RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007.pdf

REQUEST FOR QUOTATION

SOLICITATION NUMBER: AG-8447-S-12-0007

DIGITAL AERIAL IMAGERY

Fishlake National Forest, Utah

Solicitation Issue Date: July 13, 2012 Quotation Due Date: August 13, 2012

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY FIELD OFFICE

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE OFFERORS :

OFFERORS ARE CAUTIONED TO NOTE THE FOLLOWING SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS:

The following information must be submitted with any price quotation: Aircraft and camera(s) proposed for use, incomplete contracts, technical capability statement, image processing methods and software, and past performance. See Section A (Page 2).

This procurement is a total (100%) Small Business Set Aside (FAR 52.219-6).

This RFQ is subject to the Availability of Funds Clause (FAR 52.232-18) See Section B-4.11, Page 11.

The complete text of any or all clauses referenced herein may be obtained by submitting a request, identifying this solicitation number, to the Contracting Officer, USDA, FSA, Aerial Photography Field Office, 2222 West 2300 South, Salt Lake City, Utah 84119-2020. Complete copies of the FAR in loose-leaf or CFR form may be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington D.C. 20402.

NOTICE TO OFFEROR

Any proposal submitted for this RFQ must be identified with the following information labeled on the outside of the mailing package:

SOL.NO: AG-8447-S-12-0007

DUE DATE: 13-AUG-12, 4:30 PM

RECEIVING OFFICE: CONTRACTING

Mail To: AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY FIELD OFFICE

CONTRACTING OFFICER

2222 WEST 2300 SOUTH

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84119-2020

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 2

NOTE: THIS SECTION MUST ACCOMPANY ANY QUOTATION SUBMITTED.

SECTION A

REQUIRED STATEMENTS OF OFFERORS

A-1 AIRCRAFT TO BE USED IN COMPLETION OF ITEM(S) IN THIS CONTRACT:

Make/Model Registration Number

Operating Ceiling

Offeror Owned (check appropriate block)

[ ] Yes [ ] No*

[ ] Yes [ ] No* *If the aircraft is/are not offeror owned, a written statement of availability from the owner of the aircraft must be enclosed. (See Section C-3)

A-2 CAMERA(S) TO BE USED IN COMPLETION OF ITEM(S) IN THIS CONTRACT

Calibration Report

Number Camera Make/Model Serial Number Offeror Owned (check appropriate box)

[ ] Yes [ ] No*

[ ] Yes [ ] No* Current calibration report(s) must be enclosed or on file at the Aerial Photography Field Office. *If the camera(s) is/are not offeror owned, a written statement of availability from the owner(s) of the camera(s) must be enclosed.

(See Section C-3)

A-3 INCOMPLETE CONTRACTS AS OF DATE OF OFFER:

2012 Summer Contracts - Remaining Square Miles U.S. Government Contracts:

All Other Contracts:

Total:

Include contracts that would utilize the resources listed in A-1 and A-2.

A-4 TECHNICAL CAPABILITY STATEMENT

A brief statement regarding the offeror’s technical capability to successfully perform this contract must be submitted with offer. This statement should include: planned technical approach to job, project scheduling and site basing of aircraft, camera and crew availability, processing methods and software for each of the deliverables in Section B, company’s quality control system, personnel qualifications, and incomplete contracts.

A-5 PAST PERFORMANCE REFERENCES

If no previous contracts have been held by the offeror with the USDA Aerial Photography Field Office, list at least two (2) references, with which the offeror has held similar contracts. If possible, one reference should be within the Federal government. List company or agency name, address, name of person to contact, and telephone number.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 3

SECTION B

PROJECT SERVICES AND REQUIREMENTS

Furnish direct digital aerial imagery and all related services and supplies in accordance with the requirements, specifications, terms, conditions, clauses, and provisions specified herein.

B-1 DIGITAL AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY SERVICES

Project Item 1: Fishlake National Forest, Utah

PROJECT

CODE

PROJECT

IDENTIFIER

AGENCY

DESIGNATOR GSD BAND DIGITAL

COLLECTION

SQUARE

MILES

614080 FS-7-12 USDA-F 50 cm 4

R, G, B, NIR

collected simultaneously

2,791

1.1 Intended Use of Imagery

The imagery shall be used by the United States Forest Service for forest and range resource management, monitoring and inventory. Imagery is used to support the management of land, minerals, vegetation, wildlife habitat, recreation and travel. Additional supported activities include watershed health assessments, riparian monitoring, forest health evaluations, and engineering infrastructure design. Aerial imagery depicting the current vegetation condition is needed to establish structural class, canopy closure, and plant association for use in determining vegetation departure from the historic range of variability and in establishing baseline monitoring data. Natural resource and other data will be collected and evaluated by means of photo interpretation (visual display and stereo viewing), image processing and geographic information systems (GIS) technologies.

1.2 Project Item Requirements:

(a) Spatial Resolution: All imagery shall be acquired at 50cm ground sample distance (GSD) or better. See Attachment B, section 3.3, Original Image Resolution.

(b) Radiometric Resolution: All imagery shall be collected at a minimum of 12-bits per band.

(c) Approximate Acquisition Period: August 27, 2012 through September 30, 2012.

(d) Minimum Sun Angle: 45 degrees.

(e) Overlaps: Endlap: Optimum 62%; Minimum 57%; Recommended Maximum 67% Sidelap: Optimum 30%; Minimum 20%; Recommended Maximum 45%

(f) Coverage: Imagery shall be collected to provide complete stereo coverage of the project area and boundaries in the government-provided shapefile.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 4

1.3 Materials To Be Delivered and Delivery Schedule

Unless otherwise specified, all production items shall be delivered on internal SATA hard drives as described in Section C-7.

(a) Stereo Imagery: all deliverables shall be shipped no later than sixty (60) days from the end of the acquisition period or any season extension. Early delivery is encouraged to facilitate timely inspection and avoid delays due to peak seasonal inspection workload.

Project Item 1 – Line Item 1: Stereo Imagery Deliverables

Format Sample Naming (See Exhibit 2)

Project Flight Plan – submit prior to notice to proceed (C-4.2)

ESRI Compatible Shapefile (email file); final in .kml also

None

Pre-production Samples for each Image File type and Stereo Block Files

Same Format as Deliverable (CD, DVD, or Hard Drive)

Naming Convention for Deliverable

4-Band, 16-bit per band, Uncorrected, Georeferenced, Uncompressed Digital Image Files (C-5.1)

GeoTIFF (see Table below for Georeferenced Stereo Imagery File Requirements)

614080_0025_0001_20120827_16b.tif

4-Band, 8-bit per band, Color Corrected, Georeferenced, Uncompressed Digital Image Files (C-5.2)

GeoTIFF (see Table below for Georeferenced Stereo Imagery File Requirements)

614080_0025_0001_20120827_8b.tif

Stereo Block Files for each bit depth and Ranger District (10 total) (C-5.7)

Leica LPS Compatible, either .blk or .prj

614080_8b_01.blk thru 614080_8b_12.blk 614080_16b_01.blk thru 614080_16b_12.blk

ABGPS/IMU Data in raw, projected, and ecef (C-5.5)

ASCII comma delimited text file

None

Photo Center File (C-6.4) ASCII comma delimited text file

614080_pcf_7-12_1.txt

Project Geodatabase (C- 6.5)

Flight Plan Feature Class Image Footprint Feature Class Flight Line Feature Class

ESRI File Geodatabase

Project_Geodatabase_614080_7dash12.gdb tapash_614080_7dash12_1 georeferenced_614080_25_4_8_7dash12_1 flight_line_614080_4dash12_1

Progress Reports (C-6.1) See Exhibit 4 None Pilot Logs (C-6.2)

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 5

1. Files Included with Stereo Imagery Delivery: Each file below shall be included with the delivery of the GeoTIFF stereo imagery, using the same naming convention as the GeoTIFF with the appropriate file extension, as indicated below:

Georeferenced Stereo Imagery File Requirements

Frame-Based Sensor Scanning (Pushbroom) Sensor – Files for Each Flight Line

.aux auxiliary statistic/projection file .ads header with pointers to .tif segments

.rrd reduced resolution dataset pyramid file

.hist xml file containing histogram

.sup support/orientation file .min minification header

.met metadata file .odf orientation data file .odf.adj adjusted orientation after AT .sup support/orientation file .met metadata file

(b) Digital Orthorectified Quarter Quadrangles (DOQQ): All materials shall be shipped no later than ninety (90) days from the end of the acquisition period or any season extension.

Project Item 1 – Line Item 2:

DOQQ Orthorectified Imagery Deliverables

Format Sample Naming (See Exhibit 2)

Pre-production Samples - One Quad of DOQQs (C-5.3)

GeoTIFF Naming Convention for Deliverable

Digital Orthorectified Quarter Quadrangles (DOQQ) (C-5.3)

GeoTIFF m_3311162_ne_12_50_20120721.tif

RMSE Accuracy and Quality Control Reports (included with

DOQQ)

ASCII None

Seamline Feature Class Data Set and Orthorectified Image Index Feature Class Data Set included in Project Geodatabase (C-6.5)

ESRI file Geodatabase seamlines_614080_4dash12_1 ortho_index_614080_50_4_7dash12_1

Compressed Project Mosaic

(CPM) (C-5.4)

.ecw 614080_7-12-1_m.ecw

1.4 Remake Materials: Shall be shipped as soon as possible after correction is made, but no later than 30 days after receipt of the materials or data required for corrections. Remake materials are to be submitted on media separate from original materials.

1.5 Importance of Image Quality

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 6

Any imagery submitted to the Government that does not meet the minimum quality requirement may impact the Government’s ability to properly use the imagery for its intended purpose and may be subject to a price reduction based on the diminished usability of the product.

1.6 Project Flight Planning Requirement

Contractor is required to provide the necessary flight plan, which shall include flight altitude determinations, for the acquisition of precise vertical aerial imagery in accordance with the technical requirements in Section C-4.2, Flight Planning. The flight plan must be submitted for review prior to issuance of notice to proceed.

1.7 Direct Digital Sensor Acquisition

The direct digital imagery acquisition requirements will be for the collection of visible (Red, Green, Blue) and color near infrared (IR) imagery captured simultaneously. The digital sensor system shall be a tested, stable, geometrically calibrated system with appropriate documentation and comply with the technical requirements and specifications of this contract, and Attachment A: USDA Digital Camera Specification which defines the essential elements in securing high quality direct digital imagery.

B-2 GOVERNMENT-FURNISHED PROPERTY

Pursuant to the Government-Furnished Property (GFP) clause (see Section I, Contract Clauses) the Government shall furnish the item(s) of property listed below as GFP to the Contractor.

2.1 Coverage Shapefile

The Contractor will be furnished upon award one (1) ESRI compatible shapefile containing the required contract coverage for each Project Item awarded. Due to the unique footprint of digital sensors the Contractor is responsible for the complete stereo coverage acquisition within the shapefile area.

2.2 Metadata Template

The Contractor will be furnished upon award data text files (.txt), as applicable, containing Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) compliant metadata templates to be used for:

(1) the georeferenced uncompressed digital image files in Sections C-5.1 and C-5.2; (2) the DOQQ files required in Section C-5.3; (3) the CPM files in Section C-5.4; (4) the Stereo Block Files in Section C-5.7; (5) the Photo Center File in Section C-6.4; (6) the Project Geodatabase in Section C-6.5. Government furnished templates will not be provided for other required metadata.

2.3 Ranger District Boundary Files

The contractor will be furnished upon award one set of Ranger District boundary shapefiles for creation of stereo block files in Section C-5.7.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 7

2.4 DOQQ Shapefile

The Contractor will be furnished upon award one (1) ESRI compatible shapefile containing the required DOQQs for each project item awarded.

2.5 Project Geodatabase Template

The Contractor will be furnished upon award one (1) ESRI compatible geodatabase template for use in producing the Project Geodatabase Template in Section C-6.5.

2.6 File Directory Template

The Contractor will be furnished upon award a folder structure template for the delivery drives.

B-3 EVALUATION OF OFFERS

3.1 Offers shall be evaluated according to the following criteria, including all supporting information furnished by the offeror with their quotation. A total score will be assigned to each offer based on the weights indicated below.

(a) Price: Completed SF-18 including price per unit and total amount for each item listed.

In the event of a mathematical error, the unit price takes precedence over the extended price. The lowest price will receive the highest score. 40% of total score.

(b) Technical Capability: Completed Section A and brief statements describing the planned technical approach to job, project scheduling and site basing of aircraft, camera and crew availability, processing methods and software for each of the deliverables in Section B-1, company’s quality control system, personnel qualifications, and incomplete contracts. Statements will be evaluated and scored by each member of an evaluation team. Scores will then be averaged. 40% of total score.

(c) Past Performance: Past performance record of similar projects or references. If there is no USDA record of past performance, the contractor may receive a prorated score out of 80 points (rather than out of 100); the lack of past performance has no effect on the total score. 20% of total score.

Please note: Technical capability and past performance, when combined, are more important when compared to price.

3.2 The Government reserves the right to make an award to other than the lowest priced offeror, or other than the highest technically rated offeror, when the perceived benefits and tradeoffs provide the Government the greatest value.

3.3 The Government will award a contract, or contracts, resulting from this solicitation to the responsive and responsible offeror whose offer represents the greatest value and is determined to be in the best interest and the most advantageous to the Government, price

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 8

and other factors considered. The highest scored offer from 3.1 is considered to be the best value to the Government.

B-4 ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Notice to Proceed

The Contracting Officer will authorize and direct the acquisition period to begin or end anytime within thirty (30) days before or after the approximate acquisition dates specified in Section B, depending upon the weather, ground, foliage, and sun angle conditions required for the project item. No imagery shall be undertaken before the Notice to Proceed is issued or after the final date of the acquisition period (or its extension) has occurred.

Weather and ground conditions for all project locations will be monitored daily to determine Contractor compliance to performance requirements. The Notice to Proceed will be given by telephone or email, and confirmed in writing by regular mail. Failure of the Contractor to proceed with flights on a project item within ten (10) calendar days after a "Notice to Proceed" is given, may be considered as evidence of failure to perform the work so as to ensure its timely completion. As evidence of performance, Progress Reports shall be submitted.

4.2 Contract Extensions

IT IS THE EXPRESSED INTENT OF THE GOVERNMENT TO HAVE ALL

PHOTOGRAPHY REQUIRED UNDER THIS CONTRACT COMPLETED WITHIN

THE PHOTOGRAPHIC PERIOD SPECIFIED IN SECTION B-1.4(b).

(a) Photographic Season Extension: The Government reserves the right to extend the photographic season of this contract beyond the approximate photographic period indicated in Section B-1.2(b), Acquisition Period. A lower minimum sun angle requirement may be necessary to allow the season extension. The Government may extend the season of this contract, at no increase in price, by written notice to the contractor at any time prior to the end of the photographic season.

(b) Extension of the Term of the Contract: The Government reserves the right to extend the term of the contract if all photography under the contract has not been secured within the photographic period, through no fault of the Contractor. The Government may extend the term of this contract, at no increase in price, by written notice to the Contractor within six (6) months after the photographic season has ended. The Contracting Officer may exercise this option twice. FAR 52.217-9, Option to Extend the Term of the Contract.

4.3 Ownership of Materials

All original materials shall become the property of the Government upon formal acceptance. No reproductions shall be made prior to inspection by the Government unless specified in the contract or authorized by the Contracting Officer.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 9

4.4 Aircraft Regulations and Certifications

All aircraft used in the performance of the work under this contract shall be maintained and operated in accordance with all regulations required by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Aircraft operated in the acquisition of aerial photography under this contract shall be FAA certified to the highest flying altitude specified in the solicitation.

4.5 Wage Determination

The Wage Determination applicable to any contract resulting from this solicitation is determined by the location of the Contractor's establishment. Wage Determination number 1995-0222, Revision 32, dated June 13, 2011 will be applicable for Contractors located nationwide. See Exhibit 3, Wage Determination.

4.6 Industry Small Business Standard

The small business industry size standard for the type of services covered by this procurement, under NAICS code 541922, is the average annual receipts of the concern and its affiliates for the preceding three (3) years not in excess of $7 million.

4.7 Invoices

Contractor invoices shall be submitted in an original invoice to the Contracting Officer designated in this contract. To constitute a proper invoice, the invoice must include the following information and/or attached documentation:

(a) Contractor’s name, address, and tax identification number (TIN);

(b) Invoice date;

(c) Contract number, or other authorization for delivery of property or services;

(d) Description, price, and quantity of services actually delivered or rendered;

(e) Shipping and payment terms;

(f) Name (where practicable), title, phone number, and complete mailing address of responsible official to whom payment is to be sent;

(g) Any other information or documentation required by the contract; and

(h) While not required, Contractors are strongly encouraged to assign an identification number to each invoice.

Notice of an apparent error, defect, or impropriety in an invoice will be given to the Contractor within seven (7) days of receipt of an invoice and suitably documented.

4.8 Partial Payments

For a partially completed project item or a partially completed area within a project item, acceptance and payment will be made on a unit price basis at the rate of ninety percent

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 10

(90%) of the amount due. Any payment thus made is partial payment of the contract.

Upon completion and acceptance of the complete project item or area within the project item, the remaining payment will be made, total the full payment due for the project item or line item. Partial Payments must be approved by the Contracting Officer under the conditions stated in FAR 52.232-1, Payments.

4.9 Payment Due Date

The required payment date will be thirty (30) calendar days after the date of the actual receipt of a proper invoice by the officer designated to receive the invoice, or the date contract deliverables are accepted, whichever is later. The date of the payment by electronic funds transfer shall be considered to be the date payment is made.

4.10 Non-Discrimination Statement

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its program and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of Discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720- 6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

4.11 Availability of Funds (FAR 52.232-18, APR 1984)

Funds are not presently available for this contract. The Government’s obligation under this contract is contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds from which payment for contract purposes can be made. No legal liability on the part of the Government for any payment may arise until funds are made available to the Contracting Officer for this contract and until the Contractor receives notice of such availability, to be confirmed in writing by the Contracting Officer.

4.12 Permits and Responsibilities

The Contractor shall, without additional expense to the Government, be responsible for obtaining any necessary licenses and permits, and for complying with any Federal, State, and municipal laws, codes, and regulations applicable to the performance of the work.

The Contractor shall also be responsible for all damages to persons or property that occur as a result of the Contractor’s fault or negligence. The Contractor shall also be responsible for all materials delivered and work performed until completion and acceptance of the entire work, except for any completed unit of work which may have been accepted under the contract.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 11

SECTION C

DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/WORK STATEMENT

C-1 SCOPE OF CONTRACT

The general scope of the contract is to procure precise vertical aerial imagery for natural resource inventory and analysis and stereo model review. The Contractor is responsible for furnishing direct digital imagery and related services and supplies in accordance with requirements, specifications, terms and conditions specified herein.

1.1 Technical Requirements and Specifications

The technical requirements and specifications of this contract are described in this section and Attachments A, B, and C which define the essential elements in securing high quality digital imagery. Any deviation from the specifications stated herein may cause increased time and effort in using the imagery as intended.

1.2 Delivery and Performance

All contract materials shall be shipped within the time limits and to the place of delivery specified herein. Performance of the contract shall be authorized and monitored by the Contracting Officer and/or the Contracting Officer's Representative.

1.3 Quality Control

Quality control shall be exercised by the Contractor continuously throughout the performance of the contract. Procedures shall be established to assure that all contract materials are delivered in accordance with the delivery schedule and at the required level of accuracy and quality. The Contractor shall inspect and constantly monitor the image quality and coverage, and shall undertake immediate reflights of any imagery where the quality fails to meet minimum requirements of the contract specifications. Any marginal photography/imagery submitted for inspection which does not meet minimum requirements may be rejected. The marginal photography may be accepted, at the Government’s convenience, but shall be subject to a price reduction based on the diminished usability of the product. The nature and urgency of this project may require the Government to make equitable financial adjustments for materials deemed rejectable or where product use is adversely impacted.

1.4 Materials Inspection

All materials specified in Section B-1 will be inspected to determine conformance to all contract requirements and specifications. Inspection of the image files will be performed utilizing a comprehensive method of quality assurance inspection procedures including a random sampling technique to test for compliance to the horizontal accuracy requirement

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 12

in the imagery delivered. The Government will make every effort to inspect all material specified within 60 calendar days after they are received at the point designated.

(a) Marginal Deficiencies: If inspection of the materials reveal marginal deficiencies, a review by the user agency may be performed to determine if deficiencies may cause increased time and effort in using the photography as intended.

(b) Nonconformance with Contract Requirements: If inspection of materials reveals deficiencies that may cause increased time and effort in using the digital imagery and aerial photography as intended, the Government may require the Contractor to perform the services again in conformity with contract requirements, at no increase in contract amount. When the defects in services cannot be corrected by re-performance, the Government may:

(1) Require the Contractor to take necessary action to ensure that future performance conforms to contract requirements and

(2) Reduce the contract price to reflect the reduced value of services performed.

1.5 Labor and Materials

The Contractor shall furnish all materials, equipment, transportation, superintendence, and labor as required herein. The Contractor shall execute and finish the imagery acquisition, imagery production and related services for the project specified and shall deliver to the USDA all materials called for in Section B-1.

C-2 APPLICABLE DOCUMENTS

2.1 Attachments

The following documents attached to this solicitation document are considered requirements and specifications under the resulting contract(s), as applicable to the Contractor’s technical proposal:

(a) Aerial Photography Field Office (APFO) USDA Specification for Digital Camera

Based Acquisition, dated February 1, 2012 (Attachment A)

(b) Aerial Photography Field Office (APFO) USDA Digital Imagery Quality

Specification, dated February 1, 2012 (Attachment B)

(c) USDA Digital File Format Specification, dated February 1, 2012, Updated for

Resource March 21, 2012 (Attachment C)

2.2 References

The following documents referenced in this solicitation document are considered requirements and specifications under the resulting contract(s), as applicable to the Contractor’s technical proposal:

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 13

(a) Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Specification, FGDC-STD-001-1998 (“Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata”)

(b) Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Specifications, FGDC-STD-007.3-1998 (“Geospatial Positioning Accuracy Standards, Part 3: National Standard for Spatial Data Accuracy”)

(c) Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) Title 14 (“Federal Aviation Regulations")

(d) GeoTIFF Revision 1.0 Specification, dated December 28, 2000 (Version 1.8.2)

(e) TIFF Specification Revision 6 dated June 3, 1992 (Adobe Systems Inc.)

C-3 EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS

3.1 Platform/Camera Requirements

(a) Platform/Camera Approval: Any equipment (platform and cameras) proposed to be used by the Contractor must be approved for use by the Contracting Officer (see Attachment A, paragraph 4.0, Digital Camera Approval Requirements, for instructions and process for platform/camera approval). If the platform and camera proposed for use are not owned by the Contractor, a written statement of availability from the owner of the equipment shall be provided to the Contracting Officer.

(b) System Malfunction: The Contracting Officer shall have the right to require the removal of a camera from use when deficiencies in imagery attributable to the camera are found to exist (see Attachment A, paragraph 3.7, System Malfunctions). Any platform/camera removed from use by the Contracting Officer shall not be returned to use on any APFO contract until the cause of the malfunction is corrected to the satisfaction of the Contracting Officer. That determination will be based on acceptable samples, field reports, manufacturer reports, and/or calibration reports.

3.2 Aircraft Requirements

(a) FAA Certification. All aircraft used in the performance of this contract shall be maintained and operated in accordance with all regulations required by the U.S.

Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Aircraft operated in the acquisition of aerial imagery under this contract shall be FAA certified to a service ceiling with operating load (crew, sensor system, oxygen, and other required equipment) of not less than the highest altitude required.

(b) Positive Control Airspace. The project item areas may contain areas of controlled or restricted airspace. It is the responsibility of the Contractor to obtain all approvals necessary to assure that required clearances are achieved. When the flight plan and location of any project area coverage fall within positive-control airspace, the aircraft must contain the appropriate equipment to operate in such positive-control areas within the purview of the Federal Aviation Regulations. In addition, 18 USC Section 795 requires permission of the commanding officer to photograph or map some military and naval installations. If any delay to the acquisition or production schedule is caused due to 18 USC Section 795 or similar statutes, the Contractor is required to

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 14

notify the Contracting Officer in writing within 72 hours and shall include detail information regarding the issue, point of contact at the installation, and estimated delay. (See Section B-4.12, Permits and Responsibilities.)

(c) Aircraft Configuration. The design of the aircraft shall be such that when the sensor system is mounted with all its parts within the outer structure, an unobstructed field of view is obtained. The field of view shall be shielded from the exhaust gases, oil, effluence, and air turbulence. The sensor system port glass shall be free of scratches and of such quality that it will not degrade the resolution or the accuracy of the sensor system.

(d) Airborne Global Positioning System. The aircraft shall have an Airborne Global

Positioning System (ABGPS), Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) system capable of generating accurate control points used in the creation of the photo-center data file (see Section C-6.4, Photo-Center Data File).

C-4 IMAGERY ACQUISITION REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Photographic Conditions

Imagery shall be acquired when skies are clear, free from smoke, clouds, cloud shadows, excessive haze, and well-defined images can be resolved. The ground shall be free from snow below timberline, standing water (other than natural or man-made ponds and lakes), flood waters from streams which have overflowed their banks, and wet ground which obscures vegetation or other features. If any conditions besides clouds and cloud shadows noted above are present at time of acquisition, communication between the contractor’s flight operations leader and the Contracting Officer or Representative should be in writing to determine possible acceptance of acquisition due to potential USFS mission time constraints.

4.2 Flight Planning

The Contractor shall create a flight plan to be submitted to the Contracting Officer for review prior to receiving the Notice to Proceed, or commencing acquisition of the project area. The flight plan shall provide a layout necessary for acquiring precision, high quality, stereo imagery, and be submitted as shapefiles compatible with ESRI ArcGIS 9.3 and 10 software. Shapfiles shall include the following: a DEM-applied coverage polygon shapefile, a flight line shapefile, and an exposure station point shapefile. Table attributes should include pre-determined flying altitudes (above sea level) and exposure station locations. The boundaries and exact coverage of this project item are determined by the official coverage shapefile and requirements stated in Section B-2, Project Requirements.

See Section B-2.1, Coverage Shapefile.

4.3 Flight Requirements

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 15

The Contractor shall obtain precise vertical digital imagery in accordance with the following technical requirements:

(a) Acquisition Periods. The Contractor shall acquire imagery only during that portion of the day when the sun angle exceeds the requirement stated in Section B, Minimum Sun Angle. The Contractor shall limit operations to the dates specified in Section B, or as otherwise provided in writing by the Contracting Officer.

(b) Tilt. It is desired that exposures be made when the optical axis of the digital sensor is in a vertical position. The Contractor shall not acquire imagery when the tilt (departure from the vertical) of any exposure exceeding four degrees (4º) or relative tilt between any two successive exposures exceeding six degrees (6º). Tilt shall not average more than 2 degrees (2º) in any 16 km (10 mile) section of a flight line and shall not average more than 1 degree (1º) for the entire project.

C-5 DIGITAL IMAGERY PROCESSING

5.1 4-Band, 16-Bit per Band, Radiometrically Uncorrected, Georeferenced, Uncompressed

Digital Image Files

Contractor shall provide georeferenced, stereo-coverage, radiometrically uncorrected digital image files at the resolution in accordance with Section B. The image shall be submitted in the native camera footprint. Non-frame based sensors shall submit imagery in a tile format comparable to frame-based sensors with file sizes no larger than 1.3 gigabytes. The file shall cover the entire area of the native camera footprint and shall be projected in the 1983 North American Datum (NAD83), using the native Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) zone in meters. If any digital image files are rejected by the contractor’s quality control process and/or reflights are acquired, only one acceptable image file shall be submitted.

(a) Image Quality. The Contractor shall not make any radiometric enhancements, such as stretching, dodging, or other Look Up Table (LUT) adjustments, to the acquired imagery. The imagery shall not contain any borders, artifacts, or other non-image items.

(b) File Format. The imagery shall be in accordance with the Adobe TIFF and GeoTIFF

Specifications and shall have the following band order: Red, Green, Blue, and Infrared. GeoTIFF files shall be saved such that the first pixel (0,0) is the northwest corner of the image. The image shall be saved so that the most northwest corner of the image is saved to the file as the top left pixel (i.e. north faces up on a computer screen), and viewable in ArcMap in the same north orientation. The Contractor shall provide an AUX (ESRI and ERDAS compatible Auxilary statistic/projection file) and a RRD (ESRI and ERDAS compatible Reduced Resolution Dataset pyramid file) for each image file. Each image file shall have an associated Pyramid Layer file created at a 3X3 kernel, Binomial Interpolation. Each image file shall have statistics calculated with the Skip Factor in the X and Y as 1, and Bin Type as Direct. The auxiliary file

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 16

shall contain the proper projection information for the tile and shall match the information in the GeoTIFF header. The files shall use the same naming convention as the image tiles but with an “.rrd” and “.aux” extension respectively. The Contractor shall also provide a support file containing photogrammetric metadata associated with each image file, with the image path hardcoded to “f:\.” Files shall use the naming convention specified in Exhibit 2, File Naming Convention. The files shall be stored in a single subdirectory under the root directory called “georeferenced.” Minification pyramid files (from scanning sensors) should be delivered in a separate subdirectory called “minification” under the root directory.

(c) Pre-production Sample: The Contractor shall submit a single 16 bit per band image prior to production for Government review. The sample shall be a TIFF meeting the requirements of the contract, including TIFF and GeoTIFF tags as specified in Attachment C, and submitted on a standard CD or DVD. The Government will evaluate and provide an approval or disapproval letter with comments no later than three (3) business days, with a goal of 24 hours. Additional project item area samples may be submitted for review if approved by the Contracting Officer or Representative

(COR).

(d) Georeferenced Accuracy. The principal point shall have an accuracy not exceeding a 6 meter offset from true ground.

(e) Metadata. The Contractor shall create Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) compliant, per FGDC-STD-001-1998 specification, metadata file for each digital image file. Metadata must parse cleanly through the USGS metadata parser “mp” version 2.8.10 (or later version) without any errors.

5.2 4-band, 8-Bit per Band Color Corrected, Georeferenced, Uncompressed Digital Image

Files

The Contractor shall produce 4-band, 8-bit per band, georeferenced, stereo-coverage, color corrected digital image files at the resolution in accordance with Section B. Requirements for this product shall be the same as those listed in Section C-5.1 with the exception of the following elements:

(a) Image Quality: Contractor shall make necessary radiometric adjustments, including stretching, dodging, color correction, etc., to the acquired imagery in order to match ground conditions at the time of exposure and to ensure the best possible color balance of the images across the project area for both natural color and color infrared. The RGB and NIR should be balanced in all frames to remove hot spots or ground condition differences from multiple acquisition dates without compromising the validity of the data. A pixel value of “0,0,0,0” should be used only for non-data values. All imagery shall meet the quality requirements specified in Attachment B, USDA Digital Imagery Quality Specifications.

(b) Pre-Production Sample: The Contractor shall submit a sample of radiometrically corrected images prior to production for Government review. If the project area has a diversified

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 17

landscape, the contractor shall provide enough samples to properly reflect the overall project landscapes. The sample(s) shall be provided as a georeferenced TIFF(s) meeting all image requirements, including TIFF and GeoTIFF tags specified in Attachment C, and submitted on a standard CD or DVD (labeling requirements in Section E are not required). The Government will evaluate and provide an approval or disapproval letter with comments no later than three (3) business days, with a goal of 24 hours. Additional project item area samples may be submitted for review if approved by the Contracting Officer Representative (COR).

5.3 Digital Orthorectified Quarter Quadrangle (DOQQ) Tiles

The Contractor shall provide ortho-rectification services to produce 4-band, 8-bits per band, mosaicked digital orthorectified quarter quadrangles (DOQQs) for the project area defined in Section B-2.1, Coverage Shapefiles. The DOQQ shall cover the entire image area of one quarter of a USGS standard quadrant, with a 100 meter minimum buffer on all four sides. The DOQQs shall be projected in NAD83 native UTM Zone in meters.

(a) Image Quality: All DOQQs shall meet the image quality requirements specified in

Attachment B, USDA Digital Image Quality Specifications. The Contractor shall radiometrically balance the files used to create the DOQQs to eliminate any checker board pattern appearance. Significant radiometric differences among image frames inhibits interpretation of ground features. The DOQQs shall not contain any borders, artifacts, or other non-image items.

(b) Seamlines: Image seams should be blended to a smooth seam. Visible seamlines within or between tiles which exhibit a noticeable edge or displacement effect are not acceptable. Sharp contrast should not be visible at seams, as it affects image interpretation. Placement of seamlines in tree and shrub vegetation should be minimized. Seamlines should be centered on linear features such as roads, rivers, streams, and trails when available. When linear features are not available, seamlines shall be placed at landcover type transition areas such as between a meadow and forested area or based on terrain breaks derived from topographic data such as ridgelines and valley bottoms.

(c) Coverage: When a DOQQ partially covers the forest boundary, the Contractor may elect to submit a partial DOQQ so that it completely covers the forest boundary. Any partial DOQQ shall include a 100 meter buffer on the outside of the forest boundary.

(d) Pre-Production Sample: The Contractor shall submit a sample set of four DOQQs that make up the same quad prior to production for Government review. If the project area has a diversified landscape, the contractor shall provide enough samples to properly reflect the overall project landscapes. The samples shall be a TIFF and meet all image requirements, including TIFF and GeoTIFF tags as specified in Attachment C, submitted on a standard CD or DVD (labeling requirements in Section E are not required). The Government will evaluate and provide an approval or disapproval letter with comments no later than three (3) business days, with a goal of 24 hours.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 18

Additional project item area samples may be submitted for review if approved by the Contracting Officer or Representative (COR).

(e) Spatial Resolution: Specified in Section B-1

(f) Horizontal Accuracy: All well-defined points tested on Orthorectified tiles shall fall within 6.0 meters of true ground at a 95% confidence level (see FGDC-STD-007.3- 198, page 3-10).

(g) File Format. The DOQQ tiles shall be a 4-band, 8-bit per band georeferenced tagged image file format (GeoTIFF) created in accordance with Attachment C, paragraph 4.0, USDA File Format Specification. Files shall use the same file naming specified in Exhibit 2, File Naming Convention and Exhibit 5, Quarter Quad Numbering Logic.

The files shall be stored in a single subdirectory under the root directory called “ortho”.

(h) Raster Support File: The Contractor shall provide an AUX (ESRI and ERDAS compatible Auxilary statistic/projection file) and a RRD (ESRI and ERDAS compatible Reduced Resolution Dataset pyramid file) for each image file. Each image file shall have an associated Pyramid Layer file created at a 2X2 kernel, Binomial Interpolation. Each image file shall have statistics calculated with the Skip Factor in the X and Y as 1, and Bin Type as Direct. The auxiliary file shall contain the proper projection information for the tile and shall match the information in the GeoTIFF header. The files shall use the same naming convention as the image tiles but with an “.rrd” and “.aux” extension respectively.

(i) Image Source: The Contractor may use imagery from multiple exposures, i.e., using the “sweet spot” from a preceding or succeeding image, when creating the tile images. Using “chips” (imagery pieces from other frames) to correct defects is also permitted. All exposures shall be from the same type of sensor and must be from the same acquisition season. When multiple exposures are used in creating a tile, the acquisition date with the largest area shall be used when reporting dates in a single date field, such as metadata or attribute data. An average or mean date shall not be used.

(j) Metadata: The Contractor shall create Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) compliant, per FGDC-STD-001-1998 specification, metadata file for each digital image file. Metadata must include a separate lineage section for each georeferenced, uncompressed digital image file used in the creation of the DOQQQ. The lineage title will contain the actual file name of the image tile used. Metadata must parse cleanly through the USGS metadata parser “mp” version 2.8.10 (or later version) without any errors. The metadata file shall use the same naming convention as the DOQQ but shall use a “.met” extension. A template will be provided by the Government.

(k) RMSE Accuracy and Quality Control Report: The Contractor shall provide RMSE accuracy reports and quality control reports generated during the AT and/or orthorectification processes for all image files in ASCII.

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 19

5.4 Compressed Project Mosaic (CPM)

The Contractor shall produce a 4-band, 8-bit compressed project mosaic (CPM) file for each project item using the imagery associated with the tiles created in Section C-5.3, Digital Orthorectified Quarter Quadrangle Tiles. The CPM shall be projected in NAD83, UTM Zone 12 in meters.

(a) Image Quality. The Contractor shall tone balance the composite DOQQs to give the

CPM a consistent and uniform image quality. The resulting CPM should maintain as much of the original color and appearance of the color corrected tiles as practical.

(b) Horizontal Accuracy. The accuracy requirements from Section C-5.3(f), Horizontal

Accuracy Requirements, shall be preserved when creating the CPM using the imagery associated with the quarter quadrangle tiles.

(c) File Format. The CPMs shall be created in Enhanced Compression Wavelet format with the following settings:

1. Output file type is .ecw

2. Compression type is set to correct spectral resolution (multiband)

3. Generate NULL opacity mask channel is checked

4. Target compression ratio is 20

5. Output resolution is set by the compressor

(d) Metadata. The Contractor shall create a Federal Geographic Data Committee

(FGDC) compliant, per the FGDC-STD-001-1998 specification, metadata file using the Government provided template for each CPM generated. The metadata must parse cleanly through the USGS metadata parser “mp” version 2.8.10 (or later version) without any errors. The metadata file shall use the same naming convention as the CPM but shall use a “.met” extension.

5.5 ABGPS/IMU Data Files

The Contractor shall post-process Airborne Global Positioning System (ABGPS) and Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) data. The Contractor shall submit the raw and processed data. The processed data shall be compatible with ERDAS Imagine, Leica Photogrammetry Suite (LPS), ERDAS Stereo Analyst for ArcGIS, BAE Socet Set, and ERDAS Stereo Analyst for IMAGINE.

The Contractor shall deliver the data in two coordinates systems: projected (using the same coordinates reference system as the GeoTIFF images) and earth-centered earth-fixed (.ecef) format.

(a) File Format: The ABGPS/IMU Data shall be an ASCII text file. The ASCII text file shall be comma delimited in the following order of ABGPS/IMU post processed data:

Image File Name X Y Z Kappa Phi Omega

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 20

ABGPS/IMU data files shall be delivered on internal SATA computer hard drives.

The files shall be stored in a separate subdirectories, “raw” and “processed,” under the root directory called “gps”.

(c) Metadata: The Contractor shall create a metadata file for each ABGPS/IMU file that includes the date of creation and a brief description of the data.

5.6 Supplemental GPS Ground Data

The Contractor shall provide any GPS ground data used to supplement the ABGPS positional data adjustments. For example, base stations or CORS. The data shall use the same datum and projection required for the GeoTIFF image files.

(a) File Format: Supplemental data shall be delivered in a non-proprietary format mutually agreeable to the Government and Contractor. Contractor may use any consistent and logical naming convention. The files shall be stored in a single subdirectory under the root directory called “gps_base”.

(b) Metadata: The Contractor shall create a metadata file for each supplemental ground data file that was used to supplement positional data.

5.7 Stereo Block Files

The Contractor shall provide stereo block files so that digital image files created in Section C-5.1, 16-Bit Radiometrically Uncorrected, Georeferenced, Uncompressed Digital Image Files, Section C-5.2, 4-Band, 8-Bit per Band, Color Corrected, Georeferenced, Uncompressed Digital Image Files can be brought in and viewed in stereo-pairs with very minimal adjustment to the x or y parallax. Data fields in the stereo block file shall be populated with sensor specific data. Each block file should include the average flying height for the area covered by that block file, rather than for the entire project area. In the case of reflights or the completion flight line(s) during an additional acquisition season, the stereo block file must be updated to include new and/or reflown imagery for the affected flight lines.

(a) Image Reference Structure: One stereo block file shall be produced for each Ranger

District, as defined in Exhibit 1(c), and for each image file bit depth/image type. Each block file shall contain reference to images for only one Ranger District and one bit depth. Example: one stereo block file references the 8-bit image files for the Fillmore Ranger District and a second stereo block file references the 16-bit image files for the Fillmore Ranger District.

(b) File Format. The stereo block files shall be Leica Photogrammetry Suite (LPS) compatible and shall be readable in Stereo Analyst extensions for ERDAS IMAGINE 2011 and ESRI ArcGIS 9.3 and 10, as well as LPS. The Government prefers the use of .blk over .prj files. See Exhibit 2 for naming convention. The stereo block files, georeferenced digital image files, and all associated files shall be stored in a single

RFQ AG-8447-S-12-0007 21

subdirectory called “georeferenced” under the root directory. Image and data paths for the Stereo Block Files (.blk or .prj) and support files (.sup) should be hardcoded to “f:\”.

(c) Metadata. The Contractor shall create FGDC compliant, per the FGDC-STD-001-1998 specification, metadata file for each block file.