Yolanda C. Smith

Yolanda C. Smith serves as a key procurement professional within the U.S. Coast Guard’s Headquarters Contract Operations (CG-912), where she plays a central role in executing strategic acquisitions that support national maritime security and operational readiness. She manages the full lifecycle of contracts for high-priority technical services, with a primary focus on engineering solutions that enhance coastal patrol capabilities, maritime domain awareness systems, and vessel modernization programs. Her work directly enables the Coast Guard’s mission to sustain and upgrade its specialized fleet through technical innovation and mission-critical service delivery, ensuring alignment with federal acquisition regulations and defense acquisition benchmarks. Smith maintains long-standing contractual relationships with leading maritime and defense engineering firms, including Bollinger Shipyards Lockport, L.L.C., Davie Defense Inc., Rauma Marine Constructions Oy, and Rozema’s Boat Works, Inc. These partnerships are primarily centered on the design, integration, and sustainment of advanced maritime platforms and surveillance technologies. Her procurement approach emphasizes performance-based contracting, technical compliance, and lifecycle support, fostering collaborative vendor relationships grounded in reliability, innovation, and mission alignment. Smith’s contracting portfolio reflects a strict focus on unrestricted competition, with 100% of awards issued under no set-aside classifications. This indicates a deliberate preference for open, full and open competition to ensure access to the broadest pool of qualified technical expertise, rather than socioeconomic set-asides such as 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB programs. Her procurement activity is overwhelmingly concentrated in NAICS 541330 (Engineering Services), underscoring her specialization in technical engineering support for maritime systems. This includes systems integration, naval architecture, sensor deployment, and maintenance engineering for patrol vessels and coastal surveillance infrastructure, positioning her as a subject matter expert in defense-related engineering acquisition within the Coast Guard’s operational modernization framework.