Darlene M Keister

Darlene M. Keister serves as a Contract Specialist with the FA3016 502 Contracting Clinic under the Department of the Air Force, where she plays a pivotal role in executing mission-critical acquisitions to sustain Air Force installation readiness. She manages a diverse portfolio of service contracts focused on facility maintenance, medical support systems, and infrastructure modernization, ensuring compliance with FAR regulations and aligning procurement outcomes with operational requirements. Her work directly supports the agency’s mission to maintain safe, functional, and technologically advanced environments for personnel and equipment, often coordinating with engineering, logistics, and medical stakeholders to define technical specifications and performance standards. Keister maintains consistent working relationships with a core group of contractors including PERRY MANAGEMENT CORP OF SOUTH DAKOTA, L.L.C, WILLIAM T BROOKS & ASSOCIATES INC, CITADEL FEDERAL SOLUTIONS LLC, NEXLEGACY LLC, and AJ COMMERCIAL SERVICES, INC. These partnerships reflect a preference for established vendors with proven expertise in facility operations, medical logistics, and communications infrastructure support. Her contracting approach emphasizes performance-based service delivery, rigorous source selection, and long-term vendor reliability over short-term cost savings. Her procurement patterns show a strong emphasis on open competition, with 75% of awards issued without set-asides, while maintaining a consistent 25% commitment to Total Small Business Set-Asides under FAR 19.5. This balance demonstrates a strategic focus on maximizing competition while ensuring meaningful opportunities for small businesses across all socioeconomic categories, without favoring any single program like 8(a) or HUBZone. Though NAICS data is not currently available, her acquisitions consistently center on facility services, medical equipment maintenance, airfield support, and communications system sustainment, indicating deep technical familiarity with service categories tied to base operations and readiness. Her expertise lies in translating complex operational needs into clear, enforceable contract requirements that ensure mission continuity.