ERDC BOTAA 25-01: The Army's Continuously Open Prototype Funding Path for Deep-Tech Startups
Below is a brief summary. Please check the full solicitation before applying (link in resources section).
Quick Answer
ERDC BOTAA 25-01 is a Broad Other Transaction Authority Announcement issued in October 2024 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC). It uses Other Transaction (OT) authority under 10 U.S.C. 4022 to fund prototype projects in two broad domains: Military Engineering and Engineered Resilient Systems. It is continuously open, meaning there is no fixed deadline. Companies submit a short white paper (three pages or less) against any focus area through ERDCWERX, and the government typically responds with a selection decision within 60 to 90 days. Selected companies may be invited to pitch, demonstrate, or submit a full proposal through a Request for Prototype Proposal. There is no published dollar ceiling, and successful prototypes can lead directly to a noncompetitive follow-on production award. This mechanism is especially attractive to nontraditional defense contractors and small businesses, because it sits outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation and moves faster than a traditional contract.
What Is ERDC BOTAA 25-01?
ERDC BOTAA 25-01 is the current Broad Other Transaction Authority Announcement from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Engineer Research and Development Center. ERDC is the Army's premier engineering and environmental sciences research organization and is an integral component of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. The BOTAA is the standing vehicle ERDC uses to solicit prototype concept white papers from industry and academia, review them, and fund the ones that address a real government capability gap.
Unlike a traditional grant or contract solicitation with a hard due date, this announcement is open on a rolling basis. A company can submit whenever it has a concept that fits, and the government evaluates each white paper on its own merit against the criteria in the announcement, not against other submissions. All white papers are submitted electronically through ERDCWERX, the innovation hub that administers the announcement, at the ERDC BOTAA page on erdcwerx.org.
What Is a BOTAA and Why Does It Matter for Startups?
A BOTAA is a Broad Other Transaction Authority Announcement. It relies on Other Transaction authority, a flexible acquisition tool Congress gave the Department of Defense under 10 U.S.C. 4022 specifically to fund prototype projects. The key thing for a startup to understand is that Other Transactions are generally not subject to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) or its supplements. That means the terms are negotiated between the company and the government rather than dictated by the full weight of federal procurement law, which usually translates into a faster and more collaborative path than a standard contract.
Other Transactions were designed to bring in companies that do not normally work with the Department of Defense. The technology can be a proof of concept, a model or process, a novel application of commercial technology for defense purposes, an agile development effort, or a demonstration of operational utility. If your company is building something with a plausible defense application in engineering, computing, sensing, materials, or infrastructure, a BOTAA is often the lowest-friction way to get in front of a government customer.
What Is ERDC Looking For? The Two Focus Areas in Detail
ERDC BOTAA 25-01 solicits prototype concepts across two business areas. Each contains several focus areas, and a company may submit against any of them.
Military Engineering (ME)
The Military Engineering business area is about giving the warfighter technologies and capabilities that enable force protection and maneuver. It contains ten focus areas:
Protective Structures and Systems. Technologies, materials, and processes that reduce manpower, logistics, or equipment hours while improving the survivability of individuals, small units, fighting positions, semi-fixed assets, outposts, and contingency bases. This includes planning tools and tactics that speed up force protection setup, reuse, and retrograde, as well as capabilities for overwatch, perimeter, port, and border security, surveillance, and warning.
Protection and Survivability. Unit-level and system-level technologies that detect, disable, survive, or defeat enemy weapon systems and characterize the threat they pose. This covers infrastructure hardening and retrofit, camouflage, reducing detectability and vulnerability, recoverability, and protection of personnel, critical assets, and facilities against conventional, unconventional, and advanced threats.
Geophysical Sensors and Data Fusion. Sensors, sensor systems, and unmanned systems that detect, assess, and persistently monitor threats and critical infrastructure across urban, subterranean, and complex terrain. The goal is automated fusion that builds an in-depth Common Operating Picture for surface and subsurface movement, maneuver, and force protection planning.
Vulnerability Assessment, Detection, and Analytics. Technology and processes that support strategic, operational, and tactical analysis of anti-terrorism and force protection posture, and of population and infrastructure disruption from combat, humanitarian, and disaster situations. Prototypes support assessment of mission assurance, population vulnerability, and resilience.
Geoscience, Environmental, Geospatial, and Material Modeling and Simulation. Computational methods and materials-by-design capabilities that predict system performance, environmental impact on sensors, structural response to weapons effects, and level of protection. This includes simulating detection of above-ground, below-ground, and maritime avenues of approach.
Enhance and Assess Mobility of Manned and Unmanned Systems. Technologies that accelerate platform development, integrate autonomous systems, and improve mobility across complex terrain. This covers obstacle and gap crossing, vehicle and soil interaction, mobility hazard detection, and modeling and simulation tools that predict ground vehicle and watercraft performance in varied weather and terrain.
Engineering and Engineering Enabling Technologies. A broad category covering combat engineering, mobility and counter-mobility, explosive effects, breaching, materials, manufacturing and process technologies, modeling and simulation, virtual prototyping, operational energy, autonomous systems, prime power, and engineer-related environmental technologies.
Global Access Engineering. Technologies, materials, and planning tools for technical reconnaissance, construction, maintenance, repair, and upgrade of infrastructure critical to force projection and theater access. This includes remote sensing and field methods for assessing soils, ice and snow, pavements, matting, terrain, bathymetry, river currents, port depths, airfields, roads, rail, and bridges.
Infrastructure Maintenance, Repair, and Reconstruction Technologies. Materials and equipment that rapidly assess, repair, and reconstruct pavements, bridges, railways, ports, and airfields. Prototypes include physics-based tools for measuring layer thickness and strength, rail and pier capacity, and bridge structural capacity, plus new repair equipment and field kits.
Engineering Analysis Tools and Decision Aid Prototype Software. Software that integrates advanced engineering algorithms for evaluating, designing, repairing, and operating critical infrastructure in support of force projection and maneuver planning.
Engineered Resilient Systems (ERS)
The Engineered Resilient Systems business area combines advanced engineering with high-performance computing to amplify the design options examined early in the acquisition process. It contains seven focus areas:
Cybersecurity. Techniques, software, hardware, and tools that protect critical infrastructure and advanced manufacturing control systems, including industrial control systems, SCADA systems, programmable logic controllers, and networks, against adaptive cyber adversaries. ERDC is interested in networked, host-based, and behavior-based approaches that deliver holistic defense and cyber situational awareness.
High Performance Computing Enabled Advanced Manufacturing. Tools and systems that support advanced manufacturing, including 3-D printing, and that bring HPC resources to the point of manufacture. Areas of interest include multi-physics and multi-scale approaches, optimization, trade-space analytics, uncertainty quantification, data-driven and machine learning methods, virtual testing, AI-enabled certification, and the ability to design, fabricate, and test large-scale components more than a meter in length for uses such as armor, aerospace and marine substructures, blast and ballistic protection, and rotorcraft components.
High Performance Data Analytics. Techniques and tools that examine data sets too large or complex for traditional processing to uncover hidden patterns, correlations, and multidimensional trends, using HPC, heterogeneous computing, and next-generation algorithms.
System Engineering Techniques. Advanced system engineering methods that address acquisition and readiness challenges through design trade-space development, analysis of many candidate designs, and condition-based maintenance driven by sensor and maintenance data, often using artificial intelligence and machine learning at massive data volume.
HPC Enabled Development of Surrogate Models and Data Analytics. Computationally efficient and accurate surrogate models for full-order systems, with application areas including blast effects, flight envelope simulation, turbulent rotor dynamics, fluid-structure-thermal interaction, and physics-informed machine learning.
Leveraging HPC Capabilities for On-the-Edge Computing. Tools that deliver high-performance computing at the point of need to improve soldier situational awareness, including electro-optical, thermal, radar, and acoustic sensor data processing, terrain characterization and mapping, sensor fusion, anomaly detection, and local maneuver planning.
Computational Material Testing and Validation. Computational processes for testing and validating components produced through advanced manufacturing, connecting standard manufacturing procedures to engineering mechanics simulation and reducing uncertainty in additively manufactured parts.
Who Is Eligible to Apply?
ERDC awards Other Transactions to nontraditional defense contractors, traditional defense contractors, and nonprofit research institutions. To actually receive an award, at least one of the following conditions must be met:
There is at least one nontraditional defense contractor or nonprofit research institution participating to a significant extent in the prototype project, or
All significant participants in the transaction other than the federal government are small businesses or nontraditional defense contractors, or
At least one-third of the total cost of the prototype project is paid out of funds provided by parties other than the federal government.
A nontraditional defense contractor is an entity that has not performed, for at least the one-year period preceding the announcement, any DoD contract or subcontract subject to full coverage under the Cost Accounting Standards. Most commercial technology companies and venture-backed startups qualify as nontraditional, which is exactly why this vehicle fits them so well. A nontraditional partner can sit at the prime level, as a team member, as a subcontractor, or as a lower-tier vendor, as long as it is a key participant supplying a meaningful technology, doing a significant share of the work, or materially improving cost, schedule, or performance.
Prospective awardees must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) before award, so companies that are not yet registered should start that process early. Work under any resulting agreement is subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), and each offeror is responsible for compliance.
How Much Funding Is Available?
This is one of the most important differences between a BOTAA and a program like SBIR. There is no published dollar ceiling for ERDC BOTAA 25-01. Funding is scoped to the prototype concept itself.
At the white paper stage, a company provides a Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) price, which is an estimate of what the prototype would cost, along with any anticipated cost share. The government evaluates whether that ROM is commensurate with the proposed solution. If the concept advances to a full proposal, pricing is submitted on a firm fixed price basis and structured as a milestone payment schedule, where each milestone has a description, a price, and a target completion date. Payments are tied to completed events rather than reimbursed as incurred costs.
Cost share is directly connected to eligibility. If your project qualifies through significant nontraditional or small business participation, cost share is generally not required. If you instead rely on the third eligibility path, at least one-third of total project cost must come from non-federal sources. Cost share can be cash or in-kind, where in-kind means non-financial resources such as wear and tear on capital equipment, the prorated value of facility space, or the fair market value of materials used on the project.
The government does not reimburse the cost of preparing white papers or proposals, and no costs incurred before the effective date of an agreement are recoverable.
What Is the Timeline and How Does the Process Work?
Because the announcement is continuously open, the timeline is driven by review cycles rather than a due date. The process runs as follows:
First, the company submits a white paper against any focus area through ERDCWERX. The white paper is the technical concept and rough pricing, limited to three pages plus a cover page.
Second, the government reviews the white paper against the evaluation criteria in the announcement. White papers judged advantageous are selected for further consideration.
Third, the company is notified of selection or non-selection, typically within 60 to 90 days of submission.
Fourth, if a white paper is selected and funding is available, the government may request a solution pitch or technical demonstration and may issue a Request for Prototype Proposal (RFPP). If a white paper is selected but funding is not currently available, the government may keep it in an electronic library for consideration and possible funding for up to three years after submission.
Fifth, once an RFPP is issued, the company collaborates with the government to develop the Statement of Work, then submits a full proposal within the time stated in the RFPP.
Sixth, the government evaluates the proposal, negotiates as needed, and makes an award once terms and conditions are agreed upon.
A significant advantage sits at the end of this path. Under 10 U.S.C. 4022(f), a company that successfully completes a prototype Other Transaction can receive a follow-on production award on a noncompetitive basis. In other words, a well-executed prototype can open the door to production work without having to re-compete.
What Does the White Paper Require?
The white paper is short and focused. It runs no more than three pages, not counting the cover page, and includes the following.
A cover page, generated from the submission form, capturing the point of contact, the submitting business and its Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, business status (nontraditional, traditional, or nonprofit research institution), the focus areas addressed, a project title, a prototype description, the DoD purpose, and the ROM price.
Technical requirements, covering the background and benefits of the proposed solution, the technical approach with a clearly defined prototype, and anticipated data rights assertions if applicable.
A Rough Order of Magnitude price, including anticipated cost share if applicable and any supporting documentation.
Formatting requirements are specific. Pages are 8.5 by 11 inches, numbered X of Y. Margins are at least one inch on all sides. The font is 12 point Times New Roman, single spaced. All acronyms are spelled out on first use. The language is English. The file must be a PDF compatible with Adobe Acrobat Reader 11.0 and under 20 MB. Classified information must not be included, and generic capability brochures are not accepted in place of a white paper.
How Are White Papers Evaluated?
White papers are assessed on an integrated basis against four considerations: the degree to which the solution meets a government problem, need, or capability gap within an identified focus area; whether the ROM price is commensurate with the proposed solution; government funding availability; and whether the submission sufficiently demonstrates one of the eligibility conditions, meaning significant nontraditional participation, significant nonprofit research institution participation, an all small business or nontraditional participant pool, or at least one-third non-federal cost share.
If the project advances to a full proposal, evaluation broadens to scientific and technical merit, the qualifications of the program manager and key personnel, the significance of any nontraditional or nonprofit participation, and whether the budget is realistic, reasonable, and fully justified.
Why This Opportunity Deserves Attention
The BOTAA is one of the most accessible defense funding mechanisms available to a company that is not already embedded in the defense industrial base, and it is not widely tracked by commercially focused firms. Recent activity suggests the odds are reasonable for a well-targeted concept. Based on figures reflecting the current fiscal year, an estimated 20 to 25 of roughly 200 submissions advanced to the proposal stage or received funding, which points to an advancement rate above 10 percent. That is broadly comparable to what strong applicants see in competitive SBIR programs, and it is achieved with a much shorter initial submission.
The breadth of the focus areas is the other reason to pay attention. Companies working in cybersecurity, high-performance computing and data analytics, advanced and additive manufacturing, edge computing, modeling and simulation, autonomous systems, sensors, advanced materials, and infrastructure technologies all have a natural home under Military Engineering or Engineered Resilient Systems. If your technology has any of those characteristics and a plausible defense application, the three-page white paper is a low-cost way to test government interest.
How BW&CO Helps
BW&CO Consulting helps deep-tech, biotech, medtech, and defense-adjacent founders win non-dilutive federal funding, including Other Transaction opportunities like ERDC BOTAA 25-01. We help you determine whether your technology fits a Military Engineering or Engineered Resilient Systems focus area, position the concept against a specific government capability gap, structure eligibility and any cost share, and build a white paper that survives evaluation. If you want to know whether this vehicle is a fit for your company, reach out and we will assess it with you.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is ERDC BOTAA 25-01?
ERDC BOTAA 25-01 is a Broad Other Transaction Authority Announcement issued in October 2024 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and Development Center. It uses Other Transaction authority under 10 U.S.C. 4022 to fund prototype projects in Military Engineering and Engineered Resilient Systems, and it is continuously open with no fixed deadline.
Who can apply to the ERDC BOTAA?
Nontraditional defense contractors, traditional defense contractors, and nonprofit research institutions can apply. To receive an award, the project must include significant nontraditional or nonprofit participation, consist of only small business and nontraditional participants, or include at least one-third non-federal cost share.
What is the deadline for the ERDC BOTAA?
There is no deadline. The announcement is continuously open, so white papers can be submitted at any time and are evaluated as they arrive.
How much funding can I receive through the BOTAA?
There is no published dollar ceiling. Funding is scoped to the prototype concept. Companies provide a Rough Order of Magnitude price at the white paper stage, and full proposals are priced on a firm fixed price basis with milestone payments.
Is cost share required?
Cost share is not automatically required. If your project qualifies through significant nontraditional or small business participation, you generally do not need cost share. If you qualify through the third eligibility path, at least one-third of total project cost must come from non-federal sources, and that share can be cash or in-kind.
What are the focus areas of ERDC BOTAA 25-01?
There are two business areas. Military Engineering covers protective structures, protection and survivability, geophysical sensors and data fusion, vulnerability analytics, geoscience and material modeling, mobility of manned and unmanned systems, engineering enabling technologies, global access engineering, infrastructure repair, and decision-aid software. Engineered Resilient Systems covers cybersecurity, HPC-enabled advanced manufacturing, high performance data analytics, system engineering techniques, surrogate model development, edge computing, and computational material testing.
What is a nontraditional defense contractor?
A nontraditional defense contractor is an entity that has not performed a DoD contract or subcontract subject to full Cost Accounting Standards coverage for at least the one-year period preceding the announcement. Most commercial and venture-backed technology companies qualify.
What is an Other Transaction?
An Other Transaction is a flexible award instrument authorized under 10 U.S.C. 4022 for prototype projects. Other Transactions are generally not subject to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, which allows terms to be negotiated and typically enables a faster, more collaborative process than a traditional contract.
How long is the white paper?
The white paper is three pages or fewer, not counting the cover page. It must be a PDF under 20 MB, formatted in 12 point Times New Roman, single spaced, with one-inch margins and numbered pages.
How long does the review take?
Companies are typically notified of selection or non-selection within 60 to 90 days of submitting a white paper.
Can a prototype lead to a production contract?
Yes. Under 10 U.S.C. 4022(f), a company that successfully completes a prototype Other Transaction can receive a follow-on production award on a noncompetitive basis.
How do I submit a white paper?
White papers are submitted electronically through ERDCWERX at the Broad Other Transaction Authority Announcement page on erdcwerx.org. Do not include classified information, and do not submit generic capability brochures in place of a white paper.
How is a BOTAA different from SBIR?
A BOTAA has no fixed deadline, no published funding ceiling, and a much shorter initial submission (a three-page white paper rather than a full proposal). It uses Other Transaction authority outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation and can lead directly to noncompetitive production, whereas SBIR follows fixed phases, set award amounts, and periodic solicitation windows.
