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On October 30, the U.S. Army Futures Command (U.S. AFC) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for Network-Cross Functional Team (Network-CFT).
This BAA, announcement number BAA-21-R-NCFT, is sponsored by the U.S. AFC, Network-CFT and will be open for five (5) years from the date of original issue. This BAA will be valid through 29 October 2025, unless terminated sooner. This BAA includes research interests from the Network-CFT/PEO C3T (located at APG, Maryland) and or other Government agencies.
U.S. AFC leads a continuous transformation of Army modernization in order to provide future warfighters with the concepts, capabilities, and organizational structures needed to dominate a future battlefield. The Network-CFT was established to address the most pressing challenges to the tactical network that our soldiers use on the battlefield. The Network-CFT brings the Warfighters, developers and testers to the center of the acquisition process through focused integration and disciplined innovation, enabling the Army to deliver leader-approved technology capabilities to warfighters. The Network-CFT is focus on integration of tactical network efforts and ensures disciplined innovation as it works with speed and precision.
The Network-CFT is conducting experimentations and demonstrations of proven joint and special operations solutions, commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) technology, and Non-developmental items (NDIs) with operational units to inform future requirements. The Network-CFT is promoting research to assist the Army with modernizing network with technology currently available. The plan is to deploy new network tools every two years as part of continuous network modernization plan.
GENERAL INFORMATION
This BAA is issued under the provisions of Parts 35.016 and 6.102(d)(2)(i) of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), which provides for the competitive selection of R&D proposals submitted in response to this announcement. FAR 35.016 provides for the issuance of a BAA as a means of requesting proposals for basic and applied research and that part of development not related to the development of a specific system or Hardware (HW) procurement.
To be eligible for consideration and possible contract award, the technology or methodology shall be either basic research, applied research, advanced technology development not for a specific system/HW, or demonstration and validation. This BAA may be used by agencies to fulfill their requirements for scientific study and experimentation directed toward advancing the state-of-the-art or increasing knowledge or understanding rather than focusing on a specific system or HW solution; however, this BAA shall only be used when meaningful proposals with varying technical/scientific approaches can be reasonably anticipated.
- Basic Research
Defined as research directed toward increasing knowledge in science with the primary aim being a fuller knowledge or understanding of the subject under study, rather than any practical application of that knowledge.
- Applied Research
Is an effort that normally follows basic research, but may not be severable from the related basic research; attempts to determine and exploit the potential of scientific discoveries or improvements in technology, materials, processes, methods, devices, or techniques; and attempts to advance the state-of-the-art.
- Development
Defined as the systematic use of scientific and technical knowledge in the design, development, testing, or evaluation of a potential, new product or service (or of an improvement in an existing product or service) to meet specific performance requirements or objectives. It includes the functions of design engineering, prototyping, and engineering testing; it excludes subcontracted technical effort that is for the sole purpose of developing an additional source for an existing product.
Full information is available here.
Source: SAM
