AFRL REGIONAL RESEARCH CONVERGENCE HUB (ARRCH)

NAICS Code: 541715

Federal Agency Name: Department of the Air Force, Air Force Materiel Command, AFRL - Rome Research Site, AFRL/Information Directorate, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome, NY, 13441-4514

Funding Opportunity Announcement Title: AFRL Regional Research Convergence Hub (ARRCH)

Funding Opportunity Announcement Number:  FA8750-21-S-7007

IN ACCORADNCE WITH USAF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY, OBJECTIVE III “Deepen and Expand the Scientific Enterprise”, THIS SOLICITATION IS FOR RESEARCH COLLABORATION HUBS IN ACCORDANCE WITH 10. U.S. Code 2358 note, which authorizes the DoD to establish and use its research and engineering network to support regional advanced technology clusters to encourage the development of innovative advanced technologies to address national security and homeland defense challenges AND THEREFORE IS SET ASIDE FOR ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS:  An accredited institution of higher education, including a consortium of accredited institutions of higher education is eligible to apply for and to receive funding under this announcement. See Part II, Section III.

Communication Between Prospective Offerors and Government Representatives:  All white paper submissions and any questions of a technical nature shall be directed to the cognizant Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) as specified below (unless otherwise specified in the technical area (email requests are preferred):

TPOC and PROGRAM MANAGER:                                                          

Dr. Amos Matthew Smith                                                      

AFRL/RITQ                                                              

525 Brooks Rd

Rome, NY 13441-4505                                                          

Telephone: +1 (555) 000-0000                                       

Email:  contact@example.gov         

Questions of a contractual/business nature shall be directed to the cognizant contracting officer, as specified below:

Contracting Officer:

Amber Buckley

AFRL/RIKA                                                             

26 Electronic Parkway

Rome, NY 13441-4505

Email:  contact@example.gov

Emails must reference the solicitation (FOA) number and title of the acquisition.

SEE ATTACHMENT FOR FULL ANNOUNCEMENT DETAILS.

                                                   Amendment No. 1 to BAA FA8750-21-S-7007

The purpose of this amendment is to:

1. Section III, Eligibility Information, adds the following paragraph 5 for S&T Protection:

5. In accordance with AFRLI 61-113, S&T Protection, Contractors/Recipients are required to submit with their proposal a Standard Form 424, "Research and Related and Senior and Key Person Profile (Expanded), as well as a Security Program Questionnaire, which are included in the RI-Specific Proposal Preparation Instructions and can be accessed at:

https://sam.gov/opp/e628c811fafe041accdddf55fb8539bf/view?keywords=AFRL-BAA-GUIDE&sort=-relevance&index=&is_active=true&page=1. Always reference the

newest versions of these documents.  Complete and submit the required forms with your proposal to the technical point of contact (TPOC) listed in Section VII-Agency Contacts AND contact@example.gov.

Contractors will be required to provide documentation of their Security Program Plan for initial Institution S&T Protection Program Review. The purpose of requesting the plan is to evaluate the offeror’s capacity for protecting the Government’s S&T and failure to demonstrate a plan adequate to meet the needs of the requirement may be grounds for considering the proposal unawardable. In the event a security risk is identified and the Government has determined the security risk exceeds the acceptable threshold, the Contractor/Recipient will be notified and informed of the termination/decline of award. The Government will be only required to provide a general statement of the reasoning due to Government OPSEC measures.

After award, the Contractor/Recipient will be required to re-submit the Standard Form 424 as an annual requirement to the points of contact listed above.

No other changes are made.

                                              AMENDMENT 2 to FOA FA8750-21-S-7007

The purpose of this modification is to increase the ceiling value and make the following changes to the FOA:

1. Update references of BetaSAM to SAM.gov throughout;
2. Updated references of Contractor to Recipient throughout;
3. Part I:

1. 1. Part I, the FOA closing date is changed from 30 SEP 2024 to 30 SEP 2025;
   2. Part I; Estimated Program Cost is updated to $99.9M;
   3. Part I; anticipated number of awards is corrected to show 4 total awards, two under CALL 01 and two anticipated under CALL 02;
2. Part II:
   1. Section I, adds definitions and regions;
   2. Section II.1, updates the anticipated funding per year, and extends the anticipated PoPs of each hub from 3 to 5 years;
   3. Section IV.4.f.5, removes the last sentence regarding options;
   4. Section IV.4., deletes paragraph g;
   5. Section V.1, updates the evaluation criteria language;
   6. Section V.3, updates FAPIIS reference to Responsibility/Qualification (R/Q) Public Access;
   7. Section VI.1, updates the proposal formatting language;
   8. Section VII, updates the OMBUDSMAN and date; and updates AFFARS to DAFFARS.

No other changes are made.

SEE ATTACHMENT FOR FULL AMENDMENT DETAILS.

                                              Amendment No. 2 to BAA FA8750-21-S-7007

The purpose of this amendment is to:

1. Section III, Paragraph 5, updates S&T Protection language;
2. Section V, paragraph 2.e, updates the language regarding the S&T review;

SEE ATTACHMENT FOR FULL AMENDMENT DETAILS.

                                        Amendment No. 3 to BAA FA8750-21-S-7007

The purpose of this amendment is to:

1. Part II, FULL TEXT ANNOUNCEMENT, adds language regarding Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Act (FASCSA) Orders;
2. Section VI, paragraph 11, updates FINANCIAL RESOURCES requirements language;

1. FULL TEXT ANNOUNCEMENT:

Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Act (FASCSA) Orders: As of the date of this solicitation amendment, there are no applicable FASCSA orders. This requirement only applies to FAR based awards.

1. SECTION VI:

11. FINANCIAL RESOURCES: Proposals shall include information to determine adequate financial resources to perform the effort, taking into consideration all existing commercial and governmental business commitments. See DFARS 232.072-2(b) for a list of the types of information used to support financial responsibility. Examples include financial statements (e.g. Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Cash Flow Statement, Compensation); disclosures of previous insolvency; business case/cash flow forecasts; financing arrangements; and/or letters of good standing from accredited financial institutions.  Proposals shall also include all significant ratios as outlined in DFARS 232.072-2(b)(10)(i)-(vi). This requirement only applies to FAR based awards.

No other changes are made.

                                                   Amendment No. 5 to FOA FA8750-21-S-7007

The purpose of this amendment is to update to the correct amendment number as there are two amendment No. 2's, and to update the following:

1. Part II, Section VI, adds paragraph 12 as follows;

12. 15% INDIRECT COST CAP ON ASSISTANCE AWARDS TO INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION: The policies of the OUSD(R&E) memo, “Implementation of a 15% Indirect Cost Cap on Assistance Awards to Institutions of Higher Education” dated 12 June 2025, will be applicable for the entirety of the award if there is a court decision permitting application of the policies.

No other changes are made.