Indefinite Delivery Contract HQ085926DF929

The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) awarded a Multiple Award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract to University of Tennessee Space Institute (UTSI) on December 29, 2025, for the Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) program. This child contract, valued at $151 billion with a performance period extending through December 28, 2035, was awarded without set-aside designations through full and open competition. The contract authorizes MDA and other Department of Defense entities to issue delivery orders for research and development, prototyping, systems engineering, weapon design, production, test and evaluation, and modernization efforts supporting multi-domain defense capabilities against air, missile, space, cyber, and hybrid threats to the United States homeland, deployed forces, allies, and friends.

UTSI, a premier research and engineering institution specializing in aerospace, defense, materials science, and advanced diagnostics, will deliver technical expertise across detection, tracking, interception, and neutralization systems capable of addressing ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missile threats across all flight phases. The initial task order, designated SHIELD Initial Order and valued at $500 (Firm Fixed Price), was awarded on December 29, 2025, with performance based in Huntsville, Alabama. The contract vehicle is structured to support both classified and unclassified programs utilizing various contract types and pricing mechanisms, leveraging advanced technologies including artificial intelligence, machine learning, digital engineering, and open systems architectures to enable rapid issuance of orders under a flexible, enterprise-wide contracting mechanism.