Daily Briefing: News Snippets By Sharon Hess, Assistant Managing Editor
Navy experiences open seas and open architectures
A recent $26 million IDIQ contract between the U.S. Navy and General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems falls into lockstep with the Navy’s open-architecture COTS initiative. Specifically, General Dynamics will ramp up production for the Common Display System (CDS), a Grade-A shock-qualified dis- play system designed for myriad Navy platforms. CDS is based on commercial software and hardware and slated to ride on Navy aircraft, subs, and ships, with the possibility of future use by the USMC and U.S. allies. CDS is expected to adhere to the same display requirements as other Navy programs specify, including the Aegis modernization program (Figure 1). The contract will be fulfilled at Tallman, NY; Fairfax, VA; Smithfield, PA; and Freemont, CA by June 2013.
www.mil-embedded.com/dailybriefing SN and GMD programs go the distance
Just like the Energizer Bunny, military programs keep going and going and going … and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is following the trend. Case in point: MDA recently awarded a nearly $110 million contract modification to The Boeing Co. to keep MDA’s Sensors (SN) and Ground Missile Defense (GMD) programs operable. Notably, Boeing will keep up its sustain- ment and operation services for SN and GMD to the tune of $37,900,000 for SN and $72,000,000 for GMD. Contract com- pletion will occur at Colorado Springs, CO and Fort Greely, AK, with SN work scheduled for March through December 2011 and GMD commencing March until August 2011.
U.S. Army software products find common ground
Figure 1 | General Dynamics will soon ramp up production of the CDS, which meets the display requirements of other Navy programs, including Aegis modernization. Aegis includes vessels such as this USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51), for example. U.S. Navy photo
It would be so much easier if all U.S. Army technology platforms were compatible and could “speak” to each other and operate cohesively. Such a paradigm might soon be reality, thanks to a recent up-to-$33 million contract between the U.S. Army and prime Future Skies, Inc. Under the contract, Future Skies will render evolution and maintenance of “Common Software prod- ucts” (Figure 2). The contract includes work on the Command and Control Registry (C2R); Data Dissemination Service (DDS) Client Interface (DCI); Battle Command Staff Trainer (BCST); Common Messaging Processor (CMP); and Joint Consultation, Command, and Control Information Exchange Data Model (JC3IEDM) Validator, among others. The goal of the contract is to further Common Software’s role as encompassed within the Project Manager Battle Command: to streamline systems into a common architecture to provide commanders heightened capabilities to collaborate across the spectrum of military opera- tions, relative to mission execution and planning. The contract consists of two base years plus two option years.
IT: Federal agencies get some support
The IT support realm is a real hodgepodge, and no two entities ever have identical IT needs. However, a recent $400 million Information Technology Services – Small Business (ITS-SB) contract between the U.S. Army and MicroTech aims to solve federal agencies’ IT dilemmas, anyway. The IDIQ contract states that MicroTech will render IT services such as IPv6 engi- neering and information assurance, along with support of the Electronic Product Environment Assessment Tool (EPEAT) Green technology program and Independent Verification & Validation (IV&V). MicroTech will also handle integration, migration, maintenance, and warranty work. Entities to benefit from the contract include the U.S. DoD and U.S. Army, in addition to other Federal agencies.
16 March/April 2011 MILITARY EMBEDDED SYSTEMS
Figure 2 | Future Skies, Inc. will provide evolution and maintenance of the U.S. Army’s “Common Software products.”
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