HUNTSVILLE, AL.—A-P-T Research, Inc. (APT), a 100% employee-owned engineering services company specializing in Safety, Quality, and Mission Assurance (SQMA), has been
awarded the MDA Agile Professional Services Solutions (MAPSS) Safety contract supporting the Missile Defense Agency (MDA).

The MAPSS Safety contract supports critical safety, mission assurance, risk management, reliability, and specialty engineering efforts across missile defense.

This award reinforces APT’s decades-long commitment to delivering integrated Safety and Mission Assurance solutions across complex defense, aerospace, and national security programs.
APT’s expertise spans system safety engineering, software system safety, reliability engineering, quality assurance, hazard analysis, explosives safety, independent assessments, and risk-informed mission support.

“APT was founded on the principle that mission success begins with disciplined safety and technical excellence,” said Tom Pfitzer, APT Founder and Chairman of the Board. “Being
awarded the MAPSS Safety contract reflects the confidence our customers place in our employee-owners and the technical rigor they bring to every mission. We are honored to support
the Missile Defense Agency’s defense mission.”

Headquartered in Huntsville, AL, APT supports government and commercial customers across defense, aerospace, commercial space, and other advanced industries.

About APT Research

APT Research is a 100% employee-owned engineering services company delivering integrated Safety, Quality, and Mission Assurance solutions across the full system lifecycle. APT supports
customers through expertise in system safety engineering, reliability and maintainability (RAM), software assurance, quality engineering, explosives safety, independent technical assessments,
and risk-informed mission support for complex defense, aerospace, and commercial space programs.

Media Contact:
APT Research, Inc.
Meredith Payne, Chief Growth Officer
256-603-3386
mpayne@apt-research.com

APT Research is honored to be recognized by the Better Business Bureau of North Alabama as a 2025 Torch Award for Ethics recipient in the large business category, an award established more than 25 years ago to celebrate organizations that exemplify the highest standards of leadership, character, and ethical business practices. This recognition reflects the heart of who we are:

• Integrity in every action.
• Commitment to fairness and transparency.
• Unwavering dedication to our customers, partners, and community.

The Torch Award for Ethics promotes the importance of ethical business conduct and acknowledges companies willing to go above and beyond to keep our marketplace honorable and trustworthy. We’re proud to stand among businesses that share these values and help strengthen our community.

We also celebrate the BBB’s scholarship program recognizing outstanding high school juniors and seniors across North Alabama, an investment in the next generation of leaders and difference-makers.

Thank you to the BBB of North Alabama and presenting sponsor Nucor Steel Decatur Llc, and congratulations to all 2025 Torch Ethics Award honorees!

APT Research, Inc. (APT) is pleased to be part of the ARES Team that was just awarded the Safety and Mission Assurance Services (SMAS) III contract for NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and Wallops Flight Facility. The 5-year total contract is valued at up to $226 million to provide independent surveillance, audits, and assessments that help ensure the success and safety of NASA’s missions from design through launch. APT is honored to continue our partnership with the ARES Team and NASA to advance their mission of exploration and discovery, while assuring a safe and sustainable space economy.

Image Credits: NASA Goddard/Bill Hrybyk

APT was established in 1990 and is an employee-owned, small business with headquarters in Huntsville, AL, and multiple domestic sites including a significant presence in Florida and Texas. APT provides safety and mission assurance (SMA) focused specialty engineering services to government and industry partners. Our SMA expertise includes system safety, reliability/availability/maintainability, quality engineering/assurance, software system safety/assurance, independent verification and validation (IV&V), software development and modeling, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI/ML) safety, range safety, explosives safety, airworthiness, risk analysis, training and workforce development, and related areas. We also have expertise in developing the full lifecycle suite of program/project SMA documentation, plans, tailored requirements, milestone artifacts, and phase safety review data packages/deliverables/presentations, etc. and our SMA processes align with standard, model based, and agile system engineering processes. Our personnel are owners and each share in the commitment to APT’s corporate mission of continually providing state-of-the-art expertise and ensuring the highest level of customer satisfaction.

https://www.nasa.gov/goddard

APT Research, Inc. (APT) is thrilled to have been selected to continue as the provider of safety and mission assurance support services at NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. APT has served as the prime contractor for this effort since 2013 and was awarded the KSC Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year in 2020.

The Safety and Mission Assurance Support Services IV contract, with an estimated five-year value of $67 million, supports NASA programs including Exploration Ground Systems, Launch Services Program, Commercial Crew Program, International Space Station, Space Launch System, and Orion. The scope of the contract includes mission assurance, engineering, and risk assessment and analysis in the disciplines of safety, reliability, and quality.

We are extremely grateful to our employee owners and teammates, including Davis Strategic Innovations, Inc., and Metis Technology Solutions, Inc., for their hard work and support on this effort. We look forward to continuing to support and assure the highest level of safety at our nation’s busiest spaceport.

Says APT CEO George Gafka, “APT is pleased to continue this critical work for KSC and the nation. This is especially important in this new era of space exploration.”

We are proud to be counted as one of Huntsville’s BestPlace4WorkingParents® in recognition of our family-friendly practices that help our employees and our business thrive!

APT is proud to be ranked on Military Times Best for Vets: Employers list!
>> APT’s ranking page on militarytimes.com.

Military Times “Best for Vets: Employers” rankings for 2021 has a different look this year, with more emphasis on the practices that veterans say make civilian workplaces attractive to their talents and needs.

But the rankings still contain many of the same familiar names of companies focused on recruiting, retaining and promoting veterans within their operations.

More than 160 employers participated in the 2021 survey, the most prominent annual public rankings of its kind. Each year the rankings provide a snapshot of different employment policies and services that companies provide to America’s veterans, and highlight firms that veteran job seekers should target.

The full list of this year’s Best for Vets: Employers rankings is available here.

This year’s list was compiled in partnership with the Fors Marsh Group, a research firm specializing in the veterans and the military community. Officials there tweaked findings from previous years to better emphasize “areas that are of greatest importance to the veteran and veteran-connected community when looking for an employer.”

That included recruiting practices aimed at current military members and veterans, retention and support programs, and a higher emphasis on employers who provide assistance and flexibility for individuals in the Guard and reserves.

“We had conducted focus groups with subject matter experts and with subscribers of Military Times,” said Tina Kurian, senior researcher for the Fors Marsh Group. “So they ordered which topics were most relevant for organizations to be the best for veterans.”

The result, said group Director of Customer Experience Research Nicole Tongo, is a list of firms “that care about the things that veterans care about, and good companies for them to explore if they are looking for a job.”

Excerpt from “Caring about what veterans care about: The 2021 Best for Vets Employers,” by Leo Shane III, 4 Nov 2021, militarytimes.com. 

For Immediate Release:  Our APT SMASS III team at Kennedy Space Center, FL, has won NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year Award! The NASA Small Business Industry Awards (SBIA) recognize the outstanding Small Business Prime Contractor, Small Business Subcontractor, Large Business Prime Contractor, and Mentor-Protégé Agreement that support NASA in achieving its mission.

The award citation reads: “All involved from the first line employees to the company Corporate level are to be highly praised as the contractor was selected as KSC’s Fiscal Year 2020 Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year in recognition of their superior performance on the SMASS III contract. The contractor’s efforts have proven to be invaluable as they have consistently performed at the highest level and routinely going above and beyond what is required to ensure the success of the Government and its partners. SMASS III’s diligence, pursuit of excellence, and responsiveness in executing their role within SMA embodies the spirit of this award.”

This is a huge honor for our employee-owned ESOP company and we are proud of all the hard work that made this very prestigious award possible!

John R. Fellows,
Chief Executive Officer
A-P-T Research, Inc.
“Providing Safe Solutions”

Scientific Achievement Award

APT is pleased to announce that it received the International System Safety Society (ISSS) Scientific Achievement Award, which recognizes significant contributions to the advancement of system safety through research and development programs. The award was presented as part of the 38^th annual ISSS Conference.

The Population Risk for Explosives Transportation by Truck (PRET-T) is a ground-breaking risk management tool developed by APT’s Safety Engineering and Analysis Center in support of the Department of Transportation (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). This software provides a means to determine the risk to people when a route is selected for transportation of explosive materials by truck. PRET-T’s analysis is accomplished through the use of satellite imagery, traffic and population data, and high-fidelity explosives consequence algorithms. APT employees who contributed to this work included Tom Pfitzer, Nina Donath, Katie Byers, Brandon Whitworth, Megan Stroud, Tim Hooker, Emma Montgomery and Michael Civil.

ISSS Engineer of the Year Award

APT is also pleased to announce that employee Rita Turner recently won the International System Safety Society (ISSS) Engineer of the Year Award. The award was presented as part of the 38^th annual ISSS Conference.

Ms. Turner is Senior Systems Safety Engineer with 20+ years of experience. With her deep understanding of domain standards, she has contributed to Land and Maritime systems safety. She has also worked to bring younger generations to the profession of system safety.

The International System Safety Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the Safety Professional in the application of Systems Engineering and Systems Management to the process of hazard, safety and risk analysis. The Society is international in scope and draws members from throughout the world. It is affiliated with major corporations, educational institutions and other agencies in the United States and abroad.

VIENNA VA, August 18, 2020

The Best for Vets: Employers survey is a highly respected analysis of a company’s efforts to connect with veterans and provide an environment for success.

Best for Vets is editorially independent and focused on culture and policies that cater to military veterans,” says Andrew Tilghman, executive editor at Military Times. “It has become the most trusted resource for transitioning veterans and a coveted honor for employers across the country.

In its 11th year,  Best for Vets: Employers rankings were based on a voluntary survey that included more than 100 questions seeking detailed information based on the individual company’s policies and practices related to veteran recruitment and retention, support for translation of military skills to civilian credentials, support for military spouse employment and accommodations for members of the National Guard and reserves.

Source: sightlinemediagroup.com

APT is proud to have been selected for Military Times Best for Vets: Employers list!