DASA launches £3.1m competition to aid explosives and weapons detection
Image courtesy DASA
This £3.1 million competition seeks state of the art and technological solutions for the improved detection of explosives and weapons.
The Innovative Research Call (IRC) 2023 for Explosives and Weapons Detection is a cross-government programme that seeks proposals from industry and academia for the screening of people and/or their possessions, goods, vehicles and buildings and areas. This collaboration is one of the links the UK has with the US through science and innovation. IRC is using DASA to access the market because of their wealth of experience.
An IRC spokesperson said: “There are some very innovative people out there. We are looking to draw in some fresh concepts and approaches to be developed into technologies that help keep our borders and communities safe from threats. “
“We are always impressed with the ingenuity and ideas and are hoping that this will stimulate some remarkable techniques.”
Key dates, timelines and funding
Up to £3.1 million is available to fund multiple proposals. The deadline to submit a proposal is 30th August 2023 at 12 midday (BST).
The competition will take place in two phases. Up to £1 million is available in Phase 1 with proposal bids in the region of £70,000 per proposal. Projects will run for six months to develop proof of concept. Proposals of a higher value will be considered if appropriately justified. Proposals of higher technical readiness that do not require Phase 1 funding will need to submit their proposals in Phase 1 in anticipation of Phase 2 funding.
Around £2.1 million will be available for proposals in Phase 2. Projects will need to develop and complete their prototypes or demonstrators by the end of May 2026.
The deadline for Phase 1 proposal submissions is midday 30th August 2023.
Full technical requirements with examples of use cases and submission processes are available in the competition document.
The IRC 2023 competition is a collaborative action of several government departments and law enforcement agencies, including:
- National Protective Security Authority (NPSA)
- Department for Transport (DfT)
- Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl)
- Home Office, Homeland Security Group (HSG)
- Metropolitan Police Service
- US Department of Homeland Security, Science and Technology Directorate
- Home Office, Border Force (BF)
- Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
This is the sixth run of IRC, with successful calls occurring in 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016 and 2020.
To read the full competition document and submit a proposal: www.gov.uk/government/publications/innovative-research-call-2023-for-explosives-and-weapons-detection-competition-document
