Data_Call_013_Wireless Mesh Networks for Survivable Command Posts_Amended 20220315.pdf

Solicitation: BAA-18-R-STCD Data Call 013 Topic #: S1830

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

BAA-18-R-STCD

WHITE PAPER CALL 013

Wireless Mesh Networks for Survivable Command Posts

Date 02 MAR 2022

Amended 15 MAR 2022

This call for White Papers (WP) is being issued under Broad Agency Announcement

(BAA) BAA-18-R-STCD, which was published on FedBizOpps.gov on 20 June 2018, and last updated on 01 February 2022. Respondents must refer to the solicitation document entitled BAA-18-R-STCD_20180620 BAA Final Rev15 (01Feb22), and it must be read in conjunction with this call for WP’s. All instructions set forth in the BAA-18-R-STCD solicitation document apply to this call.

The Research & Technology Integration Directorate (RTI) is issuing this call for WP’s in association with Topic #S1830. To be eligible for consideration and possible contract award, the technology or methodology shall be either basic research, applied research, advanced technology development not for a specific system/hardware, or demonstration and validation.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Problem Statement:

The Army is currently working to transition from tent-based, static, monolithic command posts (CPs) to more agile, expeditionary, and physically dispersed CPs. The intra-CP networks that support Army CPs reflect their static and monolithic nature, and must also evolve to support this transition. C5ISR Center RTI Directorate is seeking to develop a new secure mesh wireless capability, or add a mesh capability to existing Army wireless systems, that will support an agile, expeditionary, survivable CP at echelons from brigade (BDE) to Corps. The desired capabilities include:

1. Able to operate under denied/disrupted, intermittent or limited (DDIL) conditions without undue network performance impact.

2. Encryption sufficient to protect network traffic at multiple classification levels.

3. Capable of supporting multiple network enclaves at different classification levels with a single wireless transceiver.

4. Ability to form mesh networks with few or no “hubs” or other single points of failure.

5. Support high network throughput.

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

Information Sought:

C5ISR Center Research & Technology Integration Directorate (RTI) is interested in receiving WPs on the above topic from companies that have extensive experience in developing secure wireless network capabilities. The identified technology solution(s) should be at technology readiness level (TRL) 4 or higher to be considered. Novel combinations or reconfigurations of high-TRL solutions will be considered. The end state of the identified solution should be a demonstration/proof of concept system at TRL 6 or higher that can be tested and verified in an operationally-relevant environment, then transitioned to an Army program of record.

Possible solutions can be single-product, an integrated suite of products, or a novel combination or reconfiguration of currently-fielded Army systems. Solutions should either include wireless transport or be transport-agnostic.

It is essential that any identified solutions have a clear path to be matured and commercialized to meet other important system goals including, but not limited to:

affordability, supportability & sustainability, trainability, cybersecurity and authorization under the DoD Risk Management Framework (RMF).

AWARD INFORMATION:

1. ANTICIPATED AWARD DATE: June 2022

2. FUNDING: Under this call, the Government intends to award one contract with a

Period of Performance (PoP) of a 12 month base and one (1) 12 month option. The option years are not guaranteed and are based on funding availability. The anticipated funding for this call is up to $2,000K for the total contract ceiling, however, the

Government reserves the right to award smaller or larger contracts or assistance instruments.

NOTE: This funding profile is an estimate only and not a contractual obligation for funding. All funding is subject to change due to Government discretion and availability.

Potential respondents should be aware that due to unanticipated budget fluctuations funding in any or all areas may change with little or no notice. Awards under this call are expected to range from $2,000K to $3,000K. The Government reserves the right to select all, part, or none of the WP’s received, subject to the availability of funds.

3. BAA TYPE: This is a call for WP’s only, and will be governed by the “two-step” process described in General Information of the BAA-18-R-STCD. Respondents that submit a proposal without first submitting a WP may not be eligible for award.

4. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: This call provides general public release requirements ONLY. Additional technical detail can be requested by contacting all

POCs below, being sure to provide DUNS and/or CAGE numbers in the request.

This Call should not exceed ten (10) pages in length (single sided, single spaced, with

12-size font). The ten (10)-page limitation does not include the Rough-Order-of-

Magnitude (ROM) or the Cover Page. Refer to baseline BAA-18-R-STCD Section III for all other instructions on WP preparation, submission, and evaluation.

5. QUESTIONS DUE DATE AND TIME: Technical questions are due no later than 09

March 2022, 3:00 pm EST via email to the Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) with a carbon copy (Cc) to the Contracting Officer (KO), Contract Specialist (KS), and

Acquisition Management Team (AMT) Mailbox, as listed below. Questions and answers will be posted to FBO.

Government will publish questions and answers received by industry to FBO, via a revision to this Data Call, per ADDENDUM 001, Technical Questions and Clarifications, herein.

6. WHITE PAPER DUE DATE AND TIME: WP’s are due no later than 24 March 2022, 3:00 pm EST via email to the Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) with a carbon copy (Cc) to the Contracting Officer, Contract Specialist, and AMT Mailbox, as listed below.

TPOC: Bradford Stevenson, bradford.j.stevenson.civ@army.mil

AMT: usarmy.apg.devcom-c5isr.mbx.rti-baa@army.mil

KO: Christopher Fisher, christopher.m.fisher24.civ@army.mil

KS (1): Eric Leach, eric.a.leach.civ@army.mil

KS (2): Shawn Sipes, shawn.m.sipes.civ@army.mil

If the submission will be classified, respondents should contact the TPOC and KO for instruction on how to submit the WP, via appropriate methods/channels. The KO shall be informed, in writing, that a classified WP has been submitted, its title and to whom it was submitted to.

Contractual questions may be directed to the KO and/or KS at any time.

Solicitation BAA-18-R-STCD Data Data Call 013

(U) ADDENDUM 001

(U) Technical Questions and Clarifications

15 March 2022

NOTE: For the protection of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), selected

Government responses to the technical questions are redacted. To receive a fully disclosed version of the Q&As, please submit a request, providing your DUNS and/or your CAGE Number, to the RTI Acquisition Management Team (AMT) email address, with a carbon copy (Cc) to the Contracting Officer (KO) and the Contract Specialists

(KS) listed below:

AMT: usarmy.apg.devcom-c5isr.mbx.rti-baa@army.mil

KO: Christopher Fisher, christopher.m.fisher24.civ@army.mil

KS (1): Eric Leach, eric.a.leach.civ@army.mil

KS (2): Shawn Sipes, shawn.m.sipes.civ@army.mil

Q&As

Q1: (U) Is the requirement to support the Command Post(s) with Wireless Mesh Network at (1) On-The-Move (2) At-The-Halt (3) or Static?

A: (U) At the halt

Q2: (U) What is the required range between Command Post nodes?

A:

Q3: (U) To confirm, the requirement for CP nodes is up to 12?

A: .

Q4: (U) How are security credentials distributed and maintained in an isolated network?

A: (U) Active directory accounts and a certificate server.

Q5: (U) Do NSA capability packages need to be integrated into the system? If so, which ones?

Q6: (U) Does the CP need self-organizing, self-healing, and self-optimizing capabilities?

A: (U) Those are objective capabilities but straightforward configuration, built in test and optimizing capabilities are primarily desired.

Q7: (U) The Army tested Secure Wi-Fi with CPs in 2018. How is the network in this request different from the 2018 network?

A: (U) We want to develop a true mesh network without a hub. This is a requirement for survivability and Continuity of Operations. There is also a desire for a capability that is transport-agnostic and can support alternative transports such as mmWave or Free Space Optics (FSO).

Q8: (U) Target peer-to-peer link range (kilometers, etc.) for between neighboring transceiver nodes?

Q9: (U) Target total mesh coverage range (kilometers, etc.)?

A: (U) Nodes could be place in a serialized mode therefore coverage area is dependent on node locations and physical ground characteristics

Q10: (U) Target number of simultaneous users/participating transceiver nodes?

Q11: (U) Target peer-to-peer and/or aggregate network data rate/throughput?

Q12: (U) Target occupied bandwidth or operating band targets?

A: (U) Looking for solution that is transport agnostic but will use transmitters in the non-regulated frequency. Using IEEE 802.11ac and IEEE 802.11ad.

Q13: (U) SWAP targets/restrictions?

A: (U) SWaP-C is a factor for consideration but there is not a hard target at this stage of research.

Q14: (U) Unit cost target?

A: (U) A cost per node is a factor for consideration but there is not a hard cost target at this stage of research.

Q15: (U) The data call asks for solutions that operate in DDIL conditions. Are solutions restricted to IP-based end-to-end approaches only, or information management technologies specifically focused to DDIL scenarios are also in scope?

Q16: (U) Are the solutions solicited in this data call targeted for the wireless systems only, or a mix of wireless, wired, and optical as projected for Survivable CPs?

A: (U) The ability to support a variety of transports including wired, Free Space Optics, etc is desired.

Q17: (U) If solutions are targeted for existing Army wireless systems, are secure capabilities offered by the proposed solution complementary to, or in place of the existing COMSEC capabilities?

Q18: (U) What sort of time period do you expect these mesh networks to be in place (e.g., hours, days, weeks)? (For example, if we use a swarm of drones to create/maintain the mesh network, there are limitations as to how long they can serve as relays before their batteries run out.)

Q19: (U) Is AES encryption sufficient for “desired capability #2”? Or are you looking for Type-1 encryption as well?

Q20: (U) What sort of ranges/distances are expected/desired for the mesh network?