Space Agency Offers $15Mln for Twenty-Three "Priority Technologies"

          By Chuck Black

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) has issued a notice of proposed procurement for twenty-three identified "priority technologies," as part of its Space Technology Development Program (STDP) with a total procurement allocation of up to almost $15Mln CDN.

A schematic included as part of  the CSA "notice of proposed procurement" for embedded visual odometry, for which the CSA has offered up to $650,000 CDN to develop as part of its Space Technologies Development (9F063-140572/A) program. Graphic c/o  CSA and Buyandsell.gc.ca.

As outlined on the Public Works and Government Services Canada Buyandsell.gc.ca website, the various items are part of the Space Technologies Development (9F063-140572/A) program, designed to develop technologies which "are in line with the CSA's priorities and mission roadmaps."

As outlined in the program, which is defined as a notice of proposed procurement, any intellectual property derived from the program, will "vest with the contractor."

NASA TRL chart. Graphic c/o NASA.

These technologies are derived from a wide range of areas related to the Canadian rover program (up to $500,000 CDN for "soil hazard detection for planetary rovers"), the Canadian astronaut program (up to $700,000 CDN for "a wireless micro sensor system for crew biometric monitoring"), the fabrication of objects to be used in space (up to $350,000 CDN for a "space qualifiable bonded joints between carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) and aluminum") and other areas. 

The amounts offered for up for the development of the twenty-three technologies range from up to $250,000 CDN (for the development of a "composite enclosure for use at cryogenic temperature") to from up to $1Mln CDN (for the development of a "light-weight high performance water color imaging spectrometer").

The total disbursement under the program, as outlined in the second of two program solicitation documents, could likely end up being just under $15Mln CDN, although final disbursements could vary widely. The public documents list only the maximum amount which could be received under the program. 

The development contract periods for the program vary from between 15 to 24 months, depending on a variety of assessments. These include a calculation of the technology readiness level (TRL), a measurement of technology maturity often used by governments during the acquisition process. 

The closing date for the procurement is April 22nd.

Editors Note: As per the March 24th solicitation document ABES.PROD.PW_MTB.B575.E13154.EBSU002.PDF, the deadline for applications under the Space Technologies Development (9F063-140572/A) program has been extended until May 6th, 2015.