Mercury Global - Strategic Deployable Terminals

Trade Agreement: Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT)
Tendering Procedures: All interested suppliers may submit a bid
Competitive Procurement Strategy: 
Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement: No
Nature of Requirements: 

1. PURPOSE

This Industry Consultation process seeks information from
industry on its interest, capacity and ability to produce and
deliver the systems that meet the requirements for the Canadian
Armed Forces (CAF) Mercury Global (MG) Strategic Deployable
Terminals (SDT). The Industry Consultation process provides
industry the opportunity to give feedback on the procurement and
In-Service Support (ISS) strategy and to solicit from industry
feedback on their ability to support the MG SDT procurement and
follow-on ISS.

The information gathered through this Industry Consultation
process will be used by Canada to assist in the development of a
Request for Proposal (RFP) for the implementation of the MG SDT
procurement.

2. BACKGROUND

The Department of National Defence (DND) has entered into an
agreement with the United States (US) Department of Defence
(DOD) and its allies, granting it access to the Wideband Global
Satellite (WGS) system until 2031. The US requires that all
terminals operating on the WGS system be WGS certified by the US
DOD. DND has recently announced a procurement and support
contract to Design and Build (DAB), and provide ISS for seven MG
Anchor Stations (AS) that will provide a point of entry for
deployed MG SDTs to provide a National Rear Link (NRL) for
Command and Control.

The goal of the SDT portion of the MG project is to procure
Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) terminals that
will be the in-theatre component of the NRL, connecting deployed
Headquarters (HQ) with National HQ.

User terminals are outside the scope of the MG Project. User
terminals are SATCOM terminals that are or will be used by the
Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), Canadian Army (CA), Royal Canadian
Air Force (RCAF), Canadian Special Operations Forces Command
(CANSOFCOM), and other CAF operational user groups. They provide
SATCOM links (commercial, WGS, or other military SATCOM links)
between deployed units and their respective HQs (i.e.
intra-theatre), or among deployed units in sub networks (i.e.
tactical usage). The user terminals can be attached to mobile
platforms such as ships, aircraft, and land vehicles, or even
hand carried.
 
This RFI seeks to obtain a view of the prevailing market for
Military Commercial off the Shelf (MILCOTS) X-band and Ka-band
terminal products certified to operate over the WGS
constellation. This is composed of a family of terminals along
with training and ISS components in order to deliver a complete
and comprehensive solution.

3. REQUIREMENTS

The following details highlight Canada's initial high-level
vision of requirements for the Mercury Global SDT. As this RFI
is the first step in engaging industry in the development and
definition of the requirements, such requirements may be revised
pending alternate solutions and discussions that take place
during the RFI and any subsequent industry engagement process.

The SDT will be a suite of SATCOM terminals that provide a
global Internet Protocol (IP) point of presence via the WGS
constellation. DND seeks to fully support a variety of CAF
missions via the WGS system through the purchase of three (3)
different types of SDTs. The intent is to derive the three types
from a similar technological familyand original equipment
manufacturer (OEM) in order to best utilize limited support
resources. The MG constellation will allow the CAF to have a
common fleet of SDTs that in turn provide it with a common
training, operation and maintenance program, reducing costs over
the life of the MG SDT program. The three types or sizes of SDTs
address two key criteria; transportability and maximum WGS
bandwidth efficiency.

4.  REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

The MG Project Team is seeking responses from industry for
challenges involving the proposed acquisition strategy and
delivery of the SDT contract. In turn, an Industry Day
information session was scheduled to pose and address questions
regarding this RFI.

Responses to this RFI were requested on orbefore 16 February
2015.

5. INDUSTRY DAY 

The MG Project Team held an Industry Day information session to
provide Industry with general information on the MG SDT
procurement project, and obtain industry comments on the RFI.
One-on-one meetingswere held following the Industry Day
information session. The Industry Day was held on 3 March 2015.
The terms and conditions applicable to this engagement process
are stated in Attachment 1  Rules of Engagement Participation
Agreement of the RFI.

In order to facilitate the one-on-one meetings, industry was
encouraged to provide written comments and recommendations on
the RFI as well as any additional topics industry wished to
discuss.

Attendance at the Industry Day was not required in order to
submit a response to any follow-on RFP.

6.   INDUSTRIAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL BENEFITS

The Industrial and Regional Technological Benefits Policy,
including Value Proposition may apply to these procurements.
Vendors are encouraged to review theValue Proposition Guide,
located on the Industry Canada website
(http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/086.nsf/eng/h_00005.html), to
familiarize themselves with the requirements.

Vendors were requested to provide a response to the following
questions related to the Value Proposition criteria:

a.  Where do you see the economic opportunities for your company
to undertake work directly related to these procurements?

b.  Are these areas of opportunity already established in Canada
or do these areas require investment?

c.  To what extent would Canadian suppliers be able to
participate directly in these areas of opportunity?

d.  How would work in the areas outlined above position you and
your suppliers for future export opportunities?

e.  To what extent do you propose to undertake R&D activities
related to this procurement? What would you anticipate will be
the proportion of R&D activities performed internally or
externally? Is there scope for post-secondary institutions to be
involved?

f.  Other areas of economic opportunity: Where do you see
strategic opportunities for Canada that could be leveraged as a
result of these procurements in the defence sector or in other
economic sectors?

7.  DRAFT DOCUMENTATION

Draft documentation was made available starting on 10 September
2015 in order to allow further questions and discussions
regarding the requirement and enhance industry's contributions
to the development of the RFP.

Participation in the Draft documentation process is not required
in order to submit a response to any follow-on RFP.

8. INDUSTRY CONSULTATION MEETINGS

The MG Project Team welcomes the opportunity to hold one-on-one
meetings, either in person or by teleconference, with interested
vendors at their request. In person meetings will occur at
government facilities within the National Capital Region.
Meetings will be held at a date and time agreeable to both MG
Project team and the vendor. Meetings may be held at the
vendor's facilities at the sole discretion of the MG Project
team. To arrange a meeting, please contact the Procurement
Authority listed below.

All substantive and non-proprietary questions and answers
discussed during these meetings will be noted and made available
to all vendors participating in the Industry Consultation
Process. Questions may be edited so that the proprietary nature
of questions is eliminated. 

Participation in one-on-one meetings is not required in order to
submit a response to any follow-on RFP.

9. NOTES TO INTERESTED FIRMS

This Industry Consultation process is not a bid solicitation and
a contract will not result from this request.

Potential respondents are advised that any information submitted
to Canada in response to this Industry Consultation process may
be used by Canada in the development of a subsequent competitive
RFP. However, the Government is not bound to accept any
Expression of Interest or to consider it further in any
associated documents such as a RFP.  

Theissuance of this Industry Consultation process does not
create an obligation for Canada to issue a subsequent RFP, and
does not bind Canada legally or otherwise, to enter into any
agreement or to accept any suggestions from organizations.
Canada reserves the right to accept or reject any or all
comments received.

There will be no short listing of firms for purposes of
undertaking any future work, as a result of this request.
Similarly, participation in this Industry Consultation process
is not a condition or prerequisite for participation in any
RFP(s).

Companies participating in this Industry Consultation process
should identify any submitted information that is to be
considered as either company confidential or proprietary.

All enquiries and other communications related to this Industry
Consultation process shall be directed exclusively to the PWGSC
Procurement Authority.

10.   PROCUREMENT AUTHORITY

All enquiries and other communications related to this Industry
Consultation process shall be directed to the Procurement
Authority as follows:

Mark Thorsley
Supply Team Leader
Acquisitions Branch
Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC)
Procurement Directorate 11 Laurier Street
Gatineau, Quebec K1A 0S5

Telephone: 613-947-5960 (Woodline), 819-956-1772 (Portage)
Fax: (819) 997-2229
E-mail address: mark.thorsley@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca
Delivery Date: Above-mentioned

The Crown retains the right to negotiate with suppliers on any procurement.

Documents may be submitted in either official language of Canada.