Lesta Simmons

Lesta Simmons serves as a key procurement professional within the FA8227 unit of the Department of the Air Force, supporting the sustainment and modernization of critical aerospace test and industrial infrastructure. Responsible for managing complex acquisitions related to precision instrumentation, specialized test platforms, and advanced manufacturing equipment, Simmons ensures the operational readiness of flight systems and weapons development capabilities. Her work directly enables the certification, maintenance, and lifecycle support of high-value aerospace assets, aligning procurement actions with the agency’s mission to uphold technical integrity across the Air Force’s test and evaluation ecosystem. Simmons maintains strong, ongoing relationships with leading contractors such as North Star Imaging Incorporated and Thermo Electron North America LLC, both of which provide specialized services in non-destructive evaluation, analytical instrumentation, and industrial equipment repair. These partnerships reflect a preference for vendors with deep technical expertise in aerospace-grade calibration, metrology, and precision maintenance. Her contracting approach emphasizes long-term vendor collaboration, ensuring continuity of service for mission-critical systems that require certified expertise and regulatory compliance. While the majority of her acquisitions—84%—are conducted as unrestricted competitions, Simmons demonstrates a consistent 16% commitment to total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5, reflecting a deliberate effort to foster innovation and capacity within the small business industrial base. Though no specific socioeconomic categories dominate her portfolio, her pattern indicates a preference for qualified small businesses capable of delivering high-precision technical services without compromising mission requirements. Her procurement focus centers on NAICS codes 811219 and 811310, reflecting heavy emphasis on electronic and precision equipment repair, as well as commercial and industrial machinery maintenance. She also regularly procures analytical laboratory instruments and specialized industrial machinery under NAICS 334516 and 333248, underscoring expertise in supporting metrology, calibration, and advanced manufacturing environments essential to aerospace testing and weapons system sustainment.