Signature Science LLC

Signature Science LLC, a for-profit limited liability company and subsidiary of the nonprofit Southwest Research Institute, operates as a prime contractor delivering expert witness services—particularly DNA analysis and forensic testimony—to the U.S. Attorney's Offices, along with specialized scientific and technical services across civilian and defense federal agencies. The company competes full-and-open without reliance on small business set-asides, drawing strength from a parent entity headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, with operations in Austin, Texas.

Signature Science's federal footprint is dominated by expert witness services to the Department of Justice. Of 1,076 total awards across the portfolio, 893 awards (83% of recent activity) flow to the U.S. Attorney's Offices, valued at $8.5 million in combined potential value—nearly all recent purchase orders in the $2,660 to $121,429 range. The company also holds significant work with the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate (45 awards, $257.6 million), the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (5 awards, $69 million), and the Department of Homeland Security Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office (9 awards, $62.1 million). By dollar value, the largest customer is the Department of the Army Joint PEO Chemical and Biological Defense (5 awards, $8.3 billion combined potential value), though these awards are dominated by a single massive vehicle ceiling. The concentration reveals two distinct tiers: high-volume, low-dollar expert witness work with DOJ, and larger R&D and services work with defense and homeland security customers.

Core capabilities center on forensic science, DNA analysis, and expert witness testimony in support of federal criminal litigation, complemented by chemical and biological threat assessment, genomic technology, critical infrastructure security research, and specialized research and development. Recent representative work includes multiple expert witness purchase orders with the U.S. Attorney's Offices for DNA analysis and forensic testimony (ranging from $2,660 to $121,429), a $508,225 delivery order from the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate for Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience Research Program support (awarded September 2025, completion September 2027), a $22,662 delivery order from the Delaware National Guard for biological warfare agents and toxins training under the OASIS+ Unrestricted vehicle (awarded December 2025), and subcontract work with Battelle Memorial Institute on chemical threats and hazard analysis for the Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (awarded January 2023).

Signature Science holds three significant indefinite delivery vehicles anchoring its federal capacity. The $999.999 billion OASIS+ Unrestricted Multiple Agency Contract with the General Services Administration permits flexible task-order-based work across forensic science, CBRNE threat assessment, and specialized R&D domains. A $55.7 million Other Transaction IDV with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (awarded December 2024) supports DARPA research initiatives in threat assessment and advanced scientific services outside FAR constraints. A $3 million Basic Ordering Agreement with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (awarded August 2025, completion August 2026) funds evaluations and benchmarks for assessing chemical and biological capabilities of artificial intelligence models, including red-teaming, human uplift studies, and AI safety evaluations. These vehicles position the company to respond flexibly to task orders across multiple agencies and mission areas.

SCI-reported federal service-contract invoicing totaled $25.3 million across FY2022–FY2024 (FY2022: $9 million, FY2023: $8.3 million, FY2024: $8 million), with a roughly stable FTE footprint of 24–28 personnel delivered to federal government service contracts in those years. On SCI-reportable prime contracts, median government-paid hourly rates ran around $133/hr, with the spectrum spanning from $31/hr for clerical support to $206/hr for senior technical roles. The company delivers its own workforce with negligible subcontractor hours share on SCI-recorded work. GSA Schedule labor pricing ranges from $52.20/hr for entry-level clerical through $270.67/hr for principal-level technical roles, requiring bachelor's degrees for mid- and senior-level positions but no security clearance mandates.

Signature Science competes as a full-and-open prime in 100% of its recent awards; no set-aside activity appears in the footprint. As a subsidiary of a nonprofit research institute, the company brings scientific research infrastructure and institutional credibility rather than small business or disadvantaged-business designation benefits. The company's primary subcontract role identified is support to Battelle Memorial Institute on Army chemical threat analysis; most work is delivered as prime. The vendor serves as a sub-recipient to the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists on influenza forecasting work under a National Institutes of Health or CDC grant (awarded January 2025).

Activity has grown year over year—19 awards in 2022 to 205 in 2025—reflecting heavy recent scaling in DOJ expert witness volume. However, 145 awards (combined potential value $53.2 million) face ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months and will require recompete; the DOJ expert witness orders, though numerous, carry relatively modest individual ceilings and ongoing renewal demand. The top five parent vehicles account for 91 task orders and $219 million in combined potential value, with the Environmental Services vehicle dominating at 61 task orders and $104.3 million. The NAICS and PSC categories confirm focus: 733 awards under "All Other Legal Services" and 879 under "Support–Professional: Expert Witness."

Signature Science operates alongside its parent Southwest Research Institute, which holds broader federal R&D and technical services contracts. The vendor's competitive posture rests on demonstrated expertise in forensic and chemical-biological threat domains, established relationships with DOJ prosecutors, and OASIS+ and OTA vehicles that enable rapid task-order response across multiple agencies without procurement delay.