REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI). NASA/GSFC is soliciting information in preparationfor the competition of the Rapid Spacecraft Acquisition (RSA) follow-on. Previouslyknown as Rapid II (Rapid 2), the new procurement will be referred to as Rapid III (Rapid3). The Rapid III acquisition may result in the award of multiple fixed-priced, commercial,Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts for spacecraft bus core systemsthat would be used to meet the Governments science and technology needs. Under the RSAprocess, contracts are awarded to vendors based on their ability to meet specificcriteria (for example: the ability to carry out the Statement of Work (SOW); and aheritage spacecraft which has been successfully mated and interface tested with itslaunch vehicle). Vendors would submit core spacecraft designs that could be successfullymodified as carriers for one or more flight instrument payloads. Each core spacecraftsystem would need to supply all necessary design, fabrication, assembly, test, flightpayload instrument integration and test, final observatory (spacecraft plus payload)integration and test, shipping, launch support, on-orbit check-out and operationssupport. Operations support would include all required ground support equipment as wellas associated flight and ground based software and software maintenance for thespacecraft offered. Purpose of this RFI: The primary purpose of this RFI is to gather information, comments and suggestions fromspacecraft manufacturers regarding:a. Potential offerors.b. Estimated number and type of potential spacecraft offerings.c. Comments on the Rapid II contract, if any.d. Suggestions for the Rapid III contract, if any.e. Responses to the specific issues as delineated in the questions below.The information provided to the Government in response to this RFI will be used todevelop the terms and conditions of the upcoming solicitation. GSFC welcomes anyinformation submitted by interested parties in response to this request. Background:The RSA contract serves as a fast and flexible Government-wide, firm fixed priced (FFP),IDIQ procurement tool for proven spacecraft or spacecraft components.The RSA contract is managed by the Rapid Spacecraft Development Office (RSDO). The RSDOalso facilitates mission-specific spacecraft procurements for government customers viathe RSA contract. The purpose of the RSA concept is to reduce overall procurement time,as well as reduce mission implementation cost and risk by leveraging proven spacecraftdesigns and commercial practices. The spacecraft under contract are placed in the RSA catalog for possible procurementvia IDIQ delivery orders for mission customers. These mission-specific delivery ordersare competed amongst the RSA contractors and awarded based on the contractors ability tosatisfy the customers mission requirements. Modifications to the core spacecraft to meetthe specific requirements of future missions are normal and expected. The RSA contract includes an On Ramp feature, which allows for the originalsolicitation to be periodically re-opened in order to give new vendors the opportunity topropose proven spacecraft designs. On Ramps also give vendors already awarded an RSAcontract the opportunity to propose additional proven spacecraft designs and/or updatetheir existing catalog designs.It is anticipated that the Rapid III contract will be similar to the previous Rapid IIcontract and that it will remain a commercial (FAR Part 12) contract. Those companies notfamiliar with Rapid II are welcome to visit the RSDO website: http://rsdo.gsfc.nasa.gov for background information. Specifically, review material under Mission Statement andRapid II menu tabs.The range of possible NASA missions is broad in scope, type and size. Therefore, the RSAcontract would seek heritage spacecraft buses of various sizes, capabilities, lifetimes,orbit use and mission suitability, in order to be ready to support a variety of missionneeds quickly.Questions for Industry:Please respond to the following: 1. Do you have an interest in supplying spacecraft under the new Rapid III contract?2. How many core spacecraft would you be interested in offering? 3. Do you have comments regarding the Rapid II contract?4. Do you have suggestions for the future Rapid III contract? 5. The Government may require a form of Earned Value Management (EVM) reporting in theterms of the contract. What do you envision as a practical implementation of EVM for afixed price contract? How would this impact your business practices with respect toRapid III? Please note that this contract will be performance based with payments madeupon the completion of pre-defined milestones.6. The Government may issue the new Rapid III contract under terms other than commercial(FAR Part 12). What do you see as the pros, cons and impact of an RSA contract writtenas firm fixed price non-commercial (FAR Part 15, rather than FAR Part 12)? How wouldthis impact your business practices with respect to Rapid III? Please note that theGovernment intends to maintain a high level of insight into the contractorsimplementation of all delivery orders and to invoke mission specific Mission AssuranceRequirements (MAR).This RFI is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government, nor will theGovernment pay for any information submitted in response to this RFI. The anticipatedrelease date for the Draft Request for Proposal (DRFP) for Rapid III is October 2008. The anticipated release date for the final RFP is January 2009 with proposals dueapproximately 45 days after the solicitation release date. Award of contracts iscontemplated for June 2009. Responses may be submitted via mail to NASA/GSFC, ATTN: Janet Osterman, Code 401.1,Building 16W, Room N115, Greenbelt, MD 20771; or via electronic transmission
[email protected]. For further information please contact Janet Osterman at301-286-7586 or
[email protected]; or Art Unger at 301-286-0404
[email protected]. Information submitted separate and apart from commercialbrochures will be treated as proprietary, if so marked. All responses shall be submittedby July 23, 2008. No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If asolicitation is released it will be synopsized in FedBizOpps and on the NASA AcquisitionInternet Service. It is the potential offerors responsibility to monitor these sites forthe release of any solicitation or synopsis.