N00014-18-S-B003_Final.pdf

i

BAA N00014-18-S-B003

ONR BAA Announcement # N00014-18-S-B003

BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT (BAA) for

Advancing Robotic Capability & Usability for Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD): Department of Defense (DoD) (EOD) Applied Research Program ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY

A. Required Overview Content

1. Federal Awarding Agency Name

2. Funding Opportunity Title

3. Announcement Type

4. Funding Opportunity Number

5. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA Numbers

6. Key Dates

7. North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)

Code

II. DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE RESEARCH

OPPORTUNITY

A. Program Description B. Federal Award Information

1. Eligibility for Competition

2. Contracted Fundamental Research

3. Funded Amount and Period of Performance

4. Instrument Type

5. Model Contracts and Grants

6. Assistance Instruments C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants

2. Cost Sharing or Matching

3. Other D. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request (Access) Application Package

2. Content and Form of Application Submission

3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management

(SAM)

4. Submission Dates and Times

5. Other Submission Requirements iii

E. Application Review Information

1. Criteria

2. Review and Selection Process

3. Recipient Qualification F. Federal Award Administration Information

1. Federal Award Notices

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

3. Reporting G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts H. Other Information

III. APPENDICES

1. Program Description

2. Applicable to Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Technology Investment Agreements (TIA’s) Only

3. Requirements Applicable to Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements

I. OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY

This publication constitutes a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for awards by the ONR Contact and Grants Awards Management Division, ONR Code 25 (or otherwise approved by Code 25) as contemplated in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.102(d)(2) and 35.016, the Department of Defense Grants and Agreements regulations (DoDGARS) 32 CFR 22.315(a) and DoD’s Other Transaction Guide for Prototypes Projects, USD(AT&L), OT Guide, Jan 2017. A formal Request for Proposals (RFP), solicitation, and/or additional information regarding this announcement will not be issued.

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) will not issue paper copies of this announcement. The ONR reserves the right to fund all, some, or none of the proposals received under this BAA. ONR provides no funding for direct reimbursement of proposal development costs. Technical and cost proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this BAA will not be returned. It is the policy of ONR to treat all proposals submitted under this BAA as sensitive competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation.

Hyperlinks have been embedded within this document and appear as underlined, blue-colored words. The reader may “jump” to the linked section by clicking the hyperlink.

A. Required Overview Content

1. Federal Awarding Agency Name

Office of Naval Research, One Liberty Center 875 N. Randolph Street Arlington, VA 22203-1995

2. Funding Opportunity Title

Advancing Robotic Capability & Usability for Explosive Ordnance Disposal

3. Announcement Type

Initial Announcement

4. Funding Opportunity Number

N0014-18-S-B003

5. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Numbers

12.300 Title: Department of Defense (DOD), Department of the Navy, Office of Chief of Naval Research, Basic and Applied Scientific Research

6. Key Dates (See also Section II.D.2 and 4)

Anticipated Schedule of Events * Event Date

(MM/DD/

YEAR)

Time (Local

Eastern Time)

White Papers Due Date 04/13/2018 3:00 pm Notification of Initial Navy Evaluations of White Papers*

05/11/2018 3:00 pm

Full Proposals Due Date 07/13/2018 3:00 pm Notification of Selection for Award *

08/10/2018 3:00 pm

Awards* 11/05/2018 3:00 pm Kickoff Meeting* 11/14/2018 N/A

These dates are estimates as of the date of this announcement.

7. North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code

The NAICS code for contracts under this announcement is 541715 with a small business size standard of 1,000 employees.

II. DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

A. Program Description

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT FOR THE ACQUISITION OF

TECHNICAL, ENGINEERING AND OTHER TYPES OF SUPPORT

SERVICES

REFER to Appendix 1 for a detailed Program Description.

B. Federal Award Information

1. Eligibility for Competition. Proposals for renewal or supplementation of existing projects are eligible to compete with applications for new Federal awards under this

BAA.

2. Contracted Fundamental Research. With regard to any restrictions on the conduct or outcome of work funded under this BAA, ONR will follow the guidance on and definition of “contracted fundamental research” as provided in the Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics) Memorandum of 24 May 2010.

As defined therein the definition of “contracted fundamental research,” in a DoD contractual context, includes research performed under grants and contracts that are (a) funded by Research, Development, Test and Evaluation Budget Activity 1 (Basic Research), whether performed by universities or industry or (b) funded by Budget Activity 2 (Applied Research) and performed on campus at a university. The research shall not be considered fundamental in those rare and exceptional circumstances where the applied research effort presents a high likelihood of disclosing performance characteristics of military systems or manufacturing technologies that are unique and critical to defense, and where agreement on restrictions have been recorded in the contract or grant.

Pursuant to DoD policy, research performed under grants and contracts that are

a) funded by Budget Activity 2 (Applied Research) and NOT performed on-campus at a university or b) funded by Budget Activity 3 (Advanced Technology Development) does not meet the definition of “contracted fundamental research.” In conformance with the USD (AT&L) guidance and National Security Decision Directive 189, ONR will place no restriction on the conduct or reporting of unclassified “contracted fundamental research,” except as otherwise required by statute, regulation or executive order. For certain research projects, it may be possible that although the research being performed by the prime contractor is restricted research, a subcontractor may be conducting “contracted fundamental research.” In those cases, it is the prime contractor’s responsibility in the proposal to identify and describe the subcontracted unclassified research and include a statement confirming that the work has been scoped, negotiated, and determined to be fundamental research according to the prime contractor and research performer.

Normally, fundamental research is awarded under grants with universities and under contracts with industry. Non-fundamental research is normally awarded under contracts and may require restrictions during the conduct of the research and DoD pre-publication review of such research results due to subject matter sensitivity. Potential offerors should consult with the appropriate ONR Technical POCs to determine whether the proposed effort would constitute basic research, applied research or advanced research.

FAR Part 35 restricts the use of Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs), such as this, to the acquisition of basic and applied research and that portion of advanced technology development not related to the development of a specific system or hardware procurement. Contracts and grants and other assistance agreements made under BAAs are for scientific study and experimentation directed towards advancing the state of the art and increasing knowledge or understanding.

3. Funded Amount and Period of Performance

Estimated Total Amount of Funding Available ($K):

FY 19 FY20 FY 21 FY 22

$2,000 $2,000 $2,000 $2,000

The amount and period of performance of each selected proposal may vary depending on the research area and the technical approach to be pursued by the selected Offeror.

The Office of Naval Research plans to make two (2) to four (4) awards that represent the best value to the Government in accordance with the evaluation criteria. The Office of Naval Research is seeking participants for this program that are capable of supporting the goals described in this announcement. Offerors have the opportunity to be creative in the selection of the technical and management processes and approaches to address the areas of interest described above.

The period of performance of the awards typically ranges from twenty-four (24) months up to thirty-six (36) months. ONR anticipates a total budget of approximately $8,000,000 for the EOD Applied Research program under this BAA.

4. Instrument Type(s) -

Awards may take the form of contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, technology investment agreements, and other transaction agreements, as appropriate.

The following provides brief descriptions of potential instrument types:

a. Procurement Contract: A legal instrument, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6303, which reflects a relationship between the Federal Government and a state government, a local government, or other entity/contractor when the principal purpose of the instrument is to acquire property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government.

b. Assistance Instruments.

i. Grant: A legal instrument consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6304, is used to enter into a relationship:

• The principal purpose of which is to transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law or the United States, rather than to acquire property or services for the Federal Government’s direct benefit or use.

• In which substantial involvement is not expected between the Federal

Government and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the grant.

• No fee or profit is allowed

ii. Cooperative Agreement: A legal instrument which, consistent with 31

U.S.C 6305, is used to enter into the same kind of relationship as a grant, except that substantial involvement is expected between the Federal Government and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the cooperative agreement. No fee or profit is allowed. (For information on the substantial involvement ONR expects to have in cooperative agreements, prospective offerors should contact the Technical Point of Contact identified in the research area of interest.)

iii. Technology Investment Agreement (TIA): Assistance Transaction other than a Grant or a Cooperative Agreement (see 32 CFR Part 37). A legal instrument, consistent with 10 U.S.C. 2371, which may be used when the use of a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement is not feasible or appropriate for basic, applied, and advanced research projects. The research covered under a TIA shall not be duplicative of research being conducted under an existing DoD program. To the maximum extent practicable, TIAs shall provide for a 50/50 cost share between the Government and the applicant. An applicant’s cost share may take the form of cash, independent research and development (IR&D), foregone intellectual property rights, equipment, access to unique facilities, and/or other means. Due to the extent of cost share, and the fact that a TIA does not qualify as a “funding agreement” as defined at 37 CFR 401.2(a), the intellectual property provisions of a TIA can be negotiated to provide expanded protection to an applicant’s intellectual property. No fee or profit is allowed on TIAs.

c. Other Transaction for Prototype (OTA): A legal instrument, consistent with

10 U.S.C. 2371b, which may be used when the use of a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement is not feasible or appropriate for prototype projects directly relevant to enhancing the mission effectiveness of military personnel and the supporting platforms, systems, components, or materials proposed to be acquired or developed by the Department of Defense, or for improvement of platforms, systems, components, or materials in use by the armed forces. The effort covered under an OTA shall not be duplicative of effort being conducted under an existing DoD program (please refer to the DoD “Other Transactions Guide for Prototype Projects” dated January 2017. This document along with other OTA resources may be accessed at the following link:

http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/cpic/cp/10USC2371bOTs.html

5. Model Contracts and Grants-

• Examples of model contracts can be found on the ONR website at the following link: http://www.onr.navy.mil/Contracts-Grants/submit-proposal/contracts-proposal/contract-model-awards.aspx.

• Examples of model grants can be found on the ONR website at the following link: http://www.onr.navy.mil/en/Contracts-Grants/submit-proposal/grants-proposal/model-grant.aspx..

The model contracts and grants at the links above are only provided as examples. In the event of any conflict between these examples and current FAR, DFARS, NMCARS, or ONR clauses, current FAR, DFARS, NMCARS, or ONR clauses will govern.

6. Assistance Instruments

Any assistance instrument awarded under this announcement will be governed by the award terms and conditions that conform to DoD’s implementation of OMB circulars applicable to financial assistance. Terms and conditions of new awards made after December 26, 2014, will include revisions to reflect DoD implementation of new OMB guidance in 2 CFR Part 200, “Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.” The DoD Terms and Conditions are located at http://www.onr.navy.mil/Contracts-Grants/submit-proposal/grants-proposal/grants-terms-conditions.aspx.

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants

a. All responsible sources from academia, industry and the research community may submit proposals under this BAA. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority Institutions (MIs) are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals. However, no portion of this BAA will be set http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/cpic/cp/10USC2371bOTs.html aside for Small Business or other socio-economic participation. All businesses both small and large are encouraged to submit proposals and compete for funding consideration.

b. Federally Funded Research & Development Centers (FFRDCs), including Department of Energy National Laboratories, are not eligible to receive awards under this BAA. However, teaming arrangements between FFRDCs and eligible principal Offerors are allowed so long as such arrangements are permitted under the sponsoring agreement between the Government and the specific FFRDC.

c. Navy laboratories, military universities and warfare centers as well as other Department of Defense and civilian agency laboratories are also not eligible to receive awards under this BAA and should not directly submit either white papers or full proposals in response to this BAA. If any such organization is interested in one or more of the programs described herein, the organization should contact an appropriate ONR Technical POC to discuss its area of interest. The various scientific divisions of ONR are identified at http://www.onr.navy.mil/. As with FFRDCs, these types of federal organizations may team with other eligible sources from academia and industry that are submitting proposals under this BAA.

d. University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs) are eligible to submit proposals under this BAA unless precluded from doing so by their Department of Defense UARC contract.

e. Teams are also encouraged and may submit proposals in any and all areas.

However, Offerors must be willing to cooperate and exchange software, data and other information in an integrated program with other contractors, as well as with system integrators, selected by ONR.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching - Cost sharing is not expected and will not be used as a factor during the merit review of any proposal hereunder. However, the Government may consider voluntary cost sharing if proposed.

D. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request (Access) Application Package - This BAA may be accessed from the sites below. Amendments, if any, to this BAA will be posted to these websites when they occur. Interested parties are encouraged to periodically check these websites for updates and amendments.

a. Grants.gov (www.grants.gov)

b. FedBizOpps (www.fbo.gov)

c. ONR website http://www.onr.mil http://www.onr.navy.mil/ http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.fbo.gov/ http://www.onr.mil/

2. Content and Form of Application Submission

a. General Information

White Papers: The due date for white papers is no later than 3:00 PM Local Eastern Time on Friday, 13 April 2018. White papers are to be submitted as a pdf file via electronic mail (email) only to brian.almquist@navy.mil . If an Offeror does not submit a white paper before the specified due date and time, it is not eligible to participate in the remaining Full Proposal submission process and is not eligible for funding. Each white paper should state that it is submitted in response to this BAA and cite the particular sub-section of the Research Opportunity Description that the white paper is primarily addressing.

White Paper Evaluation/Notification: Navy evaluations of the white papers will be issued via email notification on or about Friday, 11 May 2018.

Full Proposals: The due date for receipt of Full Proposals is 3:00 PM (EDT) on Friday, 13 July 2018. It is anticipated that final selections will be made within four

(4) weeks after full proposal submission. As soon as the final full proposal evaluation process is completed, PI’s will be notified via email of their project’s selection or non-selection for FY19 funding. Full proposals received after the published due date and time will not be considered for funding in FY19.

All proposal submissions will be protected from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with FAR Subpart 15.207, applicable law, and DoD/DoN regulations. Offerors are expected to appropriately mark each page of their submission that contains proprietary information.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Titles given to the White Papers/Full Proposals should be descriptive of the work they cover and not be merely a copy of the title of this solicitation.

b. Submission of Unclassified and Classified Proposals

• White Papers and Full Proposals submitted under this BAA are expected to be unclassified; however, classified proposals are permitted. If a classified proposal is submitted and selected for award, the resultant contract will be unclassified. An ‘unclassified’ Statement of Work (SOW) must accompany any classified proposal.

• Unclassified Proposal Instructions: Unclassified proposals shall be submitted in accordance with this Section.

• Special Instructions for Classified White Papers and Proposal: Classified proposals shall be submitted directly to the attention of ONR’s Document Control Unit at the following address and marked in the following manner:

mailto:brian.almquist@navy.mil

OUTSIDE ENVELOPE - (no classification marking):

“Office of Naval Research Attn: Document Control Unit ONR Code 43 875 North Randolph Street Arlington, VA 22203-1995”

The inner wrapper of the classified White Paper and/or Full Proposal should be addressed to the attention of the cognizant TPOC, ONR Code XX and marked in the following manner:

INNER ENVELOPE - (stamped with the overall classification of the material)

“Program Name:

Office of Naval Research ATTN: Dr. Brian Almquist ONR Code: 321OE 875 North Randolph Street Arlington, VA 22203-1995”

• For both classified and unclassified proposals, a non-proprietary version of the Statement of Work must also be submitted. Do not put proprietary data or markings in or on the Statement of Work. For proposals containing data that the offeror does not want disclosed to the public for any purpose, or used by the Government except for evaluation purposes, the contractor shall mark the title page with the following legend:

“This proposal includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the Government and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed--in whole or in part--for any purpose other than to evaluate the proposal. If, however, a contract is awarded to this offeror as a result of--or in connection with-- the submission of this data, the Government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent provided in the resulting contract. This restriction does not limit the Government’s right to use information contained in this data if is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this restriction are contained in (insert numbers or other identification of sheets).”

• Each sheet of data that the offeror wishes to restrict must be marked with the following legend:

“Use or disclosure of data contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this proposal.”

c. White Paper Requirements.

i. White Paper Format

• Paper Size – 8.5 x 11 inch paper

• Margins – 1 inch

• Spacing –single-spaced

• Font – Times New Roman, 12 point

• Page limit– 7 pages.

ii. White Paper Submission. When e-mail submission is required (per the instructions below), the white paper must be a Microsoft Word 2010 compatible, or PDF format attachment to the email. There is an email size limit of 5MB per email.

• For ONR Only: Electronic (email) submissions should be sent to the attention of the TPOC at: brian.almquist@navy.mil The subject line of the email shall read: “N00014-18-S-B003” White Paper Submission”. Do not send ZIP files. Password protected files are discouraged.

iii. White Paper Content: White papers shall include the following:

FOR ALL WHITE PAPERS

• Cover Page: The Cover Page shall be labeled “WHITE PAPER” and shall include the BAA Number N00014-18-S-B003, proposed title, technical points of contact, telephone number, facsimile number, and E-mail address.

• Technical Concept: A description of the technology innovation and technical risk areas.

FOR BASIC RESEARCH

• Future Naval Relevance (where applicable) – A description of potential Naval relevance and contributions of the effort to the agency’s specific mission.

• Rough Order of Magnitude cost estimate.

FOR APPLIED RESEARCH AND ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY

DEVELOPMENT

• Operational Naval Concept (where applicable) – A description of the project objectives, the concept of operation for the new capabilities to be delivered, and the expected operational performance improvements.

• Operational Utility Assessment Plan (where applicable) – A plan for demonstrating and evaluating the operational effectiveness of the Offeror’s proposed products or processes in field experiments and/or tests in a simulated environment.

• Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate.

d. Full Proposals: (See Appendices 2 and 3 for instructions.)

i. Instructions for Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and TIA’s. (See Appendix 2)

ii. Instructions for Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements. (See Appendix 3)

3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) - All offerors submitting proposals or applications must:

a. Be registered in the SAM prior to submission;

b. Maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an application under consideration by any agency; and

c. Provide its DUNS number in each application or proposal it submits to the agency.

SAM may be accessed at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM

4. Submission Dates and Times -

(See Section I, paragraph A.6, Key Dates, for information)

Submission of Late Proposals (Applicable to White Papers and Full Proposals)

Any white paper, proposal, modification, or revision, that is received at the designated Government office after the exact time specified for receipt of proposals is “late” and will not be considered unless it is received before award is made, the contracting officer determines that accepting the late proposal would not unduly delay the acquisition and

(a) If it was transmitted through an electronic commerce method authorized by the announcement, it was received at the initial point of entry to the Government infrastructure not later than 5:00 p.m. one working day prior to the date specified for receipt of proposals; or

(b) There is acceptable evidence to establish that it was received at the Government installation designated for receipt of proposals and was under the Government’s control prior to the time set for receipt of proposals; or

(c) It was the only proposal received.

However, a late modification of an otherwise timely and successful proposal that makes its terms more favorable to the Government will be considered at any time it is received and may be accepted.

Acceptable evidence to establish the time or receipt at the Government installation includes the time/date stamp of that installation on the proposal wrapper, other documentary evidence of receipt maintained by the installation, or oral testimony or statements of Government personnel.

If an emergency or unanticipated event interrupts normal Government processes so that proposals cannot be received at the Government office designated for receipt of proposals by the exact time specified in the announcement, and urgent Government requirements preclude amendment of the announcement closing date, the time specified for receipt of proposals will be deemed to be extend to the same time of day specified in the announcement on the first work day on which normal Government processes resume.

The contracting officer must promptly notify any offeror if its proposal, modifications, or revision was received late and must inform the offeror whether its proposal will be considered

5. Other Submission Requirements

a. Grant, Cooperative Agreement, and TIA Proposals shall be submitted through Grants.gov . (See Appendix 2.)

b. Submission of Full Proposals for Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements

For ONR, full proposals should be submitted as follows:

Hard Copy:

Office of Naval Research ATTN: Dr. Brian Almquist ONR Code: 321OE 875 North Randolph Street

Electronic Submission:

Submit to the Program Officer, Code 321OE, at: brian.almquist@navy.mil

E. Application Review Information

1. Criteria

Awards under this BAA will be made in accordance with FAR 35.016(e) or 2 C.F.R

200. The primary basis for selecting proposals for acceptance will be technical merit, importance to agency programs, and fund availability. To the extent appropriate, cost realism and reasonableness will also be considered when selecting proposals. ONR reserves the right to request and require any additional information and documentation after it makes the type of award instrument determination. ONR reserves the right to remove Offerors from award consideration when the parties fail to reach agreement on award terms, conditions, and cost/price within a reasonable time, or when the Offeror fails to timely provide requested or required additional information.

Offerors’ proposals will be evaluated against the following criteria:

1) Overall scientific and technical merits of the proposal and responsiveness to the topic, i.e., the degree of innovation, soundness of technical concept, Offeror's awareness of the state of the art and understanding of the scope of the problem, significance and originality of the technical approach and effort needed to address/solve the problem, and anticipated scientific impact within the field. The following areas will also be considered: (1) the Offeror’s capabilities, related experience, facilities, techniques or unique combinations of these which are integral factors for achieving the proposal objectives, and (2) the qualifications, capabilities and experience of the proposed Principal Investigator (PI), team leader and key personnel who are critical to achieving the proposal objectives.

2) Potential Naval relevance and contribution to the ONR and Department of Navy mission.

3) The availability of funds.

Criteria 1, 2, and 3 are equally important.

In addition, ONR highly encourages partnering among industry and academia and industry and Government with a view toward speeding the incorporation of new science and technology into fielded systems. Proposals that utilize industry-academic or industry-Government partnering which enhances the development of novel S&T advances, although not mandatory, are desired and will receive favorable consideration.

2. Review and Selection Process

a. Proposals. Proposals will not be evaluated against each other since they are not submitted in accordance with a common work statement. ONR’s intent is to review proposals as soon as possible after they arrive; however, proposals may be reviewed periodically for administrative reasons.

The ultimate recommendation for award of proposals is made by ONR's scientific/technical community. Recommended proposals will then be forwarded to the ONR Contracts and Grant Awards Management office. Any notification received from ONR that indicates that the Offeror's full proposal has been recommended does not ultimately guarantee an award will be made. This notice indicates that the proposal has been selected in accordance with the evaluation criteria stated above and has been sent to the Contracting Department to conduct cost analysis, determine the offeror's responsibility, to confirm whether funds are available, and to take other relevant steps necessary prior to commencing negotiations with the offeror.

b. Commitment to Small Business- (For Contract Awards Only)

The Office of Naval Research is strongly committed to providing meaningful prime and subcontracting opportunities for small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses (SDBs), woman-owned small businesses (WOSBs), historically underutilized business zone (HUBZone) small businesses, veteran-owned small business (VOSBs), service disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs), historically black colleges and universities, and minority institutions, and other concerns subject to socioeconomic considerations through its awards.

Businesses unfamiliar with doing business with the government and that require assistance may contact the state-specific Department of Defense (DoD) Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC). DoD PTACs serve as a resource for businesses pursuing and performing under contracts with DoD, other federal agencies, state and local governments and with government prime contractors. Assistance provided by the PTACs is usually free of charge. PTAC support includes registration in systems such as SAM, identification of contract opportunities, understanding requirements and preparing and submitting proposals.

The PTACs have a presence in each state, Puerto Rico and Guam.

To locate a local PTAC visit:

http://www.dla.mil/SmallBusiness/Pages/ProcurementTechnicalAssistanceCenters.

aspx or http://www.aptac-us.org/new/ .

1) Subcontracting Plan - For proposed contract awards exceeding $700,000, large businesses and non-profits (including educational institutions) shall provide a Subcontracting Plan (hereafter known as ‘the Plan’) that contains all elements required by FAR 19.704, FAR 52.219-9 (DEVIATION 2016-O0009 ALT III) and as supplemented by DFARS 252.219-7003 (DEVIATION 2016-O0009).

http://www.dla.mil/SmallBusiness/Pages/ProcurementTechnicalAssistanceCenters.aspx http://www.dla.mil/SmallBusiness/Pages/ProcurementTechnicalAssistanceCenters.aspx http://www.aptac-us.org/new/

NOTE: Small businesses are exempt from this requirement to submit a subcontracting plan.

The Plan must be submitted as an attachment to the “Proposal Checklist” and will not be included in the page count. If a company has a Master Subcontracting Plan, as described in FAR 19.701 or a Comprehensive Subcontracting Plan, as described in DFARS 219.702, a copy of the Plan shall also be submitted as an attachment to the “Proposal Checklist”.

Plans will be reviewed for adequacy, ensuring that the required information, goals, and assurances are included. FAR 19.702 requires an apparent successful offeror to submit an acceptable Plan. If the apparent successful offeror fails to negotiate a Plan acceptable to the contracting officer within the time limit prescribed by the contracting officer, the offeror will be ineligible for award.

Offerors shall propose a plan that ensures small businesses (inclusive of SDBs, WOSBs, HUBZone, VOSBs and SDVOSBs) will have the maximum practicable opportunity to participate in contract performance consistent with efficient performance.

As a baseline, Offerors shall, to the best extent possible, propose realistic goals to ensure small business participation in accordance with the current or most recent fiscal year subcontracting goals found on the DoD Office of Small Business Program website at: http://www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/. If proposed goals are below the statutory requirements, then the offeror shall include in the Plan a viable written explanation as to why small businesses are unable to be utilized and what attempts were taken to ensure that small business were given the opportunity to participate in the effort to the maximum extent practicable.

2) Small Business Participation Statement –

If subcontracting opportunities exist, all prime Offerors shall submit a Small Business Participation Statement regardless of size in accordance with DFARS

215.304 when receiving a contract for more than the simplified acquisition threshold (i.e., $150,000). All offerors shall provide a statement of the extent of the offeror’s commitment in providing meaningful subcontracting opportunities for small businesses and other concerns subject to socioeconomic considerations through its awards and must agree that small businesses, VOSBs, SDVOSBs, HUBZones, SDBs, and WOSBs concerns will have the maximum practicable opportunity to participate in contract performance consistent with efficient performance.

This assertion will be reviewed to ensure that it supports this policy by providing meaningful subcontracting opportunities. The statement should be submitted as an attachment to the “Proposal Checklist” and will not be included in the page count.

http://www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/

3) Subcontracting Resources -

Subcontracting to a prime contractor can be a good way to participate in the contracting process. The following is a list of potential resources that may assist in locating potential subcontracting partners/opportunities/resources:

*Companies Participating in DoD Subcontracting Program Report *DAU Small Business Community of Practice (SB COP) *DefenseLink ≥ $7.0 M Award Notices *DoD OSBP Prime Contractors and Subcontractors with Subcontracting Plans *Dynamic Small Business Search *Electronic Subcontracting Reporting System (eSRS) *Federal Business Opportunities (FEDBIZOPPS) *Navy SBIR/STTR Search – Website or Brochure *DoD Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTAC) *Small Business Administration (SBA) Subcontracting Opportunities Directory *SBA Subnet

For a description and associated websites visit the ONR Office of Small Business webpage at:

http://www.onr.navy.mil/Contracts-Grants/small-business.aspx.

In accordance with FAR 5.206, the following entities may transmit a notice to the Government-wide Point of Entry (GPE) at www.fedbizops.com to seek competition for subcontracts, to increase participation by qualified small businesses, VOSBs, SDVOSBs, HUBZones, SDBs, and WOSBs, and to meet established subcontracting plan goal as follows:

(a) A contractor awarded a contract exceeding $150,000 that is likely to result in the award of any subcontracts;

(b) A subcontractor or supplier, at any tier, under a contract exceeding

$150,000, which has a subcontracting opportunity exceeding $15,000.

The notices must describe:

(a) The business opportunity;

(b) Any prequalification requirements; and

(c) Where to obtain technical data needed to respond to the requirement.

An example of a place in which prime contractors may post solicitations or sources sought notices for small business is the SBA SUB-Net.. The SUB-Net database provides a listing of subcontracting solicitations and opportunities posted by large prime contractors and other non-federal organizations.

c. Options

The Government will evaluate options for award purposes by adding the total cost for all options to the total cost for the basic requirement. Evaluation of options will http://www.onr.navy.mil/Contracts-Grants/small-business.aspx http://www.fedbizops.com/ not obligate the Government to exercise the options during contract or grant performance.

d. Evaluation Panel

Technical and cost proposals submitted under this BAA will be protected from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with FAR 3.104-4 and 15.207. The cognizant Program Officer and other Government scientific experts will perform the evaluation of technical proposals. Restrictive notices notwithstanding, one or more support contractors may be utilized as subject- matter-expert technical consultants.

However, proposal selection and award decisions are solely the responsibility of Government personnel. Each support contractor’s employee having access to technical and cost proposals submitted in response to this BAA will be required to sign the ONR Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) for Contractor Support prior to receipt of any proposal submissions. This NDA includes third-party beneficiary language giving the submitter of proprietary information a right of direct action against the contractor employee and/or his/her employer in the event that the NDA is violated.

3. Recipient Qualifications

a. Applicable to Grants, Cooperative Agreements and TIAs

(See Appendix 2.)

b. Applicable to Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements

(See Appendix 3.)

F. Federal Award Administration Information

1. Federal Award Notices

a. Applicants whose proposals are recommended for award may be contacted by a

Contract or Grant specialist to discuss additional information required for award. This may include representations and certifications, revised budgets or budget explanations, certificate of current cost or pricing data, subcontracting plan for small businesses, and/or other information as applicable to the proposed award.

The notification e-mail must not be regarded as an authorization to commit or expend funds. The Government is not obligated to provide any funding until a Government Contracting Officer or Grants Officer, as applicable, signs the award document.

The award document signed by the Contracting Officer or Grants Officer is the official and authorizing award instrument.

b. Office of Naval Research (ONR) award/modification documents are only available via the Department of Defense (DoD) Electronic Document Access System (EDA) within the Wide Area WorkFlow e-Business Suite (https://wawf.eb.mil/).

EDA is a Web-based system that provides secure online access, storage and retrieval of awards and modifications to DoD employees and vendors.

ONR creates an award notification profile for every award.

For grants, the notification profile will use the email addresses from the Application for

Federal Assistance, SF424, to notify the recipient of an award. ONR recommends that organizations provide a global business address for their entity in Field 5 (Application Information) of the SF424. ONR is using the following three email addresses entered by the grantee on the SF424 application to create the EDA notification profile:

i. Applicant Information (Field 5 - Email)

ii. Project Director / Principal Investigator (Field 14 - Email)

iii. Authorized Representative (Field 19 - Email)

For all other awards, the notification profile will use the email address from the Business

Point of Contact to notify the recipient of an award.

IMPORTANT: In some cases, EDA notifications are appearing in recipients' Junk Email folder.

If you are experiencing issues receiving EDA notifications, please check your junk email. If found, please mark EDA notifications as "not junk."

If you do not currently have access to EDA, you may complete a self-registration request as a “Vendor” via https://wawf.eb.mil/ following the steps below:

1. Click "Accept"

2. Click "Register" (top right)

3. Click "Agree"

4. In the "What type of user are you?" drop down, select "Vendor"

5. Select the systems you would like to access (iRAPT at a minimum)

6. Complete the User Profile and follow the site instructions

Allow five business days for your registration to be processed. EDA will notify you by email when your account is approved.

To access awards after your registration has been approved, log into https://wawf.eb.mil/, select "EDA", select either EDA location, Select "Contracts", select your search preference, enter the Contract Number (or, if applicable, enter the Grant Number in the Contract Number field), and select "View".

Registration questions may be directed to the EDA help desk toll free at 866-618-5988, commercial at 801-605-7095, or via email at disa.ogden.esd.mbx.cscassig@mail.mil (Subject:

EDA Assistance).

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

a. Applicable to All

i. Offerors should be aware of recent changes in export control laws. Offerors are responsible for ensuring compliance with all U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR)( 22 CFR Parts 120 - 130) and Export Administration Regulation (EAR) (15 CFR Parts 730 – 774), as applicable. In some cases, developmental items funded by the Department of Defense are now included on the United States Munition List (USML) (22 CFR Part 121) and are therefore subject to ITAR jurisdiction.

In other cases, items that were previously included on the USML have been moved to the EAR Commerce Control List (CCL). Offerors should address in their proposals whether ITAR or EAR restrictions apply to the work they are proposing to perform for ONR. The ITAR and EAR are available online at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/ECFR?page=browse. Additional information regarding the President's Export Control Reform Initiative can be found at http://export.gov/ecr/index.asp.

Offerors must comply with all U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the

ITAR and EAR, in the performance of any award or agreement resulting from this BAA.

Offerors shall be responsible for obtaining any required licenses or other approvals, or license exemptions or exceptions if applicable, for exports of hardware, technical data, and software (including deemed exports), or for the provision of technical assistance.

ii. Security Classification:

In order to facilitate intra-program collaboration and technology transfer, the Government will attempt to enable technology developers to work at the unclassified level to the maximum extent possible. If access to classified material will be required at any point during performance, the Offeror must clearly identify such need in Section II, Block 11 of the Proposal Checklist . The Proposal Checklist can be found at https://www.onr.navy.mil/Contracts-Grants/submit-proposal/contracts-proposal/cost-proposal.

If it is determined that access to classified information will be required during the performance of an award, a Department of Defense (DD) Form 254 will be attached to the contract, and FAR 52.204-2 - Security Requirements will be incorporated into the contract.

ONR does not provide access to classified material under grants.

iii. Requirements Concerning Live Organisms:

(1) Use of Animals: If animals are to be utilized in the research effort proposed, the Offeror must submit a Full Appendix or Abbreviated Appendix with supporting documentation (copies of Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) Approval, IACUC Approved Protocol, and most recent United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Inspection Report) prior to award. For assistance with submission of animal research related documentation, contact the ONR Animal Use Administrator at (703) 696-4046. Guidance:

https://www.onr.navy.mil/About-ONR/compliance-protections/Research-Protections/animal-use

(2) Use of Human Subjects in Research:

(a) You must protect the rights and welfare of individuals who participate as human subjects in research under this award and comply with the requirements of the Common Rule at 32 CFR part 219 and applicable provisions of DoD Instruction 3216.02, Protection of Human Subjects and Adherence to Ethical Standards in DoD-Supported Research (2011), the DON implementation of the human research protection program contained in SECNAVINST 3900.39D (or its replacement), 10 USC 980 “Limitation on Use of Humans as Experimental Subjects,” and when applicable, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other federal and state law and regulations.

(b) For proposals containing activities that include or may include “research involving human subjects” as defined in DoDI 3216.02, prior to award, the Offeror must submit documentation of:

(i) Approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) (IRB-approved research protocol, IRB- approved informed consent document, and other material they considered);

proof of completed human research training (e.g., training certificate or institutional verification of training for the principal investigator, co-investigators); and the Offeror’s Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)-issued Federal wide Assurance (FWA#),

(ii) Any claimed exemption under 32 CFR 219 101(b), including the category of exemption, supporting documentation considered by your institution in making the determination (e.g., protocol, data collection tools, advertisements, etc.). The documentation shall include a short rationale supporting the exemption determination. This documentation should be signed by the IRB Chair or IRB vice Chair, designated IRB administrator or official of the human research protection program.

(iii) Any determinations that the proposal does not contain activities that constitute research involving human subjects, including supporting documentation considered by your institution in making the determination. This documentation should be issued by the IRB Chair or IRB vice Chair, designated IRB administrator or official of the human research protection program.

(c) Documentation must be submitted to the ONR Human Research Protection

Official (HRPO), by way of the ONR Program Officer. If the research is determined by the IRB to be greater than minimal risk, you also must provide the name and contact information for the independent research monitor and a written summary of the monitors’ duties, authorities, and responsibilities as approved by the IRB. For assistance with submission of human subject research related documentation, contact the ONR Human Research Protection Official (HRPO) at (703) 696-4046.

(d) Contracts, orders, or grant awards and any subawards or modifications will include a statement indicating successful completion of the HRPO review. Research involving human subjects must not be commenced under any contract award or modification or any subcontract or grant subaward or modification until awardee receives notification from the Contracting or Grants Officer that the HRPO has approved the assurance as appropriate for the research under the award or modification and that the HRPO has reviewed the protocol and accepted the IRB approval or determination for compliance with Federal, DoD and DON research protection requirements. See, DFARS 252.235-7004. Guidance:

http://www.onr.navy.mil/About-ONR/compliance-protections/Research-Protections/Human- Subject-Research.aspx

iv. Use of Recombinant DNA or Synthetic Nucleic Acid Molecules: Proposals which call for experiments using recombinant or synthetic nucleic acid molecules must include documentation of compliance with NIH Guidelines for Research Involving Recombinant or Synthetic Nucleic Acid Molecules (NIH Guidelines), approval of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC), and copies of the DHHS Approval of the IBC letter. Guidance: https://www.onr.navy.mil/About- ONR/compliance-protections/Research-Protections/recombinant-or-synthetic-nucleic-acid-molecules

v. Institutional Dual Use Research of Concern: As of September 24, 2015, all institutions and United States Government (USG) funding agencies subject to the United States Government Policy for Institutional Oversight of Life Sciences Dual Use Research of Concern must comply with all the requirements listed therein. If your research proposal directly involves certain biological agents or toxins, contact the cognizant Technical Point of Contact. U.S. Government Science, Safety, Security (S3) guidance may be found at http://www.phe.gov/s3/dualuse.

vi. Department of Defense High Performance Computing Program: The DoD High Performance Computing Program (HPCMP) furnishes the DoD S&T and RDT&E communities with use-access to very powerful high performance computing systems. Awardees of ONR contracts, grants, and other assistance instruments may be eligible to use HPCMP assets in support of their funded activities if ONR Program Officer approval is obtained and if security/screening requirements are favorably completed. Additional information and an application may be found at http://www.hpcmo.hpc.mil/.

vii. Project Meetings and Reviews: Individual program reviews between the ONR sponsor and the performer may be held as necessary. Program status reviews may also be held to provide a forum for reviews of the latest results from experiments and any other incremental progress towards the major demonstrations. These meetings will be held at various sites throughout the country. For costing purposes, offerors should assume that 40% of these meetings will be at or near ONR, Arlington VA and 60% at other locations such as the contractor/grantee’s facility, other contractor’ facility or government facilities. (This statement does not apply to international offerors submitting proposals to ONRG. International offerors should contact the cognizant ONRG Administrative Director (AD) for guidance prior to submitting a proposal.)

Interim meetings are likely, but…