DCGS ENTERPRISE FIELD SUPPORT (DEFS)

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS FOR INFORMATIONAL AND PLANNING PURPOSES ONLY. This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a commitment by the U.S. Government to award a contract. 

1. SYNOPSIS 

The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) is conducting market research to identify potential sources with the capability to provide comprehensive field support for the Air Force Distributed Common Ground System (AF DCGS) weapon system. The Government's objective is to consolidate two existing efforts—DCGS GEOINT Field Support (DGFS) and DCGS SIGINT Field Support (DSFS)—into a single enterprise contract known as DCGS Enterprise Field Support (DEFS). 

The purpose of this sources sought is to determine the existence of sources capable of meeting the highly specialized and demanding requirements outlined below. 

2. BACKGROUND 

The AF DCGS is the Air Force's primary weapon system for executing global Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) operations. It is a globally networked system-of-systems that produces and disseminates actionable intelligence to Combatant Commanders and national decision-makers. 

The DEFS contract will provide 24/7/365 sustainment and field support services necessary to maintain the operational readiness of the AF DCGS enterprise across approximately 20 geographically dispersed locations worldwide. The paramount requirement of this effort is to maintain a 99.5% Operational Availability (Ao) rate for this critical national security system. 

3. REQUIREMENT DESCRIPTION 

The DEFS contractor shall provide all personnel, management, and services required for the complete sustainment of the AF DCGS enterprise. Key tasks include, but are not limited to: 

• Global Field Support: Provide on-site field service engineers and technicians at all AF DCGS locations. 

• System & Network Administration: Manage and maintain complex server architecture, workstations, and networks processing data up to the Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) level. 

• Cybersecurity: Ensure continuous compliance with all DoD and Intelligence Community cybersecurity directives, including patching, vulnerability scanning, and incident response. 

• Hardware Maintenance & Logistics: Perform preventative and corrective maintenance on system hardware and manage a global spares inventory. 

• Program Management: Provide centralized management to oversee all contract activities and ensure performance standards are met across all sites. 

4. CRITICAL CAPABILITIES & CHALLENGES 

Interested parties must demonstrate their ability to meet the following critical requirements, which are considered significant barriers to entry: 

• Workforce: The ability to provide and maintain a workforce of several hundred personnel with active TS/SCI security clearances and relevant technical certifications (e.g., Security+, CISSP, specific OEM certifications). 

• Global Footprint: Possess the existing infrastructure and management capability to support approximately 20 geographically dispersed locations worldwide, including both CONUS and OCONUS sites. 

• Transition without Service Disruption: The ability to execute a full transition and assume all responsibilities within 60 days of contract award without any degradation of service or failure to meet the 99.5% Operational Availability requirement from day one. This includes having a fully staffed, cleared, and trained workforce in place at all locations upon completion of the transition period. 

• System-Specific Experience: Demonstrated experience supporting the specific, complex, and often proprietary hardware and software components of the AF DCGS weapon system. 

5. REQUESTED INFORMATION FROM INTERESTED PARTIES 

Interested parties are requested to submit a Capability Statement (not to exceed 15 pages) that provides clear and convincing evidence of their ability to meet the requirements described above. The statement must, at a minimum, address the following: 

• Company Information: Company name, address, CAGE code, UEI number, and small business status (if applicable). 

• Workforce Capability: A detailed plan describing how your company would recruit, hire, clear, and retain the required number of TS/SCI-cleared personnel with the necessary technical skills to ensure full staffing at all global locations. 

• Transition Plan: A narrative explaining how your company would successfully execute the 60-day transition without causing any service disruption to this critical weapon system. The plan must specifically address the risk of not meeting the 99.5% Ao rate. 

• Relevant Experience: A summary of at least two (2) and no more than three (3) recent (within the past 5 years) contracts of similar size, scope, and complexity, including support for large, globally distributed, high-security government systems. 

• System Experience: Describe your company's direct experience with the AF DCGS weapon system or comparable ISR ground systems. 

6. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS 

• Request a copy of the PWS via email to be sent over via DoD Safe. 

• Submissions shall be made via email to barry.frank@us.af.mil and samantha.taylor.12@us.af.mil. 

• The subject line of the email shall read: "Response to Sources Sought: DEFS." 

• Proprietary information should be clearly marked. 

7. DISCLAIMER 

The Government will not reimburse respondents for any costs incurred in preparation of a response to this notice. This notice is for market research purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. A determination by the Government not to compete this requirement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government.