Amanda Somerville

Amanda Somerville serves as a key procurement lead within the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service, Office of Acquisition and Procurement, where she facilitates the acquisition of mission-critical scientific infrastructure and specialized technical services. Her role centers on enabling cutting-edge agricultural research by securing advanced laboratory instrumentation, precision environmental control systems, and facility maintenance solutions that sustain experimental sites and field stations nationwide. She manages complex solicitations under FAR Part 15, ensuring compliance with federal procurement standards while aligning acquisitions with the agency’s strategic goals of scientific innovation and operational resilience. Somerville maintains consistent working relationships with a select group of contractors, including MCKENZIE CONSTRUCTION & SITE DEVELOPMENT LLC for facility upgrades, AEROSPACE & COMMERCIAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC for high-precision technical systems, and L1 ENTERPRISES INCORPORATED for specialized instrumentation support. Her procurement approach emphasizes long-term vendor partnerships grounded in technical competency, reliability, and adherence to federal quality controls, particularly for mission-essential equipment and infrastructure requiring rigorous validation. Her contracting patterns reflect a strong commitment to small business participation, with 86.3% of awards structured as total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5. This reflects a deliberate strategy to foster innovation through diverse vendors, prioritizing small disadvantaged, HUBZone, and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses where applicable. Her socioeconomic contracting model reinforces USDA’s broader goals of equitable economic opportunity in science and technology sectors. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 238220 (plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning systems for research facilities), 541380 (testing laboratories and analytical services), and 334516 (analytical laboratory instrument manufacturing). She routinely procures calibrated sensors, environmental monitoring systems, and precision maintenance services critical to sustaining data integrity in agricultural research, demonstrating deep technical fluency in laboratory infrastructure and scientific equipment procurement.