How Craft is Improving Supply Chain Resilience for DoD
Craft.co, a company specialising in supply chain resilience, has finalised a five-year agreement worth US$28 million with the Secretary of the Air Force to bolster due diligence initiatives across the Department of Defense (DoD).
The Craft platform is deployed by the DoD and 23 other federal agencies to perform due diligence and assess foreign influence when evaluating companies looking to engage in business with the federal government.
Enhancing Due Diligence Across Government Agencies
The platform simplifies large-scale due diligence by providing a single platform for evaluating and monitoring suppliers across a wide spectrum of risk domains from foreign influence and cybersecurity vulnerability to financial stability and compliance.
Craft is powered by an advanced data fabric with more than 1,300 data streams per supplier, a powerful risk engine enhanced by AI-driven insights, and a collaborative workspace that enables sharing and tracking of information internally and across agencies.
More than 500 government employees across 23 federal agencies including the Under Secretary of Defense’s Research and Engineering (OUSD R&E), the Office of Commercial and Economic Analysis (OCEA), the Air Force’s AFWERX, the Air Force Research Laboratory, the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), are using Craft in support of the SBIR program to enhance their due diligence practices.
“The Craft platform has helped OCEA set the standard for due diligence at scale within the Department of Defense,” says Jeff Hubert, Director Office of Commercial and Economic Analysis (OCEA).
“In addition to simplifying initial supplier evaluations and ongoing monitoring, the platform facilitates collaboration and knowledge sharing between agencies allowing for a deeper understanding of risk across all categories from foreign influence to cybersecurity, and financial instability.”
Government Agencies Embrace Craft
OCEA is using Craft’s platform to evaluate and monitor more than 35,000 organisations seeking to do business with the federal government through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.
These programs provide funding to domestic companies in the private sector to encourage research and high-tech innovation.
To date, Craft’s platforms, including premium foreign influence data from Strider, Bluefoot, and Pitchbook, has flagged approximately 15% of applicants for additional vetting, demonstrating the platform’s value in identifying potential vulnerabilities and risk.
“Craft is dedicated to providing the most comprehensive platform for identifying, monitoring, and mitigating risk across multiple risk domains while helping support the mission of fostering and protecting technological innovation within the Department of Defense,” adds Brian Mackerer, Group Director, Government and Defense Sector at Craft.
In addition to helping federal agencies with supplier intelligence for due diligence, Craft’s platform also includes Supplier Risk Management, and Supply Chain Risk Management solutions for highly-regulated industries in the commercial sector.
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