Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Upcoming Event

Best Places to Work in Virginia

Hamburger Menu Hamburger Menu

Tag: GovCon

Leidos wins three contracts, worth up to $603M combined

Headquartered in Reston, Fortune 500 contractor Leidos announced last week it has won three government contracts — a $191 million Army contract, an up to $86 million National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency contract and an up to $326.5 million National Institutes of Health contract.

Under the $191 million contract, Leidos will provide integrated lifecycle software and management solutions for the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command, Software Engineering Center, C3T Directorate, Fires Division.

Leidos has previously performed mission software development work for the Army customer. The contractor will provide cyber-hardened software and systems engineering, technical services, and software integration, supporting more than seven mission software systems, including the Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System.

“For the U.S. Army to deliver precise, longer-range fires to counter continuous innovation from near-peer threats, they need software systems capable of incremental modernization,” Roy Stevens, Leidos’ national security sector president, said in a statement.

The contract has a five-year performance period and a six-month option.

For the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Leidos will provide software development, systems engineering, integration and operations and sustainment services. Named Chinook, the single award, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract has a ceiling value of $86.4 million, if all task orders are exercised over a five-year performance period.

Leidos will provide lifecycle management support for analytics systems including the Commercial-Joint Mapping Toolkit and the Tearline open-source intelligence system.

“Geospatial intelligence analysts use a spectrum of tools and need them to perform to support their missions,” Stevens said in a statement. “Building on our longstanding relationship with NGA, we are committed to sustaining and evolving these analysis systems for ongoing decision advantage.”

Leidos announced a contract award from the NIH on Aug. 15. The eRA Agile Software Development Support contract has a potential $326.5 million value over five years, if all options are exercised.

Under the NIH contract, Leidos will provide software development and design services to support eRA — NIH’s grants management system, which several other federal agencies also use — and other NIH Office of Extramural Research systems. The eRA system is an end-to-end electronic system that applicants and grantees use to apply for and manage grants, and that assists reviewers in the application review process. The system handles more than $40 billion annually in grants at more than 62,000 institutions worldwide.

“As the largest grants management system in the world, eRA requires continuous modernization and maintenance to sustain the work of tens of thousands of researchers and institutions worldwide,” Liz Porter, Leidos’ health and civil sector president, said in a statement. “Since 2008, Leidos has worked with NIH to enhance its modernization efforts, establishing it as a center of excellence in grants management and agile development across the federal government.”

The three contracts come after an $823 million task order from the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency, which Leidos announced at the end of July.

Leidos provides technology, engineering and science services to defense, intelligence, civil and health market customers. It has about 48,000 employees and reported approximately $15.4 billion in 2023 revenue.

Boeing lands $2.56B Air Force contract

Boeing has won a $2.56 billion U.S. Air Force contract for two rapid prototype E-7A airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) Wedgetail aircraft, the Arlington-based Fortune 500 aerospace and defense company announced Friday.

The contract modification to a previously awarded undefinitized contract action includes life-cycle development, training and support for the Air Force’s E-7A fleet. The E-7A Wedgetail provides targeted tracking and battle management command-and-control capabilities to joint forces for a “first to detect, first to engage” advantage, according to a news release.

“Our customers have an urgent need for integrated battle-space awareness and battle management,” Dan Gillian, vice president and general manager of Boeing Defense, Space & Security’s Mobility, Surveillance & Bombers division, said in a statement. “The E-7A is the airspace linchpin to continuously scan the skies, command and control the battle space and integrate all-domain data, providing a decisive advantage against threats.”

Based on the Boeing 737-700 Next Generation airframe, the E-7 AEW&C aircraft is used by the Royal Australian Air Force, Republic of Korea Air Force (designated the E-737 Peace Eye) and Turkish Air Force (designated the E-7T Peace Eagle).

In addition to building the rapid prototype aircraft for the U.S., Boeing is producing three E-7As for the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force. The heads of the Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force and the U.S. Air Force signed a joint vision statement in July 2023 outlining their agreement to collaborate on the Wedgetail’s development.

Also, in November 2023, NATO ordered six E-7A Wedgetail aircraft to replace its E-3A Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft, which it has operated a fleet of since the 1980s, for an undisclosed amount.

“Global operators are proving that the E-7 AEW&C is a critical node for air superiority in the modern battle space,” Stu Voboril, Boeing vice president and E-7 program manager, said in a statement. “In our partnership with the U.S. Air Force, we’re focused on stable, predictable execution to deliver crucial mission-ready capabilities today. This will put us on the path for the long-term growth of the aircraft and mission.”

Work on the U.S. contract will be performed in Tukwila, Washington, and is expected to be completed by Aug. 28, 2029, according to the U.S. Defense Department.

Boeing’s assembly process for its 737 Max 9 aircraft has come under scrutiny since a 4-foot wall panel blew out of a Boeing plane cabin during an Alaska Airlines flight on Jan. 5.

The Federal Aviation Administration conducted a six-week audit of Boeing and supplier Spirit AeroSystems, which Boeing announced plans to acquire for $4.7 billion on July 1. Boeing submitted an action plan to correct issues found in the audit to the FAA, which will have continued oversight of the company.

Last week, the National Transportation Safety Board held two days of hearings investing the door plug blowout. Testimony from Boeing workers and federal inspectors revealed systemic manufacturing problems.

Boeing’s new president and CEO, Robert “Kelly” Ortberg, started his tenure Thursday.

BAE Systems receives $493M Army contract

Falls Church-based BAE Systems Inc. has received a $493 million U.S. Army contract to produce M109A7 self-propelled howitzers and M992A3 ammunition carriers, the U.S. arm of British defense giant BAE Systems plc announced Aug. 2.

The contract’s production and deliveries are scheduled between August 2025 and July 2026.

The M109A7 will be used by the Army’s Armored Brigade Combat Team, the Army’s primary armored force.

BAE Systems Inc. received the initial contract from the U.S. Army for $413.7 million to produced 48 vehicle sets  in 2017. By 2022, the federal contractor reported having produced 310 sets of M109A7 self-propelled howitzers and companion M992A3 ammunition carriers to the U.S. Army for $1.9 billion. Friday’s update brings the total contract value to almost $3 billion, according to a BAE Systems news release.

“We are focused on producing and fielding modern artillery capabilities that provide the Army with overmatch in range, accuracy and lethality,” said Dan Furber, director of ground vehicle production for BAE Systems’ Combat Mission Systems business, stated in the news release. “This contract ensures the ABCT will sustain operations of one of the most survivable indirect fire support systems for years to come.”

BAE Systems recently expanded production and support efforts for M109A7 and M992A3 at a facility in Anniston, Alabama. Facilities in Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Michigan, New York; Elgin, Oklahoma and South Carolina will also participate in production, according to a news release. 

Boeing names Ortberg as new president and CEO

Updated Aug. 1

Boeing’s board of directors announced Wednesday that Robert K. “Kelly” Ortberg will be its next president and CEO effective Aug. 8, succeeding Dave Calhoun, who previously announced his intention to step down after a turbulent, nearly four-year tenure as the Arlington County Fortune 500 aerospace and defense giant’s chief executive.

According to Boeing’s announcement, Ortberg started as an engineer at Texas Instruments in 1983, and then joined Rockwell Collins in 1987 as a program manager, becoming its president and CEO in 2013. In 2018, Rockwell Collins integrated with United Technologies and RTX — formerly Raytheon Technologies. Ortberg retired in 2021 but still sat on RTX’s board of directors before resigning on Tuesday, according to a document RTX filed Wednesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

According to a Seattle Times story, Ortberg will be based in Seattle, Boeing’s original headquarters and near its large Puget Sound workforce, a person with knowledge of the situation said. Boeing’s headquarters moved in 2001 to Chicago and then to Arlington County in 2022. Although Boeing has not announced any plans to move its headquarters to Seattle, Commercial Airplanes CEO Stephanie Pope, head engineer and Chief Technical Officer Todd Citron and Ortberg will all be in Seattle, the article notes.

“The board conducted a thorough and extensive search process over the last several months to select the next CEO of Boeing, and Kelly has the right skills and experience to lead Boeing in its next chapter,” Boeing’s board chair, Steven Mollenkopf, said in a statement Wednesday. “Kelly is an experienced leader who is deeply respected in the aerospace industry, with a well-earned reputation for building strong teams and running complex engineering and manufacturing companies. We look forward to working with him as he leads Boeing through this consequential period in its long history.”

In late March, Boeing President and CEO Calhoun said he would step down by the end of the year. The announcement came amid ongoing bad press over production problems and fallout from a high-profile January incident in which a 4-foot wall panel blew out of a Boeing 737 Max 9 jet cabin in mid-air. The board also elected a new independent board chair, Mollenkopf, to succeed its previous chair, Larry Kellner, and lead the search for Calhoun’s replacement. 

In addition to National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration investigations, the incident also was investigated as a criminal matter by the U.S. Department of Justice.

In July, Boeing finalized a guilty plea to a federal criminal fraud conspiracy charge under which it will pay at least $243.6 million in fines related to Boeing’s violation of a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Justice Department that stemmed from Boeing’s role in two fatal 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019.

Boeing, which employs 170,000 workers worldwide, posted 2023 revenue of $77.79 billion, up nearly 17% from its 2022 revenue of $66.6 billion. For the first half of 2024, Boeing has posted $33.43 billion in revenue, down 11% from the first half of 2023, when it reported $37.67 billion.

In April and May, Boeing received no orders for its 737 Max planes, and only four new orders for any planes in the month of May, the company reported in June. In June, Boeing sold 14 new jets and three 737 Max jets, including one to Alaska Airlines to replace the one that experienced the blowout.

In July, the company announced it was going to purchase Spirit Aerosystems in a $4.7 billion, all stock transaction; the fuselage maker, responsible for manufacturing the part that blew out in the Alaska Airlines flight, was spun off from Boeing in 2005. In addition to the $4.7 billion payment, Boeing agreed to take on Spirit’s net debt, making the deal’s total value $8.3 billion. The acquisition is set to be finalized in mid-2025.

2024 Virginia CFO Awards: Large Business: Sean Daily, CAES

Sean Daily, chief financial officer of Arlington County defense technology contractor CAES, didn’t set out to forge a career in defense. But an interest in corporate finance, sparked by an internship at Marriott International, combined with an opportunity to join Lockheed Martin after his graduation from Virginia Tech.

Soon enough, “I developed an interest in the industry,” he says. “And as you spend years within aerospace defense, you really begin to connect to the mission.”

He spent almost 19 years at Lockheed Martin, earning his MBA at George Washington University through the company’s finance leadership development program and working his way up to vice president of finance and business operations. He led a team of 730 finance professionals and was responsible for financial management, pricing, program finance and control, contract negotiation, and financial administration for government and commercial programs.

His experience showed him that much of the industry’s energy is directed toward innovation and creative problem-solving. 

“A lot of times, I think the industry is misrepresented as a warmonger, but it’s really not,” he reflects. “It’s really about protecting and serving, and also exploring. We do a lot of scientific missions and space-based missions, which are really helping society at large.”

After leaving Lockheed in early 2020, Daily pursued some entrepreneurial ventures, including as a franchise owner of fitness studios. But he was ultimately drawn back into corporate financial leadership in the field he had come to feel so passionate about, joining CAES as a senior vice president and CFO in January 2021.

There were challenges for him to manage from the start of his tenure, considering that CAES (Cobham Advanced Electronic Solutions) was created in 2021 as a standalone entity within its parent company, Cobham, which was itself purchased by private equity firm Advent International in 2020. In 2023, Daily oversaw the divestment of CAES’ Space Systems division to private equity firm Veritas, a transaction reportedly totaling nearly $2 billion. And then, in June, he saw the culmination of another mega-deal he’d worked on, the announcement that Honeywell plans to acquire CAES this year for $1.9 billion in an all-cash transaction.

That’s a lot of change to manage in a relatively short period of time, and Daily has led his team through it all with a focus on ensuring that everyone feels confident and can act with clarity.

“It’s really for me about trust, transparency, collaboration and teamwork,” he says. “In order to get that trust, people have to feel you’re looking out for them and you’re connecting with them on an individual level.”

Ensuring workers feel that high level of connection centers on cultivating honesty and transparency, he says: “I tell people, ‘You may not like the decisions that I reach, but you’ll never be confused by how I reach them.’ I think people appreciate that.”

Dave Fink, senior vice president and chief human resources officer at CAES, says it has been vital to have a finance leader with a future-oriented, strategic view of directing institutional change.

“Having personally witnessed Sean’s incredible business savvy and work ethic, I’m very happy to see this recognition, as he would never be the one to blow his own horn,” Fink says. “I’ve worked with a lot of CFOs, and Sean stands out as the best and brightest by the way he looks far into the future and then builds the road to help the team get there.”

Daily relishes the hard work of leading his team in a fast-changing corporate environment.

“What I really love about my job is the holistic view that you get in finance,” he says. “You get to see the entire enterprise and understand the breadth of the organization. You also get to help navigate through challenges. If you’re doing your job really well, you see the challenges before they even materialize and help make sure that they never impact the business in a negative or harmful way.”

Leidos wins $823M task order

The U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) has awarded Leidos an $823 million task order to provide operations and sustainment for the Department of Defense Network program (DoDNet), the Reston-based Fortune 500 federal contractor announced Monday.

In 2022, DISA, which provides information technology and communications services for national leaders, the military services and others, awarded Leidos with a $11.5 billion indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract to consolidate IT services for multiple agencies onto a single network, DoDNet.

With the five-year task order, Leidos will ensure DoDNet is secure, scalable and operational and will offer cybersecurity support, systems engineering, network architecture and management and technical support. Leidos will also provide a virtual desktop for users, allowing them to access a reliable network on any device, according to a news release. 

The work will expand support from 30,000 users to more than 160,000 users, including users at 14 agencies that provide functions critical to military services. When complete, DoDNet will support about 370,000 users. 

Leidos provides technology, engineering and science services to defense, intelligence, civil and health market customers. It has about 47,000 employees and reported approximately $15.4 billion in 2023 revenue.

Leidos names first chief AI officer

Leidos has named Ron Keesing its first chief AI officer, the Reston Fortune 500 contractor announced Tuesday. 

Keesing, who joined Leidos in 2004, has more than two decades of experience in artificial intelligence, machine learning and advanced analytics. His roles have included serving as founding director of the Leidos AI Accelerator and as senior vice president of technology integration, responsible for “driving mission-critical AI as a core discriminator of the company’s data-driven solutions.”

In addition to earning a bachelor’s degree in symbolic systems and a master’s degree in biological sciences from Stanford University, Keesing has a MBA from the University of Maryland, according to his LinkedIn page. 

“Ron Keesing’s appointment as chief AI officer marks a pivotal moment for Leidos,” Leidos CEO Tom Bell said in a statement. “As we navigate a landscape shaped by rapid technological advancements, his leadership will be instrumental in ensuring that AI remains at the forefront of our solutions. At Leidos, we don’t view AI as a replacement for human ingenuity but rather as a trusted partner that enhances our capabilities to deliver unparalleled support for critical customer missions.”

Leidos’ approach to AI, Keesing explained in the news release, is rooted in “anticipating technological trends and leveraging AI’s potential to solve complex challenges across our customers’ missions.”

Also on Tuesday, Leidos announced second quarter results, including revenues of $4.1 billion, up 8% year-over-year.  

On Monday, Leidos reported the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency has awarded the company an $823 million task order to provide operations and sustainment for the Department of Defense Network program (DoDNet).

Leidos provides technology, engineering and science services to defense, intelligence, civil and health market customers. It has about 47,000 employees and reported approximately $15.4 billion in 2023 revenue.

Former Northrop Grumman CEO’s mansion sells for $9.95M

Former Northrop Grumman Chairman and CEO Wes Bush and his wife, Natalie, sold their McLean mansion June 28 for $9.95 million, according to Fairfax County records.

Steven A. Sigsbury, an attorney with the Cochran Law Group in Tysons, is listed as the buyer of 903 Turkey Run Road and Baldy’s Bait and Tackle Trust is listed as a co-owner. Daniel Heider of TTR Sotheby’s International Realty, who represented the buyer, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Marianne Prendergast of Washington Fine Properties represented the Bushes in the sale. She declined to name the buyer of the property. The Bushes, she said Monday, are moving “to the Virginia countryside.”

The six-bedroom home on Turkey Run Road, which has 12,000 square feet of living space, was listed for sale Feb. 1 for $10.5 million. In 2010, the property was purchased by the Golden Paws Trust, a fund associated with the Bushes, according to Prendergast. The home was constructed on the property in 2011 by Harrison Design, a high-end residential architecture, interior design and landscape architecture firm with an office in Washington, D.C.

The home boasts a billiard room, a wood-paneled elevator, a pool and a 1,200-bottle, temperature-controlled wine cellar with adjoining tasting room.

Bush served as CEO of the Falls Church defense contractor from 2010 to 2018 and as chair from 2011 to 2019. He sits on the boards of General Motors, Cisco Systems and Dow, as well as MIT Corp., Conservation International and American University. In April, The New York Times speculated Bush could be a contender to become the new CEO of aerospace and defense contractor Boeing, which is headquartered in Arlington County. Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun has announced he intends to step down by the end of the year, amid ongoing bad press over production and safety problems, including a high-profile January incident in which a wall panel blew out of a Boeing 737 Max 9 jet cabin in mid-air.

Raytheon gets $325M boost to StormBreaker contract

The U.S. Department of Defense has increased the ceiling of an existing U.S. Air Force contract held by Arlington County’s Raytheon, a subsidiary of Fortune 500 defense contractor RTX, by $325 million, the Department of Defense announced Friday. 

The contract, under which Raytheon is producing StormBreaker Increment II small-diameter glide bombs for fighter jets, has been modified to raise its ceiling $275 million to $600 million. 

Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, according to the federal government. 

In other company news, Raytheon received two mentor-protégé agreement contracts from the U.S. Department of the Navy Office of Small Business Programs to support the development of artificial intelligence for U.S. Department of Defense programs and platforms, the company announced Monday. 

Raytheon won three-year contracts to mentor California’s Anacapa Micro Products, which provides IT solutions to the government, and Nara Logics, a Boston developer of a synaptic intelligence platform. Raytheon will provide mentorship on system design, software architecture, systems integration, IT security constraints and authority-to-operate requirements, according to a news release.  

Raytheon, Anacapa Micro Products and Nara Logics plan to accelerate the development of next-generation autonomous capabilities to improve the effectiveness of service members’ decision making, the news release stated. 

“Through this partnership, we’ll leverage commercial innovations that can make meaningful contributions to our defense capabilities and, ultimately, the success of our servicemen and women,” stated Colin Whelan, president of advanced technology at Raytheon.

Former U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Georgia, created the Mentor-Protégé Program in 1990. It helps small businesses “expand their footprint in the defense industrial base,” according to the Department of Defense. 

An participant in the program since 1991, Raytheon has nine active mentor-protégé agreements currently, according to a company spokesperson. 

Also based in Arlington, RTX has more than 185,000 employees globally and had $68.9 billion in sales in 2023. The company rebranded from Raytheon Technologies to RTX in June 2023 and has three business units: Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney and Raytheon.

 

Herndon’s Akima wins $480M Space Force contract

The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded Five Rivers Analytics, a subsidiary of Herndon-based government contractor Akima, an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract worth up to $480 million over 10 years, Akima announced last week.

Based in Colorado, Five Rivers Analytics provides classified IT and mission support services and bills itself as “a small business backed by a global enterprise.” The Satellite Control Network Tracking Station Operations Remote Site and Mission Partner Support (STORMS) contract focuses on operation and maintenance of the U.S. Space Force’s Satellite Control Network, a global network of radio frequency antennas, signal processing and routing communications equipment and computer systems supporting space vehicles. Support services provided by Five Rivers Analytics will include maintenance, cybersecurity measures and system administration.

The Satellite Control Network (SCN) of antennas communicates with and control U.S. government satellites. A 2023 report by the U.S. Government Accountability office described the network as “aging” and “difficult to maintain,” while noting that “demand on the network is increasing as more satellites are launched.”

Following GAO’s recommendation to improve capacity of the SCN, Akima plans to integrate emerging technologies to improve the SCN’s efficiency and resilience. By enhancing SCN capacity, the STORMS contract will “set the stage for significant advancements in satellite control and space defense operations,” according to Akima. 

“Our partnership with the U.S. Space Force underscores our commitment to enhancing the Satellite Control Network’s operational efficiency and resilience,” Duncan Greene, president of Akima’s Mission Systems, Engineering and Technology group, stated in a news release. “By integrating emerging technology and expanding system capabilities, we’re not only bolstering national defense and intelligence but also paving the way for revolutionary advancements in space operations.”

Only two bids were received for this contract.

STORMS is a successor to the Consolidated Air Force Satellite Control Network Modifications and Maintenance Operations contract, or CAMMO. CACI International, a Reston Fortune 1000 contractor, previously won that contract in 2016. Bidding for STORMS was limited to small businesses.

Akima operates as a subsidiary of NANA Regional, a for-profit Alaska Native corporation owned by more than 15,000 Indigenous Iñupiat shareholders who live in or have roots in Northwest Alaska. It has 10,000 employees.