Commercial Gear Backup Power (CGBP) and Control System Improvements at Fish Barrier

I. PURPOSE AND DISCLAIMER**********************The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Chicago District, is issuing this sources sought synopsis as a means of conducting market research to identify parties having an interest in and the resources to support the requirement for upgrading our Commercial Gear Backup Power (CGBP) and associated control system at our electronic fish barrier located in Romeoville, Illinois. We are seeking to identify qualified Small Business concerns (including 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB, and Small Business Joint Ventures/Teaming Arrangements) and Other-Than-Small Business concerns capable of performing this requirement. The intention is to procure these services on a competitive basis.**********************BASED ON THE RESPONSES TO THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE/MARKET RESEARCH, THIS REQUIREMENT MAY BE SET-ASIDE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES (IN FULL OR IN PART) OR PROCURED THROUGH FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION, and multiple awards MAY be made. All Small Business Set-Aside categories will be considered. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged, and no feedback or evaluations will be provided to companies regarding their submissions.**********************DISCLAIMER**********************THIS SOURCES SOUGHT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) TO BE SUBMITTED. IT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A SOLICITATION AND SHALL NOT BE CONSTRUED AS A COMMITMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT. RESPONSES IN ANY FORM ARE NOT OFFERS AND THE GOVERNMENT IS UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO AWARD A CONTRACT AS A RESULT OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. NO FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE TO PAY FOR PREPARATION OF RESPONSES TO THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. ANY INFORMATION SUBMITTED BY RESPONDENTS TO THIS TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION IS STRICTLY VOLUNTARY. RESPPONSES WILL NOT BE RETURNED TO THE RESPONDER. NOT RESPONDING TO THIS NOTICE DOES NOT PRECLUDE PARTICIPATION IN ANY FUTURE REQUEST FOR QUOTE (RFQ) OR INVITATION FOR BID (IFB) OR RFP, IF ANY ISSUED. IF A SOLICITATION IS RELEASED, IT WILL BE SYNOPSIZED ON THE GOVERNMENT-WIDE POINT OF ENTRY (GPE). IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF POTENTIAL OFFERORS TO MONITOR THE GPE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMMATION PERTAINING TO THIS REQUIREMENT. The Government is not committed nor obligated to pay for the information provided, and no basis for claims against the Government shall arise as a result of a response to this Sources Sought.********************************************II. COMPREHENSIVE TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION and PROJECT SCOPE********************************************The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) Electric Dispersal Barrier facility requires a complex industrial electrical power generation, backup power, and automation and control system modernization project. This system is a critical component of the federal effort to prevent the movement of invasive aquatic species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. **********************Specifically, USACE needs to upgrade the backup generator and switchgear control systems at Permanent Barrier 1 (PB1) to correct unreliable operation caused by deficiencies in the original design, configuration, and wiring. The project requires replacing generator controllers, modernizing breaker controls and communications, and rebuilding the control software and operator interfaces to improve reliable operation on utility and backup power. Work will require testing, operator training, and a phased changeover to maintain continuous barrier operations. Work will be performed at an active, mission-critical facility requiring careful coordination with ongoing operations, planned equipment outages, and system changeovers to maintain operational readiness and minimize disruptions. A critical requirement is the integration of new equipment into an active industrial facility while protecting existing operations. The anticipated work may include engineering, design review, equipment upgrades and replacement, control system programming, integration, testing, and commissioning of interconnected electrical and industrial automation systems. ******************************************************************TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES:******************************************************************The project requires specialized expertise in: a) generator synchronization and load management, b) switchgear automation, c) protective relaying, d) programmable logic controllers (PLCs), e) human-machine interfaces (HMIs), industrial communications, and associated monitoring and data management systems.**********************Contractors must possess the technical capabilities necessary to work with the existing systems and integrate new equipment while maintaining compatibility and functionality. The existing facility incorporates Rockwell Automation ControlLogix PLCs, FactoryTalk View SE, FactoryTalk Transaction Manager, Microsoft SQL Server, Basler generator synchronization and control equipment, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) protective relays and RTAC equipment, and DEIF generator controllers. ATTACHMENT NOTICE: Interested parties must carefully review Attachment 1 (Equipment_SOW.xlsx ??? PB1 Equipment Modernization and SOW Matrix) attached to this notice in PIEE, the DoW Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment, which details the specific equipment removals, modifications, additions, hard-wired control conversions, I/O transitions, and as-built drawing updates (across four separate contractor drawing sets) required under our anticipated scope.**********************Contractors must demonstrate their capability of obtaining a specialized Master Systems Integrator (MSI) or Industrial Automation and Control Systems (IACS) engineering firm to perform any needed engineering, programming, integration, testing, commissioning, and troubleshooting of the complex interconnected industrial control systems.**********************Contractors must demonstrate their ability to obtain qualified personnel. Qualified personnel include Electrical Generating Systems Association (EGSA) certified technicians or personnel possessing equivalent documented qualifications to support generator-related engineering, design reviews, integration, testing, and commissioning. If proposing to use equivalent, provide what documentation your firm considers as equivalent for USACE consideration.**********************The contractor must possess the technical and organizational capabilities to execute phased modifications, coordinate authorized shutdowns and system changeovers, implement temporary control arrangements where necessary, perform pre-commissioning and acceptance testing, and develop contingency measures to minimize operational disruptions and maintain the safety, reliability, and continuity of existing barrier operations.**********************III. REQUESTED INFORMATION FROM INTERESTED PARTIES********************************************Interested firms are invited to submit a Capability Statement (not to exceed 10 pages) addressing the following four (4) sections after reviewing the technical capability narrative above and Attachment 1 (Equipment_SOW.xlsx):SECTION A: ADMINISTRATIVE AND BUSINESS SIZE********************************************1. Company Name, Address, Point of Contact, telephone number and email, CAGE Code, and Unique Entity Identifier (UEI).**********************2. Business Size under NAICS 238210 ($19.0M Size Standard) and all applicable socioeconomic designations.**********************3. If proposing as a Small Business, confirm your understanding of FAR 52.219-14 (Limitations on Subcontracting) and your ability to perform at least 25% of the cost of contract performance (excluding the cost of materials) with your own organization or similarly situated small business entities. **********************4. Should this requirement be solicited as Full and Open Competition, other-than-small-business offerors will be required to submit an acceptable Small Business Subcontracting Plan in accordance with RFO 19.109 and FAR 52.219-9, as applicable. All respondents are asked to: a) Describe your experience meeting small business subcontracting goals on comparable construction or modernization projects, b) Identify potential subcontracting opportunities for small businesses within the attached scope of work, c)Provide preliminary estimated subcontracting percentages by socioeconomic category (e.g., WOSB, SDVOSB, HUBZone, SDB), and d) Identify anticipated challenges and strategies to maximize small business participation during execution.**********************SECTION B: TECHNICAL AND INTEGRATION EXPERIENCE********************************************1. TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES. Tailored capability statements addressing the particulars of this effort under the technical capabilities section above, with appropriate documentation supporting claims of organizational and staff capability. Detail what specific technical skills does your company possess which ensure capability to perform the tasks. If significant subcontracting or teaming is anticipated in order to deliver technical capability, organizations should address the administrative and management structure of such arrangements, as well as experience of managing similar teams in the past.********************2. EQUIPMENT LIST REVIEW: Confirm your firm has reviewed Attachment 1 (Equipment_SOW.xlsx) and describe up to three (3) comparable projects executed within the past seven (7) years involving turnkey switchgear/generator control remediation, hard-wired relay conversions, and multi-vendor integration (Rockwell ControlLogix, SEL Relays/RTAC, Basler, and FactoryTalk View SE). Clearly delineate whether experience is based upon the prime, or any proposed subcontractors.**********************3. CERTIFICATIONS AND QUALIFICATIONS: Confirm your proposed teams compliance with the EGSA certification requirement or identify the equivalent documented qualifications your personnel possess to support this scope. Identify whether your proposed lead personnel hold: (a) Control Systems PE Licensure, (b) EGSA Certification, or (c) CSIA/Rockwell Integrator Certification.**********************4. PHASED CUTOVER AND FAT: Describe your firms capability to perform Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT), simulation prior to site delivery and execute a phased cutover at an active 24hr, 7day a week facility without unplanned outages.**********************SECTION C: COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS AND LEAD-TIME********************************************1. COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS: Based on your review of Attachment 1, identify what commercial solutions or minor modifications are available in the marketplace to meet these functional requirements.**********************2. ESTIMATED LEAD-TIME: Provide an estimated lead-time required to procure the necessary hardware components and complete the on-site upgrades, testing, drawing updates, and commissioning.********************************************IV. INSTRUCTIONS FOR RESPONSE SUBMISSION**********************Please submit capability packages electronically through the PIEE Solicitations Portal or via email to the designated Point of Contact by December 2, 2026, at 1:00 PM CST. Your response to this Sources Sought, including any capabilities statement, shall be electronically submitted to the Contract Specialist, Jane Doe, in either Microsoft Word or Portable Document Format (PDF). All data received in response to this Sources Sought that is marked or designated as corporate or proprietary will be fully protected from any release outside the Government.**********************The Government will evaluate market information to ascertain potential market capacity to: 1) provide services consistent, in scope and scale, with those described in this notice and otherwise anticipated; 2) secure and apply the full range of corporate financial, human capital, and technical resources required to successfully perform similar requirements; 3) implement a successful project management plan. **********************All questions must be submitted to the contract specialist.