Ashley L. Collins

Ashley Collins serves as a Contract Negotiator within the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Propulsion Directorate (FA8650), where she plays a pivotal role in securing advanced aerospace technologies critical to U.S. air and space dominance. She specializes in negotiating complex, high-stakes contracts for cutting-edge propulsion systems, hypersonic flight technologies, and mission-critical materials research, ensuring alignment with national defense priorities and technical performance requirements. Her work bridges the gap between scientific innovation and acquisition execution, facilitating timely delivery of next-generation capabilities through rigorous contract administration and risk-informed negotiation strategies. Collins maintains consistent, long-term partnerships with leading aerospace and defense contractors including UES INC, General Electric Company, DCS Corporation, Spirit Aerosystems Inc, and Advanced Thermoplastic Composites LLC. These relationships are built on technical credibility and sustained engagement in R&D-driven procurements, often involving proprietary materials, adaptive control systems, and high-temperature functional components. Her negotiation approach emphasizes performance-based outcomes, technical compliance, and supply chain resilience, fostering collaborative environments that support rapid prototyping and fielding of experimental propulsion architectures. Her contracting activity reflects a strong preference for open competition, with 98% of awards issued under no set-aside provisions, indicating a focus on technical superiority over socioeconomic categorization. While small business participation is minimal at 2%, it is strategically directed toward qualified firms capable of delivering specialized propulsion and materials expertise, consistent with the mission’s demanding technical thresholds. The overwhelming majority of her acquisitions fall under NAICS 519130, reflecting deep engagement in applied research and development for aerospace propulsion systems. She routinely procures advanced composites, thermal management solutions, and flight-critical components tied to hypersonics and adaptive propulsion, demonstrating specialized domain knowledge in physical sciences R&D and aircraft systems integration. Her work directly supports the Air Force’s strategic imperative to outpace adversarial technological advancements through agile, science-driven acquisition.