Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) and Small Barge Planning Yard Support

This is an amended sources sought announcement to an original posting on 30 November 2022, Notice ID: N00024-24-R-4313; for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Planning Yard Requirement. This amendement includes the additional support for Auxiliary Personnel Lighter (APL) - Small Barges. This is an amended sources sought announcement in anticipation of LCS and APL - Small Barges procurement. The Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) is conducting market research to determine industry capability and interest in the Planning Yard Support Contract for LCS Class and Small Barge Ships. The LCS and Small Barge Planning Yard support will include, but is not limited to: Ship Installation Drawings (SID) development, Ship Change Document (SCD) updates, Operating Cycle Integration Program Management; Work Integration Package Engineering; Type Commander (TYCOM) response; Ship Configuration Logistics Support Information System (SCLSIS) support; Configuration Data Management (CDM); Research Engineering and Modeling; Provisioned Items Order; cost and feasibility studies, Integrated Planning Yard (IPY) Material Support; Provisioning Technical Documentation; naval drawing repository system input and data management; interface and coordination with Regional Maintenance Centers RMCs and Fleet entities; design alteration and modification development, review and tracing; and managing related class Ship Selected Record Documents (SSRD) and Hull Mechanical and Electrical (HM&E) engineering standardization efforts. The Government has provided the following information as an attachment to this sources sought announcement: 1. The draft solicitation statement of work (SOW). Responses to this notice must clearly demonstrate the company's capability, experience, and/or ability to marshal resources to effectively and efficiently provide planning yard support, at a sufficient level of detail to allow proper evaluation by the Navy. For small businesses, the organization should provide evidence that they could satisfy the minimum requirements listed in the SOW while ensuring compliance with FAR 52.219-14, Limitations on Subcontracting. Interested companies should submit, on company letterhead, a notice of interest including the name, telephone number, mailing address, and e-mail address of one point of contact to Commander, Naval Sea Systems Command, Attn: Ms. Katie Corvello and Ms. Jada Williams. Please scan your letter of interest and e-mail it to kathryn.f.corvello.civ@us.navy.mil and jada.n.williams11.civ@us.navy.mil with - LCS and Small Barge Planning Yard Sources Sought Response in the subject field. The notice of interest should include a brief description of your company and its capabilities as they relate to the requirements set forth in this announcement, and answer the following specific questions. Failure to definitively address each of the questions may result in a finding that the respondent lacks the capability to perform the work. Please limit your response to no more than 15 pages. 1. Is your company a small or large business as defined by the Small Business Administration (SBA)? 2. Does your company have a website? If so, what is your company's website address? 3. Is your company currently able to execute as least 50% of the cost of contract performance, as the Prime, over the life of the contract? How do you intend to accomplish this? The Navy wants to ensure that the Offeror understands the level of effort required as small business as prime contractor. If a portion of the SOW is too vague to answer the question, please provide what additional information is needed to confidently answer the question. As part of your answer to this question, please answer the following sub-questions. Please describe the financial requirements you expect that your company would have as you stand up the necessary workforce and production materials to complete the contract, and how you'll meet the contract correspondent cash flow requirements. Please provide a cash flow statement that will show the sources and uses of funds necessary to complete this contract, in concert with all of your company's other financial commitments. As part of this cash flow statement, please identify the expected maximum amount of sales outstanding that your company expects you would need to be able to finance prior to reimbursement by the Government. Please explain where the sources of cash flow will come from (be it from Government invoice payments, internal cash reserves, or external financing such as issuing new debt or selling equity). Please demonstrate the extent of your company's current access to credit and your company's capacity for future credit in terms of unencumbered physical assets. Please tell us the amount of cash and other liquid assets your company has on hand to use as working capital to meet the contract's cash flow requirements. Please describe how your sources of cash and credit will sufficiently meet your cash flow requirements in concert with other sources. Please explain all the assumptions underlying this cash flow statement. Please discuss your current and future expected financial obligations (in terms of outstanding and future expected liabilities) and your company's ability to meet them. Please discuss any risks that might inhibit your company's ability to meet these requirements and how your company is working to mitigate those risks. Please provide a quantitative cash flow statement that sufficiently demonstrates that your company has the necessary funds to meet financial obligations of performing the contract. A contractor will need a sufficient amount of cash on hand to cover obligations during the period between when the contractor would incur costs and when those costs are reimbursed by the Government through a paid invoice. 4. Will your company, given all provided information, be able to comply with the required or proposed delivery or performance schedule, taking into consideration all existing commercial and governmental business commitments? 5. Does your company have a performance record for work similar to work sought here? If so, please provide examples of recent performance within the past three years. 6. Does your company have the necessary organization, experience, accounting and operational controls, and technical skills, or the ability to obtain them (including, as appropriate, such elements as production control procedures, property control systems, quality assurance measures, and safety programs applicable to materials to be produced or services to be performed by the prospective contractor and subcontractors)? 7. Does your company have the necessary production, construction, and technical equipment and facilities, or the ability to obtain them? 8. Staffing: How many employees does your company have? Considering the ship class will rapidly increase (both variants) by the end of the contract period and, assuming all current employees are gainfully employed, what strategy(s) do you propose for recruiting and retaining staff at contract award through the life of the contract as contract staff members change? If current staffing is adequate to support this effort, describe the current workload and future projected workload of the resources anticipated. Provide a list of current efforts supported and resources expended against. Provide a list of future efforts anticipated and resources necessary to support. Are any other efforts currently or within the next year (excepting the LCS Planning Yard (PY) solicitation) anticipated to be bid for work? 9. Strategic Planning/Program Management: Strategic Planning/Program Management plays a critical role in sustainment contracts due to the overlap of planning events, inter-availabilities (Continuous (CM) and Emergent (EM) Maintenance Availabilities) and for homeported and deployed LCS Class ships that could require repair/maintenance at short notice. The contractor plays an important role in the modernization of the surface Navy. This contract is considered a partnership between the Navy and the prime. The contractor is expected to become a subject matter expert on the applicable ships. What is your company's experience/strategy in managing/executing several comprehensive/technically challenging planning yard activities simultaneously? 10. Surge Capacity: The prime is expected to have surge capacity due to flex in operational schedules of the Navy. Every ship could require short notice repair/maintenance while deployed anywhere in the world, which would require the contractor personnel to travel to remote locations in support. It is not uncommon for primes to have teaming partners to handle such needs. In other words, management responsiveness is essential for success as prime. What is your company's strategy for surge/emergent requirements and accomplishing them? 11. Integration, Subcontracting and Communication: Integration strategy is a key role of the prime contractor. The prime is expected to work with the Navy In-service Engineering Agents (Government and Contractor) and databases as well as different vendors, subcontractors and customers to ensure successful execution of planning yard support, as well as the ability to provide a high quality product through sound Engineering practices, technical expertise and program management. The prime will need to integrate schedules with the LCS and Small Barge maintenance providers and customers such as Type Commander(s), LCS Squadron(s), Naval Sea Systems Command, ship's force, etc. All work must be properly scheduled and managed. This requirement mandates a sound plan for managing subcontracts as well. What is your company's integration strategy, especially in regard to managing subcontractors? If subcontracting is anticipated, demonstrate your experience successfully managing subcontracts and provide a detailed description of how you (as the Prime) will guarantee the performance and participation of the potential subcontractor(s), including the documentation for proposed subcontractors and expected levels of subcontracting (magnitude). Also, include what capabilities each subcontractor brings to the opportunity. Over the life of the contract, the PY will have to interface directly and frequently with Sustainment Execution Contractors (SEC), the Specification Development Availability Execution Support (SDAES) contractor, at least two regional maintenance centers (RMC), the Littoral Ship Squadron (LCSRON), the SEA 21/ PMS 505 program office, and other government agencies. Indicate how you intend to coordinate communications and manage interaction with these stakeholders. 12. Accounting Methodology: Sound financial tools and practices such as a certified accounting system approved purchasing system, and Disclosure Statement are required to provide proper billing to the Navy. In addition, the accounting system would be used to manage the business with vendors as required. While it is important to have an integrated schedule; it is equally important to have cost controls in place. The contractor will submit timely invoices/vouchers to the Navy by Contract Line Item (CLIN), Contract Subline Item (SLIN), and Accounting Classification Reference Number (ACRN) level. Cost of performance shall be segregated, accumulated, and invoiced to the appropriate ACRN categories. What certified accounting system and other best practice accounting methodology does your company currently use? 13. Given the complexity of the work described in this sources sought, describe your company's historical experience completing work of this complexity or briefly describe how your company would be capable of meeting the requirements described herein as of contract award. 14. Given the complexity of the work described in this announcement, does your company plan to submit a proposal in response to the anticipated solicitation for planning yard support of LCS Class ships? Information provided shall be treated as Business Sensitive or confidential to the responder, exempt from public release under the Freedom of Information Act. All information shall be provided free of charge to the Government. NAVSEA may request further information regarding the capabilities of respondents to meet the requirements set forth in the announcement. This sources sought announcement is released in accordance with FAR 15.201. This sources sought announcement is not a request for proposal. The purpose of this sources sought announcement is to gather information from the market place. Information provided in response to this sources sought announcement will not be considered an Offer by the responding contractor and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. No telephone inquiries will be accepted and requests for solicitation packages will not be granted, as a solicitation has not been prepared at this time. When to Submit: Responses are requested by 2:00PM Eastern Time, 27 November 2023. Notice Regarding Solicitation: Please note that this sources sought is for informational purposes and to identify potential sources. THIS NOTICES DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN INVITATION FOR BID OR REQUEST OF PROPOSAL AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS A COMMITMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT OF ANY KIND. The Government will not pay for any effort expended or any material provided in response to this announcement or any follow up information requests, nor will the Government return any data provided. Future information, if any, will be posted at the website for SAM.gov (https://sam.gov/content/home) the same site where this announcement is posted.