AMC Contracting Flight, AMC CONF/LGCF, 102 E Martin St, Rm 216, Scott AFB IL 62225-5015

D -- AIR WEATHER DATA SATELLITE DISTRIBUTION SEVICE SOL FA4452-97-Q-A448 DUE 082197 POC Contracting POC: Capt Mark Salansky; E-Mail: SalanskM@hqamclg.safb.af.mil WEB: Government Contracting Information and Business Opportunity Page, http://www.geocities.com/WallStreet/5661/. E-MAIL: Contact the Contracts Specialist via E-Mail, SalanskM@hqamclg.safb.af.mil. Air Weather Data Satellite Distribution Service NOTE: This synopsis was originally published in the 13 Aug 97 issue of the CBD and was erroneously classified as a "Special Notice". The following is an exact reproduction of the synopsis as it originally appeared This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested, and a written solicitation will not be issued. The solicitation is issued as an Request For Quote (RFQ) under the solicitation number FA4452-97-Q-A448. This document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 90-46. This acquisition is not set aside for small business. AMC Specialized Contracting Flight plans to issue two separate purchase orders under the test program described at FAR 13.6. The first PO will be issued for CLIN 0001 and will secure the satellite services from 1 Sep 97 through 30 Sep 97. The second PO will be issued for CLIN 0002 and will secure the satellite services from 1 Oct 97 through 31 Jan 98. Total Noun Unit Qty. Price CLIN 0001 VSAT Communication Segments Month 1 0001 Coverage for * States CLIN 0002 VSAT Communication Segments Month 4 0002 Coverage for * States * The Government's minimum requirement is for coverage of the 48 contiguous States. The Government desires support at up to 50 states including Alaska (Anchorage and Fairbanks) and Hawaii. Offerors are requested to propose the coverage they are able to provide by inserting the appropriate number of states in the space provided above. In order to be considered for award, offerors must be capable of providing the minimum requirement of providing service to the 48 contiguous States. A best value decision will be made among those offers meeting the minimum requirements of this solicitation using the evaluation criteria set forth at FAR 52.212-2 below. If an offeror is proposing 49 state coverage, the offeror must indicate which state they are omitting from coverage: is excluded from satellite coverage under this proposal. (Alaska or Hawaii) Understanding that there are offerors who possess the technical resources to provide satellite service to either (or both) of the possible 49 State combinations, or to all 50 of the United States in addition to the required minimum of the 48 contiguous States, the Air Force encourages the submission of alternate proposals. Offerors submitting more than one proposal shall submit individual cost information packages (in the format above) for each configuration of satellite coverage being offered. Each offeror need only submit one copy of the Certifications and Representations (as required at FAR 52.212-3 below) regardless of the number of alternate proposals submitted. Description of Requirement The Air Force seeks to purchase KU-Band satellite transponder communication segments in support of the Air Weather Service's (AWS) Automated Weather Distribution System (AWDS). It is the Air Force's intent to utilize commercial very small aperture terminals (VSAT) network technology to distribute Air Force weather data throughout the 48 contiguous States.. The government VSAT network being implemented uses Hughes Integrated Satellite Business Network (ISBN) equipment which includes: Hughes KU-Band, personal earth station (PES) 8000 series VSATs. The Air Force owns and operates the satellite hub at Air Force Global Weather Center (AFGWC), Offutt AFB, NE. The AFGWC hub will be the source of data for the CONUS, Hawaii, and Alaskan (Anchorage and Fairbanks) AWDS sites. Specific Requirements: The transponder communication space segment services shall provide communications between AFGWC satellite hub and the AFW, KU-Band VSATs via an outbound carrier of 512 kbps and an inbound carrier of 128 kbps. Service shall be provided between 1 Sep 97 and 31 Jan 98. The contractor shall be responsible for ensuring the end-to-end service of the network. The end-to-end network availability of the outbound and inbound links shall be 99% averaged over each 30 day period. Availability is defined as that portion of a 30-day period that the contractor's space segment is available for government use. Mean time between critical failure. A critical failure is the equivalent of a transponder failure. The mean time between critical failures shall exceed 2000 hours. Technical Specifications of the Satellite/Radar Data Ingest for the AWDS (SAWDS): The government hub contains HNS proprietary baseband (bb) and intermediate frequency (IF) equipment and a 6.1 meter antenna located at the Offutt hub station. The functions of the bb and IF equipment set include receipt of data sent from the VSATs via one inbound carrier control of the usage of the inbound carrier by the VSATs in a time division multiple access (TDMA) manner, preparation of data in a time division multiplex (TDM) format for distribution to theVSATs, and modulation of the TDM data onto the outbound carrier. Each bb and IF equipment set can support one outbound carrier with a data rate of 512 kbps and one inbound carrier of 128 kbps. Binary phase shift keying (bpsk) modulation and 1/2 rate forward error correction (FEC) coding with convolution encoding and sequential decoding are used for both outbound and inbound carriers. There is no flexibility for adjusting the FEC coding rate or the phase modulation. The transponder frequencies and polarization shall be consistent with those of the US VSATs and Offutt hub station (i.e., uplink: 14.00 -- 14.50 GHz and downlink 11.70 -- 12.20 GHz ) with transmit and receive polarization being linear and orthogonal to each other. For space segment support for the US VSATs, the downlink frequencies are (11.70 -- 12.20) GHz. VSATs respond when addressed by the hub. This period can be set by the operator at AFGWC. VSATs also transmit when the site produces products. The transponder power required varies with respect to the characteristics of the satellite transponder and antenna used; nevertheless, it is planned that the outbound carrier will be operated at the FCC power density limit for KU-Band network blanket licensing. The inbound carrier will be operated at the maximum EIRP deliverable by the GFE VSAT antennas range is size between 1.2 to 2.4 meter and are powered by 1 watt RF Head. Additional Information for Offerors The provision at 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors Commercial, applies to this acquisition. The provision at 52.212-2, Evaluation Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. For the purposes of this acquisition, the following criteria are included in paragraph (a) of this provision: After all offerors have been evaluated in determining their capability of fulfilling the minimum technical requirements of the solicitation (i.e. -- capability to provide satellite coverage to the 48 contiguous States), a best value decision will be made against those offers remaining in the competitive range. The best value decision will be based upon the following factors: (i) technical capability, and (ii) price in descending order of importance. Technical capability is described as the offeror's ability to provide coverage at up to the 50 United States (over and above the minimum requirement of the 48 contiguous States). The Government reserves the right to make price -- technical trade-offs to arrive at the offer most advantageous to the Government in fulfilling the requirements of this solicitation. The Government desires satellite service to all 50 United States, but will not pay a price premium which exceeds the perceived additional value obtained. Offerors are required to submit a completed copy of the provision at 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications Commercial Items, along with the offer.. The provision at 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The provision at 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes of Executive Orders Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following FAR Clauses called out in 52.212-5 are also applicable to this acquisition. None This is a DO rated order under the Defense Priority Allocation System (DPAS). Offers are due to the following address no later than 1:00 PM (Central Time) on Thursday 21 Aug 97: AMC CONF/LGCFC 102 E. Martin Street; Room 216 Scott AFB, IL 62225-5015 Contact Capt Mark Salansky at (618) 256-1900; Ext. 323 or via e-mail at "SalanskM@hqamclg.safb.af.mil". (0225)

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