News & Insights
VIDEO: Unlocking federal facilities beyond FAR
Why this matters now
Federal clients are working through aging infrastructure, evolving mission requirements, and constrained budgets at the same time. The Federal Acquisition Regulation shapes how work moves forward, but compliance alone does not deliver great projects. Agencies need partners who understand federal contracting and who bring engineering and planning depth that goes beyond the procurement checklist. The bar for federal facilities is rising, and so are the expectations placed on project teams.
What leaders are weighing
Federal leaders are weighing the demands of compliance against the need for projects that actually solve mission problems. They are deciding how to balance schedule pressure with the realities of federal procurement, how to manage risk across long projects, and how to align design decisions with sustainability, resilience, and security goals. There are tradeoffs around delivery methods, contracting vehicles, and how to engage subject matter experts. Mission owners want results. Contracting officers want defensible processes. The right partners help align both.
How Salas O’Brien is helping clients respond
Our federal team helps agencies move past compliance to outcomes. We bring deep engineering expertise across MEP, structural, energy, and resilience together with experience working inside federal contracting frameworks. We help clients translate mission needs into projects that perform, comply, and stand up to scrutiny. Hear Debra Edwards, Harry Kleiser, Hillary Bassett, and John Broughton talk through how to move federal facilities forward.
Harry Kleiser, PE
Harry Kleiser, PE leads Salas O’Brien’s federal group, driving strategic initiatives while fostering innovation and collaborative problem-solving. With 25+ years of experience alongside federal government agencies and working in the AEC industry, Harry is instrumental in developing and implementing project and program-specific solutions to address complex mission needs. Harry’s leadership is crucial in supporting growth and achieving excellence for both clients and Salas O’Brien. Contact him at [email protected]
Debra Edwards
Debra Edwards is a leader in energy resilience, environmental services, and real property strategy across the federal government and military sectors, with more than 25 years of experience delivering mission‑focused solutions. Debra works collaboratively with public and private partners to develop effective approaches for P3 partnerships, asset management, energy security, and power infrastructure modernization. Debra serves as Service Line Leader at Salas O’Brien. Contact her at [email protected]..
John Broughton
John Broughton has over 20 years of experience leading complex DOD and other federal agency public-private and public-public partnerships (P3/P4) programs that provide program management experience across various disciplines ranging from facilities to utilities infrastructure, real estate recapitalization, modernization, and disposition as well as monetizing underutilized real property through grants, land exchanges, joint-use development, and privatization. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from the University of Vermont. John serves as a Senior Vice President at Salas O’Brien. Contact him at [email protected].
Hillary Bassett
Hillary Bassett has more than 20 years of experience with Air Force policy and infrastructure-related projects. She has been responsible for critical projects at the highest levels of the DoD, including for the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Energy, Installations and Environment (SAF/IE), directly supporting energy and real estate projects across a $1 billion portfolio. Hillary Bassett serves as a Principal at Salas O’Brien. You can reach her at [email protected].