U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command Acquisition Center -- Washington Operations Office, 2461 Eisenhower Ave., Alexandria, VA 22331-0700

A -- MOBILE DETECTION ASSESSMENT RESPONSE SYSTEM -- INTERIOR (MDARS-I) -- SOURCES SOUGHT SOL DAAB07-98-R-6009 POC Patricia S. Wantz, Contract Specialist, ATTN: AMSEL-AC-WB-A, (703) 325-6173; Richard S. Sturgis, Contracting Officer, ATTN: AMSEL-AC-WB-A, (703) 325-6068 WEB: CECOM-AC Business Opportunity Page, http://134.80.11.9/. E-MAIL: Contracting Officer, rsturg@hoffman-issaa2.army.mil. The purpose of this announcement is to request comments from industry on the technical requirements and acquisition strategy for the Army's pending Mobile Detection Assessment Response System -- Interior (MDARS-I) acquisition, which will be managed by the materiel developer, the Office of the Product Manager, Physical Security Equipment (PM-PSE), at Fort Belvoir, VA. MDARS-I involves the mission area of physical security. High dollar value and critical US assets within warehouses and other storage sites may be vulnerable to an intruder or saboteur intending to deprive the US of these assets. The objective of MDARS-I is to protect these assets by providing commanders with a highly secure, standardized, autonomous Intrusion Detection System (IDS) using robotics technology. Ultimately, MDARS-I will be capable of autonomous detection, assessment, communications, and less-than-lethal response. Initially, MDARS-I will be capable of operating only in stand-alone mode; future versions will operate in conjunction with existing IDSs. MDARS-I will introduce mobile platforms employing a suite of sensors that is controlled by a station that houses monitoring and annunciation equipment programmed with artificial intelligence. The patrolling platforms: (1) detect anomalous conditions such as flooding or fires; (2) detect intruders; and (3) determine the status of inventoried items through the use of specialized Radio Frequency (RF) transponder tags. MDARS-I also will interface with sensors, response devices, Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV), RF/Microwave, and Hardwire/Fiber Optic Communication networks. Functional users of MDARS-I are supply and maintenance activities of the US Army Materiel Command (AMC) and the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). Approximately 18 depots are currently planned for operational deployment of MDARS-I. The US Army Military Police School (USAMPS) is the combat developer. MDARS-I will be operated by Department of Defense (DoD) security and law enforcement units. To date MDARS-I has undergone Demonstration and Validation which has resulted in development of brassboard models for Early User Appraisal (EUA). The next phase of MDARS-I is Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) which will verify producibility of the MDARS-I system. The Production and fielding phase will follow the EMD phase. The MDARS-I production system will utilize enhanced commercial mobile robots equipped with features such as collision avoidance, intruder assessment, and product inventory subsystems. The major components are: a. MDARS-I Control Station (MCS). b. MDARS-I Remote Platform Vehicle (RPV) with Mission Payload Suites (MPS). Associated support equipment includes: a. MDARS-I Recharge Station (RS). b. MDARS-I Communications Relay/Repeaters. c. MDARS-I Remote Product Assessment Equipment. Initially, logistics support and maintenance for MDARS-I will be provided by the production contractor or separate contractual agreements at the installation level. In the interest of acquisition streamlining, the Government will combine the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase with the Production phase in a single, hybrid solicitation and contract. The EMD phase will be Cost Plus Incentive Fee (CPIF) and will be 2 to 3 years in duration. The subsequent Production phase will be Fixed Price and Fixed Price Incentive (FPI), Successive Target, with Indefinite Delivery ordering provisions. The Production phase will be up to five years in duration. The maximum value of the Production phase is 26 systems/sites. Total contract life will not exceed 8 years. Offerors will be required to propose fixed prices for non-developmental items and ceiling prices for developmental items. Fixed prices for developmental items will be negotiated after completion of First Article Test (FAT). The Source Selection will be Best Value and will use a Tradeoff process. In preparation for the release of the MDARS-I Request for Proposal (RFP), the Government is seeking comments from industry on the acquisition strategy discussed in this announcement, draft statement of work, draft specifications, and other technical data, which is being made available in conjunction with this announcement. Also being made available for comment is key performance parameter information pertaining to the user requirements and the achieved performance of the Concept Exploration/Program Definition/Risk Reduction Phase (6.3) brassboard to date. MDARS-I Draft "Pre-Solicitation" documents consisting of the Specifications (SPEC.PDF), Statement of Work (SOW.PDF), Performance Requirements and Achieved Performance (PERFORM.PDF), and pertinent Technical Data (MRHA.PDF) are posted on the CECOM Acquisition Center (CAC) Business Opportunities Page (BOP) at "http://134.80.11.9/". Subject documents are downloadable and are posted to solicit comments as a "Request for Information (RFI)" session. This RFI is identified on the BOP as "MDARS-I, DAAB07-98-R-6009, Pre-Solicitation". Comments in response to this RFI are to be submitted via CAC-Washington (CAC-W) Web Site http://128.190.157.111/. Procedures for electronically submitting comments are provided at the CAC-W Web Site. At least Netscape Navigator Version 2.01 or Microsoft Explorer Version 3.0 is required. Vendor Name, Company Address, and Email Address must be entered before the comment can be accepted electronically. Fields on the form apply to both questions and comments. Click on "Mail To WebMaster if you have problems using this site". You may also phone or email Mr. Wayne McAlarney at 703/325-6093 or wmcala@hoffman-issaa2.army.mil. Interested vendors are encouraged to respond to this RFI as the Government may not issue a Draft RFP for review and comment prior to issuing the final RFP. Although all responses to this RFI will receive due consideration, the Government does not guarantee that questions will be answered. If answers are provided, they will be published on the CAC-W Web Site.**** (0029)

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