Aircraft from Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 fly over the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), front left, America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7), front center, Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76), front right, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG -3), middle left, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold (DDG-65), middle center, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG-54), middle right, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG-111), back left, and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62), back right, as they sail in formation during the biennial field training exercise Valiant Shield 2022 in the Philippine Sea. (Photo: U.S. Navy by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Thaddeus Berry)
By Rich Abott |
@ReaderRabott
1 year ago |
10/02/2023
Navy/USMC

The Navy awarded Lockheed Martin [LMT] a $23 million contract on Sept. 28 for systems engineering and software integration for the Integrated Combat System (ICS), but the award could ultimately be worth over $1 billion.

The ICS is the Navy’s planned combat management system of systems to implement a unified combat environment across all surface ships. This would make it easier to move sailors from one ship to another, without having to be trained on sometimes significantly different hardware and software.

Aircraft from Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 fly over the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), front left, America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7), front center, Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76), front right, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG -3), middle left, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold (DDG-65), middle center, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG-54), middle right, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG-111), back left, and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62), back right, as they sail in formation during the biennial field training exercise Valiant Shield 2022 in the Philippine Sea. (Photo: U.S. Navy by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Thaddeus Berry)
Aircraft from Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 fly over the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), front left, America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7), front center, Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76), front right, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG -3), middle left, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold (DDG-65), middle center, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG-54), middle right, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG-111), back left, and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62), back right, as they sail in formation during the biennial field training exercise Valiant Shield 2022 in the Philippine Sea. (Photo: U.S. Navy by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Thaddeus Berry)

Currently, the destroyers, cruisers and Littoral Combat Ships use different versions of the company’s Aegis Combat System while aircraft carrier and amphibious ships use the RTX [RTX] Ship Self-Defense System.

The contract indicates the ICS work is intended to be used for the surface force portfolio of the Navy and Coast Guard.

While the base award is for $23 million, it includes options that, if exercised, could raise the total value to $1.05 billion.

The contract announcement said the work will largely be split among Moorestown, N.J. (41 percent), Columbia, Md. (30 percent), Norfolk, Va. (seven percent), and various other locations and is expected to be finished by September 2024.

However, if all options are exercised, the $1.05 billion worth of work would extend six more years through September 2030.

The announcement said there was one other offer received, but, as is standard, the Navy did not disclose the other offeror.

This award came a week after the Naval Sea Systems Command scheduled an industry day in October to provide an overview the ICS hardware factor program, dubbed the Foundry (Defense Daily, Sept. 26).

The service plans to use the Foundry to deliver IWS and its infrastructure to the surface fleet, following the Forge software factor program that was created first.