Low Profile Mast (LPM) Type 20 & Type 24 – Sources Sought

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE IS PUBLISHED FOR MARKET RESEARCH PURPOSES ONLY. THE GOVERNMENT IS NOT SEEKING OR ACCEPTING UNSOLICITED PROPOSALS.

This Sources Sought/Request for Information notice (as authorized by FAR 15.201) is issued by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), in support of Program Executive Office Undersea Warfare Systems (PEO UWS), to identify sources interested in fulfilling the production and maintenance requirements for the Low Profile Mast (LPMs).

The Low Profile Masts are components of the AN/BVY-1 Integrated Submarine Imaging System (ISIS) which is part of the Submarine Warfare Federated Tactical System (SWFTS) and receives capability upgrades per the Advanced Processor Build (APB)/Technical Insertion (TI) process. The procurement contemplated by this Sources Sought notice is for design, production, testing, delivery, modification, repair, maintenance, and in-service support of the development of photonics mast outboard subsystems, environmental qualification, program management, engineering services, logistics and supportability, configuration management, testing, evaluation, and installation for VIRGINIA, COLUMBIA, and SSGN Class submarines.

The LPMs shall meet the photonics performance/functional specifications.

Interested parties are requested to respond with a White Paper that addresses their proposed plan, and concepts to delineate a viable approach to meeting the requirements of the performance specification, with special emphasis on the following:

Technical / Facility Capabilities

Describe your approach for supporting and maintaining adequate personnel to support the production, depot stand up, future growth of LPM products, and new design efforts for future LPM modules.

Describe your approach to manufacturing, testing, and delivering a minimum of eight (8) production LPMs a year. Describe your approach to developing new hardware and transition from the current baseline into a new baseline.

Explain the process for identifying technology obsolescence and replacement components. Explain how the system architecture design allows for insertion of the updated components.

Describe the metrics used to measure performance and quality in producing the production LPMs and procedures for implementing corrective action.

Describe the fixtures, equipment, and processes to test capabilities for verification and factory acceptance testing of the production LPMs.

Describe the operational status of the manufacturing facilities, and how the facilities become and stay operational.

Describe the procurement approach used to minimize impacts to production manufacturing along with the handling of materials on inspection.

Describe your scheduling approach to minimize moving delivery dates.

Describe the Engineering Service management philosophy to track funding and meet requested project dates by the program office.

Maintenance Philosophy

Describe your approach for capability/maintainability improvements that are not being delivered in software/Hardware baseline.

Describe the maintenance and repair processes proposed to support GFE/CFE testing equipment to include both factory and potential fleet equipment. Describe the maintenance and repair processes proposed to support initial failures for warranty repairs and initial depot repair for next generation LPM systems.

Describe the depot maintenance philosophy and capability for the LPM system.

Describe your approach to providing fleet-support field-maintenance repair on-site assistance to submarine platforms for LPM system troubleshooting and repair.

Describe your approach for warranty repair/initial depot repair with respects to lowest impact to scheduled repair vs impact to other government projects schedules utilizing the same resources (space, people, equipment, etc.).

Describe your approach to incorporating supportability, maintainability, and sustainability requirements into the overall design.

Data Rights

The Government desires at least a Government Purpose Rights (GPR) license (as defined in DFARS 225.227-7013 and DFARS 252.227-7014) in noncommercial TD, CS, and CSD, including object code, executable code and source code. Provide details of any limitations on technical data rights for the equipment. Specifically, provide details of any proprietary information that would not be shared with the US Government.

Recent and Relevant Contract Experience 

The explanation should describe current or past contracts explaining relevant and recent experience with the above focus Technical Approach and Maintenance Philosophy areas.

Sources Sought Document Access/ Request submission due date:

The Government performance specification will not be posted online as an attachment to this sources sought notice. It is available by request. National policy does not support release of these documents to foreign sources. The document will be provided only to those companies with a valid security clearance of SECRET or higher. To obtain a copy of the documents, companies shall submit a written request via email to Ms. Felisha Morsell at felisha.m.morsell.civ@us.navy.mil and Mr. Michael Ravnitzky at michael.j.ravnitzky.civ@us.navy.mil by 4:00 pm Eastern Time (EST), 10 DEC 2024. The subject line of the email should have “LPM (insert company name) TOU N00024-25-R-6215.” Telephonic requests are not acceptable. A terms of use template form is attached with this notice.

Interested companies who are interested in receiving the performance specification shall provide a written request that includes the following data:

Company name

CAGE code and DUNS

Complete company address

Point of Contact information, to include

E-mail address

Telephone number

Name/Job Title

Fax number

Facility Clearance level of facility (including issuing Government agency, and expiration date), to include

Security Point of Contact information

Once a company’s need-to-know and security clearance is verified and approved the company will be authorized to receive the detailed documents and related controlled files. This SECRET material will be returned to the government or show proof of destruction within 30 days following the submittal package due date.

DD Form 2345

A filled Out Terms of Use template form

Business Size/Status (i.e. Large, SB, VOSB, SDVOSB, WOSB, etc.)

Number of Employees

Once a company security clearance is verified and approved the company will be authorized to receive the requested document. This SECRET material will be returned to the Government or show proof of destruction in accordance with the TOU.

Sources Sought Response/Submission and Deadline:

All written expressions of interest and information in response to this sources sought shall be submitted to Ms. Felisha Morsell at felisha.m.morsell.civ@us.navy.mil and Mr. Michael Ravnitzky at michael.j.ravnitzky.civ@us.navy.mil no later than 4:00 pm Eastern Standard Time (EST), 17 DEC 2024.

The subject line of the email should read "(company Name) Sources Sought Response – LPM N00024-23-R-6215."

NOTE: SS/RFI responses are limited to 20 pages or less, 1 inch margins, and 10 point Times New Roman font or larger.

The Government will accept specific questions or comments submitted in response to this notice or information provided as a result of this Sources Sought Notice. The Government may or may not be able to provide answers at this time. Responses may contain a separate annex classified up to the SECRET level, if necessary, but any classified annex needs to be marked, handled and transmitted appropriately in accordance with the referenced security classification guides for the AN/BVY-1 system.

Disclosure:

This notice is not a request for proposals and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. Sources choosing to respond to this notice are wholly responsible for any costs/expenses associated with submitting a response. Therefore any cost associated with the market research submission is solely at the interested vendor's expense. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. Respondents will not be notified of the results of this notice. The information obtained from submitted responses may be used in development of an acquisition strategy and a future solicitation. Submissions will not be returned. Response to this notice is not a request to be added to a bidders list or to receive a copy of a solicitation. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT SOLELY ON THE BASIS OF THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE.

Information submitted in response to this RFI will become the property of the United States Government. Submitters should properly mark their responses with the appropriate restrictive markings. Information that is proprietary or competition-sensitive may be protected from disclosure under the public records law only if properly labeled as such.

NOTE:  The deadline date for responding to the Sources Sought Notice is hereby extended to 17 December 2024 as described above.  Requests for the Performance Specification must be received by 10 December 2024.

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE IS PUBLISHED FOR MARKET RESEARCH PURPOSES ONLY. THE GOVERNMENT IS NOT SEEKING OR ACCEPTING UNSOLICITED PROPOSALS.

This Sources Sought/Request for Information notice (as authorized by FAR 15.201) is issued by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), in support of Program Executive Office Undersea Warfare Systems (PEO UWS), to identify sources interested in fulfilling the production and maintenance requirements for the Low Profile Mast (LPMs).

The Low Profile Masts are components of the AN/BVY-1 Integrated Submarine Imaging System (ISIS) which is part of the Submarine Warfare Federated Tactical System (SWFTS) and receives capability upgrades per the Advanced Processor Build (APB)/Technical Insertion (TI) process. The procurement contemplated by this Sources Sought notice is for design, production, testing, delivery, modification, repair, maintenance, and in-service support of the development of photonics mast outboard subsystems, environmental qualification, program management, engineering services, logistics and supportability, configuration management, testing, evaluation, and installation for VIRGINIA, COLUMBIA, and SSGN Class submarines.

The LPMs shall meet the photonics performance/functional specifications.

Interested parties are requested to respond with a White Paper that addresses their proposed plan, and concepts to delineate a viable approach to meeting the requirements of the performance specification, with special emphasis on the following:

Technical / Facility Capabilities

Describe your approach for supporting and maintaining adequate personnel to support the production, depot stand up, future growth of LPM products, and new design efforts for future LPM modules.

Describe your approach to manufacturing, testing, and delivering a minimum of eight (8) production LPMs a year. Describe your approach to developing new hardware and transition from the current baseline into a new baseline.

Explain the process for identifying technology obsolescence and replacement components. Explain how the system architecture design allows for insertion of the updated components.

Describe the metrics used to measure performance and quality in producing the production LPMs and procedures for implementing corrective action.

Describe the fixtures, equipment, and processes to test capabilities for verification and factory acceptance testing of the production LPMs.

Describe the operational status of the manufacturing facilities, and how the facilities become and stay operational.

Describe the procurement approach used to minimize impacts to production manufacturing along with the handling of materials on inspection.

Describe your scheduling approach to minimize moving delivery dates.

Describe the Engineering Service management philosophy to track funding and meet requested project dates by the program office.

Maintenance Philosophy

Describe your approach for capability/maintainability improvements that are not being delivered in software/Hardware baseline.

Describe the maintenance and repair processes proposed to support GFE/CFE testing equipment to include both factory and potential fleet equipment. Describe the maintenance and repair processes proposed to support initial failures for warranty repairs and initial depot repair for next generation LPM systems.

Describe the depot maintenance philosophy and capability for the LPM system.

Describe your approach to providing fleet-support field-maintenance repair on-site assistance to submarine platforms for LPM system troubleshooting and repair.

Describe your approach for warranty repair/initial depot repair with respects to lowest impact to scheduled repair vs impact to other government projects schedules utilizing the same resources (space, people, equipment, etc.).

Describe your approach to incorporating supportability, maintainability, and sustainability requirements into the overall design.

Data Rights

The Government desires at least a Government Purpose Rights (GPR) license (as defined in DFARS 225.227-7013 and DFARS 252.227-7014) in noncommercial TD, CS, and CSD, including object code, executable code and source code. Provide details of any limitations on technical data rights for the equipment. Specifically, provide details of any proprietary information that would not be shared with the US Government.

Recent and Relevant Contract Experience 

The explanation should describe current or past contracts explaining relevant and recent experience with the above focus Technical Approach and Maintenance Philosophy areas.

Sources Sought Document Access/ Request submission due date:

The Government performance specification will not be posted online as an attachment to this sources sought notice. It is available by request. National policy does not support release of these documents to foreign sources. The document will be provided only to those companies with a valid security clearance of SECRET or higher. To obtain a copy of the documents, companies shall submit a written request via email to Ms. Felisha Morsell at felisha.m.morsell.civ@us.navy.mil and Mr. Michael Ravnitzky at michael.j.ravnitzky.civ@us.navy.mil by 4:00 pm Eastern Time (EST), 04 DEC 2024. The subject line of the email should have “LPM (insert company name) TOU N00024-25-R-6215.” Telephonic requests are not acceptable. A terms of use template form is attached with this notice.

Interested companies who are interested in receiving the performance specification shall provide a written request that includes the following data:

Company name

CAGE code and DUNS

Complete company address

Point of Contact information, to include

E-mail address

Telephone number

Name/Job Title

Fax number

Facility Clearance level of facility (including issuing Government agency, and expiration date), to include

Security Point of Contact information

Once a company’s need-to-know and security clearance is verified and approved the company will be authorized to receive the detailed documents and related controlled files. This SECRET material will be returned to the government or show proof of destruction within 30 days following the submittal package due date.

DD Form 2345

A filled Out Terms of Use template form

Business Size/Status (i.e. Large, SB, VOSB, SDVOSB, WOSB, etc.)

Number of Employees

Once a company security clearance is verified and approved the company will be authorized to receive the requested document. This SECRET material will be returned to the Government or show proof of destruction in accordance with the TOU.

Sources Sought Response/Submission and Deadline:

All written expressions of interest and information in response to this sources sought shall be submitted to Ms. Felisha Morsell at felisha.m.morsell.civ@us.navy.mil and Mr. Michael Ravnitzky at michael.j.ravnitzky.civ@us.navy.mil no later than 4:00 pm Eastern Standard Time (EST), 11 DEC 2024.

The subject line of the email should read "(company Name) Sources Sought Response – LPM N00024-23-R-6215."

NOTE: SS/RFI responses are limited to 20 pages or less, 1 inch margins, and 10 point Times New Roman font or larger.

The Government will accept specific questions or comments submitted in response to this notice or information provided as a result of this Sources Sought Notice. The Government may or may not be able to provide answers at this time. Responses may contain a separate annex classified up to the SECRET level, if necessary, but any classified annex needs to be marked, handled and transmitted appropriately in accordance with the referenced security classification guides for the AN/BVY-1 system.

Disclosure:

This notice is not a request for proposals and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. Sources choosing to respond to this notice are wholly responsible for any costs/expenses associated with submitting a response. Therefore any cost associated with the market research submission is solely at the interested vendor's expense. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. Respondents will not be notified of the results of this notice. The information obtained from submitted responses may be used in development of an acquisition strategy and a future solicitation. Submissions will not be returned. Response to this notice is not a request to be added to a bidders list or to receive a copy of a solicitation. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT SOLELY ON THE BASIS OF THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE.

Information submitted in response to this RFI will become the property of the United States Government. Submitters should properly mark their responses with the appropriate restrictive markings. Information that is proprietary or competition-sensitive may be protected from disclosure under the public records law only if properly labeled as such.