LAWTON – The FISTA Development Trust Authority is seeking bids from manufacturers interested in making the FISTA Innovation Park’s anechoic chamber, a soundproof room for testing electronic devices against regulatory standards.
The authority voted unanimously Feb. 4 to approve a solicitation of qualifications and bids from anechoic chamber manufacturers. The solicitation will be published as required by law.
The solicitation allows FISTA officials to seek qualifications and bids from interested manufacturers who have experience with anechoic chambers, said President and CEO Krista Ratliff. She said the solicitation will not include the price of the project, which is funded by American Rescue Plan Act dollars, but it will allow officials to consult industry experts about which manufacturers are building anechoic chambers.
“This is an ARPA-funded project, so we wanted to get this approval so we can move forward with issuing an RFQ (request for qualifications) and issuing a notice so people can respond,” she said.
The anechoic chamber will consist of a large chamber that can test anywhere from .5 to 26 gigahertz and a smaller chamber that can test anywhere from .4 to 17 gigahertz, Southwest Ledger reported on Jan. 28. The chamber will be housed in a standalone building, which will be located in the parking lot on the south side of Central Plaza.
FISTA officials are working with the Oklahoma City-based firm Tradesman Architectural Studios to procure the anechoic chamber. Tradesman will also design and oversee construction of the standalone building to house the chamber.
In a related development, the authority authorized FISTA officials to seek qualifications and bids from construction managers for the stand-alone building. That solicitation will also be published as required by law.
Officials will issue a request for qualifications, which will not include the price of the building, to see who is interested in overseeing construction of the facility, Ratliff said.
“What we’re going to explore is, is there anyone out there that builds buildings to house anechoic chambers?’ she said. “We want that knowledge.”
When it is finished, the building will be approximately 132 feet by 175 feet and capable of allowing a semitruck to drive through for deliveries. Besides the anechoic chamber, the building will include labs, server rooms, conference rooms and office space. Part of the building will be capable of holding classified status.
In other business, the FISTA Development Trust Authority:
• Approved EOS North America’s bid to supply manufacturing equipment for FISTA’s STEM lab, which will allow students to work on projects related to science, technology, engineering and math.
EOS will provide a complete metal powder printing system for aerospace manufacturing for the STEM lab, according to the bid. FISTA has budgeted $800,000 for the system, including installation.
The STEM lab, an incubator and manufacturing space are currently under construction in the former Old Navy and UPS stores in Central Plaza. FISTA officials expect installation of the metal powder printing system to begin by the fourth quarter of 2026.
• Approved a five-year lease agreement with FISTA Innovation Park tenant Leidos Inc. for approximately 810 square feet inside FISTA 1, Suite LA, also known as the former Sears building in Central Plaza.
Headquartered in Virginia, Leidos offers data analytics, cybersecurity and other services.