National Institute of Standards and Technology, Bldg. 301, Rm. C121, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-0001

A -- REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS SOL Q- DUE 122295 POC 301-975-4348 REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS: The NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) is soliciting proposals under its focused program competition, Information Infrastructure. An estimated $3 million in multi-year MEP funding is available under this focus project competition. The MEP reserves the right to utilize for this competition more or less funding than the amount stated above, depending on the quality of the proposals received. The actual number of proposals funded will depend on the quality of the proposals received and the amount of funding requested in the highest ranked proposals. The MEP operates under program procedures in Part 292, Title 15, of the Code of Federal Regulations published in the August 29, 1995, Federal Register. The MEP Proposal Preparation Kit dated September 1995 (containing required forms, background material, and instructions for submission of proposals) and the focused program paper entitled ''Information Infrastructure Tools & Techniques'' may be obtained by phone (301-975-4348), fax (301-926-3787), email (Alexande@micf.nist.gov), or written request at the address shown below. Proposals submitted by facsimile or electronic mail WILL NOT be accepted. The due date for submission of proposals is 5 p.m. eastern time on December 22, 1995. Proposals received after this deadline will not be considered. Proposal should be no more than 35 pages excluding the title page. Decisions on the awards for this competition should be made within one month after the due date for proposals. Send proposals to: Manufacturing Extension Partnership, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Bldg. 301, Room C121, I-270 at Quince Orchard Rd., Gaithersburg, MD 20899-0001. Mark envelope Information Infrastructure Project. The goal of this multi-year Information Infrastructure project is to focus on providing the manufacturing extension centers with tools and techniques that can search, synthesize and present data in a seamless environment. Phase I of the project will consider proposals for working prototype tools and techniques that can: access and retrieve data from a variety of sources stored in multiple formats; synthesize the data to allow for relationships to be established between different data ses; display the data in a clear and concise manner; and, provide a simple consistent way to access any available information source regardless of format or retrieval mechanism, in a seamless manner. Several proposals may be selected. Each working prototype will have five months to be completed. One of the working prototypes will then be selected for full scale development that will occur in Phase II of this project. Phase II will involve full scale development and installation (including documentation) throughout the MEP system. Only those proposals that recommend using entirely Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) software will be considered. Proposals may consider using groupware, middleware, geographic information systems, etc. Tools or technique may have a generic use throughout the MEP system or may be limited to a specific application such as advanced manufacturing technology, small business financing, etc. Whether generic or specific in nature, the tool or technique must contribute to filling the information needs of the manufacturing extension centers. A demonstration of the working prototypes will be conducted using a pre-determined set of search scenarios. These search scenarios will be distributed to the prototype development teams at the time of the demonstration. A sample set of scenarios will be provided for use in building the working prototypes. The working prototypes will be evaluated and one will be selected for full scale development and installation (including documentation). Selection for full scale development will include the following factors (weights in parenthesis): overall system operation - meets defined parameters (functionality and operating environment) (30%), scalability (20%), usability (20%), cost for full scale implementation - includes maintenance (10%), clarity of data display (10%) and completeness/comprehensiveness of searching mechanism (10%). Proposers should address only Phase I requirements. Given the nature of the requirement, we encourage strategic partnerships among organizations with complementary expertise. All for-profit and not-for-profit entities may submit proposals. Cost-share is not required. Anticipated costs of the working prototype and full scale development (if selected) is expected to exceed $100,000 for each Phase. Proposals less than this amount for each Phase will be considered. Weighting of Criteria For this solicitation, the followin weightings of selection factors will be used in evaluating the Phase I proposals. See the Infrastructure Development Projects Rule (15CFR 292) for detailed descriptions of each of these factors: Demonstration that the proposed project will meet the needs of the target customer base (15 percent). Development plans and delivery/implementation mechanisms (30 percent). Coordination with other relevant organizations (10 percent). Management and organizational experience and plans (25 percent). Financial Plan (10 percent). Evaluation (10 percent). (0303)

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