Dr. Vic S. Ramdass, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Industrial Base Policy

Dr. Vic S. Ramdass, a member of the Senior Executive Service since 2009, serves as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Industrial Base Policy. In this role, Dr. Ramdass is integral in managing and leading the Department of Defense's efforts to strengthen, grow, and secure the industrial base that underwrites our national security. He also supported the publishing of the Implementation Plan for the first ever National Defense Industrial Strategy.

Dr. Ramdass previously served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Materiel Readiness. In this role, he was the principal advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment in the oversight of the Department's $90 billion maintenance program, and development of policies and procedures. Prior to that position, he served in numerous other SES positions, including the Army's Director of Maintenance Policy and Programs; USSOUTHCOM's Senior DOD Civilian Leader; HQDA G4 Director of the US Army Logistics Innovation Agency; and Director of the US Army Operational Energy Office. He served over 12 years on active duty, first enlisted, and then as an Aviation Warrant Officer, in logistics, maintenance, and training positions. Dr. Ramdass holds a PhD in Public Administration from Auburn University, an MS in Aeronautics, from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, and a BS in Aeronautics from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University.

Mr. Dana Sanford serves as the Director of Sustainment Technologies in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Materiel Readiness. In this role, he leads efforts to identify, evaluate, and transition emerging technologies that enhance weapon system readiness across the Department of War. His work focuses on accelerating innovation, improving sustainment outcomes, and ensuring that cutting‑edge capabilities are effectively integrated into the defense sustainment enterprise.

Prior to his current position, Mr. Sanford held a series of key roles in logistics and sustainment across the Departments of the Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, and the National Security Innovation Network. His portfolio has consistently centered on logistics information technology portfolio management, technology modernization, and the development of digital tools that improve sustainment decision‑making and operational performance. He began his career as a Marine Corps logistics officer, and he continues to serve in the Marine Corps Reserve, where he is currently the Director of the Service Component Operational Logistics Augmentation Cell (SCOLAC). He holds an MS in National Resource Strategy from The Eisenhower School at National Defense University, an MS in Business Administration from Boston University, and a BA in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Commanding Officer, Captain Michael “Mike” Windom

Captain Michael Windom has served in the US Navy since 1987. In April 2025, he became commanding officer of Fleet Readiness Center (FRC) Southeast, a US Navy maintenance, repair and overhaul depot-level facility located onboard Naval Air Station Jacksonville, FL. Prior to that, he was executive officer of FRC Southeast. Prior positions included serving as commanding officer of FRC Northwest; officer-in-charge for Naval Aviation Maintenance Center for Excellence; requirement officer for the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations; and several additional officer-level positions on shore and at sea. He previously completed several enlisted tours until his commissioning in 2001. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Workforce Education, a master’s degree in business administration, and is an acquisition professional.

Daniel Betzing is the Director of Business Development at Paradigm Max Q, where he leads capture management, business development, and strategic planning. He is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran with more than 25 years of experience in aviation maintenance, government logistics, and defense contracting. He holds an M.A. in Professional Writing, a B.S. in Aircraft Maintenance Management, and is an FAA-licensed Airframes & Powerplants mechanic with Inspection Authorization.

Sam Boese is a Research Engineer and Lab Manager for the Advanced Manufacturing Group at “KRI at Northeastern University, LLC.” Sam has contributed to both fundamental and applied research projects focused on cold spray and wire-arc DED.

Phillip Borrelli serves as a Project Manager for the NAVSEA 05T Navy Expeditionary Sustainment and Repair (NESAR). In addition, he is a Technology Liaison with Command Strategies LLC. With 23 years of experience in Naval sustainment and strategic technology development—including 19 years at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. Mr. Borrelli has been instrumental in planning and executing the Navy’s Repair Technology Exercises (REPTX) since the program’s inaugural event in 2022 and currently manages two high-impact NESAR initiatives: the Distance Support Kit (DSK) and the NIMOY-ECSM wireless confined space monitoring system.

Jeff Campbell supports the NAVSEA 05T Navy Expeditionary Sustainment and Repair (NESAR) team as the NAVSEA Cold Spray Project Manager. He has managed development and fielding cold spray technology across the Navy and the Department of War (DoW). The NESAR team rapidly tests, evaluates, and fields new technologies directly with maintainers at repair facilities and within expeditionary environments. It is incredibly rewarding to support our warfighters, keeping Navy assets in the fight and ensuring they return home safely.

Kami Carter is a chemist for the Materials Engineering Laboratory at Naval Air Systems Command, Fleet Readiness Center South-East (FRCSE) in Jacksonville, FL. Serving there as Science and Technology Lead, she is also an accomplished science and technology leader with extensive experience applying scientific expertise to solve complex technical challenges. Throughout her career, she has worked at the intersection of chemistry, materials science, engineering, and technology, providing technical leadership on projects that support mission-critical programs. Ms. Carter is also an advocate in promoting STEM careers in the community. Ms. Carter has an MS in Engineering Management from the University of South Florida, and a BS in Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics from the University of North Florida.

John Cofrancesco is the Founder and CEO of American AI Logistics (AAIL), which delivers AI-powered procurement infrastructure to federal resellers and national security partners. AAIL automates RFQ workflows and provides demand prediction and procurement intelligence that helps the warfighter anticipate needs, focus resources, and accelerate delivery. Before founding AAIL, Mr. Cofrancesco was Vice President of Business Development at Fortress Information Security, the leading cybersecurity provider for US critical infrastructure, where he led strategic growth as the company secured Goldman Sachs Asset Management backing to expand into federal and defense markets. He began his career in the US Navy, managing the Department of Defense’s largest electronic records compliance program.

Robotics Engineer Richard Eberheim leads Solvus Global’s advanced manufacturing for repair division, bridging the gap between cutting-edge robotics, materials science, and front-line readiness. Specializing in in-situ and point-of-need automated additive repair, He works with customers across the Department of War (DoW) to deploy depot and field ready systems employing technology such as cold spray, wireDeD, and AFSD to fix critical hardware right where it breaks.

Paul Evans is an Executive Director in the Intelligent Systems Division at Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI®), where he supports the development and deployment of advanced capabilities in robotics, AI, and advanced manufacturing for government and industry. His multidisciplinary work spans advanced manufacturing, flexible automation, intelligent machines, and high‑reliability systems, with experience across the automotive, sustainment, aerospace, shipbuilding, food, construction, and other industrial sectors. Paul collaborates closely with engineering and robotics teams to integrate sensing, perception, controls, and physics‑based approaches into manufacturing applications. A notable highlight of his career is helping launch the ROS-Industrial open‑source program, which extends the Robot Operating System (ROS) for advanced industrial and manufacturing applications. He also led a large‑scale mobile manipulator project for surface processing that received an R&D 100 Award. Paul holds an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Iowa State University and is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Texas. He serves on the Stakeholder Executive Committee for the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute and on the Executive Council for the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC).

Joe Gerringer is a Senior Program Manager at Relativity Space, leading strategic government programs from contract execution through delivery. His work focuses on advancing manufacturing processes, integrating new technologies, and driving innovation across autonomous robotics and machine learning applications. He holds an MS in Materials Engineering and BASc in Chemistry, both from Texas A&M University.

Todd Greene is the Vice President of Maritime Engineering for Aevex, a defense technology company. A US Navy Engineering Duty Officer, he has held leadership roles in surface warfare, new construction, fleet introduction, and major acquisition programs. Todd has also served as a faculty member and Associate Department Chair in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering at the US Naval Academy, as well as a Program Officer at the Naval Postgraduate School. He holds an MS in Mechanical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School and a BS in Naval Architecture from the US Naval Academy.

Dr. Noel P. Greis is President of Kinefac Corporation, a family-owned builder of high-precision metal forming equipment for the aerospace, automotive, power and defense industries. Founded in 1962 by her father Howard Greis, Kinefac is one of the founding members of NCMS. Dr. Greis also holds a position as Research Professor in Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where she is a member of the Digital Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing (DEAM) Lab. Dr. Greis received PhD, MSE and MA degrees in engineering from Princeton University and a BA in mathematics from Brown University.

Jason Gross is the Senior Manager of Engineering for Avathon Government. Jason has over 15 years of practice in Software Engineering & Leadership. Prior to joining Avathon Government, Jason built experience as a Technical Lead at a custom software consutling group (E-gineering, LLC) and through various roles in leadership and individual development at a high-growth healthcare SaaS organization, Healthx, Inc.  Mr. Gross holds a bachelor’s degree in informatics from Indiana University.

Dr. Paul L. Hartman is President, RGBSI Aerospace & Defense, and serves as the COO and Executive Director of the RGBSI Aerospace and Defense Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Singapore. He has more than 35 years professional aerospace experience and is a recognized expert in the areas of advanced manufacturing, digital engineering, model-based manufacturing, and supply chain risk management. Dr Hartman holds advanced degrees from the United States Air Force Institute of Technology, Graduate School of Engineering and Management, as well as a Certificates of Executive Education from University of Notre Dame, University of Michigan, and University of Pennsylvania.

Thomas Haymond serves as the Director of Quality & Customer Operations at Titomic USA, Inc. with over 10 years of leadership experience and over 20 years in engineering industry. In this role, Thomas oversees the establishment and execution of quality assurance and control systems programs the company’s advanced manufacturing, repair, and coating operations. Leveraging his extensive experience in additive manufacturing, he ensures that the company's cold-spray additive manufacturing (Titomic Kinetic Fusion™) processes, product outputs, and service operations adhere to rigorous internal, regulatory, and customer standards.

Thomas brings deep experience in both additive manufacturing and aerospace engineering to the Titomic team, having been directly involved in additive manufacturing activities since 2012, and engineering analysis since 2005. His unique blend of experiences across aerospace and engineering sectors, including NASA, AMRDEC, GE Aviation and others allows Thomas to rapidly integrate engineering and quality initiatives within a business unit to achieve the objective at hand. 

Thomas has held multiple roles across the Defense industry including serving as the Director for Industrialization Strategy at SLM Solutions, the Services Director for GE Additive, Manager of Technical Operations at Concept Laser Inc., Additive Manufacturing Team Lead at ASRC Federal, Team Lead for Support Engineering at US Army Aviation AMRDEC and Materials Test Engineer at Jacobs ESTS. Having begun his career as a quality control technician at Pratt and Whitney, Thomas has come full circle stepping into the Director of Quality & Customer Operations role at Titomic USA Inc., bringing his diverse and extensive engineering and analytical experience to bear as the company enters its next phase of growth. 

Thomas has a bachelor’s degree in Materials Science from Auburn University.

Alex Henry is a Director in Guidehouse’s Defense & Security Practice, based in McLean, VA. He oversees a portfolio of clients and consulting engagements across the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Acquisition & Sustainment (OUSW(A&S)) as well as the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO). Alex brings more than 25 years of management consulting experience supporting the DoW, Federal Civilian agencies, and commercial organizations, specializing in business and operations strategy, sustainment operations, supply chain management, sourcing and procurement, data management and analytics, and digital transformation. In his current role, Alex manages multiple engagements with the Fleet Readiness & Sustainment and Acquisition & Affordability directorates within the F-35 JPO, and also leads the program and operations design for the Digital Manufacturing Exchange (DMX) under the Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Materiel Readiness. Alex holds an MBA from the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan.

Kimo Johnson, Ph.D., is Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer of GelSight, Inc., a Waltham, MA company commercializing the elastomeric tactile imaging technology developed at MIT. He leads GelSight's R&D team, focusing on computer vision, AI, and measurement algorithms, and also directs the company's government-funded R&D programs. Dr. Johnson holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Dartmouth College and was a Research Scientist at MIT prior to founding GelSight.

Swanand Khanwelkar serves as the Engineering and Maritime Services Manager at Automatic Coating Limited, where he leads programs supporting the US and Canadian Navies. He provides end-to-end engineering leadership and project management across the full project lifecycle, from initial design and engineering through procurement, fabrication, installation, and commissioning. His work focuses on delivering advanced powder coating systems and solutions that meet the specialized requirements of maritime and defense applications.

Charlie Lambert is Director of Aerospace and Defense for North America at Synera, where he leads the company’s US defense strategy for agentic AI in engineering. He spent his career in engineering simulation and design software at Altair and Siemens before joining Synera to build out its defense practice. He is a sixteen-year US Army Reserve officer, currently serving as a Major, with prior enlisted service as a cavalry scout. His focus is deploying deterministic, on-premise agentic workflows inside existing engineering toolchains, with particular attention to sustainment problems including obsolescence screening, secondary-item procurement, and capturing institutional knowledge from a retiring engineering workforce.

Randy Langmead is a Technical Fellow at Siemens Digital Industries Software, where he leads Industry Solutions and Strategy for the U.S. Marine sector. A former Naval Aviator and graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and Naval Postgraduate School, Randy bridges the gap between operational mission requirements and advanced digital technology. He is a primary architect of Siemens’ 'Digital Enterprise' frameworks, helping organizations build seamless digital threads from design through sustainment. At Siemens, Randy also drives the integration of cutting-edge third-party technologies into the Xcelerator portfolio to accelerate digital transformation for the warfighter.

Nathan Livesey is the Program Manager for the Anti-Rust 

SWARM program within NAVSEA 05P, where he leads efforts to accelerate practical, technology-driven solutions to one of the Navy’s most persistent readiness challenges: corrosion. With more than 13 years at Naval Sea Systems Command, Mr. Livesey has helped advance the development, transition, and field implementation of innovative technologies in welding, inspection, advanced manufacturing, materials, and corrosion control.  In his current role, Mr. Livesey focuses on advancing scalable approaches to corrosion prevention and control that improve readiness, reduce maintenance burden, and extend the service life of Navy assets. His work brings together government, industry, and technical partners to accelerate practical solutions from concept through field implementation.

Rich Martin is Vice President of Delivery Operations and Mission Advisory at Exiger. In this role, Rich will help lead the company’s delivery operations in support of Department of War efforts, including expanding Exiger’s Huntsville-based operations center. On the mission-advisory side, will help counsel senior commercial and government leaders on supply-chain risk and operational readiness, helping translate risk insight into sound operational decisions.

Rich joins Exiger after 31 years of military and civilian service, most recently as a member of the Senior Executive Service. As Executive Director of Supply Chain Management and Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3, at U.S. Army Materiel Command, he led an organization that sustained the Army’s fielded weapon systems while modernizing the industrial base behind them. The work spanned supply chain management, depot and arsenal operations, long-range capital investment, and the enterprise logistics systems that connect them.

Rich builds capability rather than waiting for it. He set the requirement for and led the development of an Army enterprise capability that connects data across multiple ERP systems, giving commanders and logisticians a single view of weapon system readiness and the supply chain that sustains it. He designed it to bring commercial data into an organic Army environment rather than subscribing to an external platform. He then led development of a mobile application for property accountability that proved the platform could pass data back into the ERP, work that influenced Army-wide policy on ERP write-back capability.

An Army aviator, Rich completed a 28-year military career that included command of the Aviation Center Logistics Command and multiple deployments in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, and service as Chief of Staff of U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command at Redstone Arsenal. He holds degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Webster University, and two master’s degrees from the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies.

Len Mecca is the Founder and CEO of CLogic Defense, a leader in advanced defense manufacturing, sustainment, and technology innovation. For more than three decades, Len has been challenging the conventional wisdom of how our nation designs, manufactures, and sustains military technology.

Todd Munson is a civilian government Materials Engineer at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division (NSWCCD) and is the Project Lead for the design, construction, and build-out of the Rapid Applied Materials Processing (RAMP) Facility in Memphis, TN. RAMP is a detachment of NSWCCD. Mr. Munson served as an active-duty officer in the US Navy for 6 years. Afterwards, he transitioned to government civil service as a Materials Engineer and has worked for over 30 years in this capacity. His civilian career includes over 8 years as a foundry metallurgist at the Naval Foundry & Propeller Center (NFPC) in Philadelphia; over 9 years as a plant/ production metallurgist at the US Mint in Philadelphia; and over 12 years working on metal properties and metal processing issues at both NAVSEA and NAVAIR. Mr. Munson holds a BS in Materials Engineering from Drexel University and a graduate degree in Engineering Management from Rowan University.

Omar Ramos is a Technology Manager for the NAVSEA 05T Navy Expeditionary Sustainment and Repair (NESAR) team and the NAVSEA 05P Navy Anti-Rust Program. He has planned and led Repair Technology Exercises (REPTX) since 2023, and most recently managed REPTX 2026 in Pearl Harbor with his team. His work spans robotics, communications, and advanced manufacturing processes in support of damage assessment, repair, and preservation.

Dr. Ali Raz is an Assistant Professor at George Mason University Systems Engineering and Operations Research department and an Assistant Director of Intelligent Systems and Integration at the C5I Center. Dr. Raz research and teaching interests are in understanding collaborative autonomy and developing systems engineering methodologies for integrating autonomous systems. He was an Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) Summer Faculty Fellow at the Air Force Research Labs in Rome, NY and has worked with Naval Postgraduate School, John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU-APL), Purdue University, the United States Missile Defense Agency, and Honeywell Aerospace. He holds a BSc. and MSc. in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University, and a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Purdue University. He is the chair of the International Council of Systems Engineering (INCOSE) AI Working Group, and the chair of Information Command and Control Systems (IC2S) at the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

Principal Investigator and robotics technology SME currently leading the ASMST technology roadmap. At Relativty Space - Horizon, Mike leads a multidisciplinary organization spanning robotics software, controls, perception, manufacturing engineering, welding, material removal, metrology, process planning, safety, and autonomous execution. His current work directly supports transition of ASMST into Navy-relevant shipyard repair applications.

Dr. Brad Richards is a technical business leader focused on the intersection of materials, processes, and products. He is passionate about leveraging diverse backgrounds in many technological and business domains to create unique products that solve high impact customer challenges. As CEO of Powders on Demand, he focuses on identifying market needs that result from technology gaps in powder materials, with particular emphasis on solid state processes for repair and Additive Manufacturing. Dr. Richards holds a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering and MMSE in Materials Science and Engineering, both from the University of Virginia.

Ronald Gavin Rowe III works with Edlore Inc. supporting defense sustainment, emerging technology, digital modernization, and engagement with military partners. His work focuses on applying artificial intelligence, digital work instructions, 3D visualization, augmented reality, automation, and knowledge-management technologies to maintenance and sustainment challenges. He helps translate warfighter needs and operational challenges into usable technology, working directly with end users to define requirements and help guide the development of solutions tailored to real-world operational needs.

Prior to joining Edlore, Mr. Rowe served in the United States Navy and retired as a Chief Navy Diver. His assignments included operational diving and salvage, hyperbaric medicine, and Research, Development, Test and Evaluation. At Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, he led RDT&E diving operations supporting NAVSEA programs and unmanned maritime systems. He is also a self-taught full-stack developer who has built AI-enabled platforms focused on technical knowledge, training, and decision support.

Matthew is a mechanical engineer with extensive software and project management experience. He leads a multidisciplinary engineering team at TurnAround Factor (TAF) that provides hardware, software, and engineering services to defense customers.

Dr. Ayman Salem is a Senior Materials Scientist and the President of MRL Materials Resources LLC, leading the company since 2009. Bringing over 26 years of experience in aerospace materials behavior and 15 years pioneering Smart Manufacturing and AI in material data science, Dr. Salem has built vertically integrated teams and facilities that directly serve the DoW and the Defense Industrial Base. Under his direction, MRL supported the establishment of the NSWCCD’s RAMP facilities in the Memphis detachment for the last two years and secured landmark prime defense programs. He holds a PhD from Drexel University and his publications have garnered over 4,700 citations.

Art Sellers is the President and General Manager of Avathon Government. Prior to his current role, he served in the US Army for over 27 years as a career infantry officer. He spent his entire career in operational assignments, with over 12 years in the special operations community, 10 years in command billets at every level, and over 5 years in combat deployments, including Iraq, Afghanistan, and with NATO partners in Europe. Originally from Keokuk, Iowa, Mr. Sellers graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, as well as the Naval War College in Newport, RI. After the Army, he completed an MBA from Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management.

Kunal Shah is Chief Product & Technology Officer at Arcessio, where he leads the development of AI agents for manufacturing sourcing and intelligence. Previously, he co-founded Cocomo.ai, an AI-powered marketing agency, and Ascend Motors, which built electric motorcycles with 200 miles of range. His experience sourcing custom parts at Ascend directly inspired Arcessio’s mission to modernize how manufacturers connect with suppliers. Mr. Shah holds a BS in Computer Science from Rice University.

Steven Silva serves as Executive Vice President and General Manager of Best- Tec, where he leads the development and deployment of Inductive Coating Removal and Laser Ablation (ICRALA) process, and advanced technologies for corrosion control and surface preparation. With more than 20 years of experience in the laser industry, he has extensive expertise in applying laser-based solutions to sustainment and maintenance operations across critical infrastructure and defense assets. His work focuses on improving asset readiness, extending service life, and reducing maintenance costs through innovative surface treatment technologies.

Mark Smithers, a founding member of Boston Engineering, leads the company’s strategic development activities. He oversees the project management operation for the business and leads activities for the company’s technology/IP creations. Mr. Smithers combines his experience as a systems engineer and innovator with business expertise to help guide customers towards commercialization success. His previous experience includes serving as director of engineering for Herbst LaZar Bell, Inc., as program manager for MPM Corporation, as project design engineer for Foster-Miller, Inc., and as design engineer for Daymarc Corporation. Mark holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Northeastern University in Boston.

Kirk Spangenberg is a retired Marine Corps Colonel whose 28 years in logistics spanned expeditionary formations and the industrial base, culminating in command of Marine Depot Maintenance Command, the Marine Corps’ organic depot maintenance enterprise. He is now President of the Aerospace and Defense Division at Arcessio, Inc., an AI-powered manufacturing intelligence platform that carries each part on a digital thread from analysis to acceptance. His Marine Corps career covered sustainment, maintenance, and supply operations from the tactical edge to the depot floor, with deep involvement in digital and advanced manufacturing adoption across the defense and organic industrial base. He also serves as President and co-founder of the Association of Marine Corps Logisticians.

Donna Stacy is currently a Principal Systems Engineer in Headquarters Air Force Material Command (AFMC). She provides technical oversight to the Joint Technology Exchange Group (JTEG) as a JTEG principal, the Rapid Sustainment Improvement Process (RSIP), the Commercial Technologies for Maintenance Activities (CTMA) cooperative agreement, and she serves on the technical committee for SERDP/ESTCP and NDCEE. Prior to her current position, she was the Sustainment Technology Enterprise Process (STEP) Team Lead for Air Force Sustainment Center, located at Tinker AFB. Ms. Stacy earlier served as a Pollution Prevention Engineer and Corrosion Control Program Manager at 76th Maintenance Support Group (76 MXSG). Ms. Stacy has a BS in Chemical Engineering and an MS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Oklahoma in Norman.

Chris Thobaben is the Co-Founder and CEO of Maren-go Solutions Corporation, based in Vancouver, Washington. Maren-go is a team of veterans and industry experts in robotics, AI and sensor integration. It builds low-cost, platform-agnostic autonomous systems for defense and commercial use, with a focus on "attritable" and "blue-collar" autonomy that automates the routine work that keeps an installation running.  Chris brings more than 20 years of experience in logistics, supply chain and operational leadership. He is a Major in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and currently serves as Communication Strategy and Operations Officer for the 4th Marine Logistics Group. On active duty he was a logistics officer. 

Javid Vahid, PE, is President and Principal Investigator for Edlore Inc. He invented the Edlore concept in 2004 and holds US Patent 10,096,003 on the platform. Edlore runs a patented AI/ML platform that converts OEM technical manuals, CAD files, and 2D engineering drawings into interactive 3D maintenance, troubleshooting, and training tools. Mr. Vahid additionally leads Edlore’s fielded Department of Defense work. He holds an MEng in Systems Engineering – Robotics and Automation from the University of Wales Institute of Science and Technology, and a BS in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from University of Sussex.

Scott is a highly decorated 22-year Veteran of the United States Navy, entrepreneur, and executive leader with more than 33 years of Government and DoD experience.  He is recognized for operational excellence, organizational performance, and strategic effectiveness.

Phoenix Group of Virginia

2023–Present

Chief Executive Officer and President of the Board of Directors. Leads strategy and daily operations for Phoenix Group, partnering with customers, employees, and vendors to grow the business and deliver innovative solutions for government, allied, and commercial customers.

Aviation Systems Engineering Company (ASEC) Program Manager

2015–2023

Senior Program Manager with a proven record in Navy government contracting. Led process integration for the largest technical manual conversion in U.S. Navy history. Designed, developed, and delivered the Navy’s first Interactive Flight Manual. Spearheaded business development after extensive research and development work, driving new product introduction, key-account management, customer relationships, and contract negotiations.

Department of the Navy Operations Manager (CPO Ret)

1992–2014

Managed instructors in leadership and professional development, creating an environment for learning and strategic planning. Served as Special Staff Advisor to the Commanding General of U.S. Forces Afghanistan, overseeing training, planning, and leadership development for more than 7,000 in-country personnel. Logged more than 7,000 flight hours as a Flight Engineer in the P-3C and Boeing 707.

Dr. Nelson Williams serves as the Director, Regional Sustainment Framework for Indo-Pacific, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Product Support. He formerly served as the Director for Business Operations, and Chief of Staff, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Materiel Readiness. Prior to that, he served as Deputy to the Commander, and senior civilian executive for Materiel Support Command - Korea. Dr. Williams holds a Doctorate of Divinity; a BS in Business Management; and is a graduate of Army Management Staff College. He is the author of five published books.

Steve Williamson is a 31-year US Navy veteran with extensive ship repair and maintenance experience across his naval and private-sector career. He has held senior leadership positions including Commanding Officer of Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Pacific Fleet Maintenance N43 Director, and NAVSEA 04, where he oversaw the Naval Public Shipyards. Currently, he serves as Corrosion Division Director at Valkyrie Enterprises, leading corrosion mitigation efforts in support of NAVSEA 05P and the SWARM initiative, with teams operating across multiple US and Japan locations. Mr. Williamson is a graduate of the Naval ROTC program at the University of Maryland and George Washington University and holds an undergraduate degree in Economics and an MS in Mechanical Engineering.

As the Innovation Lead for Marine Corps Logistics Command (LOGCOM), Richard Wimberly currently supports the establishment of a Science & Technology Office under CG’s 5-year Campaign Plan LOE-1. With over three decades of combined military, contractor, and civilian experience, Mr. Wimberly brings a reliable and focused approach to developing and integrating highly complex technological systems within LOGCOM. His career has been marked by successful leadership on diverse DoW projects, from weapon systems integration to flight simulation upgrades/modifications and developing application program sets for USMC ground vehicle LRUs/CCAs.