SOLE SOURCE: NGS Atomic Clock Products Evaluation

***THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION’S (NOAA) ACQUISITION & GRANTS OFFICE, EASTERN ACQUISITION DIVISION-NORFOLK, NATIONAL GEODETIC SURVEY (NGS) OFFICE, INTENDS TO NEGOTIATE AND AWARD A PURCHASE ORDER, ON A SOLE SOURCE BASIS, UNDER AUTHORITY OF RFO FAR 6.103-1, WITH SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY FOR ATOMIC CLOCK PRODUCTS EVALUATION TO BE DELIVERED/PERFORMED AT NATIONAL GEODETIC SURVEY, SILVER SPRING, MD. NO SET ASIDE IS TO BE USED FOR THIS SOLE SOURCE REQUIREMENT. THE ASSOCIATED NAICS CODE IS 541511, CUSTOM COMPUTER PROGRAMMING SERVICES. ***THE SOLE SOURCE DETERMINATION IS BASED ON NOAA’S REQUIREMENT THAT SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY (SLU) IS THE ONLY VENDOR THAT CAN PROVIDE THIS SERVICE. SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY (SLU), POSSESSES THE UNIQUE TECHNICAL EXPERTISE AND EXISTING SOFTWARE INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIRED TO MEET THE AGENCY'S NEEDS. SLU HAS ALREADY DEVELOPED THE PROTOTYPE PRECISE-CLOCK-ESTIMATION FRAMEWORK SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO INTERFACE WITH NGS’S PROPRIETARY MPAGES LIBRARIES. THIS FRAMEWORK WAS THE BASIS FOR PEER-REVIEWED RESEARCH PROVING THAT NGS CAN ACHIEVE CLOCK-PRODUCT PERFORMANCE COMPARABLE TO THE INTERNATIONAL GNSS SERVICE (IGS). THE PROJECT REQUIRES IN-DEPTH EXPERTISE IN GNSS DATA PROCESSING, CLOCK ANALYSIS, AND OPTIMAL ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES THAT ARE HIGHLY SPECIALIZED. SLU IS UNIQUELY POSITIONED DUE TO THEIR INTIMATE FAMILIARITY WITH THE EXISTING MATLAB AND C++ FRAMEWORK THAT MUST NOW BE MODERNIZED AND MIGRATED TO A STANDARD LINUX ENVIRONMENT. SLU INCLUDES STAFF ON THE IGS CLOCK WORKING GROUP. THIS SPECIFIC LEADERSHIP FUNCTION IS CRITICAL FOR THIS PROJECT, WHICH REQUIRES COORDINATING INDEPENDENT VALIDATION AND PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENTS OF NGS CLOCK PRODUCTS WITH THE IGS. SLU HAS ALREADY ESTABLISHED A DEDICATED GNSS STATION AND TESTING ENVIRONMENT SPECIFICALLY FOR THE EVALUATION OF THE SAFRAN SRO-5680 ATOMIC CLOCKS PROVIDED BY NGS. THIS EXISTING SETUP ALLOWS FOR IMMEDIATE COMMENCEMENT OF THE FREQUENCY STABILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL TESTS REQUIRED IN THE PROJECT SCOPE, WHICH WOULD OTHERWISE REQUIRE SIGNIFICANT LEAD TIME AND CAPITAL INVESTMENT AT ANOTHER FACILITY. NO OTHER ACADEMIC OR COMMERCIAL ENTITY HAS THIS DIRECT LEADERSHIP LINK TO FACILITATE THE REQUIRED EXTERNAL EVALUATION OF NGS PRODUCTS. BASED ON THE SPECIALIZED NATURE OF THE SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT, THE UNIQUE INTEGRATION WITH NGS LIBRARIES, AND LSU’S LEADERSHIP ROLE WITHIN THE IGS CLOCK WORKING GROUP, SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY IS THE ONLY SOURCE CAPABLE OF FULFILLING THESE REQUIREMENTS WITHIN THE NECESSARY TIMEFRAME. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: DATE OF AWARD THROUGH TWO (2) YEARS. ***THIS PRESOLICITATION NOTICE IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS AND NO SOLICITATION PACKAGE IS AVAILABLE. HOWEVER, FIRMS THAT BELIEVE THEY CAN FULLY MEET THE GOVERNMENT'S REQUIREMENTS MAY SUBMIT SUBSTANTIATING DOCUMENTATION OR A REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IN WRITING TO THE IDENTIFIED POINT OF CONTACT WITHIN 15 DAYS AFTER PUBLICATION OF THIS PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE. SUCH REQUESTS AND DOCUMENTATION WILL BE EVALUATED SOLELY FOR THE PURPOSE OF DETERMINING WHETHER OR NOT TO CONDUCT THIS PROCUREMENT ON A COMPETITIVE BASIS. A DETERMINATION BY THE GOVERNMENT NOT TO CONDUCT A COMPETITIVE PROCUREMENT, BASED UPON RESPONSES TO THIS NOTICE, IS SOLELY WITHIN THE DISCRETION OF THE GOVERNMENT. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE IN RESPONSE TO THIS NOTICE.