SOURCES SOUGHT
69 -- Request for Information AFCEE Knowledge Base PROACT Environmental Information Clearning House and Environmental Education and Training
- Notice Date
- 8/16/2005
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 518112
— Web Search Portals
- Contracting Office
- Department of the Air Force, Air Force Materiel Command, HQ AFCEE - AF Center for Environmental Excellence, HQ AFCEE/AC 3300 Sidney Brooks, Brooks City-Base, TX, 78235-5112
- ZIP Code
- 78235-5112
- Solicitation Number
- Reference-Number-FA8903-05-R-0816
- Response Due
- 8/30/2005
- Archive Date
- 9/14/2005
- Description
- This Request for Information (RFI) seeks to support strategy development to increase effectiveness of the PROACT Environmental Information Clearinghouse service. PROACT supports dissemination of information and knowledge that contributes to AFCEE's efforts to develop, establish, implement and sustain leding-edge techniques. A specific objective of this RFI is to support creation of a virtual library on technical environmental resources that will be integrated into the fabric of HQ AFCEE. The environmental information exchange service should function as maps and Yellow Pages that point to knowledge but do not contain knowledge. The virtual library concept is viewed as part of a core knowledge infrastructure supporting all programs, domains, and disciplines consistent with AFCEE?s roles and responsibilities including PROACT and the existing Air Force environmental training program, AFCEE/TDE Web University, hosted on the HQ AFCEE web site. Additional objectives of this information support program are: to communicate environmentally relevant Air Force guidance and policy; to facilitate development of technical guidance by discovery and delivery of relevant technical information that supports subject matter experts; to assist teams of professionals in conducting root-cause analysis; developing collaborative solutions to technical requirements, and quality evaluations. Information received will be used for strategic planning functions that include: defining core infrastructure requirements; change and enhancement of the PROACT Information Clearinghouse program; change and enhancement of Web University; identification and deployment of measurement systems, program analysis, planning, and development; benchmarking and process migration. The enhanced system must be responsive, accurate, flexible, and offer value-added products. Requested information should consider both human and technical attributes for integration of data, documents, web sites, publications and subject matter experts. The approach will address information/knowledge requirements identified in the PROACT Information needs assessment; the AFCEE IT Strategy Report as well as advances in knowledge management and lessons learned within the Portal, GCSS-AF, AF Knowledge Now, and the DoD?s Network Centric Enterprise Service (NCES) Architecture. The resulting AFCEE strategy must support conduct of the organization?s mission. The overarching objective of this RFI is to develop approaches to revise and update information and data systems to better identify the most appropriate contextual knowledge, not necessarily the most readily available, consistent with advances in the practice of knowledge management techniques. Provide recommendations and conceptual approaches including but not limited to, techniques, software and hardware, as well as processes and procedures for developing an automated system for information management and process integration. Consider: management of data, information and knowledge contained in internal and external documents and databases; personnel resources of the Air Force and AFCEE, approaches to ?mine? organizational data and information and/or knowledge sources in order to improve business practices. PROACT The Air Force (AF) PROACT Environmental Information Exchange service has been in operation since October 1992 and has answered over 25,000 technical inquiries from AF military and civilian personnel, with customers at every organizational level from installation personnel to the Secretary of Air Force (SAF). The PROACT environmental information exchange helps Air Force personnel and current Air Force contractors meet pollution prevention goals and maintain environmental compliance with federal, state and local laws and regulations. The PROACT information researcher currently provides answers to technical inquiries using databases; publications; library services; expert consultants from industry, AF, DoD, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), as well as state and local regulatory agencies as appropriate. Tracking and documentation of customer data includes personal data and information from past inquiries, customer contacts, date of response to the customer, and time spent preparing response. Problem Definition: How do we create new capabilities consistent with Air Force Portal requirements to assist the end-to-end AFCEE business intelligence and analysis processes in addressing the Knowledge Discovery challenges while laying a foundation for the technologies of tomorrow? This problem includes the following elements: 1. Massive, heterogeneous, unstructured, scattered, and unreliable data 2. Identification of complex, time-critical concepts 3. Capabilities for evolving user defined agents to assist in hypothesis investigation and ?what-if? scenarios The massive amounts of input data must be selected and presented in a way that drives the discovery and maximum use of the knowledge desired. To do this, the volume of data must be reduced and filtered so that users are only provided with relevant data. The approach must be sufficiently flexible to take advantage of current technology and allow phased upgrade of the initial capability to achieve interoperability with future advances. Recommendations should include the evaluation of indigenous Air Force Portal Capabilities, off-the-shelf software, hardware and information/knowledge management techniques in order to optimize information and knowledge exchange. Information products must communicate known guidance and policy, support Air Force Program Managers, comply with Department of Defense policy and guidance, and promote use of DoD sources and tools databases. Information products and sources should be searchable using key words and concepts while remaining appropriately accessible for management evaluation. The process must include metrics to identify and track customer-based priority targets that require special emphasis. Information products should address key issues of importance such as recent rule-making activities, and regulatory updates or summarize technical responses to inquiries of general interest which are designed to reach the broadest range of Air Force callers and installations. The information system should support development of solutions to previously unanswered problems including discovery of relevant, state-of-science information as well as identify subject matter experts. The information developed and maintained in the system should be proactively diffused using multi-media cross feed products that are responsive to needs of the Air Force environmental community and promote corroboration in application of knowledge. All products must be consistent with AFCEE policies and quality standards. GOALS In support of AFCEE?s efforts to develop, establish, implement and sustain best-available techniques, this RFI is seeking responses that provide recommendations for: 1. Using state-of-the-art technology to develop enhanced information discovery along with environmental library resource management techniques that support the Environmental Information Clearing house program. 2. Suggested methods to collect, index (with a systematic numbering system) and file information from vendors and/or AF personnel concerning environmental technologies or products which could be implemented at military installations. The expected result is the development of a content aggregation, organization, and discovery capability consistent with the policy, goals, and directives of the U. S. Air Force CIO concerning the Air Force Portal and methods for content management. 3. Methods for tracking usage of the information service, monitoring and assessing customer awareness of program services, effectiveness, customer satisfaction and identifying information needs. Please include recommend approaches (such as advertising) or initiatives to maintain awareness and relevance of the service to Air Force stakeholders. 4. Approaches for database management, security access control, indexing, search, and geospatial software/standards, security certification and accreditation, along with any integration services necessary to complete system development. 5. Approaches to employ outside technical publications, services, subscriptions, licenses and other methods for streamlining access to technical and professional publications, guidance documents, as well as the policy, regulations and instructions which are essential for accomplishing the AFCEE mission. Please incorporate recommendations with regard to design, modeling, selection, and implementation of technical information management systems necessary to advance the basic capabilities from both a hardware and software perspective. 6. Approaches to coordinate and leverage reporting of current events, communication, outreach and training related to topic areas such as: Web University, Technology, Performance Based Management (PBM), Remedial System Optimization (RPO), Waste Management, Pollution Prevention, Sustainability, Natural Resources, and Cultural Resources. WEB UNIVERSITY The WebU system automates training delivery, stores, manages, and delivers information and tools, provides access to environmental information and resources, and serves as a portal to other environmental education and training resources and providers. WebU resides on two servers and operates in a Structured Query Language (SQL) relational database environment, which allows users to interact with the Environmental Education and Training (EET) database through an interface consisting of HTML, JavaScript, and Active Server Pages. WebU scripts allow users to enter, edit, and track environmental education and training data equal to the user?s level of permission and generate a variety of real-time reports. The EET database consist of 20+ tables containing Air Force occupational series and job codes, performance-based tasks, regulatory mandates, unit equipment codes, training source information, course content, student and faculty information, and other data required to generate the Web University website. The EET database functions as a Learning and Content Management System (LCMS or LMS) to deliver: automated registration and authentication of student and faculty members; user ID and password management; management and delivery of course content; student activity tracking; test generation and scoring, and certificate management. Reports generated by the database include web trends, user and course reports, the Area of Responsibility Checklist for overseas theaters, Air Force Environmental Task List, and the DoD Sources and Tools Catalog. Authorized users are also able to upload documents such as meeting Minutes and briefings for long-term storage. PROACT currently supports Web University through cross feed of requested Web University educational materials and collection of feedback forms and information. Problem Definition: How do we integrate current and new capabilities to most effectively leverage resource to optimize information and training support; increase customer access, and streamline access, registration and other interactions? GOALS In support of AFCEE?s efforts to develop, establish, implement and sustain best-available techniques, This RFI is seeking responses that provide recommendations for: 1. Using state of the art technology that will support distance learning. 2. Managing student enrollment, delivery of training content, assessment of training effectiveness, curriculum development, course content management, and collaboration with external activities that provide relevant training. 3. Provide recommendations that will more fully integrate environmental information clearinghouse and environmental education and training activities. 4. Consolidating and integrating data contained in PRO-ACT and Air Force Environmental Education and Training databases to minimize duplication of effort, share resources, and provide on-line access to information and resources through the appropriate forum (i.e. PRO-ACT, WebU Library, etc.). Consideration should be given to identifying and including information in the DoD Sources and Tools Database, referencing in WebU courses, and featuring in the WebU Spotlight to alert users to noteworthy events, news, and information. 5. Approaches for supporting WebU students and users. Areas of consideration should include, but not be limited to, WebU Help Desk; recommended initial point of contact for content related questions; maintaining course links and references; monitoring and updating regulatory references contained in the Environmental Master Task List and Area of Responsibility Checklists, and identifying obsolete and additional tasks. 6. Approaches for developing and maintaining Environmental Facts Sheets or information summaries. For example, a subject-specific Facts Sheet prepared as single or double sided information sheets with charts, graphs, and brief statements related to a specific topic or program. Provide recommendation for approaches to select topics warranting information summary development; determining the appropriate number of summaries, and process to efficiently maintain current accurate content for all AFCEE program areas. 52.215-3 REQUEST FOR INFORMATION OR SOLICITATION FOR PLANNING PURPOSES (OCT 1997) 1. The Government does not intend to award a contract of the basis of this solicitation or to otherwise pay for the information solicited except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in subsection 31-205-18, Bid and proposal costs, of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. 2. Although ?proposal? and ?offeror? are used in this Request for Information, your response will be treated as information only. It shall not be used as a proposal. 3. This solicitation is issued for the purpose of gathering information to develop a strategy to increase the effectiveness of the PROACT Environmental Clearinghouse services as stated above.
- Record
- SN00871547-W 20050818/050816212225 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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