Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) Air Purifying Escape Respirators

I. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, National Urban Security Technology Laboratory (NUSTL), a SAVER Technical Agent, is seeking information on commercially available Air Purifying Escape Respirators (APER) approved for use in CBRN hazards. This RFI is limited to CBRN APER with the following characteristics: - Quick donning, short duration respiratory protection; - Designed for escape purposes only; - Certified by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) as compliant with CBRN requirements. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) established the System Assessment and Validation for Emergency Responders (SAVER) Program to assist emergency responders making procurement decisions. Located within the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) of DHS, the SAVER Program conducts objective assessments and validations on commercial equipment and systems, and provides those results along with other relevant equipment information to the emergency response community in an operationally useful form. Information provided by the SAVER Program will be shared nationally with the responder community, providing a life- and cost-saving asset to DHS, as well as to Federal, state, and local responders. For more information on the SAVER Program, visit the SAVER website at http://www.firstresponder.gov/saver. SAVER provides information on equipment that falls within the categories listed in the DHS Authorized Equipment List (AEL). The AEL item number for the subject equipment is 01AR-04-APER. The target audience for this information is emergency response organizations and their purchasing agents. II. SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION Respondents are required to complete an online Product Summary Questionnaire for each product. The questionnaire may be accessed at the following website: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CBRN_Air_Purifying_Escape_Respirators The Product Summary Questionnaire includes questions seeking the following specific information: 1. Company's name 2. Company's address 3. Point(s) of contact (name, title, e-mail, and phone number) 4. Business type and size (manufacturer or distributor, small or large business) 5. Product name, type, description, and specifications 6. Cost information (purchase price and General Services Administration [GSA] schedule information). All information received will be treated as public knowledge and may be used in SAVER Program documentation; therefore, vendors should not submit proprietary information in response to this RFI. Responses to this Request for Information must be submitted not later than 4:00 PM EST, November 10, 2014. All technical comments, inquiries and responses should be directed to Gladys Klemic via email at Gladys.Klemic@hq.dhs.gov; all non-technical questions should be directed to Ms. Sharon Flowers, DHS Contracting Officer, via email at Sharon.Flowers@hq.dhs.gov. III. OTHER The submitted information will be evaluated for inclusion in SAVER projects and reports. Determination as to an individual product's suitability will be made by NUSTL based on the objectives of this request. Therefore, requests for feedback should not be made through the Federal Business Opportunities posting agency. Vendors may be contacted following submission for more detailed product information. Vendor provided information may be reformatted for publication in SAVER Program documents. This RFI is for information gathering and planning purposes only, and should not be construed as a Request for Proposal (RFP) or solicitation of an offer. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this RFI or otherwise pay for the information solicited. Submission of vendor information constitutes consent to publication of that information in SAVER Program documentation.