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The United States Government is conducting research to identify potential interested sources with the capability to provide a Man-Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) to meet increasing demand to cou... The United States Government is conducting research to identify potential interested sources with the capability to provide a Man-Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) to meet increasing demand to counter the growing aerial threat capability. The Stinger- Reprogrammable Microprocessor (RMP) will become obsolete in fiscal year (FY) 2023 and Stinger Block I is undergoing a service life extension to extend its end of useful life. The current Stinger inventory is in decline. The Army is conducting a SHORAD study which will inform efforts to modernize and to address emerging threats, which may increase the demand for MANPADS capable missiles. The Army is currently planning to award a full and open competitive contract no later than FY 2026 for the production of up to 8000 MANPADS missiles to fill this need. Pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15.2, this notice is being issued as a REQUEST FOR INFORMATION. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not an offer and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. No contract award is intended as a result of this request. THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes – it does not constitute a Request for Proposal or a promise to issue a Request for Proposal in the future. This RFI does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. The Government Point of Contact (POC) is Mr. Nicholas Kirby and Ms. Lindsay Bodie, US Army Contracting Command - Redstone, Attn: CCAM-SM-A. Mr. Kirby may be contacted via e-mail: nicholas.b.kirby.civ@mail.mil and Ms. Bodie may be contacted via e-mail at lindsay.d.bodie.civ@mail.mil. Email submissions only, no phone calls. All requirements contained in this RFI are based on a FY 2021 starting on 1 October 2020. Per FAR 52.215-3, Request for Information or Solicitation for Planning Purposes: The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this request or to otherwise pay for the information except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in FAR subsection 31.205-18, concerning bid and proposal costs. Although “proposed”, "proposal", and "offeror" may be used in this Request for Information, your response will be treated as information only. It shall not be used as a proposal. This RFI is issued for the purpose of acquiring information to procure a MANPADS capable interceptor for the M-SHORAD program. M-SHORAD STRATEGY. In 2016, Congress and Joint and Army senior leaders, noting the results of studies and peer threat nations’ aggressions, provided resources and directed the Army to aggressively pursue air defense capabilities to protect maneuvering forces as soon as feasibly possible. This effort serves to meet increasing demand for MANPADS; organizational growth within the Air and Missile Defense (AMD) portfolio; and increasing near-peer threat capability. M-SHORAD MANPADS GOALS. Respondents to this RFI will address the following items in their response. The Government will also provide additional operational performance goals upon request. If your company is interested in submitting a response to this RFI, please inform the Government POC identified in the above SYNOPSIS section within five (5) business days of this RFI to receive this additional information. The system must be man portable. The system must be an All-Up-Round (AUR). The system must be capable of being integrated with the Stinger Vehicle Universal Launcher (SVUL), which is a component of Initial M-SHORAD (IM-SHORAD). The system must be capable of defeating Fixed Wing (FW) ground attack aircraft, Rotary Wing (RW) aircraft, and Group 2-3 Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) with capabilities equal to or greater than the current Stinger missile (with Proximity Fuse capability). Candidate solutions must be capable and suitable for maneuver force operations in all battlefield environments. Solutions must support such considerations as safety, human factors, transportability, mobility, cybersecurity, training, and Army Integrated Logistics Support (ILS). The system must be ultimately capable of achieving Full Materiel Release to the warfighter. The system must be capable of supporting high reliability, operational availability, and materiel availability in an operational combat environment. The system must be producible using production-line processes. RESPONSE INSTRUCTIONS. Part A. Business Information: Please provide the following information for your company and for any teaming or joint venture partners: Company/Institute name Address Point of Contact Cage Code DUNS Number Phone Number E-mail Address Web page URL 9. Size of business pursuant to North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code 336414; Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing Based on the above NAICS Code, state (Yes/No, and which category) whether your company qualifies as a Small Business, Woman Owned Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business, 8(a) Certified, HUB Zone Certified, Veteran Owned Small Business, Service Disabled Small Business, or Central Contractor Registration. Provide a statement describing your company as domestically or foreign owned (if foreign owned, please indicate country of ownership). Part B. Company Capability: Candidate technical solutions must be supported by current demonstrated company experience with MANPADS weapons, and your understanding of MANPADS as a battlefield solution for AMD application. Describe briefly the capabilities of your company and the nature of the goods and/or services you provide. Include a description of your staff composition and management structure. Describe your company's past experience (no more than five examples) on previous projects similar in complexity to this requirement. Include contract numbers, a brief description of the work performed, period of performance, and agency or organization supported. Describe your processes, experience, and facilities for executing production of MANPADS capable missiles. Describe the top five risks you foresee in executing an effort of this scope. What steps would you likely take to mitigate the risks? If you were to use subcontractors for this effort, what subcontractors would you use to do what percentage of what work? What are their experiences and do you already have a relationship with the subcontractor(s)? How many are small and/or disadvantaged businesses? Describe your company's approach and capabilities in obtaining and retaining qualified and experienced personnel. How soon could your company secure qualified personnel to support such an effort? Describe your company's approach to quality management and inform the government of your company’s compliance to quality standards. Part C. Technical Submission: The response will include a description of the candidate technical solution, and how the solution meets the requirements outlined in this RFI. Your submission should also outline key performance capabilities of your solution. Responses should address technical data, data rights, and Technical Data Package (TDP). Submissions should describe your approach to modularity and open system architecture. Your response will include capability against each of the threats. Your response will include your projected Technology Readiness Level (TRL) and Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) and provide supporting information to justify the ratings. Candidate technical solutions to this RFI must demonstrate a thorough approach of how the contractor plans to transition emerging technology to production and fielding in the schedule outlined. The plan should outline the work to transition industry research and development; enhance the designs to meet military specifications; and transition systems to production. Your response will include rough order magnitude (ROM) cost and schedule estimates for the production design, development, test, and production of your candidate solution. Include total cost and cost by Government FY. Provide projected unit costs estimates given a planning factor of 8000 MANPADS. Provide assumptions for the candidate used to develop the overall program cost and schedule estimate. Discuss both technical and programmatic risks associated with your candidate solution, for development, integration, test, and production. Include any concerns with the Government’s technical or schedule goals, along with suggestions to change the Government’s approach or goals to reduce risk. If the candidate cannot meet the requirements as prescribed, what alternate proposals can the candidate deliver to meet the goals of M-SHORAD MANPADS. Submission Instructions. All responses must be unclassified. All responses must be submitted in writing, and must include the following: company name, Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, classified mailing address, and appropriate point of contact information. Marketing material is considered an insufficient response to this RFI. Respondents should indicate which portions of their responses are proprietary and should mark them accordingly. The Government will honor appropriate proprietary claims to prevent improper disclosure. The response must include a white paper of no more than 20 pages (text 12-point Arial font, figures 9-point) describing your candidate MANPADS capable missile solution. A fold-out page counts as one page. Also submit a one (1) page quad chart overview of the proposed system’s capabilities, with quads comprised of system description, technical maturity, design/integration approach, and operational capability. The Government will receive responses via electronic submissions only, no hard copies. Send unclassified responses to Mr. Nicholas Kirby at nicholas.b.kirby.civ@mail.mil, and Ms. Lindsay Bodie at Lindsay.d.bodie.civ@mail.mil. ASSESSMENT. The Government will use the following criteria to assess the information received in response to this RFI: 1) technical maturity and feasibility of meeting the MANPADS M-SHORAD Family of Systems (FoS) goals, 2) respondent’s capability to implement the candidate concept within the desired acquisition timeframe, 3) technical risk, 4) programmatic risk, and 5) production unit costs. ** ATTENTION** The Government will use responses to this RFI to determine industry interest and capability. A potential for any demonstration would be addressed in a follow-on RFI. An IM-SHORAD missile launcher interface document is available for review upon written request to the Government points of contact identified herein and subsequent Government release approval.