Description
DESCRIPTION : The U.S. Border Patrol (USBP), as part of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), is conducting market research on the current availability and technological capabilities of vendors to provide advanced technologies to enhance USBP’s Small Unmanned Aircraft System (SUAS) Program. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT ON THE BASIS OF THIS MARKET RESEARCH OR OTHERWISE PAY FOR INFORMATION RECEIVED. This research is issued solely for information, planning purposes, and market research only; it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP. This market research does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service. CBP is not seeking proposals at this time. CBP will not pay for any costs associated with responding to this market research. Not responding to this market research does not preclude participation in any future RFPs. If a solicitation is released, it will be posted to the System for Award Management website (https://sam.gov). All submissions become the property of the Government and will not be returned. The information obtained from industry’s responses to this notice may be used in the development of an acquisition strategy and future RFP. INTRODUCTION : The USBP is a sub-component of CBP whose mission is to prevent the illegal flow of people and contraband into the United States via air, land, and sea. USBP’s primary mission is to conduct law enforcement activities along the U.S. border and between official U.S. ports of entry. As the Nation’s single, unified border agency, USBP’s mission is vitally important for the protection of the American people and the national economy. USBP represents the first line of defense of America’s borders. One of USBP’s strategic objectives is to establish and maintain effective control of air, land, and maritime borders with the appropriate mix of infrastructure, technology, and personnel. An integral component to this situational awareness is the planned use of SUAS to provide reconnaissance surveillance, and target acquisition capability to USBP along the southern and northern borders. BACKGROUND : CBP established a SUAS Program of Record in Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 to procure, deploy, and sustain a mix of Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL), Fixed Wing (FW), and Hybrid platforms. CBP’s approach to SUAS has provided it the ability to quickly procure and deploy mature, cost-effective systems to meet the urgent need for technology on the U.S. border. The SUAS Program’s fleet currently includes the Indago 3, SkyRaider, Puma 3, and Blue 1.0 Skydio, Parrot, Teal, and Vesper systems to fulfill CBP requirements. In addition, the Auterion Vector hybrid-lift and other higher performing VTOL solutions are being assessed for applicable readiness based on CBP requirements. PURPOSE : This market research seeks to obtain information from industry regarding the availability of a VTOL with capabilities that provide advanced technologies to enhance USBP’s SUAS Program in a multitude of operational environments. Technical requirements, thresholds, and objectives pertaining to items, components, or processes for the purpose of identifying source, size, configuration, mating and attachment characteristics, functional characteristics, and performance requirements are set forth in Attachment B. Vendors are encouraged to provide information, including whether their system meets either the threshold or objective, on the defined technical characteristics. Vendors are also encouraged to complete Attachment C, providing a high-level summarization of their system.