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A -- MARITECH ADVANCED SHIPBUILDING ENTERPRISE CALL FOR ABSTRACTS SOL MASE 99-02 DUE 120298 POC Technical -- Ron Glover 843-760-4606 or glover@aticorp.org; Contracting/Cost -- NSRP Information Line 843-760-3366 or massie@aticorp.org WEB: Click here to access the MARITECH ASE and NSRP website, http://www.nsrp.org. E-MAIL: Click here to contact the technical POC via e-mail, glover@aticorp.org. A. INTRODUCTION The MARITECH Advanced Shipbuilding Enterprise (ASE) Program is interested in receiving abstracts and ultimately proposals on the research effort described below. The ultimate program goal is to reduce U.S. shipbuilding cost and cycle time from initial business strategy development through post-delivery customer service. This announcement is a call for abstracts only. Abstracts are being requested separately to permit advance planning by potential proposers, provide an opportunity for potential proposers to receive feedback on their idea, and provide an opportunity for potential teaming relationships to be fostered. Any interested company or institution is encouraged, but not required, to submit an abstract in advance of a planned proposal. Submitters of abstracts are advised that if abstracts are received which are potentially complementary with other submissions, the submitters may be contacted independently and offered an opportunity for teaming. If each party is interested in teamingand concurs, they will be placed in contact with each other for a possible joint proposal. Do not include cost estimates in the abstracts. The abstract should not exceed three (3) pages (fixed pitch font of 12 or fewer characters per inch or proportional font point size 10 or larger), single-spaced, single-sided, 21.6 x 27.9 cm (8.5 by 11 inches). Smaller type may be used in figures and tables, but must be clearly legible. Margins on all sides (top, bottom, left, and right) should be at least 2.5 cm (1"). Abstracts are due no later than 2 December 1998. The abstract may be emailed (using Microsoft software -- Windows 95 or later versions) to massie@aticorp.org (preferred) or hard copy (five copies) may be mailed to the MARITECH ASE Program Administrator (see address under Contracting/Cost Point of Contact). Abstract submitters will be contacted and provided feedback. It is expected that feedback will be provided within 10 days after the due date for abstracts. Based on the acceptability of the abstract, companies and institutions can better decide whether to continue the preparation of full technical and cost proposals for the described project in response to Research Announcements that are expected to be published in the Fall of 1998 once final Terms and Conditions of the Navy Joint Funding Agreement are in place. An initial Draft Research Announcement is available for informational purposes only on the MARITECH ASE web site at www.nsrp.org. Teaming: Teaming arrangements are encouraged. At least one U.S. shipyard should be substantially involved in each project, normally in a leadership role. Exceptions to this may be considered on a case by case basis where there is compelling justification that the program mission is best served by the proposed deviation. The abstract may identify either specific team members or team member characteristics and/or skill sets that will be included on the project team. Awards: No awards will be made as a result of these abstracts. Awards are anticipated for full proposals submitted and selected in response to specific Research Announcements. Due to limited funding, the MARITECH ASE Program reserves the right to limit awards under any topic, and only proposals considered to be of superior quality will be funded. The MARITECH ASE Program reserves the right to select for award of a contract any, all, part, or none of the proposals received in response to the Research Announcements. B. REQUIREMENTS Technical Description: This announcement is issued to solicit abstracts for research, development and implementation of best practices across the following major initiative areas in U.S. shipyards: Shipyard Production Process Technologies; Business Process Technologies; Product Design and Material Technologies; Systems Technologies; Facilities and Tooling; and Crosscut Initiatives. These major initiatives are described in detail in the Strategic Investment Plan (SIP) located on the Web at www.nsrp.org. Offerors are strongly advised to read the SIP in order to gain a greater understanding of the sub-initiative areas detailed below. Because the program major initiatives are closely tied to each other, abstracts may be submitted whose scope includes only single major initiatives or represents integrated efforts across several major initiative areas. It is also anticipated that some project proposals may include one or more sub-initiative areas of a single major initiative. [1] Shipyard Production Process Technologies: The following sub-initiative areas are of interest for FY 1999: (1) Process Control: This sub-initiative includes Research, Development and Implementation of process control initiatives that address standardized production processes, accuracy control techniques, and improved cost, schedule and quality management methodologies. (2) Industrial Engineering: This sub-initiative includes Research, Development and Implementation of standard process analysis tools that, when packaged together and fully implemented, will support the realization of process improvements (and thus reduced costs and cycle times) across any and all production areas. (3) Outfit Fabrication, Installation and Test: This sub-initiative includes Research, Development and Implementation of an integrated steel/outfitting-manufacturing model that demonstrates improved process control and improved vendor/ground outfit/onboard ship integration testing. This process model would support the reduction of non-value added activities and the move towards a "world-class manufacturing" approach to ship construction. (4) Structural Fabrication, Sub-Assembly, Assembly and Erection: This sub-initiative includes Research, Development and Implementation of a structural construction process model that supports U.S. shipbuilders becoming more "world-class manufacturers" versus "custom constructors." This effort would support achievement of a higher learning curve, decreased rework and reduced cycle time. The following sub-initiatives are in the SIP, but are not prioritized as high as the four listed above, and based on funding limitations, are not expected to be funded in FY 1999: Production Control and Surface Preparation and Coating. [2]Business Process Technologies: The following sub-initiative areas are of interest for FY 1999: (1) Sourcing and Supplier Integration: The general purpose of this sub-initiative is to significantly reduce the cost of materials to U.S. shipyards by radically modifying the fundamentals of material acquisition to become world class in their operations, structure, and pricing. (2) Planning and Production Design Processes: The general purpose of this sub-initiative is to develop physical or procedural standards and to refine the processes that will perfect the rational delivery of the right information, the right tools, and the right materials to the right craftsman at the right time and place. (3) Pre-Contract Processes: The general purpose of this sub-initiative is to radically improve strategies and processes that world class shipyards undertake before a contract is signed. The intent is to create an effective education program and/or usable model of business processes that supports the major initiatives for Product Design and Material Technologies and Systems Technologies. This program or model should also address the Planning and Production Design model described above. The following sub-initiatives are in the SIP, but are not prioritized as high as the three listed above, and based on funding limitations, are not expected to be funded in FY 1999: Marketing Tools and Contracting Processes. [3]Product Design and Material Technologies: The following sub-initiative areas are of interest for FY 1999: (1) Material Standards: This sub-initiative includes the development of a family of commercial marine material standards and the supporting engineering and commercial data required to rapidly and efficiently respond to market inquiries and support the follow-on contract design, detail design and production phases. These material standards would include the non-specification general material used in "world class" commercial shipbuilding, non-marine materials used by other U.S. manufacturing and construction industries having potential marine application, and a marine equipment database covering U.S. and foreign marine "type" equipment that is pre-approved by the classification societies and regulatory bodies. (2) Parametric Design Rules and Metrics: This sub-initiative includes the development of a family of flexible parametric design rules, design metrics, detail design standards, and engineering data required to rapidly and efficiently respond to market inquiries and support follow-on contract design, detail design, and production phases. These design rules and standards should cover the total ship level, systems, arrangements, design details, and standard interim product families. The following sub-initiatives are in the SIP, but are not prioritized as high as the two listed above, and based on funding limitations, are not expected to be funded in FY 1999: Portfolio of Preliminary Designs, Advanced Product Designs and Materials, and Hydrodynamic Research Center. [4]Systems Technologies: The following sub-initiative areas are of interest for FY 1999: (1) Electronic Commerce: This sub-initiative is intended to address the infrastructure and process gains that could be made in the marine industry by implementing web based technology for both buying and selling marine components related to ship design and construction. This technology is envisioned as enabling the marine industry to reduce material acquisition and supply chain costs as well as make their products and services available to a global market. (2) Advanced Design, Simulation, Analysis and Estimating: This sub-initiative is intended to extend product modeling beyond its traditional role in detail design and manufacturing to encompass the entire lifecycle stages of the integrated shipbuilding environment in order to support better decisions with respect to cost, performance, and schedule. In the early lifecycle stages, where the majority of analysis, estimation,and optimization occurs, many decisions must be made that impact the total ownership cost, however, very limited data exists early in the design upon which to base these decisions. By capturing more of the early shipbuilding knowledge, such as requirements, product models will be better able to support the later lifecycle stages where operational simulation, human factors engineering, training, logistics, and anthropomorphic simulations are conducted. (3) Component-based Software: This sub-initiative is aimed at building upon the premise that object-oriented approaches to software development yield more modular products, reduce maintenance costs, and enable software re-use. These objectives are essential to enable the U. S. Shipbuilding industry to migrate from their monolithic, highly specialized legacy design tools to plug and play, best of breed, modular, commercial solutions. These solutions must enable the shipbuilding industry to adopt general purpose tools-where necessary and cost effective-thereby enabling them to focus on their core business and not on developing information technology. (4) Evolution of STEP: This sub-initiative is focused on progressing the work initiated by the Navy Industry Digital Data Exchange Standards Committee (NIDDESC), the NSRP "Convert NIDDESC Application Protocols to ISO Application Protocols" project, the DARPA MariSTEP prototype implementation program, as well as several other major, internationally funded, programs. In addition to its use in sharing of requirements, design, and manufacturing data between design partners and within the subcontractor hierarchy, the use of STEP as a contract data delivery mechanism will be required on future Navy ship design contracts as specified in NAVSEA Directive 9040. On the commercial front, data exchange is being heavily driven by the major classification societies who see significant process improvement and cost and schedule savings through electronic data exchange. (5) Product Structure Management: This sub-initiative is at the cross-roads of the engineering information world, as represented by the ship product model, and the enterprise's business information world. It is widely acknowledged that complex products such as ships, aircraft, automobiles, and buildings must support multiple taxonomies for organizing and classifying parts. Within the product model, this organization may consist of the network of relationships between the ship objects. The product structure needs to support multiple orthogonal views of the ship data, such as a classification by function (i.e., a system view), by manufacturing sequence (i.e., the assembly view) and by spatial partitioning (i.e., a compartment or zone view). The Product Structure Management sub-initiative area is dependent on the Component Software sub-initiative area and the Smart Product Model development area. The shipbuilding components must support the methods and relationships required for effective product structure management. The following sub-initiatives are in the SIP, but are not prioritized as high as the five listed above, and based on funding limitations, are not expected to be funded in FY 1999: Enterprise Resource Planning, Desktop Components, Access to Logically Integrated Databases, and Workflow and Notification. [5]Facilities and Tooling: The following sub-initiative areas are of interest for FY 1999: (1) Safety, Health, & Ergonomics: Abstracts should address innovative projects that decrease Workers Compensation/safety related costs, reduce the risk of injuries, and increase production. Product design, choice of materials, tooling, improving housekeeping, etc., are to be considered in the effort to minimize worker and work place hazards. It is also recommended that work be initiated by the shipbuilding and ship repair industry to improve worker safety by addressing ergonomic issues. (2) Environmental Protection: Abstracts should address innovative projects that develop effective workable methods for protecting the environment while not overburdening construction processes. Also, better methods to control airborne and waterborne pollution/runoff might be pursued. (3) Innovative Financing: Abstracts should address the development of innovative financing methods that will provide low cost funds required to upgrade U.S. shipyards to meet foreign competition. (4) Facility Maintenance: Abstracts should address innovative projects that will determine the most cost effective approach to the maintenance of plant and equipment. The initial thrust of this initiative area is the identification and implementation of "best manufacturing practices and technologies" from both shipbuilding and other manufacturing industries. Innovative approaches focusing on a hierarchical approach of relative importance/value of the items/systems to be maintained are expected to reduce the cost impact of maintenance. The following sub-initiative is in the SIP, but are not prioritized as high as the four listed above, and based on funding limitations, is not expected to be funded in FY 1999: Facility Planning/Utilization. [6]Crosscut Initiatives: The following sub-initiative areas are of interest for FY 1999: (1) Education and Training: Abstracts should define approaches and demonstrate methods for providing the education and training programs needed to support a competitive shipbuilding industry. Interest areas include: innovative programs for management and supervisory education and skills training, linked to industry change; methods to improve high school and academic preparation and interaction with the shipbuilding industry; metrics to benchmark business process improvement in training and return on investment in training; programs to reinforce change and develop skills required by new technologies; and methods for sharing training resources across the industry. (2) Technology Transfer: Abstracts should define approaches and demonstrate methods to enable the shipbuilding industry to transfer and adopt technologies and processes needed to create a competitive industry. Interest areas include: tools or techniques to facilitate technology implementation; resources to support technology transfer; methods to enable rapid adaptation to changes in technology; or techniques for taking advantage of advances in other industries and world class shipyards. (3) Organizational Change: Abstracts should define approaches and demonstrate methods that enable shipbuilding organizations and their cultures to accept change and the implementation of technology in the shipbuilding industry. Interest areas include: programs to develop the awareness of leadership as to the importance of change; tools or techniques for implementing organizational and cultural change; strategies for managing change and continually improving processes; and approaches for incorporating best practices and lessons learned in shipbuilding organizations. (4) Human Resources: Abstracts should define approaches and demonstrate methods for providing innovative human resource programs that support changing technology and processes in the shipbuilding industry. Interest areas include: evaluation and implementation of programs to educate and train current Human Resource Dept. personnel in change management, diversity issues, business processes and practices in world class organizations; benchmarking and development of approaches to address comprehensive wage and salary, recruitment strategies, and skill shortages in a changing shipbuilding industry; and methods for developing employee potential in a changing work environment. The Environment, Safety and Health sub-initiative is in the SIP, but is included under the Facilities and Tooling major initiative for project submission purposes. C. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Anticipated Period of Performance: Multi-year project abstracts are acceptable, providing they specify clearly defined one-year (or less) project phases to allow for go/no-go decisions on future year efforts/funding. Each phase should specify associated deliverables and milestones. The total length/duration of the technical effort is expected to vary by project complexity. It is anticipated that most projects will be of 24 or less months duration. It is recognized that particularly complex projects may require technical efforts of up to 36 months. Funding Estimate: Congress appropriated $16,600,000.00 for the MARITECH ASE Program in FY 1999. However, all of the appropriated funding may not be available for project awards. There is no guarantee that awards will be made in each of the identified topic areas. Multiple awards may be made in a given major initiative area depending, in part, on the cost of individual proposals and available funding. Notice to Foreign-Owned Firms: Such firms are asked to immediately notify the MARITECH ASE Program Office point cited below upon deciding to respond to this announcement. Foreign contractors should be aware that prior Government approval may be required before their proposals can be considered. Preparation Cost: This announcement does not commit the program to pay for any response preparation cost. The cost of preparingproposals in response to this announcement is not considered a direct charge to any resulting award or any other contract. Evaluation Factors: While there are no awards for the abstracts submitted in response to this announcement, the following factors are anticipated for use in evaluating full proposals which may be submitted for Research Announcements in FY 1999: Technical Aspects: The technical aspect, which is ranked as the first order of priority relative to the Posted 11/02/98 (W-SN267407). (0306)

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