RFI_DEFEND Software System_Final.pdf

WASHINGTON HEADQUARTERS SERVICES

ACQUISITION DIRECTORATE

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY

Title: DEFEND - Department of Defense End-to-End Framework for Enhanced Innovative Capability Development Software System RFI Post Date: Thursday, 19 September 2024 RFI Response Date: Friday, 4 October 2024 at 12:00 pm (Eastern Daylight Time) NAICS: 541990 All other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services.

Product Service Code: DA10 IT and Telecom Business Application/Application Development Software

1.0 REQUEST FOR INFORMATION NOTICE

To facilitate market research, the Government is seeking information under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 541990 All other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services. This notice seeks information from industry to assist the Government in its market research.

The Government is interested in getting a response from “all” interested concerns. Small business concerns are encouraged to submit a response: 8(a) Certified concerns, Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) concerns, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs), and Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs) are encouraged to respond to this notice. Small businesses are defined based on the size standard associated with the NAICS code. For more information, visit: https://www.sba.gov/document/support-table-size-standards, and check your size using the SBA Size Standards Tool: https://www.sba.gov/size-standards/index.html.

This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall NOT be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the Government. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in the response. The Government will not reimburse respondents for any costs incurred in the preparation of a response to this Notice. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by firms for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate.

2.0 BACKGROUND

The Department of Defense Instruction 5000.88 Engineering of Defense Systems references analytic products implicitly produced using an integrated digital engineering architecture that does not exist. Throughout the Department of Defense, an array of models, simulations, and semi-integrated environments as well as model and/or simulation confederations exist, but they are all disparate with often clumsy methods for data exchanges and the barest means of interoperability (e.g., application programming interfaces or APIs are rare, making flat file transfers frequent). This mismatch between policy prescriptions and incompletely enabled execution represents a capability gap in the capability development process that this project endeavors to assess and begin remedying.

3.0 OBJECTIVE

The Government requires the contractor to explore application of the contractor capability (models, simulations, SME elicitation methods and software, and processes) to the Government’s area of interest for materiel capability development, and then to assess what steps are necessary to transition the contractor capability into being a Governmental one. Objectives include:

Capture Department of Defense “engineering-and-up” analytic, functional, and related requirements for a capability development eco-system of models and simulations (E-MS)

Apply an existing E-MS to explore DoD capability development in a functional and/or mission area of governmental interest (e.g., 2030+ Aerial Refueling Systems)

Within the context of DOD’s broader campaign-and-below simulation architecture evolution, establish where and how best to develop and integrate a government-owned E-MS

4.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

The work to be performed under this contract will be performed primarily at the contractor’s facility(s) and selectively in the National Capital Region, primarily at the Pentagon, including remote or telework as appropriate.

Note: Work that requires a TS/SCI clearance must be performed at the government facility or in an appropriate space in the contractor facility.

5.0 SECURITY REQUIREMENTS

All submissions must include verifiable information about its firm’s ability to comply with the security requirements for this effort.

Facility Clearance Required: TOP SECRET Personnel Clearance Required: TOP SECRET/ SCI and SECRET

If the firm does not hold the required facility clearance, the firm shall provide a response if interested and indicate that no facility clearance is held.

For interested Joint Ventures (JV), the firm shall indicate if the JV itself or the individual partner(s) to the JV hold the required facility clearance.

NOTE: WHS/AD does not sponsor any clearances.

6.0 RESPONSES

Interested firms submitting a response to this RFI Notice are requested to provide information addressing access to a proprietary and/or open-source series of software applications, aptly described as an eco-system of models and simulations (E-MS) capable of accomplishing objectives outlined by Government in phase 1 of DEFEND.

1) Submissions should include credibly demonstrating application of software accessible to a firm at multiple levels of analysis, beginning with the engineering level (e.g., model-based systems engineering capabilities), and ascending with interoperable data transfers (given appropriate transformations) to the performance, engagement, mission, and campaign levels of system analysis. E-MS applied use requirements from the Government require that interested firms submit information conveying personnel with senior-level experience in the application of models and simulations across all levels of analysis, in efforts to design, comparatively assess, and otherwise develop weapon systems.

2) Submissions from interested firms should include descriptions of the network architecture used in the E- MS data population, application configuration, interoperable data transfer, and data analysis within and across levels of analysis.

3) Submissions from interested firms should include how the proposed system architecture, software system, and personnel, in combination, will enable the Government to complete phase 1 of DEFEND and their ability to complete the first phase within the anticipated one-year period of performance.

4) For references that the Government may review as addenda to the primary submission package, interested firms may submit academic and professional association papers published in peer reviewed journals and delivered at conferences.

NOTE: Interested firms are NOT to submit marketing materials; but rather, speak directly and specifically to their experience to complete the following phases outlined below.

CONFIDENTIALITY: Do not include proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information in your response to this RFI Notice. The Government reserves the right to use any information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate, including using technical information provided by respondents in any resultant solicitation. Responses to this Notice will not be returned.

7.0 RESPONSES FORMAT

There is a maximum page limitation of ten (10) typed pages (addenda excluded from the page count) using 12-inch Times New Roman font within an 8.5 x 11 inches page size for each response. Cover letters and extraneous materials (brochures, general capabilities statements, etc.) will not be reviewed. No hard copy or facsimile submissions will be accepted.

To facilitate a timely and comprehensive review of all submitted responses, firms must respond using the format requested in this Notice. ANY deviation from this format may lead to the rejection of the response.

Interested firms shall submit their response to include requested information in the following order:

General Information:

PART 1: General Information

1. Company name, address, point of contact name, telephone, and email address

2. SAM.gov Unique Entity ID and Commercial and/or Government Entity (CAGE) Code o Please note in order to do business with the U.S. Government as a prime contractor your firm must be registered in SAM.gov by the time of award of any resultant contract.

3. Business size and socioeconomic categories as defined in FAR Part 19 (e.g., 8(a), SDB, HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB, etc.)

4. Current DoD Facility Security Clearance level and status (active or not active)

5. Recommended NAICS code and/or PSC code for this effort with justification

6. Recommended Contract type for this effort with justification

7. GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Number

8. Identify if your firm has is a holder of an IDIQ or BPA contract vehicles related to the scope of this requirement and provide the contract number

9. Indicate if your firm will submit a quote or proposal if a Request for Quote/Proposal is issued

10. Indicate how much time your firm would need to prepare a response to a Request for Quote/Proposal.

PART 2: Information:

1. Provide information to support access to proprietary and/or open-source models and simulations applicable to system development and evaluation across the following levels of analysis with an interoperable data transfer framework: engineering (component-level; sub-systems); system; engagement;

mission; and operational/campaign.

2. Provide information in support of the network architecture used in the E-MS data population, application configuration, interoperable data transfer, and data analysis within and across levels of analysis.

3. Provide experience to support software development and/or management of proprietary and/or open-source models and simulations from the engineering-level through to the operational-/campaign-level.

4. Provide experience to support modeling and applying proprietary and/or open-source models and simulations from the engineering-level through to the operational-/campaign-level.

5. Provide descriptions and associated documentation to support experience in the development and application of a formal framework of analysis for model-based system engineering from the engineering-level through to the operational-/campaign-level, to include methods for expert elicitation of critical information inputs at the various levels of analysis.

6. Whether your software system is available as a proprietary, commercial, open-source or otherwise non-commercial product.

7. Whether the system architecture and analytic framework for configuring and applying your software system is available as a proprietary, commercial, open-source or otherwise non-commercial product.

8. Evidence of experience and past performance must include contracts/task orders from the past seven (7) years similar in scope

9. Examples must include contract numbers, project titles, contract type, contract award amount, periods of performance, and Government points of contact (telephone numbers or email addresses)

10. Documented information to support the firm’s ability to provide personnel at the Top Secret and Secret level, are United States citizens, and have the ability to work within 100 miles of the National Capital Region (NCR)

8.0 RESPONSE SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

All responses to this RFI Notice must be submitted electronically to Mr. Warren (Trey) Arthur, Contracting Officer at warren.g.arthur.civ@mail.mil and Ms. Maria Evans, maria.t.evans.civ@mail.mil. Responses to this RFI Notice are due no later than Friday, 4 October 2024 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

Responses received after this date and time will not be considered.

The subject of the email must be titled “DEFEND - <Name of Your Firm: Business Size>”

No questions or phone calls will be accepted concerning this RFI Notice. All firms responding to this RFI are advised the Government will not provide feedback to firms with respect to any information submitted, or provide any follow-up or status information well after the deadline of this RFI.