Establishment of National Tire Alignment Laboratory

Action Code: Sources Sought Classification Code: H Solicitation: DTNH2216RQ-01045 Agency/Office: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Location: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration HQ NAICS Code: 541380, Testing Laboratories, $15.0 M. Point of Contract: Vincent Lynch, Contracting Officer, ph(202) 366-9568 Title: Establishment of National Tire Alignment Laboratory Description(s): The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is issuing this Sources Sought Notice to identify potential qualified Small Business (SB), Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB), 8(a) Certified SDB, HUBZone SB, SDVOSB, or WOSB concerns that may be interested in and capable of performing the work described herein to perform inspection and compliance testing services to determine conformance of motor vehicles to the requirements of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA), which in part, directs that the Secretary of Transportation establish a consumer information program for tire efficiency. The consumer information program includes the establishment of a tire efficiency (i.e., rolling resistance) rating system for passenger car tires sold in the United States. EISA also directs the Secretary to develop consumer information ratings for tire safety (i.e., wet traction) and tire durability (i.e., treadwear). In accordance with these requirements, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a final rule adopting international standard ISO 28580:2009(E) as the test procedure used for testing tires to obtain a tire efficiency rating. Rolling resistance, or the force required to make the tires roll, differs from tire to tire and is an indicator of a tire's fuel efficiency. The measurement of rolling resistance requires precise instrumentation, calibration, test conditions, and equipment alignment for repeatable results. NHTSA welcomes all qualified Small Business concerns, with the appropriate NAICS Code and past experience to submit their Corporate Capability Statements that demonstrate their ability to successfully accomplish the goals of the project as listed below. NHTSA does not intend to award a contract on the basis of responses to this notice or otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. Acknowledgement of receipt of responses will not be made; no formal evaluation of the information received will be conducted by NHTSA. NHTSA may; however later on issue a Request for Proposals (RFP). However, should such a requirement fail to materialize, no basis for claims against NHTSA shall arise as a result of a response to this notice. Background: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) mission is to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce traffic-related health care and other economic costs. The agency develops, promotes, and implements effective educational, engineering, and enforcement programs with the goal of ending vehicle crash tragedies and reducing economic costs associated with vehicle use and highway travel. The Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance conducts extensive research, development, testing, crash investigation, and data collection and analysis activities to provide the scientific basis needed to support the Agency's motor vehicle and traffic safety goals. In addition to supporting internal NHTSA efforts, NHTSA-sponsored research provides high-quality publicly-accessible data that serves as the basis for countless other research endeavors. As part of its mission to reduce fatalities and injuries caused by motor vehicle crashes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration promulgates Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) through vehicle compliance testing under IDIQ Multi-Standard Vehicle Testing Contracts. Manufacturers of motor vehicles and items of motor vehicle equipment are required to certify that each product they sell in the United States meets the requirements of all applicable safety standards. Objective: The objectives of this contract are to: 1. Establish and operate a facility to be designated the "National Alignment Laboratory" from which potential customers (e.g., tire manufacturers, Federal Government, etc.) will align their tire testing machines for the purpose of measuring rolling resistance for passenger car tires as defined in 49 CFR 575.106 and provide LAT Alignment Services. Capabilities: The corporate capability statement must address the capabilities necessary to accomplish the scope outlined above as well as the additional tasks and characteristics given below: B.l SUPPLIES/SERVICES The Contractor shall provide the necessary qualified personnel, facilities, materials, supplies, equipment, and services as identified in the SOW below: C.3 SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS C.3.1 Kick-Off Meeting (CLIN 1001) Within three weeks of contract award, NHTSA and the Contractor shall participate in a "Kick-off" meeting to be held at the Contractor's facility. During this meeting, the Contractor shall present an oral briefing which shall include an overview of the contract's requirements, a discussion of how the Contractor will fulfill those requirements, and any other information relevant to this contract's performance. It is anticipated that the kick-off meeting will last no more than 2 hours. One week prior to the kick-off meeting, the Contractor shall provide the COTR with a copy of any briefing material it intends to use. C.3.2 Establishment of Alignment Laboratory (CLIN 2001) The Contractor shall establish and manage the Government-designated National Alignment Laboratory and equipment which meets the pre-contract award certification requirements stipulated in the RFP which resulted in this contract. Within 30 days of contract award, the Contractor's Alignment Lab shall be operational. C.3.2.1 Cost for Establishing the Alignment Lab The Government will not reimburse the Contractor directly for any costs associated with the establishment of the Alignment Laboratory or the acquisition of the tire rolling resistance test machine. Recovery of those costs should be considered when establishing the firm-fixed prices cited in Price Schedules B.2.3.1 through B.2.3.5 of this contract. C.3.2.1 Physical Location The Alignment Laboratory must be located within the continental United States. C.3.2.2 ISO Requirements: See http://www.iso.org/iso/home.html a. All alignment testing must conform to the requirements of ISO 28580:2009(E) Passenger car, truck and bus tires - Methods of measuring rolling resistance - Single point test and correlation of measurement results. b. The Contractor must be certified to either: ISO/IEC 17025, General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories; or ISO/TS 16949, Quality management systems - Particular requirements for the application of ISO 9001: 2000 for automotive production and relevant service part organizations. C.3.2.3 Alignment Lab and Alignment Machine The Contractor's Alignment Lab and Alignment Machine shall meet the following requirements: - a. ISO 28580:2009(E), in general, and Chapter 10 and Annex A, in particular. - b. Gather tire efficiency data by the torque method or the force method. - c. Be capable of performing tire efficiency tests on the full range of pneumatic passenger car tires, including physical sizes and load as identified in the 2012 Tire and Rim Association Yearbook, Section 1 and 49 CFR 575.106. - d. Be capable of testing tire rolling resistance per ISO 28580, OVSC TP-575-TE-01 and OVSC TP-575-AL-02. - e. Be compatible with the test rim sizes specified in Section C.3.2.5 of this contract. - f. Be equipped with a 1.7 meter test roadwheel (i.e., a smooth, flat-faced, steel, cylindrical flywheel test wheel) that is compatible with ISO 28580 and the tire contact area whose width will exceed the tire contact patch under load in accordance with the required test procedures noted in C.3.2.3.d, above. 1). All rolling resistance testing shall be performed with 80-grit paper attached to the roadwheel to minimize any slippage between the roadwheel and the tire. 2). There shall be a drum speed indicator associated with the roadwheel reading in kilometers per hour. 3). Torque machines shall have sensors to measure torque applied to the roadwheel. Force machines shall have suitable load cells to measure force. 4). A tire-wheel assembly revolution counter gathering data in revolutions per kilometer shall be used. - g. Be equipped with a temperature sensing capability to monitor the temperature at the tire test position. (See TP-575-AL-01.) - h. Be equipped with a motor and control system which includes a high precision drive. C.3.2.4 Lab Alignment Tires (LATs) a. Lab Alignment Tires (LATs) are defined in Section B.1.1 of this contract. NOTE: The agency has not formally and officially identified these tires as LATs under its final rule (75 Fed. Reg. 15944, March 30, 2010). Because ISO has stated that these tires meet the requirements of ISO 28580, the agency will use them to verify test procedures and validate the alignment process within the scope of this contract. However, in future rulemaking actions, the agency may or may not officially designate these tires as LATs for enforcement purposes under 49 CFR 575.106. b. LATs may or may not be certified to an FMVSS for use on U.S. roads, and accordingly; this will have no impact on their function as lab alignment tires. c. The Contractor shall be responsible for maintaining matched sets throughout their use and for ensuring their security. d. As stated in Section B.1.3 of this contract, customers requiring equipment alignment services will be responsible for providing LATs to the Contractor. The Contractor shall return these LATs, as well as the data specified in this contract, to those customers upon completion of LAT alignment services. C.3.2.5 Test Rims The Contractor is responsible for supplying test rims necessary and used during the alignment process. These test rims shall conform to the following specifications: 1). Test rim width for the 235/65R17 XL 108T Bridgestone Dueler A/T 694 tire shall be 7.00 inches 2). Test rim width for the 195/55R16 87V Bridgestone Ecopia EP100, and, if introduced in October of 2012 (See B.1.1.1 and B.1.1.2) the Bridgestone 195/60R16 89H PZ-X and the Bridgestone 225/80R15 105S D694 tires shall be 6.00 inches. Test rims shall be made from steel. Radial and lateral run-out of the aforementioned test rims shall not exceed 0.5 mm. d. If this contract is modified to change the make or model of the LATs prescribed in this contract (see B.1.1), that modification MAY also include changes to the test rim specifications. C.3.2.6 Lab and equipment re-certification If determined necessary by the Government, the Contractor may be required to re-certify its Alignment Lab and equipment at some point during the performance of this contract. In re-certifying, the Contractor shall follow OVSC TP-575-AL-02 Section 12.1. LATs provided to the Contractor shortly after at time of contract award shall be used for re-certification. C.3.3 Equipment Alignment Services (CLIN 3001, 3003, and if applicable 3005, 3007, 3009) At the fixed prices established in Section B.2.3 of this contract, the Contractor shall provide equipment alignment services to its customers. In doing so, the Contractor shall provide the resultant data to the customer (see OVSC TP-575-AL-02: Laboratory Test Procedure for 49 CFR 575.106 Alignment Lab Testing of Reference Tires, Figure 1), and return the LATs to its customers. Using that data and the LATs, the customers will be able to align their test equipment to the Contractor's Alignment Equipment. By doing this, potential variations in the measurements between different test equipment can be negated, thereby establishing test results common to both the Alignment Lab and the customer. C.3.3.1 Receipt of LATs from customers As stated in C.3.2.4.d, each customer requesting equipment alignment services from the Contractor shall be responsible for acquiring and providing to the Contractor a proper matched set of LATs identified in Section B.1.1 and elsewhere in this contract. C.3.3.2 Mounting LATs onto test rims a. The Contractor shall provide and use test rims identified in Section C.3.2.5 of this contract. b. Before mounting and after demounting a tire, the Contractor shall inspect both tire and rim for visual defects or physical damage. The Contractor shall note any visual defects or physical damage on the test sheet and attach to the test sheet digital images that clearly identify the visual defect or physical damage and when it was observed. c. When mounting a LAT to the rim, the Contractor shall refer to OVSC TP-575-AL-02, paragraph 14.B. d. Test rims shall be identified and recorded on the test sheet. e. After mounting, the Contractor shall dynamically balance each LAT to minimize any vibration during testing. C.3.3.3 Alignment Procedures - a. The Contractor shall adhere to the following standards when providing alignment services: - 1. ISO 28580:2009(E) Passenger car, truck and bus tires - Methods of measuring rolling resistance - Single point test and correlation of measurement results. - 2. OVSC TP-575-TE-01: Laboratory Test Procedure for 49 CFR 575.106 Tire Fuel Efficiency Consumer Information Program. - 3. OVSC TP-575-AL-02: Laboratory Test Procedure for 49 CFR 575.106 Alignment Lab Testing of Reference Tires. - b. Rolling resistance, expressed as a force with units of Newtons, is calculated using the values obtained by testing the tire as specified in OVSC TP-575-AL-02. - c. The rolling resistance coefficient shall be calculated using the equation in ISO 28580 Section 9.1. - d. If measurements at temperatures other than 25'C are unavoidable, then a correction for temperature shall be made by means of the equation in ISO 28580, Section 9.2. - e. If measurements are made using test drums different than 2.0 m diameter, use the equation in ISO 28580, Section 9.3 to convert data to 2.0 meter diameter. - f. For all matched sets of LATs aligned under this contract, the data generated by the Alignment Lab must meet the requirements of ISO 28580, Section 10.4. g. The Contractor must meet the ?m < 0.05 requirement (ISO 28580, Section 10.2) on its alignment machine using control tests with its own alignment tires before and after the alignment of customer LATs are performed under this contract. This requirement is in place to ensure that the alignment machine meets requirements before aligning customer LATs, and to ensure that the machine has not drifted during the testing. If this requirement is met, then it is reasonable to assume that all tires tested between the two control tests also meet the requirement. h. LAT Alignment services (See B.1.3 for full definition) shall be completed within three weeks after receiving the LATs from the customer. C.3.3.4 Machine Drift Machine drift is defined as the tendency of the data generated from a tire efficiency test machine to change or lose stability over time. In order to address drift issues and ensure reliability of test data, the Contractor shall have and follow a comprehensive drift management plan in place as well as adhere to the specifications on controlling for machine drift contained in test procedures identified in OVSC TP-575-AL-02. C.3.3.5 Measurement of Test Items The Contractor shall collect all data under the contract in accordance with, OVSC TP-575-AL-02, Section 16. C.3.3.6 Data Analysis Data generated under C.3.3.5 shall be processed as specified in, OVSC TP-575-AL-02, Section 17. C.3.3.7 Data Presentation All data shall be reported using metric units. English units may be provided, but they will be for information only, and shall be rounded off to the nearest whole number for easy reading. C.3.3.8 Measurement and Calibration of Test Equipment Refer to, OVSC TP-575-AL-02, Section 8. C.3.3.9 Customer Data In providing LAT Alignment services (See B.1.3 for full definition), the Contractor shall provide the customer with the data sheet, Figure 1 of OVSC TP-575-AL-02. C.3.3.10 Deviations from Test Procedures a. The Contractor shall conduct testing only in accordance with the required ISO and OVSC Test Procedures and/or contractor test procedures approved by the COTR. If the Contractor identifies a need to deviate from the established test procedures, the Contractor shall first seek and then receive approval from the COTR prior to the deviation. b. Any problems or questions regarding the technical portion of this contract shall be referred to the COTR, via telephone, within two working days, and via e-mail or hardcopy letter, within five working days after identification of the problem. c. The COTR may require that minor deviations from the aforementioned test procedures be made as deemed necessary. It is anticipated that these minor deviations will have no affect on the price of performing the test. In the event the Contractor believes that such deviation will have an impact on price, the Contractor shall advise the COTR and the NHTSA Contracting Officer within five (5) days of identifying the price impact of such deviation and not proceed with the deviation until specific permission from the NHTSA Contracting Officer is given. C.3.3.11 Storage of Test Items The Contractor shall be responsible for the storage and security of LATs it receives from customers. The Contractor shall replace, at no cost to its customer(s), any LATs that are lost or damaged while in the possession of the Contractor. C.3.3.12 Monthly Alignment Machine Maintenance Report Every month the Contractor shall verify the alignment machine performance in accordance with OVSC TP-575-AL-02, Chapter 12.2. C.3.3.13 Daily Control Charting The Contractor shall comply with the minimum daily requirements of the alignment lab as listed in OVSC TP-575-AL-02, Chapter 12.3. The Government reserves the right to review any records or reports supporting the Contractor's compliance with this requirement. C.3.3.14 Subcontracting a. The Contractor shall not subcontract out any of the alignment testing or process associated with this Section C.3.3. b. The Contractor may subcontract software development, maintenance or calibration, but the Contractor is fully responsible for system. At the time of award the contractor must have all necessary personnel, facilities and equipment. Results of work conducted under this contract will facilitate the reduction of motor vehicle crash-related injuries and fatalities. Format of Corporate Capabilities Statement: Any interested qualified Small Business firms, Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB), 8(a) Certified SDB, HUBZone SB, SDVOSB, or WOSB concerns should submit their Corporate Capability Statement, which demonstrates the firm's ability and past experience in no more than 10 pages to perform the key requirements described above to the identified NHTSA point of contact listed herein. Any proprietary information should be marked as such. All respondents are asked to certify the type and size of their business organization is in-line with the requirements of this Sources Sought Notice, and must be received no later than 10 calendar days from the date of publication of this notice.