Operational Energy Meet Ups: Flock of Eagles Lead Army OE Effort

NOT a Flock of Eagles

This past February, the U.S. Army Rapid Equipping Force (REF) sponsored an operational energy conference at Arizona State University.  Almost all of the players in the Army appeared and described their various programs. The major teams represented were the Operations (REF), Acquisition (PM, Mobile Electric Power and others), Logistics (G4), and Training and Doctrine (Brigade Modernization Command).  The only thing missing were the folks that write the JCIDS documents that articulate the capabilities required of the force regarding operational energy.   Now that problem has been addressed.  If you need a refresher on the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS), review this post.

The Combined Arms Support Command (CASCOM) has let a one year contract to produce the appropriate Capability Development Documents and Capability Production Documents.  Using the Army Operational Energy Campaign Plan (AOECP) and draft Initial Capabilities Document (ICD) the team will have 12 months to define requirements for Army Operational Energy for the next couple of decades.  The effort is being led by COL Bruce B. McPeak, the Director of Material Systems at CASCOM, and the newest member of the OE “Flock of Eagles”.

 If you are interested in learning more about the “Flock”, head over to the Military Mobile Power Summit at the Mary M. Gates Learning Center, Alexandria VA., 19-20 September.  You will get to hear from the Navy, Marines and Army as well as DOE.  In addition to COL McPeak, COLs Newell (REF), Roege (G4), Hill (ASA,IE&E) and Cummings (represented by LTC Foster, PM-MEP) will present.  These five Colonels represent the Army’s uniformed brain trust on operational energy.  Any time you put five Colonels on a problem, you should expect rapid solutions.  The Army is leading in experimenting and researching, but until the JCIDS documents get done, it is just tinkering at the margins.  Requirements come from the JCIDS process and Requirements drive Acquisition.  If any readers attend, please give me a SitRep.  You can register for the event at- http://mobilepower.dsigroup.org/ or contact Lisa Madison at 1-347-732-5326 for more information or to register.

The USMC, which somehow seems to get by with just one Colonel, has released the data collected on energy use in SW Afghanistan.  According to the release, “This report is focused on three distinct topics.  First, the results of the recent Expeditionary Energy Office metering efforts in RC(SW), Afghanistan.  Second, presenting the lessons learned from the ExFOB 2010-2 Extended User Evaluation (EUE) focused on efficient powering and cooling of Command Operations Centers (COCs).  Lastly, presenting an explanation of variable power demand and how probability profiles can be used to understand the impact of USMC operating procedures on fuel consumption. As soon as the report is available, I will post a link.

Finally, from the USMC, the next ExFOB or BYOT (bring your own toys) is ready to go down at Camp Pendleton, Calif., Sept 17-21.  The Marine Corps' Experimental Forward Operating Base (ExFOB) process is designed to identify and evaluate commercial technologies that can increase the self-sufficiency of expeditionary forces.  ExFOB will host invited vendors to demonstrate their technologies. Fourteen companies will pay their way into the ExFOB in order to  demonstrate 19 advanced thermal efficiency technologies that provide energy efficient heating and cooling of personnel, bulk water, electronics, vehicles, and shelters.  If the Leathernecks like something, maybe they will buy a few for follow on deployment and testing.  The suite of technology, India Company 3/5 Marines tried out in late 2010 resulted in a $25M purchase for the rest of the Corps.  As in all the experimentation that is going on, significant upfront investment is required of industry, but the potential pay back maybe worth that investment. 

The challenge for small business is that most of the OE experimentation requires vendors to bring their gear to these events, at their own cost, in hopes of a follow on purchase.  The only folks with the resources available to make the follow on purchases are the REF and USMC Expeditionary Energy Office.  If you are trying to impress someone, impress them.  Dan Nolan

“We are Sparta" at 8 Gallons/Marine/Day: USMC Energy Strategy on the Street

Once again, the Devil Dogs are first ashore on energy with the publication of a comprehensive, directive and accountability based strategy. The Marine Corps Expeditionary Energy Strategy and Implementation Plan was signed by the Commandant of the Marine Corps on 24 February 2011 and it sets the bar high. According to folks one step to the left and one to the rear, the CMC is fired up about it and wants to be aggressive. This is intended to get more teeth and less tail into the fight. The document is comprehensive in that it includes the vision, mission, scope, goals, initiatives and a way ahead. Most importantly, it includes the implementation guidance necessary to get the acquisition community rolling. More available at the Marine Corps Expeditionary Energy Office website.

For you fans of the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS), and I know you are out there, the next step is the Initial Capabilities Document and the Marines are ready to rock the JCIDS. They are completing staffing of the Expeditionary Energy, Water, and Waste Initial Capabilities Document (E2W2 ICD). For those not familiar with this document, the ICD identifies a capability gap or other deficiency in terms of the functional area, the relevant range of military operations, and the time frame. Key Performance Parameters (KPP), such as Energy are not included in the ICD. The ICD guides the Concept Refinement and Technology Development phases of the Defense Acquisition System and supports Analysis of Alternatives (AoA). The AoA is where the Fully Burdened Cost of Fuel is used to compare alternatives in doctrine, organization, training, material, logistics, personnel and facilities. For industry: Gentlemen, start your engines! Class dismissed.

The document goes beyond the battlefield to embrace “the fifth element” of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force: bases, stations and Garrison Mobile Equipment. The goal? 50% will be Net Zero by 2020. Leathernecks will also take water and waste on as an element of the energy equation. The strategy is chock full of data point, examples and fun facts. Among those facts is that the new USMC metric for operational energy is Gallons Per Marine Per Day (GPMD). I would classify this metric as as good as any. The current number is eight GPMD. For installation energy the metric will continue to be the Defense Utility Energy Reporting System.

The Marine ICD is expected to identify 112 gaps capabilities and groups them into 29 tasks for resolution. It was created by three separate working groups consisting of SMEs from around the Corps. Will keep you posted on the deployment of this document.

One of the organizations drawing attention to the Marine energy effort is, of course, the ExFOB. It gets the press because it is a very visual example of what is being done (and not being done) in operational energy. That being said, in order to have real organizational impact, documents like the ICD are required. They start the wheels turning, money flowing and requirements for material necessary to engage industry. The ExFOB provides the initial energy capability and informs the requirements process in order to pursue technological solutions and programs of record that meet long term objectives.

The last major deployment of ExFOB kit was with India Company 3/5 Marines. The initial reports on that effort from the field were very positive. Next will be support for a battalion command and operations center this summer. As with the company set, the material solutions (hybrid PV/Gen/Btry system, DC air conditioners, tent liners, LED lights), will be tested in CONUS training and deployed only if operationally sound. We look forward to the outcome of this charrette (pun intended). Thanks to Amory Lovins for adding that to my lexicon. Dan Nolan

Brutus and the Gray Lady: ExFOB Makes the NYT

Excellent piece by Annie Snider of Greenwire, picked up by New York Times. COL "Brutus" Charette running another iteration of the Experimental Forward Operating Base (ExFOB) at 29 Palms in Death Valley. Focus is on high efficiency solar and exportable vehicle power. I asked Annie to send me a photo of her "enjoying" the 110+ temperatures of 29 Stumps. Got an Israeli deployable solar station instead. Worth the read. Dan Nolan

MEAT Report on the Table

Just got word that the U.S. Marine Energy Assessment Team (MEAT) Report is on the street and available here. According to the source, the MEAT Team mission was one of a series of actions driven by the Commandant (CMC) and the Marine Corps to address its energy challenges. In October 2009 the CMC created the Expeditionary Energy Office (E2O) to "analyze, develop and direct the Marine Corps energy strategy."

In late 2009, at CMC's direction, the Marine Corps established the Experimental Forward Operating Base, or "ExFOB," to identify and evaluate new capabilities to make combat units more energy self-sufficient in today's fight and in the future. In less than a year's time, ExFOB sourced commercial and government capabilities, trained an Infantry Company with renewable energy technology, and deployed them to Afghanistan in winter 2010--delivering a positive impact on combat effectiveness.

We anticipate that in early 2011 the Corps will issue a comprehensive Expeditionary Energy Strategy, complete with goals, performance metrics, and a plan for implementation out to 2025. At the same time they intend to take steps to institutionalize the change by establishing formal requirements via the Expeditionary Energy, Water, and Waste Initial Capabilities Document (ICD), now in draft.

This final line is the most telling. Finally DOD will have an actual Requirement documents to allow the acquisition wheels to start turning. More on this in the next post.

Heads-Up! ExFOB RFI Response Submission Deadline Extended

Here's a preview of the language you'll see when you click through the link provided to FedBizOpps:

Due to a server malfunction, information submitted in response to this RFI (Solicitation M6785412R7306 Experimental Forward Operating Base (EXFOB) 2012-2 Camp Pendleton, California) may not have been received. 

The RFI has been re-opened and responses will be accepted until midnight on Friday 27 July 2012. Vendors who submitted responses previously are encouraged to resubmit to usarmy.detroit.peo-cs-css.mbx.truck-tech2@mail.mil to ensure receipt. 

Vendors are also asked to submit a CD with their responses via U.S. mail to Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory, Attn: Ms. Berniece Washington, 3255 Meyers Avenue, Quantico, VA 22134. New responses will also be accepted.

Link: https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=344ac67b5cb8ba52a17599dad3700436&tab=core&_cview=1

To all responders: good luck !!!  Andy

Nolan on 2010 USMC Expeditionary Energy Symposium

Here's Sabot 6's Dan Nolan again, this time with some laudatory commentary on the recent USMC Expeditionary Energy Symposium:

The Marines executed another flawless amphibious landing, coming ashore in New Orleans to conduct the USMC Expeditionary Energy Symposium. From 25 to 27 January, the Corps’ senior energy officer, the Commandant, GEN James Conway led the assemblage of DOD and industry leaders through the rapidly evolving plan to increase expeditionary capability and reduce reliance on length supply lines. Briefings and panel discussions focused on operational mobility and infrastructure. Concurrently, GEN Conway conducted a senior leadership conference and took the opportunity to bring those leaders into the conference so they could get his intent first hand. There were no stunning revelations; however, the briefings on the Experimental Forward Operating Base (ExFOB) helped industry better understand how to participate in this important effort. The intent of the ExFOB is to identity mature, relevant technologies that can be “proofed” rapidly and then deployed to forward areas to help Marines reduce their logistical footprint. COL Charrette, the new appointed head of the Expeditionary Energy Office helped put this process in perspective for industry attendees. COL T. C. Moore briefed the results of the Marine Energy Assessment Team and personally led several Bourbon Street sorties.

One of the most innovative events at the symposium was the “Pitch a Capability” session. Industry representatives were given the opportunity to provide ten minute presentations on their technologies or services to groups of USMC acquisition and operational leadership. Over the course of the symposium, they reviewed dozens of presentations and provided meaningful feedback to participants.

Having recently returned from Afghanistan and Qatar as part of the USAF Energy Assessment Team (more to follow as information is cleared), I was again heartened to see Service senior leadership stepping up to focus on this critical issue. The Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps are present for duty. Unfortunately, the Army ... [HORN SOUNDS].

Sorry Dan, that's all we have time for today. Stay tuned for Dan's incisive analysis of Air Force energy audits in Afghanistan and to find out how he really feels about the Army's leadership energy leadership.

Lean, Mean, GREEN Marines

Got a note from folks in the know regarding the ExFOB. We recently mentioned the deployment of a Marine company outfitted with renewable energy systems. First reports are in and they are good! Please see the below. Well done, Marines!

Friday we received feedback from India 3/5, the unit that deployed with the systems we identified from ExFOB. The article and subsequent video give a great example of why the Expeditionary Energy Office exists. We are grateful for the opportunity to positively affect Marines' war fighting capability. The 5:23 mark of the video is the start of the energy portion, but I recommend you watch the whole video. Lt Patterson's discussion about how his Marines lean on one another is touching and makes me proud to be an American and a Marine.

http://www.dvidshub.net/video/104638/1st-lt-josef-patterson-part-2

http://www.dvidshub.net/news/63126/india-company-3-5-dark-horse-marines-use-solar-power-brighten-mission-accomplishment

Marines Expedite Expeditionary Energy Efforts

There's book knowledge and there's what you know by doing. And everyone knows the difference. While the Marines could surround themselves with academic experts and consultants from industry to improve their energy knowledge (and I'm not saying they're not!), their focus is on learning by doing. In the field. Where it counts. And it's all being driven from the top via the hard charging Commandant, General James T. Conway.

As is their mission (and fervent desire) in combat ops, the Marines are first in on expeditionary energy. It's no surprise; we've see it coming here on the blog with write-ups here, here, here, here, here here, and here.

The Marine strategy for transforming its energy management strategy is centered on five themes:

I. Technology is available today, but it is not focused on the Marine expeditionary problem. The Marine strategy must foster a pipeline of commercial solutions

II. Apply technology intelligently; take a systems approach

III. New behavior is key; technology alone won’t solve the problem

IV. Top level leadership and integration into Marine Corps strategy is essential

V. Leverage capabilities, solutions and lessons learned from across the Marine Corps, Navy, and the other Services, as well as the Department of Energy (DOE), CIA

These are all on target of course, but don't forget the reason we're really talking about it now is number IV - leadership. Energy management initiatives began in the field, but until folks like Conway picked up the ball and began running with it, we were still moving in slow motion. Now the crawl's become a walk and is showing signs of becoming a smart sprint very soon. There's a good deal of energy activity elsewhere in DOD, but OSD and the other services should scramble to keep up, learn, adapt and apply these concepts.

Click here for a fuller account from NDU's "Expeditionary Energy Roundtable" by NDU's Energy Security lead, Richard Andres. And for more, read about the USMC Experimental Forward Operating Base (exFOB) here.

Photo Credit: Flickr Creative Commons

Shysters, Bozos and Making it So: Tactical Power Conference Review

A month into the New Year and DOD has hosted two energy conferences with many more on the horizon.  Couple of weeks ago, the Army hosted a Net Zero Installation conference in Chicago.  Last week I arrived in D.C. (in the snow) for the IDGA Tactical Power Sources Summit (TPSS).   On behalf of the state of Florida, I would respectfully remind you conference planners that it is ok to avoid misery in winter weather.  Orlando, Tampa and Miami are open for business.  I appreciate that constrained budgets make travel for government folks difficult.  I assume that is why the Program Manager for Mobile Electric Power (PM-MEP) decided not to drive up from Belvoir to Alexandria for the Tactical Power Summit.  At least I hope that was the reason.

The three day TPSS started with an industry focus day.  The highlight of that day was the presentation by Mike Bergey of Bergey Windpower.  Bergey has been in the small wind business for over thirty five years and has seen them come and go.  Part of his presentation was about the kind of folks one finds in the energy industry.  Usually you will be dealing with the good, honest people who believe in their product and the benefits it will bring their customers.  But there are also Bozos and Shysters.  The Bozos are “Clueless on physics and engineering - don’t know what they don’t know”.   Well intended, but generally unaware that their sales claims are so much hot air.  The Shyster, on the other hand, is “ Aware that their claims are bogus and don’t care”.  They depend on the general public wanting to believe that there’s been a performance or cost breakthrough or that the laws of physics have been suspended for this product.  One technique is to state a physical property of all reputable products in a given line as a unique attribute of their systems.  Mike’s favorite in the small wind industry is to refer to a system as “bird friendly”.  All small wind systems are “bird friendly”, but the Shyster will claim that moniker as their own special attribute.  These traits are not limited to the wind industry. 

The rest of the conference featured an array of government technical folks, mostly from the Navy and Marine Corps.  One of the successes touted by the PM, Expeditionary Power, Mike Gallagher and by the Deputy Director of the Marine Expeditionary Energy Office, Gayle von Eckartsberg, was a program called

Ground Renewable Expeditionary Energy System (GREENS).  GREENS was the system developed out of an ExFOB charette that was taken to Afghanistan by India Company, 3/5 Marines.  It was so successful that the Commandant directed that it be turned into a program of record and issued, as appropriate, to the rest of the Corps.  From experimental systems in January 2011 to program of record in November 2011 has to be some kind of a record.  In contrast, the Army announced that the ICD written  in 2010 could be approved in the next 30 days.  This means that sometime this year, the Army might have a CDD which could provide the requirements that the Acquisition community requires to actually produce systems. 

I asked Gayle V and Mike Gallagher how they pulled off the astounding feat of transitioning GREENS so fast.  I got an immediate response. The short answer was that GREENS was in Mike’s acquisition pipeline previously and was accelerated by an Urgent Statement of Need (USON) received in May 2011.  “Having already been designated as an Abbreviated Acquisition Program, program efforts and documentation had already been tailored.  The USON effectively just compressed what should have been a 24 month period to a six month period of time to get systems into theater.  All programmatic efforts, documentation, and reviews required still had to take place, but on a much compressed timeline”.  Lots of hard works was required to do things like reprogram funds in the year of execution, accelerate tests, verify equipment status and a thousand other details necessary.  As Mike Gallagher noted, “Working them all in parallel, vice serial execution and review, was truly awe-inspiring.” Guess it helps when the Commandant says, “Make it so”. 

 If the acquisition world recognizes where the operational world is going, they can get a jump on meeting urgent needs swiftly.  You can wait on a Requirement for JCIDS or meet the need.   I hope DOD is encouraging that kind of risk taking in this current, rarified budgetary atmosphere.

One final point for the folks that hold these conferences.  If you are going to charge hundreds of dollars to vendors to attend, you need to make sure the right players are there and the right topics are discussed.  At the Net Zero Installation conference in Chicago, the tract on energy conservation was eliminated.  Really? The key to energy security is reducing requirements and they drop that?  At the TPSS, focused on Operational Energy, there was no one from Sharon Burke’s office, no one from PM, MEP and no one from the Rapid Equipping Force.   Those are enormous gaps.  The excuse for having these things in DC is to make it cheaper for the Government to attend.  And in most of the offices I just mentioned, a third stringer is fine (in fact usually better than their heavily scripted bosses).  Oh, by the way.  The REF and Arizona State are hosting a “Net Zero at the Tactical Edge Conference” next month.  Details are here.   Asst. Secretary of Defense for Operational Energy Plans and Programs, REF Director, PM-MEP and Logistics Innovation Agency will all attend and present.  And it’s only a hundred bucks!  See you there.  Dan Nolan

In AfPak: Closed Borders, Dwindling Supplies

From June 1948 to May 1949, the Soviet Union closed ground access to the city of Berlin in an effort to gain control of the divided city. During that period the Allied forces flew over 200,000 sorties, hauling about 13,000 tons a day into the beleaguered city. It cost the Allies 101 lives and $2 billion in today’s dollars, but it succeeded. Is it time to get ready for the Bagram Airlift?

According to news reports, following an incident in which Apache Helicopters moved into Pakistani airspace after receiving effective ground fire and in keeping with the rules of engagement, “Within hours, Pakistan closed the vital ISAF supply line that runs from Karachi, Pakistan, through the fabled Khyber Pass to the Torkham crossing. About half of ISAF supplies come through Torkham and the southern Spin Boldak crossing, according to the U.S. Central Command.” Most FOBs maintain a certain number of days of supply of various classes of supply in order to be able to continue operation.

This action by the Pakistani government threatens the mission and highlights the absolute need for self sufficiency in our forward areas. Our days of assured supply and safe rear areas are behind us. What better example of the vulnerabilities we face in the long war than this? The products of the Marines’ ExFOB and the Net Zero Plus JCTD need to get into the hands of our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines. This is an area that requires rapid acquisition of systems that will provide our troops independence from political whims as well as tools necessary to continue the mission.

As frantic diplomatic engagement goes on, 30 days of supply of beans, bullets and benzene go by very quickly.

Picture courtesy of http://centralfloridapacs.com

DOD Energy Follies Part 2: Middies, Zoomies, and Toilets in the Desert

Inside the Middie Dome

OK, I don't want to spend much more time on follies. Would much rather accentuate the positive. But based on feedback to the previous follies post, looks like one more is in order.

The most glaring contribution this week, pun intended, came from the Navy again, which for some reason decided to keep its stadium lights all the way on for Saturday's game vs USAFA. In the face of sequestration and the teeth of the partial government shutdown, the Air Force barely had the funds to get its folks to Annapolis.  The Navy, it seems, had money (and watts) to burn.

Energy Innovation: Operations and Installations

This past week I attended the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation hosted conference entitled "Operation Energy Innovation: A Stronger, Smarter Fighting Force". The intent for the program was to examine how "DOD can play a prime role in accelerating cleantech development".

The agenda kicked off with a brief hello from Congressman J. Randy Forbes (R-VA). A recent article by Congressman Forbes highlighted his concern that DOD should have their feet held to the fire on energy projects. Simply being “green” is not enough. He cited one Navy project that apparently had a 477 year payback period. I am not sure that anyone is DOD is doing “art for art sake”. His message was that DOD could play a role in innovation, but its job was not to bridge the valley of death for developers. He is a big fan of the ExFOB, but who isn’t? They don’t write policy. They just get stuff done.

Congressman Forbes was followed by Senator Mark Udall who talked about his intent to reintroduce the Department of Defense Energy Security Act when its co-sponsor Congresswoman Gabby Gifford returns to the House. Congresswoman Gifford is a great friend to DOD Energy and we wish her a speed recovery. The goals of the act are to reduce DOD reliance on oil on the battlefield; tasks DOD to plan better for energy use; decrease electricity use at bases; and develop onsite renewables. The devil is in the details and the appropriations.

After the micro remarks by the members of Congress, the panel kicked off with each member making brief statements followed by a very informative Q&A. Matt Hourihan of ITIF led off with comments on his paper , co-authored with Matthew Stepp. The document remakes the case for DOD energy security with plenty of example of how DOD has “led the way” in technology development. The two condition necessary for this as stipulated in the paper are that Congress must provide “responsible support” for DOD efforts and that DOD must continue its energy security development in a “collaborative and information sharing manner”. Not completely sure what this mean. Will develop the situation!

These remarks were followed by Dr. Dorothy Robyn, DUSD, Installations and Environment and Ms. Sharon Burke, ASD, Operational Energy Plans and Programs. The gist of their remarks was about DOD’s role in innovation in the energy space. Both made it clear that DOD was in the game, but that any effort would have to show direct energy security returns and would have to be economically sustainable. Ms. Burke commented on the fact that she had an Energy Innovation Fund, but not much about where it will go. She promised that more detail would be available when her operational energy strategy was finished staffing and published. We look forward to that.

Dr. Robyn talked about the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDEP) and Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) efforts to develop and promote an Installation Test Bed. Dr. Jeff Marqusee, the director of ESTCP was called to the mike several times to discuss the program. The energy topics for which proposals will be solicited are:

1. Smart Micro-grids and Energy Storage to Increase Energy Security on DoD Installations
2. Renewable Energy Generation on DoD Installations
3. Advanced Component Technologies to Improve Building Energy Efficiency
4. Advanced Building Energy Management and Control
5. Tools and Processes for Design, Assessment and Decision-making Associated with Energy Use and Management

Selection of winners in this year’s process will be announced in October 2011. For more detail, check here.

I commend the panel and ITIF for leaving a large chunk of time for questions. I further commend all for not dodging the tough ones and for having SMEs on hand where required. I didn't like all the answers, but I liked that we got to ask the questions.

As we await the release of the Operational Energy Strategic Plan we have to keep the organization of DOD in mind. The office of the Secretary of Defense has responsibility for developing policy, how things ought to be done. The Services have Title 10, U.S. Code responsibilities. It is their purview to organize, man, equip, and train the forces necessary for the combatant commanders and they get the final vote on what gets fielded. For the Strategic Plan to have a lasting impact it must assign responsibilities for tasks, provide the authorities (resources) required and a mechanism for accountability. These will have to be reflected in the Services' execution plans. And Ms. Burke gets to grade those plans in her annual report to Congress, so that should close the circle. It will be interesting to watch the wrangling. Only the Marines have an organization chartered to do operational energy at this time. That would appear to be a big leg up in the resource restricted environment in which all the Services now must operate. Dan Nolan

RFI Alert: USMC Tactical Energy Generation

We've posted on the great work of the Marines exFOB many times before, and I'm happy to be doing so once again to kick off 2014.

There's an RFI out for submissions on "Tactical Energy Harvesting," but rather than siphoning off watts from dormant humans encased in glass cocoons, the Marines want to leverage a fraction of the energy already generated by able bodied soldiers in motion. And there's another element related to capturing waste heat from generators.

Response due date is 21 February 2014.  I'd expect the good folks down the street from me in Natick to have some ideas up their sleeves on this, but I know there are many other sources for thinking along these lines as well.

For more details on this solicitation click HERE.

Photo credit: Extremetech.com