A-BOX Industry Day_One on One QAs.pdf

Official Astromaterials Glovebox Systems - Design & Fabrication (A-BOX) Industry Day & One-on-One Questions & Answers

Question #: Question: Response:

1 How many gloveboxes will be ordered and over what time frame?

The Government anticipates procuring a total of 17 glovebox units; of the 17 units, there will be seven (7) different designs.

The contract period of performance is anticipated to be five

(5) years.

2 Will all the units be ordered at once? Is industry expected to bid for the design and manufacturing of all 17 units?

The Government anticipates ordering all units throughout the anticipated five (5) year period of performance. An updated ordering/delivery schedule will be included in the final Statement of Work (SOW) which will be posted with the anticipated Request for Proposal (RFP) later this calendar year.

The Government does anticipate for Industry to submit proposals for both the design and manufacturing of all anticipated units; proposal instructions will be included the

RFP.

4 What is the anticipated Proposal due date for the RFP? How much time will industry have to create and submit a proposal?

The anticipated RFP posting date is January 5, 2027. The anticipated proposal due date is February 4, 2027. The A-BOX website includes a periodically updated acquisition schedule.

Please monitor the A-BOX website for up-to-date information.

5 What is the anticipated award date? The anticipated Award Date is May 27, 2027. The A-BOX website includes a periodically updated acquisition schedule.

Please monitor the A-BOX website for up-to-date information.

6 Is the Government interested in a single award IDIQ or a Multiple Award Contract? Does NASA anticipate solicitating the A-BOX requirement as one contract for Design, Build, and Delivery or would NASA consider dividing the requirements into two separate contracts (Design vs Manufacturing and Delivery)?

The Government anticipates a single award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) with the ability to issue multiple Firm Fixed Price (FFP) Delivery Orders (DO) but welcomes feedback on the anticipated contract type and structure.

7 The Industry Day charts listed seven (7) different 7 designs are desired; will the designs be completed by NASA or will Industry be expected to assist in completing the design? Will A-BOX be a Manufacturing only contract? Will there be a review cycle for the units?

The A-BOX procurement is anticipated to be a design, fabrication, testing, delivery, and installation effort. At this time, all the ambient glovebox designs are at the Critical Design Review (CDR) milestone; therefore, the selected vendor would have a smaller effort for completing the design. The Cold glovebox designs are at the Systems Readiness Review (SRR) milestone; therefore, the selected vendor would have a larger design effort. Specific milestones for each design/unit will be established in the final SOW/RFP.

8 Is teaming or subcontracting acceptable? Are there any constraints to subcontracting to multiple fabricators to expediate fabrication, cost, and to control schedule?

Teaming or subcontracting is allowable to complete the A-BOX requirements. Please refer to the Revolutionary FAR and NASA FAR (NFS) for any guidance specifically regarding subcontracting.

9 Regarding the requirements for installation and design review. Is there a certain way the Government would like Industry to structure the price proposal to break out the price between design, manufacturing, installation, and other SOW elements?

Finalized Contract Line Item Number (CLIN)s, price proposal structure, and other requirements will be issued with the RFP which is anticipated to be released early next calendar year (CY27). The Government anticipates providing an Electronic Pricing Model proposal template with the RFP posting.

10 How many of the anticipated 17 gloveboxes are expected to be cold gloveboxes?

Of the anticipated 17 units, there would be an anticipated total of four (4) cold glovebox units ordered.

11 Has the A-BOX procurement been appropriated? How will the Government fund the contract?

Yes, the A-BOX procurement has been included in the appropriations. The Government anticipates to incrementally fund the delivery orders.

12 Is this a line item in the budget or is this a part of a bigger line item?

See Question 11 response.

13 Will there be an opportunity for Industry to get view draft of terms and conditions for the A-BOX Procurement?

Yes, the Government anticipates releasing a Draft RFP sometime this fall or winter. The anticipated release date of the DRFP is November 10, 2026 - this date is subject to change. Please monitor the A-BOX website for up-to-date information.

14 Will the A-BOX evaluation criteria be best value or will it be lowest price technically acceptable?

The Government is still determining the solicitation requirements and criteria at this time.

17 Where will the A-BOX gloveboxes be shipped to? Johnson Space Center (JSC) or another facility?

The current requirements anticipate the A-BOX gloveboxes will need to be shipped to JSC; the Draft SOW specifies to the ARES Facility for installation, delivery, and final acceptance.

18 Who would be responsible for the installation, industry or JSC personnel?

As stated on the DSOW, installation is anticipated to be performed by the selected vendor and completed in partnership with the JSC facility Points of Contact (POC).

19 Will there be any quality requirements? More specifically, will ISO 9000 be required or can it be completed according to vendor's quality program? Will NASA require Nuclear Quality Assurance (NQA)-1?

There will be quality requirements. The final quality requirements will be defined in the final SOW with the release of the Final RFP. Currently, NASA does not anticipate requiring

NQA-1.

20 From a safety point of view, one risk of the A- BOX cold designs are the extreme cold temperatures; where does the line of responsibility/risk fall for safety when manufacturing and post-delivery (NASA acceptance) of the unit?

NASA is still drafting the terms and conditions for this contract but anticipates using the applicable provisions found at FAR 52, Section 246 to address such situations. Specific clauses and contract language will be available when the Draft Request for Proposals is released. The facts and circumstances of individual situations will govern the appropriate application of contractual terms and conditions

21 How does Industry request access to the RFI Draft SOW?

Industry can request access to Draft SOW by following the instructions listed on Amendment 1 on SAM.gov. The request is a two-step process: 1) Submit the technical library request form to the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist, and 2) Industry must request access in SAM.gov.

24 How will the cold glovebox performance requirements be written? Does the Government anticipate to set a temperature range or certain temperature zones that need to be met? Would providing a prototype for the cold glovebox designs be considered value added?

Regarding temperature requirements, the maximum temperature for the cold designs is -85 Celsius. All other cold and ambient requirements will be finalized in final SOW with the release of the RFP. The Government will define if prototypes will be a requirement in the final SOW.

25 What are the sizes/dimensions of the cold gloveboxes? Will there be any constraints?

All final dimensions will be defined in the final SOW. The DSOW provides anticipated measurements for size/dimensions.

27 Would NASA consider design support from industry prior to issuing the solicitation?

NASA appreciates the consideration and opportunity for consideration of the design support. Currently, NASA has in-house Subject Matter Experts (SME)s and design support. The Government does anticipate working with the selected vendor to finalize all anticipated designs.

28 Once gloveboxes are manufactured, does NASA anticipate any need for maintenance and integrity testing?

The final SOW will determine if maintenance and integrity testing are to be required. Currently, the Government does not anticipate a separate contract for maintenance.

30 Will the export control requirements be applicable? Can non-US citizens in a company work on this project?

The Export control marking on the Draft Statement of Work is applicable. The export control markings are determined by NASA for any applicable documents. If a document contains export control markings, then Industry must follow the specific rules, requirements, and any regulations prior to sharing or disseminating the marked documents. Industry is responsible for ensuring they have the appropriate export control licenses and authorizations prior to sharing any export controlled marked documents.

33 Will the facility load constraints be more defined?

These requirements will be defined in the final SOW.

35 Will the development of cold glovebox designs have a fixed number of hours or will modifications be issued depending on the number of engineering hours that will be spent by the contractor?

The RFP will provide additional information and instructions regarding price proposals.

39 Has the requirement for the Ambient Band Saw and Ambient Rock Saw gloveboxes been removed?

Yes, the Government no longer anticipates ordering both designs.

40 What are the next anticipated milestones/acquisition schedule?

The current acquisition schedule is posted on the JSC A-BOX website. The next step anticipated acquisition milestone is the release of a Draft Request for Proposal (DRFP).

42 Can Industry suggest payment terms or will the payment terms be fixed?

NASA welcomes industry feedback at any time. The payment terms would be determined in the RFP.

43 Does the Government expect Industry to anticipate "hold points"/inspections? If so, how much notice would the selected vendor need to give the Government to achieve a certain milestone?

The Government does anticipate "hold points" or inspection checkpoints. Those specific checkpoints and scheduling requirements will be defined in the final SOW with the RFP and any applicable DRDs that might apply to the units.

44 How restricted are the materials allowed for the units? Such as, are adhesives allowed to be used?

The final SOW will display all requirements, allowances, and restrictions regarding the A-BOX units. At this time, the Government does not anticipate allowing adhesives to be used for any A-BOX units.