The Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC), acting for United States Space Command (USSPACECOM), is preparing an Other Transaction Authority challenge to select a design-build partner for a command-and-control campus and supporting data center at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. The procurement combines construction with information technology, secure-facility work, equipment, commissioning and accreditation.
Project at a glance
| Element | Published description |
|---|---|
| Owner and sponsoring agency | USSPACECOM, with AFCEC managing the acquisition |
| Location | Redstone Arsenal, Alabama |
| Program | Command and Control Facility (C2F), supporting data center, visitor control center, central utility plant, and shipping-and-receiving building |
| Reported footprint | Approximately 700,000 square feet on 64 acres, according to a 2026 Data Center Dynamics report; the procurement notice controls the contractor’s scope |
| Planned staffing | Approximately 1,800 personnel |
| Secure-space share | Approximately 80% of the facility is expected to be secure space aligned with Intelligence Community Directive 705 (ICD-705), according to the Air Force FY2027 military-construction project description |
| Published program value | Approximately $4 billion for design, construction, fit-out, commissioning, accreditation, and fixtures, furniture and equipment |
| Required operational date | Mission-ready by December 2031 |
The Air Force Civil Engineer Center’s September 9, 2026, industry announcement describes the effort as an “approximately $4 billion, mission-critical facility and supporting data center” for about 1,800 personnel. No final design-build contractor or owner’s adviser had been identified in the published material.
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What the Alabama campus will contain
This is a USSPACECOM command-and-control campus, not a commercial colocation project or a data-center sale. The principal Command and Control Facility will be supported by a dedicated data center and the utility, access-control and logistics buildings needed to operate a headquarters with stringent security requirements.
Command, control and support buildings
- Main C2F: headquarters spaces for USSPACECOM operations and mission staff.
- Data center: resilient information-processing capacity supporting command systems.
- Visitor control center: controlled entry and credentialing for personnel and visitors.
- Central utility plant: dependable power and environmental services for mission systems.
- Shipping and receiving: secure handling of equipment, materials and mission deliveries.
The 700,000-square-foot and 64-acre figures are reported industry details. AFCEC’s challenge documents and subsequent amendments will be the controlling source for final quantities, interfaces and site limits.
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- PCI & HIPPA and EIA/ECA-310-E compliant
What the design-build partner must deliver
AFCEC is seeking one integrated team rather than a contractor responsible only for the building shell. The expected scope reaches from concept development through an accredited, equipped and operational facility.
Integrated design, construction and technology
- Design and construct the campus and its supporting infrastructure.
- Provide Command, Control, Communication and Computer Information Technology (C4IT).
- Supply fixtures, furniture and equipment (FF&E), including fit-out items needed for occupancy.
- Use Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) to manage requirements and interfaces across buildings, utilities, security systems and IT.
Commissioning and accreditation
The team must commission systems, demonstrate that they perform together, and complete the accreditation work required before mission use. That places testing, documentation, configuration control and security evidence inside the design-build responsibility instead of leaving them to a later, separate effort.
Secure construction and surveillance
Construction Surveillance Technicians are expected to support ICD-705 compliance. The scope also calls for Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) and Special Access Program (SAP) construction, radio-frequency shielding and protection against High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP). These requirements affect wall and door assemblies, penetrations, power and communications pathways, inspection procedures and the handling of drawings and materials.
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Resilience
Redundant and resilient infrastructure is an explicit requirement. The design therefore has to account for continuity of command operations, survivability of critical systems and maintainability, rather than optimizing solely for construction speed or floor area.
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- Keep critical network equipment secure: glass door and side panels are lockable to prevent unauthorized access; Front door can be installed on either side of the front of the cabinet to satisfy your door swing orientation preference
- Easy equipment configuration: Fully adjustable mounting rails and numbered U positions, with square holes for easy equipment mounting with top and bottom punchout panels for easy cable access
- Durability: Made of high quality cold rolled steel holds up to 110lb (50kg) (Easy Assembly Required)
- PCI & HIPPA and EIA/ECA-310-E compliant
How AFCEC plans to procure the work
The effort is planned under Other Transaction Authority using 10 U.S.C. § 2808a. AFCEC says it will use a collaborative delivery approach based on the Design-Build Institute of America’s Design Build Done Right framework. The stated objective is to reduce traditional Military Construction delivery timelines by about 50%.
The industry announcement planned release of a Challenge Statement through the ONIX Marketplace on October 15, 2026, with responses due December 15, 2026. Those dates are planning targets and can change. A challenge response is not a contract award; AFCEC must still evaluate qualified teams and complete the later stages of the transaction.
Who can compete
This is a qualification-based opportunity aimed at U.S.-based organizations with a record of delivering mega-projects of comparable scale and technical complexity. The published conditions go beyond ordinary commercial construction prequalification.
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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minute| Requirement | Practical implication |
|---|---|
| Experience with complex mega-projects | Respondents must show successful delivery of projects comparable in size, integration difficulty and mission consequences. |
| Ability to bond the full project value | The prime team must demonstrate bonding capacity for the entire undertaking, not just an early design package. |
| Top Secret facility security clearance | The organization must hold the facility clearance needed to perform classified work. |
| USSPACECOM Sensitive Compartmented Information read-ins | Personnel must obtain the command-specific access approvals required for the information they handle. |
| CMMC Level 2 | The organization must maintain Level 2 compliance with the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification requirements or be actively pursuing certification. |
These conditions favor a prime contractor able to coordinate cleared designers, secure-construction specialists, C4IT integrators, commissioning professionals and major subcontractors under one management system. Smaller firms may find roles as specialized members of a compliant team, but the notice does not identify a separate small-business set-aside.
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- Design Features:maximum mounting depth of 14 in,cables can be fixed on the side panel;Open frame server rack achieves effortless inspection, replacement and assemble
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Why this is different from a conventional data-center build
The defining distinction is mission assurance. A commercial data center typically emphasizes rentable capacity, customer connectivity and operating economics. This campus must combine headquarters functions with classified spaces, SCIF and SAP construction, electromagnetic protection, cleared personnel, resilient utilities and formal accreditation.
The procurement also shifts integration risk forward. C4IT, MBSE, FF&E, commissioning and accreditation are expected within the same design-build delivery, so architectural decisions cannot be finalized independently of security, network, power and operational requirements. The collaborative model is intended to address those interfaces earlier than a sequential design-bid-build process.
What to watch next
- Publication of the Challenge Statement and any amendments on the ONIX Marketplace.
- Qualification responses from teams able to satisfy bonding, clearance and cybersecurity conditions.
- AFCEC’s selection of a design-build partner and the resulting contract scope, price structure and schedule baseline.
- Development of the security, technology and commissioning plans needed to reach the December 2031 mission-ready target.
Until those steps occur, the dollar figure, reported floor area and schedule should be treated as the published program description rather than a final awarded-contract value or completed design.
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