Pentagon kicks off pursuit of mobile SCIFs to aid defense companies

The Defense Department on Thursday launched a new initiative aimed at helping small businesses and other innovators gain access to facilities where they can do classified work.

Officials involved in the pursuit, dubbed “Secure Space Network,” plan to design and produce about 50 mobile Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities and “related information systems” that could be rapidly deployed to military installations, industry-related sites and other locations across the nation where they’re needed, according to a press release.

“Many companies with technologies relevant to national security do not have ready access to accredited facilities where classified information can be discussed, developed and integrated. For emerging and non-traditional suppliers seeking to work with the Department, establishing fixed classified infrastructure can require significant time and investment, creating a barrier to entry and business expansion,” officials wrote.

The mobile SCIF project launch comes as the Trump administration is trying to expand the U.S. defense industrial base and overcome bottlenecks that inhibit military capability development.

“Industry has identified access to classified environments as a major barrier, and the Secure Space Network directly addresses that challenge by opening the door to classified work for more companies. With strong partnership across the agency and support from Congress, this effort will strengthen our supplier base and help deliver the capabilities our warfighters need faster and at greater scale,” James Mismash, director of the Office of Small Business Programs, said in a statement.

The initiative will be spearheaded by the Office of Industrial Base Growth in the Pentagon’s Acquisition and Sustainment directorate.

Although the initial aim is to build 50 transportable SCIFs, the press release suggested that the Pentagon might eventually seek to create more to meet growing demand.

The plan is to establish “scalable production capacity” and a “surge-capable pathway” for rolling out additional mobile accredited secure workspaces, according to the release.