Exploration Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) Development and Sustaining

NASA/Johnson Space Center (JSC) has requirements for sustaining engineering, non-standard and unique services, and design and development for specialized systems on the International Space Station (ISS) through the end of the ISS Program.

These systems include:

• Universal Waste Management System (UWMS): Next generation space toilet that is significantly smaller, lighter, and more easily maintained than legacy systems and configurable for use across multiple spaceflight vehicles and missions. UWMS interfaces with existing ISS hardware to enable urine recovery and processing and meet NASA’s goal of 98% water recovery.
• Condensing Heat Exchanger (CHX): Additively manufactured weldment and modified hydrophilic coating with improved properties for microbial control, siloxane resistance, and overall lifetime, which is designed to interface with existing ISS flight hardware
• Sabatier: Water production assembly that interfaces with existing ISS hardware to recycle waste gases from life support systems to produce water, further closing the life support loop on ISS and reducing the need for launching water
• Thermal Amine: Thermally regenerated solid amine CO2 removal system with passive water save capability
• Ground Testbed: Integrated ground testbed to mimic the baseline architecture and enable reaching Probability of Success and mass/volume targets for Mars missions. Integrated ground testbed will consist of upgrades or new builds of existing testbeds (e.g., Sabatier, Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA)) to bring to flight-like fidelity and development of new ground testbeds (e.g., UWMS, CHX) to be incorporated into the integrated system.

Collins Aerospace has developed these specialized systems through various government contracts. The Ground Testbed is a new requirement that will incorporate various systems that currently exist in other testbeds or are still under development. The requirements in support of these systems include:

• Sustaining Engineering of existing hardware and software including but not limited to performance monitoring, trending, and reporting; failure analysis, troubleshooting, and anomaly resolution; hardware life extension analysis/testing; real-time operations support and operations product inputs; maintenance of Ground Support Equipment (GSE); integration processes
• Provision of spares and consumables
• Hardware processing and launch integration support
• Integration support of hardware with existing core ISS systems, specialized advanced Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) systems onboard ISS, and ground testbeds
• Non-standard or unique services including feasibility and trade studies, prototype hardware manufacturing, failure investigation, testing and analysis in support of anomaly resolution and hardware life extension, flight hardware upgrades and modifications, GSE repairs, and any other work required to maintain hardware operability
• Hardware and software development for new hardware builds, upgrades to existing systems, technology demonstrations, GSE hardware/software, experiment support hardware/software, and training systems

NASA/JSC intends to issue a sole source contract to acquire these services from Collins Aerospace in 2024 to support the ISS through at least 2030, which is the scheduled end of the ISS Program. Collins Aerospace is currently performing this work for the systems listed above and is the only proven responsible source that can satisfy Agency requirements. Collins Aerospace and its predecessors have been under contract with NASA since the beginning of the ISS program, supporting the development of advanced ECLSS hardware and the use of ISS as a unique exploration-class ECLSS testbed. There are an extensive amount of hardware and software interfaces that are complicated, unique, and one-of-a-kind. Collins Aerospace has developed the hardware/software and has unique analysis and data to enable integration of hardware interfaces, anomaly resolution, hardware upgrades, and future technology demonstrations. They have highly specialized expertise and corporate knowledge required to maintain and upgrade these complex systems, further demonstrating and advancing the technologies required to support exploration and closed loop ECLSS.

The Government intends to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12.

Interested organizations may submit their capabilities and qualifications to perform the effort in writing to Darrell Compton at darrell.r.compton@nasa.gov not later than 5:00 p.m. CDT on September 6, 2023. Please reference “Exploration ECLSS Development and Sustaining” in the subject line for any response. Such capabilities/qualifications 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 compete this proposed effort on a full and open competition basis, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the government.

For purposes of determining small business goals for this procurement, entities from the various small business categories that may be interested in subcontracting opportunities may submit their information via email to the identified Point of Contact no later than 5:00 p.m. CDT on September 6, 2023. Responses must include the following: name and address of firm, size of business; average annual revenue for past three (3) years and number of employees; ownership; whether they are large, small, small disadvantaged, 8(a), HUBZone, and/or woman-owned; number of years in business; affiliate information: parent company, joint venture partners, potential teaming partners, prime contractor (if potential sub) or subcontractors (if potential prime); list of customers covering the past five years (highlight relevant work performed, contract numbers, contract type, dollar value of each procurement; and point of contact – address and phone number).

Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this notice.

All responsible sources may submit an offer which shall be considered by the agency.

NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/Procurement-Ombuds-Comp-Advocate-Listing.pdf.

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