The 2024 Navy Contracting Summit, hosted by the Defense Leadership Forum, celebrated its 10th anniversary as a premier event for engaging with the Navy and Marine Corps in the Hampton Roads, Va. area. This year's summit featured insightful panels led by government contracting experts, valuable networking opportunities, and key industry insights that emphasized the importance of small businesses in the defense sector.

Focus on Small Business

The overarching theme of the summit was small business (SBs). Representatives from various agencies, including Naval Facilities Engineering and Systems Command (NAVFAC), Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP), the Innovation Capability and Modernization (ICAM) Office, the National Security Agency (NSA), the Navy’s Office of Small Business Programs, and more spoke of SB goals and big picture opportunities. Panelists, ranging from contracting officers and buying agents to business development leads, provided direct guidance to small businesses looking to enter or expand their footprint in government contracting.

An informal poll revealed an almost equal attendance of representatives from both large and small businesses, all seeking strategic insights and partnership opportunities. We’ll dive into the SB insights in a second blog. Below are the primary takeaways from the panelists.

Innovate Faster with Smaller Contracts

U.S. Coast Guard representative Rear Adm. Chad Jacoby spoke of acquisition speed. This is often accomplished by the USCG not rolling every contract into one program (meaning one large GWAC or MA-IDIQ). According to Jacoby, they have taken the approach of a Portfolio of Programs. They’re breaking the requirements down to innovate faster and more often because it’s not practical for modern systems to combine into one large request.

Shipyard Improvements

Located overlooking the General Dynamics NASSCO-Norfolk shipyard, NAVFAC Atlantic representative Richard Tyler spoke of the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP). This program is forecasted to be $100 billion over 20 years, improving four major shipyards in Virginia, Maine, Washington, and Hawaii. They recently awarded $2 billion at the shipyard in Kittery, Maine, and $3 billion in Pearl Harbor. If you’re in the yards and docks industry, the SIO Program is the one to follow. Their second industry day is scheduled for Aug. 13-15 in Washington, D.C. (Details about the event and to sign up here; the deadline to apply is July 2). They’ve encouraged industry to develop ideas to improve SIOP and apply for a 30-minute pitch with representatives. If you want to track NAVFAC’s upcoming events, check out their schedule here.

SBIR/STTRs

Navy SB Programs Director Arveice Washington spoke about the Navy’s Small Business Office and touched on the DoD’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)/Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR). These programs offer a proven pathway, with Phase I focusing on concept papers and Phase II on prototypes. However, Washington noted some resistance within the Navy to progress to Phase III, leaving some small businesses uncertain about the next steps. The DoD has several SBIR/STTR opportunities pre-release and post-release. To see the active one, visit this page.

Non-Traditional Contracting Opportunities

Last year, Trident’s Jennifer Wineinger wrote about non-traditional contracting opportunities. DEFENSEWERX is the premier DoD innovation hub, with 11 WERX locations nationwide. CEO Brian Liesveld highlighted the ability to bring SBs into a contracting ecosystem without the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) award system. The 11 hubs are:

DEFENSEWERX Hubs (Provided by Brian Liesveld during Contracting Summit presentation)

• ERDWERX: This is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Vicksburg, Miss.
• HSWERX: This is the virtual hub for the Department of Homeland Security.
• LANDWERX: This is the innovation hub for farmers in Des Moines, Iowa.
• Nautilus: The NavalX hub located in Arlington, Va.
• Cyber Fusion Innovation Center (CFIC): This is the Army Cyber Command’s innovation hub located in Augusta, Ga.
• The Doolittle Institute: This is the first innovation hub. It began in 2012 and supports the U.S. Air Force from Niceville, Fla.
• ICWERX: Is the CIA Labs in Tampa, Fla.
• ENERGYWERX: This is a virtual hub supporting the entire Department of Energy.
• SOFWERX: This is set aside for the special operations forces (SOF) in Tampa, Fla.
• FLEETWERX: This is the Naval Post Graduate School’s hub in Monterey, Calif.
• The National Reconnaissance Office is the newest hub and is yet to be named.

The DEFENSEWERX ecosystem aims to integrate non-traditional companies—those that typically do not engage with the DoD—to provide innovative solutions for the modern warfighter. A key highlight of the DEFENSEWERX ecosystems is their “Tech Tuesdays/Thursdays.” Liesveld explained that industry can upload their solutions to defensewerx.org for review. Every Tuesday and Thursday, government partners select companies for a 10-minute pitch, which often reaches about 60 government agencies. 

It sounds too good to be true. It’s not. As a 501(c)3 that does not have to follow the FAR award system, every project is 100% funded before it’s published online. Additionally, there are no set-asides – the projects are designed to find the best solution to the problem and not address a socio-economic requirement. There are, however, some restrictions:

• It cannot be used for non-FAR vehicles
• Cannot be used to buy “things”
• Cannot be used to procure services (aka, staffing of people)
• Cannot be used for training

How does it work?

1. The government refines its requirements
2. DEFENSEWERX announces the requirement on their ecosystems and not SAM.gov
3. Submission is due typically within 30 days (often four pages or less)
4. The government (not the WERX lead) selects winners and loses
5. A Business-to-Business agreement is signed

Finally, as an official sponsor, DEFENSEWERX can sponsor a company’s security clearance if the government requires it.

DEFENSEWERX CEO Brian Liesveld explains "How it WERX" for procurement

Intergovernmental Support Agreements (IGSAs)

Intergovernmental Support Agreements (IGSAs) have been a cornerstone in federal cost-saving measures since their establishment in 2013. Unlike traditional contracts that adhere to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), IGSAs offer a more flexible framework, saving the federal government approximately 25%. These agreements exclude competition from 8(a) companies but have proven highly effective for the Navy and Marine Corps, which currently operate around 70 IGSAs. According to Paula Monachelli, Director of Basing at the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (EI&E), these agreements save the military branches about $37 million.

The scope of IGSAs isn't confined to traditional military needs. As Leinberger pointed out, the Army employs an IGSA to manage childcare facilities, providing essential support for Army Guard and Reserve personnel working night shifts.

Additionally, Paula Monachelli and Leinberger highlighted the availability of state and federal grants to bolster community projects. The Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) and the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) both offer grants, further supporting local and national initiatives.

Read more in-depth details here.

Modernization

The growing threat from China and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was an underlying topic in some panels. As Mel Yokoyama from Decisive Instincts provided, China is number one in shipbuilding capacity with 140 drydocks, 20 shipyards, and over 1,0000 shipbuilding companies. Yokoyama and others stressed the growing threat from China, and the need for modernization among shipyards and ships and the technology that powers these. This is a continuing theme in Government Contracting – modernizing the warfighter (Read Kiley’s blog (LINK) from the AFCEA Fort Belvoir Industry Day, where they also stressed this). Virginia Representative Rob Wittman highlighted this point in that the People’s Republic of China’s President Xi Jinping wants his military ready by 2027 to take Taiwan by force for reunification. Can we muster the necessary ability to deter Xi Jinping in the meantime? I’m confident that we can.” He said we have to let go of current static models to process acquisitions and identify how we can make progress and move forward.

NSA’s Cybersecurity Collaboration Center (CCC)

The Defense Industrial Base (DIB) often comprises cloud providers. This means cybersecurity is a top priority, especially with the upcoming DoD policy on Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). This is why NSA’s CCC’s Business Development Director, Peter DeLuca, highlighted the free cybersecurity services and information funded by the DoD Chief Information Office (CIO). “Stay left of theft” was a constant theme from DeLuca. If you’re a current DoD contract holder (as a prime or as a sub), the NSA is offering free cybersecurity solutions to help protect your network. This, in turn, further protects the DoD network. Their services support NIST 800-171 requirements. The three services they’re offering are:

• Protective Domain Name System (PDNS): This system blocks users from connecting to malicious or suspicious domains. DeLuca said it has blocked over 22 million malicious intents through this system.
• Attack Surface Management: This service identifies and addresses potential vulnerabilities before they can be exploited. DeLuca challenged attendees to consider what their network-facing profile looks like to adversaries and how this program can help prevent attacks.
• Threat Intelligence Collaboration: By signing a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) with the NSA, companies can share and receive threat intelligence. This collaboration allows for sharing information through platforms like Teams or Slack, providing companies with potential threats before they occur. The NDA is necessary to legally authorize communication with the NSA.

DeLuca also addressed questions regarding the CMMC final ruling from the DoD, noting that the CIO plans a phased rollout of the requirement, with details to be determined.

How to get started

It’s a 25-minute onboarding process.

1. Click “Get Started” on this website (https://www.nsa.gov/About/Cybersecurity-Collaboration-Center/)
2. Confirm you meet the eligibility criteria (you’ll be asked to provide your CAGE and UEI so they can run a request against different contracting portals to confirm your identity and contract status)
3. Sign the DIB Framework agreement

Final Notes

This event showcased where the military is and how it will move forward with the help of both large and small businesses. If you’re in the Hampton Roads area, we recommend you add this to your calendar for next year. If you’re a Small Business, look at part two of this blog, which highlights panelists' tips and recommendations to help SBs excel in the GovCon space.

Don’t miss these Upcoming Events:

• DoD Mentor-Protégé Summit: July 29-August 1 in Detroit, Mich. Learn more here.
• Navy Gold Coast: Aug. 19-20 in San Diego. Learn more here.

Morgan Over
Morgan is our marketing manager and a proposal support specialist. When she isn’t handling marketing for Trident, she is tech editing documents and building orals decks for our clients. As a military spouse based on the East Coast, she supports clients around the world as part of our globally dispersed team.