BOSTON -- Bomb-sniffing dogs will be out in force at the Auburn mall on Sunday evening during a safety drill conducted by federal agents and 10 local police departments.

The exercise, dubbed the Auburn Project, will train officers on how to protect mall shoppers in the event of a bomb threat. Police will also train for a scenario involving the safety of students on school buses, according to a written release from the Boston Police Department.

The training exercise follows the recent arrest of Tarek Mehanna, a 27-year-old Sudbury man who authorities said was plotting to kill Americans at shopping malls. Mehanna and another man face terrorism conspiracy charges.

Police did not indicate that the training session is related to Mehanna’s arrest, however.

During the exercise, bomb-sniffing dog teams will perform a lengthy search of mall stores and school buses. Data from the exercise will then be used by the U.S. Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Agency to refine bomb-detection techniques and response operations throughout the country.

Members of the Boston and Auburn police departments designed the exercise for the federal agency. Officers from Everett, Chelsea, Quincy, Hanover, Revere, New Bedford, Worcester and the Transit police will also take part in the exercise, which will begin at 6 p.m. on Sunday night when the mall closes.

Representatives from the U.S. Air Marshals Service Explosives Detection K-9 Unit and the U.S. Department of Interior Explosive Detection K-9 Unit will also attend.