Theresa Macpherson

Theresa Macpherson serves as a secondary procurement specialist within the Naval Research Laboratory, supporting the agency’s mission to advance cutting-edge scientific and technological capabilities for naval and national security. She plays a critical role in facilitating acquisitions for high-precision sensor systems, electronic warfare components, signal processing hardware, and autonomous navigation technologies. While not the lead contracting officer, she provides essential support in solicitation development, vendor coordination, and contract administration for R&D-driven procurements aligned with the Navy’s next-generation maritime innovation goals. Macpherson maintains consistent working relationships with a core group of specialized contractors including Assurance Technology Corp, L3Harris NexGen Communications LLC, Envisioneering Inc, Integration Innovation Inc, and Analex Corporation. These partnerships reflect a focus on firms with proven expertise in defense electronics, embedded systems, and rapid prototyping of advanced instrumentation. Her collaboration patterns emphasize technical alignment over volume, favoring vendors with demonstrated capability in classified R&D environments and agile development cycles for prototype-to-pilot transitions. Her procurement portfolio exhibits a balanced approach to socioeconomic set-asides, with approximately half of her acquisitions structured as total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5, and the other half open to all competitors. This reflects a deliberate strategy to foster innovation from small, agile firms while ensuring access to established defense contractors with scale and security clearance infrastructure. Her primary NAICS focus areas—335999 (All Other Miscellaneous Electrical Equipment and Component Manufacturing) and 336411 (Aircraft Manufacturing)—highlight her specialization in procuring custom electrical subsystems, avionics interfaces, and mission-critical components for maritime and airborne platforms. She consistently supports projects requiring rigorous MIL-STD compliance, electromagnetic compatibility, and ruggedized design for operational environments.