NATO Business Opportunity: Provide DCIS Mission Execution Anchor Capability

Active

Contract Opportunity

The NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCI Agency) intends to issue an Invitation for Bid (IFB) to provide DCIS Mission Execution Anchor Capability.

Potential U.S. prime contractors must 1) maintain a professionally active facility (office, factory, laboratory, etc.) within the United States, 2) be pre-approved for participation in NATO International Competitive Bidding (ICB), 3) be issued a Declaration of Eligibility (DOE) by the Department of Commerce (DOC), and 4) register with the NCI Agency’s eProcurement tool, Neo: https://www.ncia.nato.int/business/neo-eprocurement.html

In addition, contractor personnel will be required to work unescorted in Class II Security areas. Therefore, access can only be permitted to cleared individuals. Only companies maintaining such cleared facilities and the appropriate personnel clearances will be able to perform the resulting contract.

The reference for the IFB is IFB-CO-423230-MAF and all correspondence concerning the IFB should include this reference.

The contract will be awarded on a Lowest Priced Technically Compliant (LPTC) basis. A single, firm-fixed price contract is planned for the entire scope of work.

SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS

Project Objective

The project will deliver two Mission Anchor Functions (MAF). The MAF services will be offered over two locations Brunssum (NLD) and Lago Patria (ITA). Each will host the services for NATO missions using a common NATO Secret (NS) and NATO Unclassified (NU) domain but separate Mission domains, with redundancy at each location and resiliency with service availability being provided from either location, for all domains, in a cloud architecture.

The systems to be delivered, hereafter referred to as the DCIS MAF, will give NATO deployed forces access to NATO’s strategic communication infrastructure and provide secure and non-secure voice, video, and data services.

This project will complement and interoperate with the current and future generation of DCIS POPs (or DPOPs), e.g., Firefly, Dragonfly, and will be the anchor point to connect the DCIS with the static environment (NATO Command Structure) for operations, missions, and exercises.

Scope of Work

The contract scope is for the provision by the contractor of the following activities:

- Project Management

- System Design (including a First Article System Test)

- Procurement of Units and Integration

- Integrated Logistics Support

- Configuration Management

- Quality Assurance

- Testing and Acceptance

- Security Accreditation

Period of Performance

The Period of Performance is anticipated to start in Q2 2025 and end in Q4 2027. This timeline represents the anticipated duration of the Project, and adjustments may be made as per the requirements of the solicitation process and subsequent contractual agreement.

Warranty

Following Final System Acceptance, the contract will require a 12-month Warranty covering all equipment, software, documents, system design, production installation, and implementation work provided under the Contract.

BECOMING ELIGIBLE TO BID

NATO ICB requires that the U.S. Government issue a DOE for potential U.S. prime contractors interested in this project. Before the U.S. Government can do so, however, the U.S. Government must approve the U.S. firm for participation in NATO ICB. U.S. firms are approved for NATO ICB on a facility-by-facility basis.

The U.S. NATO ICB application is a one-time application. The application requires supporting documentation in the form of 1) a company resume or capability statement indicating contracts completed as a prime contractor and 2) an annual report or set of financial documents indicating compilation, review, or audit by an independent CPA.

U.S. firms can download a copy of the U.S. NATO ICB application from the following website:

https://www.bis.doc.gov/index.php/other-areas/strategic-industries-and-economic-security-sies/nato-related-business-opportunities

DOC is the U.S. Government agency that approves NATO ICB applications. Please submit to the email address provided your application and supporting documentation (as attachments). If your firm is interested in a specific NATO ICB project at this time, please also include the following in the TEXT of your EMAIL:

- the title and/or solicitation number of the project

- the name/phone/email of the company employee who should receive the bid documents

After approval of your one-time NATO ICB application, DOC will then know to follow up by issuing a DOE for the project. DOC will transmit the DOE to the NATO contracting agency.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Request a DOE (and, for firms new to NATO ICB, submit the completed one-time NATO ICB application): 22 April 2024

NCI Agency distributes the IFB (planned): 14 June 2024

Bid closing (anticipated): 06 September 2024

Contract Award (estimated): 30 April 2025

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