Detection Sciences Testing and Applied Research (DSTAR)

This is a Sources Sought Notice for market research purposes only. This is not a solicitation for proposals/bids, and no contract will be awarded from this notice. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Philadelphia District (NAP), is conducting market research to identify qualified and interested businesses capable of performing the Design-Build (DB) project described below.

No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information or industry response to this notice or any follow-up information requests. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future procurement. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized in the System for Award Management (SAM). It is the responsibility of potential offerors to monitor SAM for additional information pertaining to this requirement.

The acquisition strategy will be determined based on responses received from this notice and/or other market research methods. The planned acquisition strategy will be posted in SAM upon completion of market research analysis.

The purpose of this notice is to gain knowledge of interest, capabilities and qualifications of industry, to include the Small Business Community: Small Business, Section 8(a), Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), or Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB). All are highly encouraged to respond.

Prior Government contract work is not required for submitting a response to this notice. However, respondents are reminded that all construction performance must follow the Engineer Manual (EM) 385-1-1, USACE Safety and Health Requirements Manual and any other requirements contained in the solicitation, and must also comply with all Federal, State and local laws, ordinances, codes and/or regulations.

This announcement provides the detailed information necessary for your firm to prepare its response.

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Project Title: Detection Sciences Testing and Applied Research Project

Project Location: Transportation Security Laboratory located at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), W. J. Hughes Technical Center (WJHTC) , Egg Harbor Township, NJ

NAICS Code: 236220, Commercial and Institutional Building Construction

PSC: Y1DB, Construction of Laboratories and Clinics

Estimated Magnitude of Construction: Between $25,000,000 and $75,000,000

Anticipated Solicitation Issuance Date: April 2027

Estimated duration of the project: 1,095 Calendar Days

Anticipated Contract Type: Firm-Fixed Price (FFP), Design-Build (DB) Contract               

Anticipated Acquisition Method: RFO 36.101-2 Two-Phase Design Build Selection Procedures and RFO Part 15  Negotiated Procurement using “Best Value” tradeoff process

High Level Project Summary: The Transportation Security Laboratory (TSL) is a federal laboratory aligned under the Science and Technology Directorate of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Transportation Security Laboratory (TSL) campus is located along the eastern boundary of the William F. Hughes FAA Technical Center at the Atlantic City International Airport.  TSL is responsible for researching, developing, engineering, testing and evaluating solutions to detect and mitigate the threat of Improvised Explosive Devices and weapons used against our Nation’s transportation systems.

The project entails construction of a Detection Sciences, Testing and Applied Research Center (DSTARC) and the associated Facility for Energetic Materials Research (FEMR) building, including supporting infrastructure (hereafter referred to as the “DSTAR Project”).

The project entails the construction of an approx. 40,000 SF Detection Sciences Testing and Applied Research Center (DSTARC) laboratory, an approximately 6,000 SF Facility for Energetic Materials Research (FEMR) laboratory, and ancillary site improvements to support these buildings. The combined buildings will enable TSL to perform trace material characterization and develop testing methods and protocols to detect and mitigate the threat of improvised explosive devices. 

The multi-story DSTARC will be composed of pile foundations, steel framing and brick veneer, painted metal panel exterior with standing seam metal roofing.  Interior construction will consist of reinforced concrete masonry walls, metal stud, gypsum board walls and operable / movable partition walls Detection Sciences Testing and Applied Research Center laboratory building will include modern office space, conference rooms, laboratory areas, chemical and hazardous waste storage aeras, sensitive compartmented information facility areas, blast hardened features, loading dock, etc.  Classified work areas shall be designed in accordance with DHS requirements. Specific laboratories within the DSTAR complex shall be blast hardened to withstand small quantity material detonations of up to 5 grams.

The approximate 6,000 SF Facility for Energetic Materials Research laboratory will include laboratories, office space, and a control room dedicated to energetic materials synthesis and full-scale safety testing of these materials. The Energetic Material Synthesis Laboratory shall be capable of withstanding the detonation of up to two kilograms of explosives without damage to other laboratories or buildings, or serious injury to personnel outside of the Energetic Material Synthesis Laboratory.  Other laboratories within the DSTAR complex shall be blast hardened to withstand small quantity material detonations of up to 5 grams.

The project also includes related infrastructure such as parking areas, roads, utilities, and site improvements.  Roads and parking will integrate with existing infrastructure in a manner that facilities foot and vehicle traffic in and around the TSL campus.

Minimum Technical Requirements and Critical Features of Work: The DSTAR buildings shall have the capability to securely and efficiently exchange documents with classifications levels up to Top-Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) documents and data with authorized individuals and  organizations in Secret Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCIF) and Top Secret Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS-SCI) Areas.

The DSTARC building will become the main IT hub for the TSL campus. All building controls, security and fire systems, mechanical and information technology systems shall be able to fully integrate with existing TSL infrastructure.

All fire system installations and modifications shall be in accordance with the Transportation Security Laboratory Campus-Wide Fire Alarm System Planning Considerations white paper written by the FAA WJHTC Project Engineering and Construction Office in January 2010. 

The Chemistry Complex shall have environmental controls and systems independent of HVAC systems in the rest of the building to prevent or mitigate contamination of these spaces. The HVAC system for the Chemistry Complex shall be able to meet temperature, humidity, and relative pressure requirements and ASHRAE 55 standards while fume hoods are operating.

The DSTAR buildings require enhanced commissioning upon completion to validate energy performance.

Other Known Challenges: The TSL campus is located within the federally secured FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center.  The Contractor shall comply with formal administrative requirements and security compliance obligations prior to entering the TSL Campus.

The project is located within the NJ Pinelands reserve.  All improvements and environmental permits to comply with the stormwater quality, quantity, and recharge requirements as set forth by NJDEP, Pinelands, SCD, Section 438 of EISA 2007 and the NJDEP Stormwater Management Rules and NJDEP Best Management Practices (BMP) standards.

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Prospective subcontractors are encouraged to submit so the information can be used when developing the potential Small Business Participation Plan percentages if the eventual acquisition is conducted as an unrestricted, negotiated acquisition. If your firm is interested in subcontracting opportunities rather than performing as the Prime Contractor on this future procurement, please identify the feature(s) of work you are interested in and your small business socio-economic category in the Market Survey Form.

All submissions must be made as follows, returning a completed Market Survey Form (see Attachment).

AUTHORIZED SUBMISSION METHOD: Please return the Market Survey Form via email to Eric Leach at Eric.A.Leach@usace.army.mil and Connor Struckmeyer at Connor.A.Struckmeyer@usace.army.mil. Include in the title "Sources Sought - DSTAR" as the subject line in email communications. All responses must be in either Microsoft Word (.docx) or Adobe PDF format.

DEADLINE: All responses must be submitted to the POCs noted above no later than 1 October 2026 by 4:00 PM EDT.