SOURCES SOUGHT
99 -- Broad Agency Announcement (BAA): Development of Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE) Technology for Critical Aircraft Engine Rotating Components
- Notice Date
- 5/7/2015
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- Contracting Office
- FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, AAQ-610 CT - William J. Hughes Technical Center (Atlantic City, NJ)
- ZIP Code
- 00000
- Solicitation Number
- 20837
- Response Due
- 6/3/2015
- Archive Date
- 6/3/2015
- Point of Contact
- Daniel Farrell, daniel.farrell@faa.gov, Phone: 609-485-4081
- E-Mail Address
-
Click here to email Daniel Farrell
(daniel.farrell@faa.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- (1) BACKGROUND This project supports the development of improved nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques for critical rotating components of aircraft turbine engines. These rotating components store tremendous amounts of rotational and inertial energy and pose a serious safety threat when fractured components release high-velocity disk fragments capable of penetrating the aircraft fuselage. As the aviation industry moves toward incorporation of damage tolerance concepts in the design and maintenance of propulsion systems, more challenging fatigue crack resistance and inspection requirements emerge. A number of specific advances in NDE capability, reproducibility, and reliability are needed to support future critical rotating components that may not necessarily conform to traditional design. A 5-year NDE Technology Development Plan has been developed by FAA and will be used to identify specific research and development tasks. The Plan is divided by application into 5 categories: a. NDE Method Development b. NDE of Materials c. NDE of As-Manufactured Parts d. NDE of In-Service Parts e. Probability of Detection (POD) of NDE Methods Each of these categories is focused on addressing both near-term and long-range NDE technology needs. NDE Method Development addresses advancing the development of ultrasonic and eddy current methods for application on both as-manufactured and in-service components. In addition, it addresses the need to develop automatic defect recognition tools to minimize operator impact on inspection reproducibility and reliability. NDE of Materials centers on evaluation of properties such as residual stress, bond joint strength, and residual fatigue life of nickel and titanium rotor alloys. NDE of As-Manufactured Parts concentrates on follow-on programs to the current FAA effort on NDE of manufacturing anomalies, including refinement of promising inspection methods or process monitoring to minimize generation of manufacturing process anomalies. NDE of In-Service Parts is aimed at development of new or modified surface defect inspection techniques to replace or augment the current fluorescent penetrant inspection (FPI). The POD of NDE Methods looks at developing analytical models and solutions for quantifying the POD of the growing number of inspection methods that produce images rather than simple numerical results. (2) PURPOSE The purpose of this BAA is to solicit interest in the form of research proposal briefs from the NDE community. These two-page briefs should offer practical and achievable solutions to the inspection-related challenges posed by the next generation of jet engines. These challenges include but are not limited to the following areas identified in the FAA 5-yr Plan: a. A Sonic IR task that continues to develop the NDE process in preparation for production implementation. b. New NDE techniques capable of evaluating the bond joint strength and mechanical integrity of advanced engine rotating components such as BLISKs and Dual-Alloy Disks. c. Fast, low-cost, large area inspection methods to detect surface anomalies in in-service critical rotating components. Proposed methods should be more cost effective than current eddy current methods with the capability to detect 30 X 15 mil crack size anomalies with a 90/50 probability of detection. d. Development of Electro-Thermography as an alternative surface inspection technology. e. Development of computer generated data analysis algorithms that automatically evaluate amplitude and signal-to-noise rejections without operator intervention. Development of this capability for inspections such as UT of forgings and EC image analysis. A series of programs is envisioned, each aimed at developing computer driven auto defect recognition for one of the previously mentioned NDE methods. f. New sensors for monitoring a complex machining process, such as broaching, to minimize the possibility of producing a manufacturing induced anomaly in the finish machined component. g. Development of NDE techniques capable of quantifying the residual stress profile in a shot-peened nickel component to depths of 0.015 or more. h. Develop new and innovative approaches to POD data analysis techniques and curve generation from image producing NDE methods. i. Develop a NDE method capable of identifying Titanium material susceptible to dwell time fatigue. j. Development of a nondestructive technique to assess the remaining LCF life in rotor components. Submitted two-page technical summaries should focus on solutions to one or more of the above challenges. (3) SUBMISSION DEADLINES Two-page technical proposals (see section 4) prepared in accordance with this synopsis will be accepted through June 3, 2015. Upon request from the FAA, formal proposals shall be submitted within 30 calendar days after the date of the request. This request will be made via email. (4) SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS Offerors will submit two-page technical proposal briefs addressing the areas of their interest listed above prior to submitting a formal proposal. The two-page technical brief shall meet the requirements described below in Section 5. The two-page technical brief shall be submitted to the Contracting Officer via email at daniel.farrell@faa.gov in either Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat. Approximately 45 days after receipt of the two-page technical proposal, the FAA will respond to offerors in one of four ways: a. Request for the submission of a formal proposal. b. Recommendation to submit a formal proposal if certain changes are made or conditions met. c. Notification that the white paper was good but due to insufficient funding, a formal proposal request may be delayed until the next FY, depending on the availability of funds. d. Rejection of the summary proposal and no request for a formal proposal. If requested by the FAA, the offeror shall submit a formal proposal, containing a detailed discussion of the subject presented in the two-page proposal brief. The formal proposal shall address the requirements described in the Formal Proposal Requirements section of this announcement. The formal proposal shall be submitted to the Contracting Officer via email at daniel.farrell@faa.gov. (5) TWO-PAGE TECHNICAL SUMMARY REQUIREMENTS There is no specific format for the two page technical summary. The summary may be preceded by a cover letter, but the cover letter will not be considered in the evaluation, nor will pages in excess of two be considered. At a minimum the summary shall contain the following items: a. The specific purpose of the proposed research; b. A description of the proposed research; c. Information regarding the interest or endorsement from the airline industry including but not limited to engine OEMs, airline carriers, and repair stations; d. The current state of development of the proposed research; e. The estimate time it would take to complete the proposed research; f. A description of any proposed testing and evaluation procedures for the proposed research; and g. The estimated funds required for the proposed effort. (6) FORMAL PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS Formal proposals will only be submitted at the request of the FAA and must be received no later than 30 calendar days after the request date. Formal proposals shall consist of separate technical and cost proposals with the technical proposals not greater than 30 pages in length. Technical proposals must comply with the requirements listed here: a. Offerors shall provide information that clearly demonstrates the offeror's knowledge and understanding of one of the NDE challenges as described in Section 2 of this announcement. Offerors shall describe in detail, the technique involved, and the equipment, transducers, sensors, etc. that need to be developed. Details should further include: 1. Engine type, component to be inspected, material to be inspected; 2. Damage and flaw type proposed to be found, including location and target flaw size; 3. The current and projected ending TRL (technology readiness level) of the project, equipment and/or technique; 4. Any special or unique operating conditions required to support the application of the proposed technology; 5. Any relevant POD data in existence or to be obtained by the funded proposal. b. Offerors must provide information describing their competency pertinent to the proposed research. Information documenting past performance, both positive and negative, in executing similar work must be included. Resumes of key personnel must also be provided. Any special equipment or resources needing to be obtained in the course of the proposed research should be identified and discussed. It is strongly encouraged that offerors team with partners within the aviation community (i.e., an engine OEM, aircraft operator, or repair station) who will serve as an advisor and advocate for the proposed research. Proof of commitment, such as a letter of intent, by the partner should be provided with the proposal. The proof need not be a contract. Matching in-kind funds or services provided by the partner are not required, but will be considered positively during proposal evaluation. c. The offeror shall provide a realistic plan and schedule of milestones for accomplishing the research within the proposed time goals. d. Offerors shall also propose to the FAA a validation plan, which includes blind testing on actual or realistic test specimens. Obtaining applicable test specimens is the responsibility of the offeror. The proposal shall include all costs related to the validation effort. e. Offerors shall also discuss an implementation and technology transfer plan, describing how the proposed technology will be developed into commercial products or practices that are practical for use in the inspection and maintenance of existing aircraft in the commercial fleet. f. The proposal shall identify all areas of risk related to development, implementation, and technology transfer, of the proposed system, technology, or technique. The proposal shall include mitigating strategies for each risk area. Proposals that do not identify risk areas will be considered non-developmental in nature and therefore outside the scope of this research program. Implementation risks are associated with logistical issues, missing/inadequate support infrastructure, etc. g. Proposals should be limited to funding of not more than $200K/year with a proposed project duration not to exceed 2 years. (7) METHOD OF EVALUATION Proposals will be evaluated in the five technical areas listed here in descending order of importance: a. Technical merit. b. Utility to the FAA/aircraft OEMs/airline industry. c. Investigative team competency, NDE experience, and partnership/collaboration. d. Effective plan for project completion. e. Technical risk. Cost analysis and cost realism will be performed. Acceptable proposals in each area above must have costs commensurate with the work load proposed. Any proposal that exceeds $200,000 in one year may not be considered due to funding constraints. (8) PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE Efforts lasting between one and two years have a much better chance of being awarded. Multi-year efforts will be funded in yearly increments, providing measurable and adequate performance is shown prior to each new funding increment. (9) STANDARD LANGUAGE a. The FAA will not pay for any information received or costs incurred in preparing the response to this BAA, and responses will not be returned. b. Any confidential or proprietary information submitted in response to this BAA must be marked accordingly by the company. Such information will not be disclosed outside of the acquisition team. c. The FAA plans to use support contractors to assist in technical reviews of proposals and deliverable products. Support contractors will be bound by Non-Disclosure Agreements, and do not have authority to issue directions to the Contractor or to change any contract terms. If you're viewing this announcement from a source other than Federal Aviation Administration Contract Opportunities (FAACO), visit https://faaco.faa.gov/index.cfm/announcement/view/20837 to view the original announcement.
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