SOURCES SOUGHT
99 -- LUNAR SCIENCE PROGRAM: INTERNATIONAL LUNAR NETWORK MISSION SUBSYSTEMCOMPONENT
- Notice Date
- 4/29/2008
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 334511
— Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- NASA/George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, Procurement Office, Marshall SpaceFlight Center, AL 35812
- ZIP Code
- 35812
- Solicitation Number
- RFI-04-28-2008
- Response Due
- 5/14/2008
- Point of Contact
- Melinda E. Dodson, Contracting Officer, Phone 256-961-7454, Fax 256-961-7524, - Melinda E. Dodson, Contracting Officer, Phone 256-961-7454, Fax 256-961-7524
- E-Mail Address
-
Melinda.E.Dodson@nasa.gov, Melinda.E.Dodson@nasa.gov
- Description
- This notice is issued by the NASA/MSFC to post a Request for Information (RFI) viathe internet, and solicit responses from interested parties. This document is forinformation and planning purposes and to allow industry the opportunity to verifyreasonableness and feasibility of the requirement, as well as promote competition. The NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) has directed the Marshall Space Flight Center(MSFC) and the Johns Hopkins Universitys Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) to implementone of what is expected to be a series of missions to put in place an International LunarNetwork (ILN).Hence, the Government is requesting information pertaining to existingsubsystems and/or other component elements that are capable of transporting anddelivering science instrument packages to the lunar surface. The term existing refersto hardware development levels equivalent to flight spares, engineering units, and/orhigh technology readiness level (TRL3 or greater) hardware that could be flight qualifiedand flown as part of the ILN, anticipated for launch in the 2012-2014 time-frame. In theevent that flight spares or engineering units are not available, the Government is alsointerested in build to print or scaleable possibilities from existing flighthardware. Hardware that would deliver science instrument packages to the lunar surface,hereafter referred to as landers, would include such things as penetrators and hard orsoft landers. The Government is also interested in other innovative existing hardwaresolutions extensible to the placement of science instrument packages on the lunarsurface.The short development schedule and limited budget preclude extensive lander or technologydevelopment. Hence, NASA mission planners must focus on mature, functioning hardware,including flight spares from other missions, engineering units of existing flighthardware, or high TRL hardware that can easily be flight qualified, built to print, orthat require limited additional development. Please see the document (NPR 7120.8 App J -TRL Definitions.pdf) accompanying this RFI on FedBizOpps for definitions of hardware andtechnology readiness levels.The ILN represents a series of US and International Partner provided surface packages(sensing nodes), which act as common science nodes in a lunar geophysical network thatwill address Agency science goals. The NASA SMD expects that each node in ILN willprovide a minimum core suite of two instruments and will include a lander to deliverthese nodes to the lunar surface. Additional measurements and/or instruments may beaccommodated provided adequate mass, power and budget margins exist. The missionaddressed by this RFI encompasses two landers (i.e., anchor nodes). These first twonodes of the ILN will likely be placed at high lunar latitudes.The landers are expected to be small. For planning and RFI purposes, the followingrepresent approximate anticipated payload/instrument accommodation considerations andconstraints that will be used to assess lander capability and sizing applicability.Mass: 25-50 kgPower: 1 W continuous, 2 W peakG-Load: 40 gData Rate: 100 Mbits per Earth day (transmitted or stored)Note: This RFI ONLY pertains to delivery/lander hardware. Information on potentialscience instruments is NOT requested.The total life cycle budget for this ILN mission, through phase E, is based on a low costsmall class launch vehicle. However, the specific launch vehicle for this mission hasnot yet been determined. Therefore, the precise mass available for landers and payloadsis not yet known, as this will depend on specific launch vehicle capabilities. Tradestudies of payload delivery options are currently underway.The NASA/MSFC has issued this RFI to survey the planetary science community and othercommercial or government interests for existing flight or near flight subsystem and/orcomponent hardware that can support the science objectives of the ILN mission.It is not NASAs intent to publicly disclose proprietary information obtained during thisRFI. To the full extent that it is protected pursuant to the Freedom of Information Actand other laws and regulations, information identified by a respondent as Proprietary orConfidential will be treated as such.Personnel from the Applied Physics Laboratory(APL) at Johns Hopkins University may be involved in activities related to this RFI. AnyAPL personnel given access to information provided to NASA in response to this RFI willbe bound by Non-Disclosure Agreement.This RFI is for information and acquisition planning purposes only and is not to beconstrued as a commitment by the Government to enter into a contractual agreement, norwill the Government pay for information solicited. This is NOT a request for proposalsor notice of solicitation - no solicitation related to this RFI currently exists. If asolicitation is released, it will be synopsized in FedBizOpps and on the NASA AcquisitionInternet Service.Depending on the response, NASA may consider a one-day workshop for responders to presentand discuss their submissions both in an open forum and, potentially, in a confidentialsetting.Requested InformationResponses to this RFI shall be in the form of a PDF document that is emailed tomelinda.e.dodson@nasa.gov. Responses should not exceed five (5) pages in length and mustcontain the following information:1.Name of respondent and contact information (institutional affiliation, emailaddress, phone number, etc.);2.Capabilities and qualifications statement that addresses the respondents abilityto actually provide the hardware as identified above; 3.A description of the hardware, how it functions and how it supports theobjectives of the ILN mission;4.A color photograph of the hardware (brassboard, engineering unit, flight unit,etc.);5.A description of the hardware volume, and power requirements and any relevantconstraints or limitations;6.A description of payload accommodations - mass, volume and power and any otherrelevant constraints or limitations;7.The current status of the hardware, including TRL, the conditions/environmentsunder which the hardware has been tested and/or used. (e.g. radiation hardened, lifelimited, qualified to industry/company standards or hybrid, special infrastructurerequired)Comments may be forwarded to Melnda E. Dodson by email at melinda.e.dodson@nasa.gov or byfacsimile transmission at 256-961-7723.This presolicitation synopsis is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government,nor will the Government pay for the information submitted in response.Respondents willnot be notified of the results.An ombudsman has been appointed -- See NASA Specific Note "B".The solicitation and any documents related to this procurement will be available over theInternet. These documents will reside on a World Wide Web (WWW) server, which may beaccessed using a WWW browser application. The Internet site, or URL, for the NASA/MSFCBusiness Opportunities home page ishttp://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/bizops.cgi?gr=D&pin=62It is the offeror'sresponsibility to monitor the Internet cite for the release of the solicitation andamendments (if any). Potential offerors will be responsible for downloading their owncopy of the solicitation and amendments, if any. Any referenced notes may be viewed at the following URLs linked below.
- Web Link
-
FedBizOpps Complete View
(https://www.fbo.gov/?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=1ba69ff9ca84fd2042d46db3129ec9c2&tab=core&_cview=1)
- Record
- SN01563303-W 20080501/080429220518-54f74ce9f9c0c52a1e96c2de2f958f0a (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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