D -- The NOAA /NWS Emergency Managers Weather Information (EMWIN). The design construction and marketing systems for the reception of the EMWIN broadcasts.

The United States Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, (NOAA) National Weather Service (NWS) is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) to identify potential sources and products capable of enabling the public to receive and utilize NWS essential weather information. It will allow the NWS to determine the interest of prospective manufacturers in designing, constructing and marketing systems for the reception of the Emergency Managers Weather Information (EMWIN) datastream or for software to make that information more valuable to EMWIN users. The EMWIN satellite broadcast in its present form through the NOAA Geostationary Orbital Environmental Satellites (GOES) must undergo a change when the new generation of satellites is placed into service sometime on or before 2011. Existing EMWIN receiving systems must be adapted or replaced to make the transition to the new satellite broadcast. The NWS wishes to identify and inform a community of vendors who have an interest in marketing low cost and reliable products capable of accommodating the transition. Vendors who believe they can satisfy the Government's need are invited to submit an affirmative response. All responsible sources must submit a written narrative statement of capability including technical information sufficient to permit agency analysis. This RFI is issued by NWS solely for obtaining information and planning and does not constitute a solicitation. Proprietary information must not be submitted and will not be accepted by NWS. In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 15.202 (e), responses to this notice are not an offer and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. Furthermore, no basis for claims against NWS shall arise as a result of a response to this RFI or NWS's use of such information. Affirmative responses should be submitted on via E-Mail to emwin.system@noaa.gov. No telephone calls please. BACKGROUND What is EMWIN? - The EMWIN system is a popular dissemination system providing a serial bit stream containing timely watches, warnings, forecasts, hydro-meteorological products, graphics and satellite imagery. The EMWIN data stream is prioritized to meet the needs of emergency managers. EMWIN uses NOAA's GOES satellites and economical receive systems to disseminate and process this bit stream. L-band Satellite broadcast is accomplished via GOES-East and GOES-West and also rebroadcast in Pacific via PeaceSat. In addition to L-band satellite broadcast, portions of the EMWIN data stream are also rebroadcast via VHF radio, in certain areas, and via the internet in its entirety via internet push technology. Additional information may be found at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/index.htm. EMWIN Satellite Broadcast - The current EMWIN broadcast modulation is Dual Frequency Shift Keying (DFSK) at a user data rate of 9.6 kbps. The service is transmitted from the GOES satellites using an L-band down-link frequency at 1690.725 MHz. Additional information may be found at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/WINSAT.HTM What must change? - Changes in the next series of GOES satellites, the GOES-N thru P constellation, have necessitated development of a service to be offered as a replacement and upgrade to the existing broadcast. All current EMWIN users will need to migrate to newer technologies due to frequency, power and modulation changes. In addition, EMWIN users and vendors have also stressed the importance of increasing the EMWIN data rate and keeping the cost of the GOES-N transition as low as possible. PREPARATION FOR TRANSITION EMWIN System Design & Specifications - Working with NESDIS, the NWS has developed a system design and specifications for the use of prospective vendors. The next generation broadcast, EMWIN-N is a digital direct broadcast service with a frequency of 1692.7MHz. The broadcast will be offset quadrature phase shift keying (OQPSK) modulation and convolutional rate 1/2 plus Reed Solomon forward error correction for additional gain. The user data rate will be 19.2 kbps. Details of the design and specification are now available at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/transition/EMWIN-OQPSK%20Specifications%20Final.doc. Proof-of-Concept Development - To demonstrate the feasibility of a receiving system capable of meeting the new EMWIN system design, NESDIS has developed and constructed a proof-of-concept model system using hardware implementation for the intermediate-frequency (IF) conversion and a software-defined radio scheme for the demodulation. Detailed information on the proof-of-concept design may be found within the specification at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/transition/EMWIN-OQPSK%20Specifications%20Final.doc. It is the intent of NWS to make the Demodulation and Decoding software and the dynamic link libraries (DLLs) that were developed available to the public at no charge. The software may be downloaded at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/EMWIN-N%20OQPSK%20software.htm. Vendors are free to develop any alternative scheme which meets the system design and specification criteria. GOES-N Satellite - The proof-of-concept model has been successfully tested using the GOES-N satellite. The results of these tests are posted on http://www.weather.gov/emwin/transition/EMWINtstReptGOES-N.doc. An EMWIN-N test broadcast may be available via the GOES-N satellite during satellite test periods. The GOES-N satellite is currently in storage until the next test period or until required to replace the generation of GOES satellites still in service. These older satellites will be replaced by the new generation on or before 2011, depending upon fuel consumption, premature failure or demand for capabilities only present in the new satellites. Before being placed into operational service, the GOES-N satellite will be activated each year for a test period. Test periods will be announced at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/index.htm. INVITATION E-mails will be used to develop a mailing list to be used by the NWS in disseminating additional information on EMWIN and the GOES satellite evolution. E-mail responses should include the following information: 1) Brief description of firm and current similar product lines 2) Firm's URL 3) Any questions 4) Expression of interest in being on a mailing list and possible participation in a forthcoming workshop at Silver Spring, MD. 5) Vendors who market EMWIN related products will be identified on a list of vendors posted on the EMWIN web site but without any endorsement by NWS. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES - Additional information on the EMWIN program and transition may be found on the EMWIN website located at http://www.weather.gov/emwin/index.htm.