Chem-bio defense needs common standards.

• Author: Fein, Geoff S.

Chemical and biological defense equipment is improving, but still is suffering from the lack of technical standards across industry and government agencies. The Defense Department and the Department of Homeland Security are working closely in this arena, but their efforts are hampered by the diversity of technologies offered in the marketplace, said Army Brig. Gen. Stephen Reeves, Joint Program Executive Officer for Chemical and Biological Defense. Reeves is the first JPEO-CBD. The office was established last April.

Companies are focused on selling their technology, rather than combining forces and pushing the most promising concepts, Reeves told National Defense.

"Military acquisition favors competition. However, once a clear technology winner is identified, funds are focused on expanding that capability," said Reeves. "COTS [commercial-off-the-shelf] companies rarely collaborate for the good of technology and meeting the requirement."

"That's not a sound business model, he added.

Military standards for detectors also will differ from their civilian counterparts, and they should, said Reeves.

"However, they should not be significantly different," he said.

COTS devices are intended for less severe environments and are designed to protect workers according to standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (NIOHS).

While military systems are designed to protect a population between the ages of 18 and 45 that is in good health, civilian systems must be able to protect the young and old alike, he said.

"The requirements to detect, identify and quantify are the same. However, the actual agent, the concentration levels and the rate of detection will be different," said Reeves. "In addition, there are, and should be, areas of overlap. The systems need to be small, simple to operate, cost effective and reliable over prolonged periods of time."

For military systems, technical standards are shaped by the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS) process, which ensures 'jointness' from the start, he said. At the same time, COTS technologies suffer from the lack of standardized test protocols and methoddogies, said Reeves.

"For example, similar devices are tested in different environments using differeut methods, timetables and agent concentrations resulting in different measurements and suitability criteria," said Reeves.

Technologies that appear promising often are "too large, require lots of power...