Category: News

Gnostech is pleased to welcome James “Jamie” Schlosser, Vice President of Innovation and Research, to our San Diego, CA Office.

Jamie brings over 44 years of experience in Naval Information Warfare operations and acquisition both on active duty and as a civil servant. He recently retired from Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) after more than 23 years of service.  Working within the Chief Engineer’s office as the Deputy Mission Assurance/Strategic Planning Lead, he was instrumental in shaping the direction of the Chief Engineer’s technology and innovation strategy.  Prior to that, Jamie filled various leadership roles at Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific.

Jamie will work in concert with Sarah Carter (recently named President of Gnostech) and Theresa Schimmoeller (recently named Vice President of Marketing and Growth) to advance Gnostech’s defense industry priorities. His strategic goals include overseeing and expanding Gnostech’s corporate research and development (R&D) program to fuel innovative ideas and solutions designed to enhance the warfighters’ ability to execute their mission in the cyber domain.

“We are excited to bring Jamie on board,” said James Espino, Gnostech’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO). “His arrival emphasizes our continuing mission to drive innovation within our company culture and resolve complex pain points for the warfighting community.”

For over 25 years, Gnostech has provided the warfighter with a full spectrum of services and solutions to tackle threats in cyberspace. We’ve designed secure system baselines and software for the Naval Mission Planning (NavMPS) community, which allow the warfighters to perform their duties in a demanding operational environment; they can have confidence that their systems are secure and the data they share across the network is not compromised. Additionally, Gnostech transitioned and secured numerous Air Force and Space Force operational and strategic weapon systems ensuring to support the Nation’s ability to deter strategic threats.

Gnostech observed these early phases of cyber implementation during the late 1990s and early 2000s as our engineers collaborated on the initial security classification guide for the Joint Mission Planning System (JMPS). DoD mandates started to appear for security settings, or Security Technical Implementation Guide (STIGS) and the critical need to scan for open vulnerabilities, locking down systems and formal compliance reporting. In response, Gnostech’s team performed vulnerability scanning and reporting for Windows and Linux systems across the country on behalf of the USCG and Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR), and NAVAIR. In addition, Gnostech worked with NAVWAR early in the acquisition process to write Information Assurance (IA)/cyber requirements for new command and control systems to ensure Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) were incorporating IA/Cyber from the beginning of the acquisition and design and development process. We sat with OEMs on behalf of the government to ensure cyber was properly integrated with the system as it was designed. Then, when patching and reporting mandates were implemented, Gnostech proposed a monthly Information Assurance Vulnerability (IAV) patch package for the JMPS program. To date, Gnostech has built and deployed over 400 IAV Patch Packages and software patches and system updates are now delivered via the Gnostech-developed Automated Update Distribution Tool (AUDT). Gnostech has seen the transition from DoD Information Technology Security Certification and Accreditation Process (DISCAP) to DoD Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process (DIACAP) to Risk Management Framework (RMF); helping dozens of mission critical systems, including surface, aviation, and ground systems, achieve Authorizations to Operate (ATOs).

The cybersecurity engineering expertise we’ve garnered over the decades allowed us to provide unmatched expertise and a more holistic approach developing and implementing cyber operations solutions and Information Assurance (IA) support. Gnostech led the development of the Vulnerability Remediation Asset Manager (VRAM), developed IAVAssure for NIWC Pacific, and  numerous other tools to assess and remediate Navy and Coast Guard operational and shipboard systems. Similarly, Gnostech implemented the base architecture, developed policies, procedures, and tactics as part of the Coast Guard’s Cyber Command stand-up. In this role, we engineered, provided incident response support, and performed post incident response and forensic analysis of cyberattacks against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s network and infrastructure.

Today, cybersecurity continues to be embedded in our DNA. All technical staff are required to obtain prescribed training and conduct continuous education for industry standard cybersecurity certifications. This is true for individuals for our Development Security Operations (DevSecOps) and software engineers, our Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Cyber-Defense, Combat Systems, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C6ISR) system engineers and integrators, our hardware engineers, and for anyone who directly provides solutions to the warfighter. Additionally, we continue to develop products that provide secure information and data sharing across operational and security domains, systems and software that automate security functions in a cloud native environment, and we conduct testing on software and hardware to ensure operational systems are not compromised. The cybersecurity landscape is ever evolving, and Gnostech will continue to reduce cyber risk and find solutions that benefit all stakeholders. Click here to learn more about Gnostech’s cyber capabilities.

Software is everywhere, including almost every piece of gear our warfighters operate and rely on, and it is constantly changing, as technology advances and new requirements emerge. Gnostech’s longstanding challenge has been to provide rapid availability, reliability, code quality and security while these requirements are constantly evolving. Gnostech developers have consistently risen to the occasion and solved the warfighter’s software challenges for the past 40 years.

As far back as our Global Positioning System (GPS) roots, Gnostech was already providing software development services. We’ve seen the evolution of Department of Defense (DoD) established software development standards, and we adapted quickly to stay ahead of emerging software approaches, tools, and industry best practices. Today, our corporate software development facilities and infrastructure meet Development Security Operations (DevSecOps) criteria and use tools that allow Gnostech software engineers and developers to write code in an Agile development environment.

Over the years, Gnostech engineers have developed tailored solutions for a variety of applications, including cybersecurity, mission planning, combat systems, and Position, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) systems. This longevity stems from our ability to identify critical functional requirements and quickly develop solutions to provide the warfighter with increased operational capabilities. Gnostech identifies small pain points in programs—splinters. The little things day in and day out that cause user issues and aggravation. Gnostech has always recognized that we have the ability to painlessly remove splinters and cause great relief to these programs through our niche solutions.

Here is just one of our success stories… We’ve been alleviating pain points with our software and hardware solutions for the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) Strike Planning and Execution Program Office (PMA-281) since 1997. One such example is the Joint Mission Planning System (JMPS) Simplified Installation and Maintenance (J-SIM) solution that Gnostech prototyped in 2003. J-SIM significantly reduces the complexity and time required to load a JMPS Mission Planning Environment (MPE). Prior to J-SIM, the loading process was manual and took approximately 5 hours to perform. J-SIM automates the process and reduces it to one hour. Since being adopted as the JMPS program’s automated software loading solution, Gnostech created dozens of J-SIM builds for both domestic and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Gnostech also developed the J-SIM Domain Integration Tools to automate the integration of the JMPS clients into the Integrated Shipboard Network System (ISNS)/Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES) shipboard networks.

We’re proud of our software solution successes and will continue to develop those niche solutions that most benefit our warfighters. If you’d like to learn more, please visit Gnostech’s solution page.

Gnostech is excited to be turning 40 this year, and we’re extremely proud of our legacy providing engineering services and solutions for the warfighter. Today, we’re looking back at how our company started and honoring past team accomplishments, in order to gain a better understanding of our origins and to inform the continued evolution of our capabilities in order to meet tomorrow’s requirements.

We initially provided GPS simulation and software development support to the U.S. Navy, specifically the former Naval Air Development Center in Warminster, PA. Our first prime contract was awarded in 1982 providing GPS development support to the U.S. Navy, as well as designing and fabricating specialized monitoring and measurement instrumentation for the commercial manufacturing sector.

Additionally, Gnostech provided engineering expertise for the GPS Directorate (GPSD) from the beginning – before the current generator of satellites launched into orbit. We participated in the development of the design of signal spectrums and satellite data messages. Our engineers identified optimal design criteria and produced some of the earliest GPS products, including almanacs and Dilution of Precision (DOP) analyses for the early military users. Gnostech continued to grow in parallel with the program and worked with key pioneers of the program such as Colonel Bradford Parkinson and Dr. AJ Van Dierendonck to enhance and refine GPS capabilities such as Differential GPS (DGPS), Wide Area Augmented System (WAAS), the Selective Availability/Anti-Spoofing Module (SAASM) and now Modernized GPS (M-Code, MNAV, CNAV, etc.). Over the years, we have had the privilege to work with multiple customers including the Air Force (746th Test Squadron Holloman Air Force Base (AFB), ESC Hanscom AFB, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Munitions Directorate Eglin AFB), U.S. Navy (Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR), Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC)), U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and multiple Joint Programs.

Gnostech also developed a multitude of GPS mission modeling and analysis tools for the GPS Central Engineering Activity at Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific, including the Advanced Global Navigation Simulator (AGNS). AGNS is a modeling and Radio Frequency (RF) simulation tool that generates GPS navigation signals and models intentional or unintentional RF interference. AGNS software utilizes the flexibility and scalability of Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) technology, resulting in the ability to generate an all-in-view satellite constellation; allowing up to 192 simultaneous satellites and/or jamming signals. This modeling and simulation (M&S) tool is used to evaluate all Navy GPS systems before deployment in the Fleet.

As our capabilities have continued to expand to meet evolving requirements in the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) domain over the past four decades, it was the work with our first GPS customer that helped lay the foundation.

Gnostech is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place to Work® for the first time. The prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at Gnostech. 89% of Gnostech’s employees said it is a great place to work – 40 percentage points higher than the average U.S. company.

Great Place to Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation.  Since 1992, they have surveyed more than 100 million employees around the world and used those deep insights to define what makes a great workplace: trust. The firm uses a scientific approach to evaluate a company’s workplace and culture and compare them to strict benchmarks. Gnostech came out of this evaluation exceeding those benchmarks and now has the certification to show it is a company where people love to work.

“We are honored to receive this workplace distinction and proud that we have an engaged team focused on providing valuable services and solutions to our customers,” said James Espino, president of Gnostech. “Gnostech’s guiding principles, executed by our incredibly talented and innovative team, have allowed us to support the warfighter for the last 40 years and will continue to do so for another 40 years.”

Read Gnostech’s full report here.