Health Readiness and Performance System (HRAPS) Wearable Physiological Sensor Development
Solicitation Number: MTEC-18-07-HRAPS

The Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC) is excited to post this announcement for a Request for Project Proposals (RPP) focused on wearable physiological sensor development.  The overarching goal of this program is to design and evaluate an optimized multifunctional wearable physiological sensor that can quantify thermal work strain, changes in electromyography (EMG) that indicate muscular injury, and neurocognitive changes that suggest compromised cognitive function and predict incipient illness.

 

Background:

The Department of Defense (DoD) seeks wearable systems capable of monitoring physiological data toward assessing real-time Warfighter health readiness and performance.

The U.S. Army is developing the Health Readiness and Performance System (HRAPS) to provide actionable information to small unit leaders, in order to enable data-driven decisions to maintain and improve Warfighter performance and safety. As currently envisioned, HRAPS is an aggregate of the following five indices:

1. Physiological Strain (heat or cold stress)
2. Alertness and Fitness for Duty (fatigue measurement)
3. Physical Readiness (musculoskeletal health)
4. Neuro-Psychological Status (cognitive capabilities, mood)
5. Wellness Status (infectious disease status)

 

Technical Objectives:
This RPP aims to fund the development of:

1. a tactically secure communications platform with plug-and-play mission-tailorable sensors;
2. real-time health and performance status of individual Service members in training and operations for heat, load, cognitive readiness, altitude, hydration, and alertness; and
3. integration with combat casualty care diagnostics.

 

The project  includes testing of the prototype device in the lab as well as in the field, design for manufacturing, manufacturing setup costs, and a first article run. Offerors must be able to modify a pre-existing wearable sensor and address the following 13 minimum requirements for the device (see RPP for full description):

1. Measures and records heart rate, heart rate variability, skin temperature, activity level and respiration rate.
2. Runs simplified, validated algorithms that translates standard measurements into actionable information useful for leadership to make informed decisions.
3. Must store 72 hours’ worth of data.
4. Capability to transmit data in real-time to an external device via tactical communications.
5. Utilizes a rechargeable battery.
6. Open architected.
7. Is ruggedized for operational use.
8. Can be worn for 72 hours without adverse impact on the skin.
9. Weighs less than 2.5 ounces.
10. Can be worn, operates and communicates while user is wearing full personal protective equipment and gear.
11. Can encrypt data for security.
12. Shall be water resistant.
13. Utilizes Blue Tooth technology until tactical wireless can be implemented.

 

Financial Framework:

The U.S. Government (USG) potentially has available $2.4M Defense Health Program (DHP) Research, Development, and Engineering (RD&E) dollars.  MTEC anticipates that one award at $2.4M (direct and indirect costs) will be made to a qualified team who demonstrates the ability to achieve the technical objectives of this RPP. The Period of Performance is not to exceed 24 months.

Acquisition Strategy:

This RPP  will be conducted using a two-staged approach. In Stage 1, current MTEC members are invited to submit White Papers using the format contained in this RPP. The Government will evaluate White Papers submitted and will select White Papers that best meet their current technology priorities using the criteria in the RPP. Offerors whose technology solution is selected for further consideration based on White Paper evaluation will be invited to submit a full proposal in Stage 2. Notification letters will contain specific Stage 2 proposal submission requirements.

 

MTEC:

The MTEC mission is to assist the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC) by providing cutting-edge technologies and effective materiel life cycle management to transition medical solutions to industry that protect, treat, and optimize Warfighters’ health and performance across the full spectrum of military operations. MTEC is a biomedical technology consortium collaborating with multiple government agencies under a 10-year renewable Other Transaction Agreement (OTA), Agreement No. W81XWH-15-9-0001, with the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA). MTEC is currently recruiting a broad and diverse membership that includes representatives from large businesses, small businesses, “nontraditional” government contractors, academic research institutions and not-for-profit organizations.

 

Administrative Information:

White papers are due no later than noon EST on July 2, 2018. This RPP  is posted to the MTEC website (www.mtec-sc.org) and a notice on FedBizOpps (www.fbo.gov). MTEC membership is required for the submission of a White Paper response to this MTEC RPP.

 

MTEC will host a Proposers Conference tentatively scheduled for 1 week after the release of the RPP that will be conducted via webinar.  Further instructions will be forthcoming via email.

For inquiries regarding this announcement, please direct your correspondence to the following contacts:

• Technical questions   Dr. Lauren Palestrini, MTEC Director of Research, Lauren.Palestrini@officer.mtec-sc.org
• Contracting questions   Ms. Lisa Fisher, MTEC Contracting, mtec-contracts@ati.org
• Administrative questions   Ms. Kathy Zolman, MTEC Program Manager, Kathy.Zolman@ati.org
• Membership questions   Ms. Stacey Lindbergh, MTEC Executive Director, execdirect@mtec-sc.org

To view this solicitation, click here.    http://mtec-sc.org/active-solicitations/