SOURCES SOUGHT
93 -- Sources Sought Request for Modulated Retro-Reflection and Retro-Reflection Technologies
- Notice Date
- 6/30/2016
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP), Office of Acquisition, 14th & C Streets, S.W., Washington, District of Columbia, 20228
- ZIP Code
- 20228
- Solicitation Number
- BEP-RFI-16-0334
- Point of Contact
- Fredrick Watson, Phone: 2028740709, Andrew S. Martin, Phone: 2028741695
- E-Mail Address
-
fredrick.watson@bep.gov, andrew.martin@bep.gov
(fredrick.watson@bep.gov, andrew.martin@bep.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This is a Research and Development (R & D) Request for Information (RFI) (hereinafter Notice). This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, request for bids or quotations, nor, a promise to issue a solicitation in the future. The purpose of this Notice is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of all qualified sources to perform a potential R & D requirement. Responses to this Notice will assist the Government in determining interest and capability of potential vendors for this type of requirement. Respondents are solely responsible for properly marking and clearly identifying any proprietary information or trade secrets contained within their response. The U.S. Government will not be liable for nor suffer any consequential damages resulting from any proprietary information not properly marked and clearly identified. Proprietary information received in response to this Notice will be safeguarded and handled in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act and FAR policy. Respondents may execute a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) with the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving & Printing (BEP) (see attached). The BEP is interested in obtaining, testing, and evaluating potential technologies as Device-Assisted Human Interpreted (Level II) security features for U.S. banknotes using Retroreflection (RR) or, preferably, Modulated Retroreflection (MRR) technologies. The BEP seeks this technology for potential use for the next generation of banknotes. The BEP will entertain information relating to any application of RR or MRR based on inks, materials, substrate applications, and/or technologies with these visual effects for potential use in overt, visual authentication features on future generations of U. S. currency. For this application, RR and MRR features are defined as those which exhibit strong and unique visual responses. The MRR feature is expected to be especially resistant to opportunistic counterfeiting. For this application, RR and MRR effects are defined as those which exhibit a specific retroreflection when incident light, e.g., a flashlight, is directed toward the banknote and a strong retroreflection is observable, from as large a viewing angle as possible. The retroreflection should be clearly discernable under most lighting conditions. The modulated effect should rely on the user performing some action on the banknote that results in a retroreflective response. The BEP is especially interested in applicable MRR technologies. Inks, materials, and/or technologies submitted for consideration should also be capable of meeting the following requirements: - Ink-based materials should be printable by offset, intaglio, letterpress, or screen printing methods. - Technologies offered should provide effective counterfeit deterrence against a variety of threats including traditional printing as well as digital reproduction, and should be extremely difficult to simulate or duplicate. - Materials and technologies should be compatible with currency design and production factors as well as durability and Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) requirements. Responses to this Notice should include the following: Interested parties may respond by submitting product brochures, technical specifications, and material samples or exemplars for evaluation. Respondents are also requested to submit a brief response (5 pages or less) providing the following information: - A brief technical description of the material or technology, to include an assessment of its Technology Readiness Level. - An assessment of the uniqueness of the material or technology, including information on specific materials, components, effects, or other aspects of the technology which could be provided exclusively to the BEP. - Information or data demonstrating material durability and compliance with applicable EHS requirements, if available. - Respondent's DUNS number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HUBZone, etc.) pursuant to the applicable NAICS code. - Respondent's technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses. The point of contact for this Notice is: Fredrick Watson, Contract Specialist at fredrick.watson@bep.gov Email responses to this Notice shall be sent to the attention of individual listed above. Due date for responses are no later than 5:00 PM EST on August 15, 2016. This Notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. All costs associated with responding to this Notice are solely at the responding party's expense. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Further, the Government may contact the vendor for additional information regarding the information submitted as part of this market research effort. Any organization responding to this Notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed. Information provided will be used to assess tradeoffs and alternatives available for the potential requirement and may lead to the development of a solicitation. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract or agreement. The BEP will not be obligated to pursue any particular acquisition alternative as a result of this notice. Responses to the notice will not be returned. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future solicitation, if one is issued. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s). If so, respondents are solely responsible for properly marking and identifying such information within their response.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/TREAS/BEP/OPDC20220/BEP-RFI-16-0334/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Contractor’s site, United States
- Record
- SN04167293-W 20160702/160630235019-b27c20663f05ccff4692b4efd3274946 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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