SOURCES SOUGHT
A -- INFLATABLE AERODYNAMIC DECELERATORS
- Notice Date
- 11/29/2010
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- NASA/Langley Research Center, Mail Stop 144, Industry Assistance Office, Hampton,VA 23681-0001
- ZIP Code
- 23681-0001
- Solicitation Number
- SS-InflatableAerodynamicDecelerators
- Response Due
- 12/13/2010
- Archive Date
- 11/29/2011
- Point of Contact
- Teresa M Hass, Contracting Officer, Phone 757-864-8496, Fax 757-864-8863, Email Teresa.M.Hass@nasa.gov - Timothy P Cannella, Contracting Officer, Phone 757-864-5028, Fax 757-864-9097, Email Timothy.P.Cannella@nasa.gov
- E-Mail Address
-
Teresa M Hass
(Teresa.M.Hass@nasa.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- NASA Langley Research Center is hereby soliciting information about potentialsources for the design, analysis, fabrication, and testing of Inflatable AerodynamicDecelerator (IAD) systems for space vehicle aerocapture, entry, decent and landing forMars and Earth applications. Inflatable aerodynamic decelerators are an enabling technology for delivery large masspayloads for future Mars and Earth missions. On August 17, 2009, the IRVE-II project(with a 2.96m (116.5in) inflatable aeroshell) was launched on a sounding rocket out ofWallops Flight Facility, with a goal of demonstrating the concept of inflatable reentryvehicles. During the IRVE-II flight, the aeroshell inflated as designed and maintainedstability not only through hypersonic reentry but also through the supersonic, transonicand subsonic flight regimes. To advance this technology, demonstration of larger scaleIAD inflatables will begin with ground testing and progress to space flightdemonstrations. The performance of larger scale IADs over the range of flightconditions, performance of thermal protective systems under higher heat flux levels, andresponse to vehicle flight controls will need to be demonstrated. IAD designs will needto meet specific requirements for aerocapture, entry, descent and landing and may includehypersonic, supersonic, transonic and subsonic regimes to suit the application. Development activities will also include integration with various flight vehicleconfigurations, stowage, deployment, inflation and instrumentation. The size of IADs ofinterest for this development effort range from 3 meters to 15 meters in diameter. Acomplete IAD system consists of the inflatable structure, thermal protection system, andrestraint system for stowage. Interfaces for the IADs include attachment to vehiclecenterbody, inflation system and instrumentation.Sources are being sought for design, analysis, fabrication, integration, testing and testsupport of IADs from 3 meters to 15 meters in diameter that met specific requirements foraerocapture, entry, decent and landing in hypersonic, supersonic, transonic and subsonicregimes to suit application to include, but not limited to the following areas:1.IAD System Design activities including:-Conceptual and detailed design of IAD systems to meet specified entry anddescent aerodynamics, loads and thermal requirements -Inflatable material selection and lay-ups-Detailed design and shop drawings-Stowage and deployment details-Aerodynamic stability and controls features-Thermal protection systems design and development-Integration with thermal protection systems, vehicle centerbody and inflationsystems-Optimization of design to reduce mass, reduce leakage, improve packing, improvestructural rigidity, increase thermal insulation and improve overall system performance. -Methods to increase fault tolerance and system reliability-Integration of sensors compatible with the flexible inflatable structure and/orTPS include but are not limited to: thermal flux, surface temperature, strain, shape 2.IAD System Analysis and Modeling including:-Analysis for overall system performance for various entry and atmosphericconditions -Non-linear entry and descent simulations to establish IAD inflation pressures,material stresses, entry loads, thermal response, aerodynamic stability and control -Simulation models to support system levels tests for performance predictions andpost-test correlation with test data. 3.IAD Fabrication includes -Fabrication of components and elements for demonstration tests-Fabrication, inspection and shop testing of engineering developments units,prototype units and space flight units to meet design specifications and qualificationrequirements-Compliance with the appropriate Quality Management Plans and Procedures-Identification and implementation of methods to improve fabrication techniquesand reduce integration complexities4.IAD Development Tests and System Demonstration Tests, including -Sub-component, component and system level development tests at the Contractorsfacilities to evaluate materials, construction techniques, interfaces, stowage,deployment and leakage. -Development of test plans and procedures-Technical evaluation of test results and preparation of test documentation andreports -On-site technical support for system level tests that are conducted at NASAfacilities. The inflatable structure geometry will depend on specific requirements for each designapplication and may consist of construction methods using multiple stacked tori, singlesurface tension cone, ribbed double surface inflatables, and membrane supported by sparsand outer rim designs.Outer diameters will be provided to suit specific testing andflight requirements and are expected to within the range of 3 m to 15 m (9.8 ft to 49ft). An example of typical outer IAD geometry with a vehicle centerbody is shown Figure1, in Attachment 1 to this Sources Sought. Interested offerors/vendors having the required specialized capabilities to meet theabove requirement(s) should submit a capability statement of 8 pages or less, in 12 pointfont, not including diagrams, pictures, or figures, indicating the ability to perform allaspects of the effort (whether the submittal is at the component(s) level or at theintegrated system level) described herein. Preferred file format is Microsoft Word,Power Point, Excel or Adobe (PDF). Existing documents that describe suitable existingproducts or proposed products are acceptable. In addition to the above information, responses should include the following: name andaddress of firm, size of business; average annual revenue for past 3 years and number ofemployees; ownership; whether they are large, small, small disadvantaged, 8(a), HUBZone,and/or woman-owned; number of years in business; affiliate information: parent company,joint venture partners, potential teaming partners, prime contractor (if potential sub)or subcontractors (if potential prime); list of customers covering the past three years(highlight relevant work performed, contract numbers, contract type, dollar value of eachprocurement; and point of contact - address and phone number). The information obtained will be used by NASA for planning and acquisition strategydevelopment. NASA will use the information obtained as a result of this sources sought ona non-attribution basis. Providing data and information that is limited or restricted foruse by NASA for that purpose would be of very little value and such restricted/limiteddata/information is not solicited. No information or questions received will be posted toany website or public access location. NASA does not plan to respond to the individualresponses.No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If asolicitation is released it will be synopsized in FedBizOpps and on the NASA AcquisitionInternet Service. It is the potential offeror(s) responsibility to monitor these sitesfor the release of any solicitation or synopsis. This RFI is being used to obtain information for planning purposes only and theGovernment does not presently intend to award a contract, nor will the Government pay forinformation solicited. As stipulated in FAR15.201(e), responses to this notice are notconsidered offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract.Inputs shall be compliant with all legal and regulatory requirements concerninglimitations on export controlled items. Technical questions should be directed to: R. Keith Johnson at: R.K.Johnson@nasa.gov.Procurement related questions should be directed to: Ms. Teresa Hass at:Teresa.M.Hass@nasa.gov. Please advise if the requirement is considered to be a commercial or commercial-typeproduct. A commercial item is defined in FAR 2.101. The Government reserves the right to consider a small business or 8(a) set-aside based onresponses hereto. All responses shall be emailed to Ms. Teresa Hass at Teresa.M.Hass@nasa.gov no later than4:30pm on December 13, 2010.
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