The National Guard Bureau, Office of Public Affairs and Strategic Communications, anticipates hosting its bi-annual Public Affairs Training and History Workshop tentatively13-17 May 2013 in the Louisville, Ky area. The workshop will provide public affairs and historical training, peer-to-peer mentoring and networking to public affairs practitioners and historians from 54 states, territories, and provinces, totaling approximately 500 individuals. The conference is estimated to begin at 7:30 am daily and will conclude at 5:30 pm. Workshop participants will have opportunities for demonstrations and information sharing regarding latest technology, skills training and mentoring among DoD professionals and peers, as well as corporate and industry partners. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding the availability, capability and interest of qualified parties interested in providing exhibits in the form of various types of displays for the 2013 Public Affairs Training and Historical Workshop. All parties seeking to achieve greater visibility within the National Guard Public Affairs and Historian communities are encouraged to seek consideration as exhibitors. No contract will be issued based on information provided in response to this notice, nor will any compensation be provided to exhibitors for their efforts. Interested parties should respond by providing a capability statement as detailed below. Project Requirements: Exhibitors must be capable of independently provide planning, research, expertise and implementation of innovative and or interactive displays to include in the 2013 Public Affairs Training and Historical Workshop exhibits. In addition, all exhibitors must provide for the shipment, installation, teardown, and maintenance of their display before, during, and after the workshop. NGB will select exhibitors from among interested parties based on their demonstrated capability and intent to provide experiences that educate DoD audiences about public affairs and historical related missions and programs. Themes are: Value Added for America; Always Ready, Always There; A Nation's Force of Decisive Action - Ready Today, Prepared for Tomorrow; Meeting the Needs of the Nation; and The How To's of History, as well as the themes and messages pertinent to future exhibits. Desired Capabilities: Interactive technical displays: The exhibitor should have the technical expertise to program interactive computer, electronic displays that allow the audience to drill down at least three levels to illustrate programs, using touch screen or pinch technology. The programming must be of the highest industry standards. The graphics for these displays must be visually interesting, educational, and able to draw the viewer into the exhibit. The exhibitor does not have to have Department of Defense organizations as its primary customer base, but must have experience with what government exhibitors can and cannot do based on regulations and law. Physical displays: The exhibitor should have the expertise to surround the interactive electronic display with a physical look that complements the display's theme. Physical displays or topics of interest could include a Vietnam War-era supply tent, the front of a Humvee, a futuristic "portal," and the Army Guard NASCAR, or professional organizations such as Public Relations Society of America, American Association of State and Local History, Society of Military Historians, and other technical aspects as related to still or digital cameras, high definition video cameras, LED lighting kits, editing and lighting software, specialized equipment cases and industry related education, professional organizations, industry programs or workshops, historical archival storage and systems, special edition book publishers, inventory systems for historical artifacts, and record digitization. Special effects: The "wow" factor in displays generally comes from the special effects that draw visitors into the display. Examples of such special effects include, but are not limited to, a hologram; an animated figure dressed as a Vietnam-era soldier that speaks to the audience; a pedestal that visitors use to control the interactive presentation inside the portal. Some special effects used in the past may be available at museums, theme parks and large corporate displays throughout the world. Submission Instructions: All Capability Statements sent in response to this Special Notice must be submitted electronically (via email) to CPT Michael Wade, Contract Specialist, at
[email protected] in MS Word, WordPerfect, or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF), NLT COB Friday, 15 June, 2012. All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered. No telephonic or hard copy responses will be considered or accepted. Additionally, all questions must be submitted in writing via email to the same addresses above. Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice is for planning purposes only and does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any exhibitor or exhibitor responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the exhibitor's capability to provide an exhibit that Governments stated goals. Use of exhibit space does not include drayage, decoration such as tables and chairs, guard and security service, labor such as carpenters, electricians, plumbers and drapery men, cleaning of booths and aisles, booth and aisle carpeting, storage space for crates and security at client cost. NGB may charge reasonable fees for exhibits based upon conference costs. NGB activities shall not subsidize all conference costs through exhibitor fees unrelated to cost of hosting exhibitors in accordance with page 27, Item 3a of NGB Memorandum 37-4/65-001, Financial Administration, National Guard Bureau Policy, 28 Jan., 2011. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, additional announcements may be issued. Primary Point of Contact: CPT Michael S. Wade Contracting Officer, NGB Joint Staff Branch Operational Contracting Division Commercial: 703-607-1260 DSN: 327-1260 MAJ Chevelle Thomas Executive Officer, NGB Public Affairs Commercial: 703-607-0868 E-mail:
[email protected]