Shanda Peterson

Shanda Peterson supports the FA9101 AEDC PKP Procurement Branch within the Department of the Air Force, playing a critical role in acquiring advanced test infrastructure and precision instrumentation essential to aerospace and hypersonic research. She manages complex procurement actions for high-fidelity test systems, including wind tunnel components, propulsion test rigs, and automated data acquisition platforms that enable extreme-environment validation. Her work directly enables the Arnold Engineering Development Complex’s mission to sustain and modernize national test capabilities, ensuring the Air Force maintains technological superiority in flight and propulsion systems. She routinely handles competitive solicitations under FAR Part 15, with a focus on performance-based contracting and technical evaluation of engineering solutions. Peterson maintains longstanding relationships with key contractors including Jacobs Technology Inc., Cubrc, Inc., and Aerospace & Commercial Technologies, LLC, who deliver specialized engineering services and mission-critical hardware. She also collaborates with niche vendors such as Rotating Machinery Services Inc. and Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors, L.L.C., for specialized mechanical and systems integration support. Her contracting approach emphasizes technical rigor, lifecycle reliability, and vendor performance accountability, fostering long-term partnerships with firms capable of meeting the unique demands of hypersonic and propulsion test environments. Her procurement strategy reflects a balanced commitment to socioeconomic goals, with approximately 34% of awards designated as total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5 and 6.3% awarded through 8(a) competed programs. While the majority of acquisitions remain open to all competitors, she actively prioritizes small business participation where technical capabilities align, ensuring broad industry engagement without compromising mission readiness. Peterson’s primary procurement focus centers on NAICS 334513 for industrial process measurement instruments and 334515 for electrical signal testing equipment, alongside related categories in air and gas compressor manufacturing. She consistently procures high-precision sensors, data acquisition systems, environmental simulation hardware, and custom control instrumentation—technical domains requiring deep engineering expertise and rigorous qualification standards.