• How I became aware

• What it means

• My take on the clause (it seemed good at first)

• How my mindset changed

I was working for a large prime contractor when the pandemic hit. Like many, I was suddenly challenged to figure out how to navigate it all — not just at home but at work, too. I quickly realized others were in the same boat. This reality showed up in the form of contract modifications and new clauses with the exception of Force Majeure.

Companies everywhere felt the impact of social distancing, reduced staffing, remote work — all the things we’re now too familiar with. Maybe you saw this firsthand, whether your product is digital or hardware. How did your delivery commitments hold up?

Force Majeure is defined as a clause in contracts that removes liability for unforeseeable, unavoidable catastrophes that prevent participants from fulfilling their obligations. For me, the pandemic was exactly that: unforeseeable — or so I thought. But in hindsight, after watching countless sci-fi, zombie, and doomsday movies, maybe it shouldn’t have been. At the time, this contract provision seemed reasonable. But as time went on, I realized that for the defense industry, it’s not just unreasonable — it’s unacceptable.

The pandemic was a wake-up call. If another global event occurred tomorrow — pandemic, conflict, or natural disaster — the need for defense assets wouldn’t stop. Pandemic or not, our military continued deploying submarines, aircraft carriers, and other critical assets. Our industry must always be ready to support that mission.

As an engineer, I’ve always focused on eliminating single points of failure in design. Now, as we build Acceleration Engineering, I’m also thinking about how we respond as an organization. How do we ensure we keep delivering when the unexpected happens?

I’d love to hear how your company has turned the lessons from the pandemic into a real Plan B — one that keeps critical defense production moving no matter what:

• Does your workforce know they might be asked to work off shifts (2nd or 3rd) if social distancing comes back?

• Have you identified critical parts and built contingency inventory to bridge potential gaps?

• Can you show a customer how you’d flex operations and prove you’ll minimize impact to delivery?

At Acceleration Engineering, we’re building with resilience in mind — because the mission doesn’t stop. Let’s keep this conversation going: What changes has your organization made to stay ready for the next big unknown?