Ricarda Mason

Ricarda Mason serves as a key procurement professional at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, supporting the acquisition of advanced scientific and engineering systems critical to Earth observation, space science, and deep-space telecommunications. She manages complex contracts for research, development, and systems integration, ensuring alignment with NASA’s strategic goals in space instrumentation and mission-critical infrastructure. Her work spans the full lifecycle of acquisitions—from market research and solicitation to award and performance oversight—focusing on high-precision technical solutions that enable cutting-edge space missions. Mason maintains strong, sustained relationships with leading technical partners including Aerospace & Commercial Technologies, LLC, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory. These partnerships reflect her focus on collaborative, mission-critical R&D and systems engineering, where vendors are selected for their technical excellence, proven performance in space environments, and ability to meet stringent NASA compliance and quality standards. Her contracting approach emphasizes long-term vendor engagement, technical collaboration, and performance-based outcomes over transactional procurement. Her procurement patterns show a strong preference for open competition, with 90% of awards issued without set-asides, reflecting the specialized and mission-critical nature of the technologies involved. Nevertheless, she consistently allocates 10% of opportunities to total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5, demonstrating a measured commitment to small business participation without compromising mission requirements. Mason’s primary NAICS focus lies in engineering services (541330) and physical sciences R&D (541715), with significant activity in semiconductor machinery manufacturing (333242) and machine tool manufacturing (333517). She procures advanced sensors, spacecraft subsystems, high-reliability electronics, and precision fabrication equipment essential for satellite instrumentation and space-based observatories, reflecting deep expertise in aerospace engineering and mission systems procurement.