How to Win the HEMISPHERE Contract: A Guide for Government Contractors

Introduction

The U.S. Space Force (USSF) is seeking to acquire advisory and assistance services for its Space Systems Command (SSC) in the areas of space domain awareness and combat power, battle management command control and communications (BMC3). The contract, known as HEMISPHERE, is a multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract with a ceiling value of $2.5 billion and a period of performance of one base year plus nine option years. The solicitation number is FA881923R1000 and the proposal due date is October 29, 2023.

HEMISPHERE is a strategic opportunity for government contractors who have expertise and experience in providing technical, engineering, analytical, and programmatic support to SSC’s Program Executive Offices (PEOs) and other stakeholders. The contract will enable the USSF to enhance its capabilities to detect, track, identify, characterize, and respond to threats and opportunities in the space domain, as well as to deliver integrated and resilient space C3 systems to enable multi-domain operations.

In this article, we will provide an overview of the HEMISPHERE contract, its historical background, its scope and requirements, the potential competitors and partners, and the challenges and risks involved in pursuing this opportunity. We will also share some tips and best practices on how to prepare a winning proposal for this contract. We are GDI Consulting, a leading provider of capture management and proposal development services for government contractors. We have extensive experience and proven success in helping our clients win federal contracts across various domains and agencies.

Historical Background

HEMISPHERE is a follow-on contract to the Space Enterprise Consortium (SpEC) Other Transaction Agreement (OTA), which was awarded in 2017 by the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), the predecessor of SSC. SpEC was established to facilitate the development and prototyping of innovative space technologies through collaboration between the government, industry, and academia. SpEC had a ceiling value of $500 million and a period of performance of five years.

SpEC supported various SSC PEOs, including Space Domain Awareness & Combat Power (SDA&CP) and BMC3. Some of the projects that were funded under SpEC include:

• Space Situational Awareness as a Service (SSAaaS), which aimed to provide commercial SSA data and services to the government.
• Space Warfighting Operationally Resilient Enterprise Network (SWORN), which sought to develop a resilient and secure space C2 network architecture.
• Space Domain Awareness Data Exploitation Lab (SpaceDEN), which intended to create a collaborative environment for data analysis and innovation for space domain awareness.

HEMISPHERE is intended to build on the achievements of SpEC and provide more comprehensive and long-term support to SSC’s mission areas. HEMISPHERE will also leverage the USSF’s new acquisition authorities and processes, such as Section 804 rapid prototyping and fielding, agile software development, DevSecOps, open systems architecture, digital engineering, and model-based systems engineering.

RFP Description

HEMISPHERE is divided into two functional areas: SDA&CP and BMC3. Each functional area has its own set of performance work statements (PWSs) that describe the tasks and deliverables required by the government. The PWSs are organized into four categories: Technical Support Services (TSS), Engineering Support Services (ESS), Analytical Support Services (ASS), and Programmatic Support Services (PSS).

The SDA&CP functional area covers the following PWSs:

• TSS-SDA&CP-01: Space Domain Awareness
• TSS-SDA&CP-02: Combat Power
• ESS-SDA&CP-01: Space Domain Awareness
• ESS-SDA&CP-02: Combat Power
• ASS-SDA&CP-01: Space Domain Awareness
• ASS-SDA&CP-02: Combat Power
• PSS-SDA&CP-01: Space Domain Awareness
• PSS-SDA&CP-02: Combat Power

The BMC3 functional area covers the following PWSs:

• TSS-BMC3-01: Tactical Command & Control
• TSS-BMC3-02: Satellite Control Network
• TSS-BMC3-03: Operational Command & Control
• ESS-BMC3-01: Tactical Command & Control
• ESS-BMC3-02: Satellite Control Network
• ESS-BMC3-03: Operational Command & Control
• ASS-BMC3-01: Tactical Command & Control
• ASS-BMC3-02: Satellite Control Network
• ASS-BMC3-03: Operational Command & Control
• PSS-BMC3-01: Tactical Command & Control
• PSS-BMC3-02: Satellite Control Network
• PSS-BMC3-03: Operational Command & Control

The government intends to award multiple IDIQ contracts for each functional area, with a maximum of 10 contracts for SDA&CP and a maximum of 15 contracts for BMC3. The government will issue task orders under the IDIQ contracts on a competitive or direct award basis, depending on the nature and complexity of the requirement.

The government expects the contractors to provide qualified personnel, facilities, equipment, materials, supplies, and other resources necessary to perform the tasks and deliverables specified in the PWSs. The contractors must also comply with the applicable security, quality, safety, environmental, and performance standards and regulations.

The government will evaluate the proposals based on the following factors:

• Factor 1: Technical Approach
• Factor 2: Management Approach
• Factor 3: Past Performance
• Factor 4: Price

The government will use a best value trade-off process to select the awardees. The technical approach and management approach factors are significantly more important than the past performance factor, which is significantly more important than the price factor. The government will also consider the offerors’ participation in the SpEC OTA as a positive discriminator.

Who Should Participate

HEMISPHERE is a lucrative and strategic opportunity for government contractors who have the following capabilities and qualifications:

• Experience and expertise in providing advisory and assistance services to SSC or similar organizations in the areas of space domain awareness and combat power, battle management command control and communications, or related domains.
• Ability to provide innovative and agile solutions that leverage cutting-edge technologies, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud computing, big data analytics, cyber security, digital engineering, and open systems architecture.
• Ability to collaborate with various stakeholders, including SSC PEOs, USSF operational units, other government agencies, industry partners, academia, and allied nations.
• Ability to obtain and maintain the required security clearances and certifications for personnel, facilities, and systems.
• Ability to offer competitive and realistic prices that reflect the value and quality of the services provided.

HEMISPHERE is also a great opportunity for small businesses who can benefit from the following advantages:

• The government has set aside 25% of the total contract value for small business participation.
• The government will use simplified acquisition procedures for task orders valued at or below $7 million.
• The government will provide mentor-protégé agreements, joint ventures, teaming arrangements, and subcontracting opportunities for small businesses.

Challenges and Risks

HEMISPHERE is a complex and competitive opportunity that poses several challenges and risks for potential offerors. Some of these challenges and risks include:

• Understanding and addressing the diverse and dynamic needs of SSC’s mission areas and stakeholders.
• Demonstrating technical excellence and innovation in providing advisory and assistance services for space domain awareness and combat power, battle management command control and communications.
• Developing and maintaining a qualified and capable workforce that can meet the security, quality, safety, environmental, and performance requirements of SSC.
• Managing multiple task orders simultaneously with varying scopes, schedules, budgets, and deliverables.
• Adapting to the changing acquisition authorities and processes of USSF and SSC.
• Differentiating from other offerors who have similar capabilities and experience.

Conclusion

HEMISPHERE is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for government contractors who want to support SSC’s mission to deliver resilient and affordable space capabilities to enable multi-domain operations. HEMISPHERE will provide advisory and assistance services for SSC’s PEOs in the areas of space domain awareness and combat power, battle management command control and communications. HEMISPHERE is a multiple-award IDIQ contract with a ceiling value of $2.5 billion and a period of performance of one base year plus nine option years.

To win this opportunity, offerors need to demonstrate their technical expertise and innovation, management approach and past performance, as well as their price competitiveness. Offerors also need to overcome the challenges and risks involved in pursuing this opportunity.

If you are interested in our services or want to learn more about HEMISPHERE, please contact us today at www.gdicwins.com. We look forward to hearing from you soon.