Provide non-personal technical support services for the FHWA Hazard Mitigation (HM) team.
Added: Oct 02, 2013 1:03 pm
SCOPE OF WORKThe scope of this contract includes conducting research in the area of bridge vulnerabilities to single or multiple hazards, development of the mitigation and adaptation countermeasures including materials for existing and new structures, development of the next generation of analysis and design tools, and methodologies to address extreme events, assessment of the condition and health of bridge networks after extreme-events, and materials research to develop resilient systems. Extreme event loads include both natural hazards-such as flooding, wind, and seismic; as well as man-made hazards-such as overloads, fire, impact forces, unintentional (explosion) or intentional blast events (terrorism).Work under the contract shall include the conduct of fundamental and applied research, laboratory and field testing, developmental work, analysis, complex computer modeling and simulation, technology delivery, deployment support, development of software tools, development and delivery of educational and training materials and workshops, publication of research papers and programmatic technical support in the areas of extreme events.TASK AREA REQUIREMENTSTasks Order Specific RequirementsWhen ordered, the Contractor shall provide the necessary personnel, material, equipment, services and facilities to perform the requirements in this work statement, as ordered in separate task orders. Individual task orders will be managed, monitored and evaluated by the federal employee assigned by the office requiring support services.The Contractor shall conduct, research, development, testing and analysisThe Contractor shall evaluate vulnerabilities of bridges to single or multiple hazardsThis requirement includes assessing the vulnerability of bridges to single or multiple hazards. Some engineering problems are multi-hazard in nature, such as unknown foundation research, which includes vulnerabilities to hydraulic scour as well as seismic, overload, impact/explosion concerns. Other research topics may concentrate on a single hazard, such as research on bridge scour.The following lists examples of the type of work related to this task. The list is not all inclusive:• Foundation Characterization - characterization of bridge foundations for unknown geometry, integrity, and load carrying capacity. Load evaluation is often required for heavier truck use of the highway infrastructure as well as bridge replacement projects involving foundation reuse. • Hydraulics Vulnerability - determination of the unknown foundation depth (pile-tip elevation) of existing bridges over waterways that cannot be evaluated for scour. Assess the hydraulic vulnerability of bridges to hydrodynamic forces.• Seismic and Other Extreme Event Vulnerability - Foundation integrity in an event of earthquake can trigger geotechnical hazards such as liquefaction and settlement, slope failure, and surface fault rupture.• Seismically induced earth pressure for Load & Resistant Factor Design (LRFD) of earth retaining structures.• Site specific evaluation of earth ground motions.• Bridge vulnerability due to blast and other intentional high impact loadings.The Contractor shall develop hazard mitigation and adaptation countermeasures for existing and new structures that includes a national data archive resource that captures experimental data as well as field reconnaissance data.The following lists examples of the type of work related to this task. The list is not all inclusive:• Development of countermeasures for coastal hazards for inland and coastal bridges.• Development and deployment of high-performance, long-life, smart hydraulic hazard countermeasure materials that increase resiliency and reduce maintenance and reconstruction needs.• Development of scour countermeasures for shallow foundations.• Development and/or refinement of seismic design and mitigation measures for earthquake loadings.• Development and deployment of aerodynamic design features and details that optimize the aerodynamic performance of new bridge designs.• Development and/or evaluation of retrofit techniques for effective mitigation of wind related performance problems with existing highway structures.• Development of methods and procedures for mitigation of wind related problems of structural safety and stability during construction of highway structures.• Development and optimization of countermeasures to mitigate blast loadings.• Optimization of countermeasures for mitigation of multiple hazards.• Development of hydrodynamic bridge systems to address flooding, overtopping, scour, surge and wave action.• Development of retrofits and designs that facilitate fish and wildlife passage through hydraulic structures.• Development of database to archive test data.The Contractor shall research and develop the next generation of analysis and design tools to improve design reliability to achieve intended performance and service life:The following lists examples of the type of work related to this task. The list is not all inclusive:• Development of enhanced analytical and modeling capabilities (high performance computing) for predicting hydraulic hazard effects and for assessing & screening countermeasures.• Development of enhanced analytical and computational modeling capabilities (high performance computing tools) for evaluating and optimizing the aerodynamic performance of new structural designs.• Development of new physical modeling capabilities (wind tunnel testing) to simulate and evaluate fluid/structural interaction (wind/structural interaction).• Development of numerical models and tools for prediction of wind buffeting loads, galloping and vortex-induced vibration amplitudes, and onset velocities for flutter instability.• Development of design methodology taking into account of bridge redundancy/alternate load path as a hazard mitigation strategy for complex structures.• Development of design guidance for considering dynamic interaction of axial, shear and flexure in structural columns under seismic, blast and impact loadings.• Improvement in load prediction for heavy vehicle impact events and blast pressure definition from explosion on bridge structures.• Development of performance based seismic design criteria.• Development of enhanced scour analysis capabilities for inland and coastal bridges.Development of enhanced analytical and computational modeling capabilities (high performance computing tools) for evaluating and optimizing blast performance of existing and new bridge systems.The Contractor shall perform post-event assessment of highway structures. This subtask includes the support for post hazard assessment teams and the development of protocols and standards for the rapid assessment and forensic investigation of highway infrastructures after an extreme event. The emphasis shall be on the structural evaluation after widespread natural disasters including hydraulic (flooding, hurricane, tsunami, typhoon, ice flow), seismic (earthquake), and aerodynamic (hurricane, tornado, and other wind events) which typically impact a large corridor. Therefore, this may necessitate the use of wide-area remote sensing technologies. The scope of this multi-disciplinary subtask also includes other hazards-such as blasts, ice flow, landslides, collisions and fires-which typically impact few bridges rather than at a larger network of highway infrastructure.The following lists examples of the type of work related to this task. The list is not all inclusive:• Development of rapid deployment sensing systems to capture hydraulic parameters during and after storm events.• Network-Level Evaluation and Screening - This subtask requires the performance and leveraging of field reconnaissance surveys from multiple sensor platforms including: 1) satellite remote sensing, 2) airborne aerial surveys; 3) ground-based sensor networks; and, 4) structural sensing and diagnostics.• Bridge-Level Assessment of Damage - Develop rapid evaluation techniques/ tools for bridge and tunnels safety assessment immediately after an extreme event. The techniques are needed especially after a highway structure suffers damage-but not yet collapsed or severely damaged as determined by visual inspection. Procedures and guidance must be established for effective team deployment, inspection, documentation, infrastructure damage assessment, as well as collection and organization of data.• Field Support System - The support assistance includes preparation, response, and mitigation efforts for FHWA or State DOT's concerning damage to highways and bridges. The post-event response and support could include assembling and deploying a team of experienced engineers and scientists to the area of impact as soon as practical for the related purposes of road and bridge damage mechanism assessment and recovery decision support. Such immediate assessment can lead to the collection of valuable, time-sensitive, data and information which may be destroyed during recovery efforts. The activity shall also provide FHWA with post-event assessments, recommendations, and reports.• Development of robust and rapid deployment sensors and/or sensing systems to capture wind conditions and structural behavior just prior to, during, and after major storm events. Development of strategies, system specifications, and data requirements for long term monitoring and evaluation of structures subject to infrequent, but extreme, wind events or conditions.The Contractor shall develop and deploy new tests and methods to more accurately and efficiently characterize materials.The following lists examples of the type of work related to this task. The list is not all inclusive:• Development of advanced materials such as nano and self-healing materials in bridge systems as countermeasures for mitigating blast, impact and seismic hazards.• Development of design criteria for innovative designs, materials and construction for seismic applications.The Contractor shall perform technology deliveryThe Contractor shall perform demonstrations and requests for information:The Contractor shall provide technical assistance to FHWA stakeholders such as State and other Federal agencies. Technical assistance can take the form of: (1) answering questions from within or outside FHWA via email or telephone; (2) providing literature based on requests for information within the scope of the research; and (3) providing hands-on training of product or equipment. The Contractor shall provide a brief written report for all site visits documenting the participating agency, contacts, and phone numbers for personnel who worked with the equipment, and summary of visit. The Contractor shall conduct technical workshops and trainingThe Contractor shall develop and deliver professional workshops and training related to one or more of the areas identified in the objectives, including supporting implementation of the methods and technology developed in Task A. Workshops generally range in length from 4-16 hours of contact time, emphasize hands-on application of technology and be presented at one or more times and/or places.The Contractor shall provide a written report of the activity. Each report shall include as a minimum: date, duration, purpose, location, copy of workshop or training materials (electronic format), and a brief summary of comments, recommendations and/or observations.The Contractor shall provide technical presentationsThe Contractor shall develop and make professional presentations at seminars, conferences, workshops and/or meetings relating to the areas identified in the objectives.The Contractor shall provide a written report of the visit. Each report shall include as a minimum: date, duration, purpose, location, copy of presentation (electronic format), and a brief summary of comments, activities, recommendations and/or observations.The Contractor shall provide technical publicationsThe Contractor shall write technical, professional quality, articles suitable for scientific publications, peer-reviewed journals, newsletters, briefing papers and brochures, and shall develop workshop modules on an as needed basis. It is anticipated that these article(s) will address the research and other related activities.The Contractor shall perform technology deployment:The Contractor shall provide technical support, including product refinement/enhancement for implementation to interested agencies of products and technologies developed under C.4.2. Technical support can take the form of:(1) establishing product support websites, email technical assistance, newsletters, and phone support for answering questions from within or outside FHWA concerning hazard mitigation and countermeasures technology products;(2) providing literature based on requests for information in support of specific products or technologies;(3) staffing of display booths at meetings, conferences and exhibitions in support of products; and(4) providing hands-on training to support implementation of the products and technology.The Contractor shall provide a periodic report of technical support provided under this task documenting the number and type of contacts, and a brief summary of comments, recommendations and/or observations.The Contractor shall provide programmatic technical supportThe Contractor shall prepare material for publishing on internet and other online sources:The Contractor shall develop, enhance, and maintain material for publishing on the Internet and other online systems. Material may take various forms, such as viewable directly online or set up for downloading by online customer. Contractor shall research and recommend, as appropriate new media for information exchange to advance the objectives identified in this contract.The Contractor shall provide technical assistance in convening meetingsThe Contractor shall organize panels and technical meetings in support of the development of technical projects and related work in the general areas identified in the objectives of this contract.The Contractor shall provide all technical and administrative functions associated with arranging and coordinating these events to include arranging meeting location; contacting participants; securing lodging and meeting space; developing schedules; circulating meeting notices; arranging miscellaneous equipment and expendable supplies; and other conference support functions.The Contractor may be asked to contact appropriate people from the agencies that are to participate in the meetings and identify prospective members. The Contractor shall also prepare and distribute meeting information such as confirmation letters with meeting details and agendas to all appropriate personnel. The Contractor may also be asked to prepare the formal minutes for meetings which they arrange.The Contractor shall arrange travel for Pooled Fund Study Technical Advisory Committee and Non-Federal Participants in Meetings:The Contractor shall make all travel arrangements for non-Federal members of the technical panels and meetings identified by the COR from a variety of locations around the United States and in infrequent instances from other countries. Arrangements will include transportation reservations and tickets; hotel reservations; local transportation between transportation terminals and hotel and, if relevant, between hotel and meeting site; and other arrangements necessary to the successful travel and room and board for participants while attending the meetings. The Contractor shall be responsible for these costs for the non-Federal panel members and meeting participants.
DTFH61-13-R-00042 Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
10/2/13, 1:03 PM