Belt Feeder
The US Army Contracting Command NJ on behalf of the US Army Armament Research Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC), Small Caliber Munitions Division at Picatinny Arsenal, NJ 07806-5000, is seeking sources for a belt feeder to be used in the post-manufacture quality inspection of ammunition for small caliber infantry munitions. The feeder is to be used to feed and orient a single stream of completed cartridges from a feed hopper to an automated, high-speed checkweigher. The primary product to be fed is a standard 7.62mm cartridge assembly.
Required Characteristics:
• The feeder shall be powered by any combination of electric or pneumatic motor(s) and the supplier shall specifically delineate all power or pneumatic inputs required to run the feeder. Drive belts, motors and other feeder system components shall be shielded so as to preclude dust, dirt or other contaminants from clogging or jamming the system.
• The feeder shall be capable of dispensing ammunition cartridges from a manually-loaded hopper into a single stream output. The hopper shall be capable of holding 2500 cartridges. Cartridges shall exit the feeder with the long axis of the cartridge parallel to the direction of the checkweigher belt feed input (conveyor belt feed, left-to-right). The contractor/supplier shall ensure that the cartridges remain on the belt through the use of a guardrail system.
• Output cartridges shall exit the feeder with a spacing of not less than nine inches between items, and it is desirable to have the option of variable output spacing.
• Cartridges shall be output at a variable rate of not less 45 cartridges per minute (60 preferred), with a maximum of at least 120 cartridges per minute.
• Cartridges can be output with either the base, or the nose end, of the cartridge first.
• Cartridges to be fed/oriented will be in the range of approximately 375 grains and 12mm in diameter by 72mm in length. ("Threshold" requirement)
• The feeder shall be capable of having the output stream height (from the floor surface) adjustable from approximately 20-40 inches, to allow alignment with the checkweigher input height.
• The feeder shall occupy a floor footprint of no greater than nine (9) square feet, but all attempts shall be made to minimize this footprint area to the greatest extent practicable.
• The feeder may be a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) or custom-developed item, or a combination of the two. In either instance, the contractor/vendor shall clearly specify which, and the approximate development/delivery schedule anticipated for the completed system.
• It is desired that the same equipment described above be capable of feeding several other alternate cylindrical products with different dimensions: ("Objective" requirement)
Bullet Assembly, 7.62mm diameter by approximately 30mm in length
Cartridge Assembly, 15mm in diameter by approximately 94mm in length
• The contractor/vendor shall be capable of providing equipment that meets the "Threshold" requirement stated earlier, and should provide information on their ability to meet the "Objective" requirements above.
This synopsis is open to all business concerns; however, in accordance with FAR 19.501, the Government's intent is to establish a contract with small businesses. In the event there are not enough responses from responsible, capable small businesses, then large business responses will be considered. All interested and potential firms must be registered in SAM, and current firms must update their records annually to maintain an active status. Please visit the SAM website to register and update https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/. However, registration in no way guarantees that a contract or assistance award will be issued.
Firms/companies are invited to indicate their interests and capabilities by providing specifications, brochures, manuals, reports, information pertaining to experience on previous projects, specific work previously performed or being performed, any in-house research and development effort, and any other specific and pertinent information as pertains to this particular area of procurement. All information is to be submitted via email (10MB limit) at no cost or obligation to the Government; information provided will not be returned. Responses shall also indicate the size of the business entity; large or small and provide your DUNS or Cage Code. Please provide the name of your firm, address, POC, phone/fax number and email address. TELEPHONE INQUIRIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
The Government will accept written questions by email. Interested firms/companies are encouraged to submit their capabilities/qualification data NO LATER THAN OCT 18, 2016 @1700hrs Eastern Standard Time (EST). Interested firms/companies should submit prior to deadline to ensure submittals are received prior to deadline. NO SUBMITTALS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER DEADLINE. Submittals and questions should be directed to the following point of contact: US Army Contracting Command, Attn. Jermaine A. Dunham, ACC-NJ-JA, Bldg. 09, and Picatinny, NJ 07806-5000, e-mail Jermaine.a.dunham.civ@mail.mil or Fakera Nazneen, ACC-NJ-JA, Bldg. 09, Picatinny, NJ 07806-5000, e-mail: fakera.nazneen.civ@mail.mil. This notice does not constitute a formal Request for Proposal (RFP), nor is the government obligated to issue an RFP. In addition, the Government does not intend to pay for any information provided under this notice. The Government is not obligated to notify respondents of the results of this survey. The Government may enter into one or multiple award as a result of this notice.
Jermaine A. Dunham, Mr., Phone 9737249005, Email jermaine.a.dunham.civ@mail.mil
