The US Air Force's Tactical Data Networks Lab is seeking to procure a number of small server modules to upgrade its aging in-house IT.
The order for a handful of servers is part of a wider tech refresh at the lab. For the order, the lab plans to award a sole source contract to PacStar/Curtiss-Wright.
In a procurement notice, the TDN is looking to acquire four PacStar Server Modules (PS451), four 1TB SSDs, VMware ESXi Essentials Version 6.7, and military-only networking gear.
"The purpose of this effort is to procure network and support equipment to enhance work center operations and replace aging support equipment within the lab," the notice states.
Operated out of the Hanscom US Air Force Base in Massachusetts, the TDN helps maintain the US military's communications networks, and recreates potential attacks or interference to systems to see how they react.
"We want to ensure we get the right data to the right warfighter at the right time and in the right format in order for that warfighter to make the right informed decision," Steve Brown, senior TDN lab engineer, said in a 2015 promotional story.
At the time, the lab installed a 120-foot composite antenna mast to help expand its tests.
"Some previous achievements include... testing and providing support to the Global Observer, a liquid hydrogen-powered unmanned aerial vehicle, Joint Capabilities Technology Demonstration," the article states.
