Burial and Memorialization Electronic Directory (BMeD) Commercial Off-the-Shelf Platforms

Form / Attachment / Pricing Sheet

This document is a template for submitting questions and answers related to the "Burial and Memorialization Electronic Directory (BMeD) Commercial Off-the-Shelf Platforms" Request for Information (RFI), identified as ABMCFY27_BMeD_COTS_RFI.

• The document is an Excel spreadsheet with a sheet titled "Questions".
• This sheet contains columns for "Question ID", "RFI Document", "Page", and "Question".
• The provided content shows the template structure but does not contain any actual questions or answers.
• A second sheet, "Sheet2", lists potential RFI attachments or related documents, including "RFI Language", "RFI Attachment 1 - RFI Questions", "RFI Attachment 2 - Draft SOO", "RFI Attachment 3 - Draft Evaluation Process", "RFI Attachment 4 - Draft SBPCD", and "Other".

This template is provided for bidders to submit their questions regarding the RFI. It outlines the expected format for question submission, although no specific questions or answers are included in this particular file.

Request for Information (RFI)

This RFI is issued by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) for market research purposes. ABMC is seeking industry input on secure, cloud-based commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) platforms to replace or improve the current WeRemember.ABMC.gov environment. The goal is to find a modern, stable, secure, and user-friendly platform that supports both public research and internal staff operations for approximately 250,000 burial records. ABMC is looking for mature COTS alternatives that offer strong usability, reliability, maintainability, performance, vendor support, and long-term flexibility.

The desired solution must include:

• A public-facing research portal.
• An internal records and case-management capability.
• Management of structured and unstructured data.
• Accurate and responsive search functionality.
• Support for document and media attachments.
• Role-based access enforcement.
• ABMC staff administration of content and configuration with minimal contractor dependence.
• Support for records management, workflow, audit support, reporting, export functions, and secure integration with external/internal data sources.

Vendors are asked to address specific areas including:

• Platform Overview (deployment models, hosting, maturity, configuration vs. custom development).
• Functional Capabilities (public search attributes, internal access, media management, data access controls, workflow, export, reporting).
• API and Integration Capabilities (RESTful, OAI-PMH, data import/export, metadata exchange, integration with VA's VLM site).
• ABMC Branding and User Interface.
• Data Migration and Reconciliation from existing sources.
• Search and User Experience features (faceted filtering, fuzzy search, OCR, relevance tuning, accessibility).
• Administration and Maintainability (staff configurability, reducing vendor lock-in).
• Security and Compliance (role-based access, audit logs, vulnerability management, Section 508 accessibility, secure hosting, API security).
• Implementation Approach (discovery, validation, pilot, migration, testing, training, cutover).
• Support Model (help desk, patching, upgrades, defect resolution, service levels).
• Relevant Experience with similar projects.
• Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) for costs.

This RFI is for market research only and does not constitute a solicitation or commitment to a future procurement. ABMC will not reimburse vendors for response costs. Information gathered may refine future acquisition strategies and requirements.

Responses are limited to 20 pages (excluding product literature) and should include company information, product overview, technical approach, implementation approach, relevant experience, support model, and ROM pricing. Responses are due by May 8, 2026, and should be submitted to Jessica Young at youngj.ctr@abmc.gov.

Not applicable for this RFI.

ABMC encourages vendors to propose practical COTS alternatives and transition strategies that enhance system reliability, usability, search quality, administrative control, and long-term support while preserving mission data and minimizing disruption.