CSC announced that the U.S. Army Materiel Command (AMC) issued the company two contract modifications to continue providing information technology and logistics services under the Army’s Logistics Modernization Program (LMP) contract. Both modifications have two-year periods of performance and an estimated combined total value of $261 million. These contracts were won during CSC’s third quarter ending January 1, 2010.

Overall, CSC will continue to provide comprehensive services required to reengineer and modernize the Army’s logistics processes through the adoption of best commercial business practices and associated technologies. Under the terms of the first modification, CSC will support the sustainment of the modernized system, and on the other, CSC will provide services for future deployment and implementation activities.

“These task orders solidify our position as the leader in the Army’s national level logistics modernization program,” said Austin Yerks, president of CSC’s North American Public Sector Defense Group. “We are honored to play a crucial role in assisting the Army as it transforms its 30-year-old logistics business processes and practices through innovative modernization alternatives and implementation strategies.”

The LMP is one of the world’s largest, fully integrated supply chain, maintenance, repair and overhaul, planning and execution solutions and stands at the center of the Army’s business transformation initiatives. AMC has more than $40 billion in diverse services and goods, a portfolio of six million items and global operations spanning more than 1,000 dynamic locations in 38 countries. The LMP delivers real-time situational awareness and decision-making capabilities—allowing the Army to provide service to warfighters more quickly and cost effectively.

CSC first won the LMP contract in 1999 to provide a fully integrated suite of software and business processes. Working in collaboration with the AMC, CSC is the prime contractor, program manager, systems integrator, applications service provider and full partner.

CPI Aerostructures announced that the U.S. Air Force has released a new order under CPI Aero’s C-5 TOP contract for a variety of structural panels valued at approximately $863,000. Orders under this program, including this $863,000 order, have totaled $33.3 million since the inception of the contract.

CPI Aero is engaged in the contract production of structural aircraft parts for leading prime defense contractors, the U.S. Air Force and other branches of the armed forces. In conjunction with its assembly operations, CPI Aero provides engineering, technical and program management services. Among the key programs that CPI Aero supplies are the A-10 Thunderbolt attack jet, the UH-60 BLACK HAWK helicopter, the Sikorsky S-92 helicopter, the MH-60S mine countermeasure helicopter, the Gulfstream G650, C-5A Galaxy cargo jet, the T-38 Talon jet trainer, and the E-3 Sentry AWACS jet. CPI Aero is included in the Russell Microcap® Index.

With the additional military being sent to the Middle East, it should be not a surprise that body armor orders continue to grow. Ceradyne announced that it has received a $12.4 million order for SAPI (Small Arms Protective Inserts) lightweight ceramic body armor. The order was issued by the U.S. Army RDECOM, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland. The Company expects shipments to be completed in the first quarter 2010. The order is a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) requirement.

So who is Ceradyne? Ceradyne develops, manufactures, and markets advanced technical ceramic products and components for defense, industrial, automotive/diesel, and commercial applications.

David Reed, President of North American Operations had this to say about the news: “We are very pleased to receive this additional FMS body armor order. We believe that the government placed this order with Ceradyne, at least in part, due to its reliable delivery, quality performance on previous SAPI procurements and competitive pricing. This is a new order from the U.S. Army and should not be confused with the XSAPI/ESAPI 5-year procurement previously announced.”

In the government contract industry news, CPI Aerostructures announced that 2009 new contract awards approximated $23.4 million. Of this amount, approximately $10.6 million, $6.9 million and $5.8 million were government prime contract awards, government subcontract awards and commercial subcontract awards, respectively.

As reported last month, CPI Aero received two contracts from Lockheed Martin Corporation to produce aircraft structural assemblies for the U.S. Navy’s P-3 “Orion” aircraft. With other orders and Spirit AeroSystems contract adjustments for the Gulfstream G650 business jet, fourth quarter awards added $8.4 million to the $15.0 million of new orders as of September 30, 2009.

Edward J. Fred, CPI Aero’s CEO & President, noted, “It is important to note that although the total new orders for 2009 as a whole, were down considerably from 2008’s record level of $55.4 million, orders in the fourth quarter were significantly higher compared to the previous quarters of the year, a trend which we hope continues in 2010. These orders include work on multi-year programs with significant option and follow-on potential.”

He went on to say, “We expect 2010 to be another year of growth and we plan to issue our guidance when we announce results for the 2009 fourth quarter and year.”

AeroVironment announced that it received a $23,926,917 firm fixed-price order under an existing contract. This contract modification comprises digital Raven systems and kits to upgrade existing analog Raven systems currently being used by the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps with AV’s digital data link.

“We began deliveries of digital Raven systems at the end of October, and are increasing production in response to customer demand,” said John Grabowsky, AV executive vice president and general manager of Unmanned Aircraft Systems. “Our digital data link uses the frequency spectrum allocated to small UAS much more efficiently than the analog link it replaces. As a result, digital Raven systems allow our customers to increase significantly the number of Raven air vehicles that can be used in a given area, as well as provide greater communication security through signal encryption, and enable valuable new capabilities such as beyond line-of-site operation. Digital Raven systems will directly benefit ground forces by helping them operate more effectively and safely, wherever and whenever they need them.”

Full funding for this contract modification was provided by a United States Department of Defense supplemental funding bill. The total potential value of this order is $66.6 million, of which $42.7 million is not yet funded but has been added to the maximum potential value of the contract supporting this program.

UMass Lowell will receive $4 million for nanomanufacturing research and development under a defense appropriations bill passed by Congress this month.

“UMass Lowell is the place to go for nanotech-based products that will work in battlefield conditions,” said Chancellor Marty Meehan. “The sensors developed will be the proverbial canary in a coalmine for soldiers – determining whether an area is free of biological or chemical substances. This life-saving work could not continue without support from Sens. John Kerry and Paul Kirk and Rep. Niki Tsongas.”

Also under development are mechanisms for detecting structural damage in vehicles like helicopters. Rather than replace helicopter rotors on a scheduled basis, for example, monitors detect when damage begins and replacement should occur, resulting in cost savings for the military.

“Under Chancellor Meehan’s leadership, UMass Lowell is leading the nanotech revolution among educational institutions. This investment will help the university continue developing cutting-edge technologies that will keep our state at the forefront of scientific discovery,” said Kerry.

“I commend UMass Lowell for its impressive leadership on multifunctional sensors,” said Kirk. “Few things are more important than coming up with better ways to ensure that our brave men and women are as safe as possible. This state-of-the-art technology will help protect our soldiers on the battlefield. I couldn’t be more pleased that federal funds are going to this worthwhile project.”

“This funding for further development of nanotechnology sensors will help better protect our servicemen and women, while simultaneously creating new opportunities for UMass Lowell students,” said Tsongas. “Chancellor Meehan should be recognized for pursuing these federal funds and helping to place the university at the forefront of this groundbreaking field.”

The Army Research Laboratory in Hyattsville, Md., and Natick Labs are partners on the sensor and health monitoring research. Commercial applications are likely to emerge. Companies that could benefit include Raytheon, Textron and Triton.

Funding will also help equip the university’s $80 million Emerging Technologies and Innovation Center, which breaks ground this spring and is expected to spur about 300 new jobs over the next five years. The facility will house R&D translating the promise of nanotechnology into products.

Nanocomp Technologies announced it has been awarded an extension to its existing development contract with the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Systems Center in Massachusetts. The new contract modifies one signed in August 2008 between the parties to develop carbon nanotube materials for the purpose of improving body armor.

Earlier in 2009, Nanocomp successfully stopped 9MM bullets in controlled ballistics testing with CNT composite panels several millimeters thick. The company will use the funding to further develop and refine its CNT products with the goal of expanding upon these encouraging initial results.

“We have worked with the Army Natick Soldier Systems Center for the past several years and have made significant progress toward the ultimate goal of delivering lighter weight, advanced body armor solutions for U.S. servicemen and women,” said Peter Antoinette, president and CEO of Nanocomp Technologies. “But there is still plenty of work left to do and today’s announcement underscores the Army’s clear commitment to continue the development of next-generation body armor.”

“When fully proven, this advance could also supply lightweight armor protection for vehicles and aircraft,” he said.

Nanocomp Technologies produces large area CNT sheets and conductive yarns for a number of additional military applications, including EMI shielding and a lighter weight replacement for copper wiring in aerospace electrical systems, which would yield significant savings in fuel costs.

Wind River today announced that Belgium-based Barco, an international leader in high-performance display systems for aerospace applications, has selected VxWorks 653 as the foundation for its CDMS-3000 next-generation Control Display and Management System. By standardizing the CDMS-3000 on Wind River VxWorks 653 with commercial, off-the-shelf (COTS) DO-178B certification evidence, Barco reduced time and cost in attaining EASA ETSO-C113 safety certification.

Barco’s CDMS-3000 product family is based on its flexible MOSArt modular open system architecture. It includes the civil CDMS-3739 (ARINC 739), the military-oriented CDMS-3703 (combined ARINC-429 and MIL-STD-1553) and the versatile CDMS-3702, all hosting Barco’s unique MOSArt platform. This MOSArt platform enables customers to develop and integrate their own applications on the CDMS-3000 platform.

“The CDMS-3000 product family is a next-generation offering that provides openness and flexibility to customers, while also offering COTS certification to systems integrators,” said Jean-Christophe Monfret, product management director at Barco. “As a foundation for the future, we required an industry-leading, COTS DO-178B-certified real-time operating system (RTOS). Barco chose Wind River VxWorks 653 to power the CDMS-3000, which has already been selected for a variety of civil as well as military transport and surveillance aircraft.”

“Wind River VxWorks 653 is the world’s leading ARINC 653-compliant integrated modular avionics (IMA) platform,” said Andreas Pabinger, vice president of EMEA, Wind River. “The deployment of Barco’s CDMS-3000 is just the latest example of an industry leader in civilian and military aircraft selecting the most robust ARINC 653 RTOS in the market to power its cutting-edge design. Safety certification can be a long, costly process and global avionics systems integrators now routinely rely on VxWorks 653 for its COTS certification evidence to reduce costs and time-to-flight.”

Naval Air Station Fallon has implemented the RAPIDGate Program to increase security and streamline access for the thousands of vendors, suppliers, service providers and contractors who access the installation. The program includes company enrollment, employee registration, employment status validation, identity authentication, background screening, biometric verification, and entry authorization for vendor, supplier, service provider and contractor employees that are not authorized a Common Access Card (CAC).

Utilizing Eid Passport’s patented program, employees who register for the program and successfully pass the background screening receive streamlined access to Naval Air Station Fallon.

“We are pleased Naval Air Station Fallon has selected the RAPIDGate Program,” said Eid Passport CEO Steve Larson. “The RAPIDGate Program will aid in the mission to protect this premier integrated strike warfare training facility while streamlining processes and ensuring resource efficiency.”

Last week, Kongsberg received a contract valued at $336.5 million from the United States Army for the delivery of additional PROTECTOR Remote Weapon Stations (RWS) to be used in the M1A2 Abrams Modernization Program and on Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles. This order is part of the $1.4 billion Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS II) framework agreement signed in August 2007.

“The Kongsberg CROWS II has been in use on multiple wheeled vehicles in theater, but this marks the first time that our RWS has been integrated onto a tracked combat vehicle,” said Knut Saeter, Vice President of Kongsberg Protech Systems in Alexandria, VA. “This contract demonstrates the flexibility of Kongsberg’s RWS to be employed on an even wider range of vehicles.”

The PROTECTOR RWS, a part of the Kongsberg family of Remote Weapon Stations, is designed to increase troop safety and precision by enabling the operator to acquire and engage targets while inside the protection of a vehicle. Intended to mount on a variety of vehicle platforms and support numerous weapon systems, the PROTECTOR RWS has over 20 million hours of operation and more than 8 million hours of combat operation since 2001. With headquarters in Norway and production facilities in Johnstown, PA, Kongsberg Protech Systems is the world’s leading supplier of remote weapon stations.