Small Form Factor (SFF) Transponder

The Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) intends to conduct a full and open competition in accordance with FAR 6.102(c) for a Small Form Factor (SFF) Transponder that will provide identification, position, and surveillance reporting in response to challenges from airborne, ground based, and surface interrogators. NAVAIR does not intend to use the provisions of FAR Part 12 for this acquisition. The SFF Transponder must meet the existing AIMS 03-1000A with Changes 1, 2, and 3 (ATCRBS/IFF/Mark XIIA Electronic Identification System and Military Implementation of Mode S) baseline requirements. The SFF Transponder physical dimensions must be less than or equal to 240 cubic inches in size, less than 7 pounds in weight, and nominally consume less than 30 watts of power. The SFF Transponder must provide MIL-STD-1553 and RS-485 Interfaces and must provide Discrete Gillham altitude inputs. The SFF Transponder must meet the environmental requirements of Aeronautical Design Standard ADS-71-SP, the electromagnetic interference and power requirements of ADS-37 and MIL-STD-704A-F, and the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) Out Performance requirements of DO-260B. The SFF must be DO-17B, level C software and DO-254, level C firmware compliant. The SFF contract awarded as a result of this full and open competition will contain firm fixed price line items for the delivery of 3 early production units by 30 September 2013 and 7 early production units by 28 February 2014 with the attendant technical data. The contract will contain firm fixed price option line items for a production quantity of up to 500 units. Initial production unit delivery must meet a 1 October 2014 delivery deadline with follow-on deliveries through 2017 of up to 14 units per month. The contract will also contain a time and materials line item for low dollar value urgent technical support. NAVAIR anticipates making award of the SFF contract no sooner than 30 June 2013. The request for proposal (RFP) to be issued for the SFF full and open competition will contain the following pass/fail requirements: offeror must have a valid/current U.S. COMSEC account; offeror's proposed SFF design solution must be capable of using an NSA certified US Crypto appliqu; offeror must have obtained an AIMS Box Level Certification by the date of submission of the proposal (estimated to be 17 December 2012); and offeror must have submitted the Stage 3 Frequency Authorization Request by the date of submission of the proposal. Offerors whose proposals fail to demonstrate compliance with any of these pass/fail requirements will be ineligible for award of the SFF contract. RFP documents (except for the SFF Specification) will be posted to the publicly assessable NAVAIR Homepage. The SFF Specification is marked with Distribution Statement D; as a result, the SFF Specification is only releasable to current and approved Department of Defense (DoD) contractors located in the United States (U.S.) who possess a current and valid U.S. facility clearance with technologies/data safeguarding capabilities. As a result of this constraint, foreign contractors may NOT participate in the SFF effort as a prime contractor. Foreign firms who wish to participate in the SFF acquisition must do so as a subcontractor to a U.S. contractor who meets the facility clearance and safeguarding capability requirements noted above. Any such subcontracting arrangement between a U.S. contractor and a foreign firm (to include employment of foreign nationals by U.S. firms) shall be in accordance with current U.S. export laws, security requirements, and National Disclosure Policy, and shall require the prior approval of the Procuring Contracting Officer and the NAVAIR Foreign Disclosure Officer. The following SFF procurement milestones with notional completion dates are provided: Draft RFP Posted to NAVAIR Home Page - 9 August 2012; Industry Day - 30 August 2012; Formal RFP posted to NAVAIR Home Page - 17 October 2012; and Due Date for Proposal Submittal - 17 December 2012. Please note that these dates are subject to change. A modification to this synopsis will be posted to FEDBIZOPPS in early August to announce the arrangements for Industry Day. Subsequent modifications to this synopsis will be posted to FEDBIZOPPS to announce the posting of the draft and formal RFPs and provide guidance for accessing the NAVAIR Home Page. Firms interested in competing for the SFF effort should contact Ms. Mary Dodds at Mary.Dodds@navy.mil to register for future SFF correspondence. Please provide point of contact information for your firm to include name, phone number, and e-mail address. Please also provide your Cage code.