THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) FOR THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD (USCG) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER (RDC) IN GROTON, CT. This RFI is part of a market research effort to assess industry capabilities that will best address the USCG's needs. You are invited to respond with information to assist the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Research and Development Center (R&DC) Search and Rescue (SAR) Program in market research to identify suitable real-time information products that can be used to represent the environmental parameters that should be considered for the USCG's search planning tool, the Search and Rescue Optimal Planning System (SAROPS). These parameters include surface winds and ocean currents that affect the movement of survivors in the ocean, air and water temperatures that affect the survivability of victims, and wave height and atmospheric conditions that affect search methods and efficiency. To support the USCG SAR mission, these parameters must understandably be available on a continuous basis and represent present conditions with a minimum of time delay, as well as those expected for the next 72 hours. BACKGROUND: The most recent USCG contracting effort to upgrade/deploy SAROPS is Task Order HSCG23-06-F-TEY164 issued to Northrop Grumman under GSA schedule GS-35F-4506G. SAROPS is for nationwide use by USCG SAR controllers to plan and execute SAR operations. SAROPS will be applied to the coastal areas of the continental U.S., Caribbean, Alaska, and Hawaii. Also included are areas of the western Atlantic Ocean, and areas of the Pacific Ocean adjacent to U.S. territories. The R&DC has been supporting the development of SAROPS by identifying suitable real-time environmental data products for USCG areas of responsibility. A contract was issued to Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) where a team, headed by SAIC, conducted its market research effort in late 2005 and early 2006, obtaining information from 59 potential providers. The project team was not able to obtain information from all providers of potential interest. As a result, this RFI is being conducted to complete the market research effort. SAIC is not participating in this RFI effort. USCG NEEDS: The USCG is researching atmospheric and oceanographic parameters available for the present and near-future (e.g. next 72 hours) time frame that impact SAR and other USCG missions. These include ocean surface currents, surface winds, sea surface temperature, air temperature, and other parameters that would affect the ability of CG vessels and aircraft to operate and locate victims on the ocean. For the purpose of this RFI, a website with a questionnaire has been established to simplify the collection of responses from providers. At this website a complete listing of parameters is provided on the questionnaire login page. The attributes of environmental information products will be examined in the following areas: (1) Operational Status attributes: Products that are available on a continuing basis, with a history of minimum interruption in recent service are preferred, as are model products that are updated more frequently and with longer prediction horizons. The USCG is interested in observing products that are made available with smaller time delays. The USCG is also interested in information on infrastructure redundancy in place to support product continuity; (2) Access attributes: Products that are presently available continuously in electronic format and the availability of on-line archived observations or model fields are desired. Is a fee required for access to the product?; (3) Domain, Applicability, and Resolution attributes: The USCG places more value on model products that provide small-scale resolution of parameters in space (horizontally and vertically), and in time; (4) Quality attributes: Information is needed on the processes followed (i.e. QA/QC) to ensure that observational and model products are representative of actual values. All interested persons, who have not previously responded to the questionnaire are requested to complete an on-line questionnaire form at the R&DC SAR Program website at http://www.rdc.uscg.gov/sar/. The questionnaire is most efficiently completed on-line, however a MS Word version of the questionnaire is also available at the website. Respondents are requested to complete this questionnaire by 15 February 2007. Those who have previously responded to the initial questionnaire need not respond to this inquiry unless the production of their product has changed during the past year. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this RFI or to otherwise pay for information received in response to this RFI. This RFI is issued for information and planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. The Government requests that no proprietary information be provided in response to this RFI. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this RFI are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Inquiries regarding this RFI shall be sent directly to
[email protected] with a copy to
[email protected]. Only electronic responses will be accepted and shall be submitted no later than 15 February 2007.