Request for Information: NASA Advanced Computing Services

Synopsis – Apr 03, 2015

Draft Document – Posted on Apr 03, 2015 

General Information

Contracting Office Address NASA/Ames Research Center, JA:M/S 241-1, Moffett Field, CA 94035-0001

Description The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center plans to procure services to support the advanced computing services provided by NASA Advanced Supercomputing (NAS) Division, Ames Research Center (ARC), located in Moffett Field, California. There could also be support at other NASA Centers during the performance period of the contract. Currently, the primary advanced computing service provided by NAS is high performance computing (HPC, also known as supercomputing, high end computing, or HEC). Other areas of advanced computing (including data-intensive, collaborative, and quantum computing) are increasingly important NAS services. NAS also conducts NASA mission-driven science and engineering using these advanced computing services. All of these are within the scope of NACS.

In this synopsis, NASA ARC is soliciting information about potential sources and preferred contracting approaches for the above services, which are described in more detail in the Draft Statement of Work (SOW) for NASA Advanced Computing Services (NACS).

CURRENT CONTRACT FEATURES: The current NASA Supercomputing Support Services (NS3) Contract NNA07CA29C has the following features:

1)Period of Performance: August 1, 2007 through July 31, 2017, if all options are exercised. 2) Contract Type: Cost Plus Award Fee (CPAF). 3) The contract was awarded under Full and Open Competition. 4) The current value of the contract is approximately $597M.

2)Notification is hereby provided of the availability of the Contracting Officer and Technical Representative to meet with interested parties on Mondays and Wednesdays through Fridays from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm for one half hour meeting once before the draft Request For Proposal (RFP) is released and once after the draft RFP is released. We also anticipate holding a Pre-solicitation Conference after the Draft RFP is released for review and comments from interested parties.

I. PURPOSE OF THIS SYNOPSIS

This notice has two purposes:

1) To request information on capabilities of potential offerors to provide the services described in Draft SOW. Information received as a result of this notice will be considered by the Government and used for acquisition planning purposes only.

2) To request information from interested parties regarding their preferred contracting approach to providing the services described in Draft SOW.

From this point forward, the follow-on procurement to the NASA Supercomputing Support Services (NS3) will be known as the NASA Advanced Computing Services (NACS) contract.

II. SUMMARY OF PROPOSED WORK

BACKGROUND:

NASA’s challenging mission to explore space and understand the universe and the Earth within it requires the Agency to innovatively apply and extend humankind’s most advanced capabilities, technologies, and knowledge. Advanced computing, including high-end, data-intensive, collaborative, and quantum computing, as well as scientific and engineering applications utilizing these, may be unrivaled in its breadth of applicability and impact across NASA’s mission. As the primary provider of these advanced computing services, NAS plays a critical role in enabling NASA mission success across every mission area—Earth and space science, aeronautics research, space exploration, and supporting technology development.

NAS’ mission is “To support NASA’s Mission to advance science, technology, aeronautics, and space exploration through the power of advanced computing and high fidelity modeling and simulation.” In support of this mission, NAS

• Maintains and operates the NAS facility, including world-class production supercomputing systems, data storage, local and wide area networking, and 24×7 user services;

• Develops and applies advanced computational technologies and services, such as application performance optimization, system and user productivity tools, and data analysis and visualization;

• Serves as the Agency pathfinder by evaluating and implementing advanced computing technologies; and

• Develops mission-driven engineering and scientific models, numerical methods and algorithms, and simulation tools, and applies them in high-fidelity simulations in support of NASA’s mission.

Advanced computing is the assimilation of the most advanced computing systems, large-scale data storage, and high-speed networking technologies, the capabilities of which have increased exponentially for decades, into a leading-edge integrated tool set for NASA science and engineering. When combined with sophisticated systems software and state of the art specialized applications, advanced computing provides the premier environment for enabling advances in NASA’s challenging missions and solving NASA’s complex problems in various science and engineering domains. As a result, advanced computing provides broad support for NASA’s greatest achievements, including high-fidelity modeling to design and improve aerospace vehicles, analysis of massive Earth observation data to predict potential near-term and long-term futures of our planet, and detailed astrophysical simulations and data analysis to understand the history and future of our universe, and our place within it.

In addition to managing the lifecycle of advanced computing systems, NAS provides a comprehensive and integrated set of services designed to solve any user challenges and to help users be maximally productive with these systems. These services include 24×7 user support and helpdesk, application and workflow debugging and enhancement, data storage and management, data analysis and visualization, end-to-end network optimization, and system environment customization. Additional essential services in support of NAS operations include facility operations, IT security, and publications and media services. With these services, it is NAS’ goal to enable NASA’s advanced computing enabled projects to achieve dramatic and rapid advances in scientific and engineering insight.

NASA currently operates two major HPC facilities. The NAS Division at Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, operates NASA’s primary HPC facility, with users broadly distributed across all NASA mission areas, most NASA Centers, and numerous partner organizations (universities, corporations and other organizations performing work for or with NASA). NASA’s second major HPC facility is the NASA Center for Climate Simulation (NCCS) at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, with users primarily supporting NASA Earth science.

TECHNICAL AREAS:

The following lists the technical activities at the NAS and NCCS facilities that may require NACS support during the period of performance. These activities are summarized in the Draft SOW.

1) Program Management, 2) Technical Integration, 3) High Performance Computing Environment, 4) Networking and Communications, 5) User Services, 6) Facility Operations, 7) Information Technology Security, 8) Application Services and Tools, 9) Visualization and Data Analysis, 10) Modeling and Simulation, 11) Big Data Analysis and Analytics Support, 12) Enhanced Collaborations and Visiting Scholars Program, 13) Advanced Computing Research, Development, and Enhancement, 14) Other Advanced Computing System Support

III. RESPONSES REGARDING POTENTIAL SOURCES STATEMENT OF CAPABILITIES

Interested Offerors having the required specialized capabilities/qualifications to support some or all of the work described in the Draft SOW are asked to submit a capability/qualification statement of 15 PAGES or less. The response must include the following:

1) Company name, address, point of contact, phone, fax, e-mail, and website (if applicable).

2) Whether your company is Large business, Small business, Small Disadvantaged Business, 8(a)set-aside small business, HUBZone small business, Woman-owned small business concern, Veteran-owned Service Disabled small business, HBCU/MI, Service-Disabled Veteran-owned small business for NAICS code 541513, size standard $27.5 million.

3) Your company’s capability in each of the technical areas. For each technical area, indicate what percentage of the technical area you would perform.

4) Any experience that your company has in operating or providing primary support for a major supercomputing (a.k.a. HPC or high-end computing) facility.

5) A list of relevant work performed in the past five (5) years, including contract type, contract number, technical description, dollar amount, period of performance, and a customer reference name and telephone number. Please include relevant work in collaboration with any high performance computing organization.

The Government reserves the right to consider a small business or 8(a) set-aside based on responses.

IV. RESPONSES REGARDING THE CONTRACTING APPROACH

The Government is soliciting contracting approaches to the NASA Advanced Computing Services (NACS) contract that will enhance competition and provide business opportunities. Therefore, the Government is requesting feedback on the following areas for consideration during acquisition planning:

a)Socio-economic considerations: ARC is interested in your comments on establishing subcontracting goals for Small, Small Disadvantaged (SDB), 8(a), Woman-owned (WOSB), Veteran Owned (VOSB), Service Disabled Veteran Owned (SD-VOSB), Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) businesses, 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 NACS. The Government reserves the right to consider a Small, 8(a), Woman-owned (WOSB), Service Disabled Veteran (SD-VOSB), or HUBZone business set-aside based on responses hereto. The current contract subcontracting goals are as follows:

Small Business 14% Small Disadvantaged Business 5% Women-Owned Small Business 5% HUBZone 1% Total Small Business Concerns 25%

b) Performance-Based Contracting (PBC): ARC is interested in your comments on Performance-Based Contracting (PBC). If you have specific experience with PBC in support of similar contracts, please include your experience and opinion of measurable performance standards as it relates to the technical areas described in the Draft SOW.

c) Contract Period of Performance Duration: ARC is interested in your comments on how long the total contract period of performance should be based on your ability to provide cost estimate information. ARC is considering a contract performance period longer than five (5) years.

d) Use of Cost Plus Award Fee/Award Term: ARC is considering the use of a cost plus award fee/award term structure to evaluate technical performance, schedule, and cost.

ARC is interested in motivating contractors to provide excellent performance during the life of a contract through a new incentive plan called “award term.” Award term is considered a non-monetary incentive that can stand alone or be used in combination with other contract incentives. It is a disciplined process used to determine whether to continue a longer-term business relationship with a contractor. The award term evaluation process mirrors that of award fee; however, award term evaluations are based, to a greater extent, on objective metrics. NASA has utilized this new contracting approach in several cases under a pilot program.

In an attempt to determine the feasibility of a cost plus award fee/award term approach for this particular procurement, the Government is soliciting input from interested parties and asks that responses include answers to the following questions:

1) Performance incentives: Please provide your view regarding award fee, award term, and/or other appropriate incentives for contractor performance.

2) Here are some sample incentive evaluation factors. How would you propose to measure factors such as the technical/cost/schedule performance, risk mitigation, employee and asset safety and security, innovative best practices, quality of service to users, extraordinary mission impacts, multi-facility synergy, bringing in new customers and users, responsiveness to changing requirements and budget, partnering with HPC vendors for new system development, or identifying opportunities for technical and administrative improvement?

3) What type of award fee evaluation factors would you recommend for this type of procurement?

4) What type award term factors would you recommend for this type of procurement?

5) Would use of an award term incentive properly motivate contractor performance on the follow-on contract and why?

6) Would you submit a proposal if a solicitation is issued for the follow-on contract with the award term incentive and why?

7) Have you had experience with Award Term Contracting? If yes, please provide the name of the Government agency who awarded the contract, the contract number, a brief description of the work, the Contracting Officer’s contact information, and your perception of whether this did or did not incentivize performance.

e) Data: What type of technical information along with the Statement of Work would you like to see with a potential solicitation (e.g., sample tasks, information on the computer systems and other major resources currently being supported, best practices questions)?

f) Contract Content/Structure: Do you have any suggestions or examples of restructuring, simplifications, and clarity in the description of technical areas (Draft SOW) as well as other types of additional information that would improve understanding or clarity of requirements and terms and conditions?

There is no limit on the page length to your response to PART IV. RESPONSES REGARDING THE CONTRACTING APPROACH.

V. YOUR RESPONSE TO THE SYNOPSIS

All responses to: 1) the Statement of Capabilities and 2) Contracting Approach shall be received no later than Thursday, April 30, 2014 at 4:00PM Local PST. Please respond via electronic mail (email) to the Contracting Officer, Veronica L. Gutierrez at the following address:Veronica.L.Gutierrez@nasa.gov . All questions MUST be in writing and should also be directed to Veronica L. Gutierrez. If any interested party requests confirmation of receipt, the Contracting Officer will confirm receipt.

In all responses, please reference NASA Advanced Computing Services -RFI. Verbal questions will not be accepted. This synopsis is for information and planning purposes only and is not be construed as a commitment by the Government nor will the Government pay for information solicited. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation.

No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized in FedBizOpps and on the NASA Acquisition Internet Service. It is the potential offeror’s responsibility to monitor these sites for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.

NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at http:prod.nais.nasa.gov/pub/pub_library/Omb.html .

The solicitation and any documents related to this procurement will be available over the Internet. These documents will reside on a World Wide Web (WWW) server, which may be accessed using a WWW browser application. The Internet site, or URL, for the NASA/ARC Business Opportunities home page is http:prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/bizops.cgi?gr=D&pin=21 . It is the offeror’s responsibility to monitor the Internet site for the release of the solicitation and amendments (if any). Potential offerors will be responsible for downloading their own copy of the solicitation and amendments, if any.

Any referenced notes may be viewed at the following URLs linked below.

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