Air Force Research Lab picks joint venture for $499M integration support contract
Mark Garlick / Science Photo Library via Getty Images
By
Ross Wilkers
The Space Systems and Hardware Integration for Novel Experiments contract is structured as a "cradle-to-grave" effort.
A joint venture of Analytical Mechanics Associates and Vantage Systems has won a potential 10-year, $499 million contract for technical and other professional services to aid the Air Force Research Laboratory in systems integration efforts.
AFRL set up the Space Systems and Hardware Integration for Novel Experiments contract to cover a broad range of research and engineering work across all phases of the space technology lifecycle, which the lab refers to as "cradle-to-grave."
Vantage Analytical’s proposal for the SSHINE contract beat out eight others, according to the Pentagon’s Wednesday awards digest.
Solicitation documents released in January 2025 break out the scope of work into four major functional areas:
- Mission and space system development
- Flight experiment prototyping, assembly, integration and testing
- Flight experiment operations
- Ground system development
SSHINE is the successor to the “Research and development Integrated Space Experiments“ contract, also known as RISE, which Millennium Engineering and Integration Co. captured in 2019.
Axient inherited the contract in 2021 after its formation via a series of acquisitions involving MEI, then Axient itself was acquired by Astrion in 2024.
AFRL has obligated $173 million in task order volume against RISE, according to Deltek data.