BEP_BAA15-0001.docx

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

Research Opportunity Title: BEP OTD Long Range Broad Agency Announcement

Long Range Broad Agency Announcement Type: Initial Announcement

Research Opportunity Number: BEP-BAA15-0001

Response Date: This is a five (5) year announcement and will remain open until August 31, 2020, or until amended or superseded. This announcement may be reissued and or/ amended periodically, as needed. Potential Offerors are encouraged to consult with the technical POC for each respective research area to discuss topic of interests, prior to submission of any White Papers. White Papers may be submitted at any time during the open period to BAA@BEP.gov.

If an Offeror is requested to submit a Formal Proposal based on its White Paper submission, please be advised that the due date of the formal proposal will be the date that is specified in the Request for Proposal letter; and, not the response date of August 31, 2020.

However, if an Offeror is not requested to submit a formal proposal based on their White Paper submission, and the Offeror still opts to submit a formal proposal, they may do so within sixty (60) days of the notification letter; and, not the response date of August 31, 2020.

Points of Contact:

Office of Technology Development Bureau of Engraving and Printing

2015 Long Range Broad Agency Announcement 15-0001

Stephen Surko Chief, Office of Technology Development Bureau of Engraving and Printing Office of Technology Development 300 14th Street SW Washington, DC 20228 BAA@BEP.gov

Kathleen Barton Contracting Officer Bureau of Engraving and Printing Office of Acquisition 300 14th Street SW Washington, DC 20228 BAA@BEP.gov

II. INTRODUCTION

A. The BEP reserves the right to reject submissions if the work proposed duplicates current BEP activities, falls outside the particular division’s current efforts, or does not comply with the submission instructions. Therefore, all interested parties must read these instructions carefully.

B. This is a Long Range Broad Agency Announcement (LRBAA), as prescribed by Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.102(d)(2) and 35.016, provides for the competitive selection of research proposals. The LRBAA’s submission and evaluation processes are distinct from those of conventional procurements that use Requests for Proposals (RFPs) or Requests for Quotes (RFQs). Proposals submitted and selected for award in response to this LRBAA are in full compliance with the provisions of PL 98-369, the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) of 1984. This is not a request for information (RFI).

C. The mission of the Office of the OTD is to: (1) develop innovative security features that protect United States (U.S.) Federal Reserve Notes and other documents; (2) develop features that provide meaningful access to all; and (3) develop new materials and applications to enable the BEP to produce U.S. Federal Reserve Notes incorporating the latest technologies for optimal performance. This Announcement declares OTD’s general interest in competitively funding Research and Development (R&D) projects across a spectrum of physical science disciplines. Science and Technology (S&T) will focus on areas where risk inhibits mission or operational investments, and where significantly improved or increased capability payoffs can be expected.

D. For background, interested parties may wish to review A Path to the Next Generation of U.S. Banknotes: Keeping Them Real by the National Research Council (NRC). This study can downloaded for free from NRC at http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11874/a-path-to-the-next-generation-of-us-banknotes-keeping.

E. The BEP seeks R&D projects for revolutionary, evolving, and maturing technologies that demonstrate the potential for significant improvement in U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. The unique contribution of your proposed research or technical concept, and how it differs from similar efforts or solutions, must be clearly articulated in your White Paper. Offerors should read the descriptions of the research topic areas of interest and identify the specific topic for which their concept will have the maximum impact. Offerors are encouraged to select the one division that most directly corresponds to their proposed subject matter.

F. It cannot be emphasized too strongly that all submissions must indicate significant advancement in the evolution of a topic area identified in this Announcement. The U.S. Government reserves the right to reject submissions that do not clearly articulate such advances or innovations.

G. This Announcement is restricted to work relating to basic and applied research and that portion of advanced technology development not related to a specific system or hardware procurement. This Announcement does not cover support services, such as technical services, engineering services, or other types of support services to include “contracting”-type services (e.g., quasi-directed subcontracting) or contracts to “evaluate” another contractor’s performance/program. Such submissions are considered non-compliant with this LRBAA and will be rejected without evaluation.

H. Fully developed products are not normally considered under this LRBAA, unless the Offeror is proposing a totally different application for the product or a modification is needed, which requires substantial research. Purchase of capital equipment will only be allowed under a given proposal if the BEP deems it reasonable and necessary to conduct the particular project. No LRBAA award shall be primarily for the purchase of capital equipment.

I. Offerors who seek, through this LRBAA, to extend work previously completed must clearly articulate where the old work ended, where the new work begins, and what new advances are expected from the work contemplated under this LRBAA. Please ensure it is clear that the work now being submitted is independent of previous work (i.e. the next logical step in the research, or investigating a subject that was discovered and not funded under the previous award). Submitting existing Statements of Work (SOW) and indicating which steps have been completed is not sufficient justification for an independent award under the LRBAA.

J. The BEP will not issue paper copies of this LRBAA. Oral presentations are not permitted at any point during the LRBAA process.

III. RESEARCH TOPICS

Below are brief narratives of the topic areas of interest of the two BEP research and development Divisions, the Security Features and the Materials and Application Innovation Divisions. The narratives are intended to provide an abbreviated description of the eight (8) prospective research areas. The descriptions of the technical areas are organized by function, and the reader may note some overlap between sections. These descriptions are not meant to be exhaustive, but rather to challenge the reader to create and submit truly creative proposals that have the potential to dramatically shift existing currency paradigms. These descriptions furnish specific examples of areas of interest and the BEP focal points associated with these technology areas. However, any submitted white paper or proposal must be grounded in achievable technology goals. In your White Paper submission, you will be asked to identify the division and/or specific topic area that best fits your proposed research.

A. SECURITY FEATURES DIVISION

The Security Features Division (SFD) leads the development of innovative security features that protect United States (U.S.) Federal Reserve Notes and other documents.

Research Area 1 - Overt Features

Development of technologies and/or materials with potential application in overt, visual authentication features on future generations of U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. Technologies offered should provide effective counterfeit deterrence against all types of threats including traditional printing as well as digital reproduction. Proposed counterfeit deterrent features may be incorporated into the U.S. Federal Reserve Notes (inks, substrate) or applied to the note, and should not require the use of any external device for verification. An effective overt feature should be extremely difficult to simulate or duplicate, but should be easy to authenticate by the public under most lighting conditions.

Technical POC: Mr. Chris Dollberg, BEP/SFD Phone: (202) 874-3906 Email: christopher.dollberg@bep.gov

Research Area 2 - Device Assisted Features

Development of technologies and/or materials with potential application in device-assisted, user-interpreted counterfeit deterrent features on future generations of U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. Proposed counterfeit deterrent features should be novel and not widely available in the marketplace. Proposed features may be incorporated into the note or applied to the note. An effective device-assisted user-interpreted feature should be extremely difficult to simulate or duplicate, but should be easy to authenticate by the public using a ubiquitous, readily available and low cost device. Examples of these devices include, but are not limited to, optical filters, magnifiers, low cost laser pointers, LED flashlights, magnets, and cell phones.

Technical POC: Mr. Chris Dollberg, BEP/SFD Phone: (202) 874-3906 Email: christopher.dollberg@bep.gov

Research Area 3 - Hidden Machine Readable Security Features

Development of technologies and/or materials with potential application as hidden machine-readable counterfeit deterrent/authenticating features on future generations of U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. Proposed counterfeit deterrent feature/system should be novel and not commercially available. Proposed features may be incorporated into the banknote or applied to the note. An effective hidden machine-readable feature should be:

1. Difficult to discover on a banknote even by subject matter experts.

2. Difficult to elucidate the functionality or detection mechanism of the feature.

3. Readable by a discriminating, standalone, high-speed detection system.

4. Resistant to simulation or duplication, both in terms of material and response.

Technical POC: Mr. Val DeVito, BEP/SFD Phone: (202) 874-2148 Email: valentino.devito@bep.gov

B. MATERIALS AND APPLICATION INNOVATIONS DIVISION

The Materials and Applications Division (MAD) leads the technical development of new materials and processes, and improves product quality and production efficiency in the manufacturer of United States (U.S.) Federal Reserve Notes and other documents.

Research Area 4 - Pigments and Colorants

Development of special effect pigments and colorants with potential application on future generations of U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. Such pigments could include thermochromic, photochromic, NIR absorbing, photo luminescent, UV luminescent and other non-traditional colorants and pigments. These materials must be able to be printed on paper (cotton/linen) substrates directly or be incorporated into Offset, Intaglio, Typeset, or other inks.

Technical POC: Dr. Steven Carlo, BEP/MAD Phone: (202) 874-2154 Email: steven.carlo@bep.gov

Research Area 5 - Substrates (other than cotton/linen)

Development of alternate substrates with potential application on future generations of U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. Advanced substrates should offer specific advantages over the current paper (cotton/linen) substrate – while maintaining the recognized look and feel. Such substrates could include hybrid or polymer materials.

Technical POC: Dr. Steven Carlo, BEP/MAD Phone: (202) 874-2154 Email: steven.carlo@bep.gov

Research Area 6 - Adhesives

Development of advanced adhesive systems which can be used to adhere a variety of materials and/or features to the surface of the U.S. Federal Reserve Notes. Such systems should effectively prevent removal of the adhered feature or indicate that the feature has been removed from the substrate. Alternatively, the advanced adhesive system could destroy the feature and/or the note if it is removed.

Technical POC: Dr. Steven Carlo, BEP/MAD Phone: (202) 874-2154 Email: steven.carlo@bep.gov

Research Area 7 - Additives and Ink Formulations

Development of additives and ink formulations that offer fast cure with or without radiation (e.g. UV or e-beam) during the banknote printing process.

Technical POC: Dr. Steven Carlo, BEP/MAD Phone: (202) 874-2154 Email: steven.carlo@bep.gov

Research Area 8 - Raised Tactile Features

Development of methods and materials to apply a raised tactile feature to the surface of a U.S. Federal Reserve Notes for the purposes of denominating notes for the blind and visually impaired.

Technical POC: Dr. Steven Carlo, BEP/MAD Phone: (202) 874-2154 Email: steven.carlo@bep.gov

IV. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. This acquisition is unrestricted. All responsible Offerors are eligible to submit White Papers under the LRBAA. The BEP particularly encourages submissions from small businesses on all or any part of this solicitation; however, no set-aside of any kind will be made. The NAICS Code for this acquisition is 541712 (for Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology), and the small business size standard is 500 employees.

B. Foreign or foreign-owned Offerors are advised that their participation is subject to foreign disclosure review procedures, applicable export control laws, and other applicable federal laws, regulations, and policies pertaining to U.S. Government business with foreign entities.

C. Offerors may include independent organizations, single entities, or teams from private sector organizations, Government laboratories, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs), and academic institutions.

D. The following guidance is provided for Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) contemplating submitting a proposal, as either a prime or subcontractor, against this LRBAA. FAR 35.017-1(c)(4) prohibits an FFRDC from competing with any non-FFRDC concern in response to a Federal agency request for proposal for other than the operation of an FFRDC. There is no regulation prohibiting an FFRDC from responding to a solicitation. However, the FFRDC’s sponsoring agency must first make a determination that the effort being proposed falls within the purpose, mission, general scope of effort, or special competency of the FFRDC, and that determination must be included in the FFRDC’s proposal. In addition, the non-sponsoring agency must make a determination that the work proposed would not place the FFRDC in direct competition with domestic private industry. Only after these determinations are made would a determination be made concerning the FFRDC’s eligibility to receive an award. FFRDCs, including the Department of Energy National Laboratories and Centers, are eligible to respond to this LRBAA individually or as team members with eligible principal Offerors, as long as they are permitted to respond to such announcements under their applicable sponsoring agreements.

E. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority Institutions (MI), Small Businesses, Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDB), Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSB), Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB), and Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone) Small Businesses are encouraged to submit proposals and to join other entities as team members in submitting proposals.

F. Offerors must be prepared to cooperate and exchange data and technical information as requested by the BEP. Data rights and intellectual property terms and conditions will be addressed after Formal Proposal evaluation. In general, the BEP desires exclusivity of technologies employed in security features.

G. The cost of preparing White Papers and Formal Proposals in response to this Announcement is not considered an allowable direct cost. Offerors should consult FAR 31.205-18 when considering whether these costs may be allocated as indirect costs. The Contracting Officer (CO) will determine allowability and allocability. The Offeror may be required to submit certified cost and pricing data if the value of a prospective award exceeds the Truth in Negotiations Act (TINA) threshold.

V. AWARD INFORMATION

A. No inherent funding is associated with this LRBAA. All funding is subject to change at the Government’s discretion and availability. All potential Offerors are advised that unanticipated budget fluctuations, may affect funding in any or all areas, with little or no notice.

B. The BEP reserves the right to award the instrument best suited to the nature of the research proposed. A contract to include an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) type contract could be awarded as a result of this LRBAA as appropriate.

C. The BEP technical subject matter expert personnel shall coordinate with the Contracting Officer (CO) to identify White Papers that present “particular value” to the BEP. The CO will solicit the Offerors’ of the accepted White Papers to submit Formal Proposals consisting of detailed technical and cost information. Please note that any request for a formal proposal does not assure an award.

D. The primary basis for selecting proposals for acceptance shall be technical, importance to agency programs, and funding availability. Cost realism and reasonableness shall also be considered to the extent appropriate. Therefore, the BEP reserves the right to select for negotiation of a potential award to fund all, some, or none of the Formal Proposals received in response to this Announcement. The amount of resources made available under this LRBAA will depend on the quality of the proposals received and the availability of funds. A proposal may be selected, but only specific portions may be of interest. The award value and period of performance of each selected Formal Proposal will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

E. Proposal development costs will not be reimbursed. Technical and cost proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this LRBAA will not be returned. However, depending on the markings on the proposal, the BEP will adhere to the FAR policy on handling source selection information and proprietary proposals. It is the policy of the BEP to treat all proposals as proprietary information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation.

F. Multiple awards are anticipated through this LRBAA. Award decisions will be based on a competitive selection of proposals resulting from a scientific and cost review. Awards may take the form of IDIQ, Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) or Cost-Reimbursement type contracts.

G. The applicable laws and regulations governing a particular award will depend on that award vehicle. The BEP will also facilitate access to laboratory and operationally relevant test and evaluation facilities, where reasonably available. In the event that an Offeror or subcontractor is an FFRDC, Department of Energy, National Laboratory, or other federal entity, the BEP OTD will work with the appropriate sponsoring agency to issue an interagency agreement pursuant to the Economy Act (31 USC 1531) or other appropriate authority.

H. In some cases, other elements of the U.S. Government are pursuing related technologies. In such cases, the BEP will leverage those technology development efforts wherever it is practicable and efficient to do so.

VI. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

A. Non-Disclosure of Information and Data:

1. During the performance of the contract, the U.S. Government may provide the Contractor with information and/or data, which might be considered Sensitive but Unclassified (SBU) information concerning the design, use, manufacture, process, handling, and/or transport of U.S. Federal Reserve notes and/or other U.S. security products. The Contractor acknowledges that this information and/or data is the sole property of the U.S. Government.

2. The Contractor agrees that all information and/or data provided by the U.S. Government, either before or after the contract is awarded, is nonpublic. Such information shall be shared only with employees or agents of the Contractor having a need to know for the performance of their duties.

3. The Contractor agrees to maintain the confidentiality of all information and/or data provided by the U.S. Government during the performance of the contract. The Contractor shall not disclose any information and/or data to third parties without the written consent of the CO. This includes any interpretations, derivatives, opinions, ideas, analyses, and reports related thereto, and all other similar or related information and/or data in any format (i.e. verbal and/or written).

4. The Contractor acknowledges that it will be liable to the U.S Government for handling inappropriately and/or disclosing any information and/or data to third parties without the written consent of the CO. In particular, the Contractor shall be liable to the U.S Government for the costs affiliated with such a violation, including but not limited to recovery of the costs of this and other related contracts and other costs the U.S. Government determines appropriate.

5. The Contractor shall be required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) with the U.S. Government. The Contractor hereby agrees to include this clause in all subcontracts or consulting agreements relating to work under this contract

B. Communication During Evaluation: Once a White Paper or Formal Proposal has been submitted, the evaluation becomes active until the LRBAA CO issues an official notification letter to the Offeror. During the evaluation (White Paper or Formal Proposal), no communication shall occur between the BEP personnel and the Offeror regarding the submission or its general subject matter, except as noted below.

C. During the evaluation period, the LRBAA CO must be the focal point of any exchange with Offerors. After receipt of a Formal Proposal, no discussion regarding the scope of work, resources required to execute the scope, etc., will be allowed during the Source Selection process. However, a CO may initiate communications if and when specific facts in the submission require further clarification from the Offeror (such as confirmation of a delivery date).

D. Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI): Per FAR Part 9, OCI issues will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis as outlined below:

1. The Contractor certifies, to the best of the Contractor’s knowledge and belief, there are no relevant facts or circumstances which could give rise to an or OCI, as defined in FAR 9.5, Organizational and Consultants Conflicts of Interest, or that the Contractor has disclosed all such relevant information.

2. The Contractor agrees that if an actual or potential OCI is discovered after award, the Contractor shall make a full disclosure in writing to the CO. This disclosure must include a description of actions, which the Contractor has taken or proposes to take, after consultation with the CO, to avoid, mitigate, or neutralize the actual or potential conflict.

3. The CO may terminate this contract for convenience, in whole or in part, if it deems such termination necessary to avoid an OCI. If the Contractor was aware of a potential OCI prior to award or discovered an actual or potential conflict after award and did not disclose or misrepresented relevant information to the CO, the U.S. Government may terminate the contract for default, debar the Contractor from U.S. Government contracting, or pursue such other remedies as may be permitted by law or this contract.

4. The Contractor must include this clause in all subcontracts and in lower tier subcontracts unless a waiver is requested from, and granted by, the CO.

5. In the event that a requirement changes in such a way as to create a potential conflict of interest for the Contractor, the Contractor must:

a. Notify the CO of a potential conflict, and;

b. Recommend to the U.S. Government an alternate approach which would avoid the potential conflict, or

c. Present for approval a conflict of interest mitigation plan that will:

i. Describe in detail the changed requirement that creates the potential conflict of interest; and

ii. Outline in detail the actions to be taken by the Contractor or the U.S. Government in the performance of the task to mitigate the conflict, division of subcontractor effort, and limited access to information, or other acceptable means.

d. The Contractor must not commence work on a changed requirement related to a potential conflict of interest until specifically notified by the CO to proceed.

e. If the CO determines that it is in the best interest of the U.S. Government to proceed with work, notwithstanding a conflict of interest, a request for waiver must be submitted in accordance with FAR 9.503.

E. Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest: It is the BEP policy to award contracts to only those Offerors whose objectivity is not impaired because of any related past, present, or planned interest, financial or otherwise, in organizations regulated by the BEP or in organizations whose interests may be substantially affected by Departmental activities. Based on this policy, if at any time during the performance of this contract the Contractor knows of any Conflict of Interest situation affecting the organization, any of its officers or key persons working under this contract, has reason to believe that a conflict of interest situation might arise, or is made aware of an actual or potential conflict of interest situation:

1. The Contractor shall immediately provide to the CO a written statement which describes in a concise manner all past, present or planned organizational, financial, contractual or other interest(s) with that organization regulated by the BEP, or with that organization or individual whose interests may be substantially affected by Departmental activities, and which is related to the work under this contract. The interest(s) described shall include those of the Contractor, its affiliates, consultants, Subcontractors and key personnel of any of the above. Past interest shall be limited to within one (1) year of the date of the Offeror's technical proposal. Key personnel shall include any person owning more than 20% interest in the organization, and the organization's corporate officers, its senior managers and any employee who is responsible for making a decision or taking an action on this contract where the decision or action can have an economic or other impact on the interests of a regulated or affected organization.

2. The Contractor shall describe in detail when it became aware of the actual or potential conflict of interest, what action the organization has taken or proposes to take to mitigate and/or rectify the situation, and why it believes, in light of the interest(s) identified in (a) above, that performance of the contract can still be accomplished in an impartial and objective manner.

3. In the absence of any relevant interest identified in (a) above, the Contractor shall certify in its statement that to its best knowledge and belief no affiliation exists relevant to possible conflicts of interest. The Contractor must obtain the same information from any potential Subcontractors prior to award of a subcontract.

4. The CO will review the statement submitted and may require additional relevant information from the Contractor. All such information, and any other relevant information known to the BEP, will be used to determine whether a conflict of interest exists or a situation exists that may create a conflict of interest. If any such conflict of interest is found to exist, the CO may (1) terminate the contract, or (2) determine that it is otherwise in the best interest of the U.S. Government to continue the contract with the Contractor and (3) modify the contract to include appropriate provisions to mitigate or avoid such conflicts in the contract.

5. If the Contractor refuses to provide the written statement called for in paragraph (a), or any additional information that the CO may require, the CO may terminate the Contract for convenience if he or she deems that termination is in the best interest of the U.S. Government.

6. Offerors who have existing contract(s) with BEP for scientific, engineering, technical or administrative support will receive particular scrutiny.

VII. WHITE PAPER SUBMISSION PROCESS AND FORMAT

A. All LRBAA White Paper submissions must be made through the email address at BAA@BEP.gov.

B. Application Package: THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES SOLICITATION ONLY. THE BEP IS SOLICITING WHITE PAPERS ONLY. DO NOT SUBMIT A FORMAL PROPOSAL AT THIS TIME. Those Offerors whose white papers are found to be consistent with the intent of this LRBAA may later be invited to submit a technical and cost proposal (see Section 8 of this announcement for further details). Debriefings will not be offered for white papers not selected, but Offerors may contact the technical POC under the appropriate research area to discuss their concept.

C. Number of pages: Offerors are required to submit either one (1) electronic copy or two (2) paper copies of a white paper that is five (5) pages or less summarizing their proposed approach/solution. Any pages over the stated five (5) page maximum will not be evaluated. The purpose of the white paper is to preclude unwarranted effort on the part of an Offeror whose proposed work is not of interest to the Government. The format for the white paper is as follows:

White Papers:

1. White Papers shall be no more than five (5) single-sided pages. Offerors shall use the White Paper format included as Appendix 1 of this document. No exceptions.

2. Paper Size - 8.5 x 11 inch paper

3. Margins - 1 inch

4. Spacing - single or double-spaced

5. Font - Times New Roman, 12 point

6. Section A: Title of your White Paper, White Paper in response to Research Area Number (identify #), Period of Performance, Estimated Cost, Name/Address of Company, Technical and Contracting Points of Contact (phone, fax and email) (this section is NOT included in the page count).

7. Section B: Task Objective.

8. Section C: Technical Summary and Proposed Deliverables.

9. Section D: Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) Cost

VIII. FORMAL PROPOSAL SUBMISSION PROCESS AND FORMAT

A. All LRBAA proposal submissions must be made through the email address at BAA@BEP.gov.

B. Those Offerors whose white papers are found to be consistent with the intent of this LRBAA may be invited to submit a technical and cost proposal.

C. Number of Pages: Offerors are required to submit either one (1) electronic copy or four (4) paper copies of a formal proposal. The Technical Proposal is limited to no more than 40 single-sided pages. Any pages over the stated forty (40) page maximum for the technical proposal will not be evaluated. The Cost Proposal has no page limitations; however, it shall only contain information necessary for determination of cost appropriateness. All technical information must be presented in the Technical Proposal only. The cover page, table of contents, resumes, and list of intellectual property as cited at Append 2 are excluded from the page limitations. The Subcontracting Plan, if applicable, is not included in the page limitation. See description of a cover page below.

1. Formal Proposals

a. Formal proposals consist of two volumes: Technical (vol. 1) and Cost (vol. 2)

b. Paper Size - 8.5 x 11 inch paper

c. Margins - 1inch

d. Spacing - single or double-spaced

e. Font - Times New Roman, 12 point

f. Excel files are permitted (unlock all formulas)

2. Formal Proposal Content

Volume 1: Technical Proposal

Volume 1 of the Formal Proposal must include the following sections:

a. Cover Page shall include the words “Technical Proposal” and the following:

i. BAA number: BAA-BEP15-0001;

ii. Title of proposal;

iii. Topical area and its reference code;

iv. Identity of the prime Offeror, including name and address, and complete list of subcontractors, including name and address, if applicable;

v. Technical contact (name, address, phone, electronic mail address);

vi. Administrative/business contact (name, address, phone, electronic mail address);

vii. Duration of effort (separately identify the basic effort and any options);

viii. BEP OTD point of contact, if applicable;

ix. Dunn & Bradstreet (DUNS) number/CAGE Code;

x. Acknowledgement that the Offeror is registered in Central Contractor registration (CCR). This can be established at the System for Award Management (SAM) website at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/;

xi. Statement specifying compliance with FAR Clause 52.222-54 “Employment Eligibility Verification.”

b. Table of Contents

i. Executive Summary: The proposed research and benefits expected from this investment.

ii. Landscape Assessment or Brief Literature Review: Explain why your proposal is different and superior to similar solutions already available or to the efforts of others who have been researching similar issues.

iii. Proposed Use for the BEP: A detailed explanation of how the proposed product(s) supports the targeted end user (e.g., the first responder community) in an operational context. Include quantitative specifications for how the products will improve operational performance.

iv. Technical Concept: A description of the technical concept, including anticipated risks and approaches to mitigate the risks. Describe the basic scientific or technical concepts that will be used in each component or subsystem comprising your proposed solution to the problem described above. What particular scientific, technical or engineering issues need to be addressed and resolved to demonstrate feasibility? What is unique about your solution and what advantages might it afford compared to alternative approaches that others have taken? What has been the extent of the principal investigator’s past experience in, and qualifications or educational background for, developing the technologies in your proposal?

v. Operational Concept: A description of the operational concept used in the proposed technical solution to accomplish the objectives. Explain how the performance of your proposed solution can be expected to meet or exceed and be measured against each of the specific technical attributes and/or performance enhancements. What are the key scientific, technical, or engineering challenges and the timing for each that must be met in order to successfully complete this project? Describe all required material and information, which must be provided by the U.S. Government to support the proposed work.

vi. Operational Utility Assessment Plan: A detailed plan for demonstrating and evaluating the operational effectiveness of the Offeror’s products in exercises, including evaluation metrics. Explain your view of the requirements gap to be filled, what capability will be provided upon successful completion of the proposed effort, and what are the technical risks associated with successful maturation of the proposed effort to achieve operational utility. Explain your concept of how you will develop and demonstrate a system or system component. Identify and explain the critical path technologies or key technical challenges you will face when building this system or component and your plans for meeting these challenges. Explain how you will demonstrate the system or component performance relative to the performance or enhancement goals described in the proposal.

vii. Statement of Work: A Statement of Work (SOW) and a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) that clearly detail the scope and objectives of the effort, the technical approach, and the performance goals. The SOW and WBS will be used in the development of any final award, so the proposal must include a stand-alone SOW and a stand-alone WBS without any proprietary restrictions. The WBS must include a detailed listing of the technical tasks/subtasks in hierarchical fashion for the tasks required to accomplish the effort. The WBS format must be complete to at least WBS level three. Each task in the SOW shall describe the work to be carried out, the end result of the task, the time allocated, the organization performing the task, the predecessor tasks, the performance goals of the task, and the resources (labor, materials, and services) required. The resources shall be costed to provide a baseline budgeted cost for the applicable task. The SOW shall be at a level sufficient to define the nature of the work to be carried out, measure progress, and demonstrate the relationship of the tasks to one another.

viii. Project Schedule and Milestones: A summary of the schedule of events and milestones. If applicable, identify the critical path.

ix. Deliverables: A detailed list and description of all deliverables and data deliverables the Offeror proposes to provide to the U.S. Government, the schedule for delivery, and acceptance criteria. The deliverables information must be a separate section in the Offeror’s proposal and begin on a new page. Proposals must include a severable self-standing detailed list and description of all deliverables without any proprietary restrictions, which can be used to make award.

x. Qualifications: A discussion of the Offeror’s previous accomplishments and work in this area, or closely related area, and the qualifications of the investigators. If the proposal involves development or testing scientific and/or engineering concepts, the principal investigators must demonstrate education and/or managerial expertise in these fields. Key personnel resumes must be attached to the proposal and do not count toward the page limitations.

xi. Detailed Risk Mitigation Plan: Discuss in detail the technical, cost, and schedule risk(s) involved with the project and how each risk will be mitigated.

xii. Management Approach: A discussion of the overall approach to the management of the effort, including brief discussions of the total organization, use of personnel, project, function, and subcontractor relationships, government research interfaces, and planning, scheduling and control practice. Identify which personnel and subcontractors (if any) will be involved. Include a description of the facilities that are required for the proposed effort with a description of any U.S. Government-Furnished Equipment/Hardware/Software/ Information required, by version and/or configuration.

xiii. Small Business Considerations: Formal Proposals that exceed $650,000, submitted by all but small business concerns, must include a Small Business Subcontracting Plan in accordance with FAR Clause 52.219-9. The Small Business Subcontracting Plan is not included in the forty (40) page limit. Regardless of the proposed dollar value, all Offerors shall indicate their business size status and list all subcontractors and their business size statuses. All LRBAA Offerors are encouraged to offer subcontracting opportunities to small businesses to the maximum extent practicable.

xiv. Employment Eligibility Verification: Include a statement specifying compliance with FAR Clause 52.222-54.

xv. Intellectual Property and Data Rights: It is the U.S. Government’s intent that The Contractor develops several novel and useful optical security features based on the Contractor’s existing invention for use in U.S. Federal Reserve notes that is patentable or otherwise protectable under title 35 of the U.S. Code. The new and useful optical security features would be the “subject invention” made in the performance of work under this contract. In addition, the “subject invention” shall be non-obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the pertinent art. The desired “subject invention” is an optical security feature that involves novel materials or novel material usages, novel equipment innovations, novel substrate or ink characteristics, or any combination thereof, that is clearly distinguishable from any invention and/or technology available in the global market. The “subject invention” shall conform to the requirement provided in 31 C.F.R. Part 601. The design of the feature on the document per se is not an “invention” and does not constitute a novel optical effect.

A “subject invention” shall cease to be a “subject invention” when it is not subject to a contract and/or agreement between the BEP and the Contractor and has not been adopted for use in U.S. Federal Reserve notes. Hence, an optical security feature that is subject to a contract and/or agreement between the BEP and the Contractor but that has not been adopted for use in U.S. Federal Reserve notes can be a “subject invention” made in the performance of work under this contract. The U.S. Government will not acquire rights in the Contractor’s other existing or non-subject inventions not covered under this contract.

This section addresses the allocation and protection of rights in the following areas: 1) patents and inventions, copyrights and trade secrets, and other data generated or used in the performance of the contract; 2) the U.S. Government authorization and consent to use the Contractor’s intellectual property generated or used in the performance of the contract under the condition that Contractor ensures an exclusive use of these rights to the U.S. Government related to the “subject invention”; and 3) the Contractor’s liability for licensing any of its intellectual property or disclosing any data related to the “subject invention” and generated under the performance of the contract to third parties without the consent of the U.S. Government. The Contractor will incorporate the substance of this clause, its terms, and requirements in all subcontracts under this contract.

(a) License

(1) Patents and Inventions: With respect to any patent related to the “subject invention” which is adopted for use in the U.S. Federal Reserve notes and approved by the Secretary of the Treasury, the U.S. Government shall obtain an exclusive, nontransferable, irrevocable, free license to use the “subject invention” as defined in FAR Part 52.227-11(a). “Subject inventions” include inventions first conceived or actually reduced to practice during the performance of the contract. In those cases where the U.S. Government receives title to the “subject invention” the Contractor will not obtain a license to practice the “subject invention”. In addition, the Contractor will need to provide the U.S. Government with any data and/or information generated during the performance of the contract that is needed to file a patent.

(2) Copyrights and Trade Secrets: Copyright and Trade Secrets license rights related to the “subject invention” jointly referred to as data rights as defined in FAR Part 52.227-14. The U.S. Government shall obtain an exclusive, nontransferable, irrevocable, free license to reproduce, publish, or use any data related to the “subject invention”. With respect to any copyright and trade secret related to the “subject invention” created during the performance of work under this contract, the Contractor shall not use, release, reproduce, distribute, or publish any data produced during and after the performance of this contract. The Contractor acknowledges that any information concerning the “subject invention” created during the performance of this contract and before a patent application is filed is a trade secret as defined in title 18 of the U.S. Code. If the Contractor elects not to file a patent all data, discoveries, concepts, ideas, inventions, innovations, improvements, developments, methods, designs, analyses, drawings, reports related thereto, and all other proprietary information and all similar or related information in any format (whether or not patentable) that relates to the performance of this contract shall be deemed to constitute a trade secret.

(3) Other Data: In the performance of this contract, the U.S. Government may provide the Contractor with Sensitive but Unclassified (SBU) information. SBU information provided to the Contractor shall be marked with a restrictive notice and protected by the Contractor in accordance with this clause. In addition, the Contractor may not assert intellectual property rights in any information provided by the U.S. Government.

(b) Exclusivity of Use

(1) For the U.S. Government to consider an optical security feature as a “subject invention” the Contractor must adhere to this exclusivity clause for the duration of the contract covering the “subject invention”. The Contractor gives the U.S. Government exclusive authorization and consent (without prejudice to any rights of indemnification) for all use and manufacture of the “subject invention” covered by any intellectual property under this contract. The Contractor may not enter into similar contracts and/or agreements for the same and similar purpose with other third parties. If the Contractor fails to adhere to this exclusivity prerequisite, the U.S. Government may decide to cease all work and not use the “subject invention” being developed herein in U.S. Federal Reserve notes. Therefore, the U.S. Government expects the Contractor to adhere to the exclusivity requirement regarding the “subject invention” in perpetuity. If the Contractor seeks to disclose or use the “subject invention” or any intellectual property related to the “subject invention” developed under this contract in any other business opportunity, the Contractor shall submit, in writing, a letter notifying the CO and COR, as soon as reasonably possible, of its plan for use of the “subject invention” developed by the Contractor under this contract.

(c) Contractor’s Liability

(1) The U.S. Code requires the use of distinctive materials on U.S. Federal Reserve notes, including distinctive paper and distinctive counterfeit deterrents. Any distinctive counterfeit deterrent technology (whether or not patentable) developed under this contract and adopted for use in U.S. Federal Reserve notes and approved by the Secretary of the Treasury will be governed by 31 C.F.R. Part 601 and 18 U.S.C. § 474A. The Contractor shall be liable throughout the development of the “subject invention” for the disclosure of any information or data related to the invention, copyrights, and/or trade secrets since it may significantly destroy the value of the distinctive counterfeit deterrents use in the U.S. Federal Reserve notes. In addition, the Contractor acknowledges that it will be liable to the U.S. Government for licensing the use of any intellectual property rights pertaining to the “subject invention” to third parties. In particular, the Contractor shall be liable to the U.S. Government for the costs affiliated with such a violation, including but not limited to recovery of the costs of this and other related contracts and other costs the U.S. Government determines appropriate.

(d) Contractor’s Publicity

(1) The Contractor, or any entity or representative acting on behalf of the Contractor, shall not refer to the equipment or services furnished pursuant to the provisions of this contract in any news release or commercial advertising, or in connection with any news release or commercial advertising, without first obtaining explicit written consent to do so from the Contracting Officer. Should any reference to such equipment or services appear in any news release or commercial advertising issued by or on behalf of the Contractor without the required consent, the Government shall consider institution of all remedies available under applicable law, including 31 U.S.C. 333, and this contract. Further, any violation of this provision may be considered during the evaluation of past performance in future competitively negotiated acquisitions

3. Volume 2: Cost Proposal

a. The cost proposal must consist of a cover page and two (2) parts. Part 1 is a detailed breakdown of all costs by cost category by U.S. Government fiscal year. Part 2 further breaks down this information as it pertains to each task or sub-task.

b. The following information must be provided for the base year and any proposed option(s) or option year(s):

i. Part 1 must provide a detailed cost breakdown of all costs by cost category by Government fiscal year. (Provide a time-phased spend plan).

ii. Part 2 must provide a detailed cost breakdown by task/subtask using the same task numbers in the SOW. (Provide Basis of Estimates – contractor format is permitted).

iii. Identify any cost drivers.

iv. Options (if any proposed) must be separately priced.

c. The words “Cost Proposal” must appear on the cover page in addition to the following information:

i. BAA Number: BAA-BEP15-0001

ii. Title of proposal

iii. Topical area and reference code

iv. Identity of prime Offeror, including name and address, and complete list of subcontractors, including names and addresses, if applicable

v. Technical contact (name, address, phone/fax, electronic mail address)

vi. Administrative/business contact (name, address, phone/fax, electronic mail address)

vii. Duration of effort (separately price out the basic effort and any options)

viii. DUNS number and CAGE code

ix. Statement on whether or not the Offeror has been audited by a Government organization (Defense Contract Audit Agency, Private Independent Auditors, etc.), and if the Offeror has a U.S. Government/Independent auditor-approved accounting system

x. DCAA/DCMA POC (name, telephone number, and email address)

d. Cost Proposal Part 1 Part 1 of the cost proposal must include a detailed breakdown of all costs by cost category by Government fiscal year and include a summary explaining how each element is applied in the cost proposal:

i. Direct Labor: Individual labor category or person, with associated labor hours and unburdened direct labor rates.

ii. Indirect Costs: Fringe Benefits, Overhead, General and Administrative (G&A), Cost of Money (COM), etc. (Must show base and pool amounts and the rates). If applicable and available, Forward Pricing Rate Agreement (FPRA) or Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) approved or recommended rates. Identify if there are outstanding CAS violations. Offerors please note the following:

In order to qualify for the award of a cost reimbursement contract, the Offeror must have an adequate…