PDMSS_RFI_Contract_2025-FINAL-Released-5APR.docx

SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS / REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

NEW CONTRACT for MAINTENANCE, SUSTAINMENT AND DEVELOPMENT

SUPPORT FOR THE PROGRAMMED DEPOT MAINTENANCE SCHEDULING SYSTEM (PDMSS)

Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC/GBM)

05 April 2024

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ONLY

1.0 SYNOPSIS

This Request For Information (RFI) is issued solely for market research purposes. It does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. This request for information does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. The United States Department of the Air Force (DAF) is not seeking proposals, nor will it accept unsolicited proposals at this time.

This RFI is for planning purposes only and shall not be considered as an invitation for bid, request for quotation, request for proposal, or as an obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services. Any response to this RFI will be treated as information only. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission of responses to this announcement or the Government use of such information. This request does not constitute a solicitation for proposals or the authority to enter into negotiations to award a contract. No funds have been authorized, appropriated, or received for this effort. The information provided may be used by the Air Force in developing its acquisition strategy and statement of work/statement of objectives and performance specifications. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary or competition sensitive information contained in their response. The Government does not intend to award a contract based on this RFI or otherwise pay for the information submitted in response to this RFI.

The purpose of this market research is to determine if any contractor has the capability to provide the required Programmed Depot Maintenance Scheduling System (PDMSS) and Lynx™ development/sustainment support.

The Government is seeking responses from vendors registered under North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) 541511 – Custom Computer Programming Services only.

2.0 BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION

PDMSS serves as the Air Force standard project management information system. This application facilitates planning, tracking, scheduling, execution, and performance measurement activities for programmed/unprogrammed aircraft depot maintenance workload at the Air Logistics Complexes (ALCs). PDMSS operates as a part of the Depot Maintenance Systems Integration (DMSI) suite. DMSI consists of six systems supported by a centralized data base, the Depot Maintenance Consolidated Operational Database (DMCODB), which provides all operational data used by these components: Labor Standards Data System (ALSDS), Depot Maintenance Material Support System (DMMSS), Exchangeables Production System (EPS), Inventory Tracking System (ITS), Job Order Production Master System (JOPMS) and, Programmed Depot Maintenance Scheduling System (PDMSS)

The PDMSS system is a closed-loop shop floor control system using a mix of traditional and non-traditional project management techniques to:

· Facilitate workflow scheduling by operation and major job

· Manage capacity and labor utilization more effectively

· Strengthen performance measurement visibility

· Develop Work Specification/Work control Documents

· Develop Aircraft Tail Specific Programmed Work Requirements Framework

Major pieces of functionality include: Project Planning, Scheduling, Work Execution, Maintenance Analysis, Network Analysis, Master Operations, Selected Operations, Electronic Work Control Documents (eWCD), Maintenance Work Requests (MWR), Routed Parts Tracking, Reporting, and sustainment of system interfaces.

PDMSS operates in concert with a Robbins Gioia (RG) proprietary Family of Advanced Scheduling Tools (JFAST™) scheduling engine product called Lynx™. Lynx™ is a server-based scheduling and reporting tool which facilitates the program management of complex management problems. Lynx™ is integrated with PDMSS to analyze Program Depot Maintenance (PDM) networks for aircraft; critical path scheduling capability is used to perform ad-hoc network analysis supporting both “planning” and “what-if” activities. Lynx™ determines if a given aircraft’s PDM network is logically correct, and then performs numerous calculations, including, but not limited to: early-start, early finish, late-start, and late-finish to name a few. Lynx™ used within PDMSS is currently being extended to support scheduling of manpower resources, tools, and facilities.

The DAF licenses Lynx from RG for production and test purposes. The DAF has a non-exclusive and non-transferable subscription license to use Lynx™, in executable code form only. Moreover, Lynx™ data rights are solely owned by, and are proprietary to, RG. The Government does not believe that RG permits third party maintenance/ sustainment/ development usage. The DAF will require the maintenance/ sustainment/ development contractor to have the capability to modify/maintain Lynx™ source code, algorithms, business rules, and other logic/information; and to provide Lynx™ licensing for both contractor and DAF use.

3.0 SCOPE/REQUIREMENTS/CAPABILITIES

The Depot Maintenance Systems Integration (DMSI) Program Management Office, Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC/GBM), located at Wright-Patterson AFB, is conducting market research to identify qualified businesses to provide maintenance, sustainment, development, and support for Programmed Depot Maintenance Scheduling System (PDMSS) within the DMSI environment.

Parties interested in responding to this Request for Information must provide the following information and/or documentation that demonstrate technical capability in modifying and sustaining PDMSS and the proprietary Lynx software.

1. (CRITICAL) Do you currently have the capability to modify and maintain Lynx™ source code? Please answer with either “Yes” or “No”.

1a. If the answer to Question 1 above is “No”, do you have any agreements in-place that would allow you to modify and maintain Lynx™ source code by 1 Feb 2025? Please answer with either “Yes” or “No”.

1b. If the answer to either Question 1 or 1a is “Yes”, would this capability also allow for an enterprise license to the DAF for operating Lynx™ in all current production and test environments; and include access to all necessary documentation? Please answer with either “Yes” or “No”.

2. (CRITICAL) If the answer to either Question 1 or 1a is “Yes”; and the answer to Question 1b is “Yes”, what is the estimated cost to the Government for Lynx™ rights to provide the capabilities in Question 1 or 1a; and 1b above?

3. (CRITICAL) If the answer to Question 1 or 1a is “No”, describe in detail, your experience in determining the modifications or maintenance needed for a software application based on a change in a dependent proprietary software product, of which, the source code, algorithms, business rules, and other logic/information is unknown.

4. (CRITICAL) If the answer to Question 1 or 1a is “No”, describe in detail, your experience in determining the modifications or maintenance needed to a proprietary software application, of which the source code, algorithms, business rules, and other logic/information is unknown, based on a modification you made on a software application.

5. Experience during the past five years performing software maintenance on applications which operate within the AF or DoD computing environment using the software specified below (specify experience with each product):

DMSI/PDMSS Technical Architecture and Tools

Oracle Products:

· Oracle Windows Client (21c or later)

· Database Design

· SQL Scripts

· Procedural Language (PL) and Structured Query Language (SQL)

· RedHat Linux

· UNIX Shell Scripts

Java Platform, Enterprise Edition (Java EE):

· Java Runtime Environment (JRE/JDK)

· Java Archive (JAR) File

· JavaBeans and transition to Context and Dependency Injection (CDI)

· Eclipse BIRT

· Web Application Archive (WAR)

· Servlets/Java Server Pages (JSP)

· Java Database Connectivity (JDBC)

· Java Script/AJAX

· JBoss Enterprise Application Platform

· Java Server interface library: PrimeFaces

· Web App Framework: Angular2

Microsoft Products (DAF Approved Versions)

· Windows Server

· Windows 10/11

· Microsoft Edge

· Microsoft Visio

Robbins-Gioia JFAST™ Family of Products: (Jaguar & Lynx Application Suite)

· Java Archive (JAR) File

· JasOnCalService

· JasServer

· JasCruncher

· JasRequest Cron

· JasOnCalService UNIX

· Lynx Shared Libraries

· Angular2 & GoJS

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) /Internet Protocol (IP):

· WinSCP

· Tectia SSH Client

DAF Approved Cybersecurity Methods and Tools:

· Vulnerability Scanning (Checkmarx)

· Code Quality Scanning (SonarQube)

· Software Bill of Materials (Dependency Track)

· Code Scan Automation (Jenkins)

· Source Code Repository (BitBucket)

· Code Remediation Tracking (Dependency Track)

Other Tools:

· Adobe

· Acrobat Reader

· Robohelp

· TOAD for Oracle

· SVN

· JIRA, Confluence, Zyphyr Scale

· Eclipse for Java EE

· Maven Build Tool

· Air Force Standard Desktop Core Configuration (SDCC) Version 5.3.1 or later

· Information System Management Tool (ISMT)

Software Life Cycle Process Standards IAW BES Process Directory (BPD)

6. (CRITICAL) Experience working with Air Force ALC Depot Maintenance processes for aircraft and the associated Business Rules.

7. (CRITICAL) Personnel having at least three years of recent experience of software maintenance/sustainment/development of a Planning and Scheduling system.

8. (CRITICAL) Experience and understanding of communications policies and Global Information (GIG) for executing new application development; DoD and AF Security Instructions; DoD Architectural Framework (DoDAF), AF/DISA Level I and program-level II and III help desks, AFLCMC Systems Engineering Process (SEP), and Agile Strategy Guide.

9. (CRITICAL) Experience during the past five years, managing and executing tasks for performing computer operations (job monitoring and error handling) on servers running Linux, various Microsoft Windows operating systems and Window application server connectivity.

10. (CRITICAL) Experience during the past three years managing and executing tasks required to configure and troubleshoot a server environment based on Oracle database, Linux, and Microsoft Windows server platforms.

11. (CRITICAL) Personnel classified as a Senior Developers have or will meet DoD Cybersecurity Workforce Framework work role Advanced Software Developer (as identified in DoDD 8140.01) prior to 01 Feb 2025.

4.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Work is to be performed primarily at Contractor managed facilities and/or an approved DAF location. Work performed at any alternate location shall be subject to the availability of appropriate equipment required to meet the terms and conditions of the program. The Contractor may permit employees to work at an alternate duty location provided prior Government notification is coordinated and the terms of the contract and PWS continue to be met.

5.0 CLEARANCES

Contractor personnel shall be required to have the appropriate level of investigation and/or security clearance for the site at which they are located during the performance of duties in support of this order. At a minimum, all Contractor personnel are to have a completed favorable National Agency Check Inquiry (NACI)/Entrance National Agency Check. Contractor personnel shall be required to submit a request for a user ID when access is required to a Government computer, to include the submission of proof to the PMO Security Manager that a favorable National Agency Security Check has been completed. The contractor shall be required to obtain a CAC before start of work. The Contractor personnel shall be required to obtain Common Access Cards (CAC) for the purpose of encryption and physical and digital identification for access to systems. The Contractor shall not involve any foreign national (resident aliens exempt) in work performed under this requirement.

6.0 ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) as defined and discussed in FAR 9.5, Organizational and Consultant Conflicts of Interest, is a concern in all acquisitions across the Department of Defense. Early involvement with our industry partners is a key element of the OCI process, and it is critical for the Government to be able to identify any potential OCI issues as early as possible for an acquisition. This would allow ample time to address and evaluate any potential OCI issues, if required, prior to contract award with minimal impact to critical acquisition schedules.

Interested vendors are requested to evaluate your potential OCI issues with regard to this requirement for services for all systems identified, and the Contractor is encouraged to identify any OCI issues, as stated in FAR 9.5 to the Contracting Officer (CO). This will assist the CO in determining if the contractor will need to submit an OCI Mitigation Plan for any solicitation that might result from this notice.

7.0 INFORMATION REQUESTED

Interested parties should submit a capability package, with a cover letter, that is brief and concise, yet clearly demonstrates ability to meet the stated requirements with sufficiently qualified personnel. Provide qualification information (type and duration of employee experience relevant to the requirements) and the level of involvement (prime or subcontractor) and the time periods for work on similar projects. The capabilities package should clearly present evidence that the interested party is fully capable of providing the required services and as such may contain any information that the interested party feels is relevant. Provide a list of Government and/or commercial contracts with the following information:

a. Contract number and description of services

b. Contracting officers’ name, address, and telephone number

c. Program managers’, project leads’, and/or technical leads’ name, address, telephone number, and a list of tasks performed for these personnel.

8.0 INSTRUCTIONS FOR RESPONSE:

Send responses electronically to Contract Specialist, Lisa W. Brown; email: lisa.brown.2@us.af.mil; Commercial Phone: (937) 257-4850 and the Contracting Officer, Scott A. Ashelman; e-mail: scott.ashelman@us.af.mil; Commercial Phone: (937) 974-9898.

As this is an RFI document, initial prospective business responses should be in the form of a Capability Statement. The Government recognizes that proprietary data may be submitted as part of this effort. If so, clearly mark restricted or proprietary data. The Capability Statement should include the following elements:

Submit an 8-page (maximum) paper not including cover page, describing the items listed above. The responses should be formatted as follows:

· Page size shall be 8.5 x 11 inches; foldouts are permitted but will be assessed towards total page count.

· Pages shall be single-spaced. The font shall be Arial and the font size shall be no less than twelve (12) point. Use at least a 1-inch margin on the top and bottom and ¾ inch side margins.

· Capability statements need to address fully the critical areas identified above.

· Responses shall also include information regarding the following:

1) The level of contractor’s interest (likelihood of submitting a proposal as a prime contractor).

2) Approach to addressing Lynx licensing.

3) Address potential teaming arrangements if likely to submit a proposal.

4) If a teaming arrangement is considered, describe tasks the prime would perform versus tasks the subcontractor would perform.

5) Prospective Business Identification

a. Company Name and Cage Code

b. Address

c. Phone Number

d. Fax Number

e. E-mail

f. Point of Contact Information

g. A website address that provides additional information about the prospective business

h. The highest security clearance that your company currently holds.

i. Verify your business status as a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business.

6) Identify company Cage Code, DUNS Number, size/socio-economic status (large, small, 8(a), etc.) and provide any other information that the Air Force should consider in reviewing the response.

Due Date: Responses are due no later than 12 noon on 11 April 2024 and shall be electronically sent to lisa.brown.2@us.af.mil and scott.ashelman@us.af.mil. Late responses will not be reviewed. Respondents who submit proprietary data shall clearly mark the data with appropriate markings. Any questions should be directed to the Contracting Officer or to the Contract Specialist. The Government does not intend to award a contract based on this Sources Sought. A determination not to compete this action based on responses received is solely within the discretion of the Government. Responses to the RFI will not be returned.

· Please note that all prospective contractors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database, formerly the Central Contractor Registration (CCR), to be awarded a Department of Defense contract. To learn more about this SAM requirement and how to register, please visit the SAM internet website at http://www.sam.gov/ or call 1-866-606-8220.

In accordance with AFFARS 5352.201-9101, an Ombudsman has been appointed for this acquisition. The Ombudsman does not diminish the authority of the Program Director or Contracting Officer, but communicates contractor concerns, issues, disagreements, and recommendations to the appropriate Government official. When requested, the Ombudsman shall maintain strict confidentiality as to the source of the concern. The Ombudsman does not participate in the evaluation of proposals or in the source selection process. The Ombudsman should be contacted only with issues or problems that have been brought previously to the attention of the Program Manager and/or Contracting Officer and could not be resolved satisfactorily at that level, concerned parties may contact the following individual: Col. Todd Dye:

Deputy Director, Acquisition Excellence & Program Execution Directorate (AFLCMC/AQ-AZ) Bldg. 572, 1865 Fouth Street, Room 240 Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433-7630 937-255-7777