U.S. Space Command | The Contracting Education Academy

August 3, 2020 By cs

New Space Force acquisition office to prioritize integration over bureaucracy

One advantage of the new Space Force organization is that it allows its leaders to focus exclusively on space, rather than divide their attention between space and air.

That means the new assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition, once they’ve been nominated and confirmed by Congress, will be able to focus more closely on integrating and synchronizing existing space capability and acquisition programs. That’s something sorely needed in the space domain, according to one of the officials working to stand up the new office.

“Often this lack of synchronization is not an acquisition problem per se, but really it’s a problem of disparate funding responsibilities and poorly prioritized capability development,” said Shawn Barnes, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition, on the Space Foundation’s July 15 Space Policy Pod[cast]. “I believe our real value proposition is not in providing another layer of acquisition oversight, but rather in multiplying the value of space systems through integration and synchronization.”

The problem is that each of the other service branches, as well as a number of agencies in the intelligence community, all have vested interests in space and in protecting those interests. But each is moving in its own direction. Barnes sees an opportunity for the new ASAF to unite everyone on the same page.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/defense-main/2020/07/new-space-force-acquisition-office-to-prioritize-integration-over-bureaucracy/

February 7, 2020 By cs

Pentagon official: Space Force reorganization should not slow down acquisitions

In the legislation that creates the U.S. Space Force, Congress has directed a major reorganization of the office that manages the acquisition of space systems.

Although it could take some time to figure out the details of the Space Force’s acquisition bureaucracy, programs are not likely to slow down as a result, said Ellen Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment.

During a breakfast meeting with reporters Jan. 14, Lord said the Pentagon is closely monitoring the standup of the U.S. Space Force. A senior level Space Governance Board, in which Lord participates, spends a lot of time tracking the ongoing reorganization. She said leaders are enthusiastic about the creation of a U.S. Space Force under the Department of the Air Force. “I frankly see more effort and leadership involvement in space now than ever in the past,” Lord said.

“We see the standup of the Space Force and of U.S. Space Command as an opportunity to really focus on this critical domain,” she said. Specifically on how space acquisitions should be managed under the Space Force, Lord said it will be up to Air Force and Space Force leaders to propose options that satisfy the congressional mandate to give space its own acquisition shop.

“The NDAA instructed the Air Force to come up with a variety of suggestions, if you will, courses of action around how to do acquisition,” said Lord.

Keep reading this article at: https://spacenews.com/pentagon-official-u-s-space-force-reorganization-should-not-slow-down-acquisitions/

One advantage of the new Space Force organization is that it allows its leaders to focus exclusively on space, rather than divide their attention between space and air.

In the legislation that creates the U.S. Space Force, Congress has directed a major reorganization of the office that manages the acquisition of space systems.

Search this Website