RFI_Flight Drone Upper-Air Collection System.pdf

UNCLASSIFIED

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

Weather Data Collection System Engineering and Technical Services for

Upper-Air Collection / NAICE: 541990

1.0 DISCLAIMER: THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. IT IS A REQUEST FOR

INFORMATION. In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulations Part 10 responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Please Respond by March 4, 2025, at 5:00 pm EST.

1.1 This is NOT a request for a quote (RFQ) and not a government contract.

1.2 This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. Any/all information received in response to this RFI that is marked proprietary will be handled accordingly. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI.

2.0 NO CLASSIFIED information shall be included in the RFI response.

2.1 Responders should contact the publishing contracting officer with any questions or concerns pursuant to this RFI.

3.0 INFORMATION REQUESTED: The United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has a need for a meteorological upper-air collection capability that does not rely on helium as a lifting mechanism.

3.1 The Product Manager is seeking information on potential vendors that currently possess or able to develop and produce capabilities to collect weather data in high altitude environments.

3.2 The PM is seeking information on vendors with the ability and level of capacity to provide engineering products (hardware and software) and services to develop weather data collection sensors and platforms (i.e. technical services, manufacturing services, producing technical reports, etc.).

3.3 The PM is seeking information from vendors whose core technologies are defined as Technical Readiness Level (TRL) 6 or higher. In summary, TRL 6 is defined as “system/subsystem model or prototype demonstration in a relevant environment”. The full definitions of TRLs are available in the Technology Readiness Assessment Guidebook, June 2023, published by the Office of Executive Director for Systems Engineering and Architecture under the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (https://www.cto.mil/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/TRA- Guide-Jun2023.pdf).

3.4 The PM is seeking information on Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) of both potential weather data collection system(s) and the engineering services required to support the product lifecycle. To support a build of a ROM, vendors may assume a reference quantity of ten (10) stand-alone systems with spare parts and components to service all systems during any time for a period of two (2) years.

4.0 OPERATIONAL ASSUMPTIONS Detailed in Enclosure A001 include relevant operational assumptions in support of developing the requested information.

4.1 The Government anticipates future procurement of products and services that best meet the operational requirements through future solicitations based on the market research provided by this RFI.

4.2 Planned evaluation will consist of follow-up engagements to clarify any submitted information through this RFI and request for demonstrations or testing to validate performance or technical approaches.

5.0 SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

5.1 There are no page limitations. Responders should include any advertising or marketing type information. Vendors are discouraged from submitting any information deemed competition sensitive or proprietary. If sources elect to submit competition sensitive or proprietary information, vendors bear sole responsibility for marking said information as such to ensure appropriate safeguarding by the Government.

5.2 Information submitted in response to this RFI will not be returned. The information will be treated as business sensitive and will not be shared outside of Government activities and agencies without permission of the provider.

6.0 RESPONSES AND SUBMISSIONS: All responses must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. EDT, March 4, 2025.

6.1 Responses should be submitted via email. Please ensure only .pdf, .doc(x), or .xls(x) documents are attached to any reply email.

6.2 Responses may also be mailed to ACC-APG Natick Division, US Army CCDC Soldier Center, Attn: Danny Soto, 15 General Greene Avenue, Natick, MA 01760.

7.0 NOTICE: Vendors are advised that the Government will utilize support contractor/non-Government personnel to assist in collecting and reviewing market information. Proprietary information submitted in response to this RFI will be protected from unauthorized disclosure as required by Subsection 27 of the Office of Procurement Police Act as amended (41 U.S.C. 423) (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) as implemented in the FAR. These personnel are bound contractually by Organizational Conflict of Interest and disclosure clauses with respect to proprietary information.

Support contractor personnel are procurement officials within the meaning of the Act and will take all necessary action to preclude unauthorized use or disclosure of contractor’s proprietary data.

7.1 If this RFI leads to a future solicitation all participating vendors must be registered in the “System for Award Management” (SAM) to be eligible for an award by the US Government. If you are already registered in SAM, please provide your Unique Entity ID with your participation response.

8.0 Administrative: The government is conducting this market research to identify potential manufacturers/vendors, acquire information on the types and sizes of businesses that will be able to compete on future contracting actions, potential costs, as well as delivery capabilities.

8.1 Interested firms are requested to submit relevant information on their company within thirty (30) days following the publication of this RFI. Any relevant company background/experience, business category, costs, and any other information that the company believes demonstrates their value / ability to meet the requirements should be included. All information and evaluation results will be controlled and used for governmental purposes only.

8.2 Do NOT contact any of the aforementioned parties for information regarding acquisition strategy or information regarding a potential solicitation and RFP posting date. This notice is for information only. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTATION. No solicitation document exists for this action.

8.3 Please direct all questions and submission concerning this RFI to ALL OF THE

FOLLOWING:

MAJ Minou Pak, PMSP, APM Minou.pak.mil@army.mil

Mr. Richard Prieve, PMSP, APM richard.j.prieve.civ@army.mil

Mr. Danny Soto, Contracting Officer, ACC-APG-Natick Division danny.soto3.civ@army.mil

Mr. Joshua Weigartz, Contract Specialist, ACC-APG-Natick Division joshua.t.weigartz.civ@army.mil.

8.4 Requested Information ( * = Required)

Please identify your company's name * Your company's size * Unique Entity ID

Check all that apply

Small Business

Other than Small Business Woman Owned Business Women Owned Small Business (WOSB) Economically Disadvantaged Women Owned Small Business (EDWOSB) Veteran Owned Small Business Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business SBA Certified Small Disadvantaged Business SBA Certified 8(a) Firm SBA Certified HUBZone Firm

Contact Person Name * First & Last Name Contact Person's Email * Contact Person’s Telephone *

ENCLOSURE A001

The following are operational and performance assumptions to provide references to the requested information on weather data collection systems and services.

Weather Data Collection Systems Product Performance Characteristics

1. (U) The system must measure meteorological elements of temperature, humidity, pressure, wind direction, and wind speed

2. (U) The system must be able to collect meteorological data to a height of 500 hectopascals (hPa) or equivalent height in feet above mean sea level (AMSL) with potential for achieving 370 hPa or equivalent height in feet AMSL

3. (U) Ability to export data in CSV format and/or ASCII Text.

4. (U) Possesses emergency landing maneuvering procedures

5. (U) Ability to maintain position lock under wind condition up to 90 knots

6. (U) Ability to upload selected format into Android Tactical Assault Kit (ATAK)

1. (U) Utilizes GPS receiver for geolocation

2. (U) Storage Temperature Range

3. (U) Icing prevention

4. (U) Emergency recovery system

5. (U) Encrypted control link

6. (U) Imagery sensor

7. (U) Start-up/Shut-down timeframe

8. (U) Data transfer capability via SATCOM

9. (U) Operate from moving platform.

10. (U) Ability to integrate other environmental sensors (e.g chemical, biological detection)

11. (U) System control mechanism

12. (U) Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) operation.

13. (U) Power source

14. (U) Acoustic signature management

15. (U) Advanced software-based weather analytics

Weather Data Collection Systems Services

1. (U) General engineering studies for system modification purposes

2. (U) Technical engineering services for collecting test data, generating test reports, generating system performance analysis reports

3. (U) Generate market research studies on weather data collection technologies

4. (U) Generate system training aids

5. (U) Manufacturing capacity and flexibility to meet variable production demand