Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

MICC unit supports COVID-19 vaccine sites in Florida, Georgia

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Contracting professionals from the 904th Contracting Battalion and Mission and Installation Contracting Command on Fort Stewart continue to support ongoing efforts to vaccinate more than 1 mil­lion people against COVID-19 in Florida and Georgia.

Beginning in late Feb., the 904th CBN contracted life support services for more than 700 service mem­bers.  These joint missions are comprised of Army, Navy, and Air Force personnel who are manning five feder­al vaccination sites in Orlando, Tampa, Miami, Jacksonville, and Atlanta for up to 60 days.

Each contract provides lodging, meals, laundry, and transportation services supporting numerous doctors, nurses, administrative and support staff assigned to each of the vaccination sites.  Federal Emergency Management Agency and state government officials provide overall oversite of daily operations at each of the five vaccination sites.

Continue reading at:  Army.mil

The Army’s newest $21 billion contract is not your typical government contract

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Last week the Army awarded Microsoft the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) contract, a potentially $21 billion undertaking by the Army to develop next-generation night vision and “situational awareness capabilities” in a Heads Up Display.  Unlike Microsoft’s last multi-billion dollar contract award, the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI), which is still pending before the Court of Federal Claims more than a year after Amazon filed its bid protest challenging the award in November 2019, IVAS is unlikely to experience the same fate.  Why?  Because IVAS was awarded under the Army’s Other Transaction Authority (OTA) and is not subject to the same FAR rules as the JEDI contract.

Continue reading at:  The Contractor’s Perspective

US Army ready to roll out futuristic goggles to larger force

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After two years of development, the U.S. Army’s augmented-reality headset is headed for the big time.

The service announced on Tuesday a contract with Microsoft worth as much as $21.88 billion over the next ten years.  An Army statement said the award “transitions IVAS to production and rapid fielding to deliver next-generation night vision and situational awareness capabilities to the Close Combat Force.”  That’s at least 120,000 soldiers, AP reported. The contract is for ten years, with a five-year base and a five-year option.

Continue reading at:  Defense One

Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command briefing to industry March 22-26, 2021

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The Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command (MICC) is hosting the first command-wide virtual Advance Planning Briefing for Industry (APBI).  This multi-day virtual event will be conducted in lieu of individual office APBIs, broadcasted on the Microsoft Teams platform, and will include presentations from MICC and Army Leadership, as well as an overview of projected MICC requirements and an Industry Day.  There will be an opportunity for questions and answers.  All questions and answers will be posted to beta.SAM.gov after the event.

For more information, check out MICC’s posting on beta.sam.gov here:  https://beta.sam.gov/opp/a7a729d2fa3544fc8f3edc5c7c554972/view

DATE AND TIME:

When: 22 March 2021 through 26 March 2021, 0830 to 1500 CDT.

Where: Virtually over the internet using the Microsoft Teams platform

This virtual outreach opportunity will allow Team MICC to reduce the barriers to competition and increase the transparency of information by expanding the knowledge of opportunities.  In addition, it will reinforce to the small business population that their capabilities and capacity are key to enabling Army Readiness and Modernization.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

Large and Small businesses interested in doing business with the MICC.

ABOUT MICC:

To learn more about the MICC, please go to: https://www.army.mil/micc

Questions about the event should be directed to Team MICC at usarmy.jbsa.acc-micc.list.hq-sbs-2021-apbi@mail.mil.

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!  

Please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/micc-fy21-apbi-registration-139883297709.

Registration will close on 12 MAR 21.

MICC is also partnering with the Virginia PTAC and is hosting an Industry Matchmaking Event on 19 -20 APR 21.

Please register at https://virginiaptac.ecenterdirect.com/events/3067.

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to connect with Team MICC and other government personnel!

Be sure to visit us at https://www.army.mil/micc#org-small-business.

Army drone rodeo takes place at Fort Benning, Georgia

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Textron Systems is preparing to show off its vertical takeoff and landing unmanned aerial system in an Army drone rodeo at Fort Benning, Georgia, for companies competing to replace the service’s RQ-7B Shadow.

The Future Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems, or FTUAS, Rodeo will run through the first week of March and feature troops demonstrating drone prototypes from four defense firms that have been under soldier evaluation for the past year.

After a fly-off event in 2019 involving 11 drone vendors, the Army selected four finalists — the Textron Aerosonde Hybrid Quad, Arcturus Jump 20, L3 Harris Unmanned Systems FVR-90 and Martin UAV V-Bat — to participate in a capability assessment involving brigade combat teams, or BCTs, from the across the service.

Continue reading at:  Military.com

Georgia Tech aerospace engineering graduate James McConville sworn in as Army’s top officer

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Gen. James C. McConville, 36th Vice Chief of Staff of the Army (U.S. Army photo by Monica King/Released)

A Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech is the new chief of staff of the U.S. Army.

Gen. James C. McConville took over as the Army’s top officer August 9.  He replaces Gen. Mark A. Milley, who was confirmed in July as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

McConville earned a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Georgia Tech in 1990.  A decorated helicopter pilot, McConville is the first aviator to serve as the Army’s chief.

“Armed with a master’s in engineering to go with decades of flying and maintaining helicopters, he brings a unique understanding of how to operate and support complex weapons and equipment,” said Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy.  “In this respect, no senior officer is better prepared to lead the Army as we undertake what will be a massive and, yes, risky and costly transformation towards more advanced weapons and war-fighting approaches.”

Continue reading at:  Georgia Tech News Center

Update: Fort Gordon open house and forecast forum scheduled for June 12th is now CANCELED

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Unfortunately, we were recently notified that the Fort Gordon open house and forecast forum scheduled for June 12th has now been canceled by the U.S. Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command (“MICC”).  We received the following message from Rufus Gates, a Small Business Specialist with MICC:

“The Open House Forecast Forum has been cancelled due to other official duties.  I am having to go on temporary duty to support other installations during the month of June.  This event will be rescheduled for a date after 1 Oct 2019.  Thank you all so much for agreeing to participate in our event and we look forward to your future participation.”

You can find additional details at our original posting about the event here.

Update: Fort Gordon open house and forecast forum scheduled for June 12th CANCELED

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Unfortunately, this event has now been CANCELED.

We received the following message from Mr. Rufus Gates, a Small Business Specialist with MICC:  “The Open House Forecast Forum has been cancelled due to other official duties.  I am having to go on temporary duty to support other installations during the month of June.  This event will be rescheduled for a date after 1 Oct 2019.  Thank you all so much for agreeing to participate in our event and we look forward to your future participation.”

U.S. Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command (“MICC”) – Fort Gordon invites you to an open house and “forecast forum” to provide anticipated forecast opportunities for FY 2020 and FY 2021.  Additional presentations will be provided by:

  • Georgia District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”)
  • Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center (“GTPAC”)
  • U.S. General Services Administration (“GSA”)

The open house and forecast forum will be held on: June 12, 2019 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. ET.

Sign-in will be from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. 

Location: Signal Theater Building (Building 21610), 21610 Barnes Avenue, Fort Gordon, GA 30905 (next to the indoor swimming pool).

**IMPORTANT**: If you have Military/DoD Civilian ID or CAC Card, you can gain access to Fort Gordon through any gate.  If you do not, you can only gain access through the Main Gate by way of Dyess Parkway and Gordon Highway.  You will need to show Auto Registration, Auto Insurance, Driver’s License and another form of ID.  Please allow extra time for background check and vehicle inspection.  Do not speed or use cellular phones without a hands-free device while driving on Fort Gordon.  All vehicles must stop for pedestrians in crosswalks.

Here is the official flyer:  ACQ Forecast Open House Flyer

For further information contact: ophelia.m.brown.civ@mail.mil

The Army will need traditional vendors’ help putting startup tech to use

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The Pentagon is increasingly embracing the startup community as means to expand its technological arsenal, but traditional defense contractors could still be the ones putting most of those new tools into practice, according to top military brass.

In August, the Army stood up the Futures Command, a four-star unit charged with overseeing the service’s decade long modernization effort. With a 500-person staff and an annual budget of $100 million, the group will work to build state-of-the-art weaponry, vehicles and communications networks.

Central to that mission is working with the small companies on the bleeding edge of artificial intelligence, virtual reality and other emerging technologies, said Lt. Gen. Eric Wesley, director of the Army’s Futures and Concepts Center and deputy commander of the Futures Command.

“We want to be part of this ecosystem, and so we are embedding ourselves into it,” Wesley said recently at SXSW, speaking just a few blocks from the Austin-based startup incubator where Army Futures set up shop. “[The startup community] is the group we most need to be engaging with.”

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/2019/03/army-will-need-traditional-vendors-help-putting-startup-tech-use/155428/

Pentagon requests voluntary refund of millions of dollars from contractor TransDigm

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The Army and Defense Logistics Agency will both seek reimbursement on millions of dollars from contractor TransDigm, following an Inspector General report into the company’s contracts with the Pentagon.

TransDigm, which produces specialized parts for aircraft such as pumps, valves and batteries,, earned “excess profit” 112 of 113 contracts reviewed by the IG’s office, per a report released last Wednesday. The IG found that the company received $16.1 million in excess profit between January 2015 and January 2017, with a cost that could go up due to spare parts in the future.

The 112 contracts, signed with the Army or DLA, had profit margins ranging from 17 to a whopping 4,451 percent; The IG’s office calls profit percentages of 15 percent or below to be “reasonable.”

Keep reading this article at: https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2019/02/27/pentagon-requests-voluntary-refund-of-millions-of-dollars-from-contractor-transdigm/

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