Last Call for SHIELD Questions Now

On July 24 and 25, 2025, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) released 18 pre-RFP draft documents for the SHIELD (Multiple Award Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense) bid. Questions about the documents are due no later than 11:59 PM CT on August 18, 2025. To assist you, we’ve listed questions you may consider adding to your list, an overview of the bid (Table 1), an explanation of why you should bid, and a brief program description.

Table 1: SHIELD At a Glance

Element	Identifier
RFP Date	Fall 2025
Value	$151B
Competition	Full and Open/Unrestricted
NAICS Code	541715
Expected Number of Awards	Multiple Awards
Period of Performance	10-Year Base
GovWin Opp ID	254898

Why Bid on SHIELD?

SHIELD represents one of the most transformative missile defense and protection contracts ever issued by the U.S. government. Its massive $151B ceiling over a multi-year period ensures sustained funding and contract opportunities, positioning it as a foundational program in the GovCon market. The contract supports the Golden Dome initiative, which seeks to provide nearly 100% U.S. missile defense coverage.

Contractors that win prime or significant subcontractor roles will have the ability to shape, influence, and participate in next-generation homeland and global defense architectures. In addition, the SHIELD contracting officer intends to award all qualified offerors, as per Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)15.304(c)(1)(ii), Evaluation Factors and Significant Subfactors, and price will not be used as part of the award determination.

Brief SHIELD Description

SHIELD is intended to provide comprehensive detection, tracking, interception, and neutralization of a wide array of threats—including ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missiles—across all phases of flight. The contract’s broad scope encompasses both classified and unclassified work on multiple security domains. The bid is structured to deliver continuous, layered protection to the U.S. homeland, deployed forces, allies, and partners against air, missile, space, cyber, and hybrid threats.

SHIELD is designed to enable rapid acquisition and fielding of new technologies and capabilities, ensuring that the warfighter has timely access to best-in-class defenses against evolving threats. Only DOD agencies may use the IDIQ for requirements that align with the contract’s scope, supporting national defense priorities.

SHIELD Questions by Document

While most of the SHIELD documents were forms, for this blog, we are focusing on the draft solicitation document, as documented in Table 2.

Table 2: Draft Solicitation Questions

No#	Page	Section	Paragraph	Question
1	6	Section C – 1.0 Introduction	—	Does the government intend for all DOD components to use this IDIQ equally, or will MDA retain majority control over task orders? How will the $151B ceiling be apportioned or forecasted?
2	6	Section C – 1.0 Introduction	—	Are there minimum requirements for open systems architectures or model-based systems engineering at the task order level, or are these to be interpreted as preferences?
3	7	2.0 Scope Areas	—	Does the government intend to further define the description of the task areas listed in Section 2.0 Scope Areas?
4	7	2.0 Scope of Areas	—	Will contractors be eligible to perform all scope areas regardless of their proposed core capabilities initially proposed, or will the government limit awards to certain areas?
5	7	3.0 Information Management and Control Plan (IMCP)	3.1.1 IMCP	Will there be government-provided training or guidance, or a template related to implementing the IMCP requirements throughout the subcontractor supply chain?
6	8	5.0 North American Industry Classification System	—	Can the government clarify whether NAICS codes for specific task orders will be selected solely by the Procuring Contracting Officer (PCO), or may the contractor request a different code based on the work performed?
7	8	6.0 Security Information	6.2 Data Rights	Will the government require delivery of unlimited rights to technical data for all hardware/software developed under SHIELD, or will rights vary by task order? Will the government accept negotiations for specifically negotiated license rights for contractor-developed commercial items?
8	8	6.0 Security Information	6.3 Foreign Ownership, Control, or Influence (FOCI)	How often will FOCI compliance reassessments occur during the period of performance?
9	17	H.04 Teaming	—	Will the government require disclosure of all teaming arrangements at the IDIQ level, or only at the individual task order level?
10	114	L-1.2 General Information	6. Joint Venture	For Joint Ventures, will the government accept experience and qualifications from individual JV members in addition to the JV entity itself?
11	117	L-2.0 Volume I – Administrative Submissions	L-2.1 Administrative Information	For the Facility Clearance (FCL) requirement, can the government clarify whether a sponsorship letter or evidence of FCL application submission will be acceptable in lieu of an active clearance at the time of award?
12	119	L-2.3 Assertions and Responsibility Determination	L-2.3.3.4 Conflict of Interest	For the required disclosure of former government employees, will the government define “competitively useful information” to verify consistent interpretation across offerors?
13	121	L-3.0 Volume II – Technical	Factor I: Corporate Experience	The draft RFP document states that “The Offeror shall provide experience in a minimum of two, but no more than three of the work areas at the prime or subcontractor level.” Is the government evaluating each experience separately or evaluating their combined relevance?
14	125	M.1.1 Contracting Officer’s Responsibility Determination	Foreign Ownership Exclusion	If an offeror is currently in the process of mitigating FOCI issues, will they be considered for award contingent on successful completion, or automatically excluded until resolved?
15	125, 126	M.1.1 Contracting Officer’s Responsibility Determination	Small Business Subcontracting Plan (SBSP)	For evaluation purposes, will the government assign higher ratings for subcontracting plans exceeding the minimum small business participation levels?

Conclusion

The SHIELD opportunity is too significant to approach with unanswered questions or unclear requirements. With the Government’s Q&A deadline closing at 11:59 PM CT on August 18, 2025, now is the time to finalize and submit your inquiries. A well-structured question can clarify expectations, eliminate guesswork, and strengthen your proposal strategy.

If you want expert support in capturing, managing, writing, or reviewing your SHIELD proposal, Lohfeld Consulting is ready to help—contact us today.

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By Brenda Crist, Vice President at Lohfeld Consulting Group, MPA, CPP APMP Fellow

Lohfeld Consulting Group has proven results specializing in helping companies create winning captures and proposals. As the premier capture and proposal services consulting firm focused exclusively on government markets, we provide expert assistance to government contractors in Capture Planning and Strategy, Proposal Management and Writing, Capture and Proposal Process and Infrastructure, and Training. In the last 3 years, we’ve supported over 550 proposals winning more than $170B for our clients—including the Top 10 government contractors. Lohfeld Consulting Group is your “go-to” capture and proposal source! Start winning by contacting us at www.lohfeldconsulting.com and join us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube^(TM).