SOURCES SOUGHT
A -- FY2015 EnergyPlus Whole-Building Modeling and Simulation Software Development Support and Assistance
- Notice Date
- 5/1/2014
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- Department of Energy, Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC (DOE Contractor), National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 15013 Denver West Parkway, Golden, Colorado, 80401, United States
- ZIP Code
- 80401
- Solicitation Number
- 42154
- Archive Date
- 5/30/2014
- Point of Contact
- Laurie Snyder, Phone: 303-275-4624, Vicki A Riddell, Phone: 303-384-7457
- E-Mail Address
-
laurie.snyder@nrel.gov, vicki.riddell@nrel.gov
(laurie.snyder@nrel.gov, vicki.riddell@nrel.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- I. BACKGROUND The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is providing development support and release management for the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) EnergyPlus whole-building simulation engine Program. This support includes assistance to project management, software development, project coordination, integration and release management, technical support, expert advice and consultation on scientific and engineering issues, and technical analyses for specific topic areas. II. OBJECTIVE In meeting its ongoing program requirements and DOE's building energy-efficiency strategy through the development of whole-building energy simulation software and tools, NREL is seeking sources to assistance in technical support and development for EnergyPlus, DOE's flagship simulation software as described in the following sections. III. POTENTIAL TASK AREAS Organizations or individuals responding to this Sources Sought request shall indicate focused interest to perform in at least one potential Task Area from the list outlined below. Performance in multiple task areas is welcome, but not required. Task Area 1: Software Release Maintenance and Support Potential source(s) will collaborate on software development, perform maintenance, and follow established Agile process workflows for the production of two EnergyPlus software releases per year. Subtask areas include: 1) Following the Agile process development in use for the project. This includes making use of typical Agile software development tools and workflows, for example GitHub and Pivotal Tracker; change requests tools like GitHub Issue tracking; and C++ source code repositories on a GitHub source control system. The methods to be followed include continuous integration, unit testing, automated testing, source code coverage, dashboards and nightly integrations. 2) Team collaboration and communication, to facilitate cross-organization collaboration with other project stakeholders, national laboratories, and external project collaborators. Support functions for the project could include reviewing NFP documents, produce and review design documentation, ensure quality of the source code through code reviews, prepare and execute test files, and prepare documentation. 3) Provide support for the production of two software releases per year. The support could include producing and maintaining EnergyPlus release letters, execute acceptance testing, writing user documentation, engineering references, and developer documentation. Task Area 2: New Feature Development Potential source(s) will implement, under NREL guidance, new functionalities in EnergyPlus according to project prioritization process outcomes and changing needs. These functionalities may include one or several of the following: • Changes to model current technologies and computation methods • New features and functionalities as directed by NREL, and addition of new models for mechanical systems, envelope systems, and controls • Modification to existing models to improve simulation fidelity and/or run-time performance • Integration of current stand-alone utility programs for inclusion into the main core software • Code refactoring of algorithms for run-time performance improvements or to facilitate new features development • Support a new input format for replacement of the current IDD/IDF files • Development and evaluation of models for highly efficient buildings • Support for code compliance New implementations will emphasize reducing computational time, improving interoperability, and supporting the needs for codes and standards. New features and enhancements are to be developed through open source code (compliant with EnergyPlus open source code and associated software license) and shall use Object-Oriented Design (OOD) approaches using the C++ language. Efforts to implement new features may include: requirements gathering and validation with users, reviewing the engineering literature for available models, developing new engineering models, engaging users and practitioners to understand their modeling needs, and engaging component manufacturers to understand details related to energy performance. Potential source(s) will follow established NREL Agile development workflows and deliver peer-reviewed and thoroughly tested source code, peer-reviewed design documentation, regression test files, and project documentation. Unit testing, test automation and associated tools are part of the normal software development activities. Task Area 3: Software Defects Resolution Support As directed by NREL, potential source(s) will collaborate on the complete lifecycle of software defects for the EnergyPlus project. Activities may include support on the creation, planning, prioritization, and resolution of software issues and feature enhancements according to iteration priorities and established Agile development processes. Potential source(s) will deliver the modified source code, corrected input files, modified or new unit and regression tests, and improved documentation, as appropriate. NREL tracks software defects, feature requests and enhancement requests currently in GitHub and Pivotal Tracker. In addition, potential sources(s) will process, analyze and report developer or user complaints and suggestions, and generate new GitHub Issues if deemed necessary, in consultation with NREL. Task Area 4: Developer and User Documentation Support As directed by NREL, potential source(s) will update and produce EnergyPlus documentation for inclusion in each new release. Activities may include producing and maintaining release letters, user documentation, engineering references, input/output references, and developer documentation. Efforts includes collecting individual submissions (new features, feature enhancements, software defects requiring documentation changes) and editing and combining these into final versions of the documents for publication with the software release. In addition, the potential source(s) may be required to update existing user guides and tutorial documentation supplied with each installation package. Task Area 5: Testing and Validation Support The EnergyPlus Continuous Integration Framework is a system developed at NREL for the support of continuous software builds, integration, and test automation. The framework includes regression test suites and unit tests that are automatically executed on a nightly basis and sent to a web-based dashboard. As directed by NREL, potential source(s) will develop new unit and regression tests and maintain existing unit and regression tests, and include them to the test framework for inclusion to the automated testing and dashboard reporting. Potential source(s) may also be required to maintain and update the continuous integration and automated framework, including the project dashboards. Potential source(s) may be required, under NREL guidance, to perform testing and validation of EnergyPlus using established building energy software test methods with reference results. Examples may include the following: • (American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standard 140-2007 • ASHRAE Research Project 1052-RP Toolkit • IEA BESTEST Ground Coupling Tests GC30B - GC80C • IEA BESTEST Multi-Zone Non-Airflow Diagnostic Cases MZ320-MZ360 • IEA BESTEST Mechanical Equipment & Control Strategies for a Chilled Water and a Hot Water System As directed by NREL, potential source(s) will assist NREL with testing of the software installation packages for public release. Activities may include documenting the results of testing in a series of reports comparable to the ten testing reports publicly available. In addition, a potential source(s) may extend validation testing of EnergyPlus to incorporate major new test methods being developed through the International Energy Agency (IEA), ANSI/ASHRAE, International Organization of Standards (ISO) or other major organization. Potential source(s) will also contribute to the development of new tests by creating input files and contributing draft results for use during the normative phase of developing standardized tests. Potential source(s) will additionally provide support for the continuing development of ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 140. The results of the ASHRAE Standard 140 tests will also be submitted to the U.S. DOE (via NREL) as required for EnergyPlus to be included in the official list of "Qualified Software for Calculating Commercial Building Tax Deductions." Task Area 6: User Technical Support and Training Potential sources may be required to provide user support and training that will consist of: 1) Technical support for users through the existing Web-based HelpDesk system or a new system. This effort includes monitoring the HelpDesk system and peer-to-peer email forums, generating answers to technical questions, debugging input files, and researching apparent modeling problems. New requests identified through this interaction may be captured as software defects or enhancement requests, as appropriate. Potential source(s) will maintain and update, under NREL supervision, the EnergyPlus HelpDesk site with additional user resources, for example knowledge base articles with responses to common questions. 2) Organize and hold workshops to train on new and existing features of EnergyPlus. Potential source(s) will invite leading-edge design firms to each workshop. 3) Produce a series of short video tutorials and make them available online for self-training. IV. AREAS OF EXPERTISE Organizations or individuals responding to this Sources Sought request must have some or all of the following capabilities, expertise, attributes, and skills: • Demonstrated historical involvement in, and extensive knowledge and expertise in software development for EnergyPlus or similar whole-building simulation engines, particularly modeling, design, implementation, debugging, testing, and documentation of current technologies, systems and controls. • Ability and experience on large software development projects (greater than 500,000 of non-commented source code lines), interacting with other development team members, including technical reviews of code and documentation, and a proven track record of delivering new features on schedule, within budget, and with high quality. Proven expertise in the resolution of software defects. • Experience using Agile development processes and direct expertise on software projects that use the C++ programming language in conjunction with Object Oriented Design and unit testing methods. • Demonstrated capabilities to organize and conduct workshops or training sessions at the local or regional level where attendance exceeds 20 people, and/or with smaller groups of EnergyPlus or other whole-building energy modelers. • Proven expertise in the area of validation testing for standards compliance of whole-building energy simulation programs. • Abilities and expertise in the area of technical support, helpdesks, and other related activities designed to support a growing user base. V. RESPONSE REQUIREMENTS The response to this sources sought document is limited to 8 pages maximum of single spaced text of 11-point Times New Roman font or equivalent, with minimum 1-inch margins all around. Brevity is encouraged. Any organization interested in working with NREL to provide the technical expertise described within this document should email a list of qualifications, based on the Areas of Expertise listed above, to Laurie Snyder at laurie.snyder@nrel.gov. Telephone calls will not be accepted. Electronic format of the Sources Sought response shall be in Microsoft Word/Excel, or converted Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). The list of qualifications shall be responsive to the items listed above. Responses to this notice must be received by 5:00 p.m. MDT, May 15, 2014. Responding to this request identifies your organization as an interested candidate only. Your submittal is not in response to a Request for Proposals (RFP).
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