Aerospace Testing and Facilities Operations and Maintenance (ATOM) Services

NASA Ames Research Center is hereby soliciting information about potential sources for providing testing, operations, and maintenance of the Wind Tunnel, Arc Jets, High Energy Facilities, and associated support facilities at NASA Ames Research Center. These facilities include but are not limited to: Unitary Plan Wind Tunnels, Ballistic Range Complex, Arc Jet Complex, Electric Arc Shock Tube (EAST) Facility, Balance Calibration Laboratory, Fluid Mechanics Laboratory, and Sensor Development Laboratory. These facilities are national aerospace test facilities utilized by NASA, private industry, universities, DOD, and other government agencies. This request relates to the planning activities associated with the follow-on requirement for Aerospace Testing and Facilities Operations and Maintenance (ATOM) Services. The work will be performed primarily at Ames Research Center (ARC), Moffett Field, California. CURRENT CONTRACT FEATURES: The current NASA Ames Aerospace Testing and Facilities Operations and Maintenance (ATOM) Services Contract NNA16BD26C is with Jacobs Technology Inc. and has the following features: 1) Period of Performance: 2/2/16 - 2/1/21 2) Contract Type: Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) 3) The contract was awarded under Full and Open Competition. 4) The current value of the contract is approximately $250M PART I. PURPOSE OF THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) This RFI has two purposes: 1) To request information, stated in Part III of this RFI, from interested parties regarding their recommended contracting approach, including contract type, incentive structure and contract duration, to provide the facilities maintenance services described above. The Government is also seeking input on how to make any future contract for this effort scalable to allow timely and simple changes to the work content and contract value in the event we must adapt to declining budget scenarios during the period of performance. All acquisition methods are being considered by the Government including the potential use of Federal Supplies Schedules. 2) To request information on capabilities/qualifications of potential Offerors to provide the services described in the technical areas stated in Part II of this RFI in order to determine if this requirement is appropriate for a small business set-aside. Information received as a result of this section will be considered by the Government and used for acquisition planning purposes only. Please note, a decision to set-aside this requirement for small business or to compete it through full and open procedures has not yet been made. An interested parties list will be made available through FBO.gov. *Note: Responses to Part I of this RFI are not requested. PART II. RESPONSES REGARDING THE CAPABILITIES/QUALIFICATIONS OF POTENTIAL SOURCES: The Draft Statement of Work describes the services required to plan, prepare, and conduct tests, to plan and implement development projects, to operate, maintain, and repair the facilities, and the support required to administer the preceding. Contract Task Orders will be used to define the services or deliverables and their quantities to be provided by the Contractor. Successful completion of the mission requires the combined effort of, and extensive interaction between, NASA and the Contractor. The work described in the Statement of Work will be accomplished by NASA, the Contractor, or shared by means of mixed Contractor/NASA test and project teams. The Contractor will be responsible for determining the type of skills and skill mix, and materials required to provide their portion of testing, development, and general services. The Contractor will also be responsible for managing its resources to achieve the desired outcomes. The Contractor shall provide labor and materials as required to provide the services and outcomes. The services available under this contract can be provided to any customer as approved by the Contracting Officer if in the best interest of the Government. These services may also be provided to other facilities at Ames Research Center, or other installations if needed, in order to complete the mission. Interested Offerors having the required specialized capabilities/qualifications to support some or all of the work described in the Description Section of this RFI are asked to submit a description of their capability/qualifications in 10 pages or less (including any exhibits, attachments, etc) that must include the following: 1) Provide your company name, address, point of contact, phone, fax, e-mail, and website (if applicable). 2) State whether your company is a Large business, Small business, Small Disadvantaged Business, certified 8(a) small business (include anticipated graduation date), HUBZone small business, Woman-owned small business, Veteran-owned small business, HBCU/MI, Service-Disabled Veteran-owned small business for NAICS code 561210, size standard $32.5M in average annual receipts. 3) State whether your company is on any Federal Supplies Schedule for these services and which ones they are. 4) Describe your company's capability in each of the technical areas. For each technical area (conducting Wind Tunnel, Arc Jet, and Ballistic Range testing, development projects, and operation of support facilities and maintenances of these facilities), indicate what percentage of the technical area you would perform. 5) Provide a list of relevant work performed in the past five (5) years, including contract type, contract number, technical description and how it is relevant to - Wind Tunnels, Arc Jets, and High Energy Facilities., dollar amount, period of performance, and a customer reference name and telephone number. 6) Discuss your knowledge, understanding, and compliance with Federal, State, and local regulations as well as policies pertaining to environmental, health, and safety issues in implementing a maintenance program. - The Government reserves the right to consider a small business or 8(a) set-aside based on responses. A multiple award or single award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract may also be considered. PART III. RESPONSES REGARDING THE CONTRACTING APPROACH: The Government is soliciting industry comments on the optimal contracting approach to the ATOM-5 procurement that will enhance competition and provide business opportunities. Responses to Part III must be in 5 pages or less (including any exhibits, attachments, etc) and include the following: 1) Please provide your view regarding what type of contract provides the best approach for this type of work, how should the risk be shared by the Government and Contractor, and how does the proposed contract type incentivize the Contractor to perform high quality work at a reasonable price and maximize scalability over the life of the contract? Please include information regarding why a particular contract type or combination of contract types or combination of contract types might be more appropriate (benefits and impediments), how that proposed contract type would affect costs and how you would propose? 2) Service contracts are typically limited to five year durations unless a deviation is approved. Is five years the appropriate duration or is a shorter period appropriate to take advantage of competitive forces? Or, would it be in ARCs best interest to seek a deviation to the five year limitation what would be the Government benefit of a longer term, how would a longer term maximize NASA's return on investment, etc.? 3) Technical Information: What type of technical information along with the Statement of Work would you like to see with a potential solicitation (e.g., sample tasks)? 4) What would help reduce the Contractors bid and proposal or transaction costs during any potential proposal development and evaluation process for this effort? 5) What type of evaluation criteria would you recommend for this type of procurement? 6) Contract Content/Structure: Do you have any suggestions or examples of restructuring, simplifications, and clarity in the Draft SOW's description of technical areas as well as other types of additional information that would improve understanding or clarity of requirements and terms and conditions? 7) Socio-economic considerations are a priority at ARC. Given the general scope of work stated in the Description section of this RFI, please submit suggested percentages of the work that could be subcontracted to each of the following types of businesses: Small Business Concerns; Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) Concerns; Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Concerns; HUBZone Small Business Concerns; Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) (includes other minority Institutions); Veteran-Owned Business Concerns; and Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Business Concerns. This information may be used to establish subcontracting goals for any future procurement. PART IV. INSTRUCTIONS ON SUBMISSION OF RESPONSES TO THIS RFI: All responses to Part II and III of this RFI shall be received no later than June 3, 2019. Interested firms are requested to submit their response to this RFI through the FBO.gov system. The requirements and procedures for offer submission are found in the FBO Vendor User Guide located on the FBO webpage at: https://www.fbo.gov/downloads/FBO_Vendor_Guide.pdf. Submissions shall be compatible with and accessible using Microsoft Office or Adobe Acrobat software applications. When submitting questions or responding to the RFI, reference RFI 80ARC019RFIAKK0002 - ATOM-5. Responses must be in PDF format and PART II submissions must be a separate file from Part III submissions. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked "Proprietary" will be handled and protected accordingly. As applicable, NASA may provide proprietary information to its support service contractors who are under an obligation to keep third-party proprietary information in confidence. By submitting a response to this RFI, the responder is deemed to have consented to release of proprietary information to such NASA support service contractors. All questions MUST be in writing and should also be directed to Karen.Klaas@nasa.gov. The Government reserves the right not to answer questions if it so chooses. If an interested party requests confirmation of receipt, the Contract Specialist will confirm receipt via email. In all responses, please reference RFI 80ARC019RFIAKK0002 - ATOM-5 in the subject line and on all attachments. Verbal questions will not be accepted. This RFI is for information and planning purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government nor will the Government pay any costs associated with responses to this RFI. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. Following this initial feedback, as part of its market research, NASA may conduct one-on-one meetings with respondees. Such meetings and discussions would only be intended to get further clarification of potential capabilities, including any development or known challenges. This RFI is subject to review or cancellation at any time and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to enter into a contract for any supply or service. Further, the Government is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. The Government will not pay for the information submitted in response to this request and respondents will not be notified of the results. No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. Please note that not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. If a firm requirement is developed and a solicitation is issued, the solicitation will be made available on the Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) website (www.fbo.gov). It is the responsibility of offerors and interested parties to monitor the Internet site for the release of the solicitation and amendments, if any and will be responsible for downloading their own copy of the documents. NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/pub/pub_library/Omb.html.