Request for Information (RFI) for Rideshare Mission Integration Services

1. SUMMARY The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is seeking information under this Request for Information (RFI) to assess community interest, concepts, and rough order of magnitude (ROM) cost for secondary payload integration services onto Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) rings to be exercised on future Science Mission Directorate (SMD) missions. 2. DEFINITIONS: - Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter - Launch Vehicle adapter ring enabling deployment of secondary payloads. - Secondary Payloads - Payloads that will be carried by an ESPA and meet the requirements of the ESPA interface standards. - Rideshare Payloads (RPL) - For this RFI, Rideshare Payloads are synonymous with Secondary Payloads. - Rideshare Mission - A mission that consists of secondary payloads that can utilize excess launch vehicle capacity and performance and that may or may not include a primary payload. - ESPA Integrated Flight System - A fully populated ESPA, including ancillary hardware, ready for shipment to a launch site. - Secondary Payload Integrator or "Integrator" - The Integrator is the organization responsible for the system engineering life cycle to bring together the ESPA ring, Secondary Payloads, Ancillary Hardware, interfacing with the launch vehicle, and verifying that the secondary payloads "do no harm" to the primary spacecraft mission. - ESPA Ancillary Hardware - This consists of, but not limited to, connectors, harnesses, sequencers, fasteners. - ESPA Integrated Flight System Schedule - This schedule is driven by the readiness date of the ESPA Integrated Flight System to include the secondary payloads, ESPA development, and RPL-to-ESPA integration delivery schedules compliant with the launch vehicle integration schedule. 3. BACKGROUND NASA's Science Mission Directorate seeks to establish Rideshare opportunities utilizing excess capacity for SMD-purchased launch vehicles, both for its PI-led competed missions and its strategic missions. The data from this RFI will assist SMD in determining the most effective approach to acquire secondary payload integration services. The entity performing these integrated services is the "Secondary Payload Integrator" or "Integrator". There are many types of secondary payload accommodations, but for the purposes of this RFI, responders should focus on integration services for a standard Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) and several variants of an ESPA Grande. The Integrator's responsibilities will include, but are not limited to: - Manage the integration of Rideshare Payload (RPL) to ESPA, including mission support: o Manage safety processes and any required licensing, o Conduct Mission Readiness Reviews, o Conduct and support mission specific telecoms and meetings related to mission integration, o Support mission fit checks to ESPA, o Provide NASA (Launch Service Program (LSP)/Flight Program) with monthly status of each RPL, and o Support RPL model development. - Accept Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) ESPA hardware or act as procurement agent to acquire ESPA hardware and ancillary hardware. - Provide integration facilities and all ground support equipment necessary for the receipt, assembly, integration and test of the ESPA Integrated Flight System. - Support required analysis and assessments to meet the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements. - Design, develop, integrate, and test the ESPA Integrated Flight System including deployment mechanisms. - Establish and manage the ESPA Integrated Flight System schedule, which must be compliant with the primary mission integration schedule for deliverables of analysis, hardware and documentation. - Support the development and verification of the Launch Vehicle (LV) to ESPA Interface Control Documents (ICD). - Develop, manage and verify the ESPA to secondary payload ICD: o Coordination with NASA LSP and Launch Vehicle Contractor (LVC) to ensure the flow down of applicable requirements from the SMD primary mission (LV to ESPA) ICD, o Support environmental testing as required, and o Review all environmental test reports, report any anomalies and corrective actions. - Develop required models of ESPA Integrated flight system (with RPL models incorporated) and support implementation of the LV integrated model and Couple Loads Cycles as required. - Develop and submit all required Range Safety documentation for each of the RPLs and the ESPA Integrated Flight System. - Provide payload mass simulators (early in the development flow) that will be integrated to the ESPA Flight System. - Manage and perform the physical integration of RPLs to ESPA including the development of operational procedures for mating of RPLs to ESPA. - Coordinate with NASA LSP and LVC to develop, manage and verify the "Do No Harm" Requirements. - Implement the "Do No Harm" (DNH) guidelines, deliver DNH artifacts for the ESPA System payloads and other provided flight hardware to LSP, and certify that the payloads and other flight hardware are DNH compliant and pose no risk to the NASA primary mission. - Support anomaly resolution between ESPA Integrated Flight System and LV and/or primary payload. - Deliver the ESPA Integrated Flight System to the launch site and acquire appropriate Department of Transportation approval. - Support launch integration planning activities for the integrated ESPA Flight System. - Support stack-mate between the ESPA Integrated Flight System and the primary payload, payload fairing encapsulation of the combined stack, and launch site processing of the launch stack including the integrated ESPA Integrated Flight System at launch site. - Coordinate all launch vehicle related activity with NASA LSP. - Support contingency planning and operations at the launch site. 4. INFORMATION REQUESTED For the purposes of this RFI, the responses should assume the Integrator will procure one of the following ESPA configurations, necessary ancillary hardware, and secondary payload separation systems: - Standard ESPA (4, 5, 6 Ports) - ESPA Grande (4, 5 Ports) In addition to hardware considerations, responses should also include design, development, assembly, integration, test, and launch operations concept summary consisting of: A. ESPA Integrated Flight System schedule from Integrator's Authority to Proceed (ATP) through primary mission launch. B. Description of services that include: - Requirements development - RPL and ESPA model development - Hardware procurement - Interfacing with LV and launch site - Interfacing with secondary payloads - Integration facilities and ground support equipment - ESPA and secondary payload testing and analysis, including separation system - Secondary payload fueling with hazardous and non-hazardous propellants - Delivery of ESPA Integrated Flight System to launch site and operations support - Contingency planning and operations support - Description of additional services that can be provided C. ROM Cost for ESPA Integrated Flight System services. ROM shall be broken down into key elements of the system engineering cycles from ATP to Launch: - Hardware costs - Modeling costs - Labor costs - Facilities/infrastructure (e.g. integration, test, clean room facility,) costs - NEPA analysis and assessments costs - Review costs - Documentation costs - Delineate any cost differences driven by ESPA configuration (standard ESPA vs ESPA Grande) and the number of ports 5. DISCLAIMER It is not NASA's intent to publicly disclose Respondents' proprietary information obtained in response to this RFI. To the full extent that it is protected pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act and other laws and regulations, information identified by a Respondent as "Proprietary or Confidential" will be kept confidential. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), the information being requested is for planning purposes only and is not intended to bind the Government. 6. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Responses to this RFI must be delivered by email to Dr. Camille Alleyne, Science Mission Directorate Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for Programs, contact@example.gov and Alan Zide, Heliophysics Program Executive, contact@example.gov. The subject line of the email will be: Response to SMD ESPA Integrator RFI The responses are due on December 14, 2018. Each response shall not exceed 10 pages in length plus a one-page summary to facilitate a prompt review. This one-page summary includes responder's organization, point of contact, contact information, past experience and readiness. 7. POINTS OF CONTACT Questions concerning this Request for Information should be addressed to Dr. Camille Alleyne, Science Mission Directorate Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for Programs, contact@example.gov and Alan Zide, Heliophysics Program Executive, contact@example.gov.