Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Contracts Management Office (CMO), 3701 N. Fairfax Dr., Arlington, VA 22203-1714

A -- MESOSCALE MACHINES FOR MILITARY APPLICATIONS SOL BAA98-21 DUE 052998 POC Dr. William L. Warren, DARPA/DSO, fax (703) 696-3999 MESOSCALE MACHINES FOR MILITARY APPLICATIONS SOL BAA 98-21 DUE 052998; POC Dr. William L. Warren, DARPA/DSO, fax (703)696-3999 e-mail: baa98-21@darpa.mil URL: http://www.darpa.mil/baa/#dso/. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES AND DESCRIPTION: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is interested in pre-proposals and full proposals for mesoscale machines and devices to realize improved and new, unique functions of military utility. Machines and devices of mesoscale dimensions (the size gap between micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and conventional machines) for the following applications are of special interest: purification/treatment of water from salt/brackish, and nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) contaminated sources; purification of contaminated air; autonomous mobile and amphibious vehicles for surveillance and/or mine detection/ neutralization that utilize hybrid or partially sustainable power systems; machines/devices driven by electrostatics; controllable nonlethal -- lethal meso-weapons and other unique military applications. Proposed programs should be no longer than 36 months. Multiple awards are expected. Cost sharing is also encouraged, but not required. Substantive cost sharing will increase the attractiveness of proposals. Proposals with cost share will be considered for award under U.S.C. 2371 as an Other Transaction. Integrated, collaborative efforts or teaming arrangements among universities, federal laboratories, original component suppliers, and material suppliers are suggested. To assist the process of team formation, an interactive website has been established at URL: http://www.sainc.com/darpa/meso/index.htm. PRE-PROPOSALS: To minimize unnecessary effort in proposal preparation and review, proposers are strongly encouraged to submit pre-proposals in advance of full proposals. The pre-proposal should not exceed eight (8) pages in length, including the special cover sheet, all charts, figures and appendices. Offerors should submit one (1) original and eight (8) copies of thepre-proposal due no later than 4:00 p.m. ET, 040398. The pre-proposal should cover the following topics: 1) the perceived need and potential impact on the DoD; 2) the essence of the mesoscopic device and/or machine; 3) how the proposed meso-machine advances the state-of-the art; 4) perceived advantages of the machine in the mesoscale range; 5) what is new or novel about the meso-machine; 6) the technical approach, including key challenges and how they will be addressed; and 7) a list of participants and a chart showing development tasks, milestones and funding levels versus time. Within ten (10) business days, DARPA will acknowledge receipt of the pre-proposal submission and assign a control number that should be used in all further correspondence. Recommendations for full proposal submission will be made within approximately thirty days of receipt. Regardless of this recommendation, the decision to propose is the responsibility of the proposer. All full proposal submissions will be fully evaluated regardless of the disposition of the pre-proposal. FULL PROPOSALS: One (1) original and eight (8) copies must be submitted. Full proposals shall consist of two volumes: Volume 1 Technical and Volume 2 -- Cost. Volume 1 Technical, maximum of 35 pages, including the special cover sheet, all figures, references, tables, charts, and appendices; Volume 2 Cost, unlimited page count. The technical proposal should be phased as outlined in the PIP. Phase I, the detailed design phase, should not exceed six (6) months. The cost proposal should include a resources breakdown by phases and tasks. Details of the proposal format may be found in the PIP. All proprietary material should be clearly marked and will be held in strict confidence. Facsimile transmissions or electronic media transmissions will not be accepted. Separate attachments such as institutional brochures, reprints, disks, or videotapes will be ignored. Pre-proposals and proposals not meeting the requirements outlined or provided in the PIP may not be reviewed. Volume 1 -- Technical: The technical proposal shall consist of: 1) Executive Summary (two pages or less); 2) a technical approach section that includes a description of the proposed mesoscopic machine, its attributes, how it advances the state-of-the-art, and its military relevance; 3) a plan for the design, materials selection, fabrication and performance demonstration phases to include technical risk mitigation steps; 4) a time-phased schedule-milestone chart; 5) organizational structure of the team and management approach; 6) summary of relevant prior work; 7) brief description of applicable facilities and equipment; and 8) short resumes of key individuals. If subcontracting is involved, level of effort, specific roles, key individuals and qualifications should be included. Volume 2 Cost of submitted proposals shall contain a summary cost breakdown and a detailed cost breakdown. The summary breakdown should be shown to the level of major tasks and should indicate manpower levels of effort, equipment and supplies, travel, and miscellaneous expenses for the tasks of the entire program, broken out by performer and time. Details of the cost sharing to be undertaken by the offeror must be included in the summary section of Volume 2 of the proposal. All proposals are due by 4:00 p.m. ET, 052998. Within approximately ten (10) business days of receipt, DARPA will acknowledge receipt of the submission and assign a control number that should be used in all further correspondence regarding the proposal. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS: Evaluation of the proposals will be based on the following criteria in decreasing order of importance: 1) The scientific and technical merits of the proposed effort which clearly demonstrates an understanding of the materials, fabrication, and other factors that affect performance of the proposed machine in the intended applications; 2) the likelihood that the proposed machine will provide unique and/or new capabilities of use to the Department of Defense (one-of-a-kind demonstrations that cannot be made into a practical device for use by the military will not be acceptable; (3) the qualifications of the principal investigator and other key personnel, and adequacy of equipment and facilities to accomplish the tests; and (4) realism of cost, cost share commitment, and quality of cost share. GENERAL INFORMATION: Proposers shall obtain the Proposal Information Package (PIP), BAA 98-21 for required forms, submission format details and background on these applications. The PIP may be obtained by writing, faxing or e-mailing your request to DARPA/DSO, Attn: BAA98-21, 3701 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia 22203-1714, fax: 703-696-3999, email: baa98-21@darpa.mil . Technical POC is: Dr. W.L. Warren, DARPA/DSO. Please reference BAA98-21 in all correspondence. Early submission of proposals is strongly encouraged. Selections for awards will be made at any time during the evaluation process. Proposals will not be returned. Restrictive notices notwithstanding, proposals may be handled, for administrative purposes only, by a support contractor. All support contractors are bound by appropriate non-disclosure requirements. Input on technical aspects of the proposals may be solicited by DARPA from non-Government consultants/experts who are bound by appropriate non-disclosure requirements. Non-Government technical consultants will not have access to proposals that are labeled by the offerors as "GOVERNMENT ONLY." BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT: This Commerce Business Daily (CBD) notice itself constitutes the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) as contemplated by FAR 6.102 (d) (2). A formal RFP or other solicitation regarding this announcement will not be issued. Requests for same will be disregarded. Evaluation and selection of proposals for award will be made to those offerors whose proposal is considered most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The Government reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals received in response to this announcement. Proposals identified for funding may results in a procurement contract, grant, cooperative agreement, or other transaction depending upon the nature of the work proposed, the required degree of interaction between parties, and other factors. The offeror must submit a separate list of all technical data or computer software that will be furnished to the Government with other than unlimited rights (see DFARS Part 227). All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may submit proposals which will be evaluated if received by the closing date. Because of the technical breadth implied in this solicitation and hardware demonstration required, no portion of this BAA will be set aside for HBCU and MI participation. However, these organizations are encouraged to apply and or team with other proposers. (0068)

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