A 21 Draft Performance Work Statement.docx

Performance Work Statement

COMMERCIAL DATA SETS

December 15, 2025

Background For more than six decades, the U.S. Department of War (DoW) has been a world leader in science and technology (S&T); however, it currently faces a range of challenges to maintain that leadership. Cutting-edge research and development (R&D) is increasingly dispersed internationally. It has also expanded beyond the domain of established universities and large, longstanding corporations, and DoW does not have the same depth of relationships with newer technology companies, start-ups, and even community laboratories where exciting breakthroughs are occurring today. Meanwhile, the raw number of participants, amount of technical information, and sources of relevant data are all growing rapidly, creating major challenges to finding relevant information. Competitors are challenging DoW’s technical advantage, and budget pressures are limiting DoW’s ability to expand what it funds. Thus, DoW has multiple challenges to stay informed of cutting-edge work and guiding its investments appropriately, while the importance of doing so is increasing.

As these challenges mount, the data analytics field has grown rapidly, producing more sophisticated algorithms which run more quickly using more powerful, less expensive computing resources. Combined with the explosion in S&T data, this has created interest in the potential for data analytics to enable new and effective approaches to managing DoW’s research portfolio.

In response to this challenge, in 2018, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) stood up the Data and Analytics Division (DAD) with similar efforts now standing up in other commands within the Army, Navy and Air Force. Within the DAD charter was the call to acquire S&T data to support analytics to support evidence-based decision making at ONR and throughout DoW. Furthermore, in 2019 ONR awarded a pilot contract for three types of data for a limited number of users: S&T Publications, Domestic and International Grant activities (public and private), and Patents & Patent transactions. That pilot contract ended in 2021 when a vendor began supplying ONR with S&T award data.

Objective The intent of Tasks identified in this PWS is to allow ONR to make more-informed decisions with resourcing and investing. ONR has a vested interest in S&T awards data for many crucial reasons, all related to their mission of fostering scientific discovery and technological innovation to maintain naval power. Here are several key areas of concern:

1. STRATEGIC FORESIGHT AND PLANNING:

Identifying Emerging Trends: Analyzing award data across various disciplines helps ONR identify emerging S&T trends and potential breakthroughs that could impact naval capabilities in the future. They can see where the research is headed and anticipate what technologies will be relevant in the next 5, 10, or 20 years.

Setting Research Priorities: The data informs ONR's own research priorities. By understanding what areas are receiving funding and showing promise, they can better allocate their resources to high-impact projects aligned with naval needs.

Avoiding Duplication and Redundancy: A comprehensive view of S&T awards helps ONR avoid funding research that is already being adequately addressed by other organizations or agencies. This ensures efficient use of resources and promotes novel investigation.

Technology Road Mapping: ONR uses award data to develop technology roadmaps, outlining the steps needed to develop and mature specific technologies relevant to the Navy and Marine Corps.

2. UNDERSTANDING THE RESEARCH LANDSCAPE:

Mapping Expertise: The data allows ONR to identify leading researchers, institutions, and companies in specific S&T areas. This enables them to build partnerships and collaborations with the best minds in the field.

Assessing Capabilities: It helps ONR understand the current S&T capabilities of the nation and where there might be gaps or areas that require further investment.

Competitive Analysis: Analyzing awards made by other nations and organizations provides insights into their research priorities and potential technological advancements that could pose a challenge to US naval superiority.

Identifying Potential Partners and Vendors: S&T awards can point to small businesses and startups developing innovative technologies that might be relevant for naval applications.

3. EVALUATING RESEARCH IMPACT AND RETUEN ON INVESTMENT (ROI):

Tracking Progress: Following award data over time allows ONR to track the progress of research projects and assess the impact of their investments.

Measuring Return On Investment: They can analyze the long-term benefits of funded research, such as new technologies, improved capabilities, and economic impact.

Justifying Funding Requests: Data on S&T awards helps ONR justify its funding requests to Congress and other stakeholders by demonstrating the value of its research programs.

Informing Investment Strategies: By analyzing the outcomes of past awards, ONR can refine its investment strategies to maximize the impact of future research.

4. NATIONAL SECURITY IMPLICATIONS:

Counterintelligence: Monitoring S&T awards can help ONR identify potential security risks, such as the transfer of sensitive technologies to foreign adversaries.

Protecting Intellectual Property: They can identify areas where US intellectual property might be vulnerable to theft or exploitation.

Understanding Foreign Capabilities: The data helps ONR gain insights into the S&T capabilities of potential adversaries and identify potential threats to national security.

5. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT:

Identifying Talent Pools: S&T awards often involve students and postdoctoral researchers. By tracking this data, ONR can identify and cultivate future talent for the naval workforce.

Supporting STEM Education: Award data can inform ONR's efforts to support STEM education and promote careers in science and engineering.

In summary, access to comprehensive S&T awards data empowers the Office of Naval Research to make informed decisions about its research investments, track progress, assess impact, and maintain a strategic advantage in an increasingly competitive technological landscape. It's a crucial tool for ensuring the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps remain at the forefront of technological innovation.

Requirement Tasks Performance of tasks shall conform, at a minimum, to the performance standards and acceptable quality levels identified in the Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP).

TASK 1: DATA ACQUISITION AND CURATION

· Identify, acquire, and curate relevant commercial S&T data sets, including but not limited to:

· S&T Publications

· Domestic and International Grant Activities (public and private)

· Patents and Patent Transactions

· Startup Investment Activities (public and private markets)

· Company Details (status, location, industry, corporate structure, etc.)

· Business Internal Research and Development Budgets

· Mergers and Acquisitions

· Informal S&T Literature (scientific weblogs, pre-print articles, white papers, grey literature)

· Ensure data quality, accuracy, and completeness.

· Address data licensing and usage rights.

· Ensure any acquired data has Negotiated Rights to the Data in the Contract.

TASK 2: DATA HOSTING AND SECURITY

· Securely host the data in a FedRAMP High-authorized GovCloud environment such as AWS GovCloud.

· Implement robust security measures to protect the data at rest and in transit.

· Comply with all applicable DoW security regulations and standards.

TASK 3: DATA ACCESS AND API DEVELOPMENT & MAINTENANCE

· Develop and maintain secure and reliable data access mechanisms, including:

· RESTful API:

· Provide comprehensive API documentation.

· Ensure unlimited access from ONR's internal MDM server.

· Vendor-Supported Boolean-Enabled, Search-Based User Interface:

· Enable data exploration and ad-hoc querying.

· Provide IP-restricted access and concurrent user licenses.

· Support data export capabilities.

· Bulk Data Download:

· Enable downloads of large datasets for machine learning and text analytics.

· Restrict access to a secure government enclave.

· Provide ongoing technical support for data access mechanisms.

· Ensure the API can have unlimited access from ONR's internal MDM Server.

TASK 4: ANALYTIC SUPPORT AND REPORTING

· Provide analytic support services, including:

· Data analysis and interpretation.

· Report generation and dashboard creation.

· Expert identification.

· Development of white papers, information papers, point papers, PowerPoint presentations, spreadsheets, databases, dashboards, policy, and guidance in accordance with ONR regulations, standards, and processes.

· A maximum of 20% of the award value will be dedicated to personnel to support analytics but not to exceed 2.0 FTEs. It is expected that at least 50% of this will be a dedicated Senior Data Scientist who will be considered a critical billet. The remaining 50% is expected to be a blend of Program Manager and Senior / Intermediate Data Science Subject Matter Experts (SME) to support the Senior Data Scientist as needed for additional tasking and will be offsite.

· Directly engage with ONR’s expert senior scientific analysts to answer questions in support of strategic planning, portfolio planning, and monitoring and evaluation of large, far reaching and complex research funding portfolios.

· Quickly create and revise templates/automate reports for any frequently asked questions (topical reports or otherwise).

· Create dashboards to give real-time insight into global research trends.

· Leverage the full range of data to identify, compile, and utilize this data to answer various questions (such questions may range from “How much money did China invest in artificial intelligence,” to, “Which people, institutions or countries are most prolific and most engaged in research focused on Deep Learning?”

· Identify experts in any given field based on their research activities, publications, funding, patents, clinical trials, online activity, and more.

· Provide premium-level user training and support to ensure that at a minimum, users can login and perform basic functions using the data and any platforms associated with it.

TASK 5: GROWTH AND SCALABILITY

· Provide options for scaling data usage and the number of users accessing the data over time for each access mechanism (API, UI, Bulk Download).

Data Rights ONR requires Government Purpose Rights (GPR) to the data, allowing for internal use, research, and development. The Contractor shall clearly define any restrictions on data usage or redistribution.

Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) Offerors are subject to ONR’s Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) policy. ONR has determined that an actual or potential organizational conflict of interest (OCI) exists when a contractor (including its parent, subsidiaries, and affiliates) performs both systems engineering and technical assistance (SETA) or other support services and Research and Development (R&D) work. Such situations give rise to OCIs or potential OCIs based on impaired objectivity, biased ground rules, and unequal access to information. ONR prefers that companies avoid such situations altogether by choosing to do only one type of work for ONR. See ONR's Statement of Policy on OCIs, which can be found at the following address: https://www.onr.navy.mil/About-ONR/compliance-protections/Organizational-Conflicts-Interest . OCI and Personal Conflicts of Interest will be addressed via solicitation. While this is not an evaluation factor OCI and PCI will be analyzed to assure that none exist.