SOURCES SOUGHT
A -- Light-Weighting For Ground Vehicle Systems
- Notice Date
- 5/15/2015
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- ACC - Warren (ACC-WRN)(DTA), ATTN: AMSTA-AQ-AMB, E Eleven Mile Road, Warren, MI 48397-5000
- ZIP Code
- 48397-5000
- Solicitation Number
- W56HZV-15-R-0061
- Response Due
- 6/1/2015
- Archive Date
- 7/14/2015
- Point of Contact
- Justin Eagle, 586 282-6394
- E-Mail Address
-
ACC - Warren (ACC-WRN)(DTA)
(justin.s.eagle.civ@mail.mil)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) US ARMY RDECOM-TARDEC LIGHT-WEIGHTING FOR GROUND VEHICLE SYSTEMS Description of Intent THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI), A MARKET SURVEY REQUEST IN SUPPORT OF THE FOLLOWING. NO CONTRACT WILL BE AWARDED FROM THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) or an announcement of a forthcoming solicitation, nor is it a request seeking offerors to be placed on a solicitation mailing list. Response to this survey is voluntary and no reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this market survey and any follow-up information requests. No solicitation document exists at this time, and calls requesting a solicitation will not be answered. General Information The Government's explicit intent, in this request for information, is to not receive from respondents any proprietary data, trade secrets, business sensitive information, or information considered CONFIDENTIAL under 18 U.S.C. 1905. The Government's constraint does not in any way relieve contractor's from their responsibility to properly mark proprietary data when it is provided, in accordance with DFARS 252.227-7013. Nor does it alleviate any requirement for the Government to protect marked data. The Government is not obligated to protect unmarked data. Respondents shall ensure that any material/data that is provided is marked appropriately to ensure proper handling of all information. Unless otherwise noted herein, anything submitted in response to this RFI will not be returned to the sender. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the survey or results of information submitted, nor will it respond to telephone or email inquiries. NOTE: The Government is not asking you to develop or provide drawings or develop any technical data in response to this RFI. Introduction The US Army TARDEC Ground System Survivability, Lightweight Structures (LWS) Team, is conducting a market survey to identify the current and future aluminum light-weighting capabilities that could be provided in support of military ground vehicle systems. This RFI is broad ranging in application and technologies. The LWS Team is tasked with developing light-weight components for ground combat vehicle systems. This includes, but is not limited to, all aspects of a vehicle from the structure to every subsystem and component that is incorporated in the manufacture of the vehicle: * Mobility systems, i.e. powertrain, suspension and mobility * Armor systems, i.e. armor (opaque and transparent), blast, and active protection systems * Auxiliary systems, i.e. seats, floors, and enclosures * Components, i.e. bolts, appurtenances, and wiring * Any associated manufacturing technology Response Format Electronic responses are required, either via e-mail or digital media submission. Submittal shall be in Microsoft Office or Adobe Acrobat. The size limit for individual e-mails is 5 MB per e-mail. You may use multiple e-mail messages. The subject line must include the message number (example: 1 of 3, 2 of 3, 3 of 3) and quote mark [Company Name] response to RFI - TARDEC Light-weighting quote mark. Responses may include, as backup/support, company marketing materials, reports, and/or other materials that were prepared for purposes other than this RFI. Responses shall address application, readiness, affordability, and performance of each question. 1. Number each response with the appropriate question number and ensure that questions are answered in the same order as listed in this RFI. 2. You do not have to repeat the question in your response. 3. If you cannot answer a question, please indicate quote mark No Response. quote mark 4. Include relevant company literature if appropriate. If providing an Adobe Acrobat formatted literature submittal, indicate which question the material is applicable to. If preferred, include Internet web links to locations where literature may be viewed. 5. If your literature submittal contains a restricted distribution statement, please issue a release statement indicating that the restricted material may be distributed to Army personnel involved with this RFI. 6. Spell out any acronyms in their first instance. Responses Due Electronic responses to this RFI must be received NO LATER THAN COB 01 JUNE 2015. Please submit all responses and any questions prior to full response to Martin McDonnell via email at martin.m.mcdonnell3.civ@mail.mil. Requested Information Part I: Business Information Administrative Information 1) Company name: 2) Business address: 3) Company web address: 4) Company Point of Contact (POC): a) Name: b) Title: c) Telephone: d) Fax number: e) Email address: 5) Location of facilities: Business Profile 1) What products or services do you primarily manufacture? 2) How long have you been in business? 3) What type of business are you (i.e. large, small, small-disadvantaged, small woman-owned, 8(a), etc)? 4) Are you located in a labor surplus or HUB-zone (see FAR Part 19-Small Business Programs)? 5) Please list approved site certifications (i.e. ISO 17025, ISO 14001, etc.). 6) Are you able to handle classified information? If yes, up to what classification level? 7) Are you International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) compliant/certified and registered on the US State Directorate of Defense Trade Control (DDTC) website? Part II: Survey Questions Applicable to all questions below. * Application: The technology should be able to be applied to a specific component or system. It is acceptable that some technologies will have broader application potential. However, the response should detail at least one application and an implementation path for a specific application. * Readiness: It is not required that the technology be advanced to any certain readiness level. However, the ability to implement a technology in the near future (3-5 years) is most desirable. This could apply to technologies that are not currently at high readiness, but for which a development plan currently exists to achieve a quote mark more ready quote mark state in the near future. * Affordability: Costs will need to be addressed. While low-cost is certainly a desired trait for any technology, it is not a limiting factor. Responses that can provide well-documented technology costs, production levels, and what the scale-ups to reach production are for each technology will be well received. * Performance: It is important that each response, to the extent possible, address the performance of its technology. Where applicable, the technology should be compared to a current baseline. This RFI is meant to be data-driven. When evaluating what technologies seem feasible and usable, data and evidence will be a critical factor. 1) Do you have aluminum forming capabilities? a) If so, what deformation process(es) is/are utilized? b) What are the maximum dimensions of typical parts that can be produced? c) What are the limits of the machine capabilities, i.e. material thickness, force extruded, etc.? d) Do you invest in the research of aluminum forming technology? i) If so, what types of technology are being investigated? ii) What is the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of the technology? 2) Do you have aluminum forging capabilities? a) Do you produce your own forging dies? Please describe. b) Are you capable of forging structures up to 7-in thickness, 7.5-ft width and 19-ft length? 3) The LWS Team is interested in fastening and joining technologies of aluminum alloys that increase the joint efficiency and load transfer of structural members and armor without impeding the structural strength or ballistic limits of the armor. a) Do you have fastening and joining capabilities, i.e. welding, mechanical fasteners, adhesives, etc.? i) If so, what are the capabilities and process(es) used? ii) Is/are the process(es) commercially adopted? iii) If not, what is the TRL of the technology and time frame to commercialization? b) Has this technology been funded by the Government through an Army Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) Program or equivalent? i) If so, please provide documentation explaining the program and the final results. 4) Do you have experience or expertise in fastening/joining of dissimilar materials, i.e. different alloys of same material, composites to metals, etc.? a) If so, please provide an overview of the process and what materials can be joined. b) Do you research fastening/joining methods for dissimilar material joining? i) If so, what joining method(s) are being researched and what is the TRL of the new method(s)? ii) Please provide an abstract or summary of the process(es). c) What documentation is available on the success(es) of the joining method? d) Has this technology been funded by the Government through an Army Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) Program or equivalent? i) If so, please provide documentation explaining the program and the final results. 5) The LWS Team is interested in keeping an accurate record of each vehicle components weight and overall vehicle and methods for tracking primary and secondary weight savings. Methods are sought for identification of primary and secondary weight savings, as well as efficient tracking of overall vehicle, component, and subcomponent weight savings. a) Do you have a process or methodology for light-weighting existing vehicle components? b) If so, is the process internally developed or does it utilize a commercial off the shelf (COTS) system? c) Please indicate whether the process utilizes material substitution, component topology, vehicle system redesign, etc. to achieve weight savings. d) Please provide an overview of the process showing how calculations are made, with examples. 6) Do you have modeling and simulation capabilities? a) If so, what level of analysis can you perform in the following areas: i) Product development and analysis, i.e. forging, stress modeling, thermal modeling, etc. ii) High strain rate event modeling, i.e. crash, blast, ballistic iii) Manufacturing process modeling, i.e. arc welding, adhesive modeling, friction stir welding iv) Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) v) Finite Element Analysis (FEA) vi) Topology optimization vii) Load study modeling 7) The LWS Team is interested in light-weight armor solution technologies. a) Do you have experience in the development, evaluation, or testing of military armor solutions? i) If so, please provide a detailed description of the experience. b) Do you have experience with manufacturing multi-material armor solutions, i.e. encapsulated ceramic armor, composite/metal stacked armor, etc.? i) If so, what are the solutions and have these been implemented on any military systems? Please describe. ii) Please provide research data showing ballistic results. 8) Do you have aluminum casting capabilities? a) If so, please describe what methods you use. 9) Do you have the ability to cast plate with functional gradient composition, i.e. casting of different alloys in sequence to develop a plate of various alloys? Please describe. 10) What are the current research trends in aluminum materials? a) What type of future do you see for military systems using these materials? b) What type of materials do you believe will show future promise for military applications? c) Please provide a detailed description of your aluminum material development program. d) What series, alloys, and/or tempers of aluminum are you experienced with or do you have proprietary rights to? e) Please provide the material properties for all proprietary alloys. 11) Do you have material solutions or manufacturing technologies for an aluminum-air battery? a) If so, please provide a summary of the battery explaining its capabilities. b) Do you have any research programs in place to investigate energy storage technologies? i) If so, please provide an overview of the energy storage technology research program. 12) Do you provide solutions for corrosion prevention? a) If so, what corrosion prevention technologies do you utilize? 13) Do you have expertise in conducting corrosion evaluations on metallic materials and weldments? a) If so, please describe the standards that you follow (i.e. ASME, GM, MIL-STD, etc) and the methods that are available. Part III: Past Performance 1) What experience do you have in military products? Please describe. 2) What recent (within the last three years) experience do you have with contracts related to military light-weighting efforts, both at the system and sub-system level? Please describe and provide the contract number(s). 3) Do you have a quality or business management system or both? a) Are you ISO 9000 or equivalent compliant or certified? Please describe. b) Are you Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) compliant or certified? Please describe. UNCLASSIFIED: DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A. APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/notices/2a05ae3928cb87ec5d4aef4b31043896)
- Place of Performance
- Address: ACC - Warren (ACC-WRN)(DTA) ATTN: AMSTA-AQ-AMB, E Eleven Mile Road Warren MI
- Zip Code: 48397-5000
- Zip Code: 48397-5000
- Record
- SN03732992-W 20150517/150515235035-2a05ae3928cb87ec5d4aef4b31043896 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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