Parachutist Flotation Device (PFD)

This is a Sources Sought / Request for Information (RFI) announcement on behalf of Product Manager Soldier Clothing & Individual Equipment (PdM-SCIE) to discuss the US Army's requirement for the Parachutist Floatation Device (PFD) for intentional and unintentional water landing during airborne operations. The PFD will support airborne operations over water or during airdrops when water obstacles are near or on the intended drop zone. Natick Division (ND) and PdM-SCIE are conducting market research in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 10 in advance of a potential solicitation for production of the PFD. This is a Sources Sought / RFI announcement only. This is not an invitation for bid. There are no bid packages available with this announcement. This announcement does not constitute a procurement commitment by the US Government. No contract will be awarded from this request. Responses to this announcement are voluntary. No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information to this announcement. The Government is not liable for any damages associated with improperly identified information. This Sources Sought / RFI is open to both Small and Other Than Small (Large) businesses. The Government is seeking sources for production of a minimum of 5,000 and up to approximately 20,000 Government-qualified PFD assemblies. The Government plans release technical drawings when they are available to potential offerors after a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is requested and signed by the offeror. This RFI may be amended and/or extended to allow for potential offerors to request the technical drawings when they become available. The Government-qualified PFD meets all the technical and logistical requirements as detailed below through Government testing. The Government is not seeking any alternative design. Key Performance Parameter (KPP) 1 - System Reliability. The PFD must demonstrate an overall system reliability of 0.9 at 90% confidence level (Threshold (T)). The PFD must demonstrate a reliability of 0.99 at 90% confidence level (Objective (O)). KPP 2 - Supporting Weight/Time. Once inflated, the PFD must be capable of supporting the weight of a 98th percentile male, with body armor, in an orientation in which the head is completely above the water line and tilting to the rear for at least one hour (T). Once inflated, the PFD must be capable of supporting the weight of a 98th percentile male, with body armor and other standardized Soldier equipment that cannot be released from the parachute harness, in an orientation in which the head is completely above the water line and tilting to the rear for more than an hour (O). KPP 3 - Inflation. The PFD must fully inflate after manual activation within six seconds (T) three seconds after manual activation (O). Key System Attribute (KSA) 1 - Compatibility. The PFD must be compatible with the Advanced Tactical Parachute System (ATPS) and RA-1 parachute harness when worn by a fully combat equipped jumper with body armor and Modular Airborne Weapons Case (MAWC). The PFD must be able to fit under the current harness and must not interfere with Jumpmaster Personnel Inspection (JMPI) (T=O). KSA 2 - Inflation Method. The Soldier must be able to manually activate the PFD while in the parachute harness and wearing combat equipment. The system shall possess a manual backup inflation method (T=O). KSA 3 - Temperature Operating Range. The PFD must be able to properly function during parachute operations that include rapid temperature changes from -50'F to 110'F (T) and -60'F to 140'F (O). KSA 4- Altitude. The PFD must be able to properly function after exposure to the full operational altitude ranges of military personnel parachutists without adjustment or maintenance. This includes both low level mass tactical parachute and High-Altitude Ram Air Parachute operations (High Altitude High Opening (HAHO) and High-Altitude Low Opening (HALO)) from 25,000 feet above Mean Sea Level (MSL) to ground level (T) higher than 25,000 feet above MSL to ground level (O). Additional Performance Attribute (APA) 1. Storage. The PFD must be able to be stored in a fully operational configuration for a minimum of 365 days (T) and minimum of 730 days (O). APA 2. Size/weight. The PFD must be smaller and lighter than the current legacy systems: B-7, LPU/10 and TFSS (T=O). APA 3. Shelf/Service Life. The shelf life of the PFD will be a minimum of 4.5 years and the service life will be a minimum of twelve years (T) and minimum of sixteen years (T). APA 4. Carrier Color. The color of the PFD carrier should be in earth tone colors not darker than Coyote 498 but not lighter than Tan 499. Selection of specific equipment color within this range will be at the discretion of PM SCIE (T=O). APA 5. Anthropometrics: The PFD shall accommodate the 2nd percentile female to the 98th percentile male based on the Policy for Implementation of Fit Attribute (T=O). Any source interested in responding to this RFI should provide Company, Point(s) of Contact, CAGE code, company size and capabilities - especially current or past contract numbers for production of flotation devices, or other substantiating documentation showing their current production capability for flotation devices. The POC for questions concerning this RFI is: Mr. Mark Whiteman g.m.whiteman.civ@army.mil