Opportunity Information: Apply for W911NF 11 R 0001
Apply for W911NF 11 R 0001
- The Dept of the Army Materiel Command in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Collaborative Research Alliance (CRA) for Materials in Extreme Dynamic Environments (MEDE)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.630 Basic, Applied, and Advanced Research in Science and Engineering.
- This funding opportunity was created on Feb 28, 2011 and posted on Jan 24, 2011.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 21, 2011. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $89,850,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
- The CA will be awarded to a Consortium of organizations that may include academic, industrial and non profit organizations. To assure the creation of a well focused research program, the number of partners should balance the need for expertise in all four material classes and the five core elements with the need to maintain a focused, cohesive, well integrated research program. The Consortium must be led by an academic institution that will be charged with spearheading the focused basic research program. This organization will be designated as the Lead Research Organization (LRO). It is anticipated that an optimally sized consortium would include no more than six members (including the LRO), but this should not be considered a hard limit. Proposals that include more than six members must provide a rationale for the additional members. Additionally, it is required that covered educational institutions (to include Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions or HBCU/MSIs) shall receive 5 10 of the annual CA funding. The Consortium will function as a collective of equal partners deciding upon all Consortium matters equally. These researchers and research topics, while part of the Annual Program Plan, will be subawardees to one of the Consortium Members and not part of the Consortium proper. To insure these new ideas and innovations are a core element of the CA, ten percent (10) of the annual research effort is expected to be devoted to novel and innovative research conducted by these subawardees. The Alliance will also be able to seek opportunities for basic and applied research from other government agencies that enhance and or parallel the core basic research program of the CRA.
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Opportunity Summary:
The Collaborative Research Alliance (CRA) for Materials in Extreme Dynamic Environments (MEDE), Funding Opportunity Number W911NF-11-R-0001, is a U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) program announcement issued through the U.S. Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground (RTP Contracting Division). The central goal is to build a practical "materials by design" capability that can reliably design, optimize, and fabricate lightweight protection material systems with major performance gains for Army-relevant needs. The technical emphasis is on fundamental research that explains and predicts how materials behave when subjected to extreme dynamic loading, especially in high strain-rate and high stress regimes where deformation and failure mechanisms can differ sharply from conventional, quasi-static conditions. A key feature of the opportunity is its strong transition intent: ARL expects the research outputs to move efficiently into ARL in-house research and development programs as the work matures.
The Army planned to form a single, tightly integrated Collaborative Research Alliance made up of a small consortium spanning academia, government, and potentially industry or nonprofit organizations. Only one award was anticipated, and it would be made as a Cooperative Agreement under 31 U.S.C. 6305, reflecting the government’s expectation of substantial involvement and collaboration rather than a hands-off grant relationship. The consortium is required to be led by an academic institution, designated the Lead Research Organization (LRO), which is responsible for driving a focused, cohesive basic research program. ARL signaled a preference for an optimally sized group of no more than six consortium members to keep coordination manageable and the research program well integrated; proposals with more than six members would need to justify why the additional partners are essential.
Technically, the MEDE CRA asked offerors to anchor their program around four specific material classes: one polymer system, one metal system, one ceramic system, and one composite system. Across each of these material classes, the consortium was expected to build an end-to-end "materials by design" framework tailored to extreme dynamic environments. The solicitation laid out five core research elements that each material class should address: first, advanced experimental techniques to probe in situ material response under extreme dynamic loading at the length and time scales that control key mechanisms; second, modeling and simulation methods capable of predicting response under these same conditions and scales; third, bridging the scales, meaning development of physical and mathematical constructs that connect phenomena across micro-to-meso-to-macro scales and across very short to longer time scales; fourth, characterization of material properties and governing features at multiple scales, including using experimental validation to support and calibrate computational approaches and to identify the microstructural features and dynamic properties that control high stress/high strain-rate deformation and failure; and fifth, synthesis and processing, where discoveries from experimentation and modeling are folded back into the ability to create novel materials and process them into final forms with the critical structures and properties the models indicate are needed.
The opportunity also included specific participation and funding distribution expectations aimed at broadening the research base and maintaining innovation. "Covered educational institutions," including Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions (HBCU/MSIs), were required to receive 5 to 10 percent of the annual Cooperative Agreement funding. In addition, the program anticipated that about 10 percent of the annual research effort would be devoted to novel and innovative research performed by subawardees that are not part of the formal consortium membership, helping the alliance continuously inject new ideas while keeping the core team stable and coordinated. The solicitation also noted that the alliance could pursue additional basic and applied research opportunities from other government agencies when those efforts complement or parallel the CRA’s core basic research agenda.
From an administrative and funding standpoint, the posting identified an award ceiling of $89,850,000 and no cost sharing requirement. The Army anticipated supporting the effort for five years, with an option to extend for an additional five years, contingent on funding availability and program success. Key dates included an original proposal due date of March 7, 2011 (later reflected as a current closing date of March 21, 2011 in the source data) and an expected award timeframe of February 2012. ARL also hosted engagement events before proposals were due, including an opportunity conference on November 19, 2010 and an open house on December 16, 2010, with associated briefings and Q&A materials made available through ARL’s MEDE CRA web resources. For access issues and contracting questions, the listed point of contact was Joseph Morse, Contract Specialist, at (919) 549-4311.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): CRA for Materials in Extreme Dynamic Environments (MEDE)
What is this funding opportunity?
This opportunity is the Collaborative Research Alliance (CRA) for Materials in Extreme Dynamic Environments (MEDE), a U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) program announcement issued through the U.S. Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground (RTP Contracting Division). The Funding Opportunity Number is W911NF-11-R-0001.
What is the main goal of the MEDE CRA?
The central goal is to build a practical "materials by design" capability that can reliably design, optimize, and fabricate lightweight protection material systems with major performance gains for Army-relevant needs.
What type of research does the Army want under this CRA?
The technical emphasis is on fundamental research that explains and predicts how materials behave under extreme dynamic loading, particularly in high strain-rate and high stress regimes where deformation and failure mechanisms can differ significantly from conventional (quasi-static) conditions.
What does "extreme dynamic environments" mean in the context of this opportunity?
Based on the solicitation description, it refers to conditions involving extreme dynamic loading, especially high strain-rate and high stress scenarios, where material response, deformation, and failure mechanisms can change compared to slower, quasi-static loading.
Is there an expectation that the research will transition into Army programs?
Yes. A key feature is strong transition intent: ARL expects research outputs to move efficiently into ARL in-house research and development programs as the work matures.
How many awards were anticipated?
Only one award was anticipated. The Army planned to form a single, tightly integrated CRA made up of a small consortium.
What award instrument will be used?
The award was anticipated to be made as a Cooperative Agreement under 31 U.S.C. 6305, reflecting the government expectation of substantial involvement and collaboration (rather than a hands-off grant relationship).
Who is expected to be part of the CRA consortium?
The CRA was envisioned as a consortium spanning academia, government, and potentially industry or nonprofit organizations.
Who must lead the consortium?
The consortium is required to be led by an academic institution, designated as the Lead Research Organization (LRO). The LRO is responsible for driving a focused, cohesive basic research program.
Is there a preferred size for the consortium?
Yes. ARL indicated a preference for an optimally sized group of no more than six consortium members to keep coordination manageable and the research program well integrated.
Can a consortium have more than six members?
Yes, but proposals with more than six members would need to justify why the additional partners are essential.
What material classes must the technical program include?
Offerors were asked to anchor their program around four specific material classes: one polymer system, one metal system, one ceramic system, and one composite system.
What does "materials by design" mean here?
In this solicitation, it refers to an end-to-end framework tailored to extreme dynamic environments that integrates experimentation, modeling and simulation, scale bridging, characterization/validation, and synthesis/processing so the program can design and fabricate materials with targeted structures and properties.
What are the core research elements that each material class should address?
The solicitation described five core research elements for each material class: (1) advanced experimental techniques to probe in situ response under extreme dynamic loading at relevant length/time scales; (2) modeling and simulation methods to predict response under those conditions and scales; (3) bridging the scales (micro-to-meso-to-macro and short-to-long time scales); (4) multi-scale characterization and experimental validation to support/calibrate computational approaches and identify governing microstructural features and dynamic properties; and (5) synthesis and processing to create novel materials and process them into final forms with the critical structures/properties indicated by the research.
What is meant by "bridging the scales" in the MEDE CRA?
It refers to developing physical and mathematical constructs that connect phenomena across micro-, meso-, and macro-scales, and across very short to longer time scales, so that understanding and prediction under extreme dynamic loading can be linked from fundamental mechanisms to bulk response.
Are there specific funding distribution requirements for HBCUs/MSIs or other covered institutions?
Yes. "Covered educational institutions," including Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions (HBCU/MSIs), were required to receive 5 to 10 percent of the annual Cooperative Agreement funding.
Does the program include room for research outside the formal consortium membership?
Yes. The program anticipated that about 10 percent of the annual research effort would be devoted to novel and innovative research performed by subawardees that are not part of the formal consortium membership.
Why reserve effort for subawardees outside the consortium?
The stated intent was to continuously inject new ideas while keeping the core team stable and coordinated.
Can the alliance pursue additional research opportunities with other government agencies?
Yes. The solicitation noted that the alliance could pursue additional basic and applied research opportunities from other government agencies when those efforts complement or parallel the CRA's core basic research agenda.
What is the award ceiling?
The posting identified an award ceiling of $89,850,000.
Is cost sharing required?
No. The posting indicated no cost sharing requirement.
What is the anticipated period of performance?
The Army anticipated supporting the effort for five years, with an option to extend for an additional five years, contingent on funding availability and program success.
What were the proposal due dates listed for this opportunity?
The original proposal due date was March 7, 2011, and the source data later reflected a current closing date of March 21, 2011.
When was the award expected to be made?
The expected award timeframe was February 2012.
Were there any pre-proposal events or opportunities to engage with ARL?
Yes. ARL hosted engagement events before proposals were due, including an opportunity conference on November 19, 2010 and an open house on December 16, 2010. Briefings and Q&A materials were made available through ARL's MEDE CRA web resources.
Who is the point of contact for access issues and contracting questions?
The listed point of contact was Joseph Morse, Contract Specialist, at (919) 549-4311.
Which Army organizations were involved in issuing this announcement?
It was an ARL program announcement issued through the U.S. Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground (RTP Contracting Division).
What makes this different from a typical grant (based on the posting description)?
The opportunity anticipated a Cooperative Agreement (31 U.S.C. 6305) and explicitly reflected the government's expectation of substantial involvement and collaboration, along with a strong intent to transition results into ARL in-house R&D programs.
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