DLA Research and Development; Acquisition Modernization Technology Research (AMTR) SP4701-23-B-0001

Amendment 1 Re-opens the AMTR BAA SP4701-23-B-0001 and addresses various administrative changes This notice constitutes a combined synopsis and Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for the acquisition of research and development (R&D) in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 35.016, “Broad agency announcement,” as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. No other solicitation will be issued. Only the information provided in this notice is available. Requests for other forms of solicitation shall be disregarded. Rapidly changing improvements in technology and increasing operational requirements have made defense acquisition more data driven and increasingly complex. To keep up with DLA’s customers demanding needs requires DLA to modernize its acquisition processes. The Acquisition Modernization Technology Research (AMTR) Program, established at the beginning of FY22, assesses acquisition and procurement processes, identifies and prioritizes areas that would benefit from IT modernization or advanced technologies, evaluates technical requirements, and pursues future research efforts for DLA. The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Strategic Plan (https://www.dla.mil/Info/Strategic-Plan/) supports these DoD policies through five lines of effort (LOEs). The Acquisition Modernization Technology Research solutions should focus on all LOEs; however, there is a primary focus on LOE 4: Modernized Acquisition and Supply Chain Management, defined as “leading in logistics to deliver best value and manage risk.” The DLA Research and Development (R&D) Program Office is seeking IT modernization efforts that support any of the AMTR strategic focus areas outlined in the scope of this BAA (see Section 3: Scope). This BAA will remain open for five (5) years and will have a one-time initial closing date for receipt of cost & technical proposals for IDIQ consideration under Short Term Projects (180 days after initial posting). After the initial 180-day period the BAA will temporarily close and evaluation of cost & technical proposals will take place. During the initial BAA response period (180 day window), vendors must submit full cost & technical proposals (omitting the White Paper submission) in order to be considered for an Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract (see Section 6: Proposal Instructions). Cost and technical proposals submitted under this BAA for IDIQ consideration shall describe a potential Short Term Project (STP) that aligns with one of the AMTR strategic focus areas outlined in Section 3: Scope, to be used by the Government for evaluation purposes. Initial offerors are encouraged to propose innovative solutions, highlighting any relevant DLA/DoD acquisition experience. Consideration will be given to all approaches that enable improved processes aligning with both DoD and DLA Strategic Initiatives. Only select Offerors will be awarded an IDIQ contract under the initial BAA. Although initial projects proposed in response to this BAA may result in the award of an IDIQ, a task order to execute the initial STP may or may not be issued. Each vendor who receives an IDIQ contract may be part of a working group whose purpose is to collaborate with the AMTR Program Manager, relevant DLA stakeholders and/or other vendors to identify problems and achieve improvements with measurable results in the business processes that support the AMTR program. An optional CLIN may be included in resulting task orders or contract awards for working group activities, including travel. After evaluation of initial proposals, the BAA window will re-open. At that time, the government intends to accept White Papers from potential vendors who did not receive an IDIQ contract in the initial round. Vendors may suggest ideas for projects by submitting a White Paper, an abbreviated document (limited to 6 pages) in which a submitter shall describe a technical R&D concept (see Section 5: White Paper Instructions and Format). Successful White Papers will identify problems and present achievable Short Term Proposals with measurable results in support of the AMTR program. White Papers will only be accepted after the BAA is reopened. Offerors should check the SAM.gov website for the current status of the BAA. If such a technical concept is deemed by the Government to be of interest, the Government may request a full cost and technical proposal (see Section 6: Proposal Instructions). The Government reserves the right to select all, some, or none of the submitted proposals for award. The primary basis for selecting proposals for acceptance will be technical merit, relevance to agency programs, and fund availability. Cost realism and reasonableness will also be considered. The Government intends to award cost-type IDIQ contracts under this BAA and cost-type definitive contracts for vendors who are not awarded IDIQs. Cost-type contracts include cost-reimbursement (FAR 16.302), Cost-sharing (FAR 16.303), or cost-plus fixed fee (FAR 16.306). The Government reserves the right to award another type of contract at its sole discretion. Eligibility for an AMTR contract requires prospective offerors to meet the minimum standards of responsibility set forth in Part 9 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). Once proposal evaluations are completed, each offeror will be notified whether the Government selected their proposal for award.