Northrop Grumman Wins Potential $91 Million Laser Weapon Contract

Northrop Grumman Space and Mission Systems Corp., Redondo Beach, California, is being awarded a $53,151,809 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the Solid State High Power Laser Weapon System Demonstrator (LWSD) program. The Office of Naval Research funded the Maritime Laser Demonstrator (MLD), which was the first to demonstrate defeat of small boats at sea using a high energy laser. Recent advancements in the power and durability of commercially available solid-state laser (SSL) technologies have enabled the Navy to execute a quick-reaction effort and operationally field an SSL weapon. The Navy Laser Weapon System (LaWS) AN/SEQ-3(XN-1) was installed on USS Ponce in the summer of 2014. After a series of test and certification steps, LaWS is now the first-ever fully approved laser weapon system deployed by any U.S. military service. The Office of Naval Research seeks to continue the advancement of SSL weapon system designs, architectures and component technologies. The government believes that improvements in lethality may be achieved through maturation and optimization of a variety of system characteristics, including laser power, beam quality, beam director architecture and other physical and optical aspects of the laser, beam director and system design. This contract contains options, which if exercised, will bring the contract value to $91,057,597. Work will be performed in Redondo Beach, California, and is expected to be completed October 21, 2016.  If options are exercised, work will continue through July 7, 2018. Fiscal 2015 and 2016 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $36,465,449 will be obligated at the time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $21,465,449 will expire at the end of current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured under the Office of Naval Research broad agency announcement 15-0005 entitled “Solid State, High Power Laser Weapon System Demonstrator (LWSD) Design, Development and Demonstration for Surface Navy, USN.” Six proposals were received in response to this solicitation. The Office of Naval Research, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N00014-16-C-1009).