A -- BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT FOR SUBMARINE ESCAPE, RESCUE, AND DIVER SAFETY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPEMENT

Notice Date

December 26, 2000

Contracting Office

Coastal Systems Station, Dahlgren Division, 6703 W. Highway 98, Panama City, FL 32407-7001

ZIP Code

32407-7001

Solicitation Number

BAA-01-01

Response Due

December 27, 2002

Point of Contact

Contracting Specialist, Mary Hines (850) 235-5389, Contracting Officer, Carol Dreger, (850) 234-4863

E-Mail Address

Hines_Mary@ncsc.navy.mil (Hines_Mary@ncsc.navy.mil)

Description

The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division, Coastal Systems Station (NSWCDD COASTSYSTA), Panama City, Florida is soliciting pre-proposals and proposals for applied biomedical research focusing on Submarine Escape, Rescue, Diving Safety, and Effectiveness. The goals of this program are presented in more detail below. This Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) supersedes BAA 99-01 published in the Commerce Business Daily. It is the intent that this BAA be opened for a period of two years from the date of this publication (or until 12/27/2002). However, specified dates are given for submission of pre-proposals and proposals to be awarded within FY 2002. The areas of primary interest in submarine escape and rescue are: (1) increasing survival in a disabled submarine to seven days through improved carbon dioxide removal (non-electrical and/or non-chemical), control of oxygen levels, measurement and control of atmospheric contaminants, and improved food and clothing; (2) extending the capability for escape to deeper depths through improved procedures, equipment, and treatments for decompression sickness, arterial gas embolism, and hypothermia; and (3) improving rescue capability through novel means to accelerate saturation decompression, equipment and techniques to triage casualties, non-recompressive treatments of decompression sickness, and means to control oxygen levels in the closed cabin of rescue vehicles while providing high inhaled oxygen levels for rescuees. The areas of primary interest in diving safety and effectiveness are: (1) improving decompression procedures for Navy divers through optimal use of oxygen, novel means to accelerate decompression, improved flying after diving procedures, fully integrated nitrogen-helium and helium-nitrogen repetitive and multi-level diving, use of nitrogen to accelerate decompression from helium-oxygen dives, greater understanding of thermal effects on decompression, and improved adjunctive treatments of decompression sickness; (2) minimization of oxygen poisoning through central nervous system and pulmonary risk modeling, prophylaxis, and early warning or continuous monitoring of personnel for adverse effects; (3) improving divers ability to operate in thermal extremes through improved guidance for hot, warm and cold water diving, prevention of non-freezing cold injury, low power cooling and heating of free swimming divers, strategies to accelerate acclimatization to hot, warm, and cold water diving, improved insulating materials, and physiologic study to determine optimal warming and cooling methods ; (4) reducing the risk of diver injury in sound pressure fields through active and passive noise protection, sound pressure level measurement, and improved understanding of auditory and non-auditory effects of infra- and ultrasound; (5) improving the effectiveness and safety of diving in contaminated water through better risk assessment, mitigation of risk, and personnel monitoring; (6) increasing the capability of divers through improved underwater breathing apparatus design, increased understanding of hyperbaric respiratory physiology, reduced respiratory impedance, improved carbon dioxide sensors, non-chemical carbon dioxide scrubbing, reduced drag through the water, and increased fin efficiency; and (7) increasing the safety of divers working in closed hyperbaric spaces through establishment of acceptable levels of trace contaminants and development of equipment and techniques to measure trace contaminant levels. (2) Instructions for Preparation of Pre-proposal and Proposals The deadline for submission of pre-proposals is 1600 EST, 5 March 2001 for the funding cycle that begins 1 October 2001, and the deadline for submission of full technical proposals is 1600 EDT, 29 June 2001. Pre-proposals and proposals received after their respective due dates will be considered only if funds remain available. The format for pre-proposals and proposals may be obtained from the Program Assistant, Lisa Williams at 850-230-3205 or E-mail: williamslm@nedu.navsea.navy.mil. The Pre-proposal should not exceed three pages of text and should include an estimate of overall costs (including indirect) for a three-year effort. A curriculum vitae of the principal investigator(s) should be appended together with any supporting information, such as reprints or preprints, that will assist in the evaluation of the pre-proposal. Offerors submitting the most promising pre-proposals will be invited to submit a full technical and cost proposal on all or part of their pre-proposal submission. However, any such invitation does not assure a subsequent award. Any offeror may submit a full technical proposal even if its pre-proposal was not identified as promising or if no pre-proposal is submitted; however any full proposal submission would be made without the benefit of feedback prior to full proposal submission. A completed DoD animal use protocol with supporting documentation is required when animals are employed. Any proposal that involves the experimental use of human subjects must include a separate evaluation of proposed technical approaches and associated risks by the contractor's committee for protection of human subjects. This evaluation must conform with current Department of the Navy instructions relating to the use of human subjects. Offerors must state in their pre-proposals and full proposals that it is submitted in response to this BAA. This BAA provides no funding for pre-proposals or subsequent proposal development purposes. All pre-proposals will be acknowledged. Proposals will not be returned after evaluation. (3) Criteria for Selecting Proposals, their Relative Importance, and the Method of Evaluation Pre-proposal and full technical proposal submissions will be evaluated on the (1) overall basis of innovation and scientific merit; (2) relevance to submarine escape, rescue, and diving; (3) the qualifications and experience of the proposed investigator and key personnel; (4) the offeror's capabilities, related experience, facilities, techniques or unique combinations of these that are integral factors for achieving the proposal objectives; (5) realism of the proposed cost and availability of funds. The Government reserves the right to select for funding any, all, part or none of the responses received. For efforts funded as legally binding commitments, evaluation of the socio-economic merits will include the extent of commitment in providing meaningful subcontracting opportunities for small business, small disadvantaged business, woman-owned small business concerns, and historically black colleges and universities. This is to notify potential offerors that each grant or cooperative agreement that may be placed under this announcement or solicitation to an institution of higher education must include the following clause: "As a condition for receipt of funds available to the Department of Defense (DoD) under this award, the recipient agrees that it is not an institution that has a policy of denying, and that it is not an institution that effectively prevents, the Secretary of Defense from obtaining for military recruiting purposes: (A) and entry to campuses or access to students on campuses; or (B) access to directory information pertaining to students. If the recipient is determined, using procedures established by the Secretary of Defense to implement Section 558 of Public Law 103-337 (1994), to be such an institution during the period of performance of this agreement, and therefore to be in breach of this clause, the Government will cease all payments of DoD funds under this agreement and all other DoD grants and cooperative payments unilaterally for material failure to comply with the terms and conditions of award." If your institution has been identified under the procedures established by the Secretary of Defense to implement Section 558, then: (1) no funds available to DoD may be provided to your institution through any grant, including any existing grant, (2) as a matter of policy, this restriction also applies to any cooperative agreement, and (3) your institution is not eligible to receive a grant or cooperative agreement in response to this solicitation." See instructions above for pre-proposals and proposals. All responsive sources may submit proposals which will be considered by NSWC DD COASTSYSTA. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and Minority Institutions (MI) are encouraged to submit proposals or join others in submitting proposals; however, no portion of this BAA will be set aside for HBCU and MI participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete and severable areas of submarine escape, rescue, and diving for exclusive competition among these entities. This announcement constitutes a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) as contemplated in FAR 6.102(d) (2) (1). The Government reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals received in response to this announcement. Questions regarding this announcement should be directed to the Contract Specialist identified herein. Technical content questions should be addressed to CAPT Henry Schwartz, Deep Submergence Biomedical Development Program Manager, (703) 607-2753. Interested parties are invited to respond to this synopsis. All responsible parties will be considered. POC and address to mail pre-proposal and proposals: Coastal Systems Station, Naval Experimental Diving Unit, 321 Bullfinch Rd., Panama City, FL 32407-7015, Attn: Lisa Williams, Code 02. The following additional information is provided: (1) proposals may be submitted by any commercial firm, or institution of higher education (there is no longer a requirement that the entity be U.S in origin), (2) not withstanding the dates specified in this BAA Proposals may be submitted any time prior to expiration of the BAA, (3) the following e-mail point of contact is provided for information regarding technical programs/technologies of interest within the two areas identified: CAPT Henry Schwartz (SchwartzHJ@NAVSEA.NAVY.MIL), and (4) the following e-mail points of contact are provided for information regarding contractual issues: Primary POC -- Ms. Mary Hines (HinesMF@ncsc.navy.mil) Backup POC -- Ms. Carol Dreger (DregerCA@ncsc.navy.mil

Web Link

www.ncsc.navy.mil/Contracts/ZTables/syntable.htm (www.ncsc.navy.mil)

Record

Loren Data Corp. 20001228/ASOL001.HTM (W-361 SN5096P0)