A--Research and development in supply reduction of illicit drugs.

NA Research and development in supply reduction of illicit drugs. The U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range, Electronic Proving Ground, Counterdrug Office, Fort Huachuca, AZ 85613-7110 in support of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), Counterdru g Technology Assessment Center (CTAC), is soliciting white papers and proposals for innovative research and development projects to support the reduction of illicit contraband worldwide and to enhance the capabilities of Federal, State, and Local law enfor cement agencies conducting drug related investigations, sharing resources, and managing critical incidents. Specifically, this Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) seeks applications and technologies that enhance our National capabilities to meet the strategic Supply Reduction goals of ONDCP (see web site: www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov ). Areas of interest: This BAA focuses on science and technology-based initiatives that will contribute to the development and applications of technology to support: (1) Non-intru sive inspection - advanced concepts and approaches to interdict the flow of illicit drugs, currency and precursors from source countries, processing, in transit, across the borders, and to the final street consumer. These advancements include animal applic ations, radiographic, nuclear, electro-optical/hyper spectral, trace particle/vapor-based detection systems, and rapid processing, sorting, and screening methods. (2) Tactical Technologies - innovative devices, concepts, and systems for improving drug rela ted criminal investigations including the apprehension and successful prosecution of key criminals. These advancements include improvements to the law enforcement capabilities for surveillance, tracking, command and control, communications interoperability , communications intercept, and the management of information in support of investigations. Main areas of interest are: 1. Non-Intrusive Inspection: Projects to be considered include advanced concepts and approaches for the interdiction of illicit drugs, currency and precursors from domestic and source countries, processing areas, in transit, across the borders (air, land, and sea), and to the final street consumer. These advancements include improvements to the processing, interpretation and analysis of d ata obtained from existing chemical, radiological and nuclear-based inspection systems as well as emerging interrogation systems offering improved detection and identification capability, to include improving the screening throughput and sorting of cargo a nd conveyances. These may include systems that utilize advances in chemical, radiological and nuclear-based detectors and detector arrays that improve resolution and the signal-to-noise; and advances in image and signal processing algorithms and intelligen t pre-screening techniques that aid operators in detecting and identifying illicit contraband. Hand-held devices that show evidence of ruggedized design and improved performance under field conditions. Other innovative approaches comprise employing diverse data sets to link images obtained from prior inspections to spatial information of shipment containers and conveyances, historical trends derived from U.S. and foreign country law enforcement databases, and operator/driver information. These may include s ystems that utilize the latest advances in signal processing algorithms, nuclear, electro-optical/hyper spectral, particle/vapor collection and analysis approaches including animals. Proposed concepts and systems must include an approach for the test and v alidation of the system under operational field conditions. 2. Tactical Technologies: Projects to be considered include innovative devices, concepts and systems to enhance the capabilities of Federal, State, and Local law enforcement agencies conducting dr ug related criminal investigations, sharing resources and managing critical incidents. These advancements include improvements to the law enforcement capabiliti es for surveillance, tracking, command and control, communications interoperability, communications intercept, intelligence gathering and analysis, overall scene management, and the management of information in support of investigations. It is anticipated that that these devices and systems will apply the latest advances in digital video and audio signal processing, image reproduction and storage. Communications concepts include existing wireless data and voice networks and case management tools that make u se of open architecture and nonproprietary data storage schemes. Other interests include applications of systems and devices that allow the remote monitoring of cooperative and non-cooperative targets. Concepts for case management may employ a central pro cessing architecture with separate modules that can be updated independently are of specific interest. These applications include planning tactical operations for the apprehension of criminals, as well as, applications for compiling and assembling related evidence in support of prosecutions. Proposed concepts and systems must include an approach for the test and validation of the system under operational field conditions. White papers and proposals: To save in preparation costs and resources offerors shall submit a white paper. The white paper shall not exceed 10 pages in length, including figures, charts, and tables. The 10 pages shall contain a technical description of the effort, identification of the risks, a schedule, and cost estimate. The white paper shall include a title page and an abstract, not part of the 10 pages. The cover page shall contain: BAA number, white paper title, lead organization submitting the white paper, type of business, e.g. Large Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, Small Bu siness, Emerging Small Business, Historically Black Colleges and Universities/Minority Institutions, Other Educational, or Other Non-Profit, teaming companies (if applicable) and type of business for each, technical point of contact with address and teleph one numbers, e-mail address, administrative point of contact with address, and, telephone, e-mail address, and the date the white paper was prepared. The abstract shall be a one paragraph summary of the white paper. Offerors shall submit completed white p apers, prior to the closing date of April 30, 2003, to the U.S. Army Robert Morris Acquisition Center, EMETF, Building No. 55350, AMSSB-ACW (Mr. Charles Fahs), Fort Huachuca, AZ 85613-7110. White papers shall be submitted in PDF or Microsoft word format wi th the select text and select graphic options allowed. In addition to the original hardcopy, an electronic copy of the white paper shall be submitted on 1.44MB 3-1/2 inch floppy diskette(s), Iomega 100 MB Zip disks(s), or CD-ROM. White papers submitted by fax or electronic mail are not acceptable and will not be considered. White papers received after the closing date will not be considered. The page format shall be 12 point type, single spaced, one inch margins (left/right/top/bottom), single sided, 8.5 by 11 inch pages. White papers must be unclassified. Telephone inquiries concerning the status of white papers will not be entertained. Following the evaluation of the white papers, the Contracting Officer reserves the right to request a proposal from any, all, part of, or none of the white papers. In the event a white paper is favorably considered, the offeror will be invited to submit a complete proposal, within 45 calendar days of notification by the Contracting Officer. Such notification will confirm th at the offeror's white paper addresses an area of interest, will add relevance to mission requirements, and the offeror has a reasonable chance for a competitive award based on subsequent evaluation of the offeror's full proposal. There will be no debriefi ngs of white papers. Those invited to submit a proposal shall submit the proposal in accordance with the Proposer's Submission Instructions entitled, - Research and Development in Supply Reduction of Illicit Drugs. The Proposer's Submission Instructions can be found at: http://www.wsmr.army.mil/docpage/pages/sol_stat.htm Proposals not meeting the format described in the Proposer's Submission Instruction may not b e reviewed. White papers and proposals will be selected based on the availability of funding and the evaluation procedures outlined. Evaluation criteria/procedures: White papers and proposals will be selected through a formal procedure encompassing a techn ical/scientific and counterdrug decision review process. Proposers are advised that white papers and proposals may be reviewed or evaluated by non-government personnel such as representatives from academia, Federal Research & Development Centers, and consu ltants, each of whom will have accepted the terms and conditions of a non-disclosure agreement and an Organizational Conflict of Interest statement. All reviewed and evaluated white papers and proposals may not be funded due to budgetary or program constra ints. White papers and proposals will be evaluated with respect to the following criteria: (1) Overall scientific and technical merit. -feasibility of proposed project; awareness of challenges; -awareness of past and on-going research and related appli cations worldwide; -potential for advancement of scientific understanding of the National drug abuse problem; and -degree of creativity and innovation. (2) Potential contribution, relevance, and impact on the ONDCP's Goals and Objectives, as they relate to Supply Reduction (web site, www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov). - understanding the importance of the challenges; -understanding of the technical basis and advance technology applications; -potential of transition of the results into ONDCP/CTAC's Technology T ransfer Program. (3) Capabilities and experience (including major subcontractors). -Qualifications and experience of the research/project team; -relevance of published peer-reviewed journal articles; -management plan and experience; and -plans for transiti on of system (or validation study) to meet ONDCP goals. (4) Cost and schedule reasonableness/risk. -costs relative to perceived benefits; -degree of cost sharing; -project's plans and schedule; and -appropriateness of budget and level of efforts and descr iption of details. Offeror information: Numerous awards may result from this BAA and will depend upon the quality and merit of white papers and proposals received and available funding. There will be no formal Request for Proposals or other solicitation wi th regard to this BAA, nor does the issuance of this BAA obligate the U.S. Government to fund any white paper or proposals, nor to pay any white paper or proposal preparation costs. All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may s ubmit a white paper, which will be considered. Although no portion of this announcement is set aside for historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) or minority institutions (MI's), proposals are invited from all sources. The administrative addres s for this BAA is: U.S. Army Robert Morris Acquisition Center, EMETF, Building No. 55350, AMSSB-ACW (Mr. Charles Fahs), Fort Huachuca, AZ 85613-7110, email: contact@example.gov. The Government reserves the right to select for award, all, some, or non e of the white papers or proposals received in response to this announcement. The Government may also only select specific tasks within a proposal for award. The Government further reserves the right to issue contracts, grants, cooperative agreements or ot her transactions. Points of contact for this Broad Agency Announcement are Mr. Charles Fahs, Contracting Officer, +1 (555) 000-0000 and Ms. Virginia Miller, Contract Administrator, +1 (555) 000-0000.