24SNB35_SPECNOTE_BAA.pdf

I. OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY

This publication constitutes a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for awards by Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division (NSWC Crane) Contracts Department, as well as other federal entities where appropriate, as contemplated in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.102(d)(2) and 35.016, the Department of Defense Grants and Agreements regulations (DoDGARS) 32 CFR 22.315(a) and the, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Other Transaction Guide version 2.0 dated July 2023. A formal Request for Proposals (RFP), solicitation, and/or additional information regarding this announcement will not be issued.

NSWC Crane reserves the right to fund all, some, or none of the proposals received under this BAA. NSWC Crane provides no funding for direct reimbursement of proposal development costs. Technical and cost proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this BAA will not be returned. It is the policy of NSWC Crane to treat all proposals submitted under this BAA as sensitive competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation.

A. Required Overview Content

1. Federal Awarding Agency Name:

Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division

300 HWY 361

Code T2 Bldg 34

CRANE, IN 47522-5001

Email: usn.crane.nswc-cd-crane-in.mbx.NSWC-Crane-T2-BACA@us.navy.mil

Agency Contact:

o Contracting Officer: Danielle Peter (danielle.m.peter.civ@us.navy.mil) o Requiring Technical Activity: Maria Duran

(usn.crane.nswc-cd-crane-in.mbx.NSWC-Crane-T2-BACA@us.navy.mil)

2. Funding Opportunity Title: Long Range Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for NSWC Crane

Anticipated individual awards: Multiple awards are anticipated.

Anticipated funding type: 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4

Types of instruments that may be awarded: Procurement contract (Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) based), grant, cooperative agreement, or other transaction.

3. Announcement Type: Initial Announcement

4. Funding Opportunity Number: N0016424SNB35

5. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers (CFDA): 12.335

BAA #N0016424SNB35

mailto:usn.crane.nswc-cd-crane-in.mbx.NSWC-Crane-T2-BACA@us.navy.mil mailto:danielle.m.peter.civ@us.navy.mil mailto:usn.crane.nswc-cd-crane-in.mbx.NSWC-Crane-T2-BACA@us.navy.mil

Navy Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance

6. Key Dates

Dates: (All times listed herein are Eastern Time) o Posting date: 2 February 2024 o Abstract Due Date: Abstracts may be submitted on a rolling basis

Proposal Due Date: Proposals may be submitted on a rolling basis Closing Date: 1 February 2025 o Estimated period of performance start: start dates are unique to each action

7. North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code:

541715 - Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology). The NAICS code for contracts under this announcement is “541715” with a small business size standard of “1,000 employees.”

I. DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

A. Program Description

This announcement seeks revolutionary research ideas, and technology demonstrators that offer potential for advancement and improvement of NSWC Crane’s primary mission areas.

• Funding Opportunity Description

NSWC Crane is a field activity of the Naval Sea Systems Command. NSWC Crane supports a wide range of government agencies in the interest of national security.

NSWC Crane may publish BAAs and other solicitations in response to specific needs.

This BAA is issued to seek innovative solutions and ideas for topics not covered via other means.

It is strongly encouraged that potential proposers review existing NSWC Crane solicitations to avoid duplication of effort and to contact the identified points of contact for each BAA topic to discuss specific details of the needs.

• Crane Mission and Technical Capabilities

The mission of NSWC Crane is to provide research, development, test and evaluation, acquisition engineering, in-service engineering and technical support in its assigned technical capabilities for the United States Navy, Department of Defense components and agencies, and other federal agencies and components engaged in national security. NSWC Crane also works to apply component and system-level product and industrial engineering to surface sensors, strategic systems, special warfare devices and electronic warfare systems, as well as to execute other responsibilities as assigned by the Commander, Naval Surface Warfare Center.

BAA #N0016424SNB35

The focus of NSWC Crane is “Harnessing the Power of Technology for the Warfighter.”

Crane specializes in total lifecycle support in three broad focus areas: Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions, and Electronic Warfare, which support ten assigned technical capabilities (TCs) listed below.

1. Electronic Warfare (EW)

2. Infrared and Pyrotechnic Countermeasures

3. Strategic Systems Hardware

4. Expeditionary Warfare and Systems

5. Advanced Electronics

6. Sensors and Surveillance Systems

7. Hypersonic Weapon Systems

8. Power and Energy Systems

9. Electro-optic and Infrared Technologies

10. Force level EW Mission Analysis, Advanced Concepts and Technologies

Within each of the TCs, there are multiple thrust areas, which present considerable opportunities for innovative research and solutions to support national security imperatives. There is intentional overlapping space within the listed TC such that a potential technology or research idea may support multiple TCs. Any proposal should list the principal TC as well as any adjunct TCs that should be considered. Proposals that support multiple TCs are strongly desired but not necessary.

• Thrust Areas by Technical Capability

Each NSWC Crane TC encompasses multiple thrust areas supporting technology development and national security activities. NSWC Crane is looking for unsolicited proposals to help with the following areas within each capability:

1. Electronic Warfare (EW). Research and development for materials, material processing, microelectronics, radio frequency (RF), electro-optic infrared (EOIR) and other hardware that improves the efficiency, capability and responsiveness of EW systems used in all warfighting domains (land, sea, air, space, and cyber). Algorithms, digital signal processing techniques and photonics approaches that improves EW system responsiveness and accuracy. Hardware and software-based solutions focused on manipulation of electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) signatures or emissions to include signature management.

Material and non-material solutions that improve sustainability and affordability of EW systems and their components. Novel and low-cost approaches to EW test and evaluation (T&E) supporting fast-to-field initiatives.

Technology demonstrations that include prototypes of component or system level solutions to EW problems. EW mission analysis that may include a combination of live, virtual or constructive representations of EW systems, platforms or unique capabilities in single or multiple engagements and campaign simulations. Research and development that enable improvements in EW component or EW system Size, Weight and Power (SWAP). Research and development that support the integration of EW capability into unmanned systems. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) approaches with emphasis on accuracy, generalizability, and tactical employment of AI and ML in support of all EW functions.

2. Infrared and Pyrotechnic Countermeasures. Research, design, development, prototyping, and demonstration of safe, reliable, and effective infrared (IR) and electro-optic (EO) countermeasures, countermeasure systems, and pyrotechnics for platform protection, target enhancement, counterintelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C-ISR), illumination, and signaling and marking. Seeking innovative approaches to Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force platform protection through design, development, modeling and simulation (M&S), integration, test and evaluation (T&E), and fielding of camouflage, concealment, and deception devices, countermeasures, threat warning, and dispensing systems. Unique solutions that improve current capabilities in M&S, T&E, simulators, and all infrared countermeasure and pyrotechnic solutions, especially those that also incorporate RF with EO/IR are encouraged.

3. Strategic Systems Hardware. Research and development, prototyping, technology demonstration, and test & evaluation of safe, reliable, secure and effective hardware that supports the Department of Navy and DoD nuclear deterrence community. Innovation around Strategic Systems Hardware design starting at the physics level for materials and devices including quantum, mechanics, thermodynamics, electronics and electromagnetism. Application to specific systems and subsystems such as acoustic sensors, navigation, fire control, launch, flight, guidance, onboard & pier side mechanical & electrical support systems, as well as modeling & simulation and integrated verification & validation of those systems. Approaches that facilitate strategic hardware reliability through design, manufacturing and assessment of radiation hardened microelectronics for space missions, nuclear modernization, and missile defense are desired. Special emphasis is placed on research that enables secure, robust, and resilient microelectronics, sensors and embedded systems for military applications in severe environments. Other areas of interest include digital engineering and system modeling of requirements, interface management, system level architecture integration with model-based systems engineering. Data analytics, intelligent design with artificial intelligence and machine learning, configuration and data management, and improved procedures and trainings with augmented and virtual reality will be beneficial.

4. Expeditionary Warfare and Systems (ExWar). Research, development, prototyping, and demonstration of technology associated with Expeditionary Warfare, commonly considered mission sets executed by the USMC, NAVSPECWAR & SOF, NECC, and other maritime & land-based forces. ExWar technologies can include sensor systems, battle management systems, communications and command & control systems, and kinetic & non-kinetic effectors. Unmanned (UxS) and Counter-Unmanned (C-UxS) systems technologies are of particular interest to this area of research. Novel, end-to-end capability development and demonstration via rapid prototyping and fleet experimentation is a goal for the ExWar area of research. Areas of concentration at NSWC Crane in support of ExWar capabilities include EO/IR Sensor Systems, Radar Sensor Systems, Command & Control Systems, Cyber Security, Weapon Systems & Munitions, Power & Energy, Mobility Systems, and

Electronic Warfare Systems. Capabilities that enable Naval expeditionary strategies and concepts, such as Distributed Maritime Operations, Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations, and force modernization are a focus for NSWC Crane.

5. Advanced Electronics. Research, development, prototyping, and demonstration of affordable, sustainable microelectronics solutions that provide asymmetric capability for the Department of Navy and the DoD Enterprise in support of the following platforms but not limited to hypersonic weapon systems and their platforms, ballistic missile defense systems, electronic warfare systems, command; control; communications; computing; intelligence;

surveillance; and reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems, cyber-physical systems, space surveillance systems, maritime and undersea autonomous systems.

Areas of interest but not limited to basic and applied trusted microelectronics research & development (including design, development, acquisition, test and evaluation, advanced prototyping, technology maturation and technology demonstration) in support of security systems engineering to integrate advanced electronics within complex systems satisfying security and resilience objectives. Microelectronics technology areas of interests include but are not limited to active and passive electronic devices, circuit cards, advanced Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) logic for ASICs and programmable logic, volatile and nonvolatile memory, radiation hardened technologies, advance packaging to include heterogeneous integration, advanced interconnect technologies, electronic controls, solid state transmit/receive modules, digital receiver exciters, digital beamforming electronics, DC to DC converters, microwave tubes, other radio frequency and optoelectronics technologies. Microelectronics technology test and evaluation areas of interests include but are not limited to model and simulation at the board, component, and circuit level, as well as operational environments to include radiation, cyber, electronic warfare across all identified microelectronics technologies. Additionally, solutions in development and demonstration of tools, techniques, and technologies for evaluation of microelectronics devices to support the confidentiality and integrity objectives of the DoD are desired.

6. Sensors and Surveillance Systems. Basic research; applied research;

advanced technology development; and advanced component development and prototypes that facilitate the maturation of Sensors and Surveillance System technologies and manufacturing capabilities. Sensors and Surveillance Systems include multi-domain sensors and systems supporting Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR); Counter-Uncrewed Systems (C-UxS);

Radar; Electromagnetic Warfare (EW); Signals Intelligence (SIGINT); Electronic Intelligence (ELINT), Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT), and Communications missions and activities. Solutions of interest target improvements to sensor size, weight, power, cost, and/or performance. Research and development areas of interest to demonstrate include innovations associated with metamaterials, microelectronics, 2.5- and 3-Dimensional packaging, advanced sensor architectures, power systems, thermal management solutions, mechanical technologies, networking solutions, processing systems, modeling and simulation capabilities, sensor fusion, and algorithms.

7. Hypersonic Weapon Systems (HWS). Research and development of technologies that support the development, integration, test and evaluation of HWS to include aerodynamics, aerothermal prediction and analysis, guidance, navigation and control, high temperature materials, thermal management, sensors and supporting algorithms. Any approach including materials and manufacturing processes that improve HWS performance, lethality, survivability, lowers costs or improves HWS and HWS component manufacturability (cost and capacity) is strongly desired. Innovative approaches and prototypes that lower the cost or increase the cadence of HWS testing and evaluation are also strongly desired. M&S of HWS components, subsystems and systems at all M&S levels (Engineering, Engagement, Mission and Campaign).

Power and Energy solutions for HWS that reduce Size, Weight and Power (SWAP), improve power density or lower costs are welcome. Solutions that enhance microelectronics and HWS component, subsystem and system reliability and survivability in natural and prompt radiation environments are desired.

8. Power and Energy Systems. Research, development, prototyping, test and evaluation, materials analysis, safety analysis, modeling, digital engineering, data analytics, data management, specification development, and production and demonstration of advanced battery technologies, advanced high energy density storage systems, high power energy storage systems, hybrid and all-electric propulsion systems, energy transfer systems, alternative and renewable energy systems, and battery management systems. Applications include space, airborne, missile, surface, land, undersea, manned, and unmanned platforms, hybrid and all-electric vehicles, human portable energy storage systems, and portable energy storage and energy conversion systems. Desired outcomes are as follows: (1) Improvements in battery power density in support of directed energy systems. (2) Improvements in battery energy density in support of extended mission endurance for space, airborne, missile, surface, land, undersea, manned, and unmanned applications. (3) Improvements in battery cycle life in support of aerospace applications and austere mission environments. (4) Enable integration onto high value surface, air, and undersea platforms by mitigating safety risks associated with lithium chemistry batteries.

This includes advancements in battery casualty containment and early failure detection. This also includes advancements of battery technologies utilizing nonflammable electrolyte and solid-state electrolyte batteries. (5) Improvements of lithium chemistry battery performance in extreme cold weather environments. (6) Improvements in power management and distribution systems efficiency. (7) Improvements of solar array technology efficiency to support expeditionary mission sets. (8) Supply chain risk mitigations associated with power and energy technologies. This includes advancement of technologies, methodologies, and materials that increase availability of domestic raw materials, address obsolescence issues, enable processing of raw materials, and reduce dependence of rare earth metals. This also includes development and advancement of batteries and electric motors that utilize alternative materials. (9) Development of cost effective and supportable high voltage and high-power battery test systems.

9. Electro-optic and Infrared Technologies. The objective of the Electro-Optic and Infrared (EO/IR) is to develop high-performance, low-cost, next generation EO/IR sensors, devices and autonomous processing to provide real-time detection, tracking, classification, and identification of air, sea-surface, and ground targets in all weather conditions. The primary interest is for systems working in the visible and infrared (near, short-wave, mid-wave, and long-wave) regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, which is typically considered to be 0.4 um to 15 um in wavelength. Beyond imaging and detection, this area also includes supported EO/IR technologies and sub-systems such as optics, software, targeting and tracking, sensor protection, visual augmentation systems (VAS), laser pointers, free space optics (FSO), laser markers, and laser designators. Approaches and technologies that offer improvements or improved understanding in of these areas is of interest. Additionally, innovative approaches, prototypes, and tools that benefit modeling and simulation (M&S), test and evaluation (T&E), systems installation, logistics, or other approaches that reduced cost or benefit to the management of the entire EO/IR lifecycle are of interest.

10. Force level EW Mission Analysis, Advanced Concepts and Technologies.

Research and development of technologies and capabilities that support development, integration, modeling and simulation, test and evaluation of distributed and integrated electromagnetic warfare mission capabilities to support joint and naval kinetic and non-kinetic operations delivering lethal and non-lethal effects in the air, surface, ground, space and cyber domains of the electromagnetic spectrum. Seeking innovative approaches to provide a comprehensive modeling and simulation and analytical foundation to represent non-kinetic effects and complex electromagnetic environments for evaluation at the engineering, engagement, mission and campaign levels of modeling to facilitate rapid evaluation of current and emerging electromagnetic systems and system of systems capabilities. Seeking novel model-based systems engineering approaches, non-kinetic models, and visualization of non-kinetic effects in a modeling and simulation environment. Solutions and prototypes that are focused on advancing radio frequency enabled cyber, hardware agnostic electromagnetic spectrum capabilities, advanced electromagnetic sensors and systems, decision-making aids, many on many threat simulators, and advanced countermeasures are welcome. Innovative approaches and prototypes that benefit modeling and simulation, test and evaluation, and development and evaluation of integrated and distributed system of systems capabilities to help reduce cost and enable rapid analysis and evaluation are of interest.

B. Federal Award Information

1. Eligibility for Competition. Proposals for supplementation of existing projects are eligible to compete with applications for new Federal awards under this BAA.

2. Contracted Fundamental Research. If there are any restrictions on the conduct or outcome of work funded under this BAA, NSWC Crane will follow the guidance on and definition of “contracted fundamental research” as provided in the

Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics) Memorandum of 24 May 2010. The memorandum can be found at DoD Policy on Fundamental Research (osd.mil).

As defined therein, the definition of “contracted fundamental research,” in a DoD contractual context, includes research performed under grants and contracts that are (a) funded by RDT&E Budget Activity 1 (Basic Research), whether performed by universities or industry or (b) funded by Budget Activity 2 (Applied Research) and performed on campus at a university. The research shall not be considered fundamental in those rare and exceptional circumstances where the applied research effort presents a high likelihood of disclosing performance characteristics of military systems or manufacturing technologies that are unique and critical to defense, and where agreement on restrictions have been recorded in the contract or grant.

Pursuant to DoD policy, research performed under grants and contracts that are (a) funded by Budget Activity 2 (Applied Research) and NOT performed on-campus at a university or (b) funded by Budget Activity 3 (Advanced Technology Development) or Budget Activity 4 (Advanced Component Development and Prototypes) does not meet the definition of “contracted fundamental research.” In conformance with the USD (AT&L) guidance and National Security Decision Directive found at https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/National_Security_Decision_Directive_ 189.pdf, NSWC Crane will place no restriction on the conduct or reporting of unclassified “contracted fundamental research,” except as otherwise required by statute, regulation, or executive order. For certain research projects, it may be possible that although the research being performed by the prime contractor is restricted research, a subcontractor may be conducting “contracted fundamental research.” In those cases, it is the prime contractor’s responsibility in the proposal to identify and describe the subcontracted unclassified research and include a statement confirming that the work has been scoped, negotiated, and determined to be fundamental research according to the prime contractor and research performer.

Normally, fundamental research is awarded under grants with universities and under contracts with industry. Non-fundamental research is normally awarded under contracts and may require restrictions during the conduct of the research and DoD pre-publication review of such research results due to subject matter sensitivity.

Potential offerors should consult with the appropriate NSWC Crane Technical POCs to determine whether the proposed effort would constitute fundamental or non-fundamental research.

3. Funded Amount and Period of Performance. The funded amount and period of performance of each proposal selected for award may vary depending on the technology area and the technical approach to be pursued by the offeror selected.

4. Instrument Type(s). Awards may take the form of contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, technology investment agreements, and other transaction agreements, as appropriate. The following provides brief descriptions of potential instrument types:

a. Procurement Contract. A legal instrument, consistent with 31 U.S.C. § https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/2012-D054%20Tab%20D%20OUSD%20(ATL)%20memorandum%20dated%20May%2024%202010.pdf https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/2012-D054%20Tab%20D%20OUSD%20(ATL)%20memorandum%20dated%20May%2024%202010.pdf https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/National_Security_Decision_Directive_189.pdf https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/National_Security_Decision_Directive_189.pdf

6303, which reflects a relationship between the Federal Government and another entity/contractor when the principal purpose of the instrument is to acquire property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government.

b. Assistance Instruments.

i. Any assistance instrument awarded under this announcement will be governed by the award terms and conditions that conform to DoD’s implementation of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) circulars applicable to financial assistance.

ii. Grant. A legal instrument, consistent with 31 U.S.C. § 6304, is used to enter a relationship:

• The principal purpose of which is to transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States, rather than to acquire property or services for the Federal Government’s direct benefit or use.

• In which substantial involvement is not expected between the Federal Government and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the grant.

• Per 2 CFR § 1128.325, no fee or profit is allowed

iii. Cooperative Agreement. A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. § 6305, is used to enter the same kind of relationship as a grant, except:

• Substantial involvement is expected between the Federal Government and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the cooperative agreement. (For information on the substantial involvement NSWC Crane expects to have in cooperative agreements, prospective offerors should contact the Technical Point of Contact identified in the technology area of interest.)

• Per 2 CFR § 1128.325, no fee or profit is allowed.

iv. Technology Investment Agreement (TIA). An assistance instrument as described in 32 CFR Part 37. A TIA may be a cooperative agreement with provisions tailored for involving commercial firms or an assistance transaction under 10 U.S.C.

§ 4021. An assistance transaction may be used when the use of a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement is not feasible or appropriate for basic, applied, and advanced research projects, but the research shall not be duplicative of research being conducted under an existing DoD program. To the maximum extent practicable, TIAs shall provide for a 50/50 cost share between the Government and the applicant. An applicant’s cost share may take the form of cash, independent research, and development (IR&D), foregone intellectual property rights, equipment, access to unique facilities, or other means. Due to the extent of cost share, and the fact that a TIA does not qualify as a “funding agreement” as defined at 37 CFR 401.2(a), the intellectual property provisions of a TIA can be negotiated to provide expanded protection to an applicant’s intellectual property. No fee or profit is allowed on TIAs.

c. Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) for Research. A Research OTA is a legal instrument, consistent with 10 U.S.C. § 4021, which may be used for basic, applied, and advanced research projects. The effort covered under an OTA shall not be duplicative of effort being conducted under an existing DoD program. Please refer to the DoD “Other Transactions Guide” version

2.0 dated July 2023, for additional information.

d. Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) for Prototypes. A Prototype OTA is a legal instrument, consistent with 10 U.S.C. § 4022, which may be used for prototype projects directly relevant to enhancing the mission effectiveness of military personnel and the supporting platforms, systems, components, or materials proposed to be acquired or developed by the Department of Defense, or for improvement of platforms, systems, components, or materials in use by the armed forces. The effort covered under an OTA shall not be duplicative of effort being conducted under an existing DoD program.

Please refer to the DoD “Other Transactions Guide” version 2.0 dated July 2023, for additional information.

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants

All responsible sources from academia, industry and the research community may submit proposals under this BAA. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority Institutions (MIs) are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals. However, no portion of this BAA will be set aside for HBCUs/MIs, small businesses, or other socio-economic participation. All businesses, both small and large, are encouraged to submit proposals and compete for funding consideration.

Federally Funded Research & Development Centers (FFRDCs), including

Department of Energy National Laboratories, are not eligible to receive awards under this BAA. However, teaming arrangements between FFRDCs and eligible principal Offerors are allowed so long as such arrangements are permitted under the sponsoring agreement between the Government and the specific FFRDC.

Navy laboratories, military universities, and warfare centers as well as other

Department of Defense and civilian agency laboratories are also not eligible to receive awards under this BAA and should not directly submit either white papers or full proposals in response to this BAA. If any such organization is interested in one or more of the programs described herein, the organization should contact an appropriate NSWC Crane Technical POC to discuss its area of interest.

University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs) are eligible to submit proposals under this BAA unless precluded from doing so by their Department of Defense UARC contract.

Teams are also encouraged and may submit proposals in any and all areas.

However, Offerors must be willing to cooperate and exchange software, data and other information in an integrated program with other contractors, as well as with system integrators, selected by NSWC Crane.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching – Cost sharing is not expected and will not be used as a factor during the merit review of any proposal hereunder. However, the Government may consider voluntary cost sharing if proposed.

D. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request (Access) Application Package – This BAA may be accessed from the sites below. Amendments, if any, to this BAA will be posted to these websites when they occur. Interested parties are encouraged to periodically check these websites for updates and amendments.

a. Grants.gov (https://www.grants.gov)

b. SAM.gov (https://sam.gov/content/home)

2. Content and Format of Application Submission

a. General Information

All submissions will be protected from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with FAR Subpart 15.207, applicable law, and DoD/DoN regulations. Offerors are expected to appropriately mark each page of their submission that contains proprietary information.

Titles given to the submissions should be descriptive of the work they cover and not be merely a copy of the title of this announcement.

b. Security Classification

White Papers and Proposals submitted under this BAA are expected to be unclassified; however, classified proposals are permitted. If a classified proposal is submitted and selected for award, the resultant contract will be unclassified. An ‘unclassified’ Statement of Work (SOW) must accompany any classified proposal.

1. Classified proposals shall be submitted directly to the NSWC Crane TPOC whose technology area best matches the offeror’s field of interest under Section G(5).

OUTSIDE ENVELOPE - (no classification marking):

NSWC Crane Attn: OPSEC – Document Control Unit

[ENTER ADDRESS]

The inner wrapper of the classified White Paper and/or Full Proposal should be addressed to the attention of the cognizant Technical POC, NSWC Crane Code XX and marked in the following manner:

https://www.grants.gov/ https://sam.gov/content/home

INNER ENVELOPE - (stamped with the overall classification of the material)

Program Name:

NSWC Crane Attn: Program Officer Name

c. Non-Proprietary Statement of Work

For all proposals, a non-proprietary version of the Statement of Work must also be submitted. Do not put proprietary data or markings in or on the Statement of Work. For proposals containing data that the offeror does not want disclosed to the public for any purpose, or used by the Government except for evaluation purposes, the contractor shall mark the title page with the following legend:

“This proposal includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the Government and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed--in whole or in part--for any purpose other than to evaluate the proposal. If, however, a contract is awarded to this offeror as a result of--or in connection with-- the submission of this data, the Government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent provided in the resulting contract.

This restriction does not limit the Government’s right to use information contained in this data if it is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this restriction are contained in (insert numbers or other identification of sheets).”

Each sheet of data that the offeror wishes to restrict must be marked with the following legend:

“Use or disclosure of data contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this proposal.”

d. White Paper Requirements. White Papers are frequently desired by

NSWC Crane Technical POCs. Offerors should consult the cognizant NSWC Crane Technical POC for each technology area regarding the desirability of White Paper submissions.

i. White Paper Format

• Paper Size – 8.5 x 11-inch paper

• Margins – 1 inch

• Spacing –single-spaced

• Font – Times New Roman, 12 point

• Page limit– 5 pages excluding cover page.

ii. White Paper Submission.

When e-mail submission is required (per the instructions below), the white paper must be at least Microsoft Word 2016 compatible, or PDF-compatible format attachment to the email. There is an email size limit of 5MB per email.

• For NSWC Crane Only: Electronic (email) submissions must be sent to usn.crane.nswc-cd-crane-in.mbx.NSWC-Crane-T2- BACA@us.navy.mil. The subject line of the email shall read:

“N0016424SNB35 White Paper Submission”. Do not send ZIP files. Password protected files are discouraged.

iii. White Paper Content

• Cover Page:

o BAA Number: N0016424SNB35 o Company name, CAGE code, DUNS number, address, e-mail address, and telephone number;

o A statement confirming agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the BAA and agreement to furnish any or all items upon which prices are offered at the price set opposite each item;

o Names, titles, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of persons authorized to negotiate on the Offeror’s behalf with the Government in connection with this BAA ;

o DCAA and DCMA office POC, including branch location, contact name, telephone number and e-mail address;

o Name, title, signature of person authorized to sign the proposal. Proposals signed by an agent shall be accompanied by evidence of that agent’s authority unless that evidence has been previously furnished to the issuing office. The Offeror’s signature on their proposal indicates the company will meet all requirements of the SOW/PWS, without exception; and o Identify all enclosures being transmitted as part of the Offeror’s proposal.

o If an Offeror believes no organizational conflict(s) of interest exists, an affirmative statement that no such conflict exists shall be included in the cover letter.

• Technical Concept: A description of the technology innovation and technical risk areas.

• Future Military Relevance (where applicable) – A description of potential Naval relevance and contributions of the effort to the agency’s specific mission.

• Operational Military Concept (where applicable) – A description of the project objectives, the concept of operation for the new capabilities to be delivered, and the expected operational performance improvements.

• Operational Utility Assessment Plan (where applicable) – A plan for demonstrating and evaluating the operational effectiveness of the Offeror’s proposed products or processes in field experiments and/or tests in a simulated environment.

BAA #N0016424SNB35

• Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate.

e. Full Proposals: See Appendix 1 for Instructions for Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and TIAs and Appendix 2 for instructions for Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements.

3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) – All offerors submitting proposals or applications must:

a. Be registered in the SAM prior to submission;

b. Maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an application under consideration by any agency; and

c. Provide its DUNS number in each application or proposal it submits to the agency.

SAM may be accessed at https://www.sam.gov/SAM

4. Submission Dates and Times – See Section A.6 above, “Key Dates” for information.

5. Intergovernmental Review: RESERVED

6. Funding Restrictions: RESERVED

7. Other Submission Requirements: See Appendix 1 for Instructions for

Grants, Cooperative Agreements and TIAs and Appendix 2 for instructions for Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements.

E. Application Review Information

1. Criteria. Awards under this BAA will be made in accordance with FAR 35.016(e). The primary basis for selecting proposals for acceptance will be technical merit, importance to agency programs, and fund availability. To the extent appropriate, cost realism and reasonableness will also be considered when selecting proposals. NSWC Crane reserves the right to request and require any additional information and documentation after it makes the type of award instrument determination. NSWC Crane reserves the right to remove Offerors from award consideration when the parties fail to reach agreement on award terms, conditions, and cost/price within a reasonable time, or when the Offeror fails to timely provide requested or required additional information.

Offerors’ white papers and full proposals will be evaluated against the following criteria:

1) Overall scientific and technical merits of the proposal and responsiveness to the topic, i.e., the degree of innovation, soundness of technical concept, Offeror's awareness of the state of the art and understanding of the scope of

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https://www.sam.gov/SAM the problem, significance and originality of the technical approach and effort needed to address/solve the problem and anticipated scientific impact within the field. The following areas will also be considered: (A) the Offeror’s capabilities, related experience, facilities, techniques, or unique combinations of these which are integral factors for achieving the proposal objectives, and (B) the qualifications, capabilities and experience of the proposed Principal Investigator (PI), team leader and key personnel who are critical to achieving the proposal objectives.

2) Potential Military relevance and contribution to the NSWC Crane and Department of Navy mission.

3) The availability of funds. (Not applicable to white papers.)

Criteria 1, 2, and 3 are equally important.

2. Review and Selection Process

a. Evaluation – Proposals will not be evaluated against each other since they are not submitted in accordance with a common work statement.

NSWC Crane’s intent is to review all proposals received as soon as possible after they arrive; however, proposals may be reviewed periodically for administrative reasons.

The ultimate recommendation for award of proposals is made by NSWC Crane's scientific/technical community. Recommended proposals will then be forwarded to the cognizant NSWC Crane executing Contracts Division. Any notification received from NSWC Crane that indicates that the Offeror's full proposal has been recommended does not ultimately guarantee an award will be made. This notice indicates that the proposal has been selected in accordance with the evaluation criteria stated above and has been sent to the Contracting Department to conduct cost analysis, determine the offeror's responsibility, to confirm whether funds are available, and to take other relevant steps necessary prior to making an award.

b. Commitment to Small Business- (For Contract Award Only)

NSWC Crane is strongly committed to providing meaningful prime and subcontracting opportunities for small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses (SDBs), woman-owned small businesses (WOSBs), historically underutilized business zone (HUB Zone) small businesses, veteran-owned small business (VOSBs), service disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs), historically black colleges and universities, and minority institutions, and other concerns subject to socioeconomic considerations through its awards.

Businesses unfamiliar with doing business with the government and that require assistance may contact the state-specific Department of Defense (DoD) Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC). DoD PTACs serve as a resource for businesses pursuing and performing under contracts with DoD, other federal agencies, state and local governments and with government prime contractors.

Assistance provided by the PTACs is usually free of charge. PTAC support includes registration in systems such as SAM, identification of contract opportunities, understanding requirements and preparing and submitting proposals. The PTACs have a presence in each state, Puerto Rico and Guam.

To locate a local PTAC visit:

http://www.dla.mil/HQ/SmallBusiness/PTAC.aspx or http://www.aptac-us.org/new/.

i. Subcontracting Plan – For proposed contract awards exceeding $700,000, large businesses and non-profits (including educational institutions) shall provide a Subcontracting Plan (hereafter known as ‘the Plan’) that contains all elements required by FAR 19.704, FAR 52.219-9 and as supplemented by DFARS 252.219-7003.

NOTE: Small businesses are exempt from this requirement to submit a subcontracting plan.

The Plan must be submitted as an attachment. If a company has a Master or Individual Subcontracting Plan, as described in FAR 19.701 or a Comprehensive Subcontracting Plan, as described in DFARS 219.702, a copy of the Plan shall also be submitted as an attachment to the proposal.

Plans will be reviewed for adequacy, ensuring that the required information, goals, and assurances are included. FAR 19.702 requires an apparent successful offeror to submit an acceptable Plan. If the apparent successful offeror fails to negotiate a Plan acceptable to the contracting officer within the time limit prescribed by the contracting officer, the offeror will be ineligible for award.

Offerors shall propose a plan that ensures small businesses (inclusive of SDBs, WOSBs, HUBZone, VOSBs and SDVOSBs) will have the maximum practicable opportunity to participate in contract performance consistent with efficient performance.

As a baseline, Offerors shall, to the best extent possible, propose realistic goals to ensure small business participation in accordance with the current or most recent fiscal year subcontracting goals found on the DoD Office of Small Business Program website at: https://business.defense.gov/. If proposed goals are below the statutory requirements, then the offeror shall include in the Plan a viable written explanation as to why small businesses are unable to be utilized and what attempts were taken to ensure that small business were given the opportunity to participate in the effort to the maximum extent practicable.

ii. Subcontracting Resources –

Subcontracting to a prime contractor can be a good way to participate in the contracting process. The following is a list of potential resources that may assist in locating potential subcontracting partners/opportunities/resources:

• Companies Participating in DoD Subcontracting Program Report

• DAU Small Business Community of Practice (SB COP)

• DefenseLink ≥ $7.0 M Award Notices

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http://www.dla.mil/HQ/SmallBusiness/PTAC.aspx http://www.aptac-us.org/new/ http://www.aptac-us.org/new/ https://business.defense.gov/

• DoD OSBP Prime Contractors and Subcontractors with Subcontracting Plans

• Dynamic Small Business Search

• Electronic Subcontracting Reporting System (eSRS)

• System Award Management (SAM)

• Navy SBIR/STTR Search – Website or Brochure

• DoD Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTAC)

• U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Subcontracting Opportunities

Directory

• U.S. SBA Subnet

In accordance with FAR 5.206, the following entities may transmit a notice to the Government wide Point of Entry (GPE) at https://www.sam.gov to seek competition for subcontracts, to increase participation by qualified small businesses, VOSBs, SDVOSBs, HUBZones, SDBs, and WOSBs, and to meet established subcontracting plan goal as follows:

(1) A contractor awarded a contract exceeding $250,000 that is likely to result in the award of any subcontracts;

(2) A subcontractor or supplier, at any tier, under a contract exceeding $250,000, which has a subcontracting opportunity exceeding $15,000.

The notices must describe:

(a) The business opportunity;

(b) Any prequalification requirements; and

(c) Where to obtain technical data needed to respond to the requirement.

In addition, another example of a place in which prime contractors may post solicitations or sources sought notices for small business is the U.S. SBA SUB-Net:

https://subnet.sba.gov/client/dsp_Landing.cfm. The SUB-Net database provides a listing of subcontracting solicitations and opportunities posted by large prime contractors and other non-federal organizations.

c. Options – The Government will evaluate options for award purposes by adding the total cost for all options to the total cost for the basic requirement.

Evaluation of options will not obligate the Government to exercise the options during contract or grant performance. The Government reserves the right to exercise options at time of award.

d. Evaluation Panel – Technical and cost proposals submitted under this BAA will be protected from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with FAR 3.104-4 and 15.207. The cognizant Program Officer and other Government scientific experts will perform the evaluation of technical proposals. Restrictive notices notwithstanding, one or more support contractors may be utilized as subject-matter-expert technical consultants. However, proposal selection and award decisions are solely the responsibility of Government personnel. Each support contractor’s employee

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https://www.sam.gov/ https://subnet.sba.gov/client/dsp_Landing.cfm having access to technical and cost proposals submitted in response to this BAA will be required to sign NSWC Crane’s Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) for Contractor Support prior to receipt of any proposal submissions. This NDA includes third-party beneficiary language giving the submitter of proprietary information a right of direct action against the contractor employee and/or his/her employer in the event that the NDA is violated.

3. Recipient Qualifications

a. See Appendix 1 for Instructions for Grants, Cooperative Agreements and TIAs and Appendix 2 for instructions for Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements.

F. Federal Award Administration Information

1. Federal Award Notices

All applicants will receive a notification email advising if their proposal has been selected or not selected for award.

Applicants whose proposals are recommended for award may be contacted by a Contract Specialist or Purchasing Agent to discuss additional information required for award. This may include representations and certifications, revised budgets or budget explanations, certificate of current cost or pricing data, subcontracting plan for small businesses, and/or other information as applicable to the proposed award.

The notification e-mail must not be regarded as an authorization to commit or expend funds. The Government is not obligated to provide any funding until a Government Contracting Officer, Agreements Officer, or Grants Officer, as applicable, signs the award document.

Only, the award document signed by the Contracting Officer, Agreements Officer, or Grants Officer is the official go-ahead to commence the research project.

NSWC Crane award/modification documents are only available via the Department of Defense (DoD) Electronic Document Access System (EDA) within the Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE) (https://wawf.eb.mil/).

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

a. Applicable to All Awards

i. Export Control:

Offerors should be aware of recent changes in export control laws. Offerors are responsible for ensuring compliance with all U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR) (22 CFR Parts 120 - 130) and Export Administration Regulation (EAR) (15 CFR Parts 730 – 774), as applicable. In some cases, developmental items funded by the Department of

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https://wawf.eb.mil/

Defense are now included on the United States Munitions List (USML) (22 CFR Part

121) and are therefore subject to ITAR jurisdiction. In other cases, items that were previously included on the USML have been moved to the EAR Commerce Control List (CCL). Offerors should address in their proposals whether ITAR or EAR restrictions apply to the work they are proposing to perform for NSWC Crane. The ITAR and EAR are available online at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/ECFR?page=browse.

Offerors must comply with all U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the ITAR and EAR, in the performance of any award or agreement resulting from this BAA.