HT9425-24-CB7-JD03-RFI _Blast Overpressure-Final-SAM.GOV.docx

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

RFI NO. : HT9425-24-CB7-JD03

1.0 RFI TITLE: Blast Overpressure Sensor System

2.0 AGENCY: U.S. Army Medical Materiel Development Activity (USAMMDA)

3.0 OFFICE: Soldier Medical Devices (SMD)

4.0 LOCATION: Fort Detrick, MD

5.0 DISCLAIMER: In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15.201 "Exchange with industry before receipt of proposals," this RFI is for information and planning purposes only at this time, and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the USAMRDC, or collaborative Department of Defense (DoD) activities. Neither unsolicited proposals nor any other kind of offers will be considered in response to this RFI. Responses to this notice are not offers and will not be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. In keeping with the standards of FAR Part 10, the Government may request additional information from responders. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI or any follow-up information request. All information received in response to this RFI or any follow-up information request that is marked Proprietary will be handled accordingly. Responses to the RFI will not be returned. At this time, questions concerning the composition and requirements for a future request for proposal will not be entertained.

6.0 Background: Since 2008, there has been significant interest from the Army, Congress, and the media in understanding the effects of Blast Overpressure (BOP) events on our soldiers. The primary motivation behind this interest was to assess soldiers for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) resulting from exposure to Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), which posed a persistent threat in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Between 2008 and 2017, the Army deployed helmet sensors and body-worn blast gauges to measure BOP events, record data, and correlate injuries with BOP data. Unfortunately, the sensors available during that period were not sufficiently mature to provide accurate blast measurements. Data downloads were time-consuming, inconsistent, and burdensome for units, resulting in limited opportunities to correlate BOP injuries with available data.

In 2018, the Army scaled back the deployment of BOP measuring devices but continued to collaborate with industry to assess the state of BOP sensor technology. BOP is defined as the pressure caused by a shock wave above normal atmospheric pressure. Soldiers have encountered BOP events during both training and combat, stemming from the use of Tier 1 weapons (such as small arms, Carl Gustav, and mortars) and exposure to explosions (including IEDs, artillery, rockets, and bombs). These events can occur as singular large events or as the cumulative effect of multiple smaller events.

Despite these developments, there is currently no automated system/device/application for measuring and reporting BOP events for soldiers.

7.0 DESCRIPTION: SMD of the USAMMDA has a requirement to identify current industry capabilities to measure, record, transmit, and analyze soldier Blast Overpressure events. The ability to perform all or a portion of these capabilities is of interest. Below are some of the BOP Sensor Systems capabilities of interest:

· The BOP sensor system shall have the capability to collect, manage, report, and export reliable and accurate BOP exposure data that is tactically relevant, operationalized, and actionable in a clear and understandable format.

· The BOP sensor system shall have the capability to indicate quickly that the device is operational and provide configurable alerts to users that include recommendations when to seek medical screening.

· The BOP sensor system shall be ruggedized and have the capability to operate in various operational environments and withstand wear and tear associated with Military operational and training environments.

· The BOP sensor system shall have the capability to safely operate for a defined period of usage and should require minimal time and intervention from the Service member to operate effectively.

· The BOP sensor system shall not interfere with the Service members’ ability to perform mission requirements and should be capable of collecting BOP data in a variety of mission scenarios while remaining as unobtrusive as possible.

· The BOP sensor system shall have the capability to securely interoperate with applicable DoD Information Systems and can securely transfer data viewable by the medical provider.

8.0 SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: Entities interested in submitting a response must furnish a WHITE PAPER. The subject header of the email for submission of questions and/or the RFI response shall be: “REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) NO.: HT9425-24-CB7-JD03 BLAST OVERPRESSURE SENSOR SYSTEM.” All information regarding capabilities statements or any other proprietary information relative to this RFI shall be marked appropriately. Responses from all capable and qualified sources are encouraged to respond to this request. White Paper submission instructions are found in (RFI Attachment 1-White Paper Instructions and template to Vendors ). Please provide enough technical data in the response for the Government to determine how the solution meets each of the system functional descriptions found in Attachment 1. Responses are sought even if the offered devices and/or technologies are not a complete system (e.g. just a sensor, software algorithms used to analyze events). The Government appreciates responses from ALL capable and qualified sources. Interested vendors should submit a response that demonstrates the Respondent's ability to perform any portion of the scope of work identified in this RFI.

Interested vendors are requested to respond to this RFI with a white paper (on company letterhead) in Times New Roman 12-point font, single spaced, single sided, 8.5 by 11- inch paper with 1-inch margins. White paper will not exceed 10 pages. All submissions shall be made electronically and be in one of the following formats: Microsoft Word or searchable Adobe PDF. Proprietary information, if any, should be minimized and must be clearly marked.

9.0 SUBMISSION CONTACT INFORMATION: Questions regarding this announcement shall be submitted in writing by email to Jamie Diggs at jamie.l.diggs.civ@health.mil no later than 9:00 AM EST 20 May 2024. Verbal questions will NOT be accepted. Questions shall NOT contain proprietary or classified information. The Government does not guarantee that questions received after due date will be answered. Responses to questions received will be posted to SAM.gov.

Interested entities shall forward RFI response to Jamie Diggs at jamie.l.diggs.civ@health.mil no later than the close of business 31 May 2024. Telephonic communication will not be considered as submission nor receive response.

(End of RFI)