Directorate of R&D Contracting, 2530 C Street, Building 7, Wright- Patterson AFB OH 45

A -- ULTRAVIOLET SOLID STATE LASER SOL BAA #96-02-AAKE DUE 032296 POC Mark D. Sauls, Contract Negotiator, (513) 255-3379 or Michele L. Dickman, Contracting Officer, (513) 255-2976. A--INTRODUCTION: Wright Laboratory (WL) is interested in receiving proposals (technical and cost) on the research effort described in Section B. Proposals in response to this BAA shall be submitted by 22 Mar 1996, 1500 hours Eastern Standard Time, addressed to Attn: Mark Sauls, WL/AAKE, Building 7, 2530 C Street, Wright-Patterson AFB OH 45433-7607. Proposals shall not be submitted via facsimile transmission. This is an unrestricted solicitation. Small businesses are encouraged to propose on all or any part of this solicitation. Proposals submitted shall be in accordance with this announcement. Proposal receipt after the cutoff date and time specified herein shall be treated in accordance with restrictions of FAR 52.215-10, a copy of this provision may be obtained from the contracting point of contact cited in Section F. There will be no other solicitation issued in regard to this requirement. Offerors should be alert for any amendments to this solicitation that may be published, including changes to the proposal submission date. Offerors should request a copy of the WL Guide entitled, ''PRDA and BAA Guide for Industry.'' This guide was specifically designed to assist offerors in understanding the PRDA/BAA proposal process. Copies may be requested from the contracting point of contact. B--REQUIREMENTS: (1) Technical Description: This program will investigate new or improved methods of producing ultraviolet laser output. Emphasis will be on either the conversion of laser output to shorter wavelengths or prime laser sources producing ultraviolet wavelengths directly, not on the development of new conversion materials. Several ultraviolet laser applications are of interest, each with differing requirements. For short-range laser communications, wavelengths of 230-270 nm are needed to take advantage of aerosol scatter in the atmosphere. A pulse energy of approximately 2 mJ, at repetition rates of several hundred Hz, and 10-20 ns pulsewidths are desired. Other major considerations are size and power consumption, it being desirable for the laser to be less than 30 cubic centimeters and operate on less than 60 watts of input power. For combustion diagnostics, discrete wavelengths corresponding to those absorbed by combustion products are required. Examples include, but are not limited to, 205 nm, 308 nm, 391.4 nm, and 427.8 nm. A few watts at repetition rates on the order of 10-20 Hz and pulsewidths of less than 10 ns are desired. Tunability over a 10 nm range around a given wavelength of interest is also important for this application. For lithography, a 10-watt laser with output in the 193-248 nm range is of interest. The major concerns are laser reliability and cost, both initial and recurring. For all applications, a conversion efficiency from prime laser output to UV output of 30% is desirable, along with the potential for scaling to higher output powers and efficiencies, and smaller packages. Offerors may address any or all applications. Proposals should address the limitations of the technology currently available for the chosen application and propose innovative concepts which promise more than small incremental improvements. This is a technology development program. The objective is to demonstrate improved performance of ultraviolet solid state lasers. If, however, a demonstration proves to be particularly impressive, the Air Force may wish to negotiate delivery of the breadboard laser used for the demonstration. (2) Deliverable Items: The following deliverable data items shall be proposed: (a) Status Report, DI-MGMT-80368/T, monthly, (b) Funds and Man-Hour Expenditure Report, DI-FNCL-80331/T, monthly, (c) Project Planning Chart, DI-MGMT-80507A/T, monthly, (d) Contract Funds Status Report (CFSR), DI-F-6004B/T, quarterly, (e) Presentation Material, DI-ADMN-81373/T, as required, (f) Scientific and Technical Reports, Contractor's Billing Voucher, DI-MISC-80711/T, monthly, and (g) Scientific and Technical Reports, DI-MISC-80711/T, (Draft and Reproducible Final). (3) Security Requirements: None. C--ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: (1) Anticipated Period of Performance: The total length of the technical effort is estimated to be 32 months. The contractor shall also provide for an additional 4 months for processing/completion of the final report. (2) Expected Award Date: August 1996. (3) Air Force Estimate: The Air Force funding profile is: FY96 - $100,000, FY97 - $350,000, FY98 - $350,000, and FY99 - $150,000. This funding profile is an estimate only. It is not a promise for funding, as all funding is subject to change due to Air Force discretion and availability. (4) Type of Instrument: Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) contract or Cost contract (no fee). Award of a grant or cooperative agreement, in lieu of a contract, will be considered and will be subject to the mutual agreement of the parties. Any grants or cooperative agreements awarded will be cost (no fee). (5) Government Furnished property: None contemplated. (6) Size Status: For the purpose of this acquisition, the size standard is 500 employees (SIC 8731). (7) Notice to Foreign-Owned Firms: Such firms are asked to immediately notify the Air Force point of contact cited below upon deciding to respond to this announcement. Foreign contractors should be aware that restrictions may apply which could preclude their participation in this acquisition. D--PROPOSAL PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS: (1) General Instructions: Offerors should apply the restrictive notice prescribed in the provision at FAR 52.215-12, Restriction on Disclosure and Use of Data, to trade secrets or privileged commercial and financial information contained in their proposals. Proposal questions should be directed to one of the points of contact listed below. Offerors should refer to the instructions contained in the WL ''PRDA and BAA Guide for Industry'' referenced in Section A of this announcement. Separate technical and cost proposal volumes are required and must be valid for 180 days. Proposals must reference the above BAA number. Proposals shall be submitted in an original and five (5) copies. All responsible sources may submit a proposal which shall be evaluated against the criteria set forth below in Section E, Basis for Award. Offerors are advised that only contracting officers are legally authorized to contractually bind or otherwise commit the Air Force. (2) Technical Proposal: The technical proposal shall include a discussion of the nature and scope of the research and the technical approach. Additional information on prior work in this area, descriptions of available equipment, data and facilities, and resumes of personnel who will be participating in this effort should also be included as attachments to the technical proposal and are not included in the page limit discussed below. The technical proposal shall include a Statement of Work (SOW) detailing the technical tasks proposed to be accomplished under the proposed effort and suitable for contract incorporation. Offerors should refer to the WL Guide to assist in SOW preparation. Any questions concerning the technical proposal or SOW preparation should be referred to the technical point of contact cited below. (3) Cost Proposal: The cost proposal/price breakdown shall be submitted on a SF 1411, together with supporting schedules, and shall include a cost and manhour breakdown by task. Copies of the above-referenced form may be obtained from the contracting point of contact cited below. (4) Page Limitations: The technical proposals shall be limited to 75 pages (12 point or larger typeface), double-space, single-sided, 8.5 x 11 inches (21.6 x 27.9 cm). The page limitation includes all information, i.e., indexes, photographs, fold-outs, appendices, attachments, etc. (other than the specific exceptions stated above). Cost proposals have no page limitation, however, offerors are requested to limit cost proposals to 75 pages as a goal. (5) Preparation Cost: This announcement does not commit the Air Force to pay for any proposal preparation cost. The cost of preparing proposals in response to this BAA is not an allowable direct charge to any resulting award or any other procurement instrument. However, it may be an allowable expense to the normal bid and proposal indirect cost as specified in FAR 31.205-18. E--BASIS FOR AWARD: The selection of one or more sources for award will be based on an evaluation of an offeror's proposal (both technical and cost aspects) to determine the overall merit of the proposal in response to this announcement. The technical aspect, which is ranked as the first order of priority, shall be evaluated based on the following criteria: (1) Innovation - The offeror's proposal will be evaluated for innovation and uniqueness. Novel approaches which promise improved performance are desired. The proposal will be evaluated on the degree to which approaches are shown to be theoretically feasible, if not yet demonstrated experimentally. (2) Understanding the Problem - The offeror's proposal will be evaluated on the degree to which it demonstrates theoretical and experimental understanding of all laser and nonlinear techniques, devices, and materials to be used. The proposal will also be evaluated on the degree to which it demonstrates an understanding of the requirements of the chosen application. (3) Soundness of Approach - The offeror's proposal will be evaluated with respect to the soundness, scalability, reliability, and simplicity of the approach. (4) Compliance with Requirements - The offeror's proposal will be evaluated on the degree to which all reporting requirements have been addressed as well as demonstration of efficient and effective management of technical activities. Cost is ranked as the second order of priority. No other evaluation criteria will be used. The technical and cost proposals will be evaluated at the same time. The Air Force reserves the right to select for award any, all, part, or none of the proposals received. F--POINTS OF CONTACT: (1) Technical Point of Contact: Virginia McMillan, WL/AAJL, Building 22B, 2700 D Street, Suite 2, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base OH 45433-7405, (513) 255-3805, ext. 332. (2) Contracting/Cost Point of Contact: Mark Sauls, WL/AAKE, Building 7, 2530 C Street, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base OH 45433-7607, (513) 255-3379. (0033)

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