Photo By Nicholas Froment | Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport’s Technical Director Marie Bussiere...... read more read more
NEWPORT, R.I.–To solve complex U.S. Navy problems and swiftly deliver game-changing capabilities to the undersea fleet, it will take “radical collaboration” with industry partners. That was the message delivered by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport Technical Director Marie Bussiere in addressing representatives from companies large and small at the 12th annual Defense Innovation Days.
To solve complex U.S. Navy problems and swiftly deliver game-changing capabilities to the undersea fleet, it will take “radical collaboration” with industry partners. That was the message delivered by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport Technical Director Marie Bussiere in addressing representatives from companies large and small at the 12th annual Defense Innovation Days.
The three-day conference, hosted by the Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance (SENEDIA) — the Alliance for Defense Tech, Talent and Innovation, was held Aug. 31 to Sept. 2 at the Newport Marriott Hotel and Spa in Rhode Island.
To align itself with Department of War priorities, Division Newport will abandon traditional means of engagement with industry and move forward with a transparent approach while offering a number of opportunities for partnership, Bussiere said.
“The only way we succeed is together,” she said. “We are committed to sharing as much information as possible to strengthen our partnerships, especially with industry. This enables us all to work on the parts of the problem that we are each best at. Together, we quickly integrate those individual technologies into a fleet capability to keep our Sailors ahead of our adversaries today and tomorrow.”
Bussiere was joined onstage by Julie Kallfelz, director of Division Newport’s Northeast Tech Bridge and the Technology Partnership Office, and Scott Sideleau, senior scientific technical manager for undersea warfare (USW) command and control systems.
At Defense Innovation Days last year, Bussiere unveiled the warfare center’s 10-year strategic vision titled “Mastery of the Seas at All Depths 2035,” which cuts across 11 technical focus areas to accelerate the closure of fleet kill chains or disrupt adversary tactics.
Technical focus areas include undersea sensing, weapon lethality, assured communications, subsea and seabed warfare, platform defense and survivability, undersea warfare command and control, electronic warfare air/sea interface, undersea robotic and autonomous systems, tactical oceanography, cybersecurity, and undersea data science and digitization.
Division Newport subject matter experts in these areas are working collaboratively to develop technological breakthroughs, and Bussiere said industry plays a large role in those efforts.
“Everyone in the undersea community should be able to see where their expertise, their companies’ products, and their independent research and development efforts fit into this kill chain framework,” she said. “No single organization can tackle the multitude of challenges in the undersea domain. Through common goals and a shared vision, we can accelerate new warfighting capabilities to the fleet.”
Bussiere noted that the National Security Science and Technology Strategy, which was released last month, outlines how the U.S. will leverage its science and technology (S&T) enterprise to support and enable the objectives of the 2025 National Security Strategy.
Additionally, she highlighted a summertime visit to the command by Vice Adm. Robert Gaucher, Director, Submarine Programs, who said one of his priorities is to align and activate the industrial base. To that end, Division Newport is adopting a “radical collaboration” mindset.
“Radical collaboration isa transformative approach to teamwork that prioritizes deep trust, shared decision-making, and open communication over ego and hierarchy,” Bussiere said. “It requires setting aside self-interest to solve complex problems, embracing diverse perspectives, and building relationships based on transparency and mutual respect.”
To get this initiative underway, Dr. Vic Ricci, Division Newport’s principal director for USW innovation and strategic alliances, held a roundtable discussion with industry partners to identify barriers and areas of potential growth. The warfare center also has established biweekly industry office hours, where subject matter experts are on hand to field questions and examine technical topics.
The Contracts Department recently released its Long Range Acquisition Forecast, giving industry partners a look at potential future opportunities. Finally, Division Newport has revamped its public-facing website to make initial contact with the warfare center easier and provide a wealth of information.
Improved communications and increased opportunities, Bussiere said, will be critical to strengthening partnerships.
“Our goal is for you to see where your technology and expertise fits and how it relates to fleet capability,” she said. “Together, we all succeed as business ventures deliver capability. We ask you to embrace radical collaboration throughout our undersea community to make everyone successful in keeping our fleet No. 1 in the world.”
On the heels of BlueTIDE, a two-day event that brought dozens of companies together to engage with Division Newport scientists and engineers Sideleau issued a new challenge titled “Narragansett Sentinel.” It involves protecting subsea communications infrastructure in a “gray zone” — an area where military and commercial vessels converge.
To make this challenge a successful one, it will take “cross-industry partnerships,” Sideleau said. “We need the command and control components in our maritime operations center to remain aware. We need resilient 5G radiofrequency in the surface domain to maintain communications between our blue forces. And we need subsea technology to autonomously assess the threat, package the data and get it back to the surface.” “We are not asking any single company to build the entire puzzle. Instead, we are looking for the best individual pieces,” he said. “This is how we move fast, and this is how we win together.”
“Narragansett Sentinel” will be the crux of the next BlueTIDE event being planned for August 2027, Kallfelz said, with a series of events slated over the next eight months. The first will be a classified industry day at Division Newport in late October.
“Our objective with BlueTIDE, as with all of our industry engagement activities, is to create impactful, efficient opportunities, a launchpad for industry to accelerate delivery of capability,” Kallfelz said.
Summarizing the presentation, Bussiere asked industry professionals in the audience to be proactive with proposals and to engage with Division Newport “early and often,” while also using the “Mastery of the Seas” framework to identify and fill potential gaps.
“Bring us your ideas,” she said. “We all have a role that fits our unique skills and capabilities. It is imperative that we weave those roles together into a collaborative network that accelerates delivery of capability to the fleet. It’s a team sport. We need everyone in this room on the team to engineer America’s undersea advantage.”
NUWC Newport is the oldest warfare center in the country, tracing its heritage to the Naval Torpedo Station established on Goat Island in Newport Harbor in 1869.Commanded by Capt. Kevin Behm, NUWC Newport maintains major detachments in West Palm Beach, Florida, and Andros Island in the Bahamas, as well as test facilities at Seneca Lake and Fisher's Island, New York, Leesburg, Florida, and Dodge Pond, Connecticut.
| Date Taken: | 09.15.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 09.15.2026 15:39 |
| Story ID: | 574800 |
| Location: | NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND, US |
| Web Views: | 12 |
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