Industry News

A near-unanimous majority of shareholders at Italy-based defense and industrial conglomerate Finmeccanica have approved the company’s proposal to officially change its name to Leonardo from Jan. 1, 2017 after the famous scientist Leonardo Da Vinci. Finmeccanica said Thursday it will operate under the name Leonardo-Finmeccanica through Dec. 31, 2016 in an effort to facilitate continuity of relationships with other […] More

Iridium Communications remains on schedule to launch the first 10 satellites of the Iridium NEXT constellation in July aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, Space News reported Friday. Peter de Selding writes the initial launch date may change by a few weeks based on SpaceX’s availability and will be followed by six sets of 10 satellites that are expected to […] More

Northrop Grumman and the University of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering have formed a new research organization focused on optical materials and nanophotonic devices. The Northrop Grumman Institute of Nanophotonics and Nanomaterials will facilitate collaboration between university and industry researchers in an effort to explore properties of atomic-level structures and materials, the company said Thursday. “The creation […] More

A division of Space Systems Loral will design and build camera focus mechanisms for NASA and a program teammate to use on one of the space agency’s Mars exploration instruments. MDA US Systems developed the focus mechanism for NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory partner Malin Space Systems to be integrated on the Mars 2020 Rover instrument, SSL said Friday. Malin is a space camera systems company […] More

ICF International has received a $19.8 million blanket purchase agreement from the Environmental Protection Agency to provide technical and analytical support for EPA’s efforts to phase out substances that can damage the Earth’s ozone layer. The company will work with EPA’s Office of Atmospheric Protection Stratospheric Protection Division to create and implement programs to help stop the production and consumption of ozone-depleting chemicals, ICF said Friday. The […] More

Lockheed Martin and South Korea-based Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering have agreed to jointly build and offer a combat ship platform intended for use in multiple naval missions. The companies seek to combine DSME’s hull design expertise with Lockheed’s program and systems integration experience under their Multi-mission Combat Ship teaming agreement, Joe North, vice president of littoral ships and systems at Lockheed’s mission system and training business, said […] More

Reston, Virginia-based reseller Carahsoft Technology has been awarded a potential seven-year contract of an undisclosed value by a nation-wide state and local government consortium to provide Google for Work products and services for more than 90,000 public sector customers in the U.S. Fairfax County, Virginia awarded the contract and acted as the lead public agency over the competitive procurement process, […] More

Lockheed Martin has been awarded a $74.6 million contract modification by the U.S. Navy to help the service branch conduct special studies, reviews and analyses of the Freedom-class Littoral Combat Ship development initiative. The Defense Department said Thursday that Lockheed will evaluate production and engineering challenges and cost and schedule risks associated with the Freedom-class LCS program. The company will also provide LCS engineering and […] More