Mission Support and Test Services (MSTS), the contractor newly chosen to run the Nevada National Security Site, has announced its incoming leadership team as it proceeds with transition activities at the facility.
The Energy Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) in May awarded the new management and operations contract at the site to MSTS, a partnership of Honeywell International [HON], Jacobs Engineering Group [JEC], and Stoller Newport News Nuclear, which is part of Huntington Ingalls Industries [HII].
The NNSA last year initially awarded the contract to Nevada Site Science Support and Technologies Corp. (NVS3T), but revoked it after learning the company had been transferred from Lockheed Martin [LMT] to Leidos [LDOS]. When the selected contractor was announced following the second bid process, two losing teams filed bid protests with the Government Accountability Office: NVS3T, a partnership of Leidos, Fluor [FLR], and Longenecker & Associates; and Nuclear Security & Technology LLC, a partnership between Northrop Grumman [NOC], AECOM [ACM] subsidiary URS Federal Services, and CH2M Hill.
Both bid protests were withdrawn earlier this month, and MSTS received notice from the Energy Department to proceed with its transition on Aug. 1. The contract is worth $5 billion over 10 years with all options.
Mark Martinez is the incoming site manager, and John Benner the deputy site manager.
Martinez spent the last 23 years at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, serving most recently as vice president and principal associate director for operations and business. He previously served as senior test director, conducting Livermore’s experimental activities at the Nevada site; program leader for the lab’s Nuclear Materials Technology Program and acting program leader for Nevada Experiments and Operations; and deputy principal associate director in Livermore’s Weapons and Complex Integration division.
Benner previously spent 25 years at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in various weapon system development and stockpile management roles. He was associate director for weapon engineering and experiments, with oversight of life-extension programs, explosive testing, stockpile stewardship program planning, and Los Alamos’ subcritical testing operations at the Nevada site. He also served as the division leader for weapon systems, managing the W76-1 life-extension program as project director and lead system engineer.