SOURCES SOUGHT
99 -- Request For Information #2 for Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Very High Frequency (VHF) and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Radios to Support the Next Generation Air/Ground Communications System (NEXCOM) Segment 2 Program
- Notice Date
- 10/16/2009
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- Contracting Office
- FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, AJA-472 HQ - FAA Headquarters (Washington, DC)
- ZIP Code
- 00000
- Solicitation Number
- 8863
- Response Due
- 1/16/2010
- Archive Date
- 1/31/2010
- Point of Contact
- Scott Bukovec, 202-267-5983
- E-Mail Address
-
scott.bukovec@faa.gov
(scott.bukovec@faa.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- The responses to this second Request For Information (RFI) will be used for informational purposes only. Information designated as "Public Doman" represents data that will be shared with industry via posting to the FAA Contracting Opportunities database. Information designated as "Company Proprietary" is information that will be shared internally by the FAA only. (Note: The FAA will not release or make public information deemed "Company Proprietary".) This RFI is not intended to guarantee procurement of a product and shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to enter into a contract. This is not a Screening Information Request (SIR) or Request For Proposal (RFP). Submission of the information requested in this RFI is voluntary. Failure to provide the requested information will not prevent a vendor from submitting a formal response to a future SIR the FAA may release. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will not pay for any information received or costs incurred in preparing the responses to this market survey or activities contained herein. Therefore, any costs associated with this submission are solely at the interested vendor's expense. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) NEXCOM program is requesting industry feedback with regard to commercially available Very High Frequency (VHF) and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) radio equipment and how it may fit into the overall FAA mission. This equipment would be used to provide voice communications between ground facilities and aircraft in the Terminal and Flight Services environments. Description of RFI #2 Components: 1.Background One of the key components of the NEXCOM Segment II radio system is the Maintenance Data Terminal (MDT). The purpose of this function is to provide configuration, control and status monitoring of each radio (VHF/UHF Transmitters and Receivers). Among other features, the MDT allows FAA's maintenance personnel to:Inspect and modify radio settings (e.g., Tx/Rx frequency selection, Tx Power, Rx Squelch level, Rx Audio output level)Perform real-time control of radio functions (e.g., Tx keying, Rx Mute)Perform real-time monitoring of radio parameters (e.g., Rx Received Signal Level, Rx S/S+N, Tx VSWR)Perform real-time monitoring of alarm conditionsPerform software upgrades In the past, the MDT was implemented as a separate software application executing in a portable PC that the technician connected to a single radio at a time using a serial port (RS-232). The application included custom hardware-based security mechanisms to prevent access to the radio unless the proper authorization was provided. 2.Other Considerations The new NEXCOM Segment II radios will incorporate a TCP/IP interface to implement the Voice Over IP capability (VoiP). Without any hardware additions or modifications, this interface can be also used to implement the MDT capability.The higher throughput of this interface, typically a 10/100 Mbps Ethernet port, will facilitate the addition of new capabilities (i.e., real-time voice monitoring).The intrinsic addressability of the TCP/IP interface will allow the local networking of the entire complement of radios at a given site (Local or Remote), so a technician could connect to this local network and have access to all the radios without having to physically connect to each single unit. This new "TCP/IP MDT" could be implemented following two different approaches: As a Custom Application executing in a PC with networking capabilities communicating using the standard TCP/IP protocol to carry radio information in a vendor-defined proprietary format.As an Embedded Web Server resident in each radio accessed from the networked PC using a Standard Web Browser (e.g., Microsoft Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Mozilla Firefox). 3.Request for Information The FAA believes that the second approach, using and Embedded Web Server in each radio, offers a number of advantages: Operating System Independence. Support for multiple current and future operating systems (e.g., Windows XP/Vista/7, MAC, Linux), by not requiring a custom application under a single operating system to execute in the technician's terminal. A simple Web Browser will be sufficient.Cost-effectiveness. Development of the MDT web server code using widely available web development tools and a large pool of web programmers.High Security Standards. Adoption of widely used high security standards such as Transport Layer Security (TLS) [RFC5246], a software-only solution commonly used for on-line banking applications. The FAA desires to know: 3.1If the implementation of an Embedded Web Server with the capabilities previously described is feasible and cost effective.3.2What are the perceived advantages and disadvantages of this approach. Include any applicable security considerations. 3.3What are other capabilities that could be cost-effectively added to the basic MDT function.3.4What is the impact on the radios offered to other clients if this approach is incorporated as a requirement for the NEXCOM Segment II radios. The following timeline applies for inquiries related to contents of this RFI: 1.Vendor clarification inquiries must be submitted received no later than 2 pm, EDT on November 9, 2009.2.FAA responses to vendor inquiries will be provided by November 20, 2009. FAA responses will be provided by Dixie Harper and/or Scott Bukovec to the submitting vendor. 3.Vendor responses will be provided no later than December 11, 2009.4.The FAA will provide a consolidated listing of vendor submitted clarification inquiries with responses by January 8, 2010. Vendor inquiries should be submitted to Dixie Harper (dixie.harper@faa.gov) and Scott Bukovec (scott.bukovec@faa.gov) AND courtesy copied to Emily Kingston (emily.kingston@faa.gov). Electronic submission is the preferred method of receipt. Telephone inquiries will not be acknowledged. If you are unable to submit electronically, please send at least two hard copies by the indicated deadline to: Federal Aviation AdministrationAttn: Dixie Harper, Contracting Officer, AJA-47800 Independence Ave SW, Room 509WWashington, DC 20591 Phone (202) 493-5940 *** END OF RFI #2 *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ADDENDUM: INFORMATIONAL POSTING TO NEXCOM SEGMENT 2 PROGRAM The FAA is making these documents available to assist industry in understanding its operational requirements for NEXCOM Segment 2 Very High Frequency (VHF) and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) air/ground radios. The documents provided and their applicability are as follows: 1.JO 6580.3B, "Remote Communications Facilities Installation Standards Handbook" dated December 28, 2007. Provides descriptions on operational environments for VHF and UHF air/ground radios (6580.3B-Dec20.pdf) 2."AC Power Report.doc" and "HP6813 set up.doc". Provides guidance on creating waveforms to measure compliance to power requirements for NEXCOM Segment 2 VHF and UHF air/ground radios. 3.Photos of current VHF and UHF air/ground radios (UHF radio.zip and VHF radio.zip) 4.A portable document format (PDF) file with proposed rack layouts for terminal facilities (Terminal.pdf). The following timeline applies for inquiries related to contents of this informational posting: 1.Vendor inquiries must be submitted received no later than 2 pm, EDT on November 13, 2009.2.FAA responses to vendor inquiries will be provided by December 4, 2009. FAA responses will be provided by Dixie Harper to the submitting vendor. 3.The FAA will provide a consolidated listing of vendor submitted inquiries with responses by December 18, 2009 Vendor inquiries should be submitted to Dixie Harper (dixie.harper@faa.gov) AND courtesy copied to Emily Kingston (emily.kingston@faa.gov),. Telephone inquiries will not be acknowledged. If you are unable to submit electronically, please send at least two hard copies by the indicated deadline to: Federal Aviation AdministrationAttn: Dixie Harper, Contracting Officer, AJA-47800 Independence Ave SW, Room 509WWashington, DC 20591 Phone (202) 493-5940 This Informational Posting six (6) attachments: 1. 6580.3B-Dec20.pdf2. AC power report.doc3. hp6813 set up.doc4. UHF radio.zip5. VHF radio.zip6. Terminal.pdf *** END OF INFORMATIONAL POSTING ***
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