Request for Information-High Altitude ElectroMagnetic Pulse (HEMP) Evaluations

Request for Information (RFI) For Test Infrastructure Resource Needs for Naval Surface Ship High Altitude ElectroMagnetic Pulse (HEMP) Evaluations Purpose: The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to obtain information and solicit capability statements from organizations which have the demonstrated knowledge and experience to develop any or all of the following test resource needs (topics): - Low Level, Continuous Wave (LLCW) Stepped Frequency Illuminator - Surface Ship HEMP Test Database of Historical Events - HEMP Evaluation Methodology for Surface Ships for non-MIL-STD-4023 - 3-Dimensional Sea-based Field Mapping Array - LLCW Instrumentation, Data Acquisition and Analysis Brief Summary: The U.S. Army Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI), Project Manager for Instrumentation, Targets, and Threat Simulators and SOF Training Systems (PM ITTS) Instrumentation Management Office (IMO) is performing research to gather information and feedback from interested sources to inform a study to identify the test resource needs of the Navy to perform early time High Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP-E1) tests on surface ships. The study, EXpanded EMP Test - Capabilities (EXEMPT-C) is ongoing. EXEMPT-C takes the broadest possible view of technically valid methods for HEMP-E1 evaluation and supporting information. The EXEMPT-C process prioritizes a broad set of alternative test scenarios in determining the test resource needs. Program Description: The size and complexity of surface vessels up to and including carrier-class ships provide significant challenges for Navy ship HEMP tests unlike those from other military systems. DoD MIL-STD-4023, HEMP Protection for Military Surface Ships, defines the requirements to evaluate the HEMP-E1 survivability of Navy surface ships. The MIL-STD-4023 methodology starts with tests during the construction phase and ends with measurements from threat level illumination during active and passive ship operations and, possible, direct drive tests of "high margin" systems. The methods defined in MIL-STD-4023 make an HEMP evaluation difficult for existing ships. The existing naval surface ship fleets were constructed beginning in the 1970's. Construction techniques have changed dramatically and on-board systems are constantly being upgraded and modified. No ship has been built using MIL-STD-4023 nor will one become part of the fleet for years. Also, no threat level illuminator exists to fulfill MIL-STD-4023 test requirements. The study test resource needs form the basis for prioritized investment strategies to fund Science & Technology (S&T) research and Central Test and Evaluation Investment Programs (CTEIP) engineering development. The goal of the investments is to fill the Navy's test infrastructure gaps. The RFI topics below are based on the test resource needs identified early in the study and provide another set of capabilities to address the evaluation of existing ship HEMP-E1 survivability. PM ITTS-IMO encourages all qualified organizations to present their experience and qualifications. - Test Resource Need - Low Level, Continuous Wave (LLCW) Stepped Frequency Illuminator The Navy requires the HEMP-E1 test infrastructure to illuminate U.S. Navy surface ships in an approximate threat representative/threat relatable environment. Such an illuminator must provide the capability to expose surface ships at sea, at dock or in harbor to simulated HEMP-E1 radiation, under threat representative/relatable conditions, so that measurement of the ship responses (externally and internally) are captured by a separate linked measurement system. An alternative to the threat level simulator (TLS) required under MIL-STD-4023 is LLCW illuminator. The illuminator shall cover a frequency range of 100 kHz to 1 GHz and have a maximum field extent of up to 500 feet to 1,100 feet in length (bow to stern), up to 250 feet above the waterline at the highest point of the ship, and up to 250 ft. height. Vertical and horizontal polarization of the LLCW are required either using separate antennas or a single multi-polarity antenna(s), delivering fields of at least 1 V/m with variation over the ship limited to - 6 dB. The minimum distance from the LLCW to the ship is 330 ft. if the ship is in motion, the Navy safe operating distance, or less if the ship is at rest. The illuminator must be capable of land-based or sea-base test operation pending future siting decisions. The system should include all electronics for illuminator power, control of field conditions, precise frequency reference, and real-time coordination with on-board current probes to achieve high signal-to-noise ratio. Interested parties should provide information on their capability to electrically and mechanically design, fabricate, construct, and demonstrate such an illumination system. - Test Resource Need - Surface Ship HEMP Test Database DTRA developed a database in the 1990's for the collection of all military aircraft HEMP test data. The name of this database is AIRBASE. AIRBASE concatenated data from multiple printed and antique electronic sources. HEMP ship test data exists but is, like aircraft data before AIRBASE, is in multiple locations and formats. The surface ship HEMP test data provides a valuable but currently unusable resource for test planning, pre-test analysis and criteria for surface ship HEMP. A vast majority of the electronic data is located on computer peripheral storage devices, such as Digital Equipment Corp TK-50 tape or Bernoulli disk drives. Interested parties should provide information on their knowledge of HEMP test data and their capability to convert the historical test reports and electronic files into a computer database for the purpose of future analysis HEMP interaction with ships and ship systems by testers and evaluators. No analysis software is required. The exact amount of test data and the breakdown of this data into hard copy and antique computer files is not known. Approximately 20 ship tests using three different HEMP illuminators are known and will form the basis of the database. - Test Resource Need - HEMP Evaluation Methodology for Surface Ships for non-MIL-STD-4023 A new methodology is needed to support the HEMP evaluation of existing surface ships. None of the existing Navy fleet of surface ships was built under MIL-STD-4023. A new HEMP evaluation methodology to cover existing (non-MIL-STD-4023) ships must consider critical threat-relatable parameters of the HEMP interaction with surface ships, be applicable to alternative illumination methods such as low level, continuous wave, stepped-frequency antennas, and define the collection, extrapolation and analysis of relevant HEMP data for the evaluation. It must also be applicable to large surface ships with length between 500 and 1,100 ft., beam greater than 100 feet and less than 250 feet to the highest point of the ship from the waterline. These dimensions are provided to assist in understanding that the methodology must apply to a large volume metallic structure. The results of the application of the methodology will be a statement on the HEMP survivability of the surface ship. The only HEMP related surface ship test data that is consistently acquired is the cable shield grounding effectiveness (SGE) at Points of Entry (POEs). These measurements provide test data of the effectiveness of the HEMP protection at the cable transition from the external to internal locations on the ship. This test information provides a first order measure of HEMP E1 energy that enters compartments on the cable shields and may affect mission critical electronics contained in those compartments. This energy may directly couple to electronics or re-radiate in the compartment and effect other critical systems. - Test Resource Need - 3-Dimensional Seaborne Field Mapping Array Accurate field mapping is critical to E1 HEMP field illumination tests and is more important and difficult with larger systems which have electronic equipment distributed over a large volume. The successful evaluation of surface ship survivability demands a three-dimensional capability for the field mapping. No such system exists for acquiring data to support surface ship illumination data and HEMP survivability. A sea-based, directionally controllable array of field sensors (B-dot or D-dot) offers real-time multi-dimensional field mapping measurements. Organizations with demonstrated experience and capability to design, fabricate, demonstrate, and document large sensor arrays are encouraged to provide information on such. The array must cover a volumetric equivalent of an aircraft carrier with sufficient sensitivity and volumetric definition to support extrapolation of high level pulsed or low-level CW cable coupling measurements. Information on resource and schedule of previous applicable projects is especially desired. The array must cover a volumetric equivalent of an aircraft carrier with sufficient sensitivity and volumetric definition to support extrapolation of high level pulsed or low-level CW cable coupling measurements. Information on resource and schedule of previous applicable projects is especially desired. - Test Resource Need - LLCW Instrumentation, Data Acquisition and Analysis Using the illuminator above, or other novel approaches, this request for information solicits industry's ability to instrument, acquire and analyze full ship shielding effectiveness consistent with techniques described in MIL-STD-4023 and MIL-STD-188-125-1. The electric field strength throughout the ship's volume should be greater than 1.0 V/m across the full spectrum from 100 kHz to 1 GHz. The sensing system must operate in both on-deck and below-deck dispersive environments, and accurately measure field strengths and currents in the presence of other man-made and ship-board EM noise. Specific challenges include: field mapping over the ship's volume at sea or in port, the ability to quickly perform testing across hundreds of test nodes throughout the ship, and the ability to assess transfer functions deep in the ship at lower frequencies where conventional LLCW signal levels reach the noise floor. This section focuses on new or improved hardware technologies and industry's ability to use them. Unique or novel methodology approaches should be described in the "HEMP Evaluation Methodology" topic below. Sensors and Measurement: Describe measurement techniques and associated hardware to measure electric fields, magnetic fields, currents on cable bundles, and currents on single cables in on-deck and below-deck dispersive environments. Both time domain and/or frequency domain, scalar and/or vector diagnostic capabilities are of interest to best assess the ship's shielding effectiveness against the HEMP E1 pulse waveform from 100 kHz to 1 GHz. Offerors should highlight achievable and applicable metrics, such as field-strength capture spur-free dynamic range, resolution bandwidth, acquisition time, signal to noise tolerance and Inter-Modulation-Distortion rejection capabilities of the sensor diagnostic system. Offerors should also explain how their sensor diagnostics are triggered or synchronized with the incident LLCW signals. Specifically describe hardware, or techniques that will enhance deeper, below-deck shielding effectiveness assessments at lower frequencies (< 1 MHz) where the signal approaches ambient noise. Physical Attributes: It is anticipated that multiple sensor nodes (on the order of 500 to 1000) across dozens of compartments will be required to instrument a complete naval vessel. Presently, the time required to instrument and test a Navy ship (~ two weeks) is costly. Offerors should address how their sensor diagnostic capability can support such large-scale node deployment, and minimize the time needed for outfitting and testing a full vessel. Offerors should address how the data from all these physically distributed sensor nodes will be collected and processed, and how communication between the nodes and a central processing terminal (if applicable) will be accomplished, paying special attention to the manner in which this communication is achieved for below-deck scenarios and through water-tight closed bulkheads. Approaches that mitigate or eliminate long runs of fiber optic cables which must wind their way through complex passages are also encouraged, address how data is properly triggered/timed and how data will ultimately be collected. Offerors should also present how the sensor modules or central processing terminals (as applicable) convert measured field strength into driven currents within target cable harnesses or ducts. Technical offerings which are physically small and can be left in-situ (for future testing) after the test, without affecting vessel operations or functionality, are of interest though not required. Acquisition Strategy: The Government is exploring a range of acquisition strategies and plans to utilize the information gained from responses to this RFI to help further shape the acquisition strategy. Response Requested: These topic descriptions are not meant to be exhaustive, but rather to challenge the reader to create and submit innovative solution approaches that have the potential to advance HEMP test planning, set-up, execution, data-collection, tear-down, and/or analysis. Responses should address solutions to develop capabilities and/or for advancing technology beyond capabilities currently in use. Persons/firms contemplating submission of a response should carefully examine this RFI and are encouraged to contact the technical Point of Contact (POC) to ascertain the extent of interest in an approach or for clarification(s). Interested parties in any or all of these areas should provide information on their knowledge of and experience in the design, development, implementation and documentation of HEMP infrastructure resource needs as defined above in their white paper. Information relating to rough-order-of-magnitude (ROM) estimates for schedule and resources to research (achieve TRL 6) or develop the capability (achieve TRL 8 or higher) is encouraged. Sources having the capabilities to meet any or all of the RFI topic requirements are invited to respond to this notice no later than 12:00 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST) on 19 January 2018. Responses should be limited to a five (5) page white paper per topic, not including cover page, cover letter, and table of contents. Multiple white papers may be submitted by each offeror. However, each white paper must address only one topic. Any proprietary concepts of information should be clearly identified as such. Submitted data and information will not be returned. Any information submitted in response to this Request for Information Notice is strictly voluntary. This notice is for information planning purposes and the government will not pay or otherwise reimburse respondents for information submitted. Electronic responses are required and shall be submitted to: Cathy Jordan, Contract Specialist, Mary.c.jordan46.civ@mail.mil and cc to the Technical contact, Trung.d.ngyen2.civ@mail.mil. All emails should include in the subject line the Reference Number and the submitting organization's name. All documentation shall become the property of the Government. Disclaimer: This notice does not constitute an invitation for bids or a request for proposal and is not a commitment by the U.S. Government to procure subject products or services nor will the Government reimburse any parties for costs associated with this request. The Government will use the information received to forge its acquisition strategy. Additionally, all submissions become government property and will not be returned. No basis for a claim against the Government shall arise as a result from a response to this RFI.