UPDATE FY23 T-6 Aircraft Conditional Inspection & Strip and Repaint

Sources Sought RFI Synopsis: FY23 T-6 Aircraft Conditional Inspection & Strip and Repaint (SAM.gov) UPDATED as of 4/24/23 THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This market research tool is being used to identify potential and eligible firms, of all sizes, prior to determining the acquisition strategy and issuance of a solicitation. Responses will also be utilized by the Government in developing and finalizing its acquisition/contracting strategy and Statement of Work/Performance Work Statement. The contemplated Product Service Code (PSC) for this requirement is J015 (Maint/Repair/Rebuild of Equipment Aircraft and Airframe Structural Components). The contemplated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 336411 (Aircraft Manufacturing) with a Size Standard of 1,500 employees. Requirement Statement: The Department of the Navy, Program Management Air 273 (PMA 273) located at Patuxent River, MD intends to procure T-6A and B Aircraft Conditional Inspection (ACI) and Re-Paint services required to support the Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) command. The release of a solicitation is anticipated in the third quarter of fiscal year (FY) 2023 to support a second quarter FY 2024 contract award. The resulting Contract is anticipated to include a six month base performance period and up to two option performance years for all ACI and Strip and Repaint services specified. The CLIN structure is in development to accommodate the known (fixed) and unknown aspects of the support required during each performance period. The Government welcomes industry feedback on efficient CLIN structuring to include a combination of fixed price and cost type CLINs when reasonable and necessary. A draft Performance Work Statement (PWS) is hereby provided for further understanding of the required scope. Current ACI and Strip and Repaint services are performed at the Fleet Readiness Center South East in Jacksonville FL. To request information on this Navy depot facility, please follow the steps for the NAVAIR Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process at http://www.navair.navy.mil/foia/request_instruc.html. This effort will require the contractor to receive up to ten (10) U.S. Navy T-6 aircraft annually to complete ACI's and perform Strip and Repaint prior to transfer back to the Navy. The effort will require the contractor to stand up logistics support capability and establish all necessary pre-induction coordination with the Navy to induct, strip, inspect, maintain, troubleshoot, repair, service and reapply protective coatings prior to certifying the aircraft is airworthy and ready for Government acceptance and transfer back to the Navy. Details of the Stand Up phase are outlined in the attachment 1-25 requirements documentation, PWS, and Questionnaire. The base period of the contract for the ACI and strip and repaint effort will be considered a Stand Up phase to verify the Contractors capability to successfully complete the first prototype aircraft. During this phase, verification will be made to ensure facilities, logistics, engineering, and processes between the Government and Contractor are in place prior to proceeding with additional aircraft inductions exercised in follow-on contract options. The contractor will have a maximum of 180 calendar days to complete the first aircraft during the T-6 ACI Stand Up phase and 104 calendar days to complete each aircraft awarded in follow on contract options. See example overlapping schedule shown below. The ACI is required on Navy T-6 aircraft every 7 years and considered to be a Depot maintenance event requiring separation of the fuselage and wing to inspect for and correct discrepancies that cannot typically be accessed or corrected at the Navy Organizational maintenance level. As such, emphasis will be placed on areas of corrosion, correction of discrepancies required for safe flight certification and discrepancies or issues that must be addressed while the aircraft is disassembled. In all cases, utilization of maintenance best practices is expected to maintain airworthiness of the area until the next ACI event occurs. Corrosion treatment, repair, and prevention are also a particular focus area of the ACI, especially considering Navy T-6 operational environments. Requirements will define Government provided support to include ferry of aircraft to and from the contractor's facility, Functional Check Flights (FCF), T-6 Peculiar Support Equipment (PSE), engineering and the supply of repairable components from its existing inventory. It will also define requirements of the contractor to procure and manage its own inventory of parts and material and coordinate with the Government and Contractor Operated and Maintained Base Supply (COMBS) contractor to ensure planning and management is in place to address all risks and mitigate them in time to remain on schedule. Capability Statement Responses Requested: Responsible sources are encouraged to respond to the questions listed in the attached ACI Capabilities Questionnaire by email to Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) Contract Specialist, Lauren Morgan via email at Lauren.S.Morgan2.civ@us.navy.mil. In order to identify and track your response , use the reference number N00421-22-RFPREQ-TPM273-0466 on your response as well. Interested offerors may also provide an introductory capability statement in either Microsoft Word or Portable Document Format (PDF). The capability statement should provide additional information on companies ability to meet the requirements as reflected above. Each respondent is advised against submitting a capability statement that merely mimics information in this notice, provides brochure-like information, or provides only general information. Each capability statement package shall be no more than 15 single-spaced, 8.5 x 11 inch pages using 12-point Times New Roman font minimum (not to include any submitted PWS or SOWs). The deadline for responses shall be received by 5:00 pm on 8 May 2023. All responses shall include: Company name Size Status CAGE Code Unique Entity ID Points-of-Contact (POC) including name, phone number, and email address NOTE: To further refine and communicate the pending requirement, the Government plans to conduct a virtual Industry day in Summer 2023. ***************************************************************************** DISCLAIMER This sources sought is for informational purposes only. This is not a request for proposal. It does not constitute a solicitation and shall not be construed as a commitment by the government. Responses in any form are not offers and the government is under no obligation to award a contract as a result of this announcement. No funds are available to pay for preparation of responses to this announcement. Any information submitted by respondents to this technical description is strictly voluntary.