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Solicitation Number: M68909-21-I-7601 Description: Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity (MCTSSA) Wavelength & Resiliency Evaluation as part of the Communications Primary/Alternate/Contingenc... Solicitation Number: M68909-21-I-7601 Description: Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity (MCTSSA) Wavelength & Resiliency Evaluation as part of the Communications Primary/Alternate/Contingency/Emergency (COMM PACE) Combat Evaluation (CV) NAICS: 541519 (Other Computer Related Services) PSC: 7G22 (IT and Telecom – Network Satellite and RF Communications Products (HW, Perpetual License Software)) Agency: Department of the Navy Office: United States Marine Corps, MCTSSA Location: Camp Pendleton, CA Notice Type: Sources Sought Notice I. INTRODUCTION The Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity is issuing this Sources Sought Notice as a means of conducting market research to identify responsible, qualified entities having an interest in, and the resources to support, this requirement. The Government is interested in receiving information from all interested, responsible and qualified businesses. The anticipated acquisition strategy for the MCTSSA Wavelength & Resiliency Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Evaluation requirement is to issue a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) contract that enables MCTSSA to explore possible near-term solutions to an existing Fleet Marine Force (FMF) capability gap. 2. Program Description This Wavelength & Resiliency Evaluation capability addresses a portion of one of the MarineWERX Combat Evaluations, namely, CV 21.1 - COMM PACE. The Problem: The preferred, distributed, multi-nodal, Command and Control (C2) structure that allows maximum agility and resilience during Distributed Maritime Operations (DMO) and Expeditionary Advance Base Operations (EABO) is not supported by the FMF’s current inventory of communications equipment. Background: Mission type orders and Commander’s intent are critical elements of sustaining the fight; however, these will yield limited effects in a near-peer battle environment. Concepts like the United States Air Force’s Joint All Domain C2 (JADC2) and the Naval Integrated Grid reinforce the assertion that assured joint and naval critical information exchanges, enabled through assured access to space, are essential towards achieving success. Current Marine Corps wideband satellite communication (SATCOM) programs include the Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) Family of Systems (FoS) and Network On-the-Move-Air/Ground (NOTM-A/G) terminals. These terminals neither enable the required lethality nor provide the required survivability in the electromagnetic spectrum since they do not dynamically change bands nor facilitate platform agnostic, on the move operations. This shortfall results in an increased signature footprint due to multiple terminal types and temporary loss of connectivity in an EABO construct where mobility and assured, on-demand access are critical factors to survival. Furthermore, the increased upgrade times on currently fielded systems and increasing maintenance requirements on aging systems means that SATCOM capabilities lag technologically behind what would be currently available in the commercial marketplace. Given requirements associated with DMO and EABO, Marine divisions cannot afford a 5-year requirement validation cycle and the subsequent acquisitions, fielding, sustainment, and training plans to materialize. The Vision: Assured, modernized, survivable, and persistent Marine Air/Ground Task Force (MAGTF) sensor, C2, fires, and sustainment data capabilities within the range of adversarial long range fires that: are inherently interconnected; combine the physical and information domains; are interoperable with naval, joint, and coalition forces; and facilitate the virtues of mass without the vulnerabilities of concentration. Potential Solution to be evaluated: Given the pace of technological change, coupled with the identified issues above, the Marine Corps needs a solution that can dynamically change bands and facilitate platform agnostic, on-the-move operations as an alternate means of providing wideband satellite communications to the FMF. This Wavelength & Resiliency Evaluation explores options that may be considered by FMF units for implementation in their Primary/Alternate/Contingency/Emergency (PACE) communications plans. This evaluation process has the potential to provide a timely and agile approach towards acquisitions, fielding, and training to meet DMO and EABO demands. 3. Requirements This action will define the equipment packages embedded with the necessary carrier and support services required by MCTSSA to meet the Wavelength & Resiliency Evaluation requirements over a period of at least 6 months and no more than one year. MCTSSA requires access to a commercial end-to-end, satellite-enabled communications architecture that provides options for global coverage in C, Ku, Ka and High Capacity Ka (HCKa) bands, certified for Wideband Global Satellite (WGS) communications network and commercial Internet Service Provider (ISP) access for network transport with back haul connections to a customer point of presence identified as the 1st Marine Division Network Operations Center (DNOC) located aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, CA. The radio frequency (RF) satellite communications (SATCOM) network must support anti-jam, spread-spectrum services with on-the-move and at-the-pause terminals including software-defined modems that must be capable of supporting Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2, adaptive assignment and advanced coding-based, jam-resistant/resilient, and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)-based bandwidth-sharing waveforms. The software-defined modems must be interoperable with ground terminals currently in the Marine Corps inventory to include the Very Small Aperture Terminal - Expeditionary (VSAT-E), Adaptable Tactical Lightweight Antenna Systems, and Marine Corps Wideband Satellite – Expeditionary (MCWS-X). The commercial end-to-end, satellite-enabled communications architecture must adhere to Department of Defense (DoD) regulations for internet protocol and transmission security outlined in National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 800-53 security requirements, Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) 1253 as identified in NIST 800-53 security controls and practices, Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) level 3 or higher and finally, must be capable of achieving network accreditation from the Marine Corps in accordance with the USMC Risk Management Framework (RMF) process and the Marine Corps Cybersecurity Program (MCO 5239.2A). MCTSSA anticipates the purchase of four on-the-move ground terminals capable of connecting to the previously defined satellite communications architecture via priority access to Ku commercial network, utilizing the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)-based bandwidth-sharing waveform, and other commercially developed resilient wave forms. Each ground terminal must be capable of at least 4 megabits-per-second (Mbps) uplink and 1 Mbps downlink, with each ground terminal capable of receiving power from both shore and expeditionary power sources. Cyber defense must be included along with compliancy to DFARS 252.204-7012 and NIST SP 800-171. Satellite carrier coverage must include the North and Central Americas and the Caribbean. 50GB per month of throughput will be required per terminal, allowing for satellite backhaul capability within the operating area. MCTSSA anticipates the purchase of three at-the-halt ground terminals capable of connecting to the previously defined satellite communications architecture via priority access to Ku commercial network utilizing adaptive assignment and advanced coding-based, jam-resistant/resilient, and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)-based bandwidth-sharing waveforms, and an HCKa commercial network. The service must support at least 15 Mbps uplink and 5 Mbps downlink, with each ground terminal capable of receiving power from both shore and expeditionary power sources. Cyber defense must be included with compliancy to DoD cybersecurity guidelines. Satellite carrier coverage must include the North and Central Americas and the Caribbean. The service must allow for satellite backhaul capability within the operating area. MCTSSA anticipates requiring carrier service and maintenance support for all purchased terminals. This support must include regular hardware and software updates as well as corrective maintenance. The level of support must be sufficient to sustain 75% availability of the purchased systems. If this availability becomes unsustainable, it is expected that the vendor provide one-for-one system replacements in order to maintain this level. MCTSSA anticipates requiring operator training for the purchased ground terminals. Operator training must provide enough detail to educate an individual familiar with basic satellite communications to employ the specific terminal. Class capacity should be sufficient to train eight operators. Security Requirement: Secret Pursuant to FAR Part 10 the results of the Government’s market research will be used to determine whether qualified sources exist to meet the requirement. This Sources Sought Notice is issued solely for informational and planning purposes and does not constitute a Request for Quotations (RFQ), Request for Proposals (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFQ or RFP in the future. It is not a notice of solicitation issuance. Responses to this Sources Sought Notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract, and do not otherwise commit the Government to a contract for any supply or service whatsoever. At this time, the Government is not seeking quotations or proposals and will not accept unsolicited quotations or proposals in response to this Sources Sought Notice. Submission of any information in response to this Sources Sought Notice is purely voluntary and the Government assumes NO responsibility for any costs incurred by contractors in responding. A decision to refrain from responding to this Sources Sought Notice will not preclude a party from participating in response to any future RFQ or RFP—if any is issued. Telephone inquiries will not be permitted, entertained, accepted, or acknowledged, and respondents are not entitled to feedback or evaluation regarding their capability submissions. If your organization has the ability to provide the supplies and services as identified in this Sources Sought Notice, please submit the following: (1) a description of the contractor's specific experience/capability in relation to the requirements; (2) commercial terms and conditions generally required with purchase of equipment; and (3) contractor’s name, point of contact, e-mail address, telephone number, type of business and size - i.e., other than small, Small, SBA Section 8(a), Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone), Women Owned, and/or Service Disabled Veteran Owned (SDVO); DUNS number; CAGE Code; and a list of any current Government-Wide Agency Contracts where you offer the described supplies and services. Interested parties who consider themselves qualified to perform the above mentioned effort are invited to submit their responses to this Sources Sought Notice via email to roy.layug1@usmc.mil by 20 Nov 2020. Responses should address the requirements concisely. The Government, at its discretion, may elect not to review any responses that exceed 15 pages of content—either in part or entirely. The Government will review all capability statements and determine, at its sole discretion, which entities are technically capable of providing the services required. Entities may be invited to participate in a follow-on meeting with the Government for a question/answer session to further assist in the overall market research for this requirement.