Aviation Foreign Internal Defense Market Analysis - Aircraft Modification Description 1. This Request for Information (RFI) is issued for information purposes only and neither constitutes a solicitation nor a commitment by the government to award a contract now or in the future. Submitting information for this RFI is voluntary, and participants will not be compensated. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this solicitation or to otherwise pay for the information solicited except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in subsection 31.205-18, bid and proposal costs, of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Although "proposal" and "offeror" are used in this Request for Information, your response will be treated as information only and will be treated as proprietary information belonging to the offeror. It shall not be used as a proposal. 2. USSOCOM/SORDAC- Program Executive Office for Fixed Wing (PEO-FW) is soliciting information to identify possible sources to accomplish the design, engineering, integration and installation for a wide range of aircraft modifications. While the specific aircraft to be modified has not been determined, for the purpose of this RFI, offerors should make estimates based on a twin-engine multi-purpose STOL capable aircraft with a rear opening door or ramp and capable of carrying between 9 and 16 passengers. Additionally it is unknown currently what if any of the listed modifications will be performed by the aircraft manufacturer. Responders to this RFI should assume no United States Government (USG) provided data for the selected aircraft and minimal manufacturer documentation. 3. The USG has particular interest in having 16 twin engine, multi-purpose, STOL aircraft modified to include: a. NVG compatible internal and external lighting b. A kit for a detachable Electro-Optical/Infrared (EO/IR) sensor capable of being operated from the cockpit and/or rear cabin (via a roll-on/roll-off crew station). System shall be stand alone and not integrated into any other avionics systems. Attachment point for external sensor must be compatible with operation from semi-prepared surfaces c. A cabin configuration/system that permits the use of the aircraft as a casualty evacuation platform (sealed floor) capable of holding 4 to 6 litters, a passenger platform capable of carrying between 9 and 16 passengers in a side wall arrangement, cargo tie downs and/or rail system, hard points for attaching roll on/roll off consoles, single static line and/or static line retrieval system for cargo/personnel, 2 to 3 AC, 110V, 60 Hz, 10 amp outlets on each side of the cabin (4 to 6 total). The ideal cabin should allow for rapid reconfiguration to all mission modes. d. Strengthen aircraft landing gear and install other equipment/gear as necessary to permit continual operations from semi-prepared surfaces. e. Provide and install cockpit voice recorder (CVR) capable of recording between a 30 minute and 2 hour loop feed. f. Provide and install a Flight Data Recorder providing between 25 and 50 hours of loop feed and capable of periodic downloads of the memory unit with minimal disruption to schedule. g. Provide and install an Inter Communication System with between 6 and 8 boxes. h. Provide and install an emergency oxygen system for 3 primary crewmembers. i. Provide and install as necessary to upgrade Communication Equipment to a minimum of dual UHF and VHF, FM, HF and transponder (Mode A,C,S) j. Provide and install as necessary to upgrade Navigation Equipment to a minimum of dual VOR/DME, dual ADF, GPS, radar altimeter, marker beacon system, glide slope and localizer receiver system, TCAS and weather radar. 4. In particular, the government is interested in the following information: a. Your relevant experience with recent aircraft modification and integration efforts on commercial aircraft for a military customer/configuration. b. Your capability to provide the design, engineering, integration, installation, and technical manuals of the modifications listed above. c. Your experience in maintaining FAA certification for a commercial aircraft modified for military purposes. d. The Lead time you require prior to start of work. e. An estimate for labor in either man hours, man months, man years estimated separately for each modification above. The labor estimate must be divided between non-recurring engineering time and the installation time estimate for all 16 aircraft. f. An estimate for material costs associated with each modification separately. g. If you are also responding to the RFI for the aircraft, then it would be helpful to know whether the modifications will be accomplished in the production line or as a post production modification. h. Provide a notional completion schedule for 16 aircraft. Responses to this RFI shall be limited to 50 pages in length, not including the cover page or exhibits (including pictures within the text). Do not submit classified data. Responses shall be submitted in an electronic format as an e-mail attachment. Either a PDF or Microsoft Word formatted attachment is acceptable. The responses may also be submitted on CD-ROM in either of the same two formats with no macros. If the data contains proprietary/competition sensitive material, including the CD and the cover label should be marked ‟Proprietary/Competition Sensitive Material". Proprietary/competition sensitive material will be protected from disclosure. This notice is part of Government Market Research, a continuous process for obtaining the latest information on the ‘art of the possible' from industry with respect to their current and near-term abilities. The information collected may be used by the Government to explore future strategies for the possible uses of platforms within the military. Information received as a result of this request will be considered as sensitive and will be protected as such. Any company proprietary information contained in the response shall be separately marked. Any proprietary information received in response to this request will be properly protected from any unauthorized disclosure. The Government will not use proprietary information submitted from any one firm to establish the capability and requirements for any future systems acquisition, so as to not inadvertently restrict competition. Responses to this RFI are restricted to U.S. firms. Responses to questions from interested parties will be promptly answered and provided equally to all interested parties unless some release of proprietary information is involved or the answer addresses a question peculiar to a Company or that Company's response. One-on-one information gathering sessions with respondents are not contemplated. Your response must be received no later than 10 Dec 2010. Responses should be sent to USSOCOM/SORDAC-KI, Madeline Baumgartner (e-mail:
[email protected] ), 7701 Tampa Point Blvd, MacDill AFB, FL 33621-5323.