Sources Sought
NGC
Department of Defense · Department of the Air Force
AI summaryThis is a sources sought notice (a request for information, not a bid) from the F-22 Division Modernization Branch of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. It is looking for firms that can supply next-generation hydrogenated, dielectric (non-conducting) cooling fluid for the F-22 with better heat transfer. Responses are due November 3, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern, and only U.S. companies will be considered for any award. More in the summary
Market research, not a bid. Replying is free and tells Department of the Air Force who could do this work. Send a short reply to the contracting contact; no price is needed. See the contact
AI summary Beta
This is a sources sought notice (a request for information, not a bid) from the F-22 Division Modernization Branch of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. It is looking for firms that can supply next-generation hydrogenated, dielectric (non-conducting) cooling fluid for the F-22 with better heat transfer. Responses are due November 3, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern, and only U.S. companies will be considered for any award.
Who can bid
- Be a United States company; foreign-owned firms will not be considered for any award, and you must send a statement verifying domestic ownership.
How to submit: E-mail to Erzsi Easthon (erzsi.easthon@us.af.mil) and Anaiya Taylor (anaiya.taylor@us.af.mil). What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (5)
From the version posted Oct 20, 2026.
- Serious: U.S. companies only. A firm that is foreign owned is not considered for award, and every response needs a statement verifying domestic ownership.
- Worth checking: Marketing material will not count. The Air Force wants direct, concise answers showing real ability, with test data and relevant experience, not brochures.
- Minor: Not a solicitation. Responding does not lead to a contract or payment, and responding is at your own cost; replying is not a requirement for future bids.
Show all 5Show fewer
- Minor: Mark proprietary information. The Government is not liable for proprietary information that is not clearly marked, so label it before sending.
- Minor: 12-page limit and e-mail size cap. Pages over 12 are not allowed, and e-mails over 10 Mbs must be broken into smaller ones.
Read from the notice and 1 attachment. Show which files.
- F-22 Next-Generation Coolant RFI.pdf (read)
Full summary
What they want
- Information on a hydrogenated, dielectric cooling fluid: a synthetic hydrocarbon base oil with additives as needed
- Improvement in one or more fluid properties tied to heat transfer: density, thermal conductivity, specific heat and thermal expansion
- Current fluid values given for comparison, such as specific gravity of 0.789 at 25 C and 0.800 at 15.6 C, and specific heat of 0.48 at -40 C to 0.65 at 149 C
- Proof of past experience with hydrogenated, dielectric coolant or additives, or a plan for gaining it
- Testing done, non-proprietary properties (for example low-temperature viscosity stability, high-temperature stability and rubber swell) and past uses
- Whether the product has recycled, recovered, environmentally preferable or biobased content, or any toxic products or formulations
- Place of performance
- Wright Patterson AFB, OH, USA
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- How they'll choose
- No award is being made from this notice. The Air Force uses responses as market research to plan its acquisition strategy.
- Offers due
- November 3, 2026, 5:00 PM Eastern
- How to submit
- E-mail to Erzsi Easthon (erzsi.easthon@us.af.mil) and Anaiya Taylor (anaiya.taylor@us.af.mil)
- Page limits
- Response: no more than 12 single-sided 8.5 x 11 inch pages. The company information list is not counted against the 12 pages.
What to include when you submit
- Send one copy as an Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) file in a font size of 10 or larger; responses must be unclassified.
- Answer the RFI questions: previous experience with hydrogenated dielectric coolant or additives (if none, summarize your strategy), testing done, non-proprietary properties, past or planned applications, recycled or biobased content and toxic formulations, and any other reason you can improve the current coolant.
- Give company details: name, address, point of contact, CAGE code, DUNS number, phone, e-mail and web page.
- State your size against the NAICS code 336411 size standard of 1500 employees, and answer yes or no on small business, woman-owned, economically disadvantaged woman-owned, small disadvantaged, 8(a), HUBZone, veteran-owned, service-disabled and SAM registration.
- State whether the company is domestically or foreign owned (and the country if foreign), and include a statement verifying the company is domestically owned.
- Show recent relevant experience, and spell out any teaming, subcontracting or joint venture arrangements along with your previous teaming experience.
- Mark proprietary parts of your response on the outside container and on the materials inside.
- E-mails over 10 Mbs must be split into smaller ones; 5 to 8 Mbs per e-mail is recommended.
Not in the notice text
- How much improvement in density, thermal conductivity, specific heat or thermal expansion the Air Force wants is not stated; only the current values are given.
- Whether a future contract will be set aside for small businesses, its size, quantity, contract type and timing are not stated.
- No Government estimate or budget is given.
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside. Any business can reply: this is market research, and no bid is being taken yet.
- To respond, send a short reply to the contracting contact near the top of this page. No price is needed.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 20, 2026
- Notice type
- Sources Sought
- Office
- FA8611 AFLCMC WAUK F22, Wright Patterson AFB, OH
- Business type
- Aircraft, ship & vehicle parts (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 336411)
- Versions
3 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 20, 2026 · Amendment 0002 (this version)Due Nov 3, 2026
- Oct 19, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Nov 3, 2026
- Oct 19, 2026 · Sources SoughtDue Nov 3, 2026
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
Terms on this notice: Sources sought notice
Full notice text from SAM.gov
The Modernization Branch of the F-22 Division (AFLCMC/WAR) is exploring the market for qualified firms to provide next-generation hydrogenated, dielectric cooling fluid. The material shall consist of a synthetic, hydrocarbon base oil with suitable additives as needed. This Sources Sought/RFI is looking for information on improved heat transfer capability. While calculating exact forced convection heat transfer requires parameters outside of fluid properties (e.g. velocity, pipe diameter, etc.), the F-22 Division seeks to improve one or more fluid properties that correlate to improved heat transfer capability. Current coolant density, thermal conductivity, specific heat values, and coefficient of thermal expansion are listed within the attachment to this RFI.
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