defense contractor

Arlington-based IT company C3 Integrated Solutions announces merger

By Jo DeVoe

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that highlights Arlington-based startups, founders, and local tech news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

New federal security requirements continue to boost a local Arlington-based IT company.

C3 Integrated Solutions announced last week it is merging with Massachusetts-based Steel Root to provide defense contractors, including its 70 clients headquartered in Arlington, an “end-to-end solution” for reaching and maintaining compliance with new standards from the Department of Defense.

In a statement, C3 complimented Steel Root, saying the compliance product it launched in 2021 “frankly, fills key gaps in our offering,” which includes IT services such as software, email and cybersecurity.

For its part, C3 says it will “bring a breadth of experience and close relationship with Microsoft that will only accelerate their already impressive growth.”

The new company will continue operating under C3’s name and its headquarters will be in Arlington, C3 Marketing Director Karen M. Vasquez tells ARLnow. As a result of the merger, the new C3 will keep its current staffing levels of about 60 people and plot an expansion.

“Both teams feel very strongly about the white glove, boutique service we’re able to apply to clients,” she said. “In order for us to maintain that approach, we need to bring in more people.”

It will also get a new CEO, Marc Pantoni.

“He’s done this before,” C3 cofounder Bill Wootton, who will now be the Chief Revenue Officer, said in a video discussing the merger. “He knows how to build to the scale I think we’re going to need as we try to meet this market demand.”

This is the latest sign of growth for C3, which this year placed No. 25 in the Washington Business Journal’s recent ranking of the region’s fastest-growing companies and on the Inc. 5000 list, ranks 1,544th in the U.S, 63rd in Virginia and 88th among IT Management companies.

Both C3, founded in 2008, and Steel Root, founded in 2016, attribute their individual growth to the new regulations, announced in late 2020. Among other things, they require companies to have access entirely U.S.-based help desks and introduces auditors to ensure compliance, where before companies could self-report this.

“This merger opportunity was really a situation where one plus one equals three,” co-founder Ryan Heidorn, who will be the new Chief Technology Officer, said in the video.

Funding from the merger, provided by private equity company M/C Partners, will cover the cost of the merger as well as new hiring. That could go toward standing up a U.S.-based call center, Vasquez said.

Regarding staffing, which won’t change in the short term, Wootton said in the same video that the company’s leaders did not want to “mess with” the company’s culture.

“Your employees, your team, are your most important people,” he said. “If you take care of them, they’ll take care of your customers.”

The companies declined to disclose the finances of the merger to the Washington Business Journal, which first reported the news.

The executive team of C3 and Steel Root (courtesy of C3)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Trees cast long shadows from the setting sun at Virginia Highlands Park (staff photo)

Pike Plan Peeves Preservationists — “Under current, still tentative proposals, the façade of the building would be dismantled, stored away and then re-installed after the new development on the site rises. Keeping the facade ‘is kind of better than nothing, I suppose,’ said HALRB board member Joan Lawrence, who went on to blast the county government’s commitment, or lack thereof, to finding a way to retain ‘one of the few historic structures left on Columbia Pike.'” [Sun Gazette]

Local Credit Union Merger — “Two local credit unions, one based in Arlington and the other in Alexandria, are planning to merge into one entity that will have combined assets of about $700 million, 12 branches, 38,000 members and 140 employees. Arlington Community Federal Credit Union and InFirst Federal Credit Union, with headquarters in Alexandria, are seeking regulatory approval for their proposed merger, the credit unions announced Tuesday.” [Patch]

Mall Food Court Crowded Again — “Can confirm that the food court at ⁦[the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City mall]⁩ is back at pre-COVID visitor numbers.” [Twitter]

Deloitte Wins Big Military Contract — “Deloitte Consulting LLP, Arlington, Virginia, was awarded a $83,594,365 firm-fixed-price contract to assess energy vulnerabilities and assist in determining the best approach to addressing security threats by performing energy security assessments… Work will be performed in Arlington, Virginia.” [Defense Daily]

Pair of Flipped Cars on GW Parkway — Updated at 10:05 a.m. — The “usual spot” for rainy day crashes on the northbound GW Parkway near Key Bridge claimed more vehicular victims over the past 24 hours, with two reports of overturned vehicles last night and this morning. [Twitter, Twitter]

It’s Wednesday — Rain overnight, then partly sunny during the day before possible storms in the evening. High of 83 and low of 69. Sunrise at 5:45 am and sunset at 8:34 pm. [Weather.gov]

Crystal City Startup Secures $6 Million to Expand Defense Contract Search Platform

By Vernon Miles

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups and their founders, plus other local technology happenings. Monday Properties remains firmly committed to the health, safety and well-being of its employees, tenants and community. This week, Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1000 and 1100 Wilson (The Rosslyn Tower).

Crystal City-based Second Front Systems, a startup that helps connect government agencies to commercially-developed technologies, recently received $6 million in seed funding to boost its startup technology assessment program.

Atlas Fulcrum is Second Front Systems’ platform that helps to catalog and organize venture capital-backed technologies and track market trends. The goal is to make it easier for the national security organizations to identify the latest new technological advances from startups in the private sector rather than relying on sometimes outdated technology from larger companies.

“I came back from combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan where my men and I were hamstrung by outdated technology that negated what should have been an advantage against insurgent adversaries,” said Second Front CEO Peter Dixon in a statement. “Subsequently, at the Pentagon, I watched as billions of dollars were awarded to traditional defense companies, many of whom were unable to deliver usable technology to front-line troops.”

“This venture financing and initial partnerships gives Second Front the velocity to build a new type of ‘lean systems integrator’ that can harness the innovations of the American entrepreneurial ecosystem where the traditional defense firms have failed,” Dixon said of the new round of investment.

Second Front Systems is a veteran-owned business with a Board of Directors boasting former Joint Chiefs of Staff Peter Pace and former Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

The new funding was led by Artis Ventures, a San Francisco-based venture capital firm that invested in YouTube in 2006 and has partnered with controversial defense contractor Palantir since 2014.

“The venture funding will be used to expand the capabilities of Second Front’s software platform, Atlas Fulcrum, which has recently received a major contract award from the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Air Force’s AFWERX,” the company said in a press release. “The U.S. military recognizes that commercially driven tech, such as autonomy, cyber, biotech, and AI, has surpassed the defense base in relevance to national security in the 21st century.”

Image via Second Front Systems

Morning Notes

By Alex Koma

‘Life-Threatening’ Flooding Possible Throughout D.C. Region — The flash flood watch for Arlington continues through early Wednesday morning, with a “water hose in the sky” expected to blast the region with rain over the next two days. [Twitter, Washington Post]

Defense Spending Juices Hiring in Northern Virginia — From Arlington to D.C.’s more far-flung suburbs, the Trump administration has meant big business for contractors in Northern Virginia. Federal employment numbers may be shrinking, but the area added 12,800 jobs over the past year, including 5,700 federal contractors. [Washington Post]

NewsChannel 8 Gets a New Name — Arlington-based WJLA-TV is rebranding its sister station as “WJLA 24/7 News” starting today (Tuesday). The stations’ parent company, Sinclair Broadcasting, has attracted some intense scrutiny in recent months for its conservative bent, and its effort to buy up scores more local television stations. [Washington Business Journal]

John Vihstadt Earns Endorsement of County Firefighters’ Union — The County Board’s lone independent picked up his second endorsement from the Arlington Professional Firefighters and Paramedics Association. The union cited his work to fight for a raise in first responder pay rates in its decision to back him over Democrat Matt de Ferranti. [InsideNova]

Arlington Soccer Teams Head to Nationals — The county is sending both a boys and girls team to the U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships in Frisco, Texas today. [Twitter]

Nearby: Potomac Yard Death Investigation — Alexandria police are looking into a death on E. Reed Avenue, just across the city’s border with Arlington. The victim was an 82-year-old man, and police believe the death was suspicious. [WJLA]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

A&R Engravers in Clarendon (photo by Jorge Banales)

Kaine Meeting With Defense Contractors in Arlington — Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) will be in Arlington today meeting with Northern Virginia defense contractors. Kaine will be holding a roundtable discussion at Courthouse-based contractor Dynamis at 3:00 p.m. “The event today in Arlington will discuss the upcoming sequester cuts that are reported to threaten 1 to 1.4 million jobs with a disproportionate effect in Northern Virginia,” a Kaine spokeswoman told ARLnow.com.

Arlington Tax Surcharge Advances — A bill to restore Arlington’s 0.25 percent hotel tax surcharge is closer to passing in the Virginia General Assembly. The bill has passed the state Senate and last week passed the House of Delegates Committee on Finance, albeit with a three year sunset provision. The Arlington Chamber of Commerce supports the tax surcharge, which helps to fund county tourism promotion efforts. [Sun Gazette]

PBS Doc Films at Glebe, H-B Woodlawn — An upcoming PBS documentary called “The Path to Violence” filmed at two Arlington Public Schools on Sunday. The production filmed at Glebe Elementary School and at H-B Woodlawn, according to an email from Arlington County. The Path to Violence, which is expected to air the week of Feb. 18, will tackle the topics of school safety and school violence.

Corps of Engineers to Review Tree Concerns — The Army Corps of Engineers says it will revise its Environmental Assessment of Arlington National Cemetery’s planned expansion in response to concerns from residents about the loss of old-growth trees. [Arlington Mercury]

Flickr pool photo by Jorge Bañales

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Fairfax Approves Pike Streetcar — By a vote of 7-2, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has approved a plan to build a streetcar line along Columbia Pike from Pentagon City to the Skyline area of Fairfax. The vote gives Fairfax and Arlington, which approved the project last week, the opportunity to apply for federal funding. Fairfax Board Chairwoman Sharon Bulova said of the project: “The streetcar will relieve congestion and present economic development opportunities for the Skyline area and serve a population with the demonstrated support and need for transit.” [Washington Post, Washington Examiner]

Moran Leads Fundraising Race — Incumbent Rep. Jim Moran (D) has out-raised his Republican opponent by a factor of more than eight. As of June 30, Moran raised $813,000 and had $308,000 cash on hand, compared to the $98,000 raised and $55,000 cash on hand for Republican challenger Patrick Murray. Independent candidate Jason Howell had $1,900 cash on hand. [Sun Gazette]

Defense Contractors Rally Against Cuts — Worried about the $500 billion in automatic defense spending cuts which will go into effect next year unless Congress acts, defense contractors held a rally in Crystal City on Monday. Among those in attendance was Gov. Bob McDonnell (R), who joined local congressmen and business leaders in decrying the potential for more than 200,000 job losses in Virginia as a result of the cuts. [Patch]