B2_Sources Sought Notice_NGF_29Aug2024.docx

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE &

MARKET RESEARCH/ TECHNICAL QUESTIONNAIRE

Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC), Division Keyport

Instructions to Interested Parties:

This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) and award of a contract will not be made as a result of this questionnaire. Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport (NUWC Keyport) is requesting assistance from industry in regard to industry capabilities of large and small business entities, in the preparation of an anticipated Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) contract for a SONAR sounding set (Next Generation Fathometer (NGF)).

This Market Research/ Technical Questionnaire is intended to assist the Government in determining the probability of large or small business prime contractors responding to a future RFP to provide the required items. The Government anticipates making future decisions regarding the procurement process utilized for a potential solicitation, based on the responses received from both large and small businesses that indicate an interest and the capability to provide the required items.

Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability and return the completed questionnaire to the point of contact listed below via email. Respondents will NOT be notified of the results of this evaluation. All information will be kept confidential and will not be disseminated to the public. This Sources Sought Notice and Market Research/ Technical Questionnaire is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government, nor will the Government pay for the information submitted in response.

Please return the completed questionnaire no later than 4:00 PM PDT (Pacific Daylight Time) on 3 October 2024, via the email address provided below.

Thank You, Michael Beadle Contract Specialist NUWC Division Keyport – Keyport, WA michael.f.beadle.civ@us.navy.mil

Sources Sought Notice & Market Research/ Technical Questionnaire Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code:

3345110 – Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing Small Business Size Standard: 1,250 employees (For more information about Small Business Size Standards, please refer to http://www.sba.gov) Anticipated Contract Type:

Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) Background:

Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport (NUWC Keyport) is seeking sources for a SONAR Sounding set. The current system includes SONAR receiver-transmitter, receiver-transmitter mounting bracket, remote depth indicator(s), SONAR simulator (test set with cables that connect to the receiver-transmitter and transducer), NTDS-A converter boxes, and associated technical documentation for ARLEIGH BURKE Class Destroyers and other navy ship classes.

The SONAR Sounding Set measures the depth of water beneath the lowest projection on a vessel. The water depth is continually presented on a graphical and a numeric display and shall be retained in memory and available for archiving. A pulse of electrical energy is converted to sound energy and transmitted downward by a transducer. When the energy strikes bottom (or any other object having acoustic properties different from those of water), a portion is reflected back to the transducer as an echo. This energy is re-converted to electrical energy for presentation. Because the speed of sound in water is assumed to be nearly constant, the amount of time which elapses between the transmission of a pulse and the reception of its echo is a measure of the distance travelled, or in this case, depth.

INTERESTED PARTIES PLEASE SUBMIT THE INFORMATION AS REQUESTED BY THE FOLLOWING MARKET RESEARCH/ TECHNICAL QUESTIONNAIRE:

Market Research/ Technical Questionnaire Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport

COMPANY INFORMATION

Company Name: ___________________________________________________________ CAGE Code: ___________________________________________________________ DUNS Number: ___________________________________________________________ Company Address: ___________________________________________________________ Point of Contact (POC): ___________________________________________________________ POC Title: ___________________________________________________________ POC Email Address: ___________________________________________________________ POC Phone Number: ___________________________________________________________

1. Please identify your company’s socio-economic small business size status or indicate if your company is other than a small business.

2. Please provide the name of the manufacturer, city, state, country and cage code of where the product your company would propose is manufactured. Is it manufactured by your company or another company? Is it manufactured by a U.S. small business?

3. If you are a reseller or distributor and propose to offer the product of another company, is that other company a U.S. based small business? What is the name and cage code of that small or other than small business?

4. Please identify your company’s ability to comply with the nonmanufacturer rule as defined at FAR 19.505(c) in the event of a small business set-aside and you are proposing as a nonmanufacturer (reseller/distributor).

5. Please indicate the percentage of the actual work requirements for these items that you would intend to perform as the Prime Contractor. ___________%

6. Due to the complex nature of this requirement, please provide additional information regarding any minimum order quantity that may be more advantageous for price reasonableness, to include a brief rationale.

7. In the foreseeable future what impacts, due to COVID or other economic disruptions, have changed in your business environment? Please address production delays, delivery schedules, cost increases and any other specific impacts.

8. Are there any barriers that are likely to prevent your company from submitting a proposal? If so, do you have any recommendations to remove the barriers?

9. What is the probability of your company proposing on a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the NGF?

______High ______Medium ______Low

10. What is your estimated production lead-time, to include testing, and delivery of a test report for a first article unit? _____________ Days / Months

11. What is your estimated production lead-time for production units? ____________ Days / Months

12. Describe in detail your company's familiarity with designing, engineering, testing and manufacturing SONAR Sounding Sets, other similar SONAR devices and marine electronics.

13. What is your company's typical process for making SONAR Sounding Sets, other similar SONAR devices or other marine electronic equipment? Is your company familiar with government / military standards, processes, and applications?

14. Describe in detail your existing capabilities to perform environmental testing. If any testing is outsourced, does your company have a consistent sub-contractor who has performed these tests? If the requirements of this application include a test that your company does not usually conduct, describe your plan to complete the testing. Does the company’s test facility (theirs or outsourced) exist on the approved Navy test site listing?

15. Do you currently sell a COTS/commercial item that can fulfill this requirement or a similar commercial item that can be modified to fulfill this requirement?

16. If offering a currently available COTS/commercial item, could it be adapted to meet the interface requirements noted in the Performance Specifications. (Mute/Audio monitor output)?

17. If you currently offer a COTS based SONAR Sounding Set, elaborate on how this system meets or can be modified to meet existing Information Assurance and Cybersecurity requirements (e.g. – do you employ any industry operating system or other proprietary software).

18. Which of the requirements or specifications called for in the provided documents might give your company the most concern in submitting a proposal for this system?

19. What level of modification of a commercial product is necessary to meet the government’s requirement? Please briefly describe the necessary modifications. Does the modification of the commercial product still meet the FAR 2.101 definition of a commercial product?

20. Is it common for buyers in the commercial market to request modification of your COTS/commercial product? What types of modifications are typically requested?

21. If not COTS/commercial, can your company provide this product as a developmental or non-developmental item?

22. Please describe the warranty terms, conditions, and length of time your company would normally provide for your proposed product.

23. Would your company be able to provide discounts for orders of higher volumes of units? What might the price break points be for quantities ranging from 1-75?

24. Is contract financing necessary for your company to produce and deliver these items? See FAR Part 32 – Contract Financing. If yes, please explain why?

25. What supply chain issues is your company experiencing that may result in cost, schedule or performance risk for manufacture of first article units and production units?

26. What other risks exist that may affect cost, schedule and performance?

27. What contract type would you propose for the first article unit and production units? Fixed price or cost reimbursement?

28. Do you have any existing contracts the Navy can use to issue orders against? If so, what is the contract number?

29. Can you price the required items on a five-year contract?

30. What types of evaluation factors other than cost/price do you believe differentiates a poorly performing company from a good one for this requirement? Technical, past performance, small business subcontracting plan? Anything else?

31. Does your company have a satisfactory performance record in providing these items for government or commercial customers in the quantities estimated above? Please provide examples of relevant and recent (within three years) past performance.

32. Does your company have the necessary organization, experience, accounting and operational controls, and technical skills, or the ability to obtain them (including, as appropriate, such elements as production control procedures, property control systems, quality assurance measures, and safety programs applicable to materials to be produced or services to be performed by the prospective contractor and subcontractors)?

33. Please provide any critical feedback and questions you have on the statement of work and technical documents.

34. Please provide any additional feedback that you believe is relevant.

The government will evaluate market information to ascertain potential market capacity to provide services/supplies consistent in scope and scale with those described in this notice and otherwise anticipated. Based on the responses to this sources sought notice/market research, this requirement may be set-aside for small businesses or procured through full and open competition, and multiple awards may be made. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged, and no feedback or evaluations will be provided to companies regarding their submissions.