 4th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 4th Annual 2022 AI Summit this spring at the Hilton-McLean in Virginia to hear notable executive leaders within the GovCon sector talk about key AI advancements and development strategies.

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Army Directive Clarifies Roles of Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, Army Futures Command
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Army Directive Clarifies Roles of Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, Army Futures Command

Army Secretary Christine Wormuth has signed a directive stating that the assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology will now oversee the military branch’s acquisition workforce and research and development efforts, including science and technology initiatives, Breaking Defense reported Wednesday.

The commanding general of Army Futures Command will coordinate with ASA(ALT) on matters related to acquisition and R&D, act as operational architect and capabilities developer for the future Army and be responsible for force development and design and operation of the service’s research laboratories and centers, according to a May 3rd directive.

“AFC assesses and integrates the future operational environment, emerging threats, and technologies to provide warfighters with the concepts and future force designs needed to dominate a future battlefield,” the directive reads.

Ellen Lovett, a spokesperson for the Army, said the directives issued by the service following the creation of AFC “had the unintended consequence of creating ambiguity in long-established acquisition authorities.

“This administrative change eliminates that ambiguity with clearly defined roles consistent with statute, and will better facilitate collaboration in our modernization and equipping enterprise,” said Lovett.

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