AEDC Velocity Alliance Consortium_Q_A-3.31.26-2.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE

HEADQUARTERS AIR FORCE MATERIEL COMMAND

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE OHIO

One AFMC…Powering the World’s Greatest Air Force

MEMORANDUM FOR INDUSTRY PARTNERS

FROM: AFMC/AFTC/PZIA (Arnold) 100 Kindel Drive Arnold AFB, TN 37389-1332

SUBJECT: AEDC Velocity Alliance – Request for Whitepaper: Question & Answers

1. Would you all have any interest in a company to run the AEDC Velocity Alliance OTA Consortium?

a. The Government will manage the consortium internally.

2. I didn't see that asphalt paving was included in this project. My question is will there be any paving included.

a. A standalone paving project could be competed within the AEDC Velocity Alliance by leveraging the existing "General Construction" category.

3. I am writing to clarify the partnership requirements for the RFWP. Specifically, does the Alliance Membership require us to identify a Non-Traditional Defense Contractor (NDC) or a small business as a partner? Over the last five years, our projects for the Air Force and DOE have involved partnerships with five universities and two national laboratories.

a. The answer is yes, the Alliance Membership requires you to identify a partner that meets a specific statutory definition, and your university partners are highly likely to satisfy this requirement.

Here is a more detailed explanation to guide your whitepaper submission:

1. The "Why" Behind the Requirement As detailed in "Part 4: Innovation and Partnership Capability" of the RFWP, the purpose of this requirement is to satisfy the legal conditions for using this type of Other Transaction authority (specifically 10 U.S.C. § 4022(d)(1)(A) or (B)). This means that to join the Alliance, each prospective member must demonstrate an established relationship with a partner that falls into one of the following categories:

• A Non-Traditional Defense Contractor (NDC)

• A Small Business

• A Nonprofit Research Institution

2. How Your University and National Laboratory Partners Fit This is where your specific experience is highly relevant.

• University Partners (Excellent Candidates): Your extensive partnerships with universities are a perfect fit. Universities typically qualify as "nonprofit research institutions" under the statute. Your whitepaper should identify one of your university partners by name and CAGE code and, as noted in the RFWP (Note 2), be prepared to confirm their 501(c)(3) or equivalent nonprofit status. By doing this, you would be demonstrating your capability to satisfy condition (A) of the requirement.

• National Laboratories (Potential Candidates): Partnerships with National Laboratories are also highly valued. Depending on the specific lab and its managing entity, it could potentially qualify as a nonprofit research institution.

However, the most direct and clearly defined path, based on the notes in the RFWP, is to leverage your strong relationships with your university partners.

3. Your Path Forward For your whitepaper submission, your strongest approach is to:

1. Select one of your university partners to feature in your "Part 4" response.

2. Provide the university's or laboratory’s name and CAGE code and provide justification on how the university or laboratory meets 10 U.S.C. § 4022(d)(1)(A) or (B)

3. Describe your existing relationship and their unique capabilities.

b. Crucially, link their capabilities directly to the technical project you described in your "Part 2" response, explaining how they could participate to a "significant extent" in a similar future project.

4. We are interested in responding to the AEDC Velocity Consortium Call for White Papers but have a question about the partnership requirements. The company that I work for already qualifies as a small business. Because we qualify as a small business do we still need to partner with another small business, university, or National Laboratory to meet this requirement?

a. Thank you for your question. This is an excellent point of clarification as it highlights a unique scenario for a prime contractor that is already a small business.

The direct answer is: Yes, even as a small business, your company is still required to identify at least one partner company in your whitepaper response to satisfy the "Part 4:

Innovation and Partnership Capability" requirement.

Here is the detailed rationale to guide your submission:

1. The Purpose of the Requirement: Demonstrating Partnership Capability The primary purpose of the Part 4 requirement is not just to verify a company's status; it is to evaluate a prospective member's capability to form innovative partnerships. The Government needs to see that every member of the Alliance, regardless of their own size or status, has the ability to "reach back" and build effective teams with other specialized companies. This ensures a dynamic and collaborative industrial base for all future projects.

Therefore, simply stating that your own company is a small business, while valuable, does not demonstrate this crucial partnership capability.

2. How to Meet the Requirement as a Small Business Your status as a small business gives you two clear and powerful paths to satisfy this requirement in your whitepaper. You must show how you would form a team that satisfies one of the following conditions:

Option A: Partner with a Non-Traditional Defense Contractor (NDC) or Nonprofit Research Institution.

• In your whitepaper, you would identify an NDC or a Nonprofit Research Institution.

• You would then explain how this partnership would satisfy condition (A) of the statute ("at least one nontraditional defense contractor...participating to a significant extent").

• This is a very strong approach as it demonstrates your ability to bring in partners with a different status than your own.

Option B: Partner with another Small Business.

• In your whitepaper, you would identify another small business as your partner.

• You would then explain how this partnership would satisfy condition (B) of the statute ("All significant participants...are small businesses").

• This is also a perfectly valid approach that demonstrates your ability to build teams within the small business community.

3. Your Path Forward For your whitepaper submission, you should:

• Choose one of the two options above.

• Select a specific partner company (an NDC, a university, or another small business) that you have an existing relationship with.

• In your "Part 4" response, provide the partner's name and CAGE code.

• Crucially, link that partner's capabilities to the technical project you described in your "Part 2" response, explaining how you would work together and how their participation would be "significant."

In summary, the requirement is less about what your company is and more about what your company can do in terms of building strong, compliant teams. We look forward to seeing your submission.

5. Is it the Government's intent to issue future Velocity Alliance solicitations to all consortium members regardless of SOO type? In other words, does the Government intend to in any way filter or limit solicitations consortium members will see based on our demonstrated competencies during the onboarding phase?

a. The direct answer is: Yes, it is absolutely the Government's intent to issue all Project Opportunity Announcements (POAs) to all consortium members, regardless of the project's SOO type.

Here is a more detailed explanation of the process and rationale:

1. Fair and Open Opportunity for All Members The fundamental principle of the Alliance is to create a fair, competitive ecosystem among a pre-qualified pool of vendors. The Government will not filter or limit the distribution of POAs based on the competencies you demonstrated during the onboarding phase.

When you are accepted into the Alliance, you are accepted into the entire enterprise. You will have full visibility on every single project opportunity, from "General Construction" to "Utilities," and everything in between.

2. The Onboarding Phase vs. the Project Competition Phase It is helpful to think of this as a two-stage process:

• Onboarding Phase (The "Entry Gate"): The purpose of your whitepaper, including your response to the technical questions, is to prove you have the minimum required technical competence and partnership capability to be a member of the Alliance. It is your ticket to get in the door.

• Project Competition Phase (The "Performance Arena"): Once you are a member, it is then your business decision to determine which specific Project Opportunity Announcements (POAs) you wish to pursue. You are responsible for assessing your company's strengths, capabilities, and capacity to decide whether to submit a proposal for a given project.

3. The Vendor's Responsibility The Government's responsibility is to ensure every member sees every opportunity. The member's responsibility is to "know your company"—to analyze each POA and make a smart business decision about whether their team has the right qualifications to submit a competitive proposal for that specific scope of work.

In summary, we will not be creating sub-pools or specialized lists. All members will see all opportunities, ensuring a level playing field for every project competed under the AEDC Velocity Alliance.

6. Once the consortium is established, does the Government intend to use white papers or similar means to down-select qualified performers for a given requirement/solicitation?

a. The Government's primary goal is to use the most efficient and effective means to select a performer for each project. While a single-step proposal process is often the most streamlined approach, the specific competitive procedure will be tailored to the unique needs of each requirement.

Project Opportunity Announcements (POAs) could be down-selected utilizing a variety of methods. These may include, but are not limited to:

• Whitepapers

• Full-blown Prototype Proposals

• Oral Presentations

• Or any other means the Government determines to fit that particular POA.

The specific competitive procedure, including the format of the required response and the evaluation criteria, will be clearly defined within the POA for each project.

This approach provides the Government with the necessary flexibility to structure each competition in a way that best ensures a successful outcome, while also providing a clear and fair opportunity for all Alliance members to participate.

GREGGORY C. JONES

Agreements Officer, USAF