NASA Flight Dynamics Research Facility
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District is seeking industry input to assess the suitability of commercially available vertical wind tunnels (e.g., free-fall simulators) to meet, or can be modified to meet, the requirements of the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) located in Hampton, Virginia.
THIS SOURCES SOUGHT PROVIDES GENERAL REQUIREMENTS INFORMATION TO SOLICIT INDUSTRY INPUT TO INFORM GOVERNMENT PLANNING EFFORTS ONLY. THIS NOTICE IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. THERE WILL NOT BE A SOLICITATION, SPECIFICATIONS, OR DRAWINGS AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME.
NASA LaRC plans to replace its existing 20-Foot Vertical Spin Tunnel (VST) and 12-Foot Low Speed Tunnel (12-Foot) with a single new vertical closed circuit wind tunnel that will be the central feature in a new Flight Dynamics Research Facility (FDRF). The Government is conducting market research to identify potential commercial products and assess their suitability relative to the agency's requirements. The Government also intends to assess the degree to which existing commercial products would need to be adapted, or modified, to meet agency requirements.
The FDRF will have a test section (flight chamber) diameter of 20 to 22 feet with significantly higher flow velocity and flow quality than either of the existing facilities. The FDRF shall be optimized for operational and maintenance efficiency. The FDRF will incorporate and integrate test rigs and associated instrumentation from the existing VST and 12-Foot facilities. Integration of the test rigs is expected to require critical and sensitive modifications of a commercial tunnel solution, if available. The FDRF will be a permanent structure. The Government has determined that portable or other mobile devices used for free-fall simulation, body flight, etc., are not suitable for the requirement.
The proposed North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 236220-Commercial and Institutional Building Construction, 332313-Plate Work Manufacturing, 332312-Fabricated Structural Metal Manufacturing, or 713990-All Other Amusement and Recreation Industries; all with a small business size standard of $36.5 million. Industry input on other NAICS code(s) which may be more applicable is welcomed.
REQUIRED INFORMATION:
1. Provide your company Information - Name, Business Address, Point of Contact, Telephone Number, E-mail Address and Business Size in relation to the NAICS code size standard assigned, or proposed, to this sources sought.
2. Provide a list of past and/or current (ongoing) projects that highlight your specialized experience related to the delivery of vertical wind tunnel projects. Include only those tunnels with which your firm has (had) direct involvement in its delivery to include design, manufacturing, and/or construction. Include only those tunnels of closed-circuit design with the drive fan(s) past the first or second turn in the circuit(s):
a) Provide a tunnel description;
b) Identify whether the project is being/was delivered for a Government or Private Sector customer. If available, provide the Contract Identification Number;
c) Identify the method for delivery of the project, i.e., design-bid-build, design-build, etc.;
d) Provide the tunnel location. If the location is sensitive, a ‘general' location identifier will be sufficient;
e) Identify the project completion date or anticipated completion date if current/ongoing;
f) Identify the vertical flight chamber/test section diameter and height. Height of the test section/flight chamber is the constant diameter section only, i.e., it does not include the divergent section;
g) Identify whether or not the tunnel includes active or passive cooling. Describe the cooling configuration;
h) Explain your firm's role in the delivery of the project;
I) Describe the tunnel's general configuration and operation; For any vertical wind tunnels with a 20-22 foot (ft) test section diameter currently in operation provide the following additional information:
j) The range of flight chamber/test section flow acceleration/deceleration capability: Flow accelerations of +____ ft/sec2 to -____ ft/sec2;
k) The range of airspeeds in the flight chamber/test section that are controllable with precision to within +/-1 ft/s: ___ fps to ___ fps;
l) Provide the associated hours of maintenance time required per 5,000 hours run time.
3. Provide test section/flight chamber diameter, height, ranges for acceleration capability, and ranges for flow controllability for the largest tunnel designed, manufactured, and currently in operation by our company;
4. Note any applicable patent rights, intellectual property, and/or licensing rights that may be involved in the design, manufacture, construction, and/or operation of the FDRF; and
5. Provide any additional information deemed necessary to provide a meaningful response to this Sources Sought.
Interested Firms having the required specialized capabilities/resources are encouraged to respond to this Sources Sought Synopsis by providing the aforementioned information in writing via email to marc.h.nguyen@usace.army.mil not later than 3:00 PM EST on 29 June 2017. Please limit your submissions to no more than 10 pages.
Marc H. Nguyen, Contracting Officer, Phone 7572017839, Email marc.h.nguyen@usace.army.mil - Jonathan Parrish, Contract Specialist, Phone 757-201-7062, Email jonathan.l.parrish@usace.army.mil
