F-16 Thunderbird DFLCC Modification

SOURCE SOUGHT SYNOPSIS F-16 Program Office Fighter/Bomber Directorate Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB), Ohio F-16 (Thunderbird) Block 52 Digital Flight Control Computers (DFLCC) Modification - 1.0 Sources Sought Synopsis (SSS) Only - 1.1 The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) Fighter/Bomber Directorate (WW), F-16 Program Contracting Office (WWMK), Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio is seeking information on a sustainment upgrade for the current United States Air Force (USAF) F-16 (Thunderbirds) Block 52 Digital Flight Control Computer (DFLCC) and conducting a market assessment to identify potential sources, and companies that may possess the expertise, capabilities, and experience to respond to the requirements listed in this document. This announcement constitutes a SSS for the purpose of conducting market research only. No solicitation exists. This is not a request for a quote, request for proposal, or an invitation to bid, nor is this to be construed as a commitment by the U.S. Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach. The Government will not reimburse or pay for any information submitted in response to this SSS or any follow-up information requests. - 1.2 Not responding to this SSS does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. Small businesses are encouraged to provide responses to this SSS in order to assist AFLCMC in determining potential levels of competition available in the industry, as well as helping to establish a basis for developing any subsequent subcontract plan goal percentages. - 1.3 The acquisition strategy is still being determined. Market research results will assist the Air Force in determining whether this requirement will be a full and open, a small business set aside, or a sole source acquisition. If it is a small business set-aside, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.219-14, "Limitations on Subcontracting" will apply. Therefore, small businesses that want to be considered for a small business set-aside should demonstrate how they could comply. - 1.4 Note that, if there is sufficient demonstrated interest and capability among small business contractors, then it may be determined that a small business set-aside is appropriate. A key factor in determining if an acquisition will be a small business set-aside is that two (2) or more potential small business prime contractors must be capable of performing at least 50% of the effort, as defined in FAR 52.219-14. If it is determined that a small business set-aside is appropriate, and your company anticipates submitting a proposal as the prime contractor for a small business set-aside, please provide specific details and rationale as to how compliance with FAR 52.219-14 would be achieved, including specific details regarding teaming arrangements, etc. If subcontracts are to be used, please provide the anticipated percentage of effort to be subcontracted and whether small or large businesses will be used. Teaming and/or subcontracting arrangements should be clearly delineated and previous experience in teaming must be provided. If this effort is not set-aside for small business, small business utilization will be considered. Large and small businesses should provide a reasonable expectation for small business utilization as a percent. - 2.0 Description: North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this potential work is 334511 category: Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing, size standard 750 employees. - 3.0 Background - 3.1 The DFLCC provides the ability to manage control surface inputs, change gains for different flight phases and processes signals from air data and other sources in controlling the aircraft. The Government is investigating the possibility of initiating a USAF Thunderbird F-16 DFLCC modification. - 3.2 The upgraded DFLCC is required to address the rudder restriction in the current -12 DFLCC Thunderbird configuration in order to allow the current show profile to be flown. - 3.3 Due to security access, system attributes, and concept of operations, foreign contractor participation is not permitted at the prime contractor level. United States contractors must develop the DFLCC in the United States of America. - 4.0 Security requirements will be in accordance with the F-16 Security Classification Guide (SCG) and any other applicable classification guides. Please contact F-16 Program Office if you require a copy of the SCG. - 5.0 The U.S. Government does not possess DFLCC internal design source data, Interface Control Documentation (ICDs), specifications, and drawings. Contractor must procure this information independently at their own cost and/or demonstrate how they would obtain the documentation. The U.S. Government cannot provide core software on the operating system because of licensing agreements between the U.S. Government and the Original Equipment Manufacturer. - 6.0 Industry Discussions: AFLCMC/WWM representatives may or may not choose to meet with potential offerors. Such discussions would only be intended to get further clarification of potential capability to meet the requirements. INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Below is the DFLCC modification Requirement Description and a Contractor Capability Survey which allows interested parties to provide their companies capability. 2. If, after reviewing this information, there is a desire to respond to the SSS, interested parties should provide documentation that supports the company's capability to meet these requirements. Failure to provide documentation may result in the U.S. Government being unable to adequately assess the company's capabilities. If there is a lack of sufficient experience in a particular area, the interested party should provide details explaining how this lack would be overcome in order to perform that portion of the requirement (i.e., teaming, subcontracting, etc.). All documentation should be provided in the form of a white paper, which is not to exceed a total of 10 pages in length and a maximum of 3 MB. Please include the following details: (a) Scope of similar/same experience (b) Teaming and/or subcontracting arrangements, which should be clearly delineated, particularly with any proposed teaming arrangements. (c) Delineate if work was in support of a Government or commercial contract 3. Due to proprietary information, interested parties shall clearly explain how they intend to meet the stated requirements via teaming/subcontracting while maximizing opportunities for small business participation in accordance with FAR Part 19. 4. Both small and large business should recommend small business utilization percentages as a percent of total contract value to be considered if the acquisition is not set aside for small businesses. This recommendation should include supporting rationale for the recommended percentage. 5. Both small and large business should also recommend any potential effort(s) that may be broken out of this requirement. 6. All interested parties should submit the response, no longer than 10 pages, electronic copy by e-mail no later than close of business 23 SEPT 2015 to the contracting officer: AFLCMC / WWMK Attn: Ms. Andrea Williams 2725 C Street Bldg. 553 Wright-Patterson AFB OH 45433 3. Any questions related to this market survey should be addressed to the Program Manager, Lt. Zachary Van Cleef, at (937) 713-6499 or the Contracting Officer, Gina Barrett, at (937) 713-6997 no later than 20 SEPT 2015. Questions regarding classified communications shall be addressed by the Security Officer, Ms. Rachel Garcia at (unclassified) (937) 904-7735, for directions to a classified phone line. 4. Please be advised that all correspondence sent via e-mail shall contain a subject line that reads "DFLCC - SSS." Note that e-mail filters at Wright-Patterson AFB are designed to filter e-mails without subject lines or with suspicious subject lines and/or certain attachments (i.e., .exe or .zip files). Therefore, if this subject line is not included, the e-mail may not get through the e-mail filters. Also, please be advised that .exe or .zip files are not allowable attachments and may be deleted by the e-mail filters at Wright-Patterson AFB. If sending attachments with e-mail ensure only .pdf, .doc, or .xls documents are sent. The e-mail filter may also delete any other form of attachments. REQUIREMENTS DESCRIPTION F-16 Digital Flight Control Computer (DFLCC) Modification Description The U.S. Government is conducting market research in order to request information in an effort to identify vendors with the expertise, capabilities, and experience to successfully develop a modification for the current DFLCC on the USAF Thunderbird F-16 Block 52's. Participating vendors shall meet the following requirements: - 1. United States DFLCC manufacturer with past experience on flight control computer development. - 2. The manufacturer's development and production facilities are located within the United States. - 3. The manufacturer shall have a minimum capability to: - a. Develop, certify, and release a DFLCC OFP which maintains the functionality of and provides handling qualities identical to the currently fielded DFLCC Operational Flight Program (OFP) with the exception of increased rudder response - b. Conduct box-level hardware and software integration testing, standalone Verification and Validation (V&V) testing, failure modes and effects testing, and Integrated System V&V (IV&V) testing with hardware in the loop - c. Certify that the change(s) to the DFLCC OFP are compatible with the currently fielded avionics suite - d. Perform pilot confidence testing using a high fidelity aircraft simulator which integrates the DFLCC OFP and the aircraft avionics suite - 4. The manufacturer must meet U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) security protection requirements. - 5. The contractor must have a solution that meets the following minimum requirements: - a. Redundancy: Four (4) independent redundant branches with inter-channel data links for proper fault monitoring and output selection voting - b. MIL-STD-1553: Two (2) dual redundant MIL-STD-1553B multiplex bus interfaces - c. Hardware: No hardware change to the DFLCC currently used by the USAF F-16 Blocks 40-52 fleet - d. Form/Fit: Use existing USAF F-16 Blocks 40-52 DFLCC volume, rack, power, and cooling provisions, as well as existing interfaces with other Line Replaceable Units (LRUs) - e. Technology Readiness Level: Has a Technology Readiness Level of 6 or higher that is ready for integration and final development starting in 4th quarter CY17 - f. Meets U.S. Government Cyber-Security (Information Assurance) requirements - g. Qualified for use throughout the complete F-16 operational environment - 6. Provide schedule delivery estimates for U.S. Government software development tools, compiler, licenses, proprietary software, and any unique development environment requirements. Contractors are encouraged to provide budgetary estimates for software tools and licenses. - 7. Provide strategy and schedule estimate for depot support (Contractor Logistics Support, contractor depot, or organic depot). Contractors are encouraged to provide budgetary estimates for organic depot standup. - 8. Provide a list of documentation, Government Furnished Equipment, and Government Furnished Information the contractor requires from the U.S. Government, as well as the dates by which they are needed. Demonstrate how your company will acquire DFLCC design source data, ICD information, specifications, and drawings, if required. CONTRACTOR CAPABILITY SURVEY F-16 Digital Flight Control Computer (DFLCC) Modification Part I. Business Information Interested parties shall provide the following business information for the company/institution and for any teaming or joint venture partners: - Company/Institute Name: - Address: - Point of Contact: - CAGE Code: Number of employees Phone Number: E-mail Address: Web Page URL: - Size of business pursuant to NAICS Code 334511, size standard of 750 employees: Based on the above NAICS Code, state whether the company is: Small Business (Yes / No) (Self-Certified or Third Party Certified) Woman-Owned Small Business (Yes / No) (Self-Certified or Third Party Certified) Economically Disadvantaged Woman-Owned Small Business (Yes / No) (Self-Certified or Third Party Certified) HUBZone Certified (Yes / No) (Self-Certified or Third Party Certified) Veteran Owned Small Business (Yes / No) (Self-Certified or Third Party Certified) Service Disabled Veteran Small Business (Yes / No) (Self-Certified or Third Party Certified) 8(a) Certified (Yes / No) SBA Certification Date: __________________ SBA Graduation Date: ____________ System for Award Management (SAM) (Yes / No) * * NOTE: All prospective contractors must be registered in the SAM database to be awarded a DoD contract. The NAICS code for this requirement, if applicable to the company's capabilities, should be included in the company's NAICS code listing in SAM. Interested parties shall provide a statement as to whether the company is domestically or foreign owned (if foreign, please indicate the country of ownership). Part II. Capability Survey Questions Interested parties shall provide the following business General Capability information for the company/institution and for any teaming or joint venture partners: - 1. General Capability Questions - a. Describe briefly the capabilities of the company facility and the nature of the goods and/or services the company provides. - b. Describe the company's past experience on previous projects for the U.S. Government similar in complexity to this requirement. Include contract numbers, a brief description of the work performed, period of performance, agency/organization supported, and individual point of contact (Contracting Officer or Program Manager). - c. Briefly describe how the company would use small business to support this potential effort. - d. Describe the company's knowledge of and experience in working with the USAF F-16 DFLCC. Also describe any knowledge/experience of interfacing with the F-16 DFLCC with the F-16 OFPs. - e. Provide evidence that the company's proposed DFLCC solution is compatible with the current USAF F-16 Blocks 40/42/50/52 configurations. - f. Does the company have the ability to work at the classified level to support this development? Describe the company's capabilities for generating, handling, processing, and storing classified material and data. - g. Describe the company's capabilities and experience in generating technical data, engineering drawings, and manuals. Identify what software programs are used to generate these data products and what formats are available for delivered items. - h. What is the company's current maximum production capacity per month? - i. Provide information on any facility reserves the company may possess to increase production capacity in the event of an immediate need due to critical operational mission requirements. - j. Are there specific requirements in the documentation that the U.S. Government provided that would currently preclude your product from being a viable solution to the Government's requirement? - k. What data rights, associated with the hardware, software, and development tools, will be provided to the Government? - l. Describe the company's proposed contract type and anticipated period of performance as it relates herein. - m. Does the product require support equipment? - 2. Hardware Production Questions: - a. Describe the capability and experiences in the manufacturing/fabrication of digital flight control computer components. - b. What quality assurance processes and test qualification practices does the company employ? Please provide a description of the company's quality program (i.e. ISO 9000, QS-9000, EIA-599, or otherwise). - 3. Repair Questions: - a. Describe the company's capabilities and experience in developing/modifying repair or maintenance procedures. Include associated upgrade of technical orders and preparation of new technical orders. - b. Describe the company's configuration management processes and how the company identifies and resolves parts obsolescence and diminishing manufacturing sources problems. - c. Describe the company's process for maintaining inventory records and reporting on hand/in work balances and repair status to the company's customer. - 4. Commerciality Questions: - a. Does the Government's requirement have established catalog or market prices? If the interested company offers this product and/or service to both U.S. Government and commercial sources, is the same workforce used for both the U.S. Government and general public? Is the Government's requirement offered to both under similar terms and conditions? Briefly describe any differences. - b. Describe the company's standard warranty and return process for goods and services furnished to the U.S. Government for items similar in nature to this requirement. Proprietary Data F-16 Digital Flight Control Computer (DFLCC) Modification - 1. Proprietary Information (PI) or Intellectual Property (IP) should be minimized and clearly marked: - a. Segregate PI and IP information to the maximum extent practical. - b. Proprietary Data Protection Agreement should be in place that would permit the F-16 program office support contractors to view proprietary information. The following is a list of support contractors who will review the responses. Company Name Phone E-mail Engility Tom Bell 937-713-6535 thomas.bell.10.ctr@us.af.mil HMR Tech David Hindt 937-713-6523 david.hindt.ctr@us.af.mil HMR Tech Doug Egged 937-713-6514 douglas.egged.ctr@us.af.mil - 2. The U.S. Government will secure Non-Disclosure Agreements from contractors supporting AFLCMC/WW, F-16 Division as identified above. - 3. Interested parties, if unwilling for the U.S. Government to release their proprietary data to support contractors, shall provide a statement detailing their position. - 4. In the absence of either of the foregoing, the U.S. Government will assume that the respondent does agree to the release of its submission to U.S. Government support contractors. - 5. The respondent must provide a facility security clearance prior to any point-to-point classified discussions. All interested parties should indicate which portions of their responses are proprietary and mark accordingly. All information received in response to this RFI that is properly marked as "proprietary" will be handled accordingly. Proprietary information must be clearly marked on the outside container and on the materials inside. The Government shall not be liable for, or suffer any consequential damages, for any proprietary information not properly identified. Summary THIS IS AN SSS ONLY to identify sources that can provide a modification for USAF F-16 Blocks 40/42/50/52 DFLCC. The information provided in the SSS is subject to change and is not binding on the U.S. Government. The Air Force has not made a commitment to procure any of the items discussed, and release of this SSS should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. All submissions become U.S. Government property and will not be returned.