Afton Riles

Afton Riles supports procurement operations for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ W07V Endist Vicksburg office, managing complex civil infrastructure and engineering contracts critical to flood control, navigation, and water resource management across the Mississippi River basin. In this role, Riles oversees the acquisition of heavy civil construction, engineering services, and specialized infrastructure components, ensuring alignment with federal contracting regulations and mission-critical objectives for national security and environmental resilience. Their work directly enables the design, construction, and maintenance of levees, dredging systems, and hydraulic structures essential to regional stability. Riles maintains longstanding relationships with key contractors including MCKENZIE CONSTRUCTION & SITE DEVELOPMENT LLC, BAIRD-STANTEC JOINT VENTURE, ARCADIS U.S., INC., SOL-MERRICK JOINT VENTURE II, LLC, and LINFIELD, HUNTER & JUNIUS, INC. These partnerships reflect a preference for joint ventures and established firms with proven expertise in heavy civil engineering, environmental remediation, and structural construction. Riles consistently engages vendors with demonstrated capacity in federal water resource projects, fostering collaborative, performance-based contracting models that emphasize technical compliance and long-term asset reliability. While the majority of acquisitions are open competition (55.6%), Riles demonstrates a strong commitment to small business participation, with over 44% of contracts reserved for small businesses under FAR 19.5. Women-Owned Small Businesses and 8(a) firms each receive targeted set-asides, alongside occasional Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business awards, reflecting a balanced socioeconomic strategy that prioritizes equitable access without compromising technical capability. The procurement portfolio is heavily concentrated in NAICS 237990 (Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction) and 541330 (Engineering Services), with significant activity in water infrastructure design, dredging, and flood control systems. Additional focus areas include specialized manufacturing for hydraulic components and site development services, underscoring Riles’ technical expertise in mission-critical civil works procurement within the Army Corps’ operational domain.