Command and Control Capabilities and Development Processes Call for White Paper Public Release - Amendment 0005.pdf

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

Next Generation Command and Control (C2)

Capabilities and Development Processes Request for White Papers

December 2023 Amendment 0005

This call for White Papers (WPs) is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. In accordance with FAR 15.202 (e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. This is a CALL for WP and the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command C5ISR Center is currently conducting market research only. No award is anticipated because of this call for WP. The Government will not reimburse costs incurred by respondents in response to this call for WP, or for participating in any information exchange regarding details of the call for WP.

Any information submitted by respondents to call for WPs is voluntary. The Army does not intend to pay for the information solicited. Respondents should not construe this call for WPs as a commitment for any purpose. Respondents will not individually be notified of the results of any government assessments. Note: This call will be governed by the “two-step” process described in General Information of Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) solicitation number W56KGU-22-R-0ESI. Respondents that submit a proposal without first submitting a WP may not be eligible for award.

The Government intends to award at least two (2) independent fixed price contracts / OTAs for the Next-generation command and control (C2) Prototype Project, through Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), W56KGU-22-R-0ESI. WPs that are favorably evaluated IAW the two-step evaluation process in the ESI BAA will be chosen to submit a Request for Proposal that will allow them to demonstrate their capability. There will be 2 (two) prototype phases. The duration for each prototype Phase 1 (one) and 2 (two) is estimated to be six (6) months for a total period not to exceed 12 months.

In order to provide a complete response to this request all interested parties must request access to the controlled document. To gain access to Attachment 01, your company/entity must be certified by the Joint Certification Program (JCP). Your entity/company’s Data Custodian requester (designated) on block 3A of the DD Form 2345 is the only authorized individual that can download the controlled attachment. Your entity/company is responsible for the protection of the controlled document after the download.

If your entity/company is not pre-certified by the JCP, you will need to apply for certification by completing a DD Form 2345 and emailing it to jcp-admin@dla.mil.

Detailed information regarding the JCP application procedures are available at the JCP website at https://www.dla.mil/Logistics-Operations/Services/JCP/. The ESI Directorate will not review the JCP application or issue the JCP certification. Please direct any questions regarding the JCP certification process to jcp-admin@dla.mil.

To request access to download the controlled attachment, click on the tab for “Attachment/Links, then click on the title of the controlled document. When you receive the pop-up window to request access, enter the reason for the request in the window, making sure to include your entity’s CAGE Code and JCP Certification Number then hit submit. Once the notice is submitted, the access status on the controlled document will change to “Pending”. The Access POC will review your request, granting access if requirements are met or reject for correction.

WPs for the Next-generation command and control (C2) collaboration can be submitted to the Engineering and Systems Integration (ESI) BAA inbox, usarmy.apg.devcom-c5isr.mbx.esi-bus-ops-acq-baa@army.mil. Submissions will be evaluated by subject matter experts who will provide Technical Merit Reviews (TMRs) based on the evaluation criteria within the overarching BAA (Technical Merit, Capabilities Relevance and Importance to ESI Directorate, schedule, and affordability) and as detailed below. Select offerors will be invited to participate in Technical Exchange Meetings (TEMs) with the Government team to discuss Next-generation command and control (C2) requirements and experimentation alignment. Selected industry partners will be invited to participate in Next-generation command and control (C2) development iterations and prototyping activities based on the final Technical Merit Review.

A. Submission Guidelines:

Prospective Industry respondents are required to submit a white paper and capability or process overview chart (details and templates provided in controlled document). WPs should focus on describing details of the proposed C2 development concept or C2 capability, including how it is innovative, how it could substantially increase the state of the current way the Army develops C2 systems, data management and software, its Army relevance, and its potential impact at a general Army and Joint C2 concept level.

White paper responses must adhere to the templates provided in the controlled document and be submitted through the usarmy.apg.devcom-c5isr.mbx.esi-bus-ops-acq-baa@army.mil

B. Evaluation and Notification:

Submissions will go through an evaluation process:

Technical Merit Reviews (TMR) conducted by Subject Matter Experts (SME) across the Army enterprise will provide an initial downselect according to the two-step process in the BAA. TMR evaluation criteria will focus on Technical Merits, Capabilities, Relevance and Importance to the US ARMY, schedule, and affordability. SMEs will additionally consider the below criteria:

mailto:usarmy.apg.devcom-c5isr.mbx.esi-bus-ops-acq-baa@army.mil

1. ALIGNMENT (specific to call): How well is the proposed C2 capability or development process solution aligned with Army transformation and C2 challenge areas as outlined in this call?

2. TECHNICAL/SCIENTIFIC MERIT: How does the overall scientific or technical merit of the proposed C2 capability or development process solution compare to or exceed the current state-of-the-art?

3. VIABILITY (transition/scalability): Is there clear evidence for scalability and a well-articulated plan for market transition. Is a clear understanding of target user community presented?

4. ARMY IMPACT (overall): Will the proposed C2 solution provide a substantial improvement over existing Army and Joint capabilities? Does it provide a novel or innovative solution for future capability gaps?

5. QUALIFICATIONS (team/organization): Does the response demonstrate evidence of clear experience, availability, and core funding/viability? Is there evidence of past accomplishments and/or ability to achieve the proposed technical objectives.

Official notification of acceptance for participation in Next-generation command and control (C2) will be sent via email to the primary POC listed for the submission approximately one month after the submission deadline closes. If notified of acceptance, respondents are expected to participate in additional Technical Exchange Meetings (TEMs) leading up to the start of the Next-generation command and control (C2) development sprints and follow on capability prototyping and experimentation activities at Project Convergence. Additionally, if selected to provide a Request for Proposal (RFP) in response to the submitted WP, respondents may also be asked to conduct oral presentations to supplement their RFP. Those oral presentations will be scheduled after the evaluation of the RFP and will be coordinated directly with the respondents selected.

F. Award Information

1. ANTICIPATED AWARD DATE: March 2024

2. BAA TYPE: This is a call for Procurement Contract WPs only and will be governed by the “two-step” process described in General Information of Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) solicitation number W56KGU-22-R-0ESI.

Respondents that submit a proposal without first submitting a WP may not be eligible for award.

3. QUESTIONS DUE DATE AND TIME: Technical questions are due no later than 24 November 2023, 3:00 pm EDT via email to the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist listed below.

4. WHITE PAPER DUE DATE AND TIME: The submission deadline date of white papers is 12 December 2023. All changes made to the call for white papers are highlighted in yellow in the attached document. Offerors that have previously submitted a white paper to this call can re-submit your white paper in accordance with this amendment or confirm in writing (by the aforementioned submission deadline) that your original submission remains valid and was received by the Government.

You must adhere to the submission instructions when submitting white papers.

White Papers shall be submitted to the ESI mailbox as well as the Contract Specialist and Contracting Officer. Please note that there is a "-" in between DEVCOM and C5ISR in the ESI inbox address.

usarmy.apg.devcom-c5isr.mbx.esi-bus-ops-acq-baa@army.mil

5. For general submission questions, please contact: Contracting Officer, Nick Martin, Nicolas.A.Martin2.civ@army.mil and Contract Specialist, Timothy Weiman, timothy.j.weiman.civ@army.mil.