COSMOS - Q and A Part 2.pdf

Contract for Organizing Spaceflight Mission Operations and Systems (COSMOS)

Industry Day/Request For Information Questions and Answers – Set 2

May 30, 2024

Question Number

Question Answer

60 Can the Government lock the labor rates for all proposals or have minimum productive labor rates? In addition to direct salaries can this also be done with benefits as well for things like vision and dental benefits.

The Procurement Strategy hasn't been approved for COSMOS. Guidance on what Offerors shall include in their proposal and how proposals will be evaluated by the Government will be provided in section L&M of the draft RFP. The Government is reviewing and considering all inputs received from Industry to ensure a fair and open competition.

61 How will the government ensure offerors are planning to use appropriate personnel to meet the requirements of this contract?

See answer No. 60

62 What measures will be set by the Government to ensure incumbent personnel salaries and benefits will remain competitive to allow a fair competition and retention?

See answer No. 60

63 Can the Government Set minimum salaries?

See answer No. 60

65 Can we get the individual project schedules and high level schedules for the period of performance?

We do not intend to post detailed schedules for the entire period of performance as they are very dynamic and long term. But if you are interested in high level launch schedules and other long term NASA goals and milestones much of this information is already publicly available. See NASA Launch and Landing information at www.nasa.gov/events.

66 What vehicles will be launching during the period of performance and what is the vehicle launch schedule and other milestones?

See answer No. 65

67 Can we have proprietary questions that are not posted to sam.gov?

No , the Government will not answer proprietary questions. All questions will be posted to Sam.gov.

76 Can you expand on authority and how contractors make decisions?

See Statement of Work and Mission Systems Division Governance Plan in the COSMOS Technical Library accessible via SAM.gov or the COSMOS website.

90 Can you tell us your names and roles?

Robert Schwank – Requirements Developing Team (RDT) Chair, Andrea De Paz - Contracting Officer, Scott Killingsworth RDT Member, Aaron Goldenthal - RDT Member, Patricia Carreon - RDT Member, Sebastian Francis - RDT Member, Amanda Coots - RDT Member, Shannon O'Shea - RDT Member, and Goran Bencun - RDT Member

99 Are new contracts coming onboard and all the commercial customers a challenge and can you share some info about that?

The future support requirements for Mission Systems have been set which provides the opportunity to utilize the flexibility of MS but also requires continued innovation of the overall architecture.

106 From a challenge perspective do you see ISS going away and other programs coming onboard as the biggest challenge?

The growing interests in space exploration is exciting but having multiple partners with different models for ground systems and mission operations can pose a challenge integrating and tracking changes to Mission Systems. These efforts will compete for funding and resources with the need to continuously modernize the systems..

111 What is your vision? To identify a partner in industry to ensure the availability, integrity, reliability, and security of the Flight Operations Directorate's Mission Systems.

112 What is COSMOS biggest challenge -

- new commercial industry, ISS transition, etc?

See answer No. 106

113 What's our vision to support commercial partners?

We support and assist private industry in building a vibrant new industry in low earth orbit.

114 Does it help to provide input on specialized products or services provided by an offeror?

The Government welcomes information related to the capabilities of Industry.

115 If we have a unique solution of technology like we do what is the best use of our time?

Please consider requesting your company be added to the Interested Parties List. Also, reach out to jsc-smallbusiness@mail.nasa.gov and review the published COSMOS Interested Parties List posted to SAM.gov and the COSMOS website.

116 How can you do innovations and prove they are successful innovations in an environment that is so risk adverse? NASA always says they want them but how does that really happen in an Flight Operations Directorate (FOD) type environment?

Human safety is our highest priority, then vehicle safety, then mission success. We make engineering/scientific judgement and experience informed risk trades on a case-by-case basis following the standards outlined by all of our safety teams, and mission constraints, while using contractor input.

126 Does the government anticipate issuing an OCI waiver in connection related contracts/programs

The Government does not anticipate issuing an OCI waiver for the COSMOS competitive acquisition.

127 Was an OCI waiver approved for

MSOC?

Yes, an OCI waiver was approved in 2017 for the legacy MSOC.

128 Will the MSOC OCI waiver be published as part of the COSMOS Tech Library?

The Government will post the waiver as a historical document within the COSMOS technical reference library. The Government does not anticipate issuing an OCI waiver for the COSMOS competitive procurement.

129 Are there known contracts that pose a potential OCI with COSMOS?

The Government will not be reviewing all NASA contracts for potential conflicts of interest. It is the potential offerors responsibility to identify any current and/or potential OCI situations and notify the Contracting Officer (CO) by responding to a RFI, the Q&A process, or through direct communication with the CO. In accordance with 9.504, the COSMOS contracting officer will (1) Identify and evaluate potential organizational conflicts of interest as early in the acquisition process as possible;

and(2) Avoid, neutralize, or mitigate significant potential conflicts before contract award

130 How does the government plan on addressing the IMOC 3 and MSOC conflict of interest?

The Government will not be addressing MSOC conflicts of interests as part of the COSMOS competitive procurement process.

131 For OCI can you identify all the current contracts and release a list of contracts that would be an OCI issue for COSMOS?

See Answer No. 129

132 Can you consider multi-phase OCI if necessary?

A multi-phase OCI approach is not currently being considered for the COSMOS competitive procurement.

133 Schedule for decisions on OCI? The Government will do a review on the prospective awardee in regards to OCI as part of the responsibility determination. See Answer No.129.

134 Does the Government intend to include language in Section H that inherently mitigates any perceived OCI between COSMOS and IMOC III by establishing the Government as the ultimate decision-making authority for any verification and validation requirements?

The Government anticipates including clauses 1852.209-71 Limitation of future contracting and NFS 1852.237-72 Access to Sensitive Information in the draft RFP.

135 If no OCI waiver will be issued, does this imply that COSMOS will have OCI with IMOC III?

See Answer No. 129

136 How will the Government address the IMOC III and COSMOS OCI?

See Answer No. 129

137 Is there an existing OCI between COSMOS and SMAEC 1/2?

The Government will not be addressing SMAEC 1/2 conflicts of interest as part of the COSMOS competitive procurement process.

138 How do we plan to manage development work and Flight controller work between IMOC III and MSOC under the same contractor having both contracts?

See Answer No. 129

139 How does the government intend to manage the inherent conflict between the developer scope and operations, maintenance, and sustainment?

See Answer No. 129

140 Does NASA consider having flight controllers on console and designing the system a conflict of interest for a company?

See Answer No. 129

144 Can the government receive classified data if a bidder wants to supply as part of their proposal?

The Government will only ask for Top Secret Clearance confirmation and will not require additional top secret information or classified past performance.

145 Are there classified information concerns? Do we need clearances during application itself or later?

Reference the Statement of Work for details on classified information concerns during contract execution. See Section L of the RFP for submission details.

146 For positions which require a security clearance and/or FOD defined certifications, can the Government provide the associated standard labor category?

An estimate of Secret and Top Secret clearances by SLC will be provided in Section L of the RFP.

148 Do we expect any classified information in the procurement?

Exchange of classified information leading to contract award is not anticipated.

149 Does the gov intend to share classified data and any classified past performance activity?

See Answer No. 144

150 Does the Government anticipate the sharing of classified information in this contract?

See Answer No. 148

151 Is the Government concerned about keeping workforce up to date?

The future COSMOS contractor will be required to manage mission systems which includes legacy to introducing cutting edge technologies.

156 What specific skillsets would be a risk? Or new skillsets needed?

The current architectures are based upon a diverse set of vendor-provided and in-house developed systems. Maintaining sufficient resource depth to effectively sustain these systems while adding capacity and capability to support new vehicles and partners and to integrate with their systems is a current challenge. Specific examples of skillsets in high demand to support this work include expertise in command, communication, computer operating, information systems engineering, and cybersecurity as stated in the draft RFP.

158 What skillsets do we think are risks or a newer skillset?

See Answer No. 156

159 What specific skill sets are at risk or new ones that will be needed in the future?

See Answer No. 156

160 How can we keep the team educated, trained, and ready to go if we are not doing 24/7 operations in Artemis timeframe post ISS?

The Government requests industry inputs on maintaining the required skilled workforce.

We anticipate the Mission Control Center (MCC) will continue operating 24/7 in support of Moon to Mars.

162 Current Contract - does COSMOS or other contracts have small business set asides or participation?

We are still early in our procurement strategy development but please continue to monitor sam.gov and we will post as soon as that information is able to be shared. As applicable small business set-asides and small business participation are included other contracts.

163 In the current contract is there any small business set aside or participation?

See answer No. 162

164 Do you know the anticipated Small Business Goals?

See answer No. 162

165 Small Business Goals - do we see them changing or staying the same?

See answer No. 162

166 Can the Government only require the prime and major subcontractors meet the FAR 1601 accounting system requirements? Believe that very small subs don't have those systems in place, and poses a limitation on better managing cost for the Government.

See answer No.162

167 Can you publish small business goals early so primes can start building teams?

See answer No. 162

168 Is having some allowance for small business being considered as a benefit to NASA?

See answer No. 162

169 When will the SB goals be released? See answer No. 162

170 What are the CURRENT Small business requirements as percent of

TCP?

See answer No. 162

175 What questions are we trying to answer with software measurement in google reference?

The Government intends to vet the existing software performance standards and look for any other innovative measurements.

176 In RFI questions about software measurement, what questions are we trying to answer?

See Answer No. 175

177 To support Moon to Mars exploration what kind of changes do we expect to

MCC?

Current efforts to support the Moon to Mars Programs are based upon the flexible and extensible architecture deployed into operations in 2016 by the MCC-21 project. That architecture has been proven to be capable of supporting multiple low-earth and lunar orbit Programs, Vehicles, and Partner Control Centers with the addition of vehicle-specific command, control, and communications interfaces built upon the base MCC capabilities. For the early Artemis missions, the MCC will continue to enhance its capabilities in the same fashion for the spacecraft, spacesuits, and partner control centers involved in those missions. It is widely recognized that changes in the MCC architecture will be needed during the buildup to subsequent Artemis missions to address the growing complexity of the ground and space architectures and to further strengthen the Control Center against cyber threats. Exactly how and when these architectural improvements will be accomplished will be among the primary challenges faced by the combined Mission Systems/COSMOS/Artemis Program/and Partner teams.

178 Is the growing configuration management and integration with so many people a big challenge?

See Answer No. 99

179 SOW - Systems engineering support. How are systems upgrades handled? Are they costed separately?

Refer to the statement of work.

180 Will government provide information about cycle of refreshes?

Data will be provided for Hardware and Software licensing list but no additional list/detail will be provided for risk/obsolescence. This list/strategy is the responsibility of the contractor to manage and therefore current state/strategy cannot be discussed/shared.

181 Where are you on refresh and obsolescence plans in the cycle? Can we get more detail on refresh requirements to estimate costs?

See answer No. 180

182 Are tech refreshes included and are there details on those or will they be contracted out separately?

See Statement of Work Section 3.1.1.5 Equipment Replacement/Obsolescence and

COSMOS-DRD-0048.

183 So contractors set a plan but are they given a specific budget per year for tech refreshes?

See answer No. 182

184 Is a contractor given budget for obsolescence?

See answer No. 182

185 If something is IDIQ is a TO released for a refresh?

See answer No. 162

186 What is the status on equipment /technical refreshes

See answer No. 180

187 Can we get data on what software packages and things like that are used/required?

See answer No. 180

188 Will following be included in tech library: Software licensing list, example schedule and master schedule, and at risk/obsolescence list?

See answer No. 180

189 Does contractor only have to manage the contractor training documents

The future COSMOS contractor is required to receive training that fall into three broad categories: 1) Training (typically online) required by all JSC employees and on-site contractors. 2) Government-led training for future COSMOS-employed Ground Controllers as described in Question 191, and 3) Training determined by the contractor as necessary for the successful performance of Mission Systems work. The future COSMOS contractor is responsible for defining the requirement for scheduling, and maintaining training records

190 Where are you at on obsolescence cycle?

See answer No. 180

191 Who designs training for flight control team?

The Government is responsible for creating and approving training required for Flight Controllers.

192 Who designs the government training for examples the GCs?

See answer No. 191

193 Who designs the training for government systems

See answer No. 191

194 Will government provide a forecast of commercial entities in the procurement?

The Government does not intend to post detailed forecast of commercial entities for the entire period of performance as commercial space remains very dynamic.

195 Is there opportunity for growth of this contract with new mockups being added and adapting to changes as we look to the future?

The Procurement Strategy hasn't been approved for COSMOS. The Government is reviewing and considering all inputs received from Industry to ensure a fair and open competition.

196 For the planned footprint, will there be a Sustained Lunar Development (SLD)/Human Landing System (HLS) presence in the facilities?

Plans are still in development.

197 What is the launch schedule? See answer No. 65

198 What different vehicles are coming on and more detail on software and hardware.

See answer No. 65

199 What are the Key Personnel requirements or when will that be available?

See answer No. 195

200 What are the key personnel requirements and current personnel levels?

See answer No. 195

201 For any contractor given the specialized type of work here it is going to be necessary for industry to be allowed to hire pretty much the entire incumbent workforce to have a

See answer No. 195 smooth transition. Can you only require the program managers to be the key personnel to allow this to occur?

202 Can government leave defining key personnel to the bidders?

See answer No. 195

203 Can you either reduce key personnel or leave up to the bidders?

See answer No. 195

204 Will MOUs for all the various commercial partners be provided? Will the lines of demarcation be clear?

Government identified technical documents will be made available in the COSMOS Technical Library prior to Draft Request for Proposal. Please continue to monitor SAM.gov and the COSMOS website for updates.

205 Will we get MOUs for all the center ops and different parts of facilities and the boundaries of the various roles and responsibilities of where the COSMOS scope ends? Will we get one specifically for SVMF?

See answer No. 204

206 Can the MOUs detailing current MSOC contract boundaries with other organizations/government be provided? And will Lessons Learned be provided?

See answer No. 204

207 Wouldn't a prime contractor be heavily biased to make their lives easier on console to keep costs down if they also had ability to design the system?

The Government is committed to giving meaningful consideration to all real or potential OCIs as part of its evaluation and award process.

208 Is NASA open to training approaches being more virtual?

NASA is open to considering ideas case by case while making sure all training and SOW requirements are met and risk trades are considered. Currently some training already has virtual or hybrid options and some is more hands on.

209 Can you provide details on travel requirements so that everyone is using the same baseline?

More details will be provided in Section L of the draft RFP, please continue monitoring SAMs.gov and the COSMOS website.

210 What is the training scope? It is position dependent. We have training for Flight Controllers, instructors, and in specific skills for different positions. See related technical library documents.

211 What does certification mean exactly in this context?

Certification refers to successfully completing all NASA training requirements to support FOD mission control work or training not necessarily to internal contractor training which may have their own separate work training requirements.

212 How many certifications are needed on Day 1?

In general, enough to maintain continuity of operations. Any specific requirements will be captured in Section L of the RFP.

213 What were the trainers we saw? Please review the Statement of Work and Tours Scripts located in the COSMOS Technical Library

214 Is anyone working directly with software engineering operation?

The FOD implementation of the agency software engineering requirements are captured in JSC 63756, FOD Software Management Plan (SMP), and CA-WI-54, FOD Software Standards located in the COSMOS Technical Library.

215 Can you look at specific secure software development minimum standards to include in the standards, like 800 series and NIST IR?

See answer No. 214

216 Is there anyone working with software engineering on secure software? Is that going to be a priority?

See answer No. 214

217 Will there be HLS and SLS trainers onsite?

Plans are still in development.

218 What changes will be made in COSMSOS systems operations?

We are still early in our procurement strategy development and this will also change over time to meet mission needs.

219 There's a large amount of software development on COSMOS, and was looking for details on our implementation of the applicable NPRs and NPDs.

See answer No. 214

220 How long does it take to configure rooms like Ops Suites?

Depends on the event and how much reconfiguring would be required, but our goal is relatively quickly and efficiently. Please see Section 1.2 of the SOW and the Level A Requirement which states the MCCS shall be able to reconfigure the MCC from one operation to another operation within 1 hour.

221 Can Flight Controller Part Task Trainers (FCPTTs) be held together in multiple rooms?

Case by case on if training events would impact one another or could be held together without distraction. In general we can hold more than one training event in Building 5 at once.

222 The training rooms in building 5, are they more virtual when compared to MCC? How similar is the training system when compared to the ops system?

We have different fidelity level training equipment depending on the specific training needs. Some are very similar, and some are less.

223 What is the difference between instructor and operators?

See CA-WI-16 in the COSMOS Technical Library accessible from SAM.gov or the COSMOS website.

224 Does NASA intend to procure highly specialized command and control systems, either directly or through a contract like MSOC?

The Procurement Strategy hasn't been approved, therefore we asked for Industry's input through the RFI that closed on March

11. The Government values Industry's inputs and will review and consider all suggestions.

225 Cloud migration - can we speak about how important this is?

See answer No. 224

226 Can you talk about cloud migration? See answer No. 224

227 How open are we to AI/ML being incorporated?

See answer No. 224

228 Are we open to artificial intelligence at all?

See answer No. 224

229 Are we open to artificial intelligence when there is a human directly in the loop like an astronaut or only things more hands off like satellites?

See answer No. 224

230 Is AI machine learning something we're looking for?

See answer No. 224

231 Model-based systems engineering, is it a requirement?

No, see COSMOS SOW and DRDs for the relevant requirements.

232 Is a model based systems engineering a requirement on the current contract?

See answer No. 231

233 Is Model Based System Engineering (MBSE) in the current contract or future?

See answer No. 231

234 Will automation technology for room setup and configuration be out of scope for the purpose of this contract?

FOD is ready and open to considering all ideas within the context while still considering crew safety, vehicle safety, mission success, risk, schedule, cost, and other trades.

235 Is there a way to automate processes?

See Answer No. 234

236 Is the government concerned with people wanting to leave and support commercial Leo Destination?

Not a main concern but employee retention is something we standardly always keep an eye on.

237 Can you give out baseline metrics on the numbers of employees?

Estimated fiscal year total hours by Standard Labor Category will be provided along with the Government definition of a WYE (Work Year Equivalent) in section L of the draft RFP.

238 We will publish workload indicators per program prior to draft RFP?

No data will be provided on workload indicators per program.

239 Can we get data on how many people support the different buildings/centers things like that that we wouldn't know since we aren't doing it day to day that incumbent would know?

Estimated fiscal year total hours by Standard Labor Category and estimated office space will be provided along with the Government definition of an WYE (Work Year Equivalent) in sections J and L of the draft RFP.

240 Can we get more details on the work in Russia especially considering current world events for feasibility?

Any in-person maintenance and updates required for American Segment Trainer-Russia (AST-R) is limited.

241 Is there an MOU for the Russian position?

Not at this time.

243 With the focus on the required skillset to support Mission Systems, skills which are also very transferable outside of NASA, what is the Government’s IT skills staffing perspectives we wouldn't know as an outside organization?

The Government is monitoring skill retention and planning for staffing through the end of the ISS Program and ramp up of future programs. The Government has not identified any unique challenges expected on this procurement not experienced on other contracts.

244 Is there an OCI concern between COSMOS and any other program(s) within NASA and if so, can the concerns and recommended remedy (avoidance, mitigation, etc.) be provided to industry?

See Answer No. 129

245 If there are OCI concerns, is the Government planning to provide waivers as previously provided?

See Answer No. 126

246 If there is no longer a concern between COSMOS and other programs, what was done at the Government level to mitigate the prior waived OCI concern?

See answer No. 129