FY18 TSI NOFO QA 20180817.pdf

Questions and Answers to the FY18 Transformative Solutions Incubator

(TSI) NOFO

As of 6 August 2018

1. Can UARCs and other FFDRCs be prime on a proposal?

A: No. Section C of the NOFO states:

The following entities below are eligible to apply for this NOFO:

Private institutions of higher education

Public & State controlled institutions of higher education

AND

The following listed below are organizations that are eligible and encouraged to submit a proposal:

Universities and Colleges. Universities and two‐ and four‐year colleges

(including community colleges) accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency, and having a campus located in the U.S;

Organizations are referred to as academic institutions for the purposes of this

Solicitation.

All non‐academic institutions regardless of profit or non‐profit status are ineligible to participate.

2. Please clarify the available funding for the Base period.

A: The base period lasts 2 years but is funded annually. The NOFO states that the available funding is approximately $1.3M and expected number of awards is 5‐7. Therefore a rough estimate for first year funding for an individual award is $185,000 ‐ $260,000. The second year of the base period is estimated approximately the same, assuming successful progress of the project and funding availability.

As of 8 August 2018

3. What ingress pathways on the east coast may be of most interest?

A: Shipments originating from Central and South America and the Caribbean Islands.

4. What kind of datasets will you be offering to universities for Topic 1?

A: Please refer to the Topic 1 text which describes some of the possibilities. CWMD has test data covering most of these options which can be used during the feasibility base period.

5. Can any datasets be provided to the proposer ahead of awards?

A: No.

6. Is it necessary to immediately commit to a relationship with a particular national laboratory or industrial partner at the proposal stage?

A: There are advantages of having a partner early in the project to help guide research.

However, if a partner cannot be secured by the proposal submission deadline, applicants should describe their outreach to date in the proposal and, if awarded, must secure a partner during the initial 2 year base period of the award. This is described on pages 4 and 5 of the NOFO.

7. Will a proposal call for related lab/industry projects be released?

A: Any future proposal calls for lab/industry projects will be made to be suitable for that level of effort and not directly tied to this TSI NOFO.

8. Can lab/industry partners be funded?

A: Yes, they can be funded as subcontractors in the proposal. Universities must be the prime contractor. As a successful award progresses through the 5 year life time, it is expected, but not required, that the partner involvement (and therefore funding) will increase to help facilitate technology development and transition. However, it is up to each applicant to determine the path that is best for them.

As of 17 August 2018

9. In the proposal, do we need to provide a budget for up to the full 5 years?

A: Yes, but we understand that the out years are estimates. With each continuation package, the budgets can be updated.

10. For Topic 2, is there an anomaly detection component to the work? Or is it all background data collection?

A: The purpose of the data collection is to establish a baseline for anomaly detection. Therefore, it is appropriate to consider application of the data to anomaly detection.