Request for Information for Antarctic Science & Engineering Support for the United States Antarctic Program

1/27/2022 Update:A list of questions and answers has been posted in the documents section.1/25/2022 Update: The response deadline is hereby extended to Monday, 1/31/2022 at Noon (12pm) EST.1/14/2022 Update: If your organization wishes to be included in the interested parties list, please fill out the form which has been added to attachments section of the RFI. Please note, if you submit this form, it will be shared with other interested parties.If you do not wish to make a submission, but would like to be included in the interested parties list, please provide the form to dacs.recompete@nsf.gov by the RFI closing date of January 26, 2022 at 4pm EST.Please note, only the information noted on the form will be shared publicly. Organizations may opt out of the interested parties list.The information gathered in the RFI submissions will be used for NSF internal purposes only.To reiterate the message shared in the information

session, this is industry’s opportunity to share input on whether or not NSF will pursue an Other Arrangement contract. All constructive feedback is welcome.1/6/22 UPDATE - This update extends the Information Session registration deadline from Noon EST on January 7, 2022 to 5pm EST on January 11, 2022. This update also corrects the due date of responses. The date remains January 26th which is a Wednesday, not Monday as previously indicated.Pursuant to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), 42 U.S.C. § 1870(c), and/or other applicable authorities, this is a Request for Information (RFI), issued by the United States National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Polar Contracts Office, in support of the United States Antarctic Program (USAP).As an initial matter, NSF is releasing this RFI to further engage with industry and to continue its efforts to capture industry feedback to improve planning for the follow-on Antarctic procurement or non-procurement contract.  By way of background, interested parties are encouraged to view the information provided at NSF’s February 2021 Industry Day, which includes an overview of the program, logistics and science requirements, and other information regarding the incumbent procurement contract.  Notably, the incumbent contract has a period of performance of December 22, 2011 through March 31, 2025, with a total estimated cost of more than $2 billion.  Again, this RFI relates to the follow-on Antarctic procurement or non-procurement contract that will replace the incumbent procurement contract once it expires.  Additional information can be found at the following link: https://sam.gov/opp/6115269794944579b2c1bc56c74ad57b/view.More specifically, this RFI seeks additional industry feedback on the following three topics, which are prompted by the industry feedback and other information that NSF has gathered to date:1. NSF is considering the creation of an Antarctic Science & Engineering Support Consortium (ASESC) for the follow-on transaction.  As such, NSF’s USAP wishes to explore establishing and operating a consortium through a Consortium Management Firm (CMF) to carry on the Antarctic scientific or engineering support activities under USAP’s direction and subject to a USAP-approved governance structure. The possible ASESC might further USAP’s purpose by providing commercial support and management facilities, including logistics support activities so that U.S. supported scientific activities in the Antarctic region might be managed as a package under a single Consortium. Accordingly, NSF invites industry input regarding the design of a contracting process to effectively establish and manage a consortium whose members might execute USAP’s mission of operations and science support.As a hypothetical example only and subject to further industry feedback and planning, the contracting process might entail the competitive negotiation of a single, long-term, high-value contract award to a CMF where the CMF—subject to appropriate governmental direction and oversight—might be responsible for coalescing and managing the ASESC’s members and for the overall technical and program management of the ASESC, including but not limited to reporting, financial, and administrative matters, the overall day-to-day administration of Government-funded projects, and other duties. To continue the hypothetical, business lines within the Consortium might include (but might not be necessarily limited to) the following:Laboratory Services & Science Support Members: Staffing on-station and field science facilities and providing deployed research support, including pre-deployment training. Expertise: Science FacilitationCommunication & Stakeholder Engagement Members: Facilitating communications and engagement with the public and USAP community to provide information and gather feedback. Expertise: Communication and Web ServicesPlanning & Integration Consortium Members: integrating across business lines and managing shared resources (Integrated Master Schedule, Allocated Resource Summary). Expertise: Project Management.Campus Services and Travel Support Consortium Members: Providing station services (i.e., dining, lodging, retail, janitorial) and travel support for all participants through gateways. Expertise: Tourism and Hospitality.Safety and Medical Services Consortium Members: Determining Physical Qualifications, staffing station clinics and telemedicine capabilities, field safety/search and rescue support, occupational safety and health. Expertise: Occupational Safety and MedicinesTransportation and Logistics Consortium Members: Operating fuel stations, runways, fleet, traverse, cargo, warehousing, and resupply offload activities. Expertise: Transportation and Supply Chain Management.Marine Science Consortium Members: Operating USAP research vessels. Expertise: Vessel OperationsInformation Technology Consortium Members: Information technology hardware, software and management; inter- and intra-continental communications. Expertise: IT and Satellite Communications.Facilities Maintenance & Recapitalization Members: Ensuring effective stewardship of Antarctic infrastructure through maintenance and recapitalization. Expertise: Facilities and Construction Management.Again, the ASESC might be responsible for the overall NSF scientific or engineering support activities in Antarctica; hence, an ideal consortium might include consortium members who are best-in-class service providers for each of the lines of business identified above.  Further, the ideal ASESC might include membership “bench depth” in each mission area to ensure that the consortium can pivot quickly with ever evolving mission needs and provide a reliable network of highly-qualified performers. The ideal consortium might partner with NSF to enable a world class Antarctic science program, seamlessly integrating scientific or engineering activities, operations, other research support, and the innovation that keeps the USAP at the cutting edge of science in Antarctica. Moreover, an ideal consortium might offer world class expertise in information, operations, logistics, and facility upgrade project delivery. An ideal consortium might also maintain a strong focus on diversity and inclusion in a campus environment while prioritizing safety both on- and off-ice.2. NSF welcomes industry feedback on how NSF might use a Consortium contracting model to encourage and attract the best sources to become involved in the program, including large and small entities, representing traditional and non-traditional government contractors, as well as academic institutions, non-profits, philanthropic organizations, and/or other entity types.  NSF also invites feedback on how NSF might use a Consortium contracting model to meet the challenges of long-term and complex services contracting—services that often require a solid working relationship between the Government and its contractor and that will allow for ad hoc specification and adjustment of expectations throughout the life of the contract in a unique environment.3. NSF also seeks input regarding its choice-of-instrument for the ASESC.  To avoid any confusion, NSF has not settled on any instrument type but plans on using the responses to this RFI (and other information) to help inform its next steps.  To be sure, NSF is open to considering forms of non-procurement contracting, such as the formation of a binding CMF contract pursuant to NSF’s Other Arrangements statutory authority at 42 U.S.C. § 1870(c).  An Other Arrangement is not a FAR-based procurement contract nor a financial assistance contract but another method of forming a legally-binding instrument available to NSF by statute.  NSF is exploring options for the competitive award of an Other Arrangement (OA) to an eligible new or existing consortium.In addition to feedback on the three topics above, NSF invites both qualified, prospective Consortium Management Firms (CMF) and prospective consortium members to express their capabilities and interest to NSF.  As noted above, if pursued and established, NSF envisions that the CMF (whether as a single corporate entity, as a joint venture, or some other teaming arrangement) may serve as a manager for consortia members, including soliciting, screening, selecting, organizing, and coordinating members who would perform the lines of business identified above. In other words, the CMF might serve as the integrator of the services offered by the consortia to NSF with responsibility for quality assurance and financial oversight of the consortium and its members (among other areas of responsibility). In addition, NSF might have contract privity only with the CMF entity. Interested CMFs should respond to the following questions:Please provide a capability statement for the firm.What lines of business does your firm hold expertise in?What are the firm’s general capabilities to conduct such requirements?How would the firm form a general consortium?Does your firm have experience as a consortium manager?If your firm has experience as a consortium manager please provide the following: Government Points of contact for the consortia (name, e-mail, and phone number). You may submit an unlimited number of examples for this response.Please provide any comments regarding the three numbered topics identified above.Interested Consortia Members should respond to the following questions:Please provide a capability statement for the firm.What lines of business does your firm hold expertise in?What are the firm’s general capabilities to conduct such requirements?Does your firm have experience as a consortia member?If your firm has experience as a consortia member, please provide the following: Government Points of contact for the consortia (name, e-mail, and phone number). You may submit an unlimited number of examples of this response.Please provide any comments regarding the three numbered topics identified above.Any and all potentially interested parties are encouraged to respond. The response shall not exceed three pages (excluding consortia management/member experience), inclusive of any cover page, table of contents, and other information. Information shall be submitted to DACS Recompete at recompete.usap@nsf.gov no later than Wednesday, January 26, 2022 at 4 p.m.NSF intends to hold an Information Session describing the potential goals for developing a possible consortium for the Antarctic scientific or engineering support activities. This webinar will be conducted on Wednesday, January 12, 2022, at 2:30 pm EST. Pre-registration is required by 5 pm EST January 11, 2022. To register, please use the following link: https://nsf.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJItc-irqjIoHtSNEelRx7g0sp0XqjNENJsRegistration for this information session does NOT constitute a response to this RFI. Interested parties should still respond to the RFI by the due date specified above.Any other questions or feedback related to this RFI should be submitted to recompete.usap@nsf.gov no later than Tuesday, January 18, 2022, 4 pm EST.THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for informational and planning purposes. It does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue a procurement or non-procurement solicitation in the future. This RFI does not commit NSF to contract for any supply or service nor wed NSF to any particular contract type or process.  For example, NSF’s use of the term “follow-on” to refer to the future transaction should not be construed as cabining NSF’s discretion to design its future transaction in a different manner relative to the contracting process used to form the incumbent procurement contract, such as issuing an Other Arrangements solicitation entirely separate and distinct from any procurement process.  At this time, NSF is not seeking proposals and will not accept any unsolicited proposals. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested party’s expense. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future competition. Regardless of whether a procurement or non-procurement solicitation is released, NSF expects to post it at the Federal Point of Entry, www.sam.gov. It is the responsibility of the interested parties to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to this anticipated competition.