The Analytic Sciences Corporation
Encyclopedia
TASC, Inc., or The Analytic Sciences Corporation, Inc., is private, defense contractor
based outside Washington, DC, in Chantilly, Virginia
, established in 1966 and sold off by parent Northrop Grumman
in 2009 to comply with new government regulations.
The firm describes itself as "a leading provider of advanced systems engineering
, integration and decision-support services to the intelligence, defense and, homeland security communities, as well as other federal agencies."
in legal conflict, since provided both development and advisory services to the Federal government.
As a result, in November 2009, Northrop Grumman sold its TASC, its advisory services group, to investors led by General Atlantic Partners and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts for $1.65 billion.
. The firm provided the US government with modeling, simulation, analysis, and evaluation of integrated navigation and guidance systems for programs including the Trident Submarine
, Minuteman Missile, and the Space Shuttle
.
During the 1970s, TASC's efforts grew in information management and decision support systems, analytical approaches for disposing of nuclear waste, and software engineering for embedded software systems. It commenced technical support, focusing on issues of reliability, life-cycle cost, and data tracking. It also established an economics and management sciences division in Rosslyn, Virginia
, for analyzing and supporting government procurement activities. In 1978, TASC purchased a Reston, Virginia
-based engineering group specializing in reconnaissance, communication, and intelligence. It built research facilities and laboratories for image-processing, artificial intelligence, and microelectronics.
During the 1980s, TASC bought WSI Corporation, based in Billerica, Massachusetts
, which provided real-time weather information to the public and private sector (including broadcast, aviation, and agriculture). It also bought ESD
Corporation, to complement WSI.
During the 1990s, Primark Corporation bought TASC. Primark (now owned by Thompson Financial) provided financial, economic, and market research information. TASC developed system architectures for Primark subsidiaries and special product design and research services. In 1998, Litton Industries
bought TASC from Primark.
In 2000, TASC sold three stand-alone commercial operations: Adesso Software, WSI Corporation, and Emerge
. TASC then refocused on government markets and related industrial applications of its technology. In 2001, Northrop Grumman
bought Litton Industries and made TASC part of its Information Technology division. In 2002, Northrop Grumman bought TRW
. In 2008, TASC (as a subsidiary) bought 3001 International, specializing in geospatial data production and analysis. In 2009, Northrop Grumman merged its Information Technology and Mission Systems divisions. All systems engineering, technical assistance, and advisory services fell under TASC, with development project moving into other units.
from Kodiak, Alaska
, for U.S. Navy experimentation in September 2011. The rocket placed a U.S. Navy TacSat-4
(Tactical Satellite 4) spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit at 7,500 miles above Earth
In March 2011, TASC won a $97 million dollar contract for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency to provide advice and assistance to the agency's Combat Support and Nuclear Support directorates. Services will cover areas of nuclear deterrence.
In April 2011, TASC won a single-award, five-year IDIQ contract, capped at $600 million, to support the Defense Threat Reduction Agency's Research and Development Entrprise.
Defense contractor
A defense contractor is a business organization or individual that provides products or services to a military department of a government. Products typically include military aircraft, ships, vehicles, weaponry, and electronic systems...
based outside Washington, DC, in Chantilly, Virginia
Chantilly, Virginia
Chantilly is an unincorporated community located in western Fairfax County and southeastern Loudoun County of Northern Virginia. Recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census designated place , the community population was 23,039 as of the 2010 census -- down from 41,041 in 2000, due to the...
, established in 1966 and sold off by parent Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
in 2009 to comply with new government regulations.
The firm describes itself as "a leading provider of advanced systems engineering
Systems engineering
Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering that focuses on how complex engineering projects should be designed and managed over the life cycle of the project. Issues such as logistics, the coordination of different teams, and automatic control of machinery become more...
, integration and decision-support services to the intelligence, defense and, homeland security communities, as well as other federal agencies."
Formation
The 2009 Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act (WSARA) forbids conflicts created by use of federal contractors as both advisors of support services and developers of major defense acquisition programs. This put Northrop GrummanNorthrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
in legal conflict, since provided both development and advisory services to the Federal government.
As a result, in November 2009, Northrop Grumman sold its TASC, its advisory services group, to investors led by General Atlantic Partners and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts for $1.65 billion.
Corporate history
In 1966, Arthur Gelb and Harry B. Silverman formed The Analytic Sciences Corporation (TASC) in Winchester, MassachusettsWinchester, Massachusetts
Winchester is a town located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, eight miles north of Boston. With its agricultural roots having mostly disappeared, it is now an affluent suburb...
. The firm provided the US government with modeling, simulation, analysis, and evaluation of integrated navigation and guidance systems for programs including the Trident Submarine
Ohio class submarine
The Ohio class is a class of nuclear-powered submarines used by the United States Navy. The United States has 18 Ohio-class submarines:...
, Minuteman Missile, and the Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
.
During the 1970s, TASC's efforts grew in information management and decision support systems, analytical approaches for disposing of nuclear waste, and software engineering for embedded software systems. It commenced technical support, focusing on issues of reliability, life-cycle cost, and data tracking. It also established an economics and management sciences division in Rosslyn, Virginia
Rosslyn, Virginia
Rosslyn is an unincorporated area in Northern Virginia located in the northeastern corner of Arlington County, Virginia, north of Arlington National Cemetery and directly across the Potomac River from Georgetown in Washington, D.C. Rosslyn encompasses the Arlington neighborhoods of North Rosslyn...
, for analyzing and supporting government procurement activities. In 1978, TASC purchased a Reston, Virginia
Reston, Virginia
Reston is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The population was 58,404, at the 2010 Census and 56,407 at the 2000 census...
-based engineering group specializing in reconnaissance, communication, and intelligence. It built research facilities and laboratories for image-processing, artificial intelligence, and microelectronics.
During the 1980s, TASC bought WSI Corporation, based in Billerica, Massachusetts
Billerica, Massachusetts
Billerica is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,243 at the 2010 census. It is the only town named Billerica in the United States and borrows its name from the town of Billericay in Essex, England.- History :...
, which provided real-time weather information to the public and private sector (including broadcast, aviation, and agriculture). It also bought ESD
ESD
ESD may mean:*Education for Sustainable Development, a vision of education as depicted by the United Nations*Educational service district, a state-level legislative grouping for schools in some US states....
Corporation, to complement WSI.
During the 1990s, Primark Corporation bought TASC. Primark (now owned by Thompson Financial) provided financial, economic, and market research information. TASC developed system architectures for Primark subsidiaries and special product design and research services. In 1998, Litton Industries
Litton Industries
Named after inventor Charles Litton, Sr., Litton Industries was a large defense contractor in the United States, bought by the Northrop Grumman Corporation in 2001.-History:...
bought TASC from Primark.
In 2000, TASC sold three stand-alone commercial operations: Adesso Software, WSI Corporation, and Emerge
Emerge
Emerge may refer to:* Emerge: The Best of Neocolours, the fourth album of Neocolours* Emerge Desktop, a Desktop shell replacement for Microsoft Windows* Emerge Stimulation Drink, a drink sold in UK Supermarkets...
. TASC then refocused on government markets and related industrial applications of its technology. In 2001, Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
bought Litton Industries and made TASC part of its Information Technology division. In 2002, Northrop Grumman bought TRW
TRW
TRW Inc. was an American corporation involved in a variety of businesses, mainly aerospace, automotive, and credit reporting. It was a pioneer in multiple fields including electronic components, integrated circuits, computers, software and systems engineering. TRW built many spacecraft,...
. In 2008, TASC (as a subsidiary) bought 3001 International, specializing in geospatial data production and analysis. In 2009, Northrop Grumman merged its Information Technology and Mission Systems divisions. All systems engineering, technical assistance, and advisory services fell under TASC, with development project moving into other units.
Recent news
TASC helped assure launch of the Minotaur IVMinotaur IV
Minotaur IV, also known as Peacekeeper SLV and OSP-2 PK is an active expendable launch system derived from the Peacekeeper missile. It is operated by Orbital Sciences Corporation, and made its maiden flight on 22 April 2010, carrying the HTV-2a Hypersonic Test Vehicle...
from Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak is one of 7 communities and the main city on Kodiak Island, Kodiak Island Borough, in the U.S. state of Alaska. All commercial transportation between the entire island and the outside world goes through this city either via ferryboat or airline...
, for U.S. Navy experimentation in September 2011. The rocket placed a U.S. Navy TacSat-4
TacSat-4
TacSat-4 is the fourth in a series of U.S. military experimental reconnaissance and communication satellites. The Naval Research Laboratory is the program manager. The Office of Naval Research sponsored the development of the payload and funded the first year of operations...
(Tactical Satellite 4) spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit at 7,500 miles above Earth
Aquisitions
In June 2011, TASC bought TexelTek, specializing in secure cloud solutions for the U.S. government.National Defense Authorization Act
In July 2011, TASC responded to passage of the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act. The NDAA gives defense agencies unlimited rights to technical data arising from federally funded independent research and development. Company chief technology officer, Richard Rosenthal, commented, saying:It’s not clear how it will effect the intellectual property rights. But if the alternative is that government will receive unlimited rights, contractors might opt to just pay for the research and development from their own profits. That could change the playing field — favoring the large companies that can afford to make those investments.
“Small businesses tend to have just one or two key products that they sell to government as their discriminator. And a lot of initial profits go into keeping talent at the company, rather than investing in the next big development. For all of industry, this requirement will force some business decisions to be made. But for these smaller companies, there’s a lot more to consider.
New contracts
In October 2010, TASC won a contract from the FAA, capped at $827.8 million dollar, to support the agency's transition to its Next Generation Air Transportation System.In March 2011, TASC won a $97 million dollar contract for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency to provide advice and assistance to the agency's Combat Support and Nuclear Support directorates. Services will cover areas of nuclear deterrence.
In April 2011, TASC won a single-award, five-year IDIQ contract, capped at $600 million, to support the Defense Threat Reduction Agency's Research and Development Entrprise.
New personnel
Since its spin-off from Northrop Grumman, TASC has hired many new corporate officers:- 2010:
- April 2010:
- Barbie Bigelow as chief information officer
- Jerry Howe as general counsel
- Brian Kessler as chief compliance officer
- Jim Lawler as chief human resources officer
- Jay McCaffrey as senior director of communications
- May 2010: Larry Strang as chief of its cyber-security programs
- June 2010:
- Wayne M. Rehberger as vice president and CFO
- Bradley W. Kopp as vice president and treasurer
- July 2010: David Manser as director of technology for enterprise business systems
- August 2010:
- Rashid Chotani as director of chemical-biological defense programs
- Mark Leary as chief information security officer
- October 2010: Rosemary Budd as director of business development
- April 2010:
- 2011
- February 2011: David Langstaff as president and CEO. Most recently, he had served as president and CEO of Veridian. Mr. Langstaff succeed Wood Parker, who was retiring.
- June 2011: Dale Luddeke as "Chief Growth Officer" (business development). Coming from CACI, where had had served as executive vice president of business development since 2007, Luddeke had already partaken in TASC's merger and acquisition strategy.
- October 2011: Bob Pattishall vice president of Systems Engineering and Integration (SE&I) community of excellence
External resources
- Northrop Grumman press release November 8, 2009