Advance Notice of Soldier Borne Mission Command (SBMC) Other Transaction (OT) Opportunity

Advance Notice of Soldier Borne Mission Command (SBMC) Other Transaction (OT) Opportunity Related Notice: RFI-2_W91CRB_IVASNEXT Overview. The Army Contracting Command - Aberdeen Proving Ground (ACC-APG), on behalf of Product Manger Integrated Visual Augmentation System (PdM IVAS), intends to competitively award agreements for a Soldier Borne Mission Command (SBMC) rapid prototyping project as detailed below. SBMC is a new effort to develop a fused digital awareness system optimized to emerging modular sensor technologies while backwards compatible to the Android Tactical Assault Kit (ATAK) architecture. SBMC will be the Army's future day/night situational awareness and mission command platform for Company level and below dismounted operations. The Government anticipates using Other Transaction (OT) Authority, leading to one (1) or more SBMC Rapid Prototyping OT Agreements (OTAs). The Government's intent is to award agreement(s) to prime contractor(s) who provide full solutions. The number of awards will be dependent on available funding, to include proposed vendor cost share, if applicable. The Government's expectation is for prototypes to be delivered within seven (7) months of award for Government testing. The latest draft SBMC Statement of Work (SOW) and draft SBMC Product Description (PD) will be made available at the time of the formal RFS release. The current draft SBMC SOW and PD is available upon request for interested, eligible vendors to review in advance of the formal RFS. To be eligible to receive the draft SBMC SOW and PD, vendors must have 1) a current Facility Clearance at a minimum of Secret Level, or 2) a current approved DD Form 2345 Military Critical Technology Data Agreement, and must submit a properly completed copy of the attached request form in accordance with the instructions included at the end of this notice. 3-Step Competitive Process. The Government intends to employ the below phased competitive solicitation process to award the OTAs: Phase 1, Step 1: Request for White Papers (RWP). The Government will request vendors to provide white papers on their proposed SBMC solution. White papers will present the vendor's planned approach to design, build, test, and deliver SBMC solution prototypes, with a primary focus on the vendor's proposed technical solution. White papers will be limited to thirty (30) pages. Note: Vendor white papers must propose a system level SBMC solution. White papers addressing SBMC components only will not be considered. Phase 1, Step 2: Solutions Demonstration and Oral Presentations. Upon completion of white paper evaluations, vendors whose white papers are evaluated to be of high technical merit will be invited to conduct in-person solution demonstrations and oral presentations at Ft. Belvoir, VA. The Government reserves the right to limit the number of vendors invited to this step. The vendor's oral presentation will focus on a sample hardware demonstration and areas not covered in the white papers to include providing Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate, and schedule. Vendors should be prepared to answer Government questions during or after their presentation. The Government will provide the selected vendors their scheduled date and time and exact location the week prior to the events. Vendors must have the ability to demonstrate functional sample hardware as described below. Sample Hardware (non-functional). Vendor shall provide one (1) set of a non-functional 3-D printed model representative of the vendor's proposed solution, to include representative weight and center of gravity. Sample hardware (functional) shall consist of one (1) set of the following: Functional brass-board/tabletop sample hardware at system level or subsystem/component level, or Integrated functional sample hardware at system level. The Government may request to retain the sample hardware for up to thirty (30) days for Government evaluation, after which the sample hardware will be returned to the vendor. Phase 2, Step 3: Request for Prototype Proposals (RPP) and OTA Awards. Following Government evaluation of white papers, solution demonstrations and oral presentations, favorable vendors will be requested to submit formal technical and cost prototype proposals and to enter alpha negotiations for OTA terms and conditions. The Government reserves the right to limit the number of companies invited to submit a proposal. Evaluation Criteria. The Government is still developing the evaluation criteria; however, the Government's intent is that the technical merit of the vendor's solution is the most important factor during evaluations at each step. OTA Eligibility. To be considered for an OTA award, vendors are reminded of the need to comply with 10 US Code - 4022 conditions: At least one (1) Non-Traditional Defense Contractor (NTDC), as defined in section 3014 of Title 10 US Code - 3014, is participating to a significant extent in this prototype project. All significant participants in the transaction other than the Federal Government are small businesses or NTDCs, or At least one third of the total cost of the prototype project is to be paid out of funds provided by sources other than the Federal Government. Timeline. The following is an estimated timeline and subject to change. 18 April 2025 - Opportunity posted on SAM.gov 12 May 2025 - Vendors submit white papers 27 - 30 May 2025 - Vendor sample hardware demonstrations and oral presentations 16 June 2025 - Request for Prototype Proposals released 7 July 2025 - Vendors submit RPP technical and cost proposals 8 July - 15 August 2025 - Alpha Negotiations 29 August 2025 - OTA award(s) Controlled Draft Documents. The draft SBMC Statement of Work (SOW) and Product Description (PD) documents contain Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) technical data. Note: To receive the documents, a Company must: a. Have a current Facility Clearance (FCL) at a minimum of Secret Level, or b. Have a current DD Form 2345 Military Critical Technical Data Agreement Note: A copy of a Company's approved DD Form 2345 must be submitted with their request. To receive the draft SBMC Statement of Work and Product Description: Complete the SBMC CUI Document Request Form. Attach the request form to your email. Attach copy of your DD Form 2345 (if applicable) to your email. Submit your request e-mail with subject line: - Request for CUI Documents: SBMC no later than 4:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, 11 April 2025 to the following administrative Points of Contact: Mr. Steven Lopez at steven.e.lopez3.ctr@army.mil, and Mr. Kevin McGloin at kevin.j.mcgloin.ctr@army.mil Once the vendor has been vetted for access to CUI, the Government will provide the draft SBMC SOW and PD via Department of Defense (DoD) Secure Access File Exchange (SAFE). Points of Contact(POCs) and Questions. Questions regarding this special notice or the controlled documents should be sent via email to the following POCs. The USG requests that all industry engagements are submitted NLT 4:00pm ET on 11 April 2025 to provide ample time for consideration. Mr. Eric Roberts eric.j.roberts48.civ@army.mil; and Mr. Alexander S. Obriwin alexander.s.obriwin.civ@army.mil; and Mr. Michael Kelly at michael.j.kelly99.civ@army.mil DISCLAIMER: THIS SPECIAL NOTICE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. IT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A SOLICITATION AND SHALL NOT BE CONSTRUED AS A COMMITMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT. RESPONSES IN ANY FORM ARE NOT OFFERS AND THE GOVERNMENT IS UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO AWARD A CONTRACT AS A RESULT OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. NO FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE TO PAY FOR PREPARATION OF RESPONSES TO THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.