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Contract Opportunity

NASA Glenn Research Center is requesting information from industry regarding potential organizational conflicts of interest (OCI) arising from the Construction Management, Inspection, Surveying, and Testing (CMIST-2) acquisition.

The nature of the work anticipated under the CMIST-2 may create the potential for OCI(s) as currently described in FAR Subpart 9.5. Each interested party should review FAR Subpart 9.5 in light of NASA’s anticipation of OCI issues and consider carefully the extent to which an OCI may arise before making the decision to compete for CMIST-2.

Specifically, NASA anticipates that the effort under the CMIST-2 acquisition will include the following types of tasks which could lead to potential OCI issues. This list is not all inclusive.

o Under the current COMETS contract, the Prime Contractor/Subcontractors is responsible for assisting in the preparation of specifications or work statements and providing evaluation and oversight services.

o Under the current COMETS contract, the Prime Contractor/Subcontractors is granted access to proprietary competitor information.

You are requested to provide electronic responses via e-mail to the Contracting Officer listed at the end of this synopsis. Your response is requested by 12:00pm EST on May 11, 2023. Interested parties are requested to address the following questions:

1. What type(s) of OCI issues would your company or potential team identify, if any, should you choose to propose on the CMIST-2 contract?

2. What strategies would you anticipate proposing to mitigate the OCI issues that you identified (if any)? Please provide strategy details, previous examples/experience with other contracts with NASA or other agencies, etc.

3. Are there any other types of potential OCI issues with the proposed CMIST-2 contract that were not identified in this RFI (assuming any were identified)?

4. Does your company foresee any OCI issues associated with the CMIST-2 that would cause you to decide not to propose on the potential CMIST-2 RFP?

NASA will review any responses received regarding potential OCI and each offeror’s proposed OCI mitigation strategy. NASA will respond to each company who submits a mitigation strategy. NASA’s response is not intended to serve as a confirmation that, in fact, all potential OCI have been identified, an OCI will ultimately exist, or that an interested party is capable of successfully eliminating or mitigating an identified OCI. NASA’s response is also not intended to encourage or discourage any interested party from responding to an RFP issued for requirements in the future.

Furthermore, NASA’s response in no way alters or interprets FAR 9.5 as it applies to a final statement of work or a final proposal submission, should an interest party elect to submit a proposal to an RFP for CMIST-2. Subsequent to the initial OCI submission and NASA’s response, NASA will not consider further information as it relates to this RFI.

Additionally, in support of the Executive Order (EO) 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, NASA is seeking to advance equity or remove barriers for members of underserved communities related to this requirement. As defined in the EO, Underserved Communities refers to populations sharing a particular characteristic, as well as geographic communities, that have been systematically denied a full opportunity to participate in aspects of economic, social, and civic life, as exemplified by the list in the preceding definition of "equity." Equity means the consistent and systematic fair, just, and impartial treatment of all individuals, including individuals who belong to underserved communities that have been denied such treatment, such as Black, Latino, and Indigenous and Native American persons, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and other persons of color; members of religious minorities; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) persons; persons with disabilities; persons who live in rural areas; and persons otherwise adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.

NASA seeks input in the following areas:

1. To support the requirements identified in this request for information (RFI)/sources sought notification, what barriers or opportunities exist to engage subject matter experts from industry and academia and how can those barriers be overcome? How can underserved communities be leveraged?

2. To support the requirements identified in this RFI, what barriers or opportunities exist to partner with subcontractors that employ members of underserved communities, as defined above?

3. What other recommendations would you make to enhance diversity and inclusion?

4. What should be considered to encourage full participation and contribution of organizations and individuals (e.g., outreach efforts and innovative partnerships) in performance of this requirement?

NASA will not affirmatively release any information received in response to this RFI to the public, but may use information received in developing the best approach for a contract strategy, and therefore such information may be recognizable to the interested party who submitted it. Any information submitted in response to this RFI that is marked as “Confidential Commercial or Financial Information” will be considered as voluntarily submitted in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act.

All questions should be directed to the point of contact identified below. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by NASA to form a binding contract. NASA is under no obligation to issue a solicitation or to award any contract on the basis of this RFI. NASA will not pay for any information solicited under this RFI. No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of a solicitation. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized on SAM.gov. It is the interested party’s responsibility to monitor this website for the release of any subsequent solicitation or synopsis.

All responses shall be submitted electronically via email to sarah.a.deroche@nasa.gov no later than May 11, 2023, at 12:00pm EST. Please reference 80GRC023CA001 in any response.

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