R&D Contracting Directorate, Bldg 7, 2530 C Street, WPAFB, OH 45433-7607

A -- DAMAGE TOLERANT DESIGN OF GAMA TIA SOL PRDA #97-40-MLK DUE 061797 POC James R. Greathouse, Contract Negotiator or Phillip R. Nelson, Contracting Officer, WL/MLKM, (937) 255-5830 E-MAIL: Click here to contact the contract negotiator, Greathjr@b045mail.wpafb.af.mil. INTRODUCTION: Wright Laboratory (WL/MLKM) is interested in receiving proposals (technical and cost) on the research and development effort described below. Proposals in response to this Program Research and Development Announcement (PRDA) shall be received by 17 June 1997, 1500 hours, eastern time, addressed to Wright Laboratory, Directorate of R&D Contracting, Area B, Building 7, 2530 C Street, ATTN: Jim Greathouse, WL/MLKM, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433-7607. This is an unrestricted solicitation. Small businesses are encouraged to propose on all or any part of this solicitation. Proposals shall be submitted in accordance with this announcement. Proposal receipt after the cutoff date and time specified herein shall be treated in accordance with restrictions of FAR 52.215-10, a copy of this provision may be obtained from the contracting point of contact. There will be no formal request for proposal (RCP) or other solicitation issued in regard to this requirement. Offerors should be alert for any PRDA amendments which may be published. This announcement may be amended to provide for subsequent dates for submission of proposals. Offerors should request a copy of the WL Guide entitled "PRDA & BAA Guide for Industry." This guide was specifically designed to assist offerors in understanding the PRDA/BAA process and is available on the Internet, at the following address: www.wl.wpafb.af.mil/contact/hp.htm, (use the Wright Laboratory R&D contracting home page. Look under "A Contracting Toolbox" for "PRDA/BAA Indexed Guide"). If you are unable to access the guide from the Home Page, provide a written request for the guide to WL/MLKM, Jim Greathouse, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, 45433-7607, telephone (513) 255-5830. Proposals shall be valid for Government acceptance for a period of not less than 180 days after submission cutoff. B REQUIREMENTS: (1) Technical Description: A rigorous design methodology does not exist for relatively brittle, low toughness intermetallic materials such as gamma TiAl alloys. Fracture critical components in Air Force gas turbine engines are designed and life-managed under the Engine Structural Integrity Program (ENSIP). This specification requires that damage tolerance of the materials be demonstrated with respect to intrinsic or service-generated defects. For gamma alloys, however, crack-growth-rate curves exhibit a narrow interval between the threshold-stress-intensity-factor range, DKth, and the apparent fracture toughness, KQ. This behavior is reflected in high Paris-region slopes of the crack-growth-rate curves, particularly at room temperature, and implies that the fraction of the total fatigue life associated with crack propagation is small. The purpose of this research and development effort is to develop a physically-based life-prediction methodology for gamma titanium aluminide alloys that is consistent with the requirements of a damage tolerant approach. Ultimately, the results of this research program are to be used (i) to predict the useful life of this class of materials in turbine engine applications and (ii) to provide guidance for development of TiAl alloys having an optimum balance of properties for their intended use. The research program shall include an assessment of the service conditions anticipated for turbine engine components made of gamma TiAl alloys. This assessment shall characterize typical usage spectra in terms of stresses and temperatures. These usage conditions shall form the basis for a critical assessment of the design problem(s) involved in dealing with materials exhibiting a flat stress-versus-life fatigue behavior (S-N) and a nearly vertical crack growth rate curve. A study shall be conducted to determine the behavior of realistic material defects and service-induced damage (e.g., microstructural anomalies, porosity, inclusions, dynamic impact damage, machining damage, and effects of environmental exposure) on predicted fatigue lifetimes. The effort should consider aspects of probabilistic design and the relationship between full-scale structures and small-volume laboratory specimens. The design methodology must address at least two specific component threats: (i) brittle fracture associated with long-term environmental exposure, over stress, or dynamic impact by foreign objects, and (ii) the accumulation of high-cycle-fatigue and/or low-cycle-fatigue damage developed during engine service. New design philosophies incorporating threshold-crack-growth-rate concepts, small-crack behavior, probabilistic/stochastic approaches, and/or other novel methodologies are encouraged. Experimental demonstration of the design methodology will be conducted on suitable laboratory specimens. The characterized gamma material must both be of interest to the Air Force and exhibit the potential for commercialization. (2) Deliverable Items: The following deliverable data items shall be required: (a) Status Report, DI-MGMT-80368/T, monthly, (b) Funds and Man-Hour Expenditure Report, DI-FNCL-80331/T, monthly, (c) Contract Funds Status Report (CFSR), DI-FNCL-81468/T, quarterly, (d) Presentation Material, DI-ADMN-81373/T,(e) Scientific and Technical Reports, Contractor's Billing Voucher, DI-MISC-80711/T, monthly, (f) Scientific and Technical Reports, Final Report, DI-MISC-80711/T, (Draft and Reproducible Final Version). In addition, copies of the source code for all software developed in this effort shall be delivered. (3) Security Requirements: DD Form 254 requirements do not apply. 4. Other Special Requirements: International Traffic in Arms Regulations apply. C -- ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: (1) Anticipated Period of Performance: The maximum total length of the technical effort is estimated to be thirty six (36) months. The contractor shall also provide an additional five (5) months for processing/completion of the final report. (2) Expected Award Date: September 1997. (3) Government Estimate: The Government funding profile for the total program to fund all awards is estimated to be as follows: FY97 -- $10K, FY98 -- $375K, FY99 -- $300K, FY00 -- $318K. This funding profile is an estimate only and is not a promise for funding as all funding is subject to change due to Government discretion and availability. (4) Type of Contract: Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) or Cost (no fee). (5) Base Support / Government Furnished Property: None required. (6) Size Status: For the purpose of this acquisition, small business is defined as one with 1000 or fewer employees (SIC 8731). Firms responding should indicate whether they are or are not a socially or economically disadvantaged business, a woman-owned business, a Historically Black College or a University/Minority Institution, and should indicate their business size status. (7) Notice to Foreign-Owned Firms: Such firms are asked to immediately notify the Air Force point cited below upon deciding to respond to this announcement. Foreign contractors should be aware that restrictions may apply which could preclude their participation in this acquisition. D -- PROPOSAL PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS: (1) General Instructions: Offerors should apply the restrictive notice prescribed in the provision at FAR 52.215-12, Restriction on Disclosure and Use of Data, to trade secrets or privileged commercial and financial information contained in their proposals. Proposal questions should be directed to one of the points of contact listed elsewhere herein. Offerors should consider instructions contained in the "WL PRDA and BAA Guide for Industry" referenced in Section A of this announcement. Technical and cost proposals, submitted in separate volumes, are required and must be valid for 180 days after the proposal date. Proposals must reference the above PRDA number on all Proposal Volumes. Proposals shall be submitted in an original and five (5) copies. An electronic version of the proposal shall be submitted in Microsoft compatible files (MS Office 4.2 -- Word 6.0 and Excel 5.0 compatible). All responsible sources may submit a proposal which will be considered against the criteria set forth herein. Offerors are advised that only contracting officers are legally authorized to contractually bind or otherwise commit the government. (2) Cost Proposal: Adequate price competition is anticipated. The accompanying cost proposal/price breakdown shall be supplied, together with supporting schedules, and shall contain an anticipated cost and a person-hour breakdown per task by fiscal year. (3) Technical Proposal: The technical proposal shall include a discussion of the nature and scope of the research and the technical approach. Additional information on experience concerning the utilization of and/or design experience with gamma titanium aluminides, descriptions of available equipment, data and facilities, and resumes of personnel who will be participating in this effort should also be included as attachments to the technical proposal and are included in the overall proposal page limit. The technical proposal shall include a Statement of Work (SOW) detailing the technical tasks (in accordance with the "Requirements" section of the PRDA) proposed to be accomplished under the proposed effort and suitable for contract incorporation. Any obligation of government resources shall be contingent upon obtaining approval from the government review team through the contracting officer. Offerors should refer to the WL Guide referenced in Section A to assist in SOW preparation. PL 98-94 applies. Any questions concerning the technical proposal or Statement of Work preparation shall be referred to the Technical Point of Contact cited in this announcement. (4) Page Limitations: The technical proposal shall be limited to 50 pages (12 pt. font type or larger type), double-spaced, single-sided, 8.5 by 11 inches. The page limitation includes all information, i.e. indexes, photographs, foldouts, appendices, attachments, etc. Pages in excess of this limitation will not be read or considered by the government. Cost proposals have no limitation; however, offerors are requested to keep cost proposals to 75 pages as a goal. (5) Preparation Cost: This announcement is a expression of interest only and does not commit the Government to pay for any response preparation cost. The cost of preparing proposals in response to this PRDA is not considered an allowable direct charge to any resulting or any other contract. However, it may be an allowable expense to the normal bid and proposal indirect cost as specified in FAR 31.205-18. E -- BASIS FOR AWARD: The selection of one (1) or more sources for contract award shall be based on a scientific and engineering evaluation of the responses received (both technical and cost aspects) to determine the overall merit of the proposal submitted in response to this announcement. The technical aspect, which ranks as the first order of priority, shall be evaluated based upon the following criteria which are in descending order of importance: (a) new or unique concepts, ideas, or approaches for damage tolerant life prediction; (b) soundness of the technical approach; (c) understanding of the technical effort; (d) past experience with gamma titanium aluminide structures and their design; (e) the potential for the design methodology to meet Air Force life management criteria for structural components; (f) organization, clarity, and thoroughness of the proposed Statement of Work; and (g) availability of qualified technical personnel and facilities. Cost, which includes consideration of proposed budgets and funding profiles, is ranked as the second order of priority. Also included in the evaluation of cost is the ability of the offeror to demonstrate the capability to perform work on schedule, to bill the government promptly, and to achieve expenditure rates better than 75% within a fiscal year. Cost and/or price will be a significant factor for award. No other evaluation criteria will be used. The technical and cost information will be evaluated at the same time. The Air Force reserves the right to select for award of a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement any, all, part, or none of the proposals received. Award of a grant or cooperative agreement in lieu of a contract will be considered and will be subject to the mutual agreement of the parties. F -- OMBUDSMAN: An Ombudsman has been appointed to hear concern from offerors and potential offerors during the proposal development phase of this acquisition. The purpose of the Ombudsman is not to diminish the authority of the Contracting Officer, but to communicate contractor concerns, issues, disagreements and recommendations to the appropriate government personnel. All potential offerors should use established channels to maintain strict confidentiality as to the source of the concern. The Ombudsman will not participate in the evaluation of proposals or in the selection decision. Interested parties should direct all routine communications concerning this acquisition to Jim Greathouse, Contract Negotiator, WL/MLKM, Bldg 7, 2530 C Street, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433-7607, telephone 937-255-5936. The Ombudsman should only be contacted with issues or problems that have been previously brought to the attention of the contracting officer and could not be satisfactorily resolved at that level. These serious concerns only may be directed to the Ombudsman, Mr. Mike S. Coalson, ASC/SYI Bldg 52,. 2475 K St, Room 136, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433-7642, E-Mail coalsoms@sy.wpafb.af.mil, phone 937-255-5535, ext., 237. G -- POINTS OF CONTACT: (1) Technical Contact Point: Questions on technical issues may be referred to the Project Engineer, Andrew Rosenberger, WL/MLLN, Bldg 655, 2230 Tenth Street, Suite 1, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433-7817, (937) 255-3304 (2) Contracting/Cost Point of Contact: Questions on contractual and cost issues should be directed to the Wright Laboratory, Directorate of Research and Development Contracting, Jim Greathouse, WL/MLKM, Building 7, 2530 C Street, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH 45433-7607, (937) 255-5830. SEE Note 26. (0120)

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