2022 Joint Capability and Technology Engagement (JCTE) Introduction The goal of the JCTE is to create partnerships between Special Operations Forces (SOF) and industry under the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) construct to both inform industry internal investments and accelerate SOF’s technical advantage. The 5 basic steps of this engagement are: Sharing our SOF Interest Items – In May 2022, we published a Special Notice informing industry that our UNCLASSIFIED Interest Items were available at Vulcan-SOF.com and that information concerning our CLASSIFIED interest items could be obtained by contacting
[email protected]. Requesting your proposals – This second step starts today with this notice and ends at 1700 EDT, 12 October 2022. Details available at https://vulcan-sof.com/login/ng2/submission?collectionUuid=2c26388c-d7dc-48ad-85b9-14e0026fff16. Assistance is available at
[email protected]. Review and Feedback – In this third step every proposal is thoroughly assessed by multiple SOF operational, technical, and programmatic subject matter experts. All feedback is captured, collated, and provided back to industry through Vulcan. It is our goal that every submitter will view this experience as valuable regardless of outcome. Notifying of Events – The JCTE is an annual process, but other events occur throughout the year. One such event, the Joint Innovation Medical Symposium (JIMS), will occur 16-17 November 2022. Details available at https://vulcan-sof.com/login/ng2/submission?collectionUuid=38bd533e-a934-4bb1-a4e8-de0aada74dc5. Assistance is available at
[email protected]. Partnering – This final step formalizes partnerships for the proposals selected. The pre-signed overarching USSOCOM CRADA is presented to industry for signature, and work begins translating the industry proposal into a detailed bilateral Individual Work Plan (IWP) to be signed by both industry and USSOCOM. Administrative Submission Guidelines All submissions should be UNCLASSIFIED. You may submit any additional documentation desired but focus on technical and operational details vice “marketing material.” Vulcan is a US government web interface tech scouting tool designed to simplify the discovery, sharing, assessment and adoption of technologies. We will use Vulcan to support this event exclusively. All proprietary information is safeguarded in accordance with FAR 3.104 and 18 U.S.C. § 1905. This event is voluntary and for collaboration purposes only in accordance with FAR 15.201(e). It is NOT a Broad Agency Announcement, solicitation, or request for contractual offers and does not constitute a commitment of government funding. Respondents will not be reimbursed for any travel, labor, information, etc., they provide in conjunction with this Special Notice. JCTE participants include contractor consultant/advisors. All are SETA-like arrangements bound by procurement integrity laws, and non-disclosure agreements. The Government ensures the safeguarding of proprietary data. Intellectual Property (IP) – While some government contracts can impact Industry’s IP, this collaboration model imposes no long term impacts and preserves and protects Industry’s exclusive ownership of their intellectual property. Philosophy The SOF enterprise desires to inform and influence industry’s internal investment decisions in areas that address SOF interests. Many in Industry have expertise, capacity, funding, and a desire to better understand and invest in those interest areas. Industry can benefit from the insight, foresight, and facilities of an experienced SOF team to make better decisions faster. SOF can offer a level of direct engagement with the user community that will ensure meaningful feedback in a timely manner. Additionally, SOF can provide facilities not otherwise available to test and demonstrate capabilities, sponsorship at formal test and exercise venues, government equipment, (range time/ ground and air mobility platforms/ flight time/ ammunition) coincident to demonstrating the utility of the capability. This construct uniquely enables rapid teaming to achieve the goals of both partners.