Navy mulls OTA consortium for information warfare capabilities

The Navy is considering establishing a consortium that would use other transaction authority to enhance the service's information warfare capabilities.

In a request for information posted on Federal Business Opportunities last month, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Centers Atlantic and Pacific stated they are "exploring the opportunity to exercise an Information Warfare Research Project Other Transaction."

Other transaction authority offers an alternative to the traditional acquisition process and is meant to encourage non-traditional industry partners and academia to participate in Defense Department acquisition.

The consortium would focus on research, development and prototyping of "underlying technologies, such as data sciences, cyber [and] autonomy that advance the Navy and Marine Corps' information warfare capabilities," according to the notice.
Subject areas of interest include cyber warfare, cloud computing, data science and analytic technologies, model-based systems engineering and on-demand manufacturing, the notice says. The RFI seeks information regarding these topics and industry's experience using other transaction authority.

The consortium's first phase would last three to five years and include a budget between $25 million and $50 million. The second phase would be competitively awarded at the conclusion of the first phase and have an estimated budget of $250 million.

"SPAWARSYSCEN Atlantic anticipates releasing a draft program announcement for the IWRP OT for consideration in January 2018 after reviewing responses to this RFI," the notice said. "Following the draft release, there will be an industry day engagement tentatively scheduled for early February."