Acquisition
Image: Perplexity
Solving the Pentagon’s Acquisition Puzzle
Bonnie Evangelista, War on the Rocks
This interview with Bonnie Evangelista, an acquisition maverick who now advises the team rewriting the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), talks about the cultural and bureaucratic challenges that hinder the Pentagon's ability to innovate and move with speed, despite high-level mandates for reform.
- Cultural Resistance: A pervasive "compliance culture" and "fear culture" within the Pentagon deter innovation and faster action, as professionals prioritize avoiding trouble over achieving desired outcomes, even when flexible authorities are available.
- Leadership Challenges: Despite top-down directives to prioritize speed and flexibility, these mandates are often undermined because people are driving in different directions.
- Policy Misinterpretation: There's a persistent tendency to traditional Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) requirements on non-FAR vehicles despite congressional intent for flexibility.
Space Force Acquisition, Ops Units Team Up for More Capable Satellites
Shaun Waterman, Air & Space Forces Magazine
The Space Force has stood up two new acquisition deltas focused on missile warning and space sensing, directly pairing them with operational units. This move aims accelerate capability development by fostering collaboration at lower organizational levels.
How CMMC is addressing years of systemic failures in protecting sensitive data
Anastasia Obis, Federal News Network
The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) final rule went into effect in December 2024; it will begin appearing in contracts by the end of 2025. This article provides a look back at CMMC's development -- 20 years of DOD efforts to fix pervasive vulnerabilities in the way agencies and contractors manage sensitive information.
Related: CMMC readiness: Top 3 disruptions affecting the Defense Industrial Base
Innovation
Ebony Stadler, a senior biomedical engineering student at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, participates in a 10-week summer research program at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. (Navy photo by John F. Williams)
The quiet cut to US defense innovation — and why China is watching
Alyssa Schonhaut, Breaking Defense
DOD is capping facilities and administrative (F&A) reimbursements for university-based defense research at 15%. This quiet cut risks weakening the foundational research infrastructure that has historically driven technological breakthroughs and is now critical for maintaining a competitive edge against adversaries like China.
- Eroding Advantage: US innovation is driven by a collaborative model involving government, industry, and academia -- one that has yielded major defense breakthroughs like radar, GPS, and AI. Funding cuts threaten to undermine this long-standing U.S. military advantage.
- Vital Contributions: University research has delivered tangible benefits to warfighters and taxpayers, including advancements like Penn State's cold spray technology for ship repair, Notre Dame's low-power antennas for secure communications, North Carolina State's high-efficiency chips for quantum technology, and Auburn University's radiation hardening test facility for microelectronics.
- Efficient Investment: Academic defense research is an exceptionally efficient investment, costing the average American only about seven cents a day. It supports over 300,000 skilled jobs, drives private-sector innovation, and generates up to $10 in economic impact for every federal dollar invested.
Army Innovation: Lessons from 250 Years of Army Innovation
MAJ Robert Rose, USA, Association of the United States Army
The U.S. Army has a long history of struggling with innovation during peacetime, often leading to initial defeats in conflicts. This pattern is driven by a lack of clear strategic direction and pervasive bureaucratic hurdles. 250 years of Army experience reveals that successful innovation requires defined problems, streamlined structures, and empowered personnel.
- Problem-Driven: Innovation thrives when there's a clear, specific problem to solve, especially in peacetime when the urgency of war is absent.
- Flatten Bureaucracy: Historically, a fragmented bureaucratic structure with autonomous bureaus or separate commands has impeded innovation by preventing integrated planning, doctrine, and equipment development.
- Time for Learning: Soldiers need sufficient time within units to develop, test, and iterate techniques, but the post-1940s individual replacement system and high personnel turnover have undermined this critical bottom-up innovation and expertise development.
Defense & Strategy
Image: Shujianyang via Wikimedia Commons
Eastern Stars Rising: The Rise of China’s Commercial Space Industry
Ryan Nelson, War on the Rocks
The U.S. is facing a significant challenge to its leadership in space as China's commercial space industry rapidly advances, fueled by state support and streamlined regulations.
- Global Connectivity: Chinese companies, funded by government and private venture capital, plan to launch approximately 54,000 satellites within a decade. This surge is expected to flood international markets, enabling intelligence gathering and providing robust military communications infrastructure.
- Advanced Observation: Chinese firms are proliferating low Earth orbit with advanced Earth observation constellations. Chang Guang Satellite, a leading late-stage startup, is selling geospatial data at cut-rate prices internationally, undercutting Western firms and providing intelligence to hostile actors.
- U.S. Imperative: To maintain dominance, the United States must decisively empower its own commercial space ecosystem, fostering innovation and better integrating private sector capabilities into national missions.
Industry
The guided missile cruiser USS Vicksburg is maneuvered during a docking evolution at BAE Systems Shipyard in Norfolk, Va., March 24, 2020. (Navy photo by Hendrick L. Dickson) Defense Industrial Base: Actions Needed to Address Risks Posed by Dependence on Foreign Suppliers
Defense Industrial Base: Actions Needed to Address Risks Posed by Dependence on Foreign Suppliers
Government Accountability Office
The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) faces a critical national security challenge due to its extensive reliance on a global supply chain, with limited visibility into foreign dependencies that pose risks of material cutoff or embedded vulnerabilities. Despite recognizing these issues, DOD's efforts remain uncoordinated and lack concrete implementation plans, hindering its ability to secure its industrial base.
Congress & Government
The Capitol building. Senate.gov
What’s really in reconciliation, and how the pentagon can make it work
Elaine McCusker and John Ferrari, Breaking Defense
The recently enacted budget reconciliation act provides the U.S. Department of Defense with a significant, flexible, and unique $150 billion in funding, primarily aimed at accelerating the development of key capabilities.
- Capability Focused: The legislation prioritizes speed and broad capabilities over micromanagement. It is strongly focused on shipbuilding, munitions and the supply chain, and air and integrated missile defense.
- OSD Discretion: Notably, Congress provided over one-third of the funds directly to the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) for further distribution. This approach signals significant trust in the Pentagon's political leadership and offers substantial flexibility for departmental transformation.
- Pentagon's Mandate: With this considerable authority, the Pentagon must spend the money quickly and consistently with congressional intent, diligently develop the specific capabilities Congress has directed, and maintain transparency with Congress.
Working Paper: The Importance of Defense Spending in the Budget Reconciliation Bill
Reconciliation Bill: H.R.1 - One Big Beautiful Bill Act
Related: How SASC, HASC want to spend reconciliation on Golden Dome, munitions
Decoding the FAR Overhaul
Wiley
Revisions have been issued for FAR Part 35 (Research and Development Contracting) and Part 36 (Construction and Architect-Engineer Contracts).
Far Parts & Agency Deviations: FAR Part 35 (Research and Development Contracting)
Far Parts & Agency Deviations FAR Part 36 (Construction and Architect-Engineer Contracts)
Research
Soldiers observe the emplacement of one of the pumps during Exercise Talisman Sabre 23 in Weipa, Australia, July 20, 2023. (Army photo by Maj. Jonathon Daniell)
Contested Logistics in the Indo-Pacific: Joint Sustainment Through Positional Advantage
Charles McEnany, Association of the United States Army
The U.S. Army and the joint force face significant challenges in sustaining operations across the Indo-Pacific region. This paper examines those challenges and details the complementary efforts of U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) and the Contested Logistics Cross-Functional Team (CL CFT) to overcome these logistical hurdles by establishing joint interior lines of communication.
Dollars at War: Unraveling the Paradox of China's Military Procurement
Christopher J. Lin, University of Pennsylvania Asian Law Review
This examines China's military acquisition system, challenging the common assumption that it operates entirely unencumbered by legal constraints found in the U.S. system. The author suggests that legal incentives are not sufficient to foster an innovative defense industrial base, but rather that massive state investment and market forces explain China's technological successes.
Knowledge sharing in cross-border shipbuilding projects
Finja Borchers & Weihua Huang, Norwegian University of Science and Technology
This thesis research investigates the intricate dynamics of knowledge sharing within complex, cross-border shipbuilding megaprojects, especially those where the main asset physically relocates during execution. The research highlights the practical dominance of personalization strategies while underscoring the critical need for documentation-based approaches to ensure continuity in such geographically and organizationally challenging ventures.
DOD Financial Management: Greater Accountability Needed over Contractor-Acquired Property
Government Accountability Office
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the Department of Defense (DOD) has long-standing issues with accurately accounting for and overseeing billions of dollars in contractor-acquired property (CAP). This lack of effective monitoring and inaccurate record-keeping hinders financial reporting and efficient program management, prompting GAO recommendations for improved procedures and policy clarity.
Opportunities
The USV Mariner, a US Navy research and development vessel, was scheduled to be christened on August 23, 2022. (Justin Katz/Breaking Defense)
Navy looks for ideas to ‘swiftly prototype’ new USVs
Justin Katz, Breaking Defense
The U.S. Navy has invited defense contractors to submit proposals for a new class of Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs), emphasizing the urgent need for rapid prototyping and mass production of these autonomous vessels. The service aims to field a "non-exquisite" design capable of carrying containerized payloads within 18 months of a contract award, marking a strategic shift towards more standardized and commercially adaptable unmanned platforms.
Solicitation: Modular Attack Surface Craft (MASC)
Events
Ground Vehicle Systems Engineering & Technology Symposium & Modernization Update (GVSETS)
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), Michigan Chapter
12-14 August 2025
Novi, MI
MODSIM World 2025
National Training and Simulation Associations (NTSA)
18-20 August 2025
Norfolk, VA
Fed Supernova
Capital Factory
19-21 August 2025
Austin, TX
2025 Navy Summit
Potomac Officers Club
26 August 2025
McLean, VA
Intelligent Ships Symposium
American Society of Naval Engineers
26-28 August 2025
Philadelphia, PA
2025 Space Warfighter Forum: Peace Through Strength
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
26-28 August 2025
Colorado Springs, CO
2025 Emerging Technologies for Defense
Emerging Technologies Institute
27-29 August 2025
Washington, DC
DefenseNews Conference: Deterring Threats from the Indo-Pacific
DefenseNews
3 September 2025
Washington, DC or Virtual
Creative Disruptors by the Lakes
Creative Defense Foundation
11-12 September 2025
Eagan, MN
2025 Undersea Warfare Fall Conference
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
15-17 September 2025
Groton, CT
Fleet Maintenance and Modernization Symposium (FMMS) 2025
American Society of Naval Engineers
23-25 September 2025
San Diego, CA
2025 Future Forces Capabilities Conference & Exhibition
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
30 September - 3 October 2025
Fort Worth, TX
28th Annual Systems & Mission Engineering Conference
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
Tampa, FL
27-30 October 2025
I/ITSEC 2025: Optimizing Training: Ensuring Operational Dominance
National Training & Simulation Association (NTSA)
1-4 December 2025
Orlando, FL
Creative Disruptors in the Desert
Creative Defense Foundation
20-21 February 2025
La Quinta, CA
One more thing...
The USS Indianapolis goes down within 12 minutes of being struck by two torpedoes fired by the Japanese submarine I-58. Approximately 300 members of her 1,195-man crew went down with the ship, leaving around 900 still in the water; of those, only 316 survived. Chris Mayger
The Forgotten Hero of the Indianapolis Disaster
Thomas Wildenberg, Naval History
During the tragic USS Indianapolis disaster, Navy Lieutenant Adrian Marks made an unprecedented landing in open sea and led the rescue of 56 sailors. His actions stand as a testament to valor in the face of immense challenge and personal risk.
- Cruiser Sunk: The USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was torpedoed on July 30, 1945, by a Japanese submarine, sinking quickly and leaving 890 men stranded in shark-infested waters.
- Rescue Delayed: Navy error led to the Indianapolis being mistakenly recorded as arrived at its destination, causing a 3.5-day delay before survivors were found.
- Discovery Accident: Lieutenant (junior grade) Wilbur C. Gwinn unexpectedly discovered survivors on August 2, 1945, when a broken antenna led him to an oil slick and then the men adrift.
- Marks Responds: Lieutenant Robert Adrian Marks, responding to Gwinn, made a dangerous, unprecedented open-sea landing in his PBY-5A Catalina. Despite aircraft damage, Marks and his crew rescued 56 men, prioritizing isolated individuals over larger groups they believed would have a better chance of surviving until surface ships arrived.
- Unrecognized Valor: Marks was awarded the Air Medal, but reportedly refused to wear it, feeling that his crew -- who had only received letters of recognition -- deserved more.
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