Landing Craft Unit (LCU) 1700 Sources Sought

THIS SPECIAL NOTICE IS A SOURCES SOUGHT FOR MARKET RESEARCH AND IS FOR INFORMATIONAL AND PLANNING PURPOSES ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. THERE IS NO FUNDING ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. BACKGROUND: The Naval Sea System Command (NAVSEA) is issuing this Special Notice on behalf of the Amphibious Warfare Program Office (PMS377) to assist with informing the Acquisition Strategy to recapitalize the Landing Craft, Utility (LCU) 1610 Class of amphibious landing craft. The Government is conducting market research to identify parties having both interest in and the resources to support a potential future program which would rapidly recapitalize the Navy's LCUs and to gather comments on an acquisition approach. The results of this market research will contribute to the development of the Acquisition Strategy for the LCU 1610 replacement program known as the LCU 1700 program. The Surface Connector (X) Replacement (SC(X)R) Program has been renamed the LCU 1700 Program. LCU 1700 craft would replace the capabilities inherent in the LCU 1610 Class of landing craft, all of which have exceeded their designed service life. LCUs are typically transported in the well decks of amphibious warships and are used across the range of military operations to deliver vehicles, personnel and cargo from the sea to the shore and from shore to shore. They are also used to support Building Partnership missions, to provide dive team or small boat support, to assist in port clearing, to conduct limited surveillance, and to support many other missions enabled by its open cargo deck, intra-theater range and independent operations capability. In earlier Requests For Information (N0002412SNA72, N0002413SN08A, N0002413SN09A, N0002415SN005, N0002415SN009, N0002415SN010, and N0002415SN012) Industry provided the Government input on basic yard capabilities, the pros and cons of the use of a Build to Print approach with a Government-provided Detail Design, and technical market research questions. PURPOSE: This Special Notice seeks interested parties capable of performing detailed design and construction for up to thirty-two (32) LCU 1700 craft. Landing craft are included in the US Munitions List and therefore subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) restrictions. Therefore, any interested parties must comply with all U.S. export control laws and regulations. Additionally, interested parties are reminded that 10 U.S.C. 7309 prohibits the construction of vessels, hulls, mid-body or other major fixed structural components of a vessel in foreign shipyards. ANTICIPATED SCOPE OF WORK: The type of work to be accomplished under an potential LCU 1700 contract would include the development of a detailed design based on a modified performance specification and construction of steel landing craft, providing similar capabilities as those found on the existing 32 LCU 1610 Class vessels. However, LCU 1700 craft are anticipated to have increased payload capability, improved habitability, and reduced life-cycle costs. In addition, the potential awardee would be responsible for the design and integration of hull, machinery, electrical, electronic, navigation, habitability and piping systems, as well as integration of gun foundations and a Government-furnished communications suite into the vessel. Requirements would also include test plan development, logistics support, technical manual development, and Earned Value Management System reporting. The Government has developed a notional Preliminary Design based on a modified repeat of the LCU 1610. In this notional approach, a modified performance specification would be used. The term "modified" is used to indicate that it would not be a pure performance specification; due to the unique dimensional restraints required by the need to enter and exit existing well decks and the learning provided by the Government's Preliminary Design effort, some additional non-performance requirements would be provided in the specification. LCU 1700 CHARACERISTICS: The basic characteristics of the notional Preliminary Design include: - Hull: Steel construction - Service life of at least 30 years - Capable of repeated beach landings without structural damage - Length: approximately 139 feet Beam: approximately 31 feet - Light Ship Displacement: approximately 256 long tons - Full load displacement: approximately 428 long tons - Draft (Fully Loaded) - (weight/draft control would be critical to support entry into amphibious warship well decks at full load): - Maximum Draft Forward 4'-3" - Maximum (appendage) Draft Aft 6'-9" - Power Plant: - Diesel propulsion with Kort nozzles, 2 shafts (two ~ 500 horsepower diesel engines) - Generators: two ~76 kilowatt diesels - Craft would be powered by NATO F-76 diesel fuel marine and would be capable of operating on JP-5 - Lift Capacity: 170 Short tons - Max Speed: 11 knots - Endurance at Sustained Speed: 1200 NM at 8 knots with a 170 short tons of payload - Bow ramp and stern gate for drive-through capability - Habitability for 10 days underway - Crew accommodations for 14 personnel (mixed gender) - Habitability and provisioning support - Stern anchor with diesel engine hydraulic power unit (HPU) and hydraulic winch - Capable of operating in Sea State 3 seas; survivable in Sea State 5 - Redundant critical systems (engines, generators, switchboards, fire pumps) - 4 machine gun mounts capable of accepting US Navy crew served weapons - Capable of being transported in current and planned amphibious warships without requiring any modification to the warships - Stability standards required: US Navy Standards for two compartment flooding - Electronics: o Communications suite, Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) and Amphibious Assault Direction System (AADS) will be provided as Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) o The following electronics/systems would be provided by the craft builder: machinery and craft control, monitoring and alarm systems, Navigation system hardware, commercial marine band radio communications, camera system for visibility augmentation. LCU 1700 shall include only mature, highly reliable systems and components. The craft would leverage commercial hull, mechanical and electrical systems that are already in use by the Navy where possible; leveraging systems that would allow for increased buying power commonality with other Navy craft and use of established provisioning and support. REQUESTED INFORMATION: Interested parties should provide information describing their: 1. Facilities and capacity to: a) Develop a Detailed Design for LCU 1700, followed by the construction of the lead and follow craft; and, b) Construct, test and deliver up to 6 craft per year. 2. Preferred build profile per year, and construction timeline in years, for procurement of 32 craft. RESPONSES AND SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION: Defense and commercial contractors, including large and small businesses, veteran-owned businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned businesses, HUBZone small businesses, and woman-owned small businesses are encouraged to participate. Interested parties are encouraged to respond to this announcement with complete response information. Complete responses shall include: 1. Organization Name 2. Address 3. Website address 4. Point of Contact - Name - Position/Title - Email address - Telephone number 5. Size and type of ownership for the organization - Business size, socioeconomic category, and associated NAICS code - Number of employees 6. An estimate of how long it would take to produce a complete Detail Design based on a performance specification. Assume in the timeframe that at a minimum, successful Government formal design reviews will be required: - Functional Design Review - Critical Design Review - Production Readiness Review (Work Packages complete, facilities, tooling, material and manning ready for construction start) Please identify any other assumptions used. 7. An estimate of how long it would take to construct a steel, ocean going vessel of the size and complexity described above. Please identify any assumptions used. 8. A description of the company's relevant experience. Identify the number of relevant vessels constructed and the years they were delivered. 9. A description of the company production facilities, including equipment and build sites, for construction. 10. A description of facility production capacity. Identify the maximum per year production capacity of LCU 1700 craft. 11. The desired build profile for a total of 32 craft. - Identify Economic Order Quantities NAVSEA may request further information regarding the capabilities of respondents to meet the requirements and may request a presentation and/or a site visit as deemed necessary. RESPONSE CRITERIA: Interested parties are free to submit any information which may assist the Navy in its market research and understanding of sources available to meet the operational need. Responses shall be limited to twenty (20) pages; however, a detailed proposal is not requested. Only electronic responses via email will be accepted. Any email attachments or supplemental information must be Microsoft compatible. No information may be sent in a ".zip" file format. No classified material shall be submitted in response to this Special Notice under any circumstance. IMPORTANT - Any email containing export controlled information must be marked FOUO and use encryption. Note: As a reminder, interested parties do not have to meet all requirements listed in this Special Notice to submit a response. All responses received will be reviewed by the Government. NOTICE REGARDING PROPRIETARY INFORMATION: All submitted materials will be designated for Government Use Only. Third party support contractors who have executed non-disclosure agreements with the Government may have access to the information provided. Any information submitted which is to be provided and reviewed by Government personnel only shall be clearly marked as such. Otherwise, the Government shall construe consent has been given to allow access to the information by any relevant third party support contractor. The Government shall not be liable for or suffer any consequential damages for proprietary information not properly identified. Proprietary information will be safeguarded in accordance with the applicable Government regulations. Respondents are solely responsible for properly marking and clearly identifying any proprietary information or trade secrets contained within their response. The Government shall not be liable for or suffer any consequential damages for proprietary information not properly identified. Proprietary information will be safeguarded in accordance with the applicable Government regulations. QUESTIONS: Questions regarding this Special Notice shall be submitted by e-mail to the Contracting Officer, Linda Squires at linda.squires@navy.mil. Verbal questions will NOT be accepted. The Government may not respond to any specific questions or comments submitted in response to this Special Notice. Any information submitted by respondents as a result of this Special Notice is strictly voluntary. WHEN TO SUBMIT: This information is requested to be provided by email by 5 January 2016, 1400 EST, to the Point of Contact listed below. FUTURE SPECIAL NOTICES: It is anticipated that future Special Notices will be issued via www.fbo.gov providing interested parties information on how to access notional inboard and outboard craft profiles and general arrangement drawings on the LCU 1700 Industry Website. It is anticipated that these documents will have a distribution classification more restrictive than "Distribution Statement - Approved for public release. Distribution is unlimited" marking. For information on how to request a LCU 1700 Industry Website account, please send an e-mail with the subject: "LCU 1700 Industry Website Registration Form Request" to Ms. Kathleen Minnich at kathleen.minnich@navy.mil. Any other inquires sent to this email address will not receive a response. NOTICES REGARDING SOLICITATION: This notice does NOT constitute a Request for Proposal and is not to be construed as a commitment, implied or otherwise, by the Government that a procurement action will be issued. No telephone inquiries will be accepted and requests for solicitation packages will not be honored, as no solicitation is intended at this time. Response to this notice is not a request to be added to a bidders list or to receive a copy of a solicitation. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT SOLELY ON THE BASIS OF THIS SPECIAL NOTICE. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of the submission of the requested information. No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this announcement and any follow-up information requests. POINT OF CONTACT: Linda Squires, Contracting Officer, linda.squires@navy.mil CONTRACTING OFFICE ADDRESS: Naval Sea Systems Command Linda C. Squires, Code SEA 02242 1333 Isaac Hull Ave., SE. Washington, DC 20376-2020