Callie Durand

Callie Durand serves as a Contract Specialist responsible for managing the full lifecycle of complex procurement actions within a federal entity focused on scientific innovation. She leads the planning, solicitation, evaluation, and award of contracts for research and development initiatives, ensuring strict compliance with federal acquisition regulations and agency mission objectives. Her work supports the acquisition of technical services essential to advancing physical, engineering, and life sciences research, often involving high-complexity, performance-based requirements. Durand plays a pivotal role in translating scientific priorities into actionable procurement strategies that balance innovation, cost-effectiveness, and regulatory integrity. Durand cultivates collaborative relationships with a broad spectrum of vendors, including academic research institutions, independent scientific consultants, and specialized engineering firms. While no single contractor dominates her portfolio, she consistently engages with entities possessing deep domain expertise in experimental design, data analytics, and laboratory instrumentation. Her procurement approach emphasizes competitive bidding, clear statement of work development, and rigorous source selection criteria to ensure technical excellence and value-driven outcomes. Durand’s contracting patterns reflect a strong preference for open, unrestricted competition, with 100% of her awards issued under the “No Set-Aside” category. This indicates a strategic focus on selecting the most qualified offerors regardless of socioeconomic status, prioritizing technical capability and past performance over set-aside programs. While she does not routinely utilize 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB set-asides, her process remains fully compliant with all small business participation goals and encourages voluntary small business subcontracting where appropriate. Her primary procurement focus is exclusively on NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology). She routinely acquires services such as laboratory testing, computational modeling, prototype development, and scientific data analysis, working closely with teams requiring advanced technical expertise in areas like materials science, environmental engineering, and applied physics. Her domain knowledge enables her to effectively evaluate technical proposals and ensure contract deliverables meet rigorous scientific standards.