For companies working within the Defense Industrial Base, selecting an engineering partner involves more than evaluating technical expertise, experience, and the ability to deliver. Cybersecurity and regulatory readiness are increasingly important considerations—particularly when a program involves Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).
That is why Boston Engineering’s achievement of CMMC Level 2 certification with a full 110-point assessment score is an important milestone not only for our organization, but also for the defense customers and partners we support.
CMMC Level 2 demonstrates that Boston Engineering has implemented the cybersecurity practices required to safeguard CUI within the assessed environment. For customers, this provides another layer of confidence when bringing Boston Engineering into sensitive engineering and product development programs.
What Is CMMC Level 2?
The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program is the U.S. Department of Defense framework for assessing whether contractors have implemented applicable information security protections.
CMMC Level 2 focuses on the protection of CUI and incorporates the security requirements associated with NIST SP 800-171.
Under current Department of Defense acquisition rules, solicitations can specify a required CMMC level, including Level 2, and contractors may be required to have the applicable current CMMC status before contract award for information systems that will process, store, or transmit CUI.
For organizations operating within the defense supply chain, that makes cybersecurity readiness an important part of determining which partners can support certain programs.
Why Does Your Engineering Partner’s CMMC Status Matter?
Product development requires a significant exchange of information.
Depending on the program, an outside engineering team may need access to technical requirements, system architectures, design documentation, drawings, test results, software, specifications, or other program information. When that information includes CUI, the cybersecurity environment used to handle it matters.
Choosing an appropriately CMMC-certified engineering partner can therefore provide several important advantages.
1. Greater Confidence When Handling Sensitive Program Information
At its core, CMMC is about protecting information.
Boston Engineering’s CMMC Level 2 achievement demonstrates that the security controls within our assessed environment have undergone the applicable assessment process rather than cybersecurity being treated simply as an informal internal practice.
We earned the full 110-point score on our Level 2 assessment, reflecting complete implementation of all assessed controls.
For customers, that provides added assurance that cybersecurity is built into the environment supporting applicable defense work.
2. Reduced Compliance Friction When Bringing in an Engineering Partner
A defense program can already involve a complex network of requirements, suppliers, subcontractors, technologies, and stakeholders. Discovering late in the process that a potential partner does not meet a program's cybersecurity requirements can introduce another complication.
CMMC requirements can apply to contractors and subcontractors depending on the information involved and requirements of the contract. Current DoD rules require contractors to maintain the applicable CMMC status for information systems used in contract performance that process, store, or transmit FCI or CUI.
Working with a partner that has already invested in CMMC readiness can help address cybersecurity qualifications earlier in the supplier-selection process.
That can be particularly valuable when companies need to supplement their internal capabilities with specialized engineering expertise without creating unnecessary compliance obstacles.
3. Cybersecurity Can Be Considered Alongside Engineering from the Start
Cybersecurity requirements are easier to manage when they are considered as part of the program environment from the beginning rather than addressed after development is already underway.
Boston Engineering’s journey toward CMMC Level 2 began years before certification. In 2018, we began coordinating with our cybersecurity service provider and implementing NIST SP 800-171 controls. As CMMC requirements evolved, we continued developing and strengthening our security program.
That long-term investment matters because secure defense product development requires more than passing an assessment. It requires processes and behaviors that become part of how an organization operates.
When customers engage Boston Engineering, they can bring technical challenges to a multidisciplinary engineering organization that also understands the security expectations surrounding defense work.
4. It Supports Collaboration Across Complex Defense Programs
Many defense programs require collaboration among government organizations, primes, subcontractors, technology providers, manufacturers, and specialized engineering firms.
Every additional organization involved in a program can create another point where sensitive information must be appropriately handled.
CMMC establishes a common framework for assessing the cybersecurity practices of organizations participating in the Defense Industrial Base. For Level 2, a Final CMMC status generally has a three-year assessment cycle, accompanied by annual affirmations of continuous compliance.
For customers evaluating Boston Engineering as part of their development team, our certification provides documented evidence of our cybersecurity readiness for applicable work.
More Than Compliance: Building Confidence in Your Product Development Partner
CMMC Level 2 certification is an important qualification, but cybersecurity alone does not make a successful engineering program.
Defense organizations also need partners capable of solving difficult technical problems, navigating requirements, reducing development risk, and moving technologies toward deployment.
Boston Engineering combines its CMMC Level 2 cybersecurity posture with multidisciplinary expertise across areas including:
- Systems engineering and complex system integration
- Mechanical, electrical, software, and embedded engineering
- Robotics, autonomous systems, and controls
- Ruggedized and harsh-environment product development
- Technology maturation and commercialization
- Design for manufacturing, reliability, cost, and serviceability
- Testing, validation, and verification
- Modernization and integration of new technologies into existing systems
This combination is especially valuable when customers need an outside engineering team to become deeply involved in a program rather than simply deliver an isolated engineering service.
Security Without Sacrificing Speed or Innovation
Defense product development frequently requires organizations to balance competing priorities.
Programs need to move quickly, but they also need engineering rigor. Teams need to introduce new technologies without creating unnecessary integration risk. And organizations need to collaborate with outside experts while maintaining appropriate control over sensitive information.
Cybersecurity readiness should support that work—not become something that must be addressed after a partner has already been selected.
By achieving CMMC Level 2, Boston Engineering can provide customers with greater confidence that security and compliance have already been made part of the foundation from which our teams operate.
A Partner Prepared for Defense Product Development
Boston Engineering has supported government and defense technology development for years, helping organizations solve complex engineering challenges and move technologies from early concepts toward field-ready systems.
Achieving CMMC Level 2 with a full 110-point assessment score adds another important capability to that foundation.
For defense organizations, primes, and suppliers evaluating an engineering partner, the benefit is straightforward: you can work with a multidisciplinary engineering team that brings together technical expertise, product development experience, and an independently assessed cybersecurity posture for applicable CUI environments.
Have a difficult engineering challenge or upcoming defense program?
Talk to Boston Engineering about your program →
Learn more about Boston Engineering’s CMMC Level 2 achievement and our commitment to cybersecurity.
Read our CMMC Level 2 certification announcement →