DISA awards Defense Enclave Services contract to Leidos, Inc.

by Suzan Holl
Office of Strategic Communications and Public Affairs
March 10, 2022 

In 2019, the Deputy Secretary of Defense designated DISA as the single service provider to optimize network capabilities for its 22 Fourth Estate Defense Agencies and Field Activities.

This optimization effort, known as the Fourth Estate Network Optimization initiative, seeks to modernize the Department of Defense information technology architecture, reduce costs, improve business practices, and mitigate operational and cyber risks.

As threats within the cyberspace domain become increasingly sophisticated, the DOD requires solutions that will eliminate unnecessary complexity within the IT space, as well as ways to increase interoperability, modernize the DOD IT architecture and reap cost savings that can be leveraged to fund warfighting systems and other department priorities.

To support the Fourth Estate Network Optimization initiative, DISA has awarded a competitive, single-award indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract to Leidos, Inc., of Reston, Virginia for the Defense Enclave Services.

The Defense Enclave Services contract will unify the DOD Fourth Estate Defense Agencies and Field Activities’ common use information technology systems, personnel, functions and program elements under the direction of DISA’s Fourth Estate Network Optimization program office.

As the Defense Enclave Services contractor, Leidos, Inc., will manage and operate the network architecture, and provide the technical expertise necessary to provide standardized, responsive, and cost-effective IT services focused on mission value and network user experience, while improving security, network availability, and reliability for Fourth Estate agencies. Leidos will be responsible for executing the network optimization and migration actions onto the new optimized network, DODNet, which is a cost-effective, defendable network that increases agility throughout the department.

“We have to evolve the [Defense Agencies and Field Activities] from unique information environments to a single digital enterprise. This will address the cost, security and integration issues that result from having separate networks, compute, and cybersecurity services and it will allow us to establish the modern infrastructure foundation and unified architecture needed to deliver cohesive combat support capabilities to the warfighter,” said Don Means Jr., director of DISA’s Operations and Infrastructure Center, where the Fourth Estate Network Optimization program resides.

“[Defense Enclave Services] will provide integrated, standardized and cost-effective IT services while improving security, network availability, and reliability for the 22 [Defense Agencies and Field Activities] within the Fourth Estate. DISA will leverage the [Defense Enclave Services] contract to manage, operate and support the network architecture,” said Means.

The ceiling value of the Defense Enclave Services contract is $11.5 billion. The ordering period is February 28, 2022 through February 27, 2026 with three, two-year optional ordering periods, which, if exercised, would extend the contract to February 27, 2032. Performance will be at Fourth Estate locations worldwide. The solicitation was issued with full and open competition and required all offerors to subcontract at least 25 percent of the work to small businesses. Leidos’ proposal exceeded this minimum.