DRS Systems, Inc.

DRS Systems, Inc., a subsidiary of Italian multinational defense contractor Leonardo SPA, operates as a prime contractor on full-and-open naval electronics and defense systems work with no small-business set-asides, delivering advanced communications hardware, electronic warfare systems, and specialized defense electronics to the U.S. Navy, Army, and Special Operations Command from facilities in Melbourne, Florida and supporting locations.

DRS Systems competes predominantly as a large prime across full-and-open vehicles rather than reserved categories, reflecting its parent-company ownership and established scale in defense electronics manufacturing. The company specializes in concrete capabilities grounded in recent award work: Next Generation Integrated Voice Communication System (NG-IVCS) hardware and engineering services for DDG-51 and CG-47 class destroyer modernization and new construction; Directed Infrared Countermeasures (DAIRCM) systems for naval and special operations rotorcraft; Vertical Launching System power distribution components for Navy surface combatants; and communications integration and electronic warfare solutions for naval platforms. Representative prime awards include a $171.2 million single-award IDIQ from Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (awarded September 2022, running through September 2027) for NG-IVCS hardware, engineering, spares, and modernization support across the destroyer fleet, with subsequent delivery orders totaling approximately $35.4 million; a $25.6 million firm fixed-price contract from Naval Sea Systems Command (July 2022) for fabrication and delivery of MK 41 Vertical Launching System power distribution panels in 60-Hz and 400-Hz configurations through June 2027, performed in Orlando, Florida; and a $9.4 million firm fixed-price delivery order from Naval Sea Systems Command (September 2025) for NG-IVCS hardware supporting DDG-145/146/148 new construction.

Customer concentration is heavily weighted toward Navy commands. The top five funding agencies account for 68% of recent awards by count, led by the Department of the Navy Information Warfare Systems Command (93 awards, $1.16 billion combined potential value) and the Department of the Navy Naval Sea Systems Command (65 awards, $297.9 million combined potential value). By dollar value, the Department of the Army Acquisition Support Center PEO Intelligence, Electronic Warfare & Sensors anchors the portfolio with 21 awards and $2.07 billion combined potential value—a significant concentration point that tilts the overall customer base when ranked by dollars rather than volume. Naval Air Systems Command (13 awards, $586.9 million), the Army Materiel Command Army Contracting Command Aberdeen Proving Ground (7 awards, $366.1 million), and the Special Operations Command round out the major customers. This divergence between count and dollar rankings reflects large single awards from Army programs alongside many smaller Navy task orders.

DRS Systems holds position on multiple parent vehicles. The largest by utilization is Indefinite Delivery Contract N6523607D5120 (122 task orders, $485.2 million combined potential value), followed by N6523609D5190 (51 task orders, $55.6 million), Army contract W15P7T09DM402 (41 task orders, $257.2 million), N6554008D0019 (16 task orders, $11.2 million), and M-LIDS-related IDIQ W31P4Q20D0031 (12 task orders). Two recently awarded major vehicles provide significant forward visibility: a $488.8 million single-award indefinite delivery contract from Naval Air Systems Command (March 2026) for DAIRCM system production and field service representative support through March 2029, and a $151 billion multiple-award IDIQ from the Missile Defense Agency (January 2026) for the Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) program covering research, development, prototyping, systems engineering, and production across multi-domain defense requirements through December 2035. The $2 million Basic Ordering Agreement with Naval Air Systems Command (May 2024, running through January 2029) provides flexible procurement authority for hardware and engineering support on Navy aviation platforms.

Recent activity shows mixed trajectory. Awards per year declined from fifteen in 2024 to seven in 2025 and five in 2026 (year-to-date), though the two major recent vehicle awards provide substantial forward pipeline capacity. Within the next twenty-four months, three awards with ultimate completion dates carry combined potential value of $65.5 million and face recompete exposure. Top NAICS concentrations sit in Satellite Telecommunications (123 awards), Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (68 awards), and Telephone Apparatus Manufacturing (53 awards), reflecting the company's emphasis on communications and detection systems.

DRS Systems operates with a substantial subcontract footprint rooted in its parent company's broader ecosystem. The vendor subcontracts to DRS Sustainment Systems, Inc. on multiple Army programs including the Mobile, Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aerial Systems Integrated Defeat System (M-LIDS) for electro-optical/infrared payloads and the Joint Assault Bridge (JAB) for vision systems, cameras, and cable harnesses; and to General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. on sensor and laser integration work for unmanned systems. Leonardo DRS, Inc., the parent entity listed at Arlington, Virginia, is a for-profit corporate structure with its own portfolio of federal prime and grant awardee work, creating a corporate-parent relationship that anchors DRS Systems, Inc.'s position within a larger defense electronics and systems integration enterprise serving Navy, Army, and Special Operations customers across communications modernization, electronic warfare, and ship modernization domains.