SOURCES SOUGHT
63 -- REF - Concorde 2.0 Helium Aerostat Balloon Systems
- Notice Date
- 3/24/2009
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 336411
— Aircraft Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- Department of the Army, U. S. Army Materiel Command, RDECOM Acquisition Center - Aberdeen, RDECOM Acquisition Center - Aberdeen, ATTN: AMSSB-ACC-A, 4118 Susquehanna Avenue, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD 21005-3013
- ZIP Code
- 21005-3013
- Solicitation Number
- W91CRBRFICONCORDE20
- Response Due
- 4/24/2009
- Archive Date
- 6/23/2009
- Point of Contact
- Kari Schoerner, 410-278-1394<br />
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI): THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION; no award will be made as a result of this request. This request for information is for informational purposes only; this is not a Request for Proposal (RFP). All interested parties are encouraged to respond to this RFI. The Government will not pay for information and material received in response to this RFI and is in no way obligated to the offeror by the information received. 1. SCOPE Background: The mission of the U.S. Army Rapid Equipping Force (REF) is to rapidly increase mission capability while reducing risk to Soldiers and others by equipping operational commanders with off-the-shelf (government or commercial) solutions or near-term developmental items that can be researched, developed, and acquired quickly. The REF receives requirements from operational commanders in war zones setting forth the capabilities needed. The Army Senior leadership chartered the REF to provide material solutions to meet these requirements in a significantly reduced timeline compared to traditional Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition procedures. The purpose of this RFI is to obtain potential solutions to provide the Soldier in theater with intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capability. The REF believes that Counter-Insurgency Operations (COIN) in Iraq and Afghanistan will require the use of a fully integrated, ruggedized tethered balloon capability to camps and Joint Security Stations (JSS) to accomplish these efforts. Alternative solutions submitted by companies responding to this RFI will also be considered. Experience and information obtained from this RFI will be provided to Army Product Manager REF who will evaluate the information and feasibility of issuing a procurement action to resolve the stated problem. 2. REQUIREMENTS The REF has a need for a technology or system that will provide airborne ISR capabilities operating a minimum of 500 feet altitude. A helium balloon aerostat system similar in performance to the SkyStar 300 is needed to operate day and night, 24 hours per day, seven (7) days per week, in all weather conditions. 2.1Camera Turret Assembly 2.1.1Two (2) cameras (one day/low light camera and one night/infrared (IR) illuminated camera). 2.1.2Capable of operating in temperatures from -20C (-4F) to +45C (113F) and suited for direct exposition to all weather conditions. 2.1.3Day view human identification* at 1500m (~4921 ft); vehicle identification at 4000m (~2.5 mi). 2.1.4Low light/night IR view (with LED is acceptable) human identification* at 800m (~2625 ft); vehicle identification at 2000m (~1.2 mi). *Identification implies differentiation of object from background or surrounding objects. This capability does not imply positive identification of individual persons or vehicles. 2.2Environmental Conditions 2.2.1All system components, with the exception of the ground station, shall be capable of operating in temperatures from -20C (-4F) to +45C (113F). 2.2.2The system, to include the camera and monitor, shall be suited for direct exposition to all weather conditions. 2.2.3The balloon and tether shall be able to survive 74 knot (~85 mph) maximum sustained wind. 2.2.4The balloon and tether shall be able to operate continuously in 45 knot (~52 mph) maximum sustained wind. 2.3Power Supply/Charging 2.3.1The systems primary power source shall be dual voltage (220v/50Hz or 120v/60Hz) prime power. 2.3.2The system shall be configured to accept and include cabling to accommodate alternate (second option) input power from a 2Kw/28vDC (2-wire) generator. 2.3.3The system shall be configured to accept alternate (tertiary) input power from vendor-provided batteries with a minimum continuous battery power operational ability equal to or greater than five (5) hours. 2.3.4The system shall be configured to accept and include cabling for alternate (quaternary) input power via an interface cable to a HMMWV battery (standard automotive battery cable connection). 2.3.5The system shall be configured to accept a HMMWV battery-to-battery charger interface cable. 2.3.6The battery charger shall be capable of accepting input from multiple sources such as 120/60Hz-220/50Hz AC, 12-24V DC vehicle battery, 28V DC generator. 2.4System Requirement 2.4.1A helium balloon aerostat day/night camera system consisting of the following components: 2.4.1.1One (1) motion-stabilized, gimbal type camera system with day and night cameras included in a single unit 2.4.1.2One (1) 500+ ft. tether, inter-woven with power cable, video signal conductors, and fiber optic cable 2.4.1.313-14 ft. diameter balloon 2.4.1.4Balloon launcher system, cargo HMMWV transportable, with ground lug and earth anchor capability for semi-fixed operation 2.4.1.5Electrical operated winch capable of balloon launch and recovery 2.4.1.6Three (3) helium bottles, not filled, 294 cu. ft. capacity 2.4.1.7Anti-Collision/Obstruction Lighting System with Red and IR emitting; remotely controlled from ground control station and wired through tether 2.4.1.8Battery charger with dual voltage input of 120/220vAC 50/60Hz and 25 Amp, 24V output 2.4.1.9Launcher assembly ground anchor set 2.4.1.10Battery pack, charging cable, inverter, connectors 2.4.1.11One (1) Analog to digital video signal converter 2.4.2Training at the vendors location. 2.4.3Spares package consisting of items (i.e., power cables, video signal conductors, giber optic cables, tool package) necessary to maintain the system. 2.4.4System modification to meet Army Testing and Evaluation Center (ATEC) safety requirements. 2.5Electrical Control and Video shall be hard-wired with no wireless components permitted. 3. DELIVERABLES Specific information on industry capability to produce a system that can meet the requirements identified in paragraph 2 above, or otherwise solves the problem of providing ISR capabilities. This is NOT a Request for Proposal. Companies who desire to participate in this market survey are encouraged to submit a white paper which supports the companys claim that it presently has the technology, qualifications, and capabilities to satisfy one or more of the performance and technical objectives described above. The white paper should discuss the companys ability to develop and or provide existing technologies to provide ISR capabilities Iraq and Afghanistan and should provide a ROM (rough order of magnitude) price and its anticipated delivery for the solution proposed. The white paper should also discuss related company experience and include point(s) of contact. The white paper should be prepared in MS Word, limited to ten (10) pages, and submitted electronically to the contracting officer at kari.schoerner@us.army.mil. The company shall be responsible for any costs associated with preparing responses to this market research. All requests for further information must be made in writing or via email; telephone requests for additional information will not be honored. The Government will review RFI submissions as they are received. The Government reserves the right to close this RFI once they have received adequate response(s) to this RFI.
- Web Link
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- Place of Performance
- Address: RDECOM Acquisition Center - Aberdeen ATTN: AMSSB-ACC-A, 4118 Susquehanna Avenue Aberdeen Proving Ground MD<br />
- Zip Code: 21005-3013<br />
- Zip Code: 21005-3013<br />
- Record
- SN01776442-W 20090326/090324220406-3d0fb7e03ed9adffd22ffec02ad0383e (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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