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Request for Information (RFI) Evaluation of Available COTS RIIDs Hand-Held Radioisotope Identification Detectors (RIID) W911QY-24-RFI-RIID DISCLAIMER: THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. THE... Request for Information (RFI) Evaluation of Available COTS RIIDs Hand-Held Radioisotope Identification Detectors (RIID) W911QY-24-RFI-RIID DISCLAIMER: THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT INTEND TO AWARD A CONTRACT ON THE BASIS OF THIS SOURCES SOUGHT OR TO OTHERWISE PAY FOR THE INFORMATION SOLICITED This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes. It does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. Solicitations are not available at this time. Requests for a solicitation will not receive a response. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the United States Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. All information submitted in response to this RFI is voluntary; the United States Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the United States Government. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on SAM.gov. It is the responsibility of the potential offerors to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to this requirement. This request for information is for planning purposes only and shall not be considered as an Invitation for Bid (IFB), Request for Quotation (RFQ), or Request for Proposal (RFP), or as an obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services. Your responses to this sources sought will be treated as information only. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission of responses to this sources sought or Government use of such information. The Government reserves the right to reject, in whole or part, any contractor input resulting from this sources sought. The information resulting from this sources sought may be included in one or more RFP's, which may be released via the FEDBIZOPS portal. The information provided in this RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. All submissions become the property of the Government and will not be returned. Although, submitted RIIDs will be returned to the submitting organization. Proprietary, confidential, privileged commercial or financial information submitted in the RFI response should be marked accordingly to ensure appropriate handling and disposition by the Government. No classified information shall be submitted in the RFI response. Only Government personnel will have access to information marked as proprietary unless a NDA has been put in place. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organizations’ capabilities. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. The information provided in this RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. The results of this market research will contribute to determining the method of procurement, if in the future a requirement materializes. Based on the responses to this RFI/market research, this requirement may be set-aside for small businesses (in full or in part) or procured through full and open competition. If it is decided to issue a RFP, Multiple awards may be made. All small business set-aside categories will be considered. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged, and no feedback or evaluations will be provided to companies regarding submissions. INTRODUCTION: The Joint Product Leader for Radiological Nuclear Defense (JPdL-RND) is posting this RFI for market research and planning purposes. THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes; it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP or Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). This RFI does not obligate the JPdL-RND Program Office, which is under JPM CBRN Sensor at APG (Edgewood) to contract for any supply or service. JPdL-RND is not at this time seeking proposals. Responders are advised that the JPdL-RND will not pay any cost incurred in response to this RFI. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested party’s expense. However, T&E of submitted RIIDS is being planned by this office. JPdL-RND intent is to test select RIIDs from about 01 September 2024 to 14 November 2024 at no cost to the Respondents. Respondents will receive test results for their system(s) only, after conclusion of and/all testing and data analysis. The Respondent’s RIID(s) will be returned upon conclusion of testing. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP or BAA. If a solicitation is released, it will be released via the Government-Wide Port of Entry (GPE) at (http://www.SAM.gov). It is the responsibility of the potential responders to monitor the website for any information that may pertain to this RFI. The information provided in this RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. All RFI document submissions become the property of the JPdL-RND Program Office, and will not be returned. The information provided in response to this RFI may be used to assess market capabilities; discover alternate or improved technologies or concepts; determine the technical maturity and commercial availability of potential solutions; and support future planning efforts to strengthen the vast Global Nuclear Detection Architecture with next-generation radiation detection and identification technologies. Those responding to this RFI are advised that information submitted to the Government in response to this RFI may be released to non-Government personnel during the review process. Those submitting to this RFI will be asked to consent to release of relevant proprietary, confidential, or privileged commercial or financial data provided to non-Government personnel for review and analysis: Any Respondent wishing to enter into a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) shall state so in their response to the RFI. The Government Contracting Office will coordinate the transfer of the NDA. JPdL-RND will utilize support contractors to review the RFI feedback. Respondents are advised that the information submitted to the Government in response to the RFI may be released to non-Government personnel for review and analysis. However, prior to these reviews NDAs will be established to preclude unintentional information release. Potential NAICS Code: 334519 Other Measuring and Controlling Device Manufacturing PSC Code: 6665 Hazard-Detecting Instruments and Apparatus Description This Program Office is seeking: Technological solutions for the next generation of hand held radioisotope identification devices. A hand-held device is one that weighs less than 2 to 4 pounds. Technological solutions for handheld scanning suspect areas contaminated with radioactive materials. Handheld equipment that can detect, identify, and/or localize radiological/nuclear in a given operational environment for both primary and secondary screening. Primary screening is any searching, whether active searching or passive monitoring, that may result in the initial detection of rad/nuc material. A small area search is one application of primary screening. Small area searches are purposeful searches performed to find rad/nuc material in a small area. Examples of small area environments include cars, trucks, small vessels, train engines, and small or medium sized aircraft. A key benefit of a small area search is the ability to use the detector within these conveyances in close proximity to radioactive material. Accordingly, detection systems used for small area searches must be compact. These detection systems are used to detect, localize, and identify any rad/nuc materials. These systems must be relatively light, easy to use, mobile, and of sufficiently low cost to support widespread deployment. System designs are unconstrained but need to be considered Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS)). However, it is required that responders do not offer a solution using helium-3 based neutron detectors. Description of Program: The primary focus of the RIIDs Market Survey Program is to evaluate various COTS technologies to locate, identify, and characterize radiological and nuclear (RN) material, including special nuclear materials (SNM). Planned testing of the detection systems will use unshielded radioactive test sources, as well as shielding and masking test scenarios. Testing will be conducted in multiple phases, on a sequential basis. In general, the phases of testing will include nondestructive EMI, radioisotope identification and evaluation of Network Communication capability. Following review of the RFI responses, the Government anticipates notifying the Respondent(s) if the submitted system(s) have been accepted no later than 5 August 2024. The selected Respondent(s) shall enter into a Bailment Agreement to temporarily transfer possession of system to the U.S. Government. A sample Bailment Agreement is attached. The Respondent(s) shall sign the Bailment Agreement as provided. No changes will be accepted as a result of the proposed timeline. When directed by the Government, Respondent(s) shall provide three systems so they arrive in the Government’s possession by 05 September. System(s) shipment should include Technical Manuals and/or Operating Instructions for each variant. Respondent(s) shall NOT have opportunity to witness testing or visit the facility. REQUESTED INFORMATION OF INTEREST Respondents shall provide the following information on each proposed RIID: The Respondent name, address, Testing Point of Contact, email and telephone number. A brief description and development history of the RIID, to include; current market share and number of units sold as of the date of the submission. Respondents may only submit multiple variants if they possess different detector technologies or algorithms. Each Respondent may submit up to 3 unique variants. Commercially available systems with Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of at least 8 Ability to meet the requirements detailed in ANSI 42.34 (2021). Can the items satisfy the Government’s requirements "as is" or after modification either minor or significant? Approach used to communicate with external processors, i.e. wireless, LAN, etc. and what connectors are used, i.e. USB, IEEE, etc. Testing will validate product performance capability per published product specification. Performance versus temperature will be evaluated. However, operational temperature testing is not intended to damage the RIID. Following any storage, the RIID shall be allowed to acclimatize to the operating temperatures listed above. Does the proposed system identify a confidence level? If yes, please specify how the confidence levels are defined. Data rights included (i.e. Intellectual Property of Software). Do you have a published commercial price list for your item? If yes, please provide the web link and/or a copy of published priced list. The suggested price of the system as commercially sold to include warranty cost, if applicable. Explain how the system will be operated in the field (i.e., proposed conduct/concept of operations). Include the number and type of personnel needed to execute operations. The system’s user manual and/or Operating Manual Describe the technology being proposed. Include characteristics and capabilities of the technology, detection and identification capabilities, and compliance with applicable ANSI standards, such as N42.33, N42.43, N42.53, N42.35, or N42.38 as appropriate. Also, describe the self-calibration capability of the detector. Describe the gamma and neutron radiation detection capability, including type of material and size/volume. Describe the data file storage and transmission capability. Describe the operating system. Describe the overall maintenance strategy, and how the status of health of the equipment will be recorded, maintained/transmitted, and used in maintenance of the devices. If available, include supplementary information, such as: Any test reports (e.g., independent third party, gov’t testing, internal testing, etc.), if available. Any test reports should include the test date, test location, system configuration/version under test (tests of the same model and software version are considered more credible than those of a similar model or different software version than that of the device offered; vendors must explain how previous tests of different models and/or software version apply to the device offered), test plans, and test data/results. The test facility’s qualifications in performing the test (i.e., certification, accreditation, etc.) should also be listed. Any other information that would be applicable to the intent of this RFI. Describe how the system was designed to address cyber security. Describe how the system was designed to address ruggedness for field use. Consider specifications listed in MIL STD 810H and MIL STD 461G in addressing this description. SUBMISSION, PAGE LIMITATION AND DUE DATES DUE DATE: Questions and submissions shall be submitted in writing to both Point of Contacts listed below. Submissions are due no later than 1 August 2024 by 3:00 p.m., Eastern Time (ET). Primary Point of Contact for Questions, written submissions, and notification of shipment and tracking number shall be emailed as follows: Timothy Konetzny Chief Contracting Officer Army Contracting Command-Aberdeen Proving Ground (ACC-APG) Natick Division Natick, MA 01760 email: Timothy.M.Konetzny.civ@army.mil Responses should be submitted as indicated above and, at a minimum should include: RFI title, company name, address, telephone number, facsimile number, website address (if available), and type of business (large or small), DUNS number, Cage Code, Facility clearance (Yes or No), information paper addressing the areas of interest listed above, brochures, published technical specifications, and 3rd party performance verification. Please identify your business as either Small Business (including Alaska Nature Corporation and Indian tribe), Veteran-Owned Small Business, Service Disabled Veteran-Owned small business, HUB zone Small Business, Small Disadvantaged Business (including Alaska Native Corporation and Indian tribes), and Women-Owned Small Business, or a Large Business. The name, telephone number, and e-mail address of a point of contact having the authority and knowledge to clarify responses with a Government representative should also be included. The JPdL-RND Program Office appreciates responses from all capable and qualified sources, including but not limited to, private or public companies, universities, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers, and national laboratories. For clarification purposes ONLY, there may be requests for oral presentation sessions from respondents, after receipt and initial assessment of written responses. Responses to this RFI shall be submitted in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format. Responses are due at 1 August 2024. Please include the RFI title and sequence number The Program Office reserves the right to review late submissions, but makes no guarantee to the order of or possibility for review of late submissions. Please be advised that although all submitted hardware will be returned to respondents, all submitted documents become the property of JPdL-RND and will not be returned. Responses to this RFI may be assessed by Government technical experts drawn from staff within JPM CBRN Sensors and other Federal offices and agencies. The Government may use selected support contractor personnel to assist in the review of RFI responses. These support contractors will be bound by appropriate non-disclosure agreements to protect proprietary information.