March 29, 2024

Huntington Ingalls to Buy Alion: $1.65B

logo courtesy of Huntington Ingalls Industries

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Morning Coffee logoeconomic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

Huntington Ingalls Industries to buy Alion Science and Technology in a $1.65 billion deal, reports USNI. Alion is based in McLean, VA, with an office at St. Mary’s County Regional Airport in California, MD. Huntington Ingalls CEO Mike Petters said recent buys have been to better position HII’s shipbuilding business toward emerging technologies like unmanned systems.

logo from Alion Science & Technology Facebook page.

Alion’s business includes tying together multiple information systems; using artificial intelligence to sort vast amounts of data; and researching electronic warfare.

The Pentagon canceled its $10 billion JEDI cloud contract, delayed by the Microsoft-Amazon feud, reports C4ISRNET. Citing the delays, DoD announced the contract “no longer meets the department’s cloud needs.” The Pentagon announced an alternative to work with both companies, the only two firms DoD finds capable of filling its requirements.

IT leaders explore how a year of maximum telework and nearly all-digital operations has altered the role of cloud services in agency missions. FCW reports, in some cases, budget and leadership buy-in remain insufficient, and challenges moving to zero trust security loom for virtually every organization.

As the one-year anniversary approaches, the Navy has yet to explain the cause of the fire that destroyed the Bonhomme Richard at pierside in San Diego, reports Navy Times. A US Pacific Fleet spokesperson said the investigation “is expected to be completed later this summer.”

The Omaha World-Herald reports on remarks by John Cohen, the Department of Homeland Security’s counterterrorism coordinator, who said not even after 9/11 had the United States faced a terrorism challenge as tough as the current homegrown domestic terrorism.

The nature of the Americans withdrawal from Bagram, the hub of the NATO and US Afghan operations for 20 years, came as a shock to Afghan troops who are now stationed at the base, however a decade ago the famed satirical “news outlet” The Onion described a very similar end, reports The Drive.

“It wasn’t done in some sort of shroud of secrecy,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said of the US keeping exact details of its Bagram exit from the Afghan commander for operational security, reports Military Times. “It’s not a statement about whether we trust or don’t trust our Afghan partners. It’s a statement of the fact that we have to consider that this drawdown could be contested by the Taliban, and we have to take that into consideration.”

The US military says its withdrawal from Afghanistan is 90% complete, reports Military.com. US Central Command says that it has carried almost 1,000 C-17 aircraft loads of material out of the country since mid-April. These heavy-lift transport planes can carry: 102 troops/paratroops; 36 litter and 54 ambulatory patients and attendants; 170,900 pounds of cargo.

After troops exit, the safety of the US Embassy in Kabul becomes the  top concern, reports Defense News. In the countryside, districts are falling to the Taliban in rapid succession. America’s warlord allies are re-arming militias with violent histories, raising the specter of another civil war once the US withdrawal is finished, expected in August.

 

 

As many as 3,000 troops will be deployed along the US border with Mexico until Sept. 30, 2022, stretching the military’s mission there into a fourth year, reports Stars and Stripes. (Paywall) DefSec Lloyd Austin approved a request to extend the Department of Homeland Security mission. The authorization is down from 4,000 approved for FY21.

Austin steps in to OK a Navy grad’s pursuit of an NFL dream, reports Military Times. Former Navy cornerback and NFL hopeful Cameron Kinley received the green light to postpone his Navy service and join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for training camp, a reversal of the Navy’s earlier denial of the postponement request.

Many military families, caught in a housing crunch, are paying $600 more than their basic housing allowance, when they can find a rental at all, reports Military Times. They’re also getting outbid by tens of thousands of dollars when trying to buy a house, paying out of pocket for longer stays in temporary lodging, and waiting longer for on-base housing.

The military is weighing mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations after full FDA approval, reports Military Times. The vaccination remains voluntary for now.

The Air Force tests a new approach for assigning cyber missions, reports C4ISRNET.  The commander now has a greater scope of responsibility because he or she is leading operational planning efforts and assigning teams to missions. The task force has executed several missions under this new plan and found it valuable. Previously, squadron and group commanders were left out of the operational chain of command.

Iran takes steps to make enriched uranium metal, the US and Europe powers express dismay, reports Reuters. Iran has begun the process of producing enriched uranium metal, the UN atomic watchdog said, a move that could help it develop a nuclear weapon. Three European powers said this threatened talks to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. It could also end indirect US-Iranian talks seeking to bring both nations back into compliance with the 2015 deal, which was abandoned by former President Donald Trump.

Contracts:

NCI Information Systems Inc., Reston, Virginia, was awarded a $10,448,501 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for to provide project management, engineering, furnishing, installation, securing and testing services. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in South Korea and Sierra Vista, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2022. Fiscal 2021 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $10,448,501 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W91RUS-21-C-0018). 

G-W Management Services LLC, Rockville, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0022); Biscayne Contractors Inc., Alexandria, Virginia (N40080-21-D-0023); Tuckman-Barbee Construction Co., Inc., Upper Marlboro, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0024); C.E.R. Inc., Baltimore, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0025); Belt Built-CFM JV, Crofton, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0026); EGI HSU JV, LLC Edifice Group, Gaithersburg, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0027); Desbuild EGMS JV LLC, Hyattsville, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0028); and Tidewater Inc., Elkridge, Maryland (N40080-21-D-0029), are each being awarded an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple award construction contract for construction projects located primarily within the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Washington area of responsibility (AOR). The maximum dollar value including the base period and one option year for all 10 contracts combined is $240,000,000. The work to be performed provides for various construction services including new work, additions, alterations, maintenance and repairs. All work on this contract will be performed primarily within the NAVFAC Washington AOR to include Washington, DC (40%); Virginia (40%); and Maryland (20%). The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of July 2026. Fiscal 2021 supervision, inspection, and overhead funds in the amount of $80,000 ($10,000 per contractor) are obligated on this award, and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by military construction (Navy) funds; operation and maintenance (Navy) funds; and working capital (Navy) funds. This contract was competitively procured via the beta.sam.gov website with 51 proposals received. These eight contractors may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract. NAVFAC Washington, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity. 

Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Baltimore, Maryland, is awarded a not-to-exceed $35,720,955 undefinitized modification to previously awarded contract N00024-11-C-2300 for configuration management changes on select Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ships. Work will be performed in Marinette, Wisconsin, and is expected to be completed by May 2022. Fiscal 2015 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,042,658 (28%); and 2016 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of  $12,817,819 (72%) will be obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.

Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Baltimore, Maryland, is awarded a not-to-exceed $12,467,226 indefinite modification to previously awarded contract N00024-18-C-2300 for configuration management changes on select Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ships. Work will be performed in Marinette, Wisconsin, and is expected to be completed by May 2022. Fiscal 2017 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,523,468 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.

Comcast Government Services LLC, Reston, Virginia, was awarded a competitive, firm-fixed-price, single award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the Commercial Ethernet Gateway Region 6 to provide mission partner access, via ethernet connections, to the Department of Defense Information Network and to enable the replacement of legacy, time division multiplexing-based circuits. The total amount of all orders placed against the contract shall not exceed $75,782,800.  The guaranteed minimum amount is $500 and will be funded by fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds. The period of performance is 10 years, with a six-year base period and two two-year option periods from July 12, 2021 to July 11, 2031. Primary performance will be at the contractor’s facility in Reston, Virginia.  Proposals were solicited via beta.sam.gov/ and three proposals were received in response to the solicitation. The Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization, Scott AFB, Illinois, is the contracting activity  (HC1013-21-D-0006).

Systems Planning and Analysis Inc., Alexandria, Virginia (HDTRA121C0054), is being awarded a $20,418,513 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to provide advisory and assistance services expertise for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) in support of the Research and Development (RD) Directorate in the areas of scientific and technical subject matter expertise across the chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high-yield explosives spectrum and in the countering weapons of mass destruction, countering improvised threats, and countering improvised threat networks mission domains that RD supports. The period of performance is a 4.25-month base period and four one-year option periods, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 15, 2025. Work will be performed at multiple DTRA locations, primarily at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. The total cumulative face value of this not-to-exceed contract is $185,346,482. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $1,569,892; and fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $8,000,000 are being obligated at the time of award.  This acquisition is a full and open best-value competitive procurement, and four offers were received.  The Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, is the contracting activity. 

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