Candy Owen

Candy Owen serves as a key procurement professional at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (N00164), where she manages acquisitions critical to the development, testing, and sustainment of advanced electronic, electro-optical, and ordnance systems for naval warfare platforms. Her work directly supports the Department of the Navy’s mission to enhance precision sensing, signal processing, and electronic warfare capabilities for surface and expeditionary forces. She routinely handles complex contract actions for specialized components, including radar and communications subsystems, signal intelligence hardware, and mission-critical electro-mechanical assemblies, ensuring alignment with technical requirements and acquisition regulations. Owen maintains strong working relationships with a core group of contractors including Lockheed Martin Corporation, Programs Management Analytics & Technologies Inc., Integrity Defense Services Inc., and Black Hills Ammunition Inc., reflecting a blend of prime defense integrators and niche technology providers. Her procurement approach emphasizes collaboration with vendors capable of delivering high-reliability, military-spec components under strict compliance regimes, often involving ITAR-controlled technologies and rapid prototyping cycles. She also engages with specialized construction and site development firms to support facility modernization for testing and assembly environments. A defining feature of Owen’s contracting portfolio is its strong emphasis on small business participation, with 77.8% of awards designated as total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5. This reflects a deliberate strategy to foster innovation through partnerships with small, agile firms, particularly those certified under 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB programs, reinforcing the Navy’s commitment to a resilient and diverse supplier base. Her technical focus centers on NAICS 334419 (Other Electronic Component Manufacturing), with significant activity in NAICS 334519 (Other Measuring and Controlling Device Manufacturing) and 325998 (Miscellaneous Chemical Product Manufacturing). She procures precision electronic assemblies, sensor modules, pyrotechnic devices, and specialized chemical formulations essential to ordnance and EW systems, demonstrating deep domain expertise in naval electronics and mission-critical materiel.