Cathy Mueller

Cathy G. Mueller serves as a Contract Specialist within the Department of the Army’s W6QK Acc-ri organization, where she plays a pivotal role in executing mission-critical acquisitions to sustain and modernize the Army’s industrial base for ordnance, precision components, and battlefield support systems. She manages the full lifecycle of procurement actions for specialized manufacturing and maintenance services, ensuring alignment with Army readiness objectives. Her portfolio primarily encompasses the acquisition of machine tools, fabricated metal products, welding equipment, and precision tooling essential to ammunition production and weapons system lifecycle support. Mueller applies rigorous FAR compliance and strategic sourcing principles to deliver reliable, high-integrity contracts that meet operational demands across the defense industrial base. Mueller maintains consistent working relationships with a core group of specialized manufacturers, including AMD International Technologies LLC, Faxon Machining, LLC, Palantir USG Inc., and Allied Metal Tech, LLC. These partnerships reflect a focus on high-precision machining, tooling fabrication, and defense-grade software integration. Her contracting approach emphasizes technical capability, quality assurance, and supply chain resilience, often engaging contractors with proven expertise in military-grade production environments. She fosters long-term vendor collaborations grounded in performance accountability and compliance with defense-specific standards such as AS9100 and ITAR. Mueller’s contracting patterns reflect a strong preference for open competition, with 81.3% of awards issued without set-aside. However, she actively supports small business participation, allocating 12.5% of awards to Total Small Business Set-Asides under FAR 19.5 and 6.3% to 8(a) competed contracts. Her approach balances mission necessity with socioeconomic goals, ensuring qualified small businesses have meaningful access to high-value defense manufacturing opportunities while maintaining rigorous technical standards. Her primary NAICS focus lies in precision manufacturing sectors, including 332216 (saw blade and handtool manufacturing), 333514 (special die and tool manufacturing), and 333515 (cutting tool and machine tool accessory manufacturing), with additional activity in welding equipment (333992) and paint/coating manufacturing (325510). Mueller’s expertise centers on procuring mission-critical components for ordnance systems, requiring deep familiarity with metallurgy, tooling design, and defense manufacturing specifications.