Rita M. Brede

Rita M. Brede serves as a Contracting Officer at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), where she leads the acquisition of advanced scientific and engineering solutions critical to naval and national security missions. Her portfolio centers on foundational research and development in physical sciences, electronic systems, and autonomous technologies, ensuring the lab’s cutting-edge innovations are rapidly transitioned into operational capabilities. She manages full lifecycle procurements for complex R&D contracts, including basic and applied research, prototype development, and systems integration, aligning procurement strategy with NRL’s mission to advance next-generation maritime technologies. Brede maintains long-standing relationships with key contractors including Assurance Technology Corp, L3Harris NexGen Communications LLC, Envisioneering Inc, Integration Innovation Inc, and Analex Corporation. These partnerships are characterized by deep technical collaboration, with vendors consistently delivering high-precision sensors, signal processing algorithms, electronic warfare components, and autonomous navigation systems. Her procurement approach emphasizes technical excellence, performance-based outcomes, and iterative development cycles, fostering trust-based vendor relationships built on rigorous compliance and innovation-driven deliverables. Brede’s contracting activity reflects a strict focus on open competition, with 100% of her awards issued under no set-aside classifications. This underscores her commitment to selecting the most technically capable performers regardless of business size or socioeconomic status, prioritizing mission effectiveness over socioeconomic preferences. While small business participation is not formally mandated in her portfolio, vendors of all sizes compete on merit, ensuring access to the broadest possible pool of domain expertise. Her primary NAICS classification is 541712—Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences—reflecting her exclusive focus on advanced scientific R&D. She procures specialized services in sensor design, electronic system integration, signal and image processing, and autonomous platform development, supporting NRL’s leadership in next-generation naval technologies. Her expertise lies at the intersection of defense science and federal acquisition, ensuring compliant, timely delivery of mission-critical innovations.