Association Polls Industry As Pandemic Retreats.

• Position: NDIN News

* As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to retreat in the United States, companies within the defense industrial base are taking stock of where they are now and what lies ahead, according to the results of a survey from the National Defense Industrial Association.

The survey--which was conducted as part of the association's annual Vital Signs project--polled more than 200 NDIA members. It was conducted over several weeks in April and May and revealed a number of key industry concerns.

Of those surveyed, 18.5 percent said their businesses have returned to normal operations, while 31.5 percent said they do not expect to return to normal within the next six months.

Additionally, small businesses in the defense industrial base --particularly those with 25 or fewer employees--reported substantial negative effects to their businesses due to the pandemic, far more than reported by larger businesses. When compared to U.S. small businesses that do not specialize in defense, these contractors were nearly 32 percent less likely to experience large negative effects, but about 19 percent more likely to experience moderate negative effects. Meanwhile, 34.7 percent of companies polled by NDIA reported that COVID-19 had a major impact on revenue expectations in July 2020, but that fell to 19.3 percent as of May 2021.

The four areas of operations most affected by the pandemic are revenue expectations (41.7 percent), confidence in supply chain partners (31.7 percent), availability of workforce (30.5 percent) and ability to perform on contracts (29.6 percent). Availability of employees to work was the most common factor affecting operating capacity (41 percent). Physical distancing of customers or clients and limits on the number of concurrent customers or clients was the second most reported factor (10 percent).

The complete survey results can be found at https://bit.ly/3h7KtNt

Vickers, Nagata Receive SO/LIC Division Awards

* Michael Vickers and Retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Nagata are the 2021 recipients of NDIAs Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict Division's highest honors.

Vickers will receive the R. Lynn Rylander Award, named for a Defense Department civilian and a founder of the SO/LIC Division, who was an advocate and activist for Special Operations Forces. Nagata will receive the DeProspero Lifetime Achievement Award, named for retired Army Col. Albert DeProspero, who served in Special Forces and is another founding member of die division and an...