Contract for Organizing Spaceflight Mission Operations and Systems (COSMOS)

Active

Contract Opportunity

Modification 1:

The purpose to this modification is to the synopsis entitled Contract for Organizing Spaceflight Mission Operations and Systems (COSMOS) Request for Information Notice ID 80JSC024COSMOS, which was posted February 8, 2024. You are notified that the following changes are made: inclusion of the COSMOS Interested Parties List and the COSMOS preliminary Small Business Goals Request for Information (RFI), located in the Attachments section.

The Small Business RFI responses are due by April 15, at 4:00 p.m. Central Standard Time.

This Small Business RFI is for information and planning purposes only and there is no solicitation at this time. This request for small business information does not constitute a request for proposals and submission of any information in response to this market survey is purely voluntary. The government assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred and the respondents will not be notified of the results. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized in Sam.gov. Interested firms are responsible for monitoring this website and https://www.nasa.gov/johnson/jsc-procurement/cosmos/ for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.

Request For Information (RFI)

Background:

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) Flight Operations Directorate (FOD) is hereby requesting information from potential sources for the Contract for Organizing Spaceflight Mission Operations and Systems (COSMOS) solicitation. JSC is issuing this Sources Sought Synopsis/Request for Information (RFI) as a means of conducting market research to identify parties having an interest in, and the resources to, support this requirement. This acquisition will be a follow-on procurement to the current NASA Mission Systems Operations Contract (MSOC), contract # 80JSC017C0006. The result of this market research will contribute to determining the type and method of procurement. The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code assigned to this procurement is 541715, Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology). Under this NAICS code a business is considered small if its number of employees is less than 1,000.

NASA JSC is seeking capability statements from all interested parties, including all categories of Large Business, Small Business (SB), all socioeconomic categories of Small Business and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU)/Minority Institutions (MI), for the purposes of determining the appropriate level of competition and/or small business subcontracting goals for COSMOS. The Government reserves the right to consider a Small, 8(a), Women-owned (WOSB), Service-Disabled Veteran (SD-VOSB), Economically Disadvantaged Women-owned Small Business (ED-WOSB) or HUB Zone business set-aside based on responses received.

COSMOS Description:

The proposed COSMOS will provide technical, managerial, and administrative work needed to ensure the availability, integrity, reliability, and security of the Flight Operations Directorate’s (FOD) Mission Systems supporting National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space flight programs requiring mission operations support. “Mission Systems” is defined as the systems and subsystems of integrated hardware, software, networks, data, displays, and mockups used in the preparation for and performance of mission operations. It is anticipated that COSMOS will be a single-award, Cost-Plus-Award-Fee (CPAF) contract with a Performance Based Baseline, Indefinite-Delivery/Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ), and Level-of-Effort (LOE) elements. Cost Reimbursable (CR) Delivery Orders/Task Orders are anticipated to be issued under the IDIQ element. CR Task orders are anticipated to be issued under the LOE element. It is also anticipated that there will be an option to transition to Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee at the discretion of the Government.

COSMOS will support the International Space Station Program, including International Partner and Commercial Visiting Vehicles, the Commercial Crew Program (CCP), and the Moon to Mars Program. Mission Systems supporting these programs are under development and/or modification in concert with program formulation and implementation. COSMOS applies to the Mission Systems for all of these programs, and any other programs or missions requiring Mission Systems support. In addition, future (currently undefined) Mission Systems and capabilities are within the technical scope of this draft SOW, and COSMOS work associated with these Mission Systems.

Attached to this posting is the draft COSMOS Statement of Work (SOW), Data Requirements List (DRL), and Data Requirements Descriptions (DRDs). For your reference, the current MSOC (SOW) DRL and DRDs are also attached to this posting. It is anticipated that the Technical Library will be posted within several weeks. Interested parties are encouraged to carefully review the draft COSMOS SOW and DRDs.

The pertinent contract information for the current contract is as follows:

• Current Contractor: KBR Wyle Services, LLC


• Contract Number: 80JSC017C0006


• Estimated Contract Value: Approximately $1.12B


• Contract Expiration Date: September 30, 2025

Capability Statement:

Interested firms having the required capabilities necessary to meet the above requirement should indicate the ability to perform all aspects of the effort, and include the following information:

1. Technical - Describe your company's overall skills, experience, and capabilities to perform the work of the anticipated draft COSMOS SOW. Please identify specific draft SOW sections where your company could provide the stated capability by way of Attachment 1 – COSMOS Vendor Capability Matrix at the end of this announcement. If subcontracting or if a joint venture is anticipated, organizations should address the anticipated administrative and management structure of such arrangements (if this information is known at this time). Also address what elements of work would be performed by the prime or joint venture partners and which elements would be performed by subcontractors.


2. Small Business - If this contract is not set aside, identify any areas of the draft COSMOS SOW that you believe could be performed by a small business and provide rationale.


3. General

a. What additional documents would you like to see on the COSMOS contract website or included in the Technical Library?

b. What barriers or obstacles do you foresee to potentially bidding on this contract? Can you identify any Government acquisition approaches that would increase the competitiveness of this procurement?

c. Considering the planned end of ISS Operations in 2030, and other new NASA programs and missions on the horizon, what are the potential advantages of a contract period of performance beyond 5 years? Are there any disadvantages?

d. What innovations might you propose in the performance of this contract or contract structure?

e. Provide feedback and rationale on any other topics, factors, and/or items of interest you would like to address regarding this potential procurement.

4. Company-Specific Information - Responses must include the following:

a. Name and address of the firm’s Point of Contact information (include DUNS number, address, phone, and email)

b. Size of business

i. Average annual revenue for past three years

ii. Number of employee

iii. Wheter the firm is Large, SB, SMall Disadvantaged Business (SBD), HUBZone, WOSB, Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB), SDVOSB, HBCU/MI, and/or 8a

c. Number of years in business

d. Affiliate information: parent company, joint venture partners, and potential teaming partners

e. If you plan to propose as a prime or as a subcontractor

f. A list of contracts covering the past three years with emphasis on work performed for the United States Federal Government. Please provide contract numbers, if your firm was a prime or subcontractor, contract type, dollar value of each procurement, and customer point of contact (address, phone, and email). If work was performed as a subcontractor, please indicate percentage of work/subcontract dollar value. If the contract(s) were IDIQ, please indicate the number of task orders awarded and the total dollar value of those task orders.

NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The JSC Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/Procurement-Ombuds-Comp-Advocate-Listing.pdf

Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI):

In addition to the information requested above, NASA is requesting information from industry regarding potential OCI arising from the COSMOS acquisition.

The nature of the work anticipated under the COSMOS may create the potential for OCI as currently described in FAR Subpart 9.5. Each interested party should review FAR Subpart 9.5 in light of NASA’s anticipation of OCI issues and consider carefully the extent to which an OCI may arise before making the decision to compete for COSMOS.

Specifically, NASA anticipates the effort under COSMOS will include the following types of tasks, which could lead to potential OCI issues:

• The contractor will have access to other companies proprietary information, e.g. Moon to Mars, Commercial Crew, and Commercial Cargo Program vendors.


• The contractor may be required to provide technical support to NASA for new systems development for current and future programs/missions.

These types of tasks could lead to the following categories of OCI issues depending on the composition of the team selected for the anticipated COSMOS contract:

• Unequal access to nonpublic information of the type that may provide the COSMOS contractor an unfair competitive advantage in a later competition for a Government procurement contract


• Potential impaired objectivity if the COSMOS contractor or its subcontractors are assessing data developed by themselves, related companies (e.g. affiliates, joint ventures, partnerships.)

A link to the NASA’s Guide on Organizational Conflicts of Interest is below:

https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/guides/OCI_Guide.pdf

Please reference this document for additional information about NASA’s policies with respect to OCI issues. Interested parties are requested to address the following questions:

1. What type(s) of OCI issues would your company or potential team identify, if any, should you choose to propose on the COSMOS contract?


2. Do you have suggestions on mitigation strategies for the COSMOS procurement the Government may consider?


3. Are there any other types of potential OCI issues with the proposed COSMOS contract that were not identified in this RFI?


4. Does your company foresee any OCI issues associated with the COSMOS that would cause you to decide not to propose on the potential COSMOS Request for Proposal (RFP)? If so, please explain.

As part if it’s procurement planning process, NASA will review all responses received to this RFI regarding potential OCI issues. Companies are encouraged to consider OCI when responding to this RFI, and to suggest measures that would prevent OCI from adversely affecting a company’s future procurement prospects. However, NASA is not in a position to respond to potential offerors regarding the existence of an OCI or remedial measures in relation to this RFI. Nothing submitted in response to this RFI changes the need for any offeror that submits a proposal in response to a future RFP to satisfy the requirements of that future RFP as part of its proposal response. Any proposal submitted in response to a future RFP will be required to follow the RFP instructions regarding OCI and the evaluation of that proposal will be in accordance with the RFP evaluation criteria included in the RFP.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility:

NASA JSC is seeking capability statements from all interested parties, including all socioeconomic categories of Small Businesses and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU)/Minority Institutions (MI), and members of the underserved communities as defined by Executive Order (EO) 13985, Advancing Racial Equity And Support For Underserved Communities Through The Federal Government, for the purposes of determining the appropriate level of competition and/or small business subcontracting goals for COSMOS.

Additionally, in support of EO 13985, NASA is seeking to advance equity or remove barriers for members of underserved communities related to this requirement. As defined in the EO, Underserved Communities refers to populations sharing a particular characteristic, as well as geographic communities, that have been systematically denied a full opportunity to participate in aspects of economic, social, and civic life, as exemplified by the list in the preceding definition of "equity." Equity means the consistent and systematic fair, just, and impartial treatment of all individuals, including individuals who belong to underserved communities that have been denied such treatment, such as Black, Latino, and Indigenous and Native American persons, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and other persons of color; members of religious minorities; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) persons; persons with disabilities; persons who live in rural areas; and persons otherwise adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.

NASA seeks input in the following areas:

1. To support the requirements identified in this request for information (RFI)/sources sought notification, what barriers or opportunities exist to engage subject matter experts from industry and academia and how can those barriers be overcome? How can underserved communities be leveraged?


2. To support the requirements identified in this RFI, what barriers or opportunities exist to partner with subcontractors that employ members of underserved communities, as defined above?


3. What other recommendations would you make to enhance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility?


4. What should be considered to encourage full participation and contribution of organizations and individuals (e.g. outreach efforts and innovative partnerships) in performance of this requirement?

Flight Operations Directorate (FOD) RFI Questions:

Please review and answer the following FOD specific questions.

1. Recommendations on a measure of performance for software maintenance?

• Provide feedback regarding ideal performance standards for software development (all development, including development, modification, sustaining, maintenance) and provide rationale. This could be industry standard metrics (e.g. defect density, Google's DORA metrics, Microsoft's SPACE framework) or other alternatives.


• Provide feedback on possible performance measures for cost/schedule estimation, including those that should not be used, and provide rationale.

2. What contract structure do the offerors feel best enables work and cost efficiencies?

• How could the contract be structured to allow and enable more agility with changing programs and priorities over time?


• Identify any portion(s) of this procurement for which fixed price contracting should or should not be utilized and provide rationale.

3. Suggest processes for planning and tracking the Mission Systems work across multiple programs in an annual federal work budget (Technical Planning Process) while maintaining existing systems. Include details on how to efficiently maintain the annual plan for any items that span over multiple fiscal years.

4. Are there any requirements expected to drive particularly high costs or complexity?

• Any requirements which should not be included in this procurement?

The documents on the NASA procurement website are for information and planning purposes, to allow industry the opportunity to comment, and to promote competition only. NASA will not affirmatively release any information received in response to this RFI to the public but may use information received in developing the best approach for a contract strategy, and therefore such information may be recognizable to the interested party who submitted it.

Submission Instructions:

Interested parties having the required capabilities necessary to meet the COSMOS requirement described herein should submit a capability statement of no more than 20 pages, using no less than 12-point Times New Roman font indicating the ability to perform all aspects of the effort. The Vendor Capability Matrix will be included within the 20-page limitation. The OCI information should be submitted as an additional document. There is no page limitation to the OCI information submittal.

Interested parties who consider themselves qualified to perform one or more elements of the Statement of Work are invited to submit a response to this Sources Sought Notice/RFI by 5:00 p.m. CST on March 11, 2024. All responses under this Sources Sought Notice/RFI must be emailed to jsc-cosmos@mail.nasa.gov. Please reference 80JSC024COSMOS in any response.

An Interested Vendors List is enabled within this posting. This list is available to other vendors to allow potential offerors the opportunity to network. Parties that would like their information posted to the Interested Vendors List shall use the “Add Me to Interested Vendors” button. If a vendor would like to be removed from the Interested Vendors List, use the “Remove Me from Interested Vendors” button. It is the potential offeror’s responsibility to monitor this site for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.

This synopsis is for information and planning purposes only and there is no solicitation at this time. This request for capability information does not constitute a request for proposals and submission of any information in response to this market survey is purely voluntary. The government assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred and the respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized in Sam.gov. Interested firms are responsible for monitoring this website and https://www.nasa.gov/johnson/jsc-procurement/cosmos/ for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.

The Government intends to review the responses submitted by industry. Please do not submit proprietary information. Data that is marked "proprietary" will not be reviewed. No evaluation letters and/or results will be issued to the respondents. The data will not be shared outside the Government, but may be used to develop future requirements, refine requirements, and/or develop the best approach for any contract strategy.

Attachments/Links