Chelsea S. Kariam

Mrs. Chelsea S. Kariam serves as a procurement specialist within the SFLC Procurement Branch 2 (70Z085), part of the U.S. Coast Guard under the Department of Homeland Security. She plays a critical role in managing acquisitions that sustain and modernize the Coast Guard’s fleet of cutters and maritime vessels, ensuring operational readiness for coastal, offshore, and open-ocean missions. Her responsibilities include executing full lifecycle procurement strategies for shipbuilding, repair, and maintenance services, as well as sourcing specialized marine components and industrial materials. Kariam’s work directly supports the agency’s mission to maintain a resilient and capable maritime force through timely, compliant, and technically sound contracting actions. She maintains established relationships with key industrial partners including ROLLS-ROYCE SOLUTIONS AMERICA INC, VIGOR MARINE LLC, JAG INDUSTRIAL SERVICES, INC, G I INDUSTRIAL-MARINE, LLC, and L1 ENTERPRISES INCORPORATED. These vendors provide critical capabilities in vessel fabrication, marine propulsion systems, industrial maintenance, and heavy maritime fabrication. Kariam’s contracting approach emphasizes long-term vendor partnerships grounded in technical expertise, quality assurance, and adherence to naval specifications, fostering reliable delivery of mission-critical infrastructure. Her procurement portfolio reflects a strict preference for full and open competition, with 100% of awards issued under no set-aside classifications. This indicates a focus on technical capability and industrial capacity over socioeconomic classifications, aligning with the specialized, large-scale nature of maritime defense acquisitions where only a limited pool of qualified vendors exists. Kariam’s primary NAICS focus includes Ship Building and Repairing (336611), alongside specialized industrial manufacturing such as Textile Bag and Canvas Mills (314910), Rope and Cordage Manufacturing (314994), Steel Wire Drawing (331222), and Miscellaneous Wood Product Manufacturing (321999). These reflect her domain expertise in procuring marine-grade textiles, structural rigging, high-strength steel components, and composite materials essential to vessel integrity and operational durability.