SOURCES SOUGHT
A -- Acousto-seismic Techniques For C-IED Applications - Acousto-seismic Techniques For C-IED Applications
- Notice Date
- 7/28/2009
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- Department of the Army, Joint Improvised Explosive Device (IED) Organization, Joint Improvised Explosive Device (IED) Organization, 5000 Army Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia, 20310-5000
- ZIP Code
- 20310-5000
- Solicitation Number
- JIEDDO_BAA-09-AS-01
- Point of Contact
- Lt Col Mark J. Keller, Phone: 7036015756, Steve Culfogienis, Phone: 703-602-4848
- E-Mail Address
-
mark.keller@jieddo.dod.mil, steve.culfogienis@jieddo.dod.mil
(mark.keller@jieddo.dod.mil, steve.culfogienis@jieddo.dod.mil)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- JIEDDO_BAA-09-AS-01 Introduction The Joint Improvised Explosives Device Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), which is issued under the provisions of paragraph 6.102(d)(2) of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), provides the vehicle for the competitive selection of basic and applied research, and that part of development not related to the development of a specific system or hardware procurement. Contracts based on responses to this BAA are considered to be the result of full and open competition and in full compliance with the provisions of Public Law (PL) 98-369, “The Competition in Contracting Act of 1984.” As the issuing agency, JIEDDO will not issue paper copies of this announcement. Any proposal documents or other materials submitted in response to this BAA will not be returned. It is the policy of JIEDDO and its contracting agencies to treat all proposals as sensitive competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation. Awards for submissions under this BAA are planned in Fiscal Years 2009 and 2010. However, funds may not be available for all requirements under this BAA. No contract awards will be made until appropriated funds are available from which payment for contract purposes can be made. JIEDDO reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals in response to this BAA. JIEDDO will not provide funding for direct reimbursement of proposal development costs. This BAA will remain open for no less than 90 days from the publication date. Proposals may be submitted at any time during that period. At the conclusion of that period, JIEDDO may extend the submission deadline if deemed desirable. Approach JIEDDO will use a two-phased proposal selection process for this solicitation to minimize cost and effort by prospective offerors. Phase 1 will solicit and evaluate proposal quad charts and white papers. Section II below, provides detailed guidance on Phase 1 proposal preparation. Section III provides information on the Phase 1 evaluation process. Proposals found to have technical and operational merit during Phase 1 will be selected for Phase 2. Submitters will be contacted with specific instructions for Phase 2, which will consist of technical meetings as well as more detailed presentations and submissions to the JIEDDO acquisition management process. Subsequent to funding approval, full technical proposals may be requested. HBCU/MI and Small Business Set Aside The Government encourages nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses (SDB), historically black colleges and universities (HBCU), minority institutions (MI), women-owned businesses, and historically underutilized business (HUB) zone enterprises as well as large businesses and Government agencies to submit proposals for consideration or to join others in submitting proposals. However, no portion of the BAA will be set-aside for these special entities because of the impracticality of reserving discrete or severable areas of research and development in any specific requirement area. The final determination will be made based on the relevance of the proposal to JIEDDO requirements, individual technical merits of the proposal, and budget constraints within the mission priorities. To ensure full consideration in these programs, registration in the BAA Information Delivery System (BIDS), described later in this document, requires the appropriate business type selection as well as accurate up-to-date information. Limitation of Funds The Government may incrementally fund contracts awarded from this BAA as provided by FAR 52.232-22, “Limitation of Funds.” Contracts awarded to proposals submitted under this BAA are anticipated to be 6 to 24 months in duration. To facilitate incremental funding, submissions shall include the cost and schedule by a task-phased structure organized by fiscal year (October through September) with clear exit criteria, and shall be inclusive of all work to complete the effort including any options. It is anticipated that the entire effort will be negotiated with the initial contract award. Technical Evaluation Support JIEDDO will use contractor support personnel in the review, evaluation, and administration of all submissions to this BAA. All individuals that have access to any proprietary data shall certify that they will not disclose any information pertaining to this solicitation including any submission, the identity of any submitters, or any other information relative to this BAA. They shall also certify that they have no financial interest in any submissions evaluated. Submissions and information received in response to this BAA constitute permission to disclose that information to certified evaluators under these conditions. I.GENERAL INFORMATION 1.BAA Issuing Agency Name: Joint IED Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) 2.Contracting Agency Name: Any United States Government contracting organization may serve as the contracting agency for this BAA. 3.Sponsoring Agency Name: JIEDDO 4.Program Name: Rapid Development of Counter-IED Capabilities; Route Clearance Applications to Defeat IEDs using Acousto-seismic Techniques 5.Research Opportunity Number: BAA JIEDDO-09-AS-01 6.Response Date: Offerors responding to this BAA may begin submitting responses on 28 July 2009. Final submissions for all proposals to this BAA are due by 4 PM, Eastern Standard Time on 26 October 2009. 7.Definitions: a.An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) is defined as a device placed or fabricated in an improvised manner incorporating destructive, lethal, noxious, pyrotechnic, or incendiary chemicals and designed to destroy, incapacitate, harass, or distract. It may incorporate military supplies, but is normally devised from non-military components. b.Counter-IED (C-IED) is defined as the collective efforts at all levels to defeat the IED system in order to reduce or eliminate the effects of all forms of IEDs used against friendly forces and non-combatants according to the mission. It includes offensive and defensive measures taken to predict, prevent, detect, neutralize, and mitigate the IED threat, as well as train our forces to counter it. It also includes operations to predict and prevent the IED network. c.Explosively Formed Projectiles: An explosively formed projectile (EFP) is a class of IED designed to fire a shaped warhead that effectively penetrates armor at stand-off distances. An EFP system has four major components: (1)Arming Switch. This component arms or disarms the EFP. More sophisticated EFPs use a RC device (e.g., cell phone or long range cordless telephone) to transmit a control signal. (2)Trigger Switch. This component triggers the explosive device. More sophisticated EFPs use a victim operated trigger such as a PIR. Less sophisticated EFPs use command operated trigger such as a command wire. (3)Explosive Device. (4)Camouflage. This component conceals the EFP system. d.Shallow Buried Objects: Shallow buried objects can be broken into two types; buried IED and pressure plates. (1)Buried IEDs are emplaced underground with the intent to detonate beneath vehicles and personnel. They are used on roadways, thoroughfares and choke points wither intended victims are likely to pass over them. Emplacements vary widely, but burial depth often corresponds with the net explosive weight of the device (i.e. larger devices can be place mere deeply). Devices are frequently emplaced in locations that provide little visual evidence of their burial, such as previously existing or repaired holes and culverts. (2)Pressure plates are often associated with buried IEDs emplaced on the roadways, traffic choke points and other thoroughfares. Common pressure actuators are fabricated from lightweight metal components and buried under thin overburden in the path of an intended victim. Although they can be fabricated from most any metal component, they commonly use items like saw blades, dual conductor wires and commercial pressure switches. 8.Description of Opportunity: JIEDDO is constantly seeking innovative counter-IED capabilities that can be rapidly developed, demonstrated and deployed to defeat IEDs employed against U.S. and coalition forces anywhere in the world, but especially in Iraq and Afghanistan. This BAA solicits proposals for the development of route clearance applications to defeat IEDs from a ground vehicle platform using acousto-seismic techniques to detect and defeat EFPs and shallow buried devices such as buried explosives and pressure plates in the road or on the side of the road. JIEDDO is interested in systems that can advance to a technology readiness level (TRL) of 5 within 24 months. At that time JIEDDO will assess the system at a Government range. Proposals must address at least one of the following four solicitation areas: a.Acousto-seismic technologies that will detect, discriminate and possibly defeat EFPs and shallow buried devices from a route clearance vehicle moving between 5 mph to 15 mph. Techniques that allow detection and discrimination and possibly defeat forward of the vehicle in time for it to stop prior to entering the IED kill zone will receive a more favorable consideration than those that look to the side of the vehicle or must pass over the IED to detect and discriminate. Sensors that scan will receive a more favorable consideration than those that interrogate. Scanning sensors support detection and discrimination from the same sensor. Interrogation sensors support just discrimination. Interrogation sensors are cued by another sensor. b.Acousto-seismic technologies that support other detection modalities. Proposals of this type must explicitly describe how the acousto-seismic sensor will be used in conjunction with other sensors. c.Acousto-seismic components (e.g. vibrometers, narrow-beam acoustic sources, high speed processors, etc.) that are not stand alone, but will provide enhancements to other sensors. Proposals of this type must explicitly describe how the development supports advancement of acousto-seismic techniques for EFPs and shallow-buried devices. Proposals of this type shall be ready for integration in 24 months from receipt of funds. d.JIEDDO will also consider proposals that use acousto-seismic techniques on platforms other than ground vehicles (i.e., robot, air or etc.). Proposals of this type must explicitly describe a concept of operation. 9.JIEDDO Technical Point of Contact. The JIEDDO Technical POC for this technology area is Mr. Steve Culfogienis, 703-601-4351, steve.culfogienis@jieddo.dod.mil. II.PROPOSAL PREPARATION GUIDELINES This section provides information and instructions for the preparation and submission of all proposals under this BAA. All submissions must meet these requirements including format, content, and structure, and must include all specified information to avoid disqualification, submission rejection, or delays in evaluation. 1.Submission Process: All proposals must be submitted electronically to the BAA Information Delivery System (BIDS) website at: https://bids.acqcenter.com/JIEDDO. This secure website is used to collect all unclassified proposals, and to collect placeholder records for classified submissions. DO NOT UPLOAD CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS TO THE BIDS WEBSITE; see paragraph 10 below for instructions on classified submissions. BIDS also provides submission progress tracking, evaluation comment collection, and results notification back to the submitter. 2.The BIDS web site will not allow proposals to be uploaded or modified, or classified placeholders to be entered, after the closing date and time. Any proposal submitted by any other means, or that is late will not be considered by the government. 3.Submitter Registration: Submitters must register on the BIDS website to respond to this BAA. A unique username is created by the offeror and is used for BIDS login and submission tracking. Registration acceptance for submitters is automatic, but takes several seconds to be recognized by BIDS. A success email will be sent to indicate that the username and account were accepted. Existing BIDS accounts are acceptable if submitters have previously registered but submitters must make sure that the company contact information is current. BIDS is email dependent and uses the registration email as the single point of contact for all notifications associated with the BAA. It is very important to keep BIDS registration contact information updated, especially contact e-mail address, since all BIDS notifications will be sent via e-mail to that address. 4.User Accounts and Password Resets: Registration account information such as the point of contact (POC), e-mail, and password can be updated after login. The “Forgot My Password” link on the BIDS homepage allows registered users with a valid e-mail address to automatically reset a password. The system will verify the account name and e-mail to send a new password to that e-mail. 5.Registration and Account Help: BIDS help requests can be emailed to the BIDS administrator at the “Help Request” link located on the BIDS homepage. 6.BIDS Security and Access Control: All data uploaded to BIDS is secure from public viewing. All submissions will be considered proprietary and source selection sensitive, and protected accordingly. The documents can only be reviewed by the registrant and authorized Government and contractor representatives with no conflict of interest. (See paragraph 10 below for instructions on classified submissions). 7.Proposal Format: It is mandatory that offers provide both a quad chart and white paper that meet the format requirements provided below. Acceptable file formats are Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint and Adobe Acrobat. File size in all cases is limited to 500 kilobytes. Examples of a quad chart and a white paper are provided at the BIDS website under “Reference Materials”. a.Quad Chart Content: A quad chart conveys the essence of the proposed solution on a single page. When preparing a submission, the offeror shall ensure that the specific criteria of the requirement are addressed, the solution is clear, and can be accomplished with the proposed technology, cost, and schedule. The quad chart includes four quadrants. (1)Header information shall include the BAA announcement number and the proposal title. The date and company name should be included along with the appropriate document markings. (2)The top left quadrant is a graphical depiction, photograph, or artist’s concept of the proposed solution or prototype. Include labels or brief descriptive text as needed for clarification. Ideally, this will convey the system concept, use, capability, and any relevant size or weight. (3)The top right quadrant contains a summary of operational and performance capabilities. (4)The bottom left quadrant contains a summary of the technical approach. Specifically, describe the technology involved, how it will be used to solve the problem, actions done to date, and any related on-going efforts. Briefly describe the tasks to be performed for each phase if applicable. Bullet lists are acceptable. (5)The bottom right quadrant contains the rough order of magnitude (ROM) cost, schedule, products and deliverables, and corporate contact information. The ROM and schedule shall be proposed in phases, and include the cost, period of performance (POP), and exit criteria for each phase. A total cost and POP that combines all phases shall also be included. Products and deliverables shall include, by phase, a list of all prototype hardware and software. Corporate contact information shall include the submitter’s company name, point of contact, phone number, and e-mail address. Include any significant teaming partner (contact information) relevant to the evaluation. Note that the contact information in the BIDS registration is used for all notices and contact purposes. b.White Paper Content: (1)Offerors shall prepare and upload a white paper detailing their proposed technical approach, schedule in phases (if applicable), and rough-order-of- magnitude (ROM) costs. The white paper shall be no more than 12 pages plus a cover page; each page shall be 8 ½ by 11 inches with one inch margins. The title page shall include the BAA announcement number. The text shall be double-spaced with fonts no smaller than 10 point. If the white paper contains more than 12 pages including tables, charts, and figures only the first 12 pages will be evaluated. Appendices do not count towards page limit. (2)Proposals are evaluated by a panel of subject matter experts (i.e. scientists and engineers with advanced degrees in the subject area), as well as experienced operational personnel. The technical approach and concept of operations should be written with sufficient detail for the panel to make an informed decision. Information provided should also include (but is not limited too): •Clutter reduction techniques and methodologies. •Signal process techniques for identifying the signature of interest. •Acoustic device hearing safety (if applicable). •Laser device eye safety (if applicable). •Rate of advance for concurrently scanning, detecting and discriminating 30 meters to the left and 30 meters to the right of the center line of the vehicle (for solicitation area 8a). •Rate of advance for concurrently scanning, detecting and discriminating 3 meters to the left and 3 meters to the right of the center line of the vehicle (for solicitation area 8b). •A summary of modeling and simulation or test data should be provided to confirm performance claims (if available). •Schedule for advancing to TRL of 5. 8.Status and Inquiries: Inquiries by phone concerning the submission status will not be accepted. Submitters can check the status of their submissions at the BIDS website under “My Submissions.” All submission will complete the Phase 1 evaluation process; the steps of that process correspond to the following BIDS website status levels: •Level 1: Initial Technical Reviews. •Level 2: Technical Evaluation Panel. •Level 3: Internal staffing of panel recommendation. •Level 4: Management review of panel recommendation. •Level 5: Vice Director approval of panel recommendation and release of Phase 1 notification to offeror. 9. Notification to Offeror: The Government will notify the offeror by email when their submission has completed Phase 1. 10. Classified Proposal Submission Instructions: DO NOT UPLOAD CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS TO THE BIDS WEBSITE. For any proposal related to current or previously funded Government work, the offeror should submit the proposal to the sponsor for classification review prior to submission to BIDS. If any submission contains classified information, the offeror shall upload an unclassified placeholder document in BIDS, and identify in the comments section of the submission record that the submittal cannot be uploaded due to classification. Classified proposals shall then be mailed or delivered to the following address: Polk Building 2521 South Clarke Street Suite 1900 ATTN: Security/TRID/ITB Arlington, VA 22202 The BIDS document identifier must be clearly identified on the mailed submittal. Classified proposals (up to SECRET) must be appropriately and clearly marked (including all paragraphs and pages containing the subject data), packaged, and shipped in accordance with classified material handling procedures and security regulations pertaining to the level of classification. 11. Intellectual Property, Technical Data and Software: All anticipated intellectual property, technical data or software rights shall be disclosed. 12.Patents and Patent Applications: Identify any existing, applied for, or pending patents that will be used in the conduct of this effort. Provide patent number or application number and title. If no patents or patent applications are relevant; so state. 13.Technical Data and Computer Software Rights. Identify any technical data and/or computer software that will be delivered with less than unlimited rights as prescribed in DFARS 252.227-7017 and DFARS 252.227-7028. If unlimited rights in technical data are proposed, state this. 14.Central Contract Registration (CCR): Prospective contractors must be registered in the DoD CCR database prior to award of an agreement. By submitting an offer to this BAA, the offeror acknowledges the requirement that they must be registered in the CCR database prior to award, during performance, and through final payment of any agreement resulting from this BAA. The CCR may be accessed at http://www.ccr.gov/. Assistance with registration is available by phone at 1-888-227-2423. III.PHASE 1 EVALUATION PROCESS 1.Proposals are evaluated as they are received, not at the conclusion of the BAA submission deadline. Upon receipt, proposals receive an administrative review for compliance with BAA Section VII, above, followed by an initial technical review. Proposals are then evaluated by the technical evaluation panel, which normally meets on a monthly basis. Proposals are not evaluated against each other. After any necessary staff coordination, a recommendation to either accept or reject the proposal for Phase 2 is staffed to the JIEDDO Vice Director for approval. 2.Technical review panels will use the following selection criteria, in descending order of importance, when conducting proposal evaluations: a.Addresses one of the JIEDDO C-IED requirements published in this BAA. b.Overall scientific and technical merits; to include potential for successful performance of intended functions in an actual operational environment. Proposals exhibiting technical or scientific innovation to solve a requirement are desired and, in such instances, a higher than average risk of initial failure may be allowable. c.The proposed solution provides a significant enhancement in operational capability compared to existing fielded systems. d.Offeror’s capabilities, experience, facilities, techniques or unique combinations of these which are integral factors for achieving the proposal objectives. e.Proposed schedule to deliver a prototype that can be tested at a Government facility. f.Proposed cost. 3.Each proposal will be evaluated on its own merit and relevance to the descriptions of opportunity requirements (at Section I) rather than against other proposals. 4.Proposal submissions may be rejected for the following reasons: a.The submission does not comply with the guidelines listed in Section II. b.The proposed solution does not address a C-IED requirement. c.The proposed solution includes development or acquisition of an aerial vehicle platform which is not within JIEDDO’s fielding authority. d.The proposed solution does not provide a significant enhancement in operational capability compared to existing fielded systems. 5.Proposals submitted electronically to the BAA Information Delivery System (BIDS) website which are determined to contain classified information will be rejected and the potential breach of information security reported to the appropriate authority. 6.Proposal submissions that are determined to be offers of commercial items, as defined by FAR, 2.01 may be rejected from BIDS. The FAR prescribes policies and procedures unique to the acquisition of commercial items. 7.The socio-economic merits of each proposal seeking a procurement contract will be evaluated in the context of the requirements described in this announcement. The evaluation process will consider the extent of commitment in providing meaningful subcontracting opportunities for small businesses, HUB Zone small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses, woman-owned small business concerns, veteran-owned small businesses, historically black colleges and universities, and minority institutions. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this solicitation, 334511 (which corresponds with the standard industrial classification code of 8731), specifies a small business size standard of 750 employees or less. A Small Business Subcontracting Plan prepared in accordance with FAR 52. 219-9 must accompany contract proposals that exceed $500,000 submitted by all but small businesses. Entities that must submit a Small Business Subcontracting Plan for contract proposals that exceed $500,000 include universities/colleges, nonprofits, and large businesses. Historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) and minority institutions (MI) are encouraged to submit proposals and/or join others in submitting proposals. However, no portion of this BAA will be set-aside for HBCU and MI participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete or functionally separable areas of this technology for exclusive competition among these entities. IV.OTHER BAA INFORMATION. This notice constitutes a BAA as contemplated by FAR 6.102(d)(2). Unless otherwise stated herein, no additional written information is available, nor will a formal RFP or other solicitation regarding this announcement be issued. Requests for the same will be disregarded. The Government reserves the right to select all, some, or none of the proposals received in response to this announcement. Interested parties are invited to respond to this synopsis. No hard copy version of this announcement will be made available. The Government intends to issue awards based on the optimum combination of proposals that offers the best overall value to the Government. One or more solicitation areas may receive no funding. Also, the Government reserves the right to select for award only some portions of the proposals received in response to this BAA. In that event, the Government may select for negotiation all, or portions, of a given proposal. The Government may incrementally fund any award issued under this BAA. The Government will not pay for proposal preparation costs. The cost of preparing proposals in response to this BAA is not allowable as a direct charge to any contract resulting from this BAA or to any other Government contract. Offerors are advised that only Contracting Officers are legally authorized to contractually bind or otherwise commit the Government.
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