REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)/SOURCES SOUGHT - Close Range Armed UAVs -

N00164-18-S-NB83 - REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)/SOURCES SOUGHT - Close Range Armed UAVs - FSC - 1550 - NAICS - 336411 Anticipated Issue Date: 06 July 2018 - Closing Date: 28 September 2018 - 2:00 PM EDT SPECIAL NOTICE - REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)/ SOURCES SOUGHT: The Government is issuing this RFI as part of a market survey in accordance with FAR 15.201 to determine the availability, technical capability, and logistics capability of industry to provide specific information to Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Crane Division about a Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS), Non-Developmental Item (NDI), or near NDI, for Close-Range Armed Unmanned Air Vehicles (CRA-UAVs). NDI includes CRA-UAVs that are developed but not yet in production, but can reasonably be expected to be in the status of test-ready articles for comparative testing on or about April of 2019. CRA-UAVs include armed UAVs that have a range of up to 50 km and endurance time of 5 minutes to 6 hours. Ordinary Close Range-UAVs are usually used only for reconnaissance and surveillance tasks; however the CRA-UAVs that NSWC Crane Division seeks should be armed for immediate firing on targets found during reconnaissance and surveillance flights. This Request for Information / Sources Sought Synopsis does not constitute an Invitation for Bids (IFB), a Request for Quote (RFQ), or a Request for Proposal (RFP) and it should not be construed as a commitment of any kind by the Government to issue a formal solicitation or ultimately award a contract. The U.S. Government is in no way liable to pay for or reimburse any companies or entities that respond to this announcement. Any costs incurred by interested vendors in response to this announcement or incurred for participation in the Market Survey will NOT be reimbursed. All information marked as proprietary information will be safeguarded to prevent disclosures to non-Government personnel and entities. There is no bid package or solicitation document associated with this announcement. Response to this RFI is strictly voluntary. NSWC Crane is presently conducting this market survey seeking information from Industry, US Government, and Academia, to analyze alternatives and consider various CRA-UAVs for future procurements. NSWC Crane is predominantly interested in Class 1 and small Class 2 CRA-UAVs. These can be either hover-type or loiter-type CRA-UAVs Category Size Maximum Gross Normal Operating Altitude (ft) Airspeed (knots) Takeoff Weight (lbs) Group 1 Small 0-20 <1,200 AGL* <100 Group 2 Medium 21-55 <3,500 <250 The CRA-UAVs that NSWC Crane Division seeks should meet the following: - Carry armaments which may include small arms, rockets, grenades, and less-than-lethal weapons and devices, or combinations of weapons and devices - Have a wireless remote safe, arm, and fire capability, allowing safe, arm, and either fire, or return to safe while in flight. - Once armed, CRA-UAVs must be able to be remotely placed back into the safe mode, allowing the CRA-UAVs to safely return to the launch point. - Be capable of single person operation (pilot is the gunner) or double person operation (pilot and gunner separate individuals) - Be compatible with common tactical mobile Smartphones or other mobile devices - May include remotely-controlled gimbals or mounted remote firing stations - May include concepts for non-line of sight operation, such as signal repeaters It is requested submittals be in the form of a Data Sheet, Product Literature, short synopsis (max 2 pages) if desired, and separate requirements matrix if desired. For near NDI please include Technology Readiness Level (TRL) and short white paper (max 5 pages) discussing steps to modify existing products or prototypes to meet requirements. The responses to this market survey Industry, US Government, and Academia should include the following information: 1) Technical description of product, to include photographs (electronic photograph preferred). 2) Current users/customers of the product, if any. 3) Contact information for current users/customers, if any. 4) Test qualification history of product, if any. 5) Cost and Availability, if possible, for years 2019 and 2020, cost and delivery schedule for 1, 10, 100, 1000, and 10,000 units. 6) Comments on the feasibility of the performance parameters and system description noted above. If item is of foreign origin, vendors must include information on local government plans for procurement and local government/military contract information, if any. The government may be interested in purchasing product samples of certain CRA-UAVs. Responses shall be: 1. Identified by the RFI number (N00164-18-S-NB83); and include: Company name, mailing address, e-mail address, telephone and fax numbers, website address (if available), and the name, telephone number, duns number, cage code and or tax ID number, as well as business size category (large, small, small disadvantaged, etc.) and e-mail address of a point of contact having the authority and knowledge to clarify responses with Government representatives. 2. Written in 12-point, Times New Roman with normal (condensed) spacing 3. Margins of 1" or greater on all sides 4. Submitted to email as indicated below. NSWC Crane encourages participation by small business, small disadvantaged business, HUB Zone small business, woman-owned small business, veteran-owned small business, and historically black colleges and universities. Per Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.215-3 - Request for Information or Solicitation for Planning Purposes (Oct 1997): (a) The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this solicitation or to otherwise pay for the information solicited except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in subsection 31.205-18, Bid and proposal costs, of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. (b) Although "proposal" and "offeror" are used in this Request for Information, your response will be treated as information only. It shall not be used as a proposal. (c) This announcement is issued for the purpose of gathering market research information. All information received in response to this notice that is marked proprietary will be handled accordingly. NSWC Crane makes no implied or in-fact contracts by issuing this RFI. Acknowledgement of receipt of responses will not be made, nor will respondents be notified of the NSWC Crane's view of the information received. Do not send any material that requires a non-disclosure agreement or identify information that is business sensitive. Responses to this notice will not be returned. All information provided becomes U.S. Navy property and will not be returned. Your interest in this response is appreciated. All information marked as proprietary information will be safeguarded to prevent disclosures to non-governmental personnel and entities. Technical and operational questions regarding this announcement should be directed to the Research and Development POC, Mr. Lucius A. "Gus" Taylor, Chief Engineer, Code JXNR, via email at lucius.taylor@navy.mil. Electronic submissions regarding this announcement may be directed to the Acquisition POC, Ms. Stacy McAtee, Contracting Officer, Code 0232, via email at stacy.mcatee@navy.mil . Complete mailing address is: Commander, NSWC Crane, Attn: Ms. Stacy McAtee, Contracting Officer, Code 0232, Bldg. 3373, 300 Highway 361, Crane, IN 47522-5001.