CHARLESTON, S.C. – On behalf of Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR), Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic awarded an Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) to Advanced Technology International (ATI) of Summerville, S.C. on June 6 to manage the Information Warfare Research Project (IWRP) 3 consortium for an ordering period of 10 years.

“The IWRP concept, which keenly focuses on rapid prototyping, has proven to be an effective acquisition tool for quickly advancing technical solutions to the fleet,” said Peter C. Reddy, NIWC Atlantic executive director. “With this new OTA, we look forward to seeing how IWRP 3 will continue supporting mission readiness by rapidly meeting warfighter capability needs and continuing to engage a broad range of companies and organizations for potential solutions.”

The IWRP 3 ordering period will run from Oct. 1, 2024 through Sept. 30, 2034 and will carry an “undefined ceiling” for executing prototype projects within the scope of specific technology focus areas.

The undefined ceiling and ten-year ordering period are two major distinctions between IWRP 3 and previous iterations that comprised shorter ordering periods and initial ceiling limits of $100 million under IWRP 1 and $500 million under IWRP 2.

IWRP 3 also will see the expansion of technology focus areas to include quantum, optical communications, and electromagnetic spectrum operations.

The selection, which continues ATI’s partnership with NAVWAR as the IWRP consortium manager, comes eight months after NIWC Atlantic and NIWC Pacific held a solicitation industry day outlining the third chapter of the Navy’s highly successful rapid prototyping initiative.

“We are honored to be selected to continue supporting the Navy and our consortium members in this next iteration of IWRP,” said ATI President and Chief Operating Officer Mica Dolan. “We are excited to build on the tremendous success of IWRP 1 and IWRP 2, and we look forward to IWRP 3 providing new and innovative processes and solutions in support of the warfighter.”

IWRP falls under 10 U.S. Code §4022, which contains the authority of the Department of Defense to carry out certain prototype projects that are directly relevant to enhancing mission effectiveness. The alternative acquisition tool strengthens national security by identifying warfighter challenges and addressing those issues at record speeds by providing unique prototyping opportunities among consortium members working in industry and academia.

“IWRP incentivizes innovation,” said Kevin Charlow, NIWC Atlantic deputy executive director and co-chair of NAVWAR’s IWRP Executive Steering Group. “It’s a win for our partners entering into a rapid prototyping agreement and, even more importantly, it’s a win for our warfighters on the receiving end of critical capabilities.”

Since launching in 2018, IWRP has helped develop invaluable cutting-edge technology solutions for the warfighter through a collaborative acquisition process—executing 171 prototype awards that have led to 24 production awards, all totaling approximately $2 billion.

“There is no doubt that we have lowered the barriers to entry for our partners to engage in naval innovation through IWRP,” said Jessica Scott, IWRP program manager. “With IWRP 3, we look forward to even greater flexibility and collaboration across the community and, as a result, increased capability for the warfighter.”

As the consortium manager, ATI will continue to support current IWRP members while engaging industry and academia to participate in technology development focused on information warfare capabilities.

The next IWRP Industry Day will take place on June 25 in San Diego. For further details, please visit https://www.theiwrp.org/event/iwrp-consortium-june-quarterly-industry-day/. Industry or government organizations interested in learning more about IWRP can visit https://www.theiwrp.org/.