The INSIDER daily digest -- Jan. 2, 2024

This first INSIDER Daily Digest of 2024 has all the news we published during the last week of 2023.

We start off with our colleagues at Inside Cybersecurity reporting about the Defense Department issuing its long-awaited Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program regulation:

Pentagon issues proposed rule outlining parameters for CMMC program

The Defense Department has released a highly anticipated proposed rule to implement its Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program with details on the assessment ecosystem, key elements and the use of a plan of action and milestones.

CMMC proposed rule outlines Pentagon process for assessments, ecosystem roles and flow-down requirements

Details on the assessment process, ecosystem roles, scoping requirements and more can be found in the Defense Department proposed rule published this week for the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program.

Industry groups emphasize potential regulatory burden in response to Pentagon CMMC proposed rule

Two trade associations representing companies in the defense industrial base are raising concerns over the potential for burdensome regulation following the introduction of a massive Defense Department proposed rule to implement the major revamp of the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program.

More cyber defense news:

RAND report evaluates cyber-specific needs in addressing supply chain risk management

A recent report commissioned by the Air Force Research Laboratory dives into how addressing cyber risks differs from other supply chain risk management issues and provides recommendations on how to take a "comprehensive approach" in addressing their needs together.

Inside Defense recently spoke with a senior Pratt & Whitney executive about the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter engine:

Pratt & Whitney is aiming for NGAP on top of F-35 ECU

Pratt & Whitney doesn't plan on giving up on its next-generation propulsion efforts after winning the Engine Core Upgrade contract to re-engine the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter fleet, Jill Albertelli, president of military engines, told Inside Defense.

The Army's proposed heavy Maneuver Support Vessel is a larger version of the light MSV, the latter of which will replace the Landing Craft Mechanized-8 (LCM-8) -- initially used during the Vietnam War:

Army seeking digital engineering solutions for heavy Maneuver Support Vessel

The Army is asking industry for digital engineering solutions that will support its planned heavy version of the Maneuver Support Vessel, also known as MSV(H) in a request for information released at the end of November.

A provision in the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act signed into law by the president late last month directs the defense secretary "to modernize the Department of Defense's requirements processes in order to improve alignment between modern warfare concepts, technologies and system development and reduce the time to delivery of needed capabilities to department users":

New defense policy bill targets DOD's requirements process

The new defense authorization bill passed by Congress mandates the Defense Department "modernize" its lengthy requirements process, with an interim report due to lawmakers by Oct. 1, 2024 that could include seismic reforms to the Pentagon's labyrinthine acquisition system.

According to a recent government solicitation, a proposed industry partner will be tasked with three primary objectives: enlarging the submarine industrial workforce by creating and growing regional workforce development initiatives and eliminating skill gaps; increasing manufacturing capacity and technology adoption by submarine industrial base suppliers; and modernizing the shipbuilding component supply chain:

Government seeks industry partner to bolster submarine industrial base

The U.S. government is looking to outsource major submarine industrial base and workforce development efforts to an industry partner that will be tasked with expanding the shipbuilding workforce and leading a broad set of initiatives to improve submarine production to a sustained rate of one Columbia- and two Virginia-class vessels each year.

Inside Defense recently spoke with Army Col. Chris Anderson, the project manager for intelligence systems and analytics within the Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (PEO IEW&S) at the Technical Exchange Meeting 11 in Savannah, GA:

Army begins to build out infrastructure for future AI/ML pipeline

The Army is taking steps to build out the infrastructure that will support Project Linchpin -- the service's first pipeline for artificial intelligence and machine learning.