Human Factors-Engineering Integration

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) under the Department of Transportation established this Master IDIQ on May 14, 2018, to support human factors research informing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, safety defects investigations, and vehicle technology development aligned with driver capabilities and limitations. Ordering closed on May 13, 2023—over three years ago—and the vehicle is no longer active for new task orders.

All 23 task orders awarded under the IDIQ have been fully obligated against the $21 million combined potential value. Recent ordering momentum declined sharply after the May 2023 cutoff; the last task order was awarded August 25, 2023, with no awards thereafter. Prior to closure, annual order volume ranged from 3 to 5 task orders per year, with 4 awards in 2023 before the window closed.

Awarded work focuses on human factors aspects of driving automation systems, driver monitoring and engagement strategies in levels 0–4 automation, driver distraction assessment and mitigation, human-machine interface (HMI) design and telltale effectiveness, impaired-driver detection, vehicle fail-safe strategies, and accessibility for vulnerable road users. Task orders employed firm fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, labor-hours, and cost-no-fee pricing models, with durations typically 18–36 months and individual ceiling values ranging from roughly $290,000 to $1.96 million.

Competition concentrated among five primes. Westat, Inc., dominated with 10 orders and $8 million in combined potential value. Texas A&M Transportation Institute, Toxcel LLC, Battelle Memorial Institute, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University split the remainder, holding 4, 2, 3, and 4 orders respectively. All task orders were competitive and unrestricted (no set-asides), and all funding came from NHTSA. Performance locations reflected the awardee base: academic research centers and established systems integrators with transportation research capability.

The vehicle is closed to new ordering and fully obligated. Pursuit is not viable for new awards.

The NHTSA Human Factors-Engineering Integration Division manages research which explores how to improve driver performance and reduce unsafe behaviors. An additional focus is to evaluate drivers' capabilities to benefit from existing or new in-vehicle technologies. The research supports Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), safety defects investigations, consumer information, and advancement of knowledge about driver behaviors and performance that can be applied to the development of vehicle technologies that are compatible with driver capabilities and limitations. This Master IDIQ supports that mission.