Request for Information for Polycarbonate Glasses Scratch Repair in a field setting

SYNOPSIS: The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command - Soldier Center (Natick, MA) is conducting market research into products and techniques pertaining to the repair of scratched polycarbonate lenses in a deployed, field setting. The government is specifically interested in products, commercial off the shelf or developmental, that satisfy the following: Repair or remove scratches on polycarbonate ballistic protection lenses Induce minimal change in optical properties after repair, including haze, transmittance across the visible spectrum, and optical distortion. Do not degrade the impact properties of the lens after repair Systems cannot require special instrumentation or extended times and processing for repair. Repairs should be achievable in an open air, ambient setting within less than 30 minutes. While all methods and techniques will be considered, greater significance will be placed on products or methods that are lightweight, highly portable, and do not require high skill or lengthy step-wise procedures to repair the lens to usage. The Government requests that responses be submitted electronically to elizabeth.s.hirst.civ@mail.mil by 15 Dec 2020 by 5pm EST. Deliverables: Capability Statements, including attachments, are limited to ten (10) pages. Responses should be submitted in MS WORD and/or MS Excel or PDF, including attachments. Interested sources shall include information regarding a firm's experience, personnel, and facilities. Information should include technical information (i.e., technical literature, data and illustrations, photographs, patents), relevant company background/experience, and a sample (optional). Firms responding shall indicate whether or not they are a small business. Any information/samples submitted will not be returned. If a firm chooses to submit samples, no payment will be made by the Government for such samples. Interested parties shall also supply the following information: name of company and point of contact, telephone number, address and email of POC, business size (i.e. large business, small business, SBA certified HUBZone Business, Economically Disadvantaged Small Business, Woman-Owned Business, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business), proposed NAICS code, a brief description of the technology and if possible any relevant mechanical testing of treated para-aramid materials. Interested parties are invited to submit a response to this Sources Sought Announcement. THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY This Sources Sought Announcement is issued solely for information and planning purposes and to identify interested sources. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. No contract will be awarded from this announcement. This Sources Sought does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. It is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. Further, unsolicited proposals will not be accepted. Funding is not available at this time. The United States Army has not made a commitment to procure any of the items/services discussed, and release of this Sources Sought Announcement should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. Response to this Sources Sought Announcement is voluntary and no reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this and any follow-on information requests. All submissions become Government property and will not be returned. Not responding to this Sources Sought Announcement does not preclude participation in any future RFP if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized in the Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOps) website. It is the responsibility of the potential responders to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to this subject. RESPONSES: Interested parties may identify their interest and capability by sending responses regarding this requirement to CCDC Soldier Center via e-mail ONLY to elizabeth.s.hirst.civ@mail.mil no later than 15 Dec 2020 by 5:00 p.m. EST. The U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative cost incurred in response to this Notice. All costs associated with responding to this Notice will be solely at the expense of the interested party. Please provide business size (indicate your socioeconomic status), applicable NAICS code, and CAGE code. If you hold a GSA Federal Supply Schedule contract, please identify your contract number. QUESTIONS: Any questions for clarification may be emailed to elizabeth.s.hirst.civ@mail.mil and mary.k.prebensen.civ@mail.mil no later than 1 Dec 2020 by 5:00 p.m. EST. Verbal questions will NOT be accepted. Questions shall NOT contain proprietary or classified information. An unattributed list of questions and answers will be published at the same web location of this Sources Sought Announcement.