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WASHINGTON – The Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) Science and
Technology Directorate (S&T) announced today it is seeking new
technologies for first responders. Industry, academia, laboratories, and the
innovation community are invited to submit proposals related to four
technology categories through the new Broad Agency
Announcement (BAA) solicitation (BAA 18-02 Call 0002) until July
22, 2020.
“Now more than ever, our focus is
on giving first responders of all disciplines the technology and personal
protective equipment they need to do their jobs safely and effectively,” said
Milt Nenneman, program manager in S&T’s Operations and Requirements
Analysis Division. “We work directly with responders themselves to identify
their capability gaps, which are reflected in these topics. We are now
seeking the best partners to turn these needs into solutions.”
S&T is seeking proposals for
these four topic areas:
·
Integrated Structural Turnout Gear: Firefighters respond to a variety of
response situations that require very specific turnout ensembles, garments,
vests, and other items to meet the demands of the mission.
Currently-available turnout gear does not inherently provide adequate
visibility, ballistic protection, or lower extremity protection. S&T is
seeking to provide firefighters with personal protective equipment that meet
these needs and comply with all National Fire Protection Association
standards for conventional firefighter missions.
·
Next Generation Firefighter Helmet: Traditional structure firefighter helmets do
not incorporate state-of-the-art technology that maximizes capability and
safety. For instance, current helmets offer no ballistic protection, which
puts firefighters at risk when working in violent situations. S&T is
seeking a solution that will incorporate current “best of breed” capabilities
and characteristics, including better head protection, increased comfort,
increased range of motion, better retention, and less probability of snags,
as well as easier cleaning and maintenance. The solution will adhere to
National Institute of Justice Level IIIA ballistic protection.
·
Remote and Rapid Rescue Capability: In the aftermath of a disaster, responders of
all disciplines may have to locate and rescue people that are trapped in
difficult-to-reach or dangerous-to-enter locations. Most traditional
approaches can be time-consuming and often increase risk to the emergency
responders themselves. Because time is of the essence, S&T is seeking new
remote- and rapid-rescue tools that can quickly deploy an unmanned device or
vehicle on the ground, in the water, and/or from the air to locate stranded
or trapped persons, hook or load them, and carry them to safety. The proposed
solution would also carry payloads to assist casualties by delivering food,
water, medicine, or other supplies crucial to survival.
·
Portable Thermal Imager Integrated with
Signs-of-Life Sensors: Emergency
responders need to quickly identify signs of life (e.g. breathing, blood pressure,
body heat, pulse, movement, speech) to improve rescue and increase survival
rates. Many existing tools are designed for large-scale events; S&T is
seeking handheld options integrated with thermal imaging that the fire
service, law enforcement, and emergency medical personnel can use in a wide
variety of everyday operations. The solution would work in real time to
locate people who are trapped, in distress, hiding or avoiding detection, or
lost and could be deployed in a variety of operating environments.
Interested
partners are encouraged to visit the BAA solicitation
on SAM.gov for more information about each of the topics and details on
submitting white papers. Proposal deadline is July 22, 2020.
For more
information about additional ways to work with S&T, visit https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/business-opportunities.
For more information about S&T’s work supporting first responders, visit https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/first-responders.
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