The internal DevSecOps platform that powers ECS engineering

ECS DevLabs is our shared services environment for ECS teams to design, build, and run cloud-native solutions. It provides a secure, scalable, and compliant DevSecOps platform on AWS that underpins Everforth solutions and other customer missions.

For ECS employees only. DevLabs is operated by the ECS DevLabs / Software Factory team to accelerate delivery for Everforth and external customers.

What ECS teams use DevLabs for

  • Proof-of-concept and R&D environments
  • Reference architectures and accelerators
  • Internal tools & platform services
  • Customer pilots for cloud, data, and AI

Built on AWS, Amazon EKS, Terraform, and the ECS Software Factory, integrated with Platform One Big Bang.

What is ECS DevLabs?

ECS DevLabs is a shared services environment developed to provide ECS teams with a secure, scalable, and compliant DevSecOps platform for software development, deployment, and experimentation.

Hosted in AWS, DevLabs integrates modern cloud-native technologies with industry- and DoD-aligned security practices, enabling rapid and secure software delivery across Everforth initiatives and other customer programs.

Think of DevLabs as the internal platform where ECS engineers build accelerators, prototypes, and reusable components that later become part of production solutions for customers.

Built on the ECS Software Factory

  • ECS Software Factory provides a secure CI/CD foundation integrated with Platform One’s Big Bang.
  • Automated, hardened, and compliant pipelines tailored for DoD and enterprise environments.
  • DevLabs exposes this as a shared platform, so project teams don’t have to reinvent the DevSecOps stack each time.

Platform foundations & architecture

Under the hood, DevLabs is a full-stack platform built on AWS, EKS, Big Bang, and a hardened DevSecOps security stack. ECS teams consume it as a service; the platform team handles the plumbing.

AWS cloud infrastructure

  • Hosted in AWS with HA, resiliency, and guardrails.
  • Amazon EKS for container orchestration and multi-tenant Kubernetes clusters.
  • Terraform for Infrastructure as Code (IaC) across VPCs, accounts, clusters, and shared services.

Big Bang & GitOps

  • Integration with Platform One Big Bang for pre-hardened, DoD-aligned application stacks.
  • Istio service mesh for secure service-to-service communication and ingress control.
  • FluxCD GitOps workflows for declarative infrastructure and app lifecycle management.

DevSecOps security stack

  • Zero Trust principles across networking, identity, and workloads.
  • Continuous policy and vulnerability enforcement via Gatekeeper, NeuVector, and related tools.
  • RBAC integrated with Microsoft Entra ID for secure identity and access management.

Shared services & observability

  • Multi-tenant support for multiple ECS projects and teams.
  • Centralized logging via the Elastic Stack and monitoring with Prometheus + Grafana.
  • GitLab and GitHub integration for CI/CD, source control, and automation.

Application & AI workloads

  • Support for microservices, APIs, data science, and ML/AI workloads.
  • Generative AI & orchestration tools (for example, Flowise for low/no-code agentic workflows).
  • Patterns, templates, and reference implementations ECS teams can reuse across programs.

How ECS teams use DevLabs

DevLabs is where we incubate new ideas, prove out architectures, and build reusable capabilities that support Everforth and other customers.

R&D and internal accelerators

Stand up experimental services, spike proof-of-concepts, and build accelerators (for example, reusable microservices, data pipelines, AI workflows) that can later be exported into customer environments.

Everforth-aligned platforms

Design and test platform patterns that ultimately support the Everforth family of companies, including reference architectures, IAM patterns, observability blueprints, and security controls.

Customer pilots and demos

Use DevLabs for time-bound pilots, demos, and evaluation environments where ECS needs a fast, secure place to showcase cloud-native, data, or AI capabilities before a customer’s own environment is ready.

Operational tooling & shared services

Run internal tools such as dashboards, automation services, and shared APIs that support ECS program delivery. DevLabs centralizes common capabilities instead of every program standing up its own stack.

Legacy modernization paths

Use DevLabs as a landing zone for modernization journeys: containerize legacy apps, apply observability and security patterns, and experiment with new architectures before committing to a full migration.

Platform capabilities for ECS teams

DevLabs gives you more than raw infrastructure. It’s an opinionated, automated DevSecOps platform with strong guardrails, observability, and collaboration built in.

Security & compliance

  • Continuous enforcement of compliance and security policies at the cluster and workload levels.
  • Integrated scanning across code, containers, and Kubernetes resources.
  • Zero Trust-aligned networking, encryption, and identity controls.

Scalability & flexibility

  • On-demand provisioning of cloud resources and services.
  • Support for data-heavy, event-driven, and AI/ML workloads using cloud-native tooling.
  • Ability to scale from small POCs to larger internal or customer-facing pilots.

Efficiency & automation

  • GitOps pipelines that keep environments in sync with Git.
  • Automated monitoring, alerting, and deployment workflows across multiple environments.
  • Reusable templates, Helm charts, Terraform modules, and policies.

Collaboration & knowledge sharing

DevLabs serves as a shared ecosystem for ECS teams: patterns, Helm charts, Terraform modules, and reference services are cataloged and reused rather than recreated per project.

With generative AI tools, open catalogs, and low-code orchestration platforms, DevLabs gives engineers a place to experiment while staying aligned with ECS security and delivery standards.

How ECS employees get started

Onboarding to DevLabs follows a lightweight intake and review process. The goal is to right-size environments, clarify responsibilities, and ensure we meet customer and security expectations.

1

Align with your program

Confirm your program or account team supports using DevLabs for your initiative (for example, R&D, accelerators, customer pilots, or Everforth workstreams).

2

Submit a DevLabs intake request

Go to the ECS DevLabs support portal and submit a DevLabs Project Discovery / Onboarding request. Be ready to describe your use case, data classification, timelines, and team members who need access.

Open the ECS DevLabs Support Portal

3

Discovery & architecture session

Meet with the DevLabs team to design your environment: AWS accounts, Kubernetes namespaces, networking, data services, IAM patterns, and any shared tools you’ll depend on.

4

Provisioning & first deployment

The DevLabs team provisions the environment, wires it into the ECS Software Factory toolchain, and helps you perform your first deployments and observability checks.

Need additional services for an existing DevLabs project?

Request new AWS accounts, Kubernetes namespaces, data services, or shared tools through the DevLabs Service Catalog in the support portal.

Frequently asked questions (ECS internal)

Who can request a DevLabs project?

Any ECS employee working on an approved initiative that benefits from a shared, secure DevSecOps environment: solution architects, technical directors, engineering leads, product owners, and R&D teams.

Is DevLabs a production environment?

DevLabs is primarily for development, testing, pilots, and internal or pre-production workloads. In some cases, DevLabs patterns are later promoted or replicated into customer-managed production environments.

How are costs handled?

Cloud usage is attributed to DevLabs and mapped back to programs, contracts, or internal R&D. When onboarding, the DevLabs team can help you understand cost expectations and reporting options.

Can I host customer data in DevLabs?

It depends on data classification and contract requirements. The DevLabs team will review your use case and determine whether data can reside in DevLabs or if an alternate environment is required.

What if my program already has its own AWS or Kubernetes setup?

DevLabs doesn’t replace program-owned environments, but it can provide reusable patterns, reference implementations, and shared tooling that programs can adopt. Some teams use DevLabs for R&D and then port patterns into customer environments.

How does this relate to Everforth?

For Everforth, DevLabs acts as an internal platform where ECS teams design and validate cloud, data, and AI solutions that will ultimately support the Everforth portfolio. It helps ensure we’re using consistent, secure patterns across programs.