Rome Laboratory/PK, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome NY 13441-4514

A -- MILITARY NETWORKING TECHNOLOGY IN A GLOBAL INFOSPERE SOL BAA 96- 03-PKPX SOL BAA 96-03-PKPX POC Joetta A. Bernhard, Contracting Officer, A/C 315-330-2308; David E. Krzysiak, Program Manager, A/C 315-330-7751. BAA ANNOUNCEMENT: BAA SOL BAA 96-03-PKPX. Military Networking Technology in a Global Infosphere Research and Development Rome Laboratory/PKPX, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome, NY 13441-4514 A -- MILITARY NETWORKING TECHNOLOGY IN A GLOBAL INFOSPHERE SOL BAA 96-03-PKPX. POC Contact Joetta A. Bernhard /Contracting Officer/315-330-2308, Mr. David E. Krzysiak/Program Manager/315-330-7751. Rome Laboratory is soliciting white papers for concept developments, experiments, and demonstrations involving new and innovative approaches to support future Air Force network requirements in the context of a global infosphere. Leveraging commercial technologies and the potential for dual use by both the military and civilian communities are two additional aspects of this program. This activity is aimed at addressing the scale and complexity of a global infosphere which will provide new, end-user, multimedia, information services and support distributed command & control, intelligence, telemedicine and similar applications. These services and applications are vital to the Air Force mission to deploy and sustain forces anywhere in the world. To this end, the ability to send a wide variety of data, across a global network comprised of communications channels of varying characteristics, in a secure, survivable manner, is of prime importance. An underlying assumption, is that DOD communications will be derived from the commercial national and international fiber optic cable infrastructure. However, to reach deployed or airborne units, wireless extension of that infrastructure is necessary. Both terrestrial and satellite transmission systems will be required to support this extension capability and will also be inherent components of these deployed networks. In both instances, they will be required to support large amounts of information throughput. Candidate areas of technical research in support of communications networking technology for a global infosphere are: 1) Implementation and Extension of High Speed Networks: Effective implementation of Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) networks to support a deployed Joint Forcs Air Component Command and below. Efforts should address areas related to security and authentication, survivability and dependability, traffic management and traffic flow control, network management in a virtual network environment, mobile nodes and networks, self reconfiguring, and dynamic routing. Technologies to support network management will provide global management of the entire information infrastructure. Future management systems must provide for this overall management capability. This infrastructure includes numerous resources such as communications equipment, network switching equipment, distributed operating systems, and user applications. Encouraged are new and innovative ideas in management systems technologies including visualization techniques, network emulation, artificial intelligence, and any other appropriate technology. Also encouraged is technology to provide specific management techniques for an ATM environment, as well as cooperating management entities. Effective extension of these ATM technology developments to provide launch points from high speed networks into highly constrained deployed networks. 2) Interoperability: For interoperability of an increasingly diverse set of transmission systems, work is encouraged but not limited to, development and demonstration of theater (deployed) fiber optic and high bandwidth RF (including satellite links) networking technology for high bandwidth communications between multi-media display systems that provide interactive, common picture of battlespace to Theater and Component Commanders. The network should be scaleable, modular, survivable, secure, and provide for interoperability with global commercial communications infrastructure. Examples of enhancing the bandwidth capacity are: Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM), ultra short pulse Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), and a hybrid of such schemes. Examples of devices are: integrated transmitters and receivers, amplifiers, switches (SONET, ATM, Packet), synchronizers, frequency translators, filters, and routers. 3) User Network Services: The goal is to formulate innovative ideas for user services which use high bandwidth global ATM networks, low bandwidth battlesite networks, airborne segments, and combinations of the these, experiment with them, and possibly develop promising ideas into demonstrable prototypes. Future services will provide the capability for day-to-day ission planning/execution in a distributed C2 environment and assist commanders in making critical decisions in heavy stress situations. Past work in this area has centered around interactive, interpersonal communications services (workstation video windows, video conferencing, shared workplace graphics, multimedia presentation, multimedia conferencing, imagery dissemination) that provide the capability of collaboration among distributed users, both fixed and mobile. Also encouraged are new and innovative ideas for communications services which will support emerging technologies such as visualization and distributed virtual reality, and technologies which support new and innovative communications services such as data compression techniques or others. Also encouraged is work addressing the psychology of individuals and groups in the decision making process in distributed military C2 and the definition of new communications services which support that process. This BAA also seeks innovative approaches to integrate and demonstrate these enabling technologies, and other airborne technologies that relate to broadband extension, in order to allow operation in the unique operating environment faced by the Air Force's Air Mobility Command (AMC). Continual access to a global info-sphere is critical to the AMC worldwide mission. This environment includes aircraft enroute or positioned anywhere in the world and the C2 elements needed to interact with those mission aircraft. It is requested that this ''Information for the Warrior'' portion of this BAA, to provide AMC with global in-transit visibility and airborne situation awareness, be addressed as a distinct task. However, it is requested that prospective bidders demonstrate a strong technological baseline in all of the above component areas. To assure an integrated solution, it is anticipated that one contract will be awarded in support of the ''Information for the Warrior'' portion of this BAA. Therefore, teaming arrangements are encouraged to assure adequate expertise in each of the component technologies. Deliverables will include technical reports, and when appropriate, advanced technology demonstrations. Development of prototype hardware/software may be pursued if such development is directed at the demonstration of a particular approach or concept. Such hardware/software development must be unrelated to a specific weapon system and not intendd directly for the Air Force inventory. Principal funding for proposals selected from this announcement will begin in FY96. Individual awards will not normally exceed twenty four (24) months in duration with dollar amounts normally ranging from $100,000 to $400,000 per fiscal year except where teaming arrangements as requested above dictate a higher per year budget. Total funding for the BAA is $10,000,000. Offerors are required to submit three (3) copies of a two (2) to three (3) page white paper on their proposed research topic to David E. Krzysiak, Rome Laboratory/C3BC, 525 Brooks Rd., Rome, NY 13441-4505, Reference BAA 96-03-PKPX, and one copy to Ms Janis Norelli, Rome Laboratory/BC, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome, NY 13441-4514, Reference BAA 96-03-PKPX by FIRST CLASS MAIL. Do not send classified. The Government reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals received. All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may submit a proposal which shall be considered by Rome Laboratory. Large, small, woman-owned small or small disadvantaged business, or Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and Minority Institutions (MI) are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals. The initial cutoff date for submission is 95DEC02 to permit early FY96 awards. White papers submitted after that date will be reviewed on a time available basis in the order received. Last date for submission of white papers is 96JUN30. The white paper should be formatted as follows: Section A: Title, Period of Performance, Cost of Effort, and name of company, Section B: Task Objective, and Section C: Technical Summary. Multiple white papers within the purview of this Announcement may be submitted by each offeror. The purpose of this white paper is to preclude unwarranted effort on the part of an offeror whose proposed work is not of interest to the Government. Those white papers found to be consistent with the intent of the BAA and of interest to the Government may be invited to submit a technical and cost proposal. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION. DO NOT SUBMIT PROPOSALS AT THIS TIME. Complete instructions for proposal preparation and submission will be forwarded with any proposal invitation. Such invitation does not assure that the submitting offeror will be awarded a subsequent contract. Proposals submitted will be evauated as they are received. Individual proposal evaluations will be based on acceptability or nonacceptability without regard to other proposals submitted under this announcement. Evaluation of proposals will be performed using the following criteria: (1) The overall scientific and/or technical merits of the proposal, (2) The potential contributions of the proposed approach to the overall military networking in a global infosphere concept, (3) The reasonableness and realism of cost and schedules. No further evaluation criteria will be used in the selection process. Criteria (1) and (2) will be used to determine whether the white papers submitted are consistent with intent of this BAA and of interest to the Government. Options are discouraged and unpriced options will not be considered for award. Respondees are requested to provide their Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Number and reference number BAA 96-03-PKPX with their submissions. Foreign or foreign-owned offerors are advised that their participation is subject to foreign disclosure review procedures. Foreign or foreign-owned offerors should immediately contact the contracting focal point, Joetta Bernhard, Rome Laboratory/PKPX, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome, NY 13441-4514, or phone at 315-330-2308, for information if they contemplate responding. The cost of preparing proposals in response to this announcement is not an allowable direct charge to any resulting contract. An ombudsman has been appointed to hear significant concerns from offerors or potential offerors during the proposal development phase of this acquisition. Routine questions are not considered to be ''significant concerns'' and should be communicated directly to the Contracting Officer, Joetta Bernhard, 315-2330-2308. The purpose of the ombudsman is not to diminish the authority of the contracting officer or program manager, but to communicate contractor concerns, issues, disagreement and recommendations to the appropriate government personnel. The Ombudsman for this acquisition is Vincent Palmiero, Chief, Policy and Management Division, at 315-330-7746. When requested, the ombudsman will maintain strict confidentiality as to the source of the concern. The ombudsman does not participate in the evaluation of proposals or in the source selection process. To receive a copy of the Rome Laboratory ''BAA & PRDA: A Guide for Industry'', March 1994 (Rev), write to Rome Labortory/PKR, ATTN: Lucille Argenzia, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome NY 13441-4514, or the Guide may be accessed at: http://www.rl.af.mil:8001/Lab/PK/pk-main.html. All responsible organizations may submit a white paper which shall be considered. This announcement is open and effective until canceled. Proposers are warned that only Contracting Officers are legally authorized to commit the Government. (0340)

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