WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Defense awarded a pair of contracts to Perspecta Labs for work on a smart warehouse and spectrum sharing, the company announced.

The pair of contracts, with a ceiling value of $8.1 million, are part of the Pentagon’s effort with industry to develop dual-use 5G capabilities at military installations across the country on electromagnetic spectrum bandwidth shared with commercial providers. The DoD needs 5G to support advanced military technology that requires fast, reliable wireless connections — such as improved radar to help on the battlefield.

Under one contract, worth up to $5 million over three years, Perspecta Labs will work on the Navy’s 5G Smart Warehouse prototype at Naval Base Coronado, California, according to the company’s April 5 announcement. Smart warehouses use computers and automation to run more efficiently. The post is developing an advanced shipment tracking capability between naval units and shore facilities. Perspecta Labs will create an end-to-end security solution for a 5G connection between devices and logistic servers, as well as additional network capacity to support additional Internet of Things connected devices.

The company is also the prime contractor for a dynamic spectrum sharing project at Hill Air Force Base in Utah to allow Air Force radars to share spectrum with 5G cellular services in the 3.1-3.45 GHz range.

The company will create a 5G system control to “rapidly detect and react to radar activity, interpret radar-obfuscated sensor data and improve spectrum utilization.” That contract is worth $3.1 million.

“Operational-scale experimentation and testing are critical to achieving the potential of commercial 5G infrastructure in industries from defense, transportation and logistics to critical infrastructure, health care and manufacturing,” company President Petros Mouchtaris said. “Perspecta Labs is excited to design, implement and deploy dual-use 5G prototypes at DOD test sites as part of the world’s largest full-scale 5G experiments.”

The Defense Department has a range of 5G projects underway at military posts across the country. Last year, the DoD awarded $600 million in 5G contracts for testbeds at five bases in the U.S.

About Andrew Eversden

Andrew Eversden covers all things defense technology for C4ISRNET. He previously reported on federal IT and cybersecurity for Federal Times and Fifth Domain, and worked as a congressional reporting fellow for the Texas Tribune. He was also a Washington intern for the Durango Herald. Andrew is a graduate of American University.

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