Navy using LETHALITY Consortium to advance network consolidation initiative
The Navy is steaming ahead with its network consolidation efforts via a new request for prototype projects that the sea service announced Tuesday evening.
The effort is intended to support the Single Design Four Enclave Network Consolidation Initiative, also known as the 1/4 Initiative, for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Corona Division.
“This initiative will modernize and consolidate Corona Division’s information technology and data architecture by transitioning from a fragmented, multi-Authority to Operate environment into a unified, single-design, four-environment ecosystem,” officials wrote in the announcement, noting that the aim is to reduce sustainment costs, cut out redundancy, boost cybersecurity, and enable advanced analytics, AI and machine learning.
NSWC Corona is tasked with conducting assessments on warfare system performance, material readiness, quality and mission assurance, weapon systems interface, strategic systems testing, and analysis. It also does measurement science and engineering, range systems engineering, and ground combat weapons and life cycle engineering. Its other departments include comptroller, contracts and corporate operations, according to a Naval Sea Systems Command website.
The network consolidation effort aligns with other Pentagon and Navy modernization pursuits related to zero trust, data strategies and “Data Mesh/Fabric architectural patterns,” officials wrote in the announcement.
Last year, then-Navy CIO Jane Rathbun announced plans to drastically consolidate the department’s legacy IT networks by late 2027.
Earlier this month, the sea service released a new Strategy to Weaponize Data and Artificial Intelligence. Two of its pillars include improving data readiness and optimizing data and AI infrastructure.
Notably, the Navy is using the LETHALITY Consortium to advance the Single Design Four Enclave Network Consolidation Initiative. The acronym stands for “Leveraging Enterprise Technologies for Holistic AI, Logistics, Integration, Transformation, and Yield.”
NSWC Corona awarded an other transaction agreement to Advanced Technology International (ATI) earlier this year to manage the hub.
“This consortium is focused on advancing warfighting capabilities in critical technology areas, to include, but not limited to, network architecture and infrastructure, cyber, big data analytics/artificial intelligence/machine learning, advanced computing and software engineering, and virtualization,” according to an ATI press release issued in May.
Only LETHALITY Consortium members are eligible to respond to the request for prototype proposals announced Tuesday.
“Consortium membership is open to traditional and nontraditional defense contractors, emerging companies that have not traditionally worked with the government in the past, non-profits, and academic and research institutions,” per the organization’s website.
According to the Navy’s notice, all future communications about the RPP will be managed via the consortium’s portal.
