Heather M. Santiago

Heather M. Santiago serves as a Contract Specialist within the W6QK Acc-apg organization under the Department of the Army (W91CRB), where she plays a pivotal role in acquiring advanced military sensing, communications, and battlefield analytics systems. She manages the full lifecycle of complex acquisitions for aeronautical instrumentation, radio frequency platforms, and data analytics solutions critical to modern intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations. Her work directly supports the agency’s mission to field next-generation tactical capabilities, ensuring compliance with federal procurement regulations while aligning contract actions with strategic modernization priorities. Heather collaborates with a diverse pool of defense contractors specializing in high-technology systems, including firms with expertise in avionics, RF engineering, and embedded signal processing. While no single contractor dominates her portfolio, she consistently engages with mid-tier and emerging technology vendors capable of delivering ruggedized, field-deployable systems under tight developmental timelines. Her procurement approach emphasizes technical rigor, performance-based requirements, and agile contracting methods to accommodate rapid prototyping and field validation cycles. Her contracting patterns reflect a strong preference for open competition, with 75% of awards issued as non-set-aside actions. However, she maintains a deliberate 25% commitment to Total Small Business Set-Asides under FAR 19.5, actively encouraging participation from small businesses with proven capabilities in electrical component manufacturing and engineering services. She does not prioritize specific socioeconomic categories like 8(a) or HUBZone, but her small business awards consistently favor firms with technical agility and domain-specific experience. Heather’s primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 335999 (miscellaneous electrical components) and 334511 (aeronautical and navigation systems), with a secondary emphasis on 541330 (engineering services). She routinely acquires custom-designed sensors, signal processing units, and integrated communication payloads, demonstrating deep familiarity with defense-grade electronics, electromagnetic compatibility standards, and real-time data architecture. Her expertise ensures that acquisitions meet rigorous military specifications while enabling interoperability across tactical networks.