BG-23-076 DRFP 80JSC023R0003 USDV Cover Letter.pdf

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Industry Feedback

Potential offerors are encouraged to comment on all aspects of the DRFP, including the requirements, schedules, proposal instructions, evaluation approaches, any perceived safety, occupational health, security (including information technology security), environmental, export control, and/or other programmatic risk issues associated with performance of the work. Potential offerors should identify any unnecessary or inefficient requirements and are also encouraged to comment on the DRFP

Contract Line Item Number structure, any unique terms and conditions, and the Section M Evaluation

Criteria. In addition, the Contracting Officer is seeking Industry feedback and recommendations on the following:

1. Schedule B - Pricing structure (all CLINs) – Industry’s understanding of the pricing requirements and any specific feedback for NASA on these requirements to ensure clarity.

2. Section C, Statement of Work (SOW)

a. Any requirements that could be overly restrictive/prescriptive.

b. Any requirements that are “design drivers” that would limit viable technologies or flight proven capabilities.

c. Any requirements that are unnecessarily driving cost.

d. Any elements of NASA’s approach that could hinder a proposed solution

e. SOW 2.0.c requirement that the USDV, when fully fueled, is compatible with a

Medium Class Launch Vehicle. Based on your proposed solution, please provide feedback and recommendations on whether this requirement is achievable without driving unique non-recurring engineering. Please provide feedback on enablers and inhibitors for Industry to meet this requirement.

f. SOW 2.9.6 Test Facility Capability – Industry’s understanding of the test facility capability requirements and any specific feedback for NASA on these requirements to ensure clarity.

g. SOW 3.0 (CLIN1) – Industry’s understanding of the completion and closure of CLIN1 (Cost-Reimbursable Baseline) and any specific feedback for NASA to ensure clarity.

i. Successful completion of Critical Design Review (CDR) that meets the jointly agreed exit criteria. All RIDs/RFAs jointly dispositioned (e.g.

withdrawn, closed, closed with forward work, etc). All forward actions from CDR and prior reviews are jointly dispositioned (e.g. Contractor will perform test and analysis with expected closure date in the future).

ii. All forward actions are worked to closure in CLIN2 (Firm Fixed Price Baseline).

h. SOW 4.0 (CLIN 2) – Industry’s understanding of the completion and closure of CLIN2 (Firm Fixed Price Baseline) and any specific feedback for NASA to ensure clarity.

i. Successful completion of C2-4 System Acceptance milestone that meets the jointly agreed exit criteria; successful completion of Dwell Release Review; successful completion of C2-5 Shipment to Launch Site milestone that meets the jointly agreed exit criteria including shipment to the Launch Site Payload Processing Facility; successful completion of post ship checkout and closure of associated corrective actions.

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ii. USDV DD-250 acceptance at the Launch Site Payload Processing Facility upon successful completion of Milestone C2-5 Shipment to Launch Site.

i. SOW 5.0 Dwell (CLIN 3) – Industry’s understanding of the dwell requirements and any specific feedback for NASA on the requirements to ensure clarity. Based on industry’s experience, NASA is looking for industry inputs on these SOW requirements to ensure scope fully covers the dwell work and to ensure clarity of the requirements. Industry may identify additional scope language for NASA to consider.

j. SOW 6.0 Launch Site Integration and Sustaining (CLIN 4) – Industry’s understanding of the pre-launch processing requirements. Based on industry’s experience, NASA is looking for industry inputs on these SOW requirements to ensure scope fully covers the pre-launch work and to ensure clarity of the requirements. NASA also seeks Industry input on concept of operations during the pre-launch phase including division of Government and Industry roles

Industry may identify additional scope language for NASA to consider.

k. SOW 6.0 Launch Site Integration and Sustaining (CLIN 4) – Understanding of the flight operations requirements. NASA wants to ensure industry has clear understanding of the effort required in terms of requirements, deliverables, and the iterative approach to development of flight operations products to ensure that

NASA Flight Operations Directorate can safely and successfully perform the

USDV flight operations. Based on industry’s experience, NASA is looking for industry inputs on these SOW requirements to ensure scope fully covers the flight operations work and to ensure clarity of the requirements. Industry may identify additional scope language for NASA to consider.

3. Section F, Clause F.2, FAR 52.211-8 Time of Delivery – Industry’s understanding of the Government’s required delivery date. Industry’s ability to support the Government’s required delivery date. Enablers and inhibitors for Industry to meet this delivery date.

Requirement considerations for Industry to meet this delivery date (e.g. qualification approach, reliability approach, performance capability, failure tolerance, other main areas, etc). Any additional feedback on the delivery requirement for NASA to consider.

4. Section H, Clause H.25, Use of Government Resources – Industry’s interest in the use of

Government-furnished services and data/information. Provide specific interest for any proposed uses of Government Resources, timing, duration and rationale for NASA to consider.

5. Section I, Clause I.7, Option for Increased Quantity – Separately Priced Line Item (CLIN

2A Critical Spares) – Industry’s understanding of the Option requirements and any specific feedback for NASA on the requirements to ensure clarity. Industry input on establishing the Performance Based Payment Milestones and milestone percentages for the Option.

6. Section J, Attachment J-30, Work Plans – Industry feedback on Performance Based Milestone definitions, milestone percentages, and clarity of instructions for Offeror to propose additional interim milestones.

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7. Section J, Attachment J-37, Incentive Fee Plan – Industry feedback on the incentive fee structure for CLIN1 core work, clarity of instructions for Offeror Fill-Ins required, and any technical performance metrics for NASA to consider adding to the incentive fee plan to be used for CLIN1 scope.

8. Clause L.14 NFS 1852.245-81 List of Available Government Property

a. Industry is requested to provide input on what Government Furnished

Property (GFP) should be made available for the final solicitation. For the final Request For Proposal, the Government intends to restrict requests for Government property to a final, predefined list. The purpose of this is to ensure all Offerors are aware of what the Government can provide.

b. NASA is requesting industry feedback on the GFP listed in L.14 List of

Available Government Property to ensure clarity of what is being offered and any industry feedback on additional GFP for NASA to consider adding to this list as part of the final solicitation.

c. To encourage use of flight proven components in the USDV design, NASA is considering making the NDS Block 1 and Government

Furnished Services for integration and sustaining support available to interested offerors. NASA is seeking feedback on how potential offerors would use this in their design solutions and whether it’s cost effective. If the NDS Block 1 is offered as GFP, NASA intends to accept the single failure tolerant NDS Block 1 design as a predeclared waiver to the two failure tolerant requirements in SSP 51101, USDV Systems Requirements

Document.

9. Clause L.15 List of Available Government Facilities

a. NASA can make available to interested offerors a single footprint at the Space

Station Processing Facility (SSPF). NASA is interested in the cost benefits to provide this space as a Government-Furnished Facility (GFF) for non-hazardous

USDV ground processing and dwell in lieu of the USDV contractor providing an equivalent facility. NASA is seeking feedback to inform NASA USDV SOW facility requirements for non-hazardous USDV ground processing and dwell.

Please provide feedback on how and when this space could be used and the associated cost benefit to the Government. Please provide feedback on whether industry recommends NASA require use of the SSPF as part of the USDV solicitation.

10. Attachment L-08, Government Task Agreements (GTA) Instructions - Potential

Offerors that are interested in leveraging NASA capabilities will do so through a

GTA

a. Points of Contact (POC) for GTAs is included in the attachment.

b. A GTA form is provided in the DRFP as Attachment L-08. Potential

Offerors shall use this form to coordinate GTA requests with NASA.

Offerors will be required to include all approved GTAs in their proposal to the Government, per the solicitation instructions.

c. Interested Parties are requested to provide feedback on the DRFP instructions with respect to GTAs – whether the instructions are clear

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and understandable or what additional information should be provided to ensure the Government’s proposal requirements and evaluation criteria are effectively communicated.

Industry is requested to provide their questions and comments to the DRFP in accordance with the instructions in the section below titled DRFP Responses and Communications with

NASA.

Additional Information

The following additional information is provided to assist in understanding this acquisition:

1. A Pre-solicitation Conference is anticipated to be held the week of May 8, 2023, with one-on-ones following.

2. A Pre-proposal Conference is anticipated to be held approximately one week after the release of the final solicitation. A notice will be posted on the acquisition website noted below.

3. All offeror requests for indemnification must be submitted in accordance with FAR 50.104-3, Special procedures for unusually hazardous or nuclear risks and NFS 1850.104-3, Special procedures for unusually hazardous or nuclear risks. NASA intends to pursue approval of such requests for indemnification under Public Law 85-804 for unusually hazardous risks identified in fulfilling the requirements of the USDV contract.

4. The DRFP includes some highlighted areas. Green highlights denote areas requiring

Offeror Fill-ins for the proposal (Model Contract volume). Yellow highlights denote areas that will be filled-in by the Government in the final solicitation.

5. Proposals for the RFP are required to be submitted through NASA’s Enterprise File

Sharing and Sync Box (EFSS Box), a FedRAMP Moderate certified platform. Potential offerors, especially those that have not previously submitted a proposal utilizing NASA’s

EFSS Box, are encouraged to review the RFP instruction entitled “L.17 Electronic

Submission of Proposals - Proposal Marking and Delivery Through NASA’s EFSS Box” which provides instructions related to the submission of proposal via EFSS Box. Offerors are encouraged to check with their corporate Information Technology staff to determine if there are firewall restrictions that would need to be addressed prior to the submission of proposal files through NASA’s EFSS Box. Potential offerors are advised to test the system prior to the delivery date to ensure there will be no perturbations that would result in a late proposal that would be excluded from evaluation, pursuant to FAR 52.215-

1(c)(3).

Potential offerors should ensure its company is listed in the online database(s) for the following:

(1) System for award management: https://www.sam.gov/SAM/

(2) U. S. Department of Labor Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, VETS-4212

Reports: https://vets4212.dol.gov/vets4212/

(3) Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) (formerly the Date Universal Numbering

System(DUNS)): https://www.sam.gov/

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The successful offeror must pass an Equal Employment Opportunity clearance before contract award (See Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 22.805).

The current planned release date for the RFP is early July 2023, with proposals being due approximately 45 calendar days later.

The anticipated contract award date is January 2024.

Documents related to this acquisition, including this letter, the RFP, attachments, exhibits, any amendments and links to online reference/technical/bidders library will be attainable electronically from the World Wide Web through the Governmentwide Point of Entry (GPE) website at www.sam.gov. Potential Offerors are requested to periodically monitor the websites for updates.

NFS clause 1852.215-84, OMBUDSMAN, is applicable. The Ombudsman for this acquisition is Donna M. Shafer, donna.m.shafer@nasa.gov, 281-483-4258.

This DRFP is not a solicitation and NASA is not requesting proposals. This DRFP does not commit NASA JSC to pay any proposal preparation costs, nor does it obligate NASA JSC to procure or contract for this requirement. This request is not an authorization to proceed and does not authorize payment for any charges incurred by the offeror for performing any of the work called for in this solicitation.

DRFP Responses and Communications with NASA

Any questions or comments regarding the DRFP should be submitted electronically in writing, to Ashley H. Chaves, Contracting Officer, at ashley.h.chaves@nasa.gov, within 30 calendar days after the release of this DRFP. A template for DRFP questions and comments is provided as an attachment to this letter.

If a respondent believes their comments contain confidential, proprietary, competition sensitive, or business information, those questions/comments shall be marked appropriately.

However, questions that are marked as containing confidential, proprietary, competition sensitive or business information will not be provided a Government response. The

Government will consider all comments received in preparation of the Final RFP. To the extent a comment leads the Government to revise the acquisition approach or requirements, the change will be reflected in the Final RFP. Some DRFP questions and comments may receive a posted response to the GPE if the Contracting Officer determines that a response would facilitate additional understanding. The Government may also respond via the GPE to comments and/or questions received following the issuance of the Final RFP.

Ashley H. Chaves

Contracting Officer

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Enclosures

1. USDV DRFP Comment Template

2. Draft RFP 80JSC023R0003

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