A -- RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF UESA AND RADOME FUNCTIONING IN THE UHF-BAND 17. BAA# N00421-99-BAA-0002 Broad Agency Announcement soliciting/requesting proposals for the RF Sensors Branch of the Avionics Division of NAWCAD Patuxent River, Maryland, issued under the provisions of paragraphs 35.016 and 6.102(d)(2) of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) which provides for the competitive selection of research proposals for scientific study or experimentation directed toward advancing the state-of-the-art or increasing knowledge or understanding. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), Patuxent River Maryland is interested in receiving proposals for the research efforts described below. This announcement is an expression of interest only and does not commit the Government to make any award or to pay for any response preparation costs. The cost of proposal preparation for response to a BAA is not considered an allowable direct charge to any resultant contract or any other contract. This BAA is to solicit technical/cost proposals for research support in technologies that are applicable to Radio Frequency (RF) Sensor systems for Navy Aircraft. In particular, NAWCAD is interested in the development and fabrication of a flight-certifiable 360 Electronically Scanned Array (ESA) and radome functioning in the UHF-band. The array must utilize the form-factor of the existing TRAC-A antenna installed on-board the U.S. Navy's E-2C Hawkeye aircraft. The UHF array must meet government specifications for gain, beam shape, side-lobe levels, cross-polarization coupling, element-to-element coupling, power handling, environmental tolerance, weight, size, polarization, efficiency, scan loss, and other relevant system parameters. The design must incorporate IFF and UHF satellite communications antennas that must meet similar system requirements. The design and fabrication must include a switching matrix for multiplexing high power receive-transmit channels to the array elements. As part of the array design and fabrication, changes to the current mechanical pylon interface will be considered if a weight savings is realized. Testing and analysis for formal flight certification of the array will also be required. THERE WILL BE NO FORMAL REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL OR ANY SOLICITATION DOCUMENT ISSUED IN REGARD TO THIS BAA. Offerors are required to submit three (3) copies of a two (2) to three (3) page white paper on their proposed research topic. The white paper should be formatted as follows: Section A: Title, period of performance, cost of effort, and name of company; Section B: Task objective; and Section C: Technical Summary. Multiple white papers may be submitted in different areas of technology. The purpose of the white paper is to preclude unwarranted effort on the part of the offeror whose proposed work is not of interest under this BAA. Those white papers found to be consistent with the intent of the BAA and of interest to the Government may be invited to submit a proposal. Such an invitation does not assure that the submitting company will be awarded a subsequent contract. When proposals are submitted, they should consist of a clear statement of objectives, a technical section which should include, but not necessarily be limited to, expected contribution of the hardware/research to the DOD RF Sensors Mission, analysis that supports feasibility, background experience, concepts, ideas, methodology, a statement of work and milestones, a biographical section describing key individuals and a cost section. The technical proposal shall not exceed 50 pages. The cost proposal shall be submitted in accordance with FAR part 15.403. Proposed technologies should be fully addressed as part of an overall system concept and include platform considerations as applicable. The proposed effort can include research and/or development and demonstration of relevant processing concepts and/or enabling technologies and hardware. Risk, potential payoffs and time frame for proof-of-concept demonstration should also be included. For planning purposes, the period of performance is estimated to be one (1) to three (3) years. The contract type is anticipated to be a Cost-Plus-Fixed Fee completion. The selection of one or more sources for contract award will be based on a scientific review of proposals submitted in response to the BAA. The major purpose of the evaluation will be to determine the relative merit of the technical approach of each proposal. Business and contractual aspects, including proposed cost and cost realism, will also be considered as part of the evaluation. Selection of proposals for award will be based on the potential benefits to the Government compared to the cost of the proposals, in view of the availability of funds. The merit of the proposal shall be determined based on the following criteria: (1) Overall technical risk of the proposal; (2) Overall scientific and technical merits of the proposal; (3) The offeror's capabilities, related experience, facilities, techniques or unique combinations of these which are integral factors for achieving the proposed objectives; (4) The proposal's design and fabrication schedule; (5) The offeror's ability to demonstrate feasibility and potential contributions of the effort to DOD priorities in RF Sensor related technologies; and (6) Proposed cost, adjusted for cost realism. In addition, the Government may consider other factors, such as, past and present performance on recent Government contracts and the capacity and capability to perform the requirements of the effort. No further evaluation criteria will be used in selecting proposals. Proposals may be submitted for forty-five days following publication of this announcement. Awards may be made at any time. Submission of a proposal is not restricted in any way to any particular entity. The white papers, in addition to any technical questions, shall be submitted to RF Sensors Branch, Dr. Michael Pollock, Code 4.5.5.5, Bldg 2187, MS 3, Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River Maryland, 20670-5304. The point of contact for contractual matters is Ms. Angela Franco (301) 342-1825 extension 107. Offerors may contact these individuals, at any time, for clarification of technical/contractual issues and cost response format. Any negotiations that may be necessary will be conducted between the offeror and the contracting officer. Offerors are cautioned that only contracting officers are legally authorized to commit the Government. E-MAIL: FrancoA@NAVAIR.NAVY.MIL, FrancoA@NAVAIR.NAVY.MIL. Posted 04/05/99 (W-SN316385).

Loren Data Corp. http://www.ld.com (SYN# 0907 19990408\SP-0063.MSC)