DARPA chooses 6 for $1.25B professional services vehicle

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has awarded six companies positions on a potential five-year, $1.25 billion contract for broad professional services to all of DARPA's technical and support offices.

DARPA received 12 offers for this recompete of its Technical and Analytical Support Services vehicle, the Defense Department said in its Friday awards digest.

Awardees are as follows:

• Amentum
• Booz Allen Hamilton
• ECS
• ManTech
• Strategic Analysis
• Systems Planning and Analysis

SPA is the lone newcomer to the TASS effort, while the other five will continue their incumbency from the current iteration awarded in 2018 to seven companies at an $850 million ceiling. In January, DARPA increased that ceiling to approximately $1 billion to give it more time for the transition to the next version of TASS.

Amentum's status as an incumbent comes from Centra Technology, which PAE acquired in 2020. PAE was then acquired by Amentum in 2022.

Companies involved in the program vie for task orders to aid DARPA with research-and-development programs, acquisition analysis and support, and assessments and evaluation support.

They also work with the agency to help manage and carry out events such as the DARPA Robotics Challenge, Cyber Grand Challenge and Spectrum Challenge.

DARPA has obligated approximately one-third of the current TASS ceiling to-date when factoring in that increase. Booz Allen is the largest recipient of obligations at around $160 million, according to Deltek data.