Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)

5/13/2021 FYSA: 1. The platform NASA is currently using to accept electronic proposals has been replaced with EFSS Box (See clauses 1852.215-81 PROPOSAL PAGE LIMITATIONS (APR 2021) and ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS - PROPOSAL MARKING AND DELIVERY THROUGH NASA'S EFSS BOX (MAY 2021) in Section L.); 2. Additional updates to Section L & M include an updated question and comment submittal due date (MSFC 52.205-90 DESIGNATED POINT OF CONTACT (NOV 2018)); and 3. The inclusion of FAR clause 52.217-5 EVALUATION OF OPTIONS (JUL 1990). The document titled, "Amendment 3 Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) Solicitation 13 May 2021" has been uploaded and updated to reflect these changes. ________________________________________________________________________ 5/5/2021 FYSA: The platform NASA is currently using to accept electronic proposals is in the process of changing, and updated instructions for proposal delivery will be provided as soon as they are available to us. Question 1: The Spec document references a MAV-012, Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Project Loads and Environment Document which was not provided. Where can we find this? Answer to Q1: Relevant information from MAV-012 has been copied into the Specification, and the vendor will receive MAV-012 upon contract award. The document titled, "Attachment J-2 MAV IMU Specifications 04 May 2021" has been uploaded and updated to reflect this. Question 2: Also, we need confirmation that the IMU is expected to operate DURING (and not just after) a 10.6gRMS vibration. Answer to Q2: The IMU will have to operate both during and after the vibration levels provided, since the vibration levels are during the ascent phase. If the IMU cannot meet all the performance requirements while undergoing the above vibration, the vendor should provide the predicted IMU performance while undergoing this vibration. The driving factor for the performance requirements is pre-flight attitude initialization, and the pre-flight vibration environment is expected to be benign. The Specification (titled Attachment J-2 MAV IMU Specifications 04 May 2021) has been updated to clarify this requirement. See added statements under Sections 3.5.3.2 and 3.5.3.3. __________________________________________________________________________ 4/28/2021 Question 1: On the solicitation Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) - #80MSFC21R0018, I noticed there is a lot of Vacuum Bakeout, Thermal Vacuum applications. I was curious if NASA is going to be testing the parts and components in the TVAC systems or is the awardee of the contract needs to have these systems? Answer to Q1: The awardee of the contract will be performing acceptance and qualification testing, which will include Thermal Vacuum (TVAC) testing. Question 2: Our team is currently working the proposal but we would like to request an extension to 6/1/2021. Answer to Q2: The proposal due date for the MAV IMU has been extended until 6/1/2021 at 3:00p.m. CST. The solicitation titled, "Amendment 2 Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) Solicitation 28 April 2021" has been uploaded and updated to reflect this. Question 3: Will either a Fixed Price or a mixed FFP/Cost Plus work or do you need this to be strictly Cost Plus? Answer to Q3: NASA expects that any proposals submitted for the MAV IMU requirement utilize the Cost Plus Fixed Fee contract type for the entire effort. ________________________________________________________________________ 4/22/2021 Question 1: Could you please advise if the solicitation is also open to Non US companies? Answer to Q1: The MAV IMU solicitation is not open to non-US companies to propose at this time due to the technical data for this requirement being International Traffic In Arms Regulations (ITAR) controlled. Question 2: The second and third sentences of the following taken from the first paragraph on page M-1 are contradictory. Which is correct? A best value tradeoff process will be performed between the factors of Mission Suitability, Cost, and Past Performance. In accordance with FAR Subpart 15.304(e), the relative importance of these factors is: Mission Suitability, Cost or Price, and Past Performance are considered essentially equal to each other. Mission Suitability and Past Performance, when combined, are approximately equal to Cost or Price. Answer to Q2: The third sentence was erroneously included in the MAV IMU solicitation. The sentence stating the following is correct, - Mission Suitability and Past Performance, when combined, are significantly more important than Cost or Price." The solicitation titled, "Amendment 1 Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) Solicitation 22 April 2021" has been uploaded and updated to reflect this. _____________________________________________________________________ 4/15/2021 Question 1: Please confirm that the Pre-solicitation is restricted to NAICS Code 334511 and only those firms with less than 1,250 employees respectively. Answer to Q1: The MAV IMU procurement is a full and open competition. A full and open competition is open to all businesses, both small and large. The only time a large business would be prohibited to compete as a prime is when the competition is set-aside. In that case the small business size standard would apply. If a company exceeds the size standard, they would be unable to compete as a prime. The NAICS Code 334511 was selected as the best description for the MAV IMU scope of work. _______________________________________________________________________ 4/12/2021 Question 1: Can you confirm that it is open to large businesses? There was verbiage in the RFP cover letter about the size of a small business of 1250 that is confusing. Answer to Q1: The MAV IMU procurement is a full and open competition. A full and open competition is open to all businesses, both small and large. The only time a large business would be prohibited to compete as a prime is when the competition is set-aside. In that case the small business size standard would apply. If a company exceeds the size standard, they would be unable to compete as a prime. Question 2: There was no Spec or PWS included with what was posted on SAM. Will NASA issue those on SAM or can you send those direct to potential bidders? Answer to Q2: The MAV PWS and Spec were embedded attachments in the solicitation. However, since those attachments are not accessible, all of the embedded documents have been added as additional stand-alone attachments (3 additional attachments) to this posting. _________________________________________________________________________ NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has issued a Request for Proposal for an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) for the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). See attachments for additional details.