RFI_MEP-LEP.docx

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

AGENCY: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection Large-Scale (LS) Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) Program

TITLE: Vendor Comments for Multi Energy Portal (MEP) and Low Energy Portal (LEP) Systems

ISSUANCE DATE:

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes; it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) nor a promise to issue an RFP or other solicitation. Furthermore, those who respond to this RFI should not anticipate feedback about its submission, other than acknowledgment of receipt. This RFI does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is not currently seeking proposals. Respondents are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay any cost incurred in response to this RFI. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the expense of the respondent. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future solicitation. The information provided in this RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. All submissions become the property of the Federal Government and will not be returned.

Background United States (U.S.) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is responsible for targeting, selecting, and examining vehicles and cargo deemed high risk for terrorist-related activity, smuggling of contraband, and trade law violation. CBP Officers and United States Border Patrol (USBP) Agents are also responsible for ensuring the flow of legal and legitimate trade and travel across U.S. borders. CBP has a continuing requirement to interdict contraband such as weapons, explosives, illegal narcotics, currency, stowaways and numerous other forms of contraband smuggled into the United States through examination of conveyances.

Historically, Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) scanning was conducted on shipments that were designated by the Port-of-Entry (POE) Advance Targeting Unit (ATU), chosen by random selection, and/or at the discretion of the primary officer. These selected shipments were then scanned using NII systems located in the Secondary Inspection area. The NII systems were not integrated with CBP Information Technology (IT) infrastructure or applications.

Several years ago, CBP began pre-primary and post-primary scanning procedures with the acquisition of Large-Scale Fixed drive-through NII portals [i.e., Multi-Energy Portal (MEP) and Low-Energy Portal (LEP)] to safely scan vehicles, drivers and passengers which greatly increased throughput and the total number of scans. This follow-on NII acquisition will continue to support the deployment of MEPs and LEPs which are fully integrated with the CBP IT network infrastructure, cloud, common integration platform, law enforcement applications and associated databases.

Purpose The purpose of these Large-Scale Fixed NII Systems is to enable CBP to perform effective and efficient Non-Intrusive Inspection of conveyances, such as passenger occupied vehicles, occupied commercial vehicles, and buses for contraband such as illicit narcotics, terrorist weapons and currency.

The MEP systems will be used for inspection of larger vehicles like buses, recreational vehicles, and truck tractors with laden semitrailers and trailers. Each system will be capable of providing an NII image with the quality and performance in accordance with this SOW and attachments to aid CBP personnel in identifying anomalies (potential contraband) within the conveyance.

The LEP systems will be used for inspection of smaller vehicles such as privately owned vehicles (POV) including cars, sport utility vehicles, pickup trucks, motorcycles, commercial vans, dual-rear wheeled trucks and towed trailers, as well as larger vehicles like buses, recreational vehicles, truck tractors with empty semitrailers and trailers.

Scope CBP has an immediate requirement for Large-Scale Fixed Systems such as MEPs and LEPs to improve its inspection of vehicles and conveyances for illegal contraband including narcotics, currency, and terrorist weapons. The volume of vehicles flowing through CBP POEs, especially along the Northern and Southwest Border, requires a mechanism that allows vehicles to be driven through the system while occupied by the driver and its passenger(s).

Delivery CBP plans to procure up to (20) MEPs and (14) LEPs during the base year. In the first contract option period, the maximum anticipated quantity is (20) MEPs and (16) LEPs. For each of the remaining three option periods, CBP estimates procuring (5) MEPs and (5) LEPs annually.

Requested Information U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is seeking feedback from industry on draft requirements documents related to Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) Large Scale Fixed System technologies. Your insights are crucial in ensuring that our upcoming acquisition accurately reflects current technological advancements and best practices. We invite you to thoroughly review the requirements documents provided and submit comments focusing on areas that may be unclear, requirements that do not fully capture the latest technological capabilities, or specifications that might inadvertently limit the inclusion of newer, yet proven, technologies.

Please note that this is a request for information and not a solicitation for proposals. While the government will not be providing direct responses to individual questions posed within your comments, any questions submitted will be carefully considered and may be utilized to clarify and refine the final requirements documents. To streamline this process, please refrain from submitting capability statements. Our primary interest is in your expert feedback on the draft requirements themselves.

We request that all comments be submitted within fifteen (15) calendar days from the date of this request. Your timely and detailed input is highly valued as we work to enhance our NII capabilities and secure our nation's borders. We appreciate your partnership and look forward to your contributions.

Note: There is no page limit for this request.

Responses are due within fifteen (15) calendar days of this RFIs published date. Responses must be submitted in the CBP provided “RFI Response Matrix” Microsoft Excel format to contracting officer Aga Frys, aga.frys@cbp.dhs.gov and Kaitlin Merli, kaitlin.h.merli@associates.cbp.dhs.gov Questions While the government will not be providing direct responses to individual questions, they may be submitted in writing via e-mail to the Contracting Officer, aga.frys@cbp.dhs.gov. Verbal questions will NOT be accepted. Any questions submitted will be carefully considered and may be utilized to clarify and refine the final RFP documents.

Summary THIS IS ONLY A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) to identify any areas of improvement on the draft requirements documents. The information and specifications provided in the RFI are subject to change and is not binding on the Government. CBP has not made a commitment to procure any of the items discussed and release of this RFI should not be construed as a commitment or authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. All submissions become Government property and will not be returned.