SOURCES SOUGHT - SHORTWAVE INFRARED (SWIR) SYSTEM

This solicitation is being posted to both the Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) page located at http://www.fbo.gov/ and the Navy Electronic Commerce on Line (NECO) site located at https://www.neco.navy.mil/ While it is understood that FBO is the single point of entry for posting of synopsis and solicitations to the internet, NECO is the alternative in case FBO is unavailable. Please feel free to use either site to access information posted by NSWC Crane. MARKET SURVEY – SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS - The United States Government (USG) is issuing this sources-sought announcement as part of a market survey. The Crane Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC Crane) is seeking inputs from parties interested in supplying a shortwave infrared (SWIR) detection system for potential incorporation into existing and future Navy/Marine Corps surveillance system programs. The SWIR system must provide the capability to accurately detect and classify personnel, vehicles and other objects through various degrees of atmospheric particles or suspended particulates. The SWIR system must also allow for integration into larger multi-sensor surveillance systems. Specific areas of interest/requirements for the proposed system are provided as an attachment 1 to this announcement. All interested parties should submit an initial synopsis (commonly referred to as "white paper") following format outlined in attachment 1. Offerors should submit the white papers electronically to the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane point of contact below NLT 02:00 PM EST 22 July 2011. White papers may be submitted any time prior to expiration of this announcement. Submittals after this date will still be accepted, although there is no guarantee they will be evaluated. ALL RESPONSES SHALL BE SUBMITTED VIA EMAIL This announcement 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. Responses to this notice cannot be accepted as offers. 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 companies in response to this announcement will NOT be reimbursed. Nothing in this announcement constitutes an obligation on the part of the U.S. Government. Any information provided that is marked as proprietary information will be safeguarded to prevent disclosures to non-government personnel and entities. The Government may elect to visit, or host a visit, from any potential sources following the market survey. Your interest in this program is appreciated. Responses to this RFI should be submitted via email no later than 22 July 2011 to Robert Sandage (Technical Point of Contact) via e-mail: contact@example.gov (Technical Point of Contact), phone +1 (555) 000-0000; and a courtesy copy to Lorna Tribby (Contract Specialist) via e-mail : contact@example.gov, Phone +1 (555) 000-0000. Limit white paper responses to 15 pages written (Times New Roman, 12 font) or MS PowerPoint slides. If necessary, additional pages for technical drawings are allowed. Responses to all or part of the above RFI will be accepted. Proprietary information shall be clearly marked. The Government will NOT be responsible for any proprietary information not clearly marked. Responses to the RFI shall include the following: Submitter's Name Street Address, City, State, NINE-Digit zip code Point of Contact (POC) POC Telephone and facsimile numbers Announcement Number: N00164-11-S-NB08 Interested parties may also submit supplemental hardcopy materials such as brochures, CDs, etc. to Robert Sandage, Crane Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Bldg. 3291, 300 Highway 361 Crane, IN. Additional material provided do not count towards the 15 page limit for the white paper submittal. Responses from Small and Small Disadvantaged Business firms are highly encouraged. Firms responding should indicate if they are a small business, a socially and economically disadvantaged business, 8(a) firms, historically black colleges or universities, and minority institutions. Responses received after 22 July 2011 may not be considered in the government's analyses. You may submit corporate expertise information if you would like to be considered a possible interested source. We may contact RFI respondents to get clarification on the information submitted. The following point of contact is provided for information regarding technical issues: Mr. Robert Sandage, email contact@example.gov , phone +1 (555) 000-0000. NSWC Crane Contracting Office Point of Contact is contact@example.gov, Phone +1 (555) 000-0000.Please reference announcement number N00164-11-S-NB08 in all correspondence and communications.   ATTACHMENT 1 BACKGROUND: The Navy/Marine Corps must exploit all possible technologies to detect and classify battlefield threats. The SWIR detection system will be used in conjunction with other sensors during the day, night and adverse weather operations. It will be employed in the open terrain and urban environments as an additional method to increase battlefield situational awareness and as a means to rapidly improve detection and classification of personnel, vehicles and other objects. NAVSURFWARCENDIV Crane is requesting market survey information relative to the maturity and availability of SWIR systems for potential incorporation into existing and future Navy/Marine Corps surveillance system programs. The technology maturity must be, at a minimum, at a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 per the Department of Defense (DOD) Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) Desktop Reference dated July 2009 (http://www.dod.gov/ddre/doc/DoD_TRA_July_2009_Read_Version.pdf) and the Technology Readiness Assessment Guidance Reference dated April 2011 (http://www.acq.osd.mil/ddre/publications/docs/TRA2011.pdf). In order to be considered a TRL 6, a system/subsystem model or prototype must be demonstrated in a relevant environment. A relevant environment is a testing environment that simulates both the most important and most stressing aspects of the operational environment. Sources are requested to provide information in the form of white papers on their existing SWIR technologies. The following information needs to be addressed in response to this RFI: a) Provide a summary on the technical principles of how the system functions. b) Describe the rationale/tactical advantages of the system. c) Has the system been in an operational field environment? d) What is the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of the system? If the technology is currently fielded, who are the current customers? e) Is the system current configuration hand-held or platform mounted? f) What are the minimum and maximum ranges of detection and identification of personnel, vehicles and other objects that the system is capable of achieving? Please quantify these ranges with respect to ambient light levels; density of smoke, fog and dust; water; glass and any other obstruction not specified herein that may be beneficial to the war fighter. g) Is the system capable of providing spatial coordinates of a detected person, vehicle or object? Describe the system's ability to provide an accurate location of the detected person, vehicle or object as distance increases in terms of error or uncertainty. What is the localization error associated with a detection? h) Does the system incorporate a laser pointer, illuminator or rangefinder? What are the parameters / specifications of the laser? What is the spectral sensitivity of the system? i) What is the minimum illumination required for operation at night? j) What is the Field of Regard (FOR) of the system? Is the systems lens focal length fixed or variable? Please describe the focal lengths and their associated resolutions? k) Describe any potential safety hazards with the use of the system or technology. l) What is the current Size Weight and Power (SWaP) of the system and is the design performance scalable to SWaP (i.e. if size, weight or power were increased, would performance or detection distance increase as well)? m) Describe the system display characteristics and specifications. n) Describe the system's capability to operate 24/7 and elaborate on any typical planned (e.g., periodic) or unplanned maintenance required. o) Does the system have recordable output (e.g. imagery, detection declarations, time/position/pointing data, etc.)? Is the system capable of capturing and saving images in variable formats (i.e. .jpg and .tif)? Is the format user selectable? p) Specify the command and control interface and video format. q) Has the system been subjected to MIL-STD-810 testing? Elaborate on the tests for which the system was subject to as well as the results from those tests. r) How has the system been tested for performance? Elaborate on test design and results while addressing probability of detection and false alarm rates. Causes/sources of false alarms should be identified to the extent known. s) Provide a Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) on the anticipated unit cost of the system. t) Provide a brief description of the firm including whether the firm is identified as a large or small business. SAMPLE “WHITE PAPER? RESPONSE OUTLINE Following is a suggested outline for a response to this RFI. This outline is intended to minimize the effort of the respondent and structure the responses for ease of analysis by the government. Nevertheless, respondents are free to develop their responses as they see fit. Section 1 - Technical Description Briefly describe your technology, including the reliability, safety and technology readiness characteristics of the alternatives. Section 2 - Feasibility Assessment Briefly describe the feasibility of each alternative and the design tradeoffs involved as matched against the functional requirements and risks. Section 3 - Corporate Expertise Briefly describe your company, your products and services, history, ownership, financial information, and other information you deem relevant. In particular, please describe any projects you have been involved in that are similar in concept to what is described in this RFI, including management and operations approach, and any relevant lessons learned. Section 4 - Additional Materials Please provide any other materials, suggestions, and discussions you deem appropriate. Include any recommended structure of the requirements in the event the government plans to issue a request for proposal. The Government and their contractors with Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA) on file may see the data provided in the submittals.