SOURCES SOUGHT
A -- Request for Information for a Fuze Safe/Arm Test Centrifuge
- Notice Date
- 2/11/2009
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- Department of the Army, U. S. Army Materiel Command, U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Life Cycle Management Command (Missiles), US Army Aviation and Missile Command (Missile), ATTN: AMSAM-AC, Building 5303, Martin Road, Redstone Arsenal, AL 35898-5280
- ZIP Code
- 35898-5280
- Solicitation Number
- W31P4Q-09-R-0234
- Response Due
- 3/30/2009
- Archive Date
- 5/29/2009
- Point of Contact
- Lisa Duncan, 256-842-7408<br />
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This is a Request for Information (RFI) issued pursuant to FAR 15.2. The Government does not presently intend to award a contract, but wants to obtain price, delivery, other market information, or capabilities for planning purposes. The Army is continually developing and evaluating fuzes for various missile and munition applications. To prevent inadvertent or premature weapon initiation, these fuzes include components that prevent arming until certain criteria have been met. In addition to other physical phenomena, fuzes often use the acceleration associated with the launch and flight of a weapon to make a decision to arm the weapon. A centrifuge allows the acceleration-sensing parts of the fuze to be tested in a controlled, laboratory environment, by simulating those launch and flight accelerations. For the purposes of testing fuzes or other test articles as desired, such a centrifuge should have at least the following characteristics: 1. Accommodate different fuzes by means of an adapter plate using a standard bolt pattern; 2. Accommodate test articles with maximum dimensions of 17 x 17 x 17 centimeters; 3. Accommodate test articles with maximum mass of 2.5 kilograms (approximately 5.5 pounds); 4. Provide for automatic load balancing by adjusting of the position of a counterweight; 5. The test fixture and all rotating parts should be completely enclosed, with the enclosure adequate to contain all fragments from a worst-case mishap where the fuze under test either breaks apart or the explosive materials in the fuze detonate (assume 10.0 grams net explosive mass, TNT equivalent); 6. The centrifuge should provide for closed-loop control of velocity at the center of mass of the test article ranging from zero to 260 revolutions per minute (rpm) in increments of one rpm with an accuracy of plus or minus 0.5 rpm. Higher maximum spin ratings would be of interest; 7. Controls for the centrifuge settings must accommodate remote operation via a standard electrical interface (for example, EIA/RS-232, EIA/RS-422, EIA/RS-485, IEEE 802.3/Ethernet, IEEE-488/GPIB). As a minimum, the centrifuge controls should indicate centrifuge spin rate in revolutions per second (rps). All local control readouts should be readable in daylight light intensity levels; 8. The centrifuge should meet all requirements while operating in ambient temperatures from 55 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and after storage in temperatures from 20 to 120 degrees Fahrenheit, with relative humidity levels ranging from 20 to 95 percent; 9. The centrifuge should be powered from standard three-prong, 120 Vac, sixty-hertz, single-phase electrical outlet and should include built-in power conditioning and filtering, fail-safe circuit breaker protection (designed to trip when more than 15 amperes, root mean square, is drawn), and provisions for physical lockout/tagout procedures for maintenance/repair safety. A centrifuge requiring a higher voltage, but standard, single-phase circuit (e.g., 240 Vac) would be considered; 10. Maximum diameter of the centrifuge should be approximately 1.5 meters ( 5 feet) assuming roughly circular shape when viewed from above, with maximum height being roughly comparable, or less; 11. Access to the test fixture and rotating parts while the centrifuge is spinning should be prevented by the incorporation of hardware-based interlocks, the opening of which should result in immediate but graceful braking of the test fixture and rotating parts to a complete stop in less than one second. Options for braking (fast braking, slow braking, or no braking) may be useful. Similar provisions will be included to automatically bring the centrifuge to safe condition in the event of facility electrical power outage or undervoltage condition. An Semergency stop on the front of the centrifuge should provide a similar emergency shutdown function. The Semergency stop should have appropriate mechanical guard on it to keep it from being inadvertently actuated during normal loading/unloading/inspection operations but should not preclude its immediate actuation when needed; 12. The centrifuge should provide automatic indication of Sunbalanced conditions that would lead to excessive wear of the rotating or drive elements or that would cause a safety hazard to the operator. SSevere unbalanced conditions should result in automatic graceful braking of the centrifuge to a complete stop; 13. The centrifuge should include a safety plug or key that the operator would remove from the control panel during loading, unloading, and inspection operations. The centrifuge drive circuits should be incapable of being energized while plug or key is out of the control panel; 14. The centrifuge controls should include a power-up reset and power-on self-test (POST) capability as well as a calibration routine using a standard test mass; 15. As an option for consideration, the centrifuge should allow for installation of a Sspinner mechanism onto the test fixture, the purpose of which is to simulate the rolling motion of a missile, rocket, or projectile in flight. The spinner should spin the test article clockwise or counterclockwise, as desired, about the axis intersecting the center of rotation of the centrifuge. Spin rate should be controlled in increments of 0.1 revolutions per second (rps) over a range of zero to fifteen rps for clockwise or counterclockwise direction, as desired. The use of the spinner will be restricted to small, less massive test articles with maximum dimensions of 8 x 8 x 8 centimeters and maximum mass of 0.7 kilograms (approximately 1.5 lbs). Operation of the spinner should be independent of the centrifuge. Safety interlocks described earlier would also apply to the spinner; 16. It is a desirable objective that the centrifuge and the spinner be controlled with either pre-set or event-driven profiles via standard computer interface for higher fidelity to launch and flight environments. Compatibility with National Instruments LabVIEW version 8 or later is preferred; 17. The centrifuge should provide for slip-ring or other mechanism to provide reliable electrical connections between the fuze under test and external instrumentation. A minimum of sixteen connections is desired, with the internal cabling of each connection being shielded, and with an option to connect the shield to the fuze under test. All connectors should be of standard type commonly used in electrical instrumentation (for example, BNC, Sbanana jack, or terminal strip) and should not require special tools or fasteners to use. Each connection should be electrically isolated from the other; 18. It is a desirable objective that the centrifuge include a camera and associated lighting that would provide for local and/or remote viewing of the inside of the centrifuge. If the camera cannot be emplaced on the rotating arm of the centrifuge, a stroboscopic system could be used to present the operator with a Sstationary view of the fuze under test. Other suitable methods for visually monitoring the article under test, including the ability to record onto standard video tape or standard digital media, would be of interest; 19. All metallic structures in the centrifuge that the operator could come into contact with under regular use conditions should be bonded to Searth ground through a resistance with a minimum value of 25 kilohms, maximum value of one megohm, in accordance with Department of the Army Pamphlet (DA PAM 385-64) to preclude electrostatic discharge hazards; 20. The base of the centrifuge should have provisions for mounting to a flat concrete floor using standard bolts, and should include a means for leveling the centrifuge and securely locking it into leveled position, using standard, commonly available tools; 21. The centrifuge should be constructed to allow safe cleanup and removal of debris, fragments, and dust from articles under test; 22. The centrifuge should have provisions for the attachment of an externally driven vent system to exhaust residual vapors from the test article; 23. The centrifuge should be constructed using industry standard, commonly available, and/or easily fabricated parts, and in a modular fashion to simplify maintenance and repair; 24. All parts of the centrifuge that are toggled, adjusted, or otherwise actuated or moved as part of the normal operational sequence should be designed for long wear life and should degrade gracefully, with indications of need for replacement well in advance of failure. As a minimum, all motor brushes should be of a standard, easily-obtained (commercial, Soff-the-shelf) type and designed for ease of replacement. Please note that centrifuge designs that do not quite meet the above listed requirements may still be of interest if there is a potential decrease in cost or delivery time, or if there is a potential increase in reliability, safety, or performance. Aspects of the design that are proprietary or have usage restrictions such as licensing requirements or restrictions on modifications or operator servicing should be clearly identified. THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) IS NOT AN INVENTATION FOR BID OR REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. Rather this Request for Information is part of a technology survey that is an integral part of US Army planning efforts for possible future programs. Interested and capable sources are asked to submit a white paper using standard font size 10 or 12, with one inch margins in Microsoft Word 2003 or greater, Rich Text Format (RTF), or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) containing a description of appropriate technologies that they possess, or are developing, and how those technologies could be applied to this project. Drawings, sketches, or other graphics not embedded in the white paper shall be in Portable Network Graphics (PNG), Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG), or Tagged Image File Format (TIFF), with the resolution set so that graphical features and text labels are legible at 600 dots per inch (dpi) or higher printout resolution. The white paper and associated graphics, if any, shall be submitted on standard compact disk (CD) or Digital Video Disk (DVD). All Request for Information (RFI) questions, comments, responses must reference the RFI number and are to be submitted no later than 3:00 PM Central Standard Time (CST) on 30 March 2009 to US Army Aviation and Missile Command, CCAM-RD-RB, Building 5400, Redstone Arsenal, AL 35898 Attn: Lisa D. Duncan or via email to lisa.d.duncan@us.army.mil. All information must be submitted in writing. Telephone requests for additional information will not be honored. Acknowledgement of receipt will only be issued if a return receipt is requested with the submission. Please do not submit any classified information. All information submitted will be treated as confidential and will not be released outside of the Government. The Government reserves the right to request further clarification or request presentations to enhance the Governments understanding of the respondents submittal. RFI responses will be accepted from United States companies and organizations only. White papers that fail to comply with the above instructions or present ideas that are not pertinent to the subject may not be reviewed. This is a request for information purposes only. This notice does not constitute a commit by the U.S. Army to procure products or services. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT ON THE BASIS OF THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION OR OTHERWISE PAY FOR THE INFORMATION SOLICITED. No award is intended as a result of the RFI. Information submitted in response to this RFI is submitted at no cost to the Government and will not be returned. Any exchange of information shall be consistent with procurement integrity requirements, and all appropriate proprietary claims will be protected to prevent improper disclosure. In the event you have difficulty reading this RFI, please contact Lisa D. Duncan via email at lisa.d.duncan@us.army.mil for a copy of this notice.
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- Place of Performance
- Address: US Army Aviation and Missile Command (Missile) ATTN: AMSAM-AC, Building 5303, Martin Road Redstone Arsenal AL<br />
- Zip Code: 35898-5280<br />
- Zip Code: 35898-5280<br />
- Record
- SN01748354-W 20090213/090211215607-70ea435ff08061a173624ca7ba7952c0 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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