2025 CB Warfighter Engagements

UPDATE 12/11/2024: The Technology Submission Deadline has been extended from Thursday, December 12, 2024 to Monday, December 30, 2024 at 5:00pm.

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY - This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes - it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the United States Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary; the United States Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the United States Government. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on the SAM.gov website: https://sam.gov/. It is the responsibility of the potential offerors to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to this requirement.

The purpose of this RFI is to gain information leading to Government partnering with Industry and Academia to accelerate the development of technologies that will enable the Warfighter to understand, protect, and mitigate chemical, biological, and radiological (CBR) threats.

This RFI intends to identify innovative technologies and technology concepts that are interested in participating in one or more of the following experimentation venues: 1) A scenario-based Chemical Biological Operational Analysis (CBOA) event at Camp Shelby, Mississippi from 5-10 April 2025 evaluating early prototypes or 2) A static exhibit and presentation in the technology Concept Tent for technology concepts and ideas that do not have ruggedized prototypes for the scenario-driven CBOA. Conducted in conjunction with the CBOA event or 3) The Joint Task Force scenario-based Tenacious Dragon 3 (TD3) Advanced Technology Demonstration (ATD) at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey from 17-28 June 2025 assessing capability sets or groupings of more mature S&T prototypes to mitigate transition risk.

The CBW experiments are conducted with representatives from Government Research and Development (R&D) organizations, academia, and industry. They provide opportunities for technology developers to interact with operational personnel and determine how their efforts might support future military capability gaps and high priority mission deficiencies. The environment facilitates a collaborative working relationship among participants; supports the identification, assessment, and dissemination of emerging and mature technology information; and accelerates the delivery of capabilities to the Warfighters and those they support. Please note: 1) CBOA and the Concept Tent at CBOA are the primary entry points for industry and 2) Existing or anticipated governmental sponsorship is preferred for participation in the TD3 ATD.

The event targeted in the submission should be based on maturity and data needs of the technology developer. Technology developers may have the opportunity to participate in all three warfighter engagement events during the technology maturation process. In the Concept Tent, emerging technology concepts and ideas receive User feedback on potential operational applications/use cases, employment concepts, and future design attributes. At CBOA, early developmental prototypes or models are placed in the hands of up to 100 Service members to use while conducting realistic missions in adaptive scenarios against a threat unit in a CBR environment. In CBOAs, individual prototypes are assessed for form, fit, and function. Once form factors have been assessed and optimized, more mature developmental prototypes may participate in the TD3 ATD where prototypes are handed off to up to 80 Service members and assessed as part of integrated capability sets (sets, kits, and outfits required to execute missions) in the context of the broader system of equipment, logistics, and other considerations.

Technology developers will receive feedback directly from Warfighters during the events and a summary report of data collected as well as Warfighter findings and observations after the events. Incorporating feedback and observations from end users while using Science and Technology (S&T) prototypes in contested environments optimizes developing technology for use by the Warfighter and enhances the Service's understanding of the capabilities and limitations of each technology prior to advanced development. For the CBOA and TD3 ATD events, prototypes must be ruggedized enough to be placed into the hands of Warfighters and be used in tactical scenarios.

PLEASE REFER TO THE ATTACHMENTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.