GenceTek Small Business Mentor-Protégé JV – DISA SETI
Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA)
Systems Engineering, Technology and Innovation (SETI)
Contract Number
HC104719D2039
GenceTek is an SBA-approved Mentor-Protégé Joint Venture that combines the strengths of Spahr Solutions Group, a certified small business, with the depth and proven performance of TekSynap Corporation, a large federal systems integrator. Together, we deliver the agility, responsiveness, and innovation of a small business backed by the scale, certifications, and resources of an established enterprise. For more information please visit www.GenceTek.com.
Key Contract Details
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About This Vehicle
The Systems Engineering, Technology and Innovation (SETI) Contract vehicle will provide a suite of information technology (IT) engineering services, expertise, and support in the planning, research, development, integration, and implementation activities for future, proposed, current, and legacy Department of Defense (DoD) and Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) IT capabilities, services, and systems. It will deliver complex IT engineering support services throughout the entire acquisition lifecycles of DoD and DISA solutions, systems, and system components.
Areas of Support
Task Area 1 - Systems Engineering
The objective of the Systems Engineering (SE) task area is to establish the technical framework for delivering materiel capabilities to the Warfighter. SE ensures the effective development and delivery of capability through the implementation of a balanced approach with respect to cost, schedule, performance, and risk using an integrated, disciplined, and consistent process. The scope will include SoS to the fullest extent possible and wherever applicable.
Subtask 1 – Technical Planning
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Develop, maintain and execute the program’s Systems Engineering Plan (SEP)
- Provide key technical inputs and ensure SEP alignment to other program plans
- Define the scope and objectives of the technical effort
- Identify constraints and risks
- Divide the program scope and objective into discrete elements
- Identify technical reviews and audits as well as their timing
- Establish and maintain schedules and costs
- Prepare and update planning documentation
- Scale SE processes based on the scope and complexity of the program/system
- Identify areas for potential tailoring of artifacts and reviews
Subtask 2 – Decision Analysis
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Review requirements and assumptions to establish the overall decision context
- Frame/structure the decision in terms of supporting program/project objectives
- Identify methods and tools to be used in the analyses
- Develop decision criteria (objectives and measures), criteria weight, and associated rationale
- Identify and track assumptions
- Develop prototypes and proofs of concept to demonstrate the feasibility of various alternatives
- Identify and define alternatives to be evaluated
- Analyze and assess alternatives against the service or program criteria
- Synthesize results determining the suitability of solutions/courses of action
- Analyze sensitivities, outside influences to the program or service
- Develop decision briefing with action/implementation plan(s)
- Make appropriate recommendation(s) to decision maker as expected/requested
Subtask 3 – Technical Assessment
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Establish event-driven technical plans
- Identify appropriate measures and metrics, including how, when and where the data will be gathered
- Identify performance measures to assess program health, technical progress and end-to-end performance
- Conduct analyses to determine risk and to develop risk mitigation strategies
- Conduct assessments of technical maturity, process health and stability, and risk
- Propose changes in the technical approach to address risk mitigation activities
- Advise the Government Program Manager regarding the technical readiness of the program
- Provide independent subject matter experts (SMEs) for reviews and audits
Subtask 4 – Requirements Management
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Establish and maintain a Requirements Traceability Matrix (RTM)
- Prepare Business Case Analyses (BCAs) that support IT investment decisions
- Prepare and/or support the development of Initial Capabilities Documents (ICDs) and non-material solutions in Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leadership and Education, Personnel, Facilities, and Policy (DOTMLPF-P) Change Recommendations (DCR)
- Prepare and/or support the development of an Analysis of Alternatives (AoAs)
- Support Initial Technical Reviews (ITRs) and Alternative System Reviews (ASRs)
- Prepare and/or support the development of Capabilities Development Documents (CDDs) and Capability Production Documents (CPDs)
Subtask 5 – Risk Management Process
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Risk Identification
- Risk Analysis
- Risk Mitigation Planning
- Implement Risk Mitigation Plan
- Risk Tracking
Subtask 6 – Configuration Management (CM)
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Configuration Management Planning and Management
- Configuration Identification
- Configuration Change Management
- Configuration Status Accounting
- Configuration Verification and Audit
Subtask 7 – Technical Data Management
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Identify data requirements
- Acquire data
- Receive, verify, and accept data
- Use and exchange data
Subtask 8 – Interface Management
In support of this area, the Contractor shall assess the impact of the originally defined capabilities and interfaces, performance parameter thresholds and objectives, and the overall system when defining and modifying interfaces. The Contractor shall develop the program’s interface management plan that:
- Documents the system’s internal and external interfaces and their requirement specifications
- Identifies preferred and discretionary interface standards and their profiles
- Provides justification for selection and procedure for upgrading interface standards
- Describes the certifications and tests applicable to each interface or standard
- Ensures interfaces are consistent with the program’s configuration management plan
In support of this area, the Contractor shall be responsible for interface management including, but not limited to, the following key tasks throughout the life cycle:
- Define and establish interface specifications
- Assess compliance of interfaces among configuration items composing systems or systems-of-systems
- Monitor the viability and integrity of interfaces within a system
- Managing the interface management plan
Subtask 9 – Requirements Analysis
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Define a capability that links the needs of the users to the system to be designed and developed
- Define a system that meets users’ mission requirements within specified cost and schedule constraints
- Provide insight into the interactions among various functions to achieve a set of balanced requirements based on user objectives
- Analyze user requirements and translate user needs into basic functions
- Develop a quantifiable set of performance requirements
- Define each function that the system is required to perform
- Define implementation constraints (stakeholder requirements or solution limitations)
- Translate performance requirements into specific system technical design requirements and functions
Subtask 10 – Implementation Support
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Identify and analyze constraints imposed on the design solution
- Develop, design and implement prototypes and solutions
- Analyze candidate system element design and implementation solutions
- Identify fabrication and quality procedures
- Obtain or acquire access to materials and tools required to build system elements
- Obtain external system elements as applicable
- Build system elements
- Determine system elements’ functionality against specified product quality characteristics
- Document fabrication and production issues and associated corrective actions
- Deliver implemented system elements for integration and subsequent verification
Subtask 11 – Verification Process
In support of this area, the Contractor shall manage and execute verification activities and methods as defined in the functional and allocated baselines, and review the results of verification
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Demonstration
- Examination
- Analysis
- Test
Subtask 12 – Validation Process
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Support the validation process throughout the lifecycle
- Develop and perform early program-validation activities
- Validate the initial product baseline
- Conduct validation operational testing on a production-representative system in an operationally realistic environment
Subtask 13 – Transition Process
In support of this area, the Contractor shall oversee all transition plans and activities required to install or deploy the end-item system and enable system elements to perform in their operational environment. The Contractor shall conduct and lead all engineering efforts to correct deficiencies found during transition. Transition activities vary based on life-cycle phase, program scale, and system complexity. The end-item system may need to be integrated with other systems in the operational environment based on the defined external interfaces. In this case, the Transition process is performed in conjunction with the Integration and Interface Management processes for a smooth transition.
Task Area 2 - Design Analysis Engineering
The objective of the Design Analysis Engineering task area is to analyze and refine requirements using various methodologies throughout the life-cycle of the system. Focus areas within the Design Analysis Engineering task area include engineering assessment, pilots and initiatives, modeling and simulation, and systems analysis and investigation.
Subtask 1 – Engineering Assessment
In support of this area, the Contractor shall assess the systems engineering activity or problem in the context and operational environment in which the solution will be embedded. This comprehensive viewpoint enables the ability to develop and apply solutions that consider all aspects of a problem, their relationships, and interactions with other projects or services. The assessment includes current and future needs of the user, customer, and sponsor as well as DOTMLPF and technical issues. This task area requires a very high-level of skill and breadth and depth of senior expertise to assess the technical domain and solution space, designs, and architecture.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Identify the nature and sources of uncertainty, lack of effective control, and complexity in their environment and then select and apply appropriate strategies for managing or mitigating their impacts
- Analyze and understand a customer’s enterprise or cross-agency environment in the context of customer and stakeholder needs and challenges, formulate and adjust plans and steps needed in effectively providing unique and effective perspectives, enhance enterprise integration, identify challenges, recognize mission/operational gaps, mitigate risks, and ensure delivery
- Recommend the use of mature and advanced technologies and methodologies to assess the soundness of technical requirements and/or solutions; review compatibility among new and legacy systems; and determine extensibility and scalability for future changes in scope and requirements
- Provide recommendations in the areas of technical planning and evolution management or modernization of Government enterprises
- Provide knowledge on emerging technologies, along with concept and approaches from academia and industry, to ensure that all aspects of the problem are considered
- Provide recommendations regarding the transformation and adoption of services and products
Subtask 2 – Pilots and Initiatives
In support of this area, the Contractor shall research and develop systems, system elements, methods, and constructs to support investigations of systems engineering activities on a limited scale in a similar environment. Pilots/initiatives shall include evaluation criteria to incorporate future design considerations and determine success and that are made at the end of the pilot/initiative.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall support and/or participate in designing, developing, planning, implementing, running, analyzing, assessing, and terminating pilots/initiatives with their Government partners and other staff as assigned on a wide range of systems during the performance of this Contract.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Plan and prepare pilots/initiatives
- Conduct pilots/initiatives
- Test and evaluate pilots/initiatives
- Analyze results and provide recommendations
- Research, use and leverage best technology already available within Government, commercial and academic sources
Subtask 3 – Modeling and Simulation
In support of this area, the Contractor shall conduct Modeling and Simulation (M&S) activities to support decision-making processes used in delivering materiel capabilities to the Warfighter.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Develop, maintain and execute M&S strategies
- Define the scope and objectives of the technical effort
- Identify constraints and risks
- Establish schedules and costs
- Scale systems engineering processes to the scope and complexity of the system
- Identify methods and tools to be used in the analyses, to include recurring technology assessment
- Develop, deliver, validate and verify, and maintain and execute various classes of models
- Develop, deploy, host, maintain, deliver and train users for complex models used as decision support tools
- Develop decision criteria (objectives and measures), criteria weight, and associated rationale
- Identify and develop metrics to quantify measures of effectiveness for given M&S studies
- Develop and present information and decision briefings with action/implementation plans based on the results of M&S studies
Subtask 4 – System Analysis and Investigation
The Contractor shall analyze and investigate existing systems potentially available to meet requirements.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Analyze proposed and existing systems and services to identify problems and concerns
- Predict the impacts of proposed changes
- Identify and document dependencies, functionality, interoperability and performance of systems
- Investigate problems or potential problems, and recommend possible solutions
- Employ specialized tools to analyze system performance data for specific system domains
- Develop, provide, support and maintain testing artifacts
- Develop custom tools, analytics, or configurations for performance monitoring and analysis tools
- Coordinate root cause assessments and develop proposals to solve problems
- Develop plans and proposals for selecting, acquiring or building, and deploying system instrumentation tools
- Perform system instrumentation activities
- Review, document and assess the effectiveness of the security model of a system under investigation
- Assess system compliance with relevant system security policies, procedures, guidance, and best practices
- Propose system mitigations, fixes, and enhancements to address security concerns
Unless explicitly stated in the Task Order award, the Government will retain unlimited usage rights to analysis tools, algorithms, and all other intellectual property developed as part of work on this and all other PWS task areas.
Task Area 3 - Systems Architecture
The objective for the Systems Architecture task area is to develop integrated enterprise architecture from the enterprise level down through the solution level and across solution level architectures. The scope of the task includes, but is not limited to, the development of the architecture, ensuring conformance to standards, and performing audits/assessments of the architectures and associated systems. The Contractor shall use the Department of Defense Architecture Framework (DoDAF), and/or other framework(s), as specified by the Government.
Subtask 1 – Develop Architectures
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Develop reference, enterprise and solution level architectures
- Adhere to Government-specified style guides and approved taxonomies
- Develop and document the design of critical links in the DoDAF architecture model formats, to include the linkage between models and related architectures. The Contractor shall reuse existing architecture data/views to minimize development cost and schedule, and maintain configuration control of architectural artifacts and the underlying models.
Subtask 2 – Research Documentation
In support of this area, the Contractor shall iteratively review and research published guidance and other sources of information on architectures.
Subtask 3 – Conduct Interviews
In support of this area, the Contractor shall iteratively conduct interviews with subject matter experts, sponsors, and participating organizations prior to and during architecture development.
Subtask 4 – Identify Primitives
In support of this area, the Contractor shall review primitives (e.g., performers, systems, system functions, activities, information exchanges) identified while researching documentation and conducting interviews to determine whether or not these primitives exist within the Government designated enterprise architecture tool environment. If the primitives do not exist, the Contractor shall propose the primitives to the Government for approval.
Subtask 5 – Scope and Assemble Primitives into Architecture Views
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Collect, organize, correlate, and store the architecture data required for architecture development and document the architectural results
- Support primitive registration, architecture model construction, architecture markup/coordination, and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) automation
- Mature the architecture views throughout the review and approval process
Subtask 6 – Resolve Discrepancies
In support of this area, the Contractor shall resolve/adjudicate all architecture discrepancies during architecture model development and review processes. The Contractor shall document the actions taken to resolve and adjudicate the discrepancies and provide a report to the Government.
Subtask 7 – Develop Reference Models
In support of this area, the Contractor shall review existing reference models and suggest modifications to the Government. Upon approval of suggested changes by the Government, the Contractor shall implement changes.
Subtask 8 – Maintain Architectures
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Maintain and update architecture baselines for enterprise-level and solution architectures
- Establish and/or maintain configuration control of all architecture artifacts
- Create an Architecture Standardization SOP for creating/maintaining enterprise and solution architectures
- Load all architecture baselines, artifacts, data, and documentation into the architecture repository
- Update enterprise architecture entries in the applicable architecture repositories
Subtask 9 – Review Architectures
In support of this area, the Contractor shall conduct architecture reviews for externally developed architectures as required by the Government. The Contractor shall record all concerns identified during the architecture review.
Subtask 10 – Analyze Architectures
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Perform analysis of architecture projects by using graphical, statistical, document, and model-based techniques
- Support a team approach that uses the enterprise architecture to evaluate functional, performance, technical, and operational requirements for gaps and redundancies
- Develop and support development of use cases
Subtask 11 – Architecture Governance
In support of this area, the Contractor shall have an understanding of the DoD and the organization (structure, missions, strategies, governance) and the Common Approach to Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA). The Contractor shall participate as a member in the Government’s enterprise configuration control and governance processes to develop and maintain the Enterprise Architecture.
Subtask 12 – Enterprise Engineering Support
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Provide specialized technical analysis, and engineering and implementation support for enterprise and sub- enterprise engineering efforts
- Provide technical expertise in transitioning key technologies and initiatives from solution architectures to implementation and develop implementation/transition plans
- Utilize DoD strategies and guidance to translate capability objectives and design solutions into an enterprise design
- Use established architectures and systems engineering processes
- Provide engineering and technical expertise and support for the needs of business processes
- Deliver detailed design specifications, technical papers, reports, analyses, recommendations, and other documentation required to describe and implement enterprise services
Subtask 13 – Business Process Support
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Review architectures from a process or operations perspective
- Assess IT operations challenges, recommend new business rules, and enable resource allocation decisions
- Apply knowledge of applicable standards and best practices
- Provide operational architecture artifacts to support requirements proposals
Subtask 14 – Capabilities and Services Mapping
In support of this area, the Contractor shall document enterprise systems and services from a capabilities engineering perspective. The Contractor shall document and model the capabilities and services delivered by C2, networking, security, cloud computing, data center/virtualization, network operations, mobility, unified communications, and other domain systems utilizing MBSE and other architectural modeling and documentation techniques approved by the Government.
Subtask 15 – Training
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide training in general on MBSE processes to include requirements engineering, modeling and simulation using tools such as; SysML/UPDM (Systems Modeling Language for Unified Profile for United States Department of Defense Architecture Framework and United Kingdom Ministry of Defence Architecture Framework), designing and architecture development, and ITSM Service Design, in order to develop/build models representing organizational and DoD IT capabilities. The courses shall be complete with training materials, a presentation package, and one or more textbooks per student.
Subtask 16 – Technical Writing and Document Support
The Contractor shall provide technical writing and document support to include all the tasks identified under Architecture and Design.
Task Area 4 - Software Systems Design and Development
The objective of the Software Systems Design and Development task area is to design, develop, sustain, synchronize and modernize systems to meet the needs of the nation’s Warfighters, national level leaders, and mission and coalition partner organizations. Focus areas within the Systems Design and Development task area include software engineering and software development.
Subtask 1 – Software Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall engineer software designed to meet system needs.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Conduct initial planning activities
- Prepare a Concept of Operations (CONOPS)
- Develop a DoDAF OV-1 High Level Operational Model
- Develop a Software Quality Assurance (SQA) Plan
- Prepare a Software Supportability Plan (SSP)
- Conduct software requirements analysis
- Define performance measures/metrics and method of calculation
- Decompose software configuration items (CIs) into functional capabilities or objects
- Conduct Software Requirements Review (SWRR)
- Conduct preliminary software design activities, including design methodology, and report on preliminary results
- Evaluate software and interface requirements, environment constraints, and design constraints
- Integrate capabilities with available mandatory, shared and functional enterprise services, as appropriate
- Develop, maintain, and use an Open System Management Plan to support an open systems approach
- Develop enhancements to the core framework in accordance with advisory board guidance, modernization, sustainment and synchronization goals
- Develop Software Design Description (SDD), Interface Design Description (IDD) and Initial Capabilities Document (ICD)
- Conduct a Preliminary Design Review (PDR)
- Document required design changes on change control documents before updating design documents
- Submit any necessary change requests, and implement the appropriate changes upon Government approval
- Conduct a Critical Design Review (CDR)
Subtask 2 – Software Development
In support of this area, the Contractor shall develop and deliver software to meet user needs in various environments, from collaborative software in the office space (e.g., enterprise email, instant messaging, teleconferencing, and workflow management) to software deployment at the tactical edge of the digital battlefield.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Translate the Government-approved detailed design of a unit into executable code and develop software components that meet the design specifications and requirements with minimal defects
- Iteratively integrate software builds until final software solution is achieved
- Independently review and walkthrough source codes for quality assurance
- Compile the code, perform source code review, and correct the compiled code for any deviations
- Perform code complexity analysis using a code complexity measurement tool
- Develop supporting products such as training materials, user and maintenance manuals, online help, and installation and conversion software
- Conduct initial software test planning activities at project start-up
- Conduct more detailed test planning activities during the software requirements specification process
- Determine the appropriate types and levels of tests, overall testing strategy and required testing tools
- Review software requirements to ensure that they are well-formed, verifiable and testable
- Identify all interfaces to other units and determine if other units are available when needed or if unit stubs must be written
- Incrementally assemble the discrete software or support software elements into a top-level system-of- interest that is consistent with the software architectural design and that will meet defined software verification requirements
- Exercise the interfaces and verify that all interfaces are implemented according to the documentation during integration tests
- Propose changes to the baseline high-level design in accordance with the change management process
- Perform integration testing using the test cases defined in the test procedures
- Demonstrate end-to-end operational capabilities when the complete software is available
- Conduct the Test Readiness Review (TRR) for acceptance testing
- Provide management, oversight, and execution of the Information Assurance (IA) program, security engineering, and test and evaluation activities
- Plan, capture, and analyze software assurance metrics
- Develop and implement a “dashboard” that will provide live metrics from code review of all capabilities
- Revise current software assurance processes and identify efficiencies
- Provide code review in accordance with applicable Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs)
- All staff shall complete requisite IA training and obtain / maintain professional security certifications
- Validate that the total software functions properly in a real-life or near real-life production environment
- Ensure that the software will fulfill its intended use when placed in its intended environment
- Conduct development testing of software (SW) packages prior to delivery
- Identify software components that do not perform suitably in their intended operating environments based on the established test criteria, or identify problems with the methods, criteria, and/or environment
- Obtain user sign-off upon successful completion of the test and approval of software product baseline
- Define, document, and follow an open systems approach for using modular design, standards-based interfaces, and widely-supported consensus-based standards
Task Area 5 - Systems Integration
The objective of the Systems Integration task area is to bring together component subsystems and ensure that those subsystems function as a whole. System elements (including software items, hardware items, manual operations, and other systems, as necessary) are integrated to produce a complete system that will satisfy the system design in the Agency’s needs and expectations expressed in the system requirements.
Subtask 1 – System Integration Strategy and Planning
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Develop integration strategies and plans that are consistent with the prioritized requirements and verify and ensure consistency and traceability are established between the system design and the integrated system elements
- Develop strategy and plans to ensure that integration does not adversely affect the security controls of each individual component or the overall security posture of the integrated whole
- Develop criteria to verify compliance with the system requirements
Subtask 2 – Integration Architecture and Design
In support of this area, the Contractor shall support the development of Integration Architecture and Design including but not limited:
- Develop an architecture and design that meets the requirements of the system
- Develop the system architecture that identifies which system requirement is allocated to which system element(s)
- Support the development and integration of human factors and ergonomics knowledge and techniques into the system design
- Support the incorporation of security considerations into the architecture and the system design
- Support the development of hardware and software and disaster recovery provisions
- Develop and apply regression strategies for retesting the system when changes are made
Subtask 3 – Integration Implementation
In support of this area, the Contractor shall describe in detail the plans and execute the strategy and any changes that need to be made to the strategy. At a minimum, the outcomes of this task shall include:
- Develop and execute plans for conducting activities of the system implementation
- Demonstrate that the system built complies with the system design and develop and verify a complete set of usable deliverable system elements
- Verify integration results using well-defined and appropriate criteria, and identify and correct deficiencies
- Develop/update system documentation as necessary
Subtask 4 – Integration Test
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Develop, maintain and document a set of tests, test cases (inputs, outputs, test criteria), and test procedures for conducting system testing
- Develop and document for each requirement of a system item a set of tests, test cases (inputs, outputs, test criteria), and test procedures for conducting system testing
- Perform and support testing to ensure the operations and hardware/software are functioning as designed, that hardware and software requirements meet or exceed performance standards and are ready for delivery
- Demonstrate that the system built complies with the system design and develop and verify a complete set of usable deliverable system elements
- Support integration verification
- Support and document the results all tests
Task Area 6 - Systems Test and Evaluation
The objective of the Systems Test and Evaluation (T&E) task area is to adequately demonstrate performance in the expected operational environment with realistic T&E events; manage and mitigate risks during development; provide feedback to the Program Manager on the progress of the design process and on the product’s compliance with Contractual and operational requirements; evaluate the ability of the system to provide effective combat capability, including its ability to meet its validated and derived capability requirements; inform decision makers throughout the program life cycle; provide decision makers with knowledge to measure progress, identify problems, and to characterize system capabilities and limitations, and manage technical and programmatic risks; verify the ability of the system to achieve Key Performance Parameters (KPPs) and that initial system production and deployment and Operational T&E (OT&E) can be supported.
Subtask 1 – General T&E Requirements
In support of this area, the Contractor shall primarily provide T&E technical support for Developmental Test & Evaluation (DT&E), cybersecurity, and Information Assurance (IA), and secondarily support various other Test & Evaluation (T&E) types including Operational Test & Evaluation (OT&E) and Interoperability activities of Information Technology (IT) and National Security Systems (NSS). The Contractor shall provide technical expertise for testing provisioned T&E cloud based infrastructure on all levels of classified networks. The Contractor shall engage early on during the program/project development and or integration to determine testing requirements. The Contractor shall assist the program/project refining the requirements and ensure requirements are testable, measurable, and operationally relevant.
Subtask 2 – Test Execution
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Perform System Integration Testing (SIT), System Qualification Testing (SQT) and support Government Acceptance Testing (GAT)
- Perform tests as per test plan specifications for developmental testing, cybersecurity testing, IA testing, interoperability testing, and operational testing
- Collect and archive relevant test data and results, storing these in approved systems
- Perform End-to-End Regression testing
- Ensure cyber, IA, IOP, OT&E and IOP requirements are addressed
- Evaluate end-to-end capabilities to ensure adequate testing of total system of systems performance is conducted
Subtask 3 – Test Reporting
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Verify and analyze test data
- Provide test and evaluation reports
- Provide evaluation results and recommendation briefings
Subtask 4 – Document Reviews
In support of this area, the Contractor shall review program/project documentation to include, system requirements specification, architectures, designs, Test & Evaluation Master Plan (TEMP), test plans, test cases, test procedures, and test reports to verify adequacy and thoroughness. The Contractor shall provide constructive comments for incorporation in the test documentation in accordance with current T&E policy and directives.
Subtask 5 – Shared Test Data Access
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform the following activities, as required, in support of sharing test data: share data from all tests, system logs, execution logs, test director notes, certifications, and user/operator assessments and surveys
Subtask 6 – T&E Meeting Documentation and Records
In support of this area, the Contractor shall prepare presentation and briefing materials in support of test and evaluation meetings. The Contractor shall develop T&E Working Integrated Project or Product Team WIPT and other T&E charters.
Subtask 7 – T&E Metrics
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Provide defect deficiency report on total number and percentages based on open, closed, and severity level
- Provide test cases report on total number of pass/fail test cases
- Provide requirements and critical mission functions report on total number of pass/fail requirements and critical mission functions
- Develop a T&E Dashboard
Subtask 8 – Government Furnished Equipment for T&E
In support of this area, the Contractor shall conduct T&E at either Contractor or Government facilities, depending on the system being tested and as directed by the Individual Task Orders will specify intended testing location(s).
Subtask 9 – Test Automation, Instrumentation, and Modeling & Simulation (M&S) Strategy
In support of this area, the Contractor shall augment DT&E and OT&E using M&S. The Contractor shall perform automated test script development, and support test automation, instrumentation, and M&S activities.
Task Area 7 - Systems Deployment and Life-cycle Engineering
The objective of the Systems Deployment and Life-cycle Engineering task area is to effectively move a system element or system to the next phase and/or to its intended environment, encompassing the preparation for fielding the system to appropriate customers and users, and developing and implementing enterprise performance-based logistics strategies that optimize total system availability while minimizing cost and logistics footprint. Focus areas within the Systems Deployment and Life-cycle Engineering task area include deployment support, life-cycle engineering support, technical planning, policy and standards, and ITSM.
Subtask 1 – Deployment Support
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Provide deployment services to support changes to systems and preparation for placing the system in its intended and/or operational environment
- Support the development, refinement, and maintenance of deployment requirements, architectures, designs, specifications, and/or other agreed upon mechanisms that direct and guide action
- Support technical activities for providing site support
- Support activities related to configuration, testing, and validation required in facilitating the acceptance of the system element, systems, capability, or service
- Identify expected impacts and risks to Operations, and address risks appropriately
- Conduct desktop surveys, site configuration checks, and feasibility studies
- Support communication and status reporting
- Produce survey reports that outline the ability of the site to support the engineering plans, with special notice of any potential issues or exceptions
- Conduct site preparation engineering activities
- Support facility and system installations, modifications, and changes
- Support physical and/or logical installation of the system and systems elements, the installation of any necessary component devices, the installation of all required facility-related elements, the activation and/or migration of associated components
- Support activities for de-installation, deactivation and technology upgrades/refreshes
- Conduct training as needed for implementation and transition for a variety of users and stakeholders
Subtask 2 – Lifecycle Engineering Support
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Conduct supportability analyses to evaluate alternatives until an optimum balance is achieved between mission effectiveness and the KPPs
- Integrate the systems engineering processes and design maturation processes together with the Defense Life-Cycle Management System and its milestones
- Develop a maintenance plan that evolves and drives all sustainment resource requirements throughout the life This plan shall cover all areas of DOTMLF and provide for the ultimate disposal of the equipment
- Design, produce and deploy the equipment and its support system
- Develop requirements for sustaining the system once it is placed in an operational environment
- Identify a product support strategy that achieves an optimal balance between Warfighter capabilities and affordability
- Execute M&S activities to assess alternatives for major decisions affecting the design and deployment of both the end item and its support system
Subtask 3 – Technical Planning, Policy, and Standards
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide support for the development, review, analysis and coordination of processes, policy, doctrine, directives, regulations and implementation of instructions including their impacts when implemented. Such impacts include, but are not limited to: budgetary and personnel resources, related technology challenges, and gap analysis.
Subtask 4 – Information Technology Service Management
In support of this area, the Contractor shall deliver added value via support and implementation of strategy, engineering, design, integration, of technical capabilities and processes in order for the organization to plan, deliver, operate, and control IT services offered to customers. ITSM involves the implementation of quality IT and technical services that meet the needs of customers through an appropriate mix of people, process, and information technology.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Provide SME support to enable ITIL/DoD Enterprise Service Management Framework (DESMF) Service Strategy, Service Design, Service Transition, Service Operations, and Continual Service Improvement processes
- Coordinate and communicate ITSM initiatives
- Assess effectiveness of ITSM initiatives and measure alignment with DoD’s strategic goals
- Establish and improve enterprise-wide ITSM and delivery standards that enable the translation of organizational strategic IT mission objectives into executable operational actions
- Provide technical expertise, support and services to facilitate the Government’s implementation of a managed service approach to systems and elements of the DoD IT enterprise
- Conduct analysis and design required to implement new processes or changes to existing processes based on IT asset management (ITAM) and/or International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards
- Integrate process design flows, measures, and automation into designated toolsets
- Perform audits and assessments in accordance with various industry standards (i.e., SAS70, ISO 20000, ISO 17999, HDI Service Desk Standards, and SSAE16)
Task Area 8 - Special Systems Engineering
The objective of the Special Systems Engineering Requirements task area is to provide engineering support for specialized environments currently within the DoD mission space. Notwithstanding these specialized requirements, the Contractor shall be able to perform systems engineering activities for all legacy, current, and future DoD IT missions. For any future DoD IT missions, the Contractor shall obtain any skills, knowledge and abilities needed to apply systems engineering expertise in support of those missions. Failure to do so may render the Contractor ineligible for Task Order awards requiring systems engineering support applied to the new DoD IT mission area.
Subtask 1 – Network Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide engineering support for existing Defense Information Systems Network (DISN) terrestrial, satellite, and wireless transport infrastructures and their approved architectures. The objective is to ensure a secure and resilient network infrastructure in support of the DoD Enterprise Infrastructure by connecting deployed Warfighters to each other and to their sustaining bases; U.S. Forces to their coalition partners; and DoD to intelligence and federal, state, and local agencies.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Transport Network Planning and Engineering (current infrastructure utilizes Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) as a primary technology, with optical channels at transmission speeds of 10 Gbps)
- Optimize DISN network architectural requirements
- Design, plan and engineer changes to transport bandwidth requirements
- Analyze existing DISN transport architectures and design, develop and deliver solutions to improve the architecture and resolve network transition issues
- Perform configuration management to control design changes associated with the DISN transport architecture
- Design, develop and deliver engineering plans and solutions for transport network architectures world- wide, including CONUS, Europe, Pacific (PAC) and Southwest Asia (SWA)
- Assess and provide recommendations for Theater-level DISN transport architectures
- Provide Internet Protocol (IP) engineering support for the Department of Defense Information Network (DoDIN), covering both non-classified IP router network (NIPRNet) and secret IP router network (SIPRNet)
- Develop, test, provide and execute implementation guides for initiatives to increase the security (harden the perimeter) of the NIPRNet
- Engineer solutions to improve the internet access point (IAP) network infrastructure, situated between the Internet and the DISN
- Engineer solutions to improve and integrate special initiatives into the SIPRNet, the DISN Test and Evaluation Network (DTEN), Unified Capabilities (UC), Enterprise Services, and the DISN Tactical Edge
- Support IPv6 integration testing and deployment
- Perform cryptographic systems engineering and integration
- Improve the information assurance (IA) posture of the transport network
- Provide certification and accreditation (C&A) support
Subtask 2 – Satellite Communications Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide systems engineering support for enterprise, end-to-end Satellite Communications (SATCOM) system solutions. End-to-end SATCOM systems consist of ground, space, and control segments that allow geographically dispersed users to access services when the terrestrial infrastructure is not available or cost-effective. SATCOM systems include the following equipment and functions: Radio Frequency (RF), Baseband, Network Interface, Monitoring and Control (M&C) and Situational Awareness (SA) reporting. SATCOM services include voice, data, video, transport and applications over Military and Commercial satellites between the customer’s ground segment end points and control centers providing the services. The ground segment includes terrestrial, airborne and ship-based systems. A key part of the SATCOM ground segment is the Enterprise SATCOM Gateway, which will transition to JIE Large and Small Enterprise SATCOM Gateways.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Analyze customer requirements for SATCOM solution suitability (i.e., requirements for throughput, reliability, latency, security and connectivity)
- Analyze, develop and document detailed system requirements for SATCOM
- Develop SATCOM system technical approaches
- Develop SATCOM analysis of alternative architectures, high level design, and risks
- Develop SATCOM system and sub-system performance specifications
- Provide support for SATCOM system acquisition and procurement
- Develop SATCOM integration and interoperability plans
- Conduct SATCOM network loading analysis and network engineering
- Conduct SATCOM system survivability assessments
- Create SATCOM developmental test plans, execute the tests, and report results
Subtask 3 – Spectrum Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall enable the DoD’s effective and efficient use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) in support of national security and military objectives. The Defense Spectrum Office (DSO) is responsible for a broad range of EMS services and capabilities, ranging from short notice on-the-ground operational support at the forward edge, to long range spectrum planning and policy support in pursuit of national strategic objectives. This support includes: Spectrum Support to Combatant Commands and Services, Electromagnetic Environmental Effects (E3) and Spectrum Engineering, Strategic Spectrum Planning, Spectrum Enterprise Services and Tools.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Spectrum support to Combatant Commands, Services and Agencies (CC/S/As)
- Provide training on various spectrum management capabilities
- Conduct Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) analyses and engineering studies and provide recommendations resulting from those analyses and studies
- Conduct electromagnetic propagation predictions, signal coverage plots, engineering analyses, and country studies
- Review and provide recommendations for improving spectrum plans, manuals and doctrines
- Provide technical engineering and field support for the Joint Spectrum Interference Resolution (JSIR) in accordance with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Instruction (CJCSI/M) 02 series Research, analyze, organize and report on space systems activities and satellite technical information
- Improve spectrum operations business processes and analytics
- Provide engineering support to implement Joint Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations (JEMSO)
- Provide engineering support for the DoD’s E3 program, including the Joint Ordnance E3 program (which includes Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to Ordnance (HERO) and the Joint Ordnance E3 Risk Assessment Database (JOERAD))
- Provide support for the Electromagnetic Compatibility Standardization (EMCS) program
- Provide integrated strategies, policies, processes and practices to achieve global spectrum access for national security obligations
- Provide technical support in response to various regulatory and legislative activities (i.e., Interdepartmental Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA))
- Provide technical support to reallocate spectrum in accordance with the National Broadband Plan
- Conduct spectrum sharing studies and develop technical papers for international working groups to ensure existing and planned DoD spectrum requirements are protected within the international framework
- Provide technical support to execute the DoD EMS Strategy
- Survey, identify, prioritize, and assess technologies that have potential impact on DoD spectrum access
- Provide engineering support to the Global Electromagnetic Spectrum Information System (GEMSIS) program, including design, development and delivery of new GEMSIS capabilities
- Develop, validate, support and execute various analytical tools and M&S capabilities to evaluate new spectrum management concepts, techniques, technologies and business practices
Subtask 4 – Cybersecurity Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall support cybersecurity engineering, which includes policy development, planning, research, engineering, architecture, design, development, testing, performance analysis, acquisition, implementation, integration, and fielding for (but not limited to):
- Securing the DoDIN Joint Information Environment (JIE)
- Development of Defensive Cyber Operations concepts to enable Attack Detection, Diagnosis, and Response (A2DR) methodologies
- DoD Network Operations (NETOPS) sensors, collectors, correlation capabilities, and presentation systems
- Evolution of the DoD Public Key Infrastructure & Enablement Activities (PKI)
- Cross Domain Enterprise Services (CDES)
- Internet/DoDIN boundary and perimeter defense systems
- Enclave-based systems and current endpoint technologies
- Support of C&A in accordance with the Risk Management Framework (RMF), as well as any other Government-specified C&A policies and procedures
- Secure and support other networks as identified
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide cybersecurity engineering support in accordance with DoD publications including, but not limited to:
- DoDD 8500.1: Information Assurance (IA)
- DoDI 8500.2: Information Assurance (IA) Implementation
- DoDI 8500.01: Cybersecurity
- DoDI 8520.2: Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Public Key Enabling
- DoDI 8580.1: Information Assurance (IA) in the Acquisition System
- DODI 8510.01: Risk Management Framework (RMF) for DoD Information Technology (IT)
- NIST 800-37
- NIST 800.60 Volumes I and II
- The NIST 800-53 and
- The NIST 800-53A
Subtask 5 – Cloud Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall implement the cloud model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction for consumers and producers.
The cloud model promotes availability and is composed of five essential characteristics (On-demand self-service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity, and measured service). Although Cloud Computing has three primary service models (Cloud Software as-a-Service (SaaS), Cloud Platform as-a-Service (PaaS), Cloud Infrastructure as-a-Service (IaaS)), other service models are to be considered (X-as-a-Service). The Contractor shall support cloud-engineering deployments in at least four environments (Private cloud, Community cloud, Public cloud, and Hybrid cloud). Key enabling technologies in the cloud include: (1) fast wide-area networks, (2) powerful, inexpensive server computers, and (3) high-performance virtualization for commodity hardware.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Develop and augment cloud computing technologies to optimize cost savings combined with increased IT agility
- Evaluate and recommend adoption of mature, well-documented, and industry-accepted open cloud computer standards and profiles to support development of interoperable cloud-based services within the DoD
- Engineer cloud solutions
- Develop and engineer secure and reliable IT computing services within the cloud environment
- Integrate new applications into cloud environments, and transition existing applications into cloud environments
- Engineer a solution to integrate various platforms and eliminate the need for multiple interfaces to manage cloud environments
- Integrate other components from other systems and/or cloud environments, including commercial products and systems
- Ensure compliance with National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) guidelines on cloud computing
- Apply security requirements across crosscutting layers of the solutions architecture of all layers in the cloud environment (i.e., end-to-end security that ranges from physical security to application security).
- Conduct risk assessment and viability studies for transitioning various applications into the cloud environment
Subtask 6 – Information and Knowledge Engineering
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide support and services for the full range of information and knowledge engineering to include, but not limited to, the development of information flow across functional domains; functional data models; standardization and implementation of common data elements; prototyping, development and implementation of shared databases in standard, common, migration systems, data mining and analytics, improvements in cross-organizational knowledge sharing and interoperability of data; and the development of data migration strategies to identify the plans and processes for the transition of legacy data to shared data through the utilization of data standards.
In support of this area, the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Studies and analyses of logistics/supportability, engineering, financial, operational, and business processes
- Evaluate the viability of potential solutions, alternatives to various technical issues and challenges, and emerging products or technology
- Develop pre-production, open source, or commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS)-based prototypes to assess and identify risks in as yet unproven technology applications
- Design, develop and deliver new or modified existing information engineering products
- Perform business process improvement practices to re-engineer methodologies and improve business process modernization projects
- Perform data and visualization analytics on various products (i.e., Hadoop/Map Reduce, NoSQL and SQL databases, Microsoft Excel, cloud-based analytic platforms, machine learning, and visualization tools)
- Optimize application and system performance to meet customer needs and business objectives
Subtask 7 – Mobility
In support of this area, the Contractor shall deliver wireless DoD Information Enterprise Infrastructure and services to operate secure mobile enterprise services within the DoD. In support of this task the Contractor shall perform activities including, but not limited to:
- Support the institution of mobile device policies and standards for use across DoD
- Support the promotion of standard development and use of mobile and web applications across DoD
- Deliver systems engineering support and design artifacts for the Mobility Ecosystem at DISA or at DISA’s Mission Partners
- Support ensuring that cyber security policies and risk management is appropriately implemented in Mobility infrastructure, components and capabilities
- Develop and enforce systems engineering and configuration management processes across the Mobility Ecosystem
- Provide interface support to critical systems, such as the DISA Business and Fulfillment systems
- Support the analysis and integration as appropriate of emerging technologies and Joint Capability Technology Demonstration (JCTDs). Develop, maintain and enforce Mobility policies and standards
- Make recommendations for unclassified Mobility devices and associated peripherals
- Deliver interim secure Mobility device solutions and associated peripherals, while transitioning to commercial use products
- Support ensuring mobility device communications; such as, Unified Communications, electronic voice- over-IP (eVoIP), Defense Collaboration Services (DCS), and Enterprise e-mail are available on all DISA Deliver necessary standard apps tools, framework, and MAS for use across DoD. Develop appropriate policies for device management.
- Support the integration and delivery of components and services necessary to support a comprehensive DoD Mobility Infrastructure specifically related to Mobile Device Management (MDM), Gateways, security services and PKI solutions
Subtask 8 – Cognitive Computing
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide support and services for the full range of technology areas that are based on Artificial Intelligence and Signal Processing with the goal of duplicating human cognitive thought. The activities for this task include but are not limited to:
- Support the development of self-learning algorithms that use data mining, pattern recognition, natural language processing and other techniques
- Support the development of reasoning computing that utilizes a reasoning approach similar to the human reasoning and human decision-making process
- Support the development of natural language processing including, but not limited to, automatic summarization, conference resolution, discourse analysis, machine translation, morphological segmentation, named entity recognition, natural language generation, natural language understanding, optical character recognition, part of speech tagging, parsing, question answering, relationship extraction, sentence breaking, sentiment analysis, speech recognition, speech segmentation, topic segmentation and recognition, word segmentation, word sense disambiguation, information retrieval, and information extraction
- Support the development of cognitive computing vision including, but not limited to, visual attention, visual search, object and person tracking, object discovery, facial recognition, scene categorization, and localization and mapping
- Support the development of human-computer interaction interfaces
Subtask 9 – Emerging Technologies
In support of this area, the Contractor shall provide systems engineering support and services to the application of new technologies, which may not yet be mature at the time of Contract award, to improve and expand DISA services to meet future mission needs, emerging threats, and improve Warfighter capabilities. The activities for this task include but are not limited to:
- Support the organizational objectives to embrace principled and robust use of modern innovation tools for problem-solving and accelerating transitions of emerging technologies from lab to production
- Utilize design thinking to analyze the organizational and mission problems as they currently are and apply strategic foresight for the solutions to be agile and resilient to future organizational and mission problems
- Develop cost benefit analyses when proposing an emerging technology to include development and lifecycle costs
- Assess what the technology’s readiness level is in accordance with the current Department of Defense Technology Readiness assessment guidance and develop plans and timelines for maturation of the emerging technology
- Support the exploration of emerging technology’s impacts on the DoD operational environments; such that the utility and viability of emerging technologies are properly measured in their support of diverse classes of warfighters, mission areas, and support infrastructures
