SOURCES SOUGHT
A -- NASA ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN ITS NIGHT ROVER CENTENNIALCHALLENGES PROGRAM AS AN ALLIED ORGANIZATION
- Notice Date
- 2/25/2011
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541611
— Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA Headquarters Acquisition Branch, Code210.H, Greenbelt, MD 20771
- ZIP Code
- 20771
- Solicitation Number
- NNH11UA001L
- Response Due
- 4/22/2011
- Archive Date
- 2/25/2012
- Point of Contact
- Dr. Larry P Cooper, Program Executive, Phone 202-358-1531, Fax 202-358-4118, Email Larry.P.Cooper@nasa.gov
- E-Mail Address
-
Dr. Larry P Cooper
(Larry.P.Cooper@nasa.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Through this Announcement, NASA seeks to select Allied Organizations for specificprize competitions (hereinafter Challenges) to be conducted under the CentennialChallenges Program of NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.Allied Organizations are responsible for the following elements as they relate toindividual Challenges:Challenge Planning.Sponsor Recruitment.Competitor Recruitment.Challenge Administration and Execution.Challenge Publicity.NASA provides the monetary prize purse (which can be supplemented by outsideorganizations) but no funding for the conduct of the competition itself. AlliedOrganizations must administer the Challenges with their own funding or they must acquirethe funding needed to administer the Challenges through partnerships with sponsoringorganizations or through other means. Sponsoring organizations are those entities that partner with an Allied Organization tocontribute funding for administrative expenses or in-kind support through separateagreements between the Allied Organization and the sponsoring organization. Space Act AgreementsNASA anticipates entering into unfunded Space Act Agreements with selected AlliedOrganizations to manage the Challenges associated with each of the planned CentennialChallenges. Selection of Allied Organizations will be through a competitive processbased on evaluation of submitted proposals. Participation as an Allied Organization willbe contingent upon selection by NASA and negotiation of an appropriate agreement betweenNASA and the proposer.The Space Act Agreement will detail the contributions andresponsibilities of NASA and the Allied Organization for a specific Challenge.Theagreement will address intellectual property rights, concurrence on rules, teamagreements, media rights, insurance, registration fees and eligibility and typicallyinclude a term of 3 years. NASA reserves the right to select for Space Act Agreementnegotiations all, some, or none of the proposals submitted in response to thisAnnouncement. Respondents will be responsible for funding their own activitiesassociated with responding to this Announcement and conducting the Challenge. AlliedOrganizations may collect reasonable registration fees from competitors but the use ofregistration fees as a primary means to cover Challenge administration costs isdiscouraged.EligibilityDomestic non-profit organizations are eligible to submit proposals in response to thisAnnouncement. Allied Organizations cannot compete in the Challenge that they manage. Allied Organizations and their officers and employees may not have a financial or otherinterest in any teams that compete in any Challenge(s) they manage.Organizations may submit proposals to manage one or more of the specific CentennialChallenges described in this announcement but a separate proposal must be submitted foreach Challenge. Multiple organizations may form partnerships to manage a Challenge andmay submit a joint proposal.Centennial Challenges BackgroundNASA Centennial Challenges was established to conduct prize competitions to generateinnovative solutions to technical problems of interest to NASA and the nation.Thosecompeting for the NASA monetary prizes can be individuals, independent teams, studentgroups, research organizations or private companies but they cannot receive governmentfunding to support any of their work related to the technical area of the prizeChallenge. The program seeks unconventional solutions from non-traditional sources and, thereby,hopes to identify new talent and stimulate the creation of new businesses. Unlikecontracts and grants based on proposals, prizes are only awarded after competitors havesuccessfully demonstrated their innovations. Competitors retain ownership of theirintellectual property. To be eligible to win a NASA Centennial Challenge monetary prize, an individual orentity(1) shall have registered to participate in the competition pursuant to any rulespromulgated by NASA;(2) shall have complied with all the rules of the competition and requirements ofapplicable law; (3) in the case of a private entity, shall be incorporated in and maintain a primaryplace of business in the United States, and in the case of an individual, whetherparticipating singly or in a group, shall be a citizen or permanent resident of theUnited States; and(4) shall not be a Federal entity or Federal employee acting within the scope of theiremployment.The Centennial Challenges in the past have typically required several annual competitionsto occur before the total prize purses have been claimed. Competitions may be conductedin a first-to-demonstrate format or in a head-to-head contest format. The competitionevents, especially in the head-to-head contest format, typically involve publicspectators, televised or Webcasted coverage and are high-visibility opportunities forpublic outreach and education.Additional information can be found atwww.nasa.gov/challengesNew Centennial ChallengesThe specific Challenge for which Allied Organizations are sought with this Announcementis the Night Rover Challenge to demonstrate a solar-powered exploration vehicle that canoperate in darkness using its own stored energy. The prize purse is $1.5 million.A description of the Challenge outlining NASAs objectives is provided in the appendix tothis announcement. Further refinements and creative enhancements of the Challengeconcept by the Allied Organizations, with concurrence by NASA, are encouraged.Selection CriteriaNASA will select Allied Organizations based on the following evaluation criteria:1)Capabilities of the organization to administer the Challenge and competitionevents including ability to:a.promote the technical and educational goals of the Challenge through creative useof public media including Web sites.b.attract multiple competitors with wide geographic distribution.c.encourage the participation of individuals, groups, students, and businesses,especially those outside the traditional aerospace community and those from minority andunder-represented communities.d.formulate competition rules and plans in consultation with NASA and withappropriate public comment.e.provide appropriate competition venues and supporting equipment.f.select qualified judges.g.conduct competitor registration.h.establish agreements with competitors covering legal, insurance, and otherissues.i.maintain communication with competitors and with NASA.j.collect and report aggregate data on competitor progress and performance.k.plan competition events and other meetings.l.conduct competition events safely and impartially.m.organize educational activities, including parallel student-class competitions(university, high school, or other levels) to enhance and broaden the impact of theChallenge. n.report competition results to NASA and to the public. 2)Experience of the organization in similar or analogous activities thatdemonstrate competence, integrity, commitment to safety, and ability to workcooperatively in partnering arrangements.3)Ability of the organization to support Challenge administration through internalfinancial resources or firm commitments of sponsors. Existing financial resources orsponsor commitments will be a positive factor in evaluation of proposals.4)Access of the organization to technical expertise in the area of the Challenge.Proposal InstructionsResponses to this Announcement should be no more than seven pages in length, notincluding any letters of commitment from sponsoring or partner organizations. Pages inexcess of the page limitations for each section will not be evaluated. A page is definedas one (1) sheet 8 1/2 x 11 inches using a minimum of 12-point font size for text and8-point for graphs. Proposals should not include proprietary information. Submittedinformation will be shared within NASA and with contractor personnel associated with theCentennial Challenges Program. Prospective Allied Organizations are encouraged toperiodically check www.nasa.gov/challenges for any updates or clarifying information.The proposal shall consist of:Page 1: Cover page including:-Name of organization.-Mailing address and phone number of organization.-Web site of organization (if applicable).-Name, mailing address, e-mail address, and phone number of primary officer of theorganization.-Name, mailing address, e-mail address, and phone number of organizationspoint-of-contact for the proposal (if different from primary officer).-Name of the Centennial Challenge addressed by proposal.-Date of submission.Page 2: Briefly describe your organization, including history, primary activities,interests, capabilities, and financial and personnel resources. Include any experienceof the organization that is similar or analogous to the proposed Challengeadministration, and that demonstrates competence, integrity, commitment to safety andability to work cooperatively in partnering arrangements. List any current or previous(for the past five years) contracts, grants or agreements with your organization and anyfederal agencies. Page 3: Describe your organizations interest in the specific Challenge that you areproposing to manage and your reasons for wanting to manage it.Describe any goals thatyou would have for the Challenge, above and beyond those of NASA.Pages 4, 5, & 6: Describe your approach to managing the Challenge including: -publicizing the Challenge.-attracting a diverse field of competitors.-concepts for developing rules and criteria for judging.-proposed competition format.-description of the venue, facilities and equipment needed, and your approach tosecuring them.Plans to ensure that proposed format, venue, and associated elements donot provide any competitive advantage to any participant.-access to technical expertise in the Challenge area.-approach for selecting judges.-facilitating public engagement with Web site, Internet (e.g. Web 2.0 socialnetworking) and media coverage prior to, during, and after the competition.-providing appropriate educational activities, including parallel student-classcompetitions (university, high school, or other levels).-approach to maximizing the safety of the public, organizers, and competitorsprior to and during competitions.-approach to providing NASA data on competitor progress and performance.-an estimate of the expected cost of managing the challenge and an estimate of theexpected registration fee that might be charged to competitors. The proposed schedulefor major milestones in the process of planning and conducting the Challenge. Theseinclude the date when the competition rules will be finalized, when competitors canregister, and when the competition will take place.Page 7: Describe the financial resources that your organization has or will obtainthrough sponsorships or in-kind contributions to conduct this Challenge. Provide aschedule that identifies major milestone toward securing funding or other resourcesneeded for Challenge development or management. Discuss any dependencies betweensecuring these resources and milestones for registration and the competition.Describe your approach to staffing for long-term Challenge administration and forconducting competition events. Identify the person with primary responsibility formanagement of the Challenge and the anticipated level of effort.Include attachments for:-Letters of commitment from any known sponsoring organizations or others providingfinancial or in-kind contributions.-Letters of commitment from any partner organizations.Submission InstructionsAll proposals in response to this Announcement, including signed letters of commitment,must be submitted in a single PDF file as an attachment to an electronic mail message tolarry.p.cooper@nasa.gov no later than 11:59 PM, EST, April, 22, 2011. Paper submissionswill not be reviewed. NASA will notify all proposers of the results of the evaluation and selection process.After the completion of the evaluation and selection process, as appropriate, NASA willbegin negotiations with selected proposers to finalize the terms and conditions of aSpace Act Agreement. All work, as required, will commence after the parties execute aSpace Act Agreement. Selection of an Allied Organization for this Announcement isexpected to occur by May 30, 2011. Contact InformationQuestions regarding this Announcement should be directed to Larry Cooper at 202 358-1531or larry.p.cooper@nasa.gov. Answers to questions of a general nature will be posted atwww.nasa.gov/challenges.APPENDIX - Description of New Challenge Night Rover ChallengeObjectivesA mobile system to collect solar energy, store that energy, and later use itproductively. Innovations in energy storage technology for space operations and, in particular,to meet the demands imposed by the daylight/darkness cycle on the Moon. Energy system innovations to benefit terrestrial applications, including vehiclesand renewable energy generation systems. Description Solar energy is a renewable source that would be available on the Moon and at otherdestinations in space.To enable practical system demonstrations of diverse designsolutions by independent teams, the Challenge may be conducted in an ambient Earthenvironment. The Challenge would be to demonstrate a portable energy collection andstorage system through several cycles of daylight and darkness. During the daylightperiod, systems can collect photons or thermal energy from the sun. During darkness, thestored energy would be used to move the entire mobile system toward a destination. Thecompetitors may collect, store, and extract the solar energy in any form that theydesire. The winning system would be the one that moved the greatest distance during darkness inan allotted time period (over several day/night cycles) using only its own stored energy. A winning system must exceed the performance of a reference state-of-the-art system by aspecified margin. Competitors with successful and appropriate system designs might beinvited to test their energy storage systems in NASA thermal-vacuum chambers todemonstrate applicability to the space and lunar environment. Prize Purse $1.5 million is available from the Centennial Challenges Program. This amount can besupplemented with funds from other sources.Educational OpportunitiesExample: A simple solar-powered, remote-controlled rover competition with an energystorage requirement might be conducted for students along with the main Night RoverChallenge. Additional prize money may be available for student-level competitions.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/NASA/HQ/OPHQDC/NNH11UA001L/listing.html)
- Record
- SN02388469-W 20110227/110225234827-8d17d9c3ecfc973feaded384f3bf08b3 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |