Deployable 3D printer system

The Engineer Research Development Center (ERDC) Additive Construction (AC) program at ERDC-Champaign (Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL)) utilizes cutting-edge, automated 3D printing capabilities to construct a multitude of designs to include facilities, gap crossings, and obstacles using locally available cement and aggregate materials. This includes testing of 3D prints through demonstration and creation of 3D printed specimens for materials, structural, thermal, and constructability testing. To ensure that material, mechanical, and structural properties of demonstration and test specimens remain consistent with those produced by other military procured 3D printers it is essential that ERDC-CERL has a 3D printer system that is equivalent to a current military Automated Construction of Expeditionary Structures (ACES) 2.1 acquired deployable system.

ERDC-CERL intends to award a sole source contract to Caterpillar, Inc. in accordance with FAR Part FAR 13.106-1(b)(2) and 13.501(a). The ACES research team has been utilizing a Caterpillar, Inc. gantry system for other the past 4-5 years which has become the primary 3D concrete printer within the AC program’s inventory for printing large scale structures. The new system must be compatible with not only the process and materials flow system that has been established under the AC program, furthermore it is imperative that the system must be fully integrated with previously procured systems to allow for seamless integration into the program, and ease training and demonstration requirements.  

Moreover, the unique specifications of the ACES program are aligned with specific military needs regarding deployability and ruggedization as follows:

• Compact design to fit with all parts and accessories necessary for operation, in a standard 20’ Conex container
• Assembly time of no more than 30 minutes for a 6–8-person crew
• No less than 80% of components meet 2 person lift requirements, no greater than 20% of components meeting 4 person lift requirements (MIL-STD-1472G)
• Capable of operating outdoors in a wide range of weather conditions with no cover
• Material flow systems that are compatible with Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) materials

The associated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 333249 which has a size standard of 500 employees. This is not a small business set aside. Any interested party that believes that they can successfully fulfill this requirement should submit a capability statement to be reviewed. All submission will be considered, however there is no guarantee that submissions in response to this notice will in any way alter the Government’s acquisition strategy.

Please provide responses to this notice no later than the July 25, 2022, at 12:00 PM, Central Standard Time (CST), to:

CERL-CT-QUOTES@usace.army.mil

Telephone responses will not be accepted.

Responses to this notice will not be considered as a response to any solicitation, a request to be added to a prospective offers list, or to receive a copy of any solicitation. A determination by the Government not to compete the contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement.