Status Report

NASA HQ Solicitation: Independent Program Assessment

By SpaceRef Editor
July 15, 2010
Filed under , ,

Synopsis – Jul 13, 2010

General Information
Solicitation Number: N/A
Reference Number: 4200343429
Posted Date: Jul 13, 2010
FedBizOpps Posted Date: Jul 13, 2010
Recovery and Reinvestment Act Action: No
Original Response Date: Jul 21, 2010
Current Response Date: Jul 21, 2010
Classification Code: R — Professional, administrative, and mgmt support services
NAICS Code: 541611 – Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services
Set-Aside Code: Competitive 8(a)

Contracting Office Address

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA Headquarters Acquisition Branch, Code 210.H, Greenbelt, MD 20771

Description

NASA/HQ is hereby soliciting information about potential 8(a) sources for Independent Program Assessment Office (IPAO) Schedule Analysis & Estimating Support. An organization that is not considered a certified 8(a) business under the applicable NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice.

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.

Vendors having the capabilities necessary to meet or exceed the stated requirements are invited to submit appropriate documentation, literature, brochures, and references. Vendors interested in this RFI must also provide examples of the following along with their capabilities statements:

1. Please provide examples of prior or current projects of similar nature.

2. Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) is a growing concern for NASA/IPAO. How would you address this issue and how do you monitor this growing problem to ensure you and your employees remain conflict free and unbiased?

3. Can you provide at least three, highly skilled and capable Work Year Equivalent (WYEs), onsite at our IPAO Office, Langley Research Center?

4. WYEs must process a strong working knowledge of Permaster Risk Analysis and at Risk Demonstrate that WYEs possess a strong understanding of these tools by providing us with a copy of their resumes.

5. Please address your current in-house capability and capacity to perform the work.

Please advise if the requirement is considered to be a commercial or commercial-type product. A commercial item is defined in FAR 2.101.

This synopsis is for information and planning purposes and is not to 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. Respondents deemed fully qualified will be considered in any resultant solicitation for the requirement.

The Government reserves the right to consider a 8(a) set-aside based on responses hereto. All responses shall be submitted to Candis Edwards-Duncan via email at Candis.J.Edwards-Duncan@nasa.gov no later than 4:00 EST July 21, 2010. Please reference 4200343429 in any response. Any referenced notes may be viewed at the following URLs linked below.

Below is a draft version of the Statement of Work for this RFI:

1. Purpose, Objective, and Background of Work to be Performed:

The Independent Program Assessment Office (IPAO), within the Office of Independent Program and Cost Evaluation (IPCE), has the responsibility for enabling the independent review (an unbiased, objective review of the maturity, health and status) of the Agency’s programs and projects at life cycle milestones to ensure the highest probability of mission success. The IPAO ensures the objectivity, quality, integrity and consistency of the independent review process required by the NASA Space Flight Program and Project Management Requirements, NPR 7120.5, and NASA Systems Engineering Processes and Requirements, NPR 7123.1. This independent program and project review process is a collaborative effort between IPCE, the Mission Directorates, the Office of the Chief Engineer, Office of Safety and Mission Assurance, Chief Health and Medical Office (as needed), and the independent technical authority community at the NASA Centers and the NESC support of the Agency’s Program Management Councils. The IPAO will ensure the review needs of each of these communities are met while maintaining the integrity and independence of the review process consistent with the Agency’s governance model as documented in the NASA Strategic Management and Governance Handbook, NPD 1000.0. Specifically within the realm of schedule assessments and schedule risk analysis, the IPAO develops independent schedule assessments/schedule risk analysis and Joint (cost/schedule) Confidence Level (JCL) products for projects (particularly those requiring Congressional reporting) and for all programs as part of the independent reviews, particularly at the preliminary approval (e.g. pre-non-advocate review) and approval (e.g. non-advocate review) key decision points. Furthermore, IPAO is responsible for developing an independent schedule assessments/risk analysis and JCL for each designated review and facilitating the integration of the cost estimate and schedule assessment/risk analysis into the overall program/project assessment.

The objective of this statement of work is for the contractor to provide in situ (on site) senior level schedule analysts, 3, to the IPAO to support the execution of IPAO responsibilities. Contractors will be located in situ (in place) within the IPAO offices at LaRC.

2. Description of the Work to be Performed: The Contractor shall perform the following task requirements:

2.1 Kick-Off Briefing/Meeting. Within 7 days of award, the contractor shall schedule and host a kick-off briefing/meeting. At this time specific direction will be given to the contractor as to program/project(s) to be analyzed.

2.2 Task Plan. Within 15 days of this award, the contractor shall deliver a task plan for completing the efforts within this task. 2.3 Deliverables.

The primary task will be to develop comprehensive schedule assessments/risk analysis and JCL of the life cycle schedule for the NASA programs/projects. The contractor shall provide in situ schedule assessments and risk analysis, technical assessment, and systems engineering support to the IPAO as directed. The contractor shall support meetings, which may take place in different locations including NASA centers or contractor facilities, related to program and project reviews. The assessments will include development, production, and operations assessments. Working with the lead civil service IPAO schedule analyst and in full coordination with IPAO assigned cost estimators, Standing Review Boards and/or other IPAO sanctioned review teams, the contractor shall conduct independent schedule assessments/risk analysis, analogy estimates, and Joint (cost/schedule) Confidence Level (JCL) assessments. To be able to perform the JCL assessments schedule analysts are expected to have an in-depth knowledge of Pertmaster and a working knowledge of additional probabilistic tools such as @Risk Professional for Project or Risk+. Schedule trades and sensitivity analyses shall be done as required. The contractor shall also support: research to improve the IPAO schedule assessment process; identification and benchmarking of tools; recommendation of products; development of schedule estimating relationships (SER); and consultation and training on schedule risk analysis as required.

Schedule assessments are performed to determine if the schedule submitted by the program/project has been developed using standard best practices. The schedule logic, activity durations and availability of resources will be assessed to determine if the potential impact on schedule uncertainty. Program/project schedule management policies and practices will also be assessed to determine if they are using current analytical tools and will provide adequate reports and information that can be used by managers to make informed decisions. The schedule risk analysis will be performed to determine the impact of technical or programmatic risks and uncertainties that are uncovered during the schedule assessment on the ability of the program/project to execute the schedule as planned. The combined uncertainty and risk analysis will be used to support recommendations for the amount of funded schedule reserve the program/project should be carrying and as input to the Joint Confidence Level assessment.

For each schedule assessment, as directed by IPAO, the contractor shall:

-Develop an SRB independent schedule assessment and schedule risk analysis using a probabilistic analysis to evaluate the discrete risks. The schedule analyst will also use a copy of the analytical model provided by the program/project, apply the discrete risks identified by the SRB and compare the results with the SRB analytical results. -Provide comments to facilitate the development of the Schedule Analysis Data Requirements as part of the Cost Analysis Data Requirements (CADRe). -Provide the project’s Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) ensuring all elements of schedule have been captured and annotate those elements outside of the scope of this effort and the accompanying rationale. -Provide a list of areas of uncertainty affecting the schedule estimate and include them in the schedule risk analysis -Provide the ground rules and assumptions affecting the schedule estimate. -Provide a data collection plan. -Provide rationale for selecting a particular set of estimating methodologies and the rationale for not selecting other sets of estimating methodologies. -Provide a list of primary and cross-check methodologies for major schedule elements and, if applicable, provide rationale for significant difference (over 20%) between the SRB and program/project methodologies. -Provide, if applicable, estimate ranges, i.e., risk assessment and analyses, probability distribution, and/or Monte Carlo simulation. -Provide assistance, as requested, in preparation for management presentations. -Attend, as required, IPAO staff meetings to receive and disseminate schedule review information to IPAO management.

Depending upon the schedule estimate expectations, the deliverable will be “tailored” and flexibility will be maintained. This guideline provides the minimum expectation. The contractor shall deliver 1) Presentation (briefing charts) consisting of scope of schedule assessment/risk analysis, ground rules & assumptions, methodology breakout chart, S-Curve, and JCL charts and supporting data. There are no limits to backup charts. Documentation is due in accordance with the developed schedule plan for the review. The contractor shall work closely with other IPAO estimators and members of the Standing Review Board or other IPAO review teams assigned to the projects being estimated to assure buy-in by peer estimators and review team members regarding approach, methods, ground rules and assumptions and the final schedule estimating products.

Potential NASA programs/projects requiring schedule analysis and estimating support include, but not limited to: Space Shuttle Program, Earth Sun Research Program, International Space Station Program, New Millennium Program, Constellation Program and all its projects, Living With A Star Program, Planetary Science Research Program, Navigator Program, Mars Exploration Program and all its projects, James Webb Space Telescope Program, Explorers Program, New Frontiers Program, Discovery Program, Juno, and other NASA programs/projects requiring independent reviews.

2.4 Use of Computer Hardware and Software. The contractor shall use computer resources and software those computer resources to complete the tasks described in this task statement. Format of the electronic file deliverables shall be to the current Government standard software (Microsoft Office). It is NASA/IPAOs intent to supply all relevant computer hardware, software (operating systems, COTS tools, etc.) and hardware/software maintenance and support as well as telecommunications equipment relevant to this task. Contractor will be co-located in the IPAO office space at LaRC.

2.5 Interface Meetings/Progress Reviews. As appropriate to maintain management of the contract, there will be contract review meetings. The time span for the estimating activity will cover several months. Periodic tag ups with the HQ staff and other NASA centers will occur to receive additional technical data, discuss progress and feedback while the schedule estimate and analyses are being developed.

2.6 Contract Status Reporting. The contractor shall provide quarterly Contract Status Reports to the government, with the first being due 90 days after the task plan is submitted. The last status report will include end of contract report of all technical assistance accomplished during the period of performance. End of Contract Report shall be in narrative form and brief (no more than 5-pages).

-A quantitative description of work performed during the period. -An indication of any problems that may have impeded the performance. -A discussion of potential work in the future.

2.7 Travel .

The contractor shall anticipate multiple travels to several NASA centers and contractors, such as: 6 (2-day) trips to JSC, 3 (2-day) trips to GSFC, 3 (5-day) trips to KSC, and 4 (3-day) trips to HQ. This task will require travel to NASA centers associated with NASA projects/programs and possibly other facilities for attendance at technical meetings for discussion and data collection. These meetings provide the opportunity to review schedule data for completeness, discuss schedule and schedule risk areas, identify schedule drivers, evaluate heritage from previous programs and gain insights about program maturity

Point of Contact

Name: Candis J Edwards-Duncan
Title: Contract Specialist
Phone: 301-286-4095
Fax: 301-286-0357
Email: Candis.J.Edwards-Duncan@nasa.gov

Name: Amanda J Heslep
Title: Contract Specialist
Phone: 301-286-5091
Fax: 301-286-0357
Email: Amanda.J.Heslep@nasa.gov

SpaceRef staff editor.