NAICS category

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology)

NAICS 541715

FY2026 ended Sep 30 · data still posting · data as of 2026-11-01†

† DoD contract data posts to USAspending about 90 days after award.

Part of Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services →

$46.1B
Federal awards
FY2026 · data still posting
314
Recipients
NAICS 541715
Code

NAICS code 541715 (Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology)) accounted for $46.1B in federal contracts in FY2026, led by the Department of Defense, across 314 recipients. FY2026 ended Sep 30 and its data is still posting. Computed

Obligations by year

Computed
$24.2B
FY20
$29.7B
FY21
$35.9B
FY22
$44B
FY23
$44.9B
FY24
$48.5B
FY25
$46.1B
FY26 partial
▲ 100%
FY20 to FY25

Key takeaways

Computed
FY2026 ended Sep 30 · data still posting · data as of 2026-11-01
  • Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology) (NAICS 541715) accounted for $46.1B in federal obligations in FY2026, compared with $48.5B in FY2025.
  • It ranked #4 among industries by federal contract dollars in FY2026 (data still posting).
  • The Department of Defense provided 64% of it.

Top recipients

Computed

The five largest recipients on record received 36% of this category's FY2026 obligations, and the ten largest 49%.

Lockheed Martin Corporation$6.5B
Fluor Marine Propulsion, LLC$4.3B
California Institute of Technology$2.3B
RTX Corporation$2B
The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory LLC$1.9B
Leidos, Inc.$1.4B
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp$1.3B
The Aerospace Corporation$1.1B
The Mitre Corporation$953.3M
Amentum Technology, Inc.$850.6M

Recipient breakdown available for 77% of obligations shown

Awards

Source

Largest FY2026 awards in this category

Awards coded NAICS 541715 that started in FY2026, by the amount obligated on each so far.

AwardIDRecipientObligatedStartEndPlace
Next Generation Missile Defense RadarHQ085126FE029Raytheon Company$1.6B2026-05-052028-06-30Arizona
Next Generation Missile Defense RadarHQ085126FE030Lockheed Martin Corporation$1.2B2026-05-012028-06-30New Jersey
Contract W56KGU25F0015W56KGU25F0015The Mitre Corporation$710.8M2025-10-012026-12-31Virginia
Management and Operating Contractor for the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator…89243126CSC000213Suratech LLC$366.9M2026-03-312031-05-31Virginia
Design and Production of Flight VehiclesSPRRA225C0014Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation$179.4M2025-10-012028-09-30Alabama
Per Sow, G/R List, and Technical ProposalN6833526F1022Castelion Corporation$155M2026-02-252028-04-01California
Skyfall (54-233220)THIS Task Plan Documents at High-Level the Effort to Develop Skyfall…80NM0026F7029California Institute of Technology$151.9M2026-05-142027-05-13California
Engineering, Professional, and Administrative Support Services (EPASS) for Air Force Life…FA872126FB001Odyssey Systems Consulting Group, Ltd.$94.6M2026-01-302029-01-29Florida

Largest awards in this category

Management and Operation of the Naval Nuclear Laboratory and Naval Nuclear…
awarded 2018$15.1B
Naval Nuclear Laboratory
awarded 2018$15B
FY19 Engineering Services
awarded 2018$8.6B
Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared Geosynchronous Earth Orbit Space…
awarded 2018$7.5B
Design, Development, and Developmental Testing of the Next Generation…
awarded 2021$5.5B
Ir CPS WS Development and Integration
awarded 2018$4B
Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared Polar Space Vehicles 1 and 2 Study
awarded 2018$3.5B
Work Required for the Design, Development, Manufacture, Test, Launch…
awarded 2020$3.2B

Total value over each award’s life, largest first.

Related

Why the labels? The graph is only worth anything if the links are trusted. Facts taken straight from a federal filing are Source; figures we calculate are Computed; links we infer (corporate parents, districts, similar contractors, connections between records) are Inferred, worded carefully, never asserted as fact and never a claim that one thing caused another. Spot an error? Tell us.