19AQMM26N0003 Interdiction and Hidden Compartment Training.pdf

Sources Sought Notice

U.S. Embassy Mexico—International Narcotics & Law Enforcement Affairs

(INL Mexico)

Interdiction & Hidden Compartment Training

This Sources Sought Notice is part of the U.S. Government's market research efforts to identify capable Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business

(SDVOSB) vendors that are qualified and capable to deliver Interdiction & Hidden

Compartment Training and Mentoring for the U.S. Embassy Mexico City. The information gathered will help inform future procurement strategies and requirements.

This Sources Sought is issued solely for information and planning purposes - it does not constitute a Request for Quotation (RFQ), Invitation for Bid (IFB), or

Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFQ, IFB or RFP in the future. This notice does not commit the U.S. Government to contract for any supply or service. Further, the U.S. Government is not seeking quotes, bids or proposals at this time and will not accept unsolicited proposals in response to this notice. The U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this notice. Submittals will not be returned to the responder. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future RFQ, IFB, or RFP, if any is issued.

DRAFT STATEMENT OF NEEDS

The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), through the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City's Criminal Deterrence – Counter Illicit

Finance Program, requires contractor support to strengthen the Government of

Mexico's ability to interdict illicit drugs, firearms, bulk cash, and other contraband concealed in hidden compartments within passenger vehicles, commercial trucks, tractor-trailers, and buses. Transnational criminal organizations continue to evolve their concealment methods, and Mexican federal, state, and military law enforcement personnel need specialized technical training, practical vehicle-inspection skills, and evidentiary-procedure knowledge to detect and disrupt these methods effectively.

To meet this need, INL requires a contractor to deliver a phased, multi-year capacity-building program consisting of two distinct courses: (1) a Basic

Interdiction and Hidden Compartment Certification course, to be delivered over the base year and option year one, providing foundational classroom and hands-on training using vehicles equipped with hidden compartments; and (2) a Train-the-

Trainer course, to be delivered in option year two to previously certified participants, building an internal cadre of qualified Mexican instructors. The program also includes a follow-on Quality Control/Mentoring phase (option year three) to audit, mentor, and reinforce skills among trained personnel in the field.

The contractor must be able to deliver training and mentoring both within Mexico and within the U.S., providing all required instructors, translators, training materials, certified vehicles with hidden compartments, and logistical/administrative support across all phases. The overall goal is to build a sustainable, self-sufficient Mexican training capability that improves detection, seizure, and prosecution outcomes related to hidden-compartment smuggling, in direct support of U.S.-Mexico bilateral security and counternarcotics cooperation objectives.

Notice Responses/capability statements should respond to the Draft Statement of Need and include the following:

1. Contact information:

• Name of company

• UEI number

• Institutional or organization affiliation (if applicable)

• Email address

• Phone number

2. Summary of credentials/professional experience relative to this and similar requirements including;

• Experience conducting business in Mexico as a prime contractor or subcontractor, particularly with Mexican state and federal law enforcement entities and the Mexican military i.e. DEFENSA

(SEDENA) and MARINA (SEMAR).

• Evidence of successfully delivering criminal interdiction, proactive patrol, vehicle inspection, and hidden-compartment detection training, particularly for U.S. or foreign federal, state, military, or law-enforcement personnel. Respondents could identify similar contracts, customers, periods of performance, dollar values, and points of contact.

• Experience delivering train-the-trainer courses

• Technical and logistical capability: Ability to perform as the prime contractor and manage numerous iterations of on-site training over an extended period time (i.e. years) in multiple countries, experience in Mexico is particularly relevant.

• Qualified Training Personnel: Capability Statements should include a matrix that addresses the following:

i. Experience/ability to provide SME instructors (multiple per course) with experience in law-enforcement, interdiction, hidden-compartment detection, courtroom testimony, and having appropriate certifications.

ii. Experience/ability to provide Mexico specific training requirements including:

1. Spanish language training materials, instructors, and/or interpreters

2. Project Management personnel within Mexico for recurring iterations over a period of up to multiple years

3. Locally based legal subject matter expert

• Training Materials: Capability Statements should include information that demonstrates interested firms’ ability to:

i. Provide training kits for classroom use

ii. Provide modified vehicles (estimated 5 to 7 required) with genuine or manufactured installed hidden compartments for use in training.

3. Recommendation on whether this requirement is more effectively articulated as a Statement of Work (SOW) or a Performance Work Statement (PWS)

4. Recommendations on the appropriate PSC and NAICS codes for this requirement.

5. Based on the information and recommendations that you provide, please state the applicable pricing model that you would provide:

• Provide estimated pricing based on your firm’s practices, aligned with the requirements of this project. All prices will be considered notional and nonbinding.

• Offer recommendations to minimize the cost/price of this requirement.

• Estimated pricing based on your firm’s practices as aligned to this requirement—all prices are understood to be both notional and nonbinding.

Do not include the following in the response:

1. Do not submit formal proposals or offers;

2. Do not submit requests to be considered for award or to be notified of a future solicitation; as a courtesy to vendors who submit capability statements, responding vendors will be notified should the government elect to issue a formal RFP/RFQ at a later date.

3. Do not submit requests to be added to a mailing or distribution list;

4. Do not submit questions or comments not related to this Request for

Information;

5. Do not respond via telephone.

How to Submit Responses:

1. Please submit responses via email to ModrakER@state.gov including

“19AQMM26N0003: “Interdiction & Hidden Compartment Training” in the e-mail subject line.

2. Please submit capability statement responses as a single attachment to the email: either Adobe pdf file or MS Word file.

3. If you have any questions regarding this Notice, please submit them via e-mail to ModrakER@state.gov. Please include in the e-mail subject line.

4. The Request for Information submission closing date is August 28 2026, at 4:00

PM CST.

mailto:ModrakER@state.gov mailto:ModrakER@state.gov