Brad W Kneisly

Brad W. Kneisly serves as a Contract Negotiator within the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Propulsion Directorate (AFRL/PZL), where he plays a pivotal role in securing advanced aerospace technologies critical to U.S. air and space dominance. He specializes in negotiating complex research and development contracts for next-generation propulsion systems, hypersonic flight technologies, and high-performance functional materials. His work directly supports the agency’s mission to accelerate innovation in aerospace engineering by bridging cutting-edge scientific research with practical defense applications. Kneisly routinely handles prime contracts under the NAICS 541712 category, focusing on fundamental and applied R&D in physical and engineering sciences, often involving multi-year, high-technical-risk programs requiring specialized technical oversight and risk-sharing arrangements. He maintains long-standing, high-trust relationships with industry leaders including UES Inc., General Electric Company, DCS Corporation, Spirit Aerosystems Inc., and Advanced Thermoplastic Composites LLC. These partnerships are characterized by deep technical collaboration, iterative prototyping, and performance-based acquisition strategies. Kneisly’s negotiation approach emphasizes technical merit, schedule certainty, and cost realism, fostering vendor engagement in mission-critical areas such as turbine materials, adaptive control systems, and thermal protection architectures. Kneisly’s procurement portfolio is entirely non-set-aside, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition. This reflects the highly specialized nature of the work, which demands advanced engineering capabilities typically found only among large, established defense contractors with proven track records in aerospace propulsion and materials science. While small business participation is not structurally prioritized, his contracts often include subcontracting opportunities aligned with technical requirements. His primary focus lies in NAICS 541712, procuring advanced R&D services in propulsion systems, hypersonics, and high-temperature composite materials. He routinely engages with contractors possessing expertise in computational fluid dynamics, additive manufacturing of metallic alloys, and ceramic matrix composites, ensuring the Air Force maintains technological superiority in next-generation air and space platforms.