Mark Wade

Mark Wade serves as a Contract Negotiator within the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Propulsion Directorate (FA8650), where he plays a pivotal role in securing advanced aerospace technologies critical to U.S. air and space dominance. He specializes in negotiating complex research and development contracts focused on next-generation propulsion systems, hypersonic flight technologies, and high-performance functional materials. His work directly supports the agency’s mission to accelerate the transition of cutting-edge engineering solutions from laboratory innovation to operational capability, ensuring alignment with DoD acquisition regulations and technical performance requirements. Wade maintains sustained relationships with leading aerospace and defense contractors including UES INC, General Electric Company, DCS Corporation, Spirit Aerosystems Inc, and Advanced Thermoplastic Composites LLC. These partnerships are characterized by long-term, technically intensive collaborations centered on proprietary materials development, adaptive control systems, and propulsion integration. His negotiation approach emphasizes technical rigor, risk mitigation, and performance-based contracting, fostering trusted vendor relationships built on shared mission objectives and rigorous compliance with federal acquisition standards. There is no set-aside preference in Wade’s procurement portfolio; all acquisitions are competed full and open, reflecting the highly specialized nature of the research domains involved. This approach ensures access to the most qualified technical experts and industrial capabilities required to meet the Air Force’s advanced propulsion and materials challenges, with no formal reliance on 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB set-asides. His primary focus is on NAICS 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences—where he procures advanced engineering services spanning computational fluid dynamics, high-temperature material characterization, additive manufacturing of metallic and ceramic composites, and hypersonic test validation. His expertise lies in managing contracts for fundamental and applied R&D that bridge the gap between academic innovation and military system integration.