Sources Sought Announcement for V-22 SSA Systems and Software Engineering Support



The Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) Aircraft Division, Patuxent River (also referred to as the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD)) is seeking eligible business firms who are capable of performing system and software engineering for the V-22 (PMA-275) Software Support Activity (SSA) and associated avionics products in support of SSA mission system software development and maintenance for Marine MV-22 Osprey Blocks A/B/C and Special Operations CV-22 Osprey Blocks 10/20. The Government will review industry responses to this sources sought synopsis in order to determine whether it is appropriate to issue a competitive solicitation on an unrestricted basis or continue as a sole source award to Raytheon Technical Services Company, LLC (RTSC) of Indianapolis, Indiana. Award of a five-year Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for these products/services is anticipated by no later than 31 December 2009. The period of performance of the resultant contract will consist of a one-year base period and four one-year option periods to begin 01 January 2010 and end on 31 December 2014 if all options are exercised.



THIS SOURCES SOUGHT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY; IT 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. This announcement is a market research tool being used to determine the availability and adequacy of potential business sources prior to determining the method of acquisition and issuance of a request for proposal. Businesses of all sizes (large and small) are encouraged to respond. The Government is not obligated to and will not pay for any information received from potential sources as a result of this announcement. Any information submitted by respondents to this technical description is strictly voluntary.



Program Background:



Annual tasking requirements for this effort, based on historic man-hour and material expenditures, and considering projected growth, are as follows:



1) AVIONICS SOFTWARE/SYSTEMS ENGINEERING, MAINTENANCE, ENHANCEMENT, SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT, TEST, SIMULATION SOFTWARE AND LAB MANAGEMENT FOR THE MV-22 AND CV-22 SOFTWARE SUPPORT ACTIVITY (SSA) (318,519 man-hours and $1M material, NAICS Code 336413 with size standard of $44M, FSC Code 1680) – Perform software and systems maintenance and capability upgrades and enhancements to V-22 mission computer software and associated avionics products. Activities include requirements analysis, software development using existing avionics simulation and test products (prospective contractors must have CMMI Level 3 or greater certification in software and systems engineering), software coding using Ada-83 and C++ programming languages using VAPS and other toolsets, and performance of software Formal Qualification Testing (FQT) using full aircraft integration lab testing and Electronic Warfare (EW) Systems testing for classified EW systems. In addition, the contractor is required to conduct problem analysis and root cause analysis of fleet issues and provide recommended solutions and/or workarounds. Utilizing avionics simulation and test software, perform hardware and software testing for final validation prior to formal software suite release to the fleet under the current two year software release timeline (multiple engineering releases with a minimum of one fleet release). The contractor will be required to develop software metrics to monitor software quality. The contractor will be required to develop detailed project plans, guidelines, documentation and controls for integration efforts. The contractor will also be responsible for analyzing and fabricating prototypes for technology demonstrations, and conducting trade studies to assess the feasibility of software and hardware technologies for use in the V-22 aircraft; developing, enhancing and maintaining software-related websites; and developing briefings, status reports, white papers, and detailed schedules. The contractor will be responsible for providing a CV-22 SSA support facility near Hurlburt Field AFB in Florida. The contractor will maintain and develop aircraft simulation software used in V-22 avionics training devices (Avionics Functional V-22 Trainer (AFVT) and the Trainer Fault Insertion System (TFIS)) software and for V-22 software development and testing. Unique qualifications required to perform the above tasks include, but are not limited to: Extensive avionics and software engineering experience and knowledge; expertise in avionics system minor software enhancements and introduction of new capabilities (5 years or more); applicable expertise from a current Navy program that could be applied to this sources sought announcement; expertise with other major systems that interface with aircraft avionics, i.e. interaction with the Flight Control System, Ice Protection System, Drive System, Vibration Structural Life and Engine Diagnostics (VSLED), etc.; expertise with training and maintenance systems; expertise with aircraft concepts of employment for Expeditionary Force and Special Operations; ability to perform crew systems analysis of system and software solutions; expertise in Ada-83 and C++ software programming languages; expertise in VAPS and other software toolsets; experience and skills to perform technical evaluation of all V-22 Prime contractor and avionics supplier-generated technical changes; capability to provide engineering release software for Hardware/Software Integration (HSI) test and validation and V-22 Block Fleet Releases; ability to perform mobile navigation simulations; ability to perform V-22 cockpit controls and displays integration simulations; ability to perform environmental testing of hardware prototypes, or evaluate plans, procedures, and reports from other suppliers, including temperature cycling, shock, vibration and Electro-Magnetic Environmental Effects (EEE); capability to meet critical Fleet needs requiring rapid turn-around-time (analysis/design/test/build); CMMI Level 3 certification (or greater) for systems and software engineering; capability to manage V-22 post-production changes to aircraft avionics subsystems; ability to use Government V-22 avionics labs (current or new) to integrate the V-22 Mission Planning System (VMPS) with avionics hardware and software; and ability to provide support personnel to be located at fleet sites and during deployments. This tasking is currently being performed by RTSC under contract N00019-05-G-0008, delivery order 3018, using a CPFF contract type. Anticipated primary work location / place of performance: 100% at Contractor site; however, extensive travel will be required.





2) SYSTEMS ENGINEERING SERVICES - V-22 AVIONICS DEVELOPMENT (14,815 man-hours, NAICS Code 336413 with size standard of $2M, FSC Code R425) – Assist government avionics team in the technical/engineering monitoring of V-22 Prime contractor (Bell-Boeing) developments, acting as an agent for the NAVAIR V-22 team. Unique qualifications required to perform the above tasks include, but are not limited to: extensive avionics engineering experience and knowledge; applicable expertise from a current Navy program that could be applied to this sources sought announcement; experience and skills to analyze all V-22 Prime contractor and avionics supplier-generated technical changes; avionics hardware and software engineering expertise to monitor V-22 Prime contractor avionics and software technical performance on development and acquisition activities; experience assisting with Program Objective Memorandum (POM) out-year planning; ability to update and maintain avionics roadmap information; expertise with training and maintenance systems; expertise with aircraft concepts of employment and crew systems impacts; and ability to evaluate military hardware environmental qualification test plans, procedures and reports to include temperature cycling, shock, and vibration. This tasking is currently being performed by RTSC under contract N00019-05-G-0008, delivery order 3017, using a CPFF contract type. Anticipated primary work location / place of performance: 100% Contractor site; however, travel will be required.



3) V-22 MISSION PLANNING SYSTEM (VMPS) SOFTWARE DESIGN, ENHANCEMENT, MAINTENANCE AND PRODUCT RELEASES (51,852 man-hours NAICS Code 336413 with size standard of $7M, FSC Code 1680) – Design, enhance, maintain, and generate product releases for the V-22 Mission Planning System (VMPS) software and various hardware items. The VMPS is dependent on the Mission Computer software releases and is maintained, updated, & released in conjunction with V-22 Mission Computer software releases. The V-22 Mission Planning System (VMPS) is comprised of 3 Computer Software Configuration Items (CSCIs). CSCIs include the Joint Mission Planning System (JMPS) framework, V-22 Unique Planning Component (UPC) and V-22 Flight Performance Model (FPM). The UPC implements V-22 unique functionality that is not included in the JMPS software framework. This UPC is extensively coupled with the V-22 cockpit and data management systems. The FPM implements aircraft aeronautical performance charts used by VMPS to calculate aircraft performance. VMPS tasking includes developing new functionality and maintaining the current UPC and FPM for the V-22 Mission Planning System (VMPS). The hardware of VMPS is a Contractor Off-The-Shelf (COTS) laptop computer with custom interfaces to aircraft memory devices. Software metrics are required to monitor software quality. Unique qualifications required to perform the above tasks include, but are not limited to: extensive software engineering experience and knowledge of mission planning systems; software engineering experience and knowledge of the JMPS framework; extensive knowledge of cockpit and data management systems; CMMI Level 3 certification (or greater) for systems and software engineering; and ability to use Government V-22 avionics labs to integrate the V-22 Mission Planning System (VMPS) with avionics hardware and software; and ability to provide support personnel at fleet sites. This tasking is currently being performed by RTSC under contract N00019-05-G-0008, delivery order 3018, using a CPFF contract type. Anticipated primary work location / place of performance: 90% Contractor site and 10% at Government site (Hurlburt Field AFB in FL and Kirtland AFB in NM); also, extensive travel will be required.



4) V-22 SITUATIONAL AWARENESS PRODUCTS (14,815 man-hours and $3M material, NAICS Code 336413 with size standard of $5M, FSC Code 1680) – Maintain, update, and release software/hardware to existing Situational Awareness (SA)/Blue Force Tracking (BFT) products (Cabin SA Upgrade (CSAU) currently installed in the MV/CV-22 aircraft), and fabricate SA kits for installation into the aircraft. This product provides the aircrew/troop commander with situational awareness data and Blue Force Tracking information required for all deployed aircraft. The contractor will be required to develop software metrics to monitor software quality. Unique qualifications required to perform the above tasks include, but are not limited to: extensive engineering experience and knowledge of situational awareness systems designed for military aircraft cabins; expertise with minor software enhancements and introduction of new capabilities for situational awareness systems; expertise with training and maintenance systems; expertise with aircraft concepts of employment and crew systems impacts; applicable expertise from a current Navy program that could be applied to this sources sought announcement; ability to perform environmental testing of hardware prototypes, including temperature cycling, shock, vibration and Electro-Magnetic Environmental Effects (EEE); capability to meet critical Fleet needs requiring rapid turn-around-time (analysis/design/test/build); ISO-9000 certification and CMMI Level 3 certification (or greater) for systems and software engineering. Hardware built for use in aircraft must comply with various design and quality requirements per the aircraft specification (SD-572) and other Governmental policy requirements, for example: EVM, Lean Six Sigma, and the Berry Amendment. This tasking is currently being performed by RTSC under contract N00019-05-G-0008, delivery orders 3016 (using a FFP contract type) and 3018 (using a CPFF contract type). Anticipated primary work location / place of performance: 100% Contractor site; however, extensive travel will be required.



5) ENGINEERING SERVICES FOR V-22 AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE EVENT GROUND STATION SOFTWARE RELEASES (14,815 man-hours, NAICS Code 336413 with size standard of $2M, FSC Code R425) – Support software releases for the V-22 Aircraft Maintenance Event Ground Station (AMEGS). The V-22 AMEGS system is a ground station that takes maintenance, vibration, failure, and engine data from the aircraft and helps maintainers sustain the aircraft. The V-22 AMEGS system is dependent on Mission Computer software releases and is maintained, updated, and released in conjunction with V-22 Mission Computer software releases when changes to the Mission Computer software affect AMEGS software. Development, maintenance and enhancement of AMEGS software is conducted in support of NAVAIR and SPAWAR, San Diego. Unique qualifications required to perform the above tasks include, but are not limited to: extensive avionics and software engineering experience and knowledge; expertise with minor software enhancements and introduction of new capabilities for maintenance ground systems; and applicable expertise from a current Navy program that could be applied to this sources sought announcement. This tasking is currently being performed by RTSC under contract N00019-05-G-0008, delivery order 3019, using a CPFF contract type. Anticipated primary work location / place of performance: 100% Contractor site; however, travel will be required.



If responding to this sources sought announcement, the ability to perform all tasking must be addressed. Separation of this tasking due to the highly interconnected nature of the avionics systems, software, and related avionics equipment would not be in the Government’s best interest. Sharing of knowledge, methodology, and resources are required to support this tasking.



It is requested that interested businesses and small businesses submit to the contracting office a brief capabilities statement package (no more than 15 single-sided 8.5 x 11-inch pages in length, single-spaced, 10 point font minimum) demonstrating ability to perform the efforts listed above. This documentation shall address, as a minimum, the following:



(a) Company profile to include current number of employees, annual revenue history, retention rates for each year (calendar or fiscal) for the period 2006-2008 or by contract (if by contract include contract period of performance); office location(s), DUNS number, and, if applicable, a statement regarding current small business status (indicate whether small, 8(a), HUBZone or service-disabled veteran-owned small business);

(b) For each of the technical areas cited herein, identify recent corporate experience performing efforts of similar size and scope. Include contract number, organization supported, indication of whether a prime or subcontractor, contract value, Government point of contact and current telephone number, and a brief description of how the contract referenced relates to the technical services and products described herein. For those contracts identified on which you were the prime, identify the largest number of full-time employees (include those of subcontractors, team members, partners) and the largest number of subcontractors, team members and partners managed/monitored during contract performance. Also include the company names of the team members/subcontractors/partners managed/monitored under these contracts;

(c) Experience with V-22 avionics hardware and software, or ability to transfer similar experience on other programs/platforms to the V-22 program;

(d) Preliminary approach to place an agreement with Raytheon for access to the Government V-22 avionics labs (classified and unclassified) located at Raytheon, Indianapolis, Indiana (cost for access will be the contractor’s responsibility), or a plan for relocation to another site, or details on comparable facilities already available and a plan for incorporation of V-22 unique Government-Furnished Equipment (GFE) based on a GFE list that the Government will supply upon request (all costs for relocation will be the contractor’s responsibility);

(e) Preliminary approach for a transition plan that addresses establishment of facilities (including security provisions for the handling of classified data and hardware) and deployment of fleet support personnel (with appropriate security clearances) that will support the required fleet software release milestones (schedule available upon request);

(f) Preliminary approach to phase-in/startup, which shall address plans for recruiting and retaining qualified personnel, including possible subcontract/teaming arrangements;

(g) If you are a small business, provide a brief discussion on your company’s ability to perform 50% of the work, to ensure compliance with FAR Clause 52.219-14 or FAR Clause 52.219-27, as applicable;

(h) Any other pertinent information about technical or management skills that your company possesses which would ensure capability to perform the tasking described herein; and

(i) Respondents are reminded of the possibility for Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI). Any contract award for the products/services described herein will likely include NAVAIR Clause 5252.209-9510, “Organizational Conflicts of Interest.” Please review this clause language using the following URL: http://www.navair.navy.mil/doing_business/open_solicitations/clauses.cfm. In your response to this sources sought, please provide a brief description of potential or actual OCIs that your firm may have with respect to the tasking described herein. You are reminded that if the Government determines to competitively award this tasking, offerors may be excluded from the competition as a result of OCIs.





SUBMISSION DETAILS:

The capability statement package shall be sent by facsimile to (301) 757-8988, by email to lakeeta.young-hill@navy.mil, or by mail to the following address: Department of the Navy, Contracts Department, Attn: Lakeeta Young-Hill, Code 2.51.8, Building 441, 21983 Bundy Road, Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland 20670. Submissions must be received at the office cited by no later than 4:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on 4 March 2009. Questions or comments regarding this notice may be addressed electronically to Lakeeta Young-Hill at lakeeta.young-hill@navy.mil. No phone calls will be accepted or returned. Due to heightened security requirements, additional mailing time may be required for receipt of responses. Information and materials submitted in response to this announcement WILL NOT be returned. Classified material SHALL NOT be submitted.



NOTE: Existing contracts are available through the NAVAIR Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) website at the following URL: http://foia.navair.navy.mil. Do not contact the Contracting Office for copies of existing contracts.