FOA-2021 ERDC Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) (W912HZ-21-BAA-01); no deadline set

 

Agency

Department of Defense, Department of the Army

U.S. Army U.S. ARMY Engineer Research And Development Center (ERDC)

 

Description

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) has issued a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for various research and development topic areas. The ERDC consists of the Coastal and Hydraulics Lab (CHL), the Geotechnical and Structures Lab (GSL), the Reachback Operations Center (UROC), the Environmental Lab (EL) and the Information Technology Lab (ITL) in Vicksburg, Mississippi, the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Lab (CRREL) in Hanover, New Hampshire, the Construction Engineering Research Lab (CERL) in Champaign, Illinois, and the Geospatial Research Laboratory (GRL) in Alexandria, Virginia. The ERDC is responsible for conducting research in the broad fields of hydraulics, dredging, coastal engineering, instrumentation, oceanography, remote sensing, geotechnical engineering, earthquake engineering, soil effects, vehicle mobility, self-contained munitions, military engineering, geophysics, pavements, protective structures, aquatic plants, water quality, dredged material, treatment of hazardous waste, wetlands, physical/mechanical/ chemical properties of snow and other frozen precipitation, infrastructure and environmental issues for installations, computer science, telecommunications management, energy, facilities maintenance, materials and structures, engineering processes, environmental processes, land and heritage conservation, and ecological processes.

 

·        Conference & Symposia Grants: The ERDC supports conferences and symposia in special areas of science that bring experts together to discuss recent research or educational findings or to expose other researchers or advanced graduate students to new research and educational techniques. The ERDC encourages the convening, in the United States, of major international conferences, symposia, and assemblies of international alliances.

 

·        Coastal & Hydraulics Laboratory (CHL): Research is performed in the areas of hydraulic structures such as locks, dams, outlet works, control gates, stilling basins, spillways, channels, fish handling systems, and pumping stations, flood control channels, navigation channels, riverine and estuarine hydrodynamics and transport processes, groundwater, hydrology; dredging-related equipment, and on coastal problems related to shoreline protection, beach erosion, navigation, sedimentation, Regional Sediment Management, inlet stabilization, and construction, operation and maintenance of coastal structures (breakwater, jetties, groins, seawalls, etc.). Major areas of interest include coastal hydrodynamics (wind waves, tides, currents, wind related water levels); coastal sedimentation (longshore transport, inlet sedimentation); coastal geology and geomorphology; design and stability of coastal structures; erosion and storm reduction potential of natural and nature-based features; system optimization methods and performance metrics for coastal operations; coastal resiliency; and interaction of structures and coastal processes. Other activities include descriptions of coastal processes; theoretical studies; watershed and regional sediment and water systems studies; numerical and physical model techniques; data collection and analysis techniques; development of laboratory and prototype instrumentation and equipment. The full BAA contains information on these research areas and specific research thrusts.

 

·        Geotechnical & Structures Laboratory (GSL): Research performed by the Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory’s (GSL) eight branches consists of investigations in the areas of soil mechanics, engineering geology, geophysics and seismology, earthquake engineering, pavements (both expedient and permanent), mobility and traffic ability of military vehicles, structural design and performance of structures under both static and dynamic loadings, earth dynamics, and the uses and performance of concrete, cement, and other construction materials. Research areas also include measurement and analysis of seismic and acoustic signals to locate airborne and ground military targets and buried objects (including unexploded ordnance) and to characterize earth media. Research on concrete and cement is predominantly related to current recognized needs, both civil and military. Military expediency focuses additional attention on ease and speed of concrete placement, development of very high-strength materials, and use of non-traditional, indigenous, and other special materials in concrete construction. Civil works research focuses primarily on the need to improve the performance of both new and old concrete structures. Structures research involves development, testing, and evaluation of a broad class of structures to resist the effects of static and dynamic loads induced by earthquakes and other sources. The Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory also conducts research involving all aspects for improving the survivability of fixed installations. Research in numerical modeling and computer simulation of many of these topics is also undertaken. The full BAA provides a synopsis of the GSL’s research responsibilities and, more specifically, describe those areas in which pre-proposals will be considered.

 

·        Environmental Laboratory: Current research is in the acquisition of information by remote sensor systems, the impact of the environment on imaging and other sensor systems, and advanced signal processing. Sensors using electromagnetic, seismic, and acoustic energy forms are of interest. In addition, work is conducted to determine terrain and other environmental effects on high-technology sensor systems. Sensor systems include optical and infrared millimeter wave (active and passive). The full BAA describes specific research areas. For all topic areas, white papers or “pre-proposals” will be evaluated to possibly initiate collaborative proposal development for third-party funding sources (e.g., Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP), DoD Basic 6.1 Research Program, research related to the RESTORE Act, etc.). White papers must clearly outline work to be conducted, public benefit of the work, appropriate technology transfer, personnel qualifications, and all associated costs. Funding of jointly prepared full proposals is contingent upon acceptance and funding by the third-party funding source.

 

·        Information Technology Laboratory: Research Areas include Computational Science and Engineering; Software Engineering and Informatics; High Performance Computing (HPC) and Networking; Cybersecurity; High Performance Data Analytics; and High Performance Computing (HPC) Enabled Additive Manufacturing (AM) Technologies.

 

·        Construction Engineering Research Laboratory: Research Areas include Advanced Methods and Designs for Additive Construction; Using Indigenous Materials Resources for Construction Innovative semi-Permanent Military Construction in Austere Environment; Innovative Construction Material Systems; Innovative Energy Efficiency and Energy Security Initiatives; Fuel Cell Technology Advancements; Contingency Basecamp Operational Energy; Autonomous Robotic Solutions for Engineer Operations in the Deployed Environment; Robotic 4-D Printing of Geopolymer Composites for Extreme Environments; Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Composites for Infrastructure Applications; Steel Aircraft Hangars and Aircraft Sunshade Subjected to Hurricanes, Tornados, and Microburst; Innovative Corrosion Control; Integrated Water Security for DOD Installations; Critical Infrastructure Protection for Utility Systems; Infrastructure Management, Facilities Maintenance; Modeling and Simulation/Analysis tools for Infrastructure Applications; Innovative Coating Systems and Applications; Inventory, Assessment, and Monitoring; Land Management; Waste to Energy Conversion Systems; Compliance at Troop Installations; Pollution Prevention; Business Process Reinvention; Socio-Cultural Analysis; Adaptive Intelligence Systems Architecture; Environmental Health and Soldier Protection; Regional and Ecological Planning and Simulation; Mitigation of Wide Area Biological Contamination Events; Innovative Water Efficiency and Water Resilience Initiatives; and Bioelectrochemical Systems.

 

·        Cold Regions Research & Engineering Laboratory (CRREL): CRREL has two major organizational elements to perform its mission: the Research and Engineering Division (RED) and the USACE Remote Sensing/Geographic Information Systems Center of Expertise (RS/GIS CX). RED is composed of five research branches: Biogeochemical Sciences, Engineering Resources, Force Projection and Sustainment, Signature Physics, and Terrestrial and Cryospheric Sciences. The RS/GIS CX comprises three functional research groups: Water Resources/GIS, LiDAR and Wetlands, and Terrain and Ice Engineering.

 

·        Geospatial Research Laboratory: The Geospatial Research Laboratory (GRL) conducts research related to providing rapid collection and analysis of imagery acquired from various sources to include unattended vehicles (UGV and UAS) for high resolution, optimized rendition of structures in the dense urban environment (DUE). Multi-modal data is used to create integrated and tiered geospatial products for enhanced visualization and situational awareness. Additional interests include materials and methodologies for data collection, exploitation, integration, compression, and dissemination to small units, as well as navigation and mapping capabilities in GPS-denied environments for mounted and/or dismounted units. GRL research efforts explore technologies incorporating novel materials development related to geospatial intelligence (data collection and analysis). Currently available software and hardware capabilities, in addition to emerging technologies, are explored. Technologies and capabilities are prioritized for near real-time sensing and improved understanding of the dense urban operational environment.

 

The proposals submitted under this BAA will be subject to peer or scientific review. Resulting agreements may be in the form of purchase orders, contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements depending upon the specifics of the effort, such as extent of Government involvement, actual scope of work, and cost.

 

Announcement Number:

W912HZ-21-BAA-01

 

Closing Date:

This BAA shall remain in effect until superseded.

 

Link to Full Announcement

https://sam.gov/opp/58dc714ff81b4c7a85b1138e801c42c3/view

 

Contact Information

ERDC-BAA@usace.army.mil