REQUEST FOR INFORMATION.pdf

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION/SOURCES SOUGHT (RFI/SS)

Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC)

ISR/Processing Exploitation and Dissemination (PED 4) AFICC/765 ESF, Hurlburt Field, Florida

24 Sep 2020

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION/SOURCES SOUGHT (RFI/SS) FOR PLANNING

PURPOSES ONLY. THIS REQUEST IS NOT A SOLICITATION. THERE IS NO

SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. REQUESTS FOR A SOLICITATION WILL

NOT RECEIVE A RESPONSE.

This RFI is being issued to small business contractors for the purpose of developing a potential viable solicitation which will best communicate the Government's requirements to industry. Response to this RFI is strictly voluntary and will not affect any Contractor's ability to submit an offer if, or when, a solicitation is released. However, we highly encourage your firm to respond. The subject RFI is for planning purposes only and does not constitute a commitment, implied or otherwise, that a procurement action will be issued. There is no entitlement to payment by the Government of direct or indirect costs or charges that arise as a result of the submission of information in response to this RFI.

The Government shall not be liable for, or suffer any consequential damages for any improperly identified proprietary information. Proprietary information will be safeguarded in accordance with the applicable Government regulations. Additionally, this notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract, nor does it obligate the Government to pay for any bid and/or proposal preparation costs.

Respondents to this RFI may be requested to provide additional clarification information/details based on their initial submission. All responses must be submitted electronically via email to the points of contact listed in the “DUE DATE FOR RESPONSES” section below.

GENERAL AND PROJET INFORMATION: Air Force Installations Contracting Center, 765th Enterprise Sourcing Flight (AFICC/765 ESF), is located at Hurlburt Field, FL which supports HQ AFSOC at Hurlburt Field, FL. This action is to conduct market research and identify potential offerors and industry interest in the effort as described herein. All interested and qualified sources are encouraged to respond electronically with questions and suggestions for the Government in order to mitigate risk if a requirement was to materialize. This RFI/SS does not constitute an invitation for bid, request for proposals (RFP), or request for quote (RFQ), nor does the issuance restrict the Government’s acquisition approach. Potential companies shall not consider this request as an obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services nor as authority for the Government to enter into negotiations. Any information received is considered market research and may be utilized by the Air Force (AF) in developing its Acquisition Strategy, Performance Work Statement (PWS) and performance specifications and metrics.

This market research will be used to assess the availability and adequacy of potential business sources prior to issuing an RFP. The Government will not respond to or conduct formal debriefings to businesses as a part of this RFI/SS. The Government will not reimburse respondents for any costs associated with submission of the information being requested or reimburse expenses incurred to interested parties for responses to this RFI/SS.

DESCRIPTION: 765 ESF supporting HQ AFSOC at Hurlburt Field, Florida is conducting market research for the procurement of on-site professional advisory and assistance services supporting Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and Processing, Exploitation and Dissemination for the HQ Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), ISR Directorate (AFSOC A2).

An RFI/SS was previously submitted to all Government Services Administration (GSA) One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) Small Business Pool 1 contract holders on 30 Dec 2019.

A formal acquisition strategy has not yet been approved, however the Government anticipates setting aside a requirement to award a Single Award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for ISR PED 4 services. The Government also anticipates setting the requirement aside for Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses only. The request for comments/questions on the current requirements does not restrict the Government as to the ultimate acquisition approach.

The anticipated, applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 541990, All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services. The FSC of R423 Intelligence Services is anticipated.

The tentative release date of a RFP is on or about 7 Jan 2021. The anticipated start date for the contract period of performance is on or about 16 Jun 2021.

INTRODUCTION: The intent of this notice is twofold: 1. This is an announcement seeking market information on vendors capable of providing the service requested as described herein. 2. This notice seeks industry feedback related to the Draft PWS for a basic IDIQ contract for ISR/PED services.

The information requested by this sources sought notice will be used within the Air Force to facilitate decision making and will not be disclosed outside the agency.

AFSOC has a continuing need for ISR/PED Support in CONUS and possibly OCONUS locations. The bulk of the requirements will be performed at Hurlburt Field, FL, with the possibility of deployed OCONUS locations. The contractor shall support planning and integration of new and existing intelligence collection, exploitation, reporting, dissemination, and evaluation capabilities into AFSOC SOF GEOINT processing, exploitation and dissemination (PED) (SGIP)/intelligence units and shall provide implementation of these warfighting capabilities through direct support to AFSOC. This includes integration of data from intelligence collection, fusion, correlation, and dissemination systems related to UAS-RPA, manned, satellite systems, and surface/ground collection platforms, conducting ISR operations. The contractor shall provide support for programmatic/unit functions that support intelligence operations, standards and evaluation, unit support functions, and systems security & sustainment activities. The contractor shall be responsible for data collection, reduction, first level analysis, design, plus engineering and integration of simulations and modeling to support evaluation of potential threats, doctrine and requirements, technologies, and defense system interface architectures.

The spectrum of conflict in the simulations may range from peacetime readiness to full-scale warfare, and the scenarios may range from conflict in Central Europe to any number of Third World countries.

The contractor shall integrate mission-critical computer resources and representative hardware elements of existing and emerging technologies, cyberspace, weapon systems, aircraft, missiles, national and theater sensor, planning/fusion capabilities, command, control, and communications and the associated doctrine, both U.S. and foreign. The contractor shall support targeting, information operations, deliberate and crisis action planning, and 24/7/365 operations. See draft PWS for further information.

CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS: The Facility Clearance Level (FCL) required for this requirement is Top Secret.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) as defined and discussed in Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Subpart 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 acquisition 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, prior to contract award with minimal impact to critical acquisition schedules.

Interested vendors are requested to evaluate any potential OCI issues with regard to this possible requirement for the described services, and the vendor shall self-identify any OCI issues, as stated in FAR Subpart 9.5 to the Contracting Officer (CO). This will assist the CO in determining if the vendor will need to submit an OCI Mitigation Plan for any solicitation that might result from this notice.

SUBMISSION DETAILS: Capability package responses shall include the business’ interest, qualification information, and past performance experience. The packages must clearly present evidence that the interested party is fully capable of meeting the required services as described in the Scope of Services section of this RFI/SS. Company brochures will not be considered adequate responses.

As this is a RFI/SS 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 such restricted or proprietary data. The Capability Statement should include, at a minimum, the following elements in this format:

1. Prospective Business Identification

a. Company Name and Cage Code

b. Address

c. Phone Number

d. E-mail

e. Point of Contact Information

f. Website address providing additional information about the prospective business

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

h. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this effort is: 541990, All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services with a size standard of $16.5M.

Identify your company size as: Small, Small disadvantaged, 8a, Woman-owned Small Business (WOSB), Economically Disadvantaged Woman-owned Small Business (EDWOSB), Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB), Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), and/or HUB Zone Business (HBCU/MI) in accordance with this NAICS and size standard.

i. Identify average annual revenue for the past 3 years and number of employees.

2. Describe your relevant capability to provide Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and Processing, Exploitation and Dissemination Services in accordance with the draft PWS. Include a brief history of the prospective business, its experience and innovative approaches in providing the services relevant to the PWS requirements.

3. In terms of evaluating a company for this effort, what evaluation criteria would differentiate companies' capabilities? Additionally, responses should include the suggested order of importance of evaluation criteria from most to least critical. Explain your rationale in detail.

4. If your firm were to put together a proposal for an effort of this magnitude, what would you provide that best demonstrates your company's experience and performance?

5. What page limitations would be adequate for a technical proposal for a potential effort of this nature?

6. What would be an adequate transition period to mobilize and be able to fully perform on the start date of performance?

DUE DATE FOR RESPONSES: Questions regarding this RFI/SS and the attached draft PWS shall be directed to the individuals listed below. Capability package responses are due no later than 2:00 P.M.

Central Standard Time (CST), 2 Oct 2020. Responses shall be sent to the Government electronically to both Ashley.Williams.85@us.af.mil and shawn.edwards.14@us.af.mil. Late responses may not be reviewed, and responses to this RFI/SS will not be returned. When responding to the RFI/SS, please populate the subject line with: HQ AFSOC, ISR/PED 4, RFI/SS.

AGAIN, THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION/SOURCES SOUGHT (RFI/SS) ONLY.

THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. REQUESTS FOR A

SOLICITATION WILL NOT RECEIVE A RESPONSE. This notice is intended for market research and informational purposes only, and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government, nor will the Government pay for the information submitted in responses. Respondents will not be notified of the results. All questions and/or suggestions will be considered in any potential requirement.

Attachment:1. DRAFT Performance Work Statement (PWS)