In the vast, frozen expanse of Antarctica, where the environment is as unforgiving as it is awe-inspiring, Parsons is paving the way for the future of global scientific research through our expertise in program and construction management, engineering, planning, and logistics in the world’s most remote and extreme environment.

A Legacy Forged In Ice

Parsons’ over 50 years of polar operations experience began on the North Slope of Alaska in 1970 and later expanded to the icy frontiers of Antarctica.

This legacy is now being extended through our role in the Scott Base Redevelopment, a flagship infrastructure project led by Antarctica New Zealand. As the technical partner to construction company LT McGuinness, Parsons is providing critical expertise in engineering and construction planning for the redevelopment of New Zealand’s permanent research station on Ross Island.

The project’s first phase includes a new Base Services building for accommodation, refurbishment of the Hillary Field Centre for science operations, and upgrades to critical infrastructure, including the Ross Island Wind Energy system. With concept design completed and preliminary design underway, we are helping shape a resilient, sustainable, and digitally enabled research hub that will serve scientists for decades to come.

Infrastructure Partner For The Future

Currently, we’re supporting the Antarctic Infrastructure and Modernization for Science (AIMS) project at the McMurdo Station and are well-positioned to further support the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) mission in Antarctica. We joined forces with V2X to form the Polar Science Alliance (PSA), a joint venture purpose-built to pursue the Antarctic Science and Engineering Support Contract (ASESC). The $8 billion contract awardee will provide comprehensive support services to the United States Antarctic Program over a 20-year period.

We are proud to team with V2X in this endeavor, as the Polar Science Alliance represents a convergence of mission-driven innovation, operational excellence, and a shared commitment to enabling science in a region unlike any other on Earth.

A Strategic Partner For NSF’s Vision

Parsons’ ability to engineer for extreme environments gives us a distinct advantage. In Antarctica, this means designing infrastructure capable of withstanding brutal weather conditions, operating sustainably, and supporting evolving scientific research needs. It means leveraging digital twin technology, AI-driven logistics, and advanced modeling to optimize performance and reduce risk. And above all, it means delivering with precision, accountability, and a deep respect for the environment.

We recognize this work as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape the future of Antarctic scientific research. The NSF needs a partner who understands the stakes, the science, and the scale of the mission. Parsons is that partner, delivering infrastructure to advance the understanding of Antarctica and its ecosystems, explore the continent’s impact on global systems like climate, and utilize the continent’s unique conditions for groundbreaking research opportunities.

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In today’s fast-paced world, the demand for efficient and sustainable transportation infrastructure is more pressing than ever. As urbanization accelerates and technological advancements reshape our cities, integrated infrastructure solutions become paramount to realizing outcomes around safety, mobility, and travel time reliability.

Systems Integration Mindset

Organizations can maximize roadway value across all project delivery stages—from planning and design to construction, operations, and maintenance—by developing a comprehensive integrated data environment strategy with a Systems Integration Mindset.

This mindset is focused on a user-centric framework, considering the needs of various personas and use cases throughout every stage of a project—from identifying the need for infrastructure work to the final implementation. By developing personas, public sector staff, operators, managers, and partner agencies can collectively create a foundation that addresses individual needs and ensures a safe, reliable experience for all. Whether it’s monitoring real-time systems or determining future funding, an integrated systems approach is crucial to meeting the needs of diverse personas and ensuring the success of transportation projects.

Planning: The Foundation of Success

Efficient planning is essential for any successful transportation infrastructure project. By understanding the unique needs and developing a strategic roadmap, city planners and transportation leaders can address their many challenges, such as growing congestion, road safety, aging infrastructure, meeting sustainability objectives, interagency coordination, and securing transportation systems. This work often begins with developing personas and use cases, while keeping the end state in mind from the beginning, which is the first step of the Systems Integration Mindset.

Detailed implementation plans also serve as a roadmap for agencies setting up their Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) architecture to ensure they’re in compliance with industry standards when planning transportation system management and operations (TISMO) strategies. Developing an ITS program from scratch requires meticulous planning that can result in significant improvements in traffic management and safety.

For instance, Parsons’ work with Lake County, Illinois, exemplifies how meticulous planning can lead to award-winning outcomes. By helping Lake County stand up their ITS program and creating an implementation phasing plan, we ensured a clear path forward for ten years. This detailed planning resulted in nine different awards for Lake County’s ITS infrastructure.

Design: Integrating Cutting-Edge Technology

The next step is design—where innovation meets practicality and cutting-edge technology is integrated into transportation infrastructure. This crucial stage benefits from the Systems Integration Mindset by finding practical, implementable traffic management center (TMC) solutions that consider every user persona.

Over the past decade, our transportation experts have completed more than 65 TMC design, integration, and operation projects, including assessments of existing operations and technology. Whether a project involves new site development, deployment, or installation, utilizing consistent, proven strategies for project execution ensures that every project is successful and meets or exceeds the key performance indicators established at the start.

In 2014, Parsons developed the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) guidelines for virtual transportation management centers, positioning us at the national forefront of the TMC design and technology evolution. We have implemented state-of-the-art transportation management centers that serve critical operational functions, including incident management, event management, and emergency response management.

Construction: Ensuring Efficiency And Safety

The construction phase brings designs to life but can present challenges that require meticulous management if baseline connectivity and tools that enable communication and information sharing between contractors, public sector staff, consultants, and the public aren’t present. These tools are key components of the Systems Integration Mindset.

In the world of roadway construction management, broadband infrastructure deployment plays a crucial role. From real-time data and communication to remote monitoring and maintenance, broadband connectivity enables construction teams to work more efficiently and effectively. With access to high-speed internet, project managers can gather data and collaborate with team members in real time, making it easier to identify and address issues as they arise. Additionally, remote monitoring and maintenance tools can help keep construction projects on track and ensure they are completed on time and within budget. As the country continues to invest in transportation infrastructure, we need to acknowledge broadband connectivity is a crucial component in the success of these projects and continue to advocate for broadband at the federal level.

From work zone lane closure permit management to field inspections, a thoughtful application of technology assists with coordinating multiple contractors, agencies, and testing documentation. For example, our work zone lane closure permit management system has successfully streamlined the process of coordinating and scheduling road work for the Ministry of Transportation in Ontario. This fully scalable web-based solution has been in operation for 12 years and is used by hundreds of ministry staff, contractors, and consultants daily. With thousands of transactions every construction season, this system has proven to be a critical tool for integrated and coordinated work zone management, ensuring that projects are completed safely, efficiently, and on time.

Operations & Maintenance: Sustaining Long-Term Value

The final stage—operations and maintenance—is where long-term value is realized through sustained performance optimization strategies tailored specifically for each project’s needs. In general, operations and maintenance are the realization of the Systems Integration Mindset, where the overall systems and user-focused approach delivers a successful project from day one and into the future.

Advanced ITS solutions, such as our smart mobility platform, iNET^®, play a pivotal role in this stage. Using data from a variety of sources, iNET creates an integrated data environment with a “single pane of glass” view to facilitate proactive maintenance measures and responsive traffic management. This systems integration solution helps reduce congestion and improve safety while integrating seamlessly into existing systems to ensure maximum efficiency and enhanced situational awareness for operators, managers, and users.

The City of Dubuque, Iowa is a great example of how iNET^® can be tailored to enhance collaboration in the city and the region. Dubuque is not a large city but is experiencing what many larger cities experience: congestion. To address this issue, we are utilizing iNET^® to deliver real-time modeling of the city’s traffic network to determine the best traffic mitigation plan at any given time based on real-time traffic data. iNET^® also provides travel times throughout the city to help motorists determine the best route to take in unusual conditions. Our integrated approach ensures seamless operation and management of roadway incidents to help Dubuque manage traffic throughout the city.

Success with An Integrated Approach

The transportation industry is rapidly evolving, and transportation infrastructure is critical to a city or region’s success. By implementing an integrated approach that encompasses all project delivery stages, we can achieve optimized roadways. To do this, public sector agencies and their supporting consultants need to adopt a Systems Integration Mindset at every project stage. Realization of this adoption will be seen by the network effect, where every user has what they need when it’s needed, and the system itself is more valuable than the sum of users benefit collectively. By leveraging cutting-edge technology and advanced ITS solutions, we can create a smarter, safer, and more sustainable future for transportation infrastructure.

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Imagine a facility dedicated to cutting edge research that will help keep America safe and secure, while also exploring exciting new frontiers in science and laying the groundwork for a clean, sustainable source of energy. Now, imagine that facility being the size of three football fields and housing the world’s largest and highest energy laser, capable of replicating the intense temperatures and pressures found at the center of the sun.

Now stop imagining – because this is the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) National Ignition Facility (NIF), and the Parsons team played a significant role in building this one-of-a-kind and first-of-a-kind Department of Energy (DOE) designed project. We provided project management and construction support on this facility, whose complex science mission required the highest precision and construction to exact design specifications.

NIF’s objective is to ignite and burn a small fusion target, creating conditions that only exist at the interior of stars and nuclear weapons explosions. On December 5, 2022, decades after the project began, scientists at LLNL announced they had achieved fusion ignition at the NIF, captivating public imagination and receiving praise from President Biden, DOE, and the scientific community. The event marked a scientific breakthrough that changed the fundamental understanding of matter.

We’ve supported DOE’s infrastructure and engineering needs for over 75 years, including this massive challenge to build the world’s largest and most energetic laser-based inertial confinement fusion (ICF) research device. Our scope of work spanned over 13 years and included initial design, cost management, construction management for the NIF project. We also provided infrastructure support for the entire life cycle of the NIF project starting from conceptualization to full-scale design and construction support. Parsons used over 100 professionals, plus specialty subcontractors, in the design and construction of this unique research and development facility.

We researched complex scientific and engineering processes and tailored our standard and proven approaches to this unique science facility. This highly complex design and construction project included a Laser and Target Area Building (LTAB), Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) research device, and a Beampath Infrastructure System.

• LTAB is NIF’s largest component and contains an array of laser beams, a central target area, and multiple subsystems. Using state-of-the-art techniques, we designed the infrastructure and systems needed to focus the world’s most powerful laser.
• The Beampath Infrastructure Systems design entailed the installation, interconnection, and final connection of utilities for the highly specialized equipment being designed by numerous DOE and private organizations. Our use of integrated 3D CAD modeling greatly enhanced the design process by coordinating and reconciling technical input from equipment researchers, designers, and manufacturers within DOE and around the world.

Parsons’ Engineered Systems President Jon Moretta said, “We are deeply invested in our customers’ success, and that commitment is keenly demonstrated in one of our longest running clients – the Department of Energy. It’s exciting to see decades of focused support come together for the Science mission. We are proud to have provided the infrastructure that enabled this research breakthrough that has captivated imaginations around the world.”

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Solving The Toughest Technical Challenges On Ice

As a global solutions provider, our work takes us all around the globe. To solve the world’s toughest technical challenges, we’ve devoted ourselves to delivering the smartest solutions. I’ve had the privilege to work on one of Parsons most unique and exciting projects, the Antarctica Infrastructure and Modernization for Science (AIMS) initiative.

I’ve always wanted to be part of a mega build project after watching Mega Engineering episodes on the Discovery Channel. The design-build contract under the Antarctica Infrastructure and Modernization for Science (AIMS) program was awarded to Parsons in 2018 and I was fortunate enough to be able to join the team. The program’s goal was to replace aging infrastructure and construct multiple new buildings at McMurdo Station. This is one of the largest construction projects on the continent since the construction of the South Pole Station. In fact, we are using some of the same cranes and equipment that was used back in the early 2000’s to build the South Pole station.

Challenges On The Ice

There are obvious challenges that we face on the ice, from the cold temperatures to the remoteness of the job site. One of the major factors that affects our work are the high winds for any exterior construction. If the wind reaches a certain speed, we can’t perform crane operations and sometimes are restricted from going outside. The accessibility to the station is another issue we face as it means we need to have all materials and tools way ahead of time. Acquiring replacement parts can take two to six weeks. If it happens during the Antarctic winter, it could be up to two months.

Learning To Work As A Team

We must have a close and partnering relationship with our partners, or subcontractors. To succeed, we must help each other while on the ice or we will all fail. There are plenty of instances where we help each other on tasks or lend each other tools and equipment so we can keep the construction moving. It truly is a collaborative effort! If someone slows down, that slows everyone else down, and the winter deadline remains constant, so there is no time extension. After work, we all eat, sleep, and relax in the same location so there is a real community atmosphere that we get to experience.

Experiencing COVID-19 In Antarctica

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we were working to finish the building exterior when we had to drop tools and head home. It’s always challenging when you stop mid-stream on a construction project, but the team did a stellar job in closing the job site and making it safe and stable before departing the continent. We did not return for 18 months and when we did, the building was in great shape. It’s a testament to the planning and execution of the team when thrown a curve ball.

Let’s Talk Logistics And Coordination

The challenge in tracking items from origin to destination is very interesting. If you get logistics wrong, you can’t build the project on schedule and budget. Logistics is integral for any project, from one in downtown Miami, Florida, to the bottom of the planet. It takes a lot of planning and coordination to do it right.

One of the most exciting aspects of this project is the vessel delivery that happens just once a year. The vessel sails from Los Angeles to McMurdo Station, so there are over 250 containers being delivered to multiple agencies and locations. Its critical to identity each of our containers, know what’s in each container, know where it is loaded on the ship, and determine its final destination at one of the five laydown areas at the station. Vessel offloading is very exciting as it’s a 24-7 operation of crane and truck activity; a coordinated effort to supply an entire city via World War II era tractor trailer trucks.

We have a top-notch Parsons team at the port in Los Angeles that receives our material, scans it, packs it, and delivers over the ready line to our client. We built from the ground up an In-Transit Visibility (ITV) system that tracks items from planning to pricing and purchase, to delivery at the port, to loading, to the final delivery and installation at McMurdo. We tied our Construction Management software, scheduling software, and scan guns together to provide immediate online dashboard information. If I need to find where a specific structural steel member or even where the microwave oven is, I can look it up and find out in what container and where on the planet it is located. If material does not make it, we will have schedule delays or must make do with what we have. We work closely with the station on sharing materials and tools. If there is nothing on-ice that we can use, we must fly items in from New Zealand. There was an instance where our team had the wrong type of screws, so I had to drive around to every New Zealand Mitre 10 (the Kiwi’s version of a Home Depot or Lowes), find all the screws I could and get them on a transport plane.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed playing a key role in modernizing McMurdo Station, Antarctica and am thankful for the opportunity to be a part of this project. To learn more about opportunities and to be a part of our team, please visit our careers page.

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The Antarctic Infrastructure And Modernization For Science (AIMS) Project

Our team was hired by Leidos to be responsible for the design and construction of the Antarctic Infrastructure and Modernization for Science (AIMS) project located at McMurdo Station, Antarctica. McMurdo Station was established in December 1955, and research has been ongoing since the start.

AIMS is one of the initiatives of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) United States Antarctic Program (USAP) and is a major capital investment effort to support the United States’ world-class science program in Antarctica. McMurdo Station is the largest U.S. station on the continent and is built on the bare volcanic rock of Hut Point Peninsula on Ross Island. McMurdo Station is supported by roughly 1,000 support staff and scientists and provides logistical support for additional USAP research stations in Antarctica.

A Hub For World-Class Science

The infrastructure modernization project will ensure that McMurdo Station remains a viable platform for supporting world class science facilities for the next 50 years. Upon completion in 2026, our team will have built three major buildings, including an Information Technology and Communications facility (IT&C), a Lodging Facility and a Vehicle and Equipment Operation Center (VEOC). The new IT&C center will house station data centers and network operations. The lodging building will house onsite personnel, and the VEOC will be used to maintain the station fleet vehicles. Parsons, under contract to NSF’s prime contractor Leidos, is designing the new facilities and executing the construction in the field with both in-house and subcontractor personnel. Once finalized, these new facilities will ensure that the station continues to be a hub for world-class science. Our Engineered Systems continues to perform construction activities at the bottom of the Earth with internal resources and an amazing group of selected subcontracts that include demolition and earthwork, structural steel construction, electrical, mechanical and interior fit-out. In addition, this team understands the logistical challenges associated with sending all the required building materials and supplies on only one available vessel a year.

Living And Working In Antarctica

A typical day “on the ice” is encountered with an assortment of logistical and construction challenges that can only be solved by implementing a collaborative approach. The design and construction program faces numerous challenges when building at the bottom of the planet. Days feel long, especially when the sun shines or hides for 24 hours. Speaking of weather, the lowest “summer” temperature is -15F average, equivalent to the winter season in northern America. Cold weather construction gear and extreme cold weather gear – much needed tools for the job – are provided for all personnel.

After work, the local community warms up with many different activities including social clubs, sports equipment rentals (skis and snowboards) and fitness classes to name a few. Groups meet to play basketball, volleyball, soccer and dodgeball. For those looking for more outdoor adventures, Antarctica has any cold weather activity as you can imagine, including, hiking, biking, skiing and more.

Delivering Federal Infrastructure Solutions Throughout The World

For over 75 years, we have supported many federal government agencies, like the USAP, to meet their facility and infrastructure program needs by guiding them through planning, design, construction and post-construction challenges on complex, multi-site multi-phase programs. We are excited to be a part of the AIMS project, one of the largest projects on the continent and recognized as an engineering and construction marvel.

To learn more about opportunities and to be a part of our team, please visit our careers page.

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Over the last two decades, the rapid advancement of technology has presented challenges for cybersecurity. As the world becomes more and more interconnected, the frequency of major cyber-attacks has increased, and the impacts of these attacks have grown. Much of the focus for cyber-attacks has been on the DoD and the impact on the military and government. We are a leading supplier of cybersecurity and operation technology security for the US government and many intelligence communities, but cyber-attacks aren’t specific to government agencies. With that, we are branching out to provide Critical Infrastructure with the same level of cybersecurity we provide the US government.

The impact cyberattacks have on Critical Infrastructure impacts the global economy. Additionally, it impacts public and national security through industries like aviation, mass transportation, medical care, construction, and electricity, water, finances, food, and agriculture; the list of how a cyber-attack can impact our daily lives is extensive.

Our team’s real-world experience ensures we aren’t just speaking about theory, best practices, tools, challenges, and risk-we really do live them every day on the cyber battlefield. One of the keys to becoming an integral part of any organization’s cyber defense is that our Chief Information Officer runs our cyber engagements by leveraging our global IT operational capabilities. 

One of the things we’ve learned is incorporating a shared ownership mindset with our customers as we develop programmatic, risk-based solutions to continuously improve the cybersecurity posture against a dynamic and ever-changing threat. Our holistic Cyber IT and OT programs incorporate a phased approach to baseline cybersecurity and functionality goals and standards, assess current networks, and identify potential vulnerabilities and design, and implement mitigations to improve a network’s security posture continuously and programmatically.  In many cases, IT supports Operational Technology. While IT uses computers to create, process, store, and exchange electronic data and information, OT is hardware and software that detects or causes a change, through the direct monitoring and/or control of industrial [physical process] equipment, assets, processes, and events.

Based on the industry best practices that align with our customer’s security requirements, we work with customers to tailor this process to their needs. Meetings are conducted to address issues, develop reviews, prepare for the risk management process, and determine the baseline.

Our approach to Critical Asset Protection includes a cybersecurity Compliance Analysis based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) risk management framework (RMF) for cybersecurity as well as a reliability and resilience assessment based on design/build specifications for critical infrastructure.  If the customer has not applied a formal RMF to all systems, our team can provide a reference set of security controls and implementations, based on guidance in NIST Special Publications 800-53 and 800-171, which we apply as the basis of a Cybersecurity Assessment.  We also refer to UFC 4-010-06 Cybersecurity of Facility-Related Control Systems as this standard is widely used in US critical installations. This approach is used to determine and develop a risk-based baseline that represents the security goal for the networks and systems analyzed.

Cybersecurity history has shown that it is unlikely that all attacks can be avoided. Therefore, if attacked, we are well-positioned to apply best practices: quickly identify the attack, immediately respond by applying a carefully crafted incident response plan, recover to full operation as soon as practical, and adjust normal operations to add mitigations to the type of attack experienced. We understand that many customers effectively operate 24 hours a day, 365/366 days a year, but to operate in this fashion, our customers must also be resilient. Our risk-based approach helps establish the organization, policies, procedures, tools, and techniques to achieve success in cybersecurity operations.

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