HQ Supreme Allied Commander Transformation. Request for Information

Transcription

1 General Information Request For Information No. Project Title Due date for submission of requested information Contracting Office Address Technical Points of Contact Contracting/Response Point of Contact RFI-ACT-SACT (Re-issue) Collaborative project proposal (FFCI): NATO Standard CBRN Sensor Interface 11 January 2013 NATO, HQ Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT) Purchasing & Contracting Suite Blandy Rd. Norfolk, VA, LtCol Frank Kaemper, frank.kaemper@act.nato.int, Tel : Maj Christophe Dufey, Christophe.Dufey@act.nato.int, Tel : Tonya Bonilla, tonya.bonilla@act.nato.int, Tel : Page 1 of 6

2 1.0 Description 1.1 HQ Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (HQ SACT) is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) announcement to support the establishment of a NATO Standard CBRN Sensor Interface. 1.2 The purpose of this RFI is to exchange information in support of establishing a set of requirements to develop common standards for CBRN sensors, in order to achieve greater interoperability between sensors and command and controls systems. 1.3 This RFI DOES NOT constitute a current Request for Proposal (RFP) or a commitment to issue a future RFP. HQ SACT is not seeking proposals at this time, and will not accept unsolicited proposals in respect of this RFI. Respondents are advised that HQ SACT will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in responding to this RFI. The costs for responding to this RFI shall be borne solely by the responding party. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any subsequent RFP if issued in the future. 2.0 Background 2.1 About ACT Framework for Collaborative Interaction (FFCI) ACT has implemented a Framework for Collaborative Interaction (FFCI) to increase opportunities for industry and academia to contribute to ACT capability development efforts though collaborative work. Such collaboration enables HQ SACT, and NATO as a whole, to benefit from industry models, advice, capabilities and experience in the course of this work. In addition to the benefits ACT gains from such projects, this collaborative effort will provide industry with an improved understanding of NATO s capability requirements and the associated issues and development challenges to be addressed by ACT. Potential collaborative projects are in specific topics that are of mutual interest to both parties but shall be restricted to collaborations in nonprocurement areas. Several mechanisms have already been developed to support the initiation of collaborative projects between industry and ACT ranging from informal information exchanges, workshops, studies or more extensive collaboration on research and experimentation Depending on the level and type of interaction needed for a collaborative project, a specific agreement may be needed between parties. The FFCI agreement for any specific project, if required by either party for the project to proceed, will range from Non-disclosure Agreements for projects involving exchange of specific information, to more extensive Declaration of Mutual Collaboration (DOMC) to address intellectual property and other issues. For most of the topics listed below, it is envisaged that the Page 2 of 6

3 level of contribution will be such that RFI respondents will wish to sign a DOMC before entering into any significant collaborative work More extensive information on the ACT FFCI initiative can be found on the ACT web site which is being developed to support FFCI projects at: About this RFI This collaborative interaction is focused on informal information exchange between RFI respondents, ACT and the NATO Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear Communications Information Systems and Warning and Reporting Panel (CBRN CIS WRP). As part of ACT s support to the panel, the aim of this project is to provide technical knowledge, expertise, and recommendations to the NATO members and partners participating in the NATO CBRN CIS WRP. This support is envisaged to be in the area of standardisation and enhancing interoperability as well as finding ways to improve and take into account new sensor technologies output instead of being a bottleneck. The NATO CBRN CIS WRP is interested in investigating the benefits of leveraging common software standards About the NATO CBRN CIS WRP: The NATO CBRN CIS WRP is a panel of experts under the CBRN Operational Working Group of the NATO Standardisation Agency (NSA) Military Committee Joint Service Board (MCJSB). The purpose of the Panel is to develop, harmonise and validate CBRN Defence Information Exchange Requirements (IER) proposals in support of operational requirements for the MCJSB. In addition the Panel is responsible for the development and maintenance of Allied Joint CBRN CIS and Warning & Reporting (W&R) operational doctrine and inter alia Allied Tactical Publication 45 (ATP-45) and the Allied Engineering Publication 45 (AEP- 45). 3.0 Proposed Collaborative Interaction 3.1 Generic Context of the Collaborative Interaction It is essential that information about CBRN threat agents identified by sensors can be transmitted near to real time and initiate appropriate and timely CBRN defensive measures. The ability of CBRN defence forces to react rapidly to the military needs for the detection of CBRN hazards is hampered by the lack of electronic interoperability of sensors. Sensors have been developed independently, with a specific set of requirements, by a product vendor without a common baseline set of electronic standards. Naturally, this procurement process has led to a vast variety of software interfaces. Page 3 of 6

4 3.2 Description of the Project HQ Supreme Allied Commander Transformation Intent/Objectives The intention of the project is to develop common standards for CBRN sensors, in order to achieve greater interoperability between sensors and command and controls systems. The overall objective is to establish a NATO Standard CBRN Sensor interface that would enhance CBRN situational awareness as part of NATO s ambition to establish a Common Operating Picture (COP) Steps of the project Based on an analysis of the requirements the project will take a stepped approach as follows: a. Step 1 is to conduct a survey and identify a common standard, b. Step 2 is to establish NATO Standard CBRN Sensor Interface that enables CBRN sensor interoperability, net centric operations, and ease of integration into Command and Control (C2) Systems. c. Step 3 is to validate the standard Expected input from industry Initially Industry is expected to inform step 1 of the project and identify current standards and protocols being used to develop sensors. Pending the outcomes of step 1 further collaboration can be envisaged Expected benefits to industry Through collaboration via ACT with the NATO CBRN CIS WRP it is expected that industry will be able to participate at an early stage in identifying a common data standard. This will undoubtedly afford collaborators from industry an improved awareness of NATO requirements for a NATO Standard CBRN Sensor Interface. 4.0 Requested Information 4.1 Intent of the RFI The intent of this RFI is to: a. Identify requirements to support the establishment of the NATO Standard CBRN Sensor Interface; and b. To conduct a survey and collect technical information on existing sensor data standards. Vendor companies and organizations interested in responding to this RFI are invited to provide answer to the following questions: Page 4 of 6

5 a. What are the current data standards and protocols being used to transmit sensor information b. What are the current data standards and protocols being used to control sensor behaviour? c. What is the current status of these standards, i.e. are they under development or in use and where? d. Can NATO and PfP Nations use these standards and if so are there any licencing agreements or costs involved with their use? e. Which sensors currently support these standards and what is the status of these sensors in terms of development and fielding? f. What is required to enable existing sensors to be used in accordance with these standards? Do these requirements involve the need to procure specific software or hardware? g. Are the standards able to accommodate all information provided by the sensors and all configurable commands the sensor can receive? h. To what extend is the information from the sensor and the commands sent to the sensor generic? Which sensor information and commands are supported as generic elements, i.e. elements that do not relate to the specific sensor? i. Do the standards place any requirements on the sensors to be supported? j. Which requirements do these standards place on the underlying technical infrastructure and do these requirements demand that specific software products are used? If so, is such software already available and are there any specific license agreements must be adhered to use such software? k. Which organisations direct the future development of the standards? l. Could NATO have input to the future development of the standards. m. Are these standards adhering to or dependent on other standardisation documents, architecture frameworks etc., and which organisations direct the future development of these? n. Would NATO have access to updates, fixes and new versions of the standard? 4.2 Answers to the RFI The answers to the present RFI must contain detailed technical information on the data standards and protocols being used to transmit sensor information Presentations Selected RFI respondents may be contacted to provide more detailed information on their solutions. Page 5 of 6

6 4.3 Handling of Proprietary information Proprietary information, if any, should be minimized and clearly marked as such. Please be advised that all submissions become HQ SACT property and will not be returned. 5.0 Questions Questions of a Technical Nature about this RFI announcement shall be submitted by e- mail only to the above mentioned POCs. Accordingly, questions in an shall NOT contain proprietary and/or classified information. HQ SACT does not guarantee that questions received after 20 December 2012 will be answered. Answers will be posted on the HQ SACT P&C website at: Response Date Responses should be received by 1200 Eastern Standard Time, 11 January Responses should be forwarded to Tonya Bonilla, tonya.bonilla@act.nato.int, +1 (757) Summary THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. The information provided in this RFI is to inform NATO on industrial approaches to sensor data transmission. HQ SACT has not made a commitment to procure any of the items described herein, and release of this RFI shall not be construed as such a commitment, nor as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement will be required or sought. It is emphasized that this is a RFI, and not a RFP of any kind. All submissions become HQ SACT property and will not be returned. Page 6 of 6