Loren Data's SAM Daily™

FBO DAILY ISSUE OF MARCH 21, 2002 FBO #0109
MODIFICATION

20 -- ROV or Submersible, & Support Vessel needed for Monitoring Study in Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary

Notice Date

3/18/2002
 

Notice Type

Modification
 

Contracting Office

Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Western Administrative Support Center, 7600 Sand Point Way, Northeast, Seattle, WA, 98115-6349
 

ZIP Code

98115-6349
 

Solicitation Number

50ABNC200056
 

Response Due

4/2/2002
 

Archive Date

4/17/2002
 

Point of Contact

Stephanie Kyles, Contract Specialist, Phone (206)526-4425, Fax (206)526-6025, - Crystina Elkins, Procurement Clerk, Phone (206) 526-4499, Fax (206) 526-6025,
 

E-Mail Address

stephanie.m.kyles@noaa.gov, crystina.r.elkins@noaa.gov
 

Small Business Set-Aside

Total Small Business
 

Description

This announcement replaces the announcement issued 03/12/2001 for solicitation # 50ABNC200056. This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; PROPOSALS ARE BEING REQUESTED AND A WRITTEN SOLICITATION WILL NOT BE ISSUED. Solicitation number 50ABNC200056 is issued as a request for proposals(RFP). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 97-17. This procurement action is full and open. The associated North American Industrial Classification System code is 33412. A firm is a small business for the purpose of this requirement if the size standard is 1,000 employees or less. The Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary (OCNMS) requires the charter of a submersible or Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) as well as the captain and crew necessary to monitor benthic recovery from a cable laying. OCNMS authorized a special use permit allowing Pacific Crossing to install 2 fiber optic cables (PC-1) through 30 nm of the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary (OCNMS). OCNMS will be monitoring benthic recovery from the cable laying. This scope of work (SOW) addresses an OCNMS charter for the provision of a vessel, captain and crew and a submersible or an ROV associated equipment and staff to support research as further described in this solicitation. Contractors must bid on the complete package. The charter is for 8 to 16 days between 12 August and 20 September 2002 for OCNMS to conduct investigations within the Sanctuary aboard a contracted vessel (>80 ft) using a contracted submersible or ROV. The contract can be divided into two separate cruises or approximate equal duration during the contract period of 12 August through 20 September, as needed; however, OCNMS will support one mobilization/ demobilization event. The contractor responsibilities are listed below. Project Area: The project concentrates on 2 types of areas: the cable route and control sites. Although primary operations are in the areas described they are not limited to these areas. The cable route of interest in OCNMS is ~30 nm. The primary operation will be along the eastern cable between 124o40'W to 125o10'W and 48o 20'N to 48o 30'N, although some sites along the northern cable may also be surveyed. The other areas to be searched for and monitored will be control sites, which have yet to be determined. The general areas of operation along the cable and the control sites will be between 124o40'W to 125o30'W and between 48o00N to 48o30N in U.S. waters. Scope of Work: The cruise will be between 8 and 16 continuous days of operation in the OCNMS. A port day can be added but it is not considered as one of the 8 to 16 continuous days. Mobilization and demobilization days are in addition to the 8 to 16 days of operation within the sanctuary. Vessel operations will be conducted 24 hours per day, regardless if an Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) or a submersible is selected. ROV activities would involve 24 hour operations. Submersible activities would be conducted during 12 hr/day (daylight) and shipboard sampling during night operations. The cruise shall be completed between August 12 and September 20, 2002. The dates and length of the cruise will be set at the time the contract is awarded. Loading of contractor equipment can be done at the location of the contractors choice; however, contractor shall plan for OCNMS staging (mobilizing) in Port Angeles, WA by contacting the US Coast Guard and City of Port Angeles for access to the city pier. Demobilization can occur in either Port Angeles or Neah Bay, WA and will be set at the time the contract is awarded. Bid packages should be based on the 8-day research cruise plus mobilization and demobilization, with a daily rate for each additional research day for up to 16 days. Vessel : The contractor shall supply a vessel, with crew, of sufficient size/tonnage to operate 24 hours per day, for 8 to 16 days, up to 50 nm off the Washington Coast. The minimum vessel length is 80 ft. The vessel must have appropriate deck equipment (winches, metering device, A-frames, davits, etc.) and operators to deploy the equipment and support the operations below. The vessel must also accommodate 6 OCNMS staff or contracted personnel with berthing, shower & head. If the vessel can accommodate more than 6 staffing provided as a cost option. Separate quarters shall be provided for men and women. The vessel shall provide 3 nutritious meals and snack during each 24 hr period. The vessel shall be equipped with a differential global positioning system (DGPS) andf contractor proposes an ROV then vessel must have a dynamic ship positioning system or equivalent. The vessel shall provide ~32 ft2, near the A-Frame or davit for OCNMS for handling sediment samples and gear. A low pressure (15-30 psi) salt-water hose for use at this deck location is also required. The vessel shall allow for ~3 ft3 of refrigerator space and ~64 ft2 of deck space for storing samples. The contractor must also supply counter space to set up a computer inside the vessel but within 15 m of the A-frame, to run cable. The vessel must be equipped with a winch or suitable device to launch and recover a submersible or ROV. The vessel must be equipped with a winch & A-Frame or davit capable of deploying and retrieving up to 300 pds of oceanographic equipment, such as a sediment grab sampler, and a CTD rosette to a depth of 350m. The CTD rosette has an auto fire module and does not require a conducting cable on the winch. The winch must be equipped with a cable counter to determine the approximate depth of instrument deployment. Fresh water on deck shall be provided for instrument wash down. Submersible or ROV: The contractor shall provide an ROV or submersible, operator(s), and externally mounted camera gear capable of taking both vertical and oblique color video and still photography of high resolution as to be able to identify sediment type and benthic organisms. At least one of the two video cameras must record onto digital, mini DV tapes, and preferably both. Real time shipboard viewing of ROV results or internal viewing in a submersible of the video shall be provided. The contractor will also provide appropriate lighting for both still & video photography. The submersible shall be capable of 8-10 hr dive time/day (12 hr operations), operating in contact with or near the seafloor over potentially rugged substrate. If a submersible is used, it shall be able to accommodate at a minimum, 1 contractor supplied operator and 1 OCNMS scientist, with viewing ports accessible to the scientist at all times during the dive. The ROV shall be capable of 24 hr. operations per day operating in contact with or near the seafloor over potentially rugged substrate. Each video shall have mounted 2-4 lasers emitting parallel beams to allow quantitative analysis from video footage or equivalent. The viewing angle of one video camera shall be vertical and a second video will be adjustable from horizontal to vertical or held at an oblique angle. All recorded video shall be tagged with date, time, & position of the ROV or submersible as computed in an Integrated Navigation System (INS) using DGPS & an ultra short baseline (USB) or similar system to be provided by the contractor. Geographic positions shall be in NAD83 or WGS84 coordinates. Film will be supplied by OCNMS upon consultation with contractor. The 35 still camera shall be capable of taking automated vertical shots of sufficient resolution to be able to identify sediment type & benthic organisms. A system (e.g., mounted quadrant) for determining the area covered by the photograph shall be provided by the contractor. The height off bottom of the vehicle shall be maintained at a constant and recorded, such that the area of field of view is known. The speed of the vehicle shall be maintained at 0.5 to 1.0 knots in order for the benthic organisms to be identified. A mechanism for maintaining position or course over the buried fiber optics cable must be provided (e.g., magnetometer or via tone sensor) externally mounted on the ROV or submersible to ensure the proper study area is evaluated. The contractor must verify equipment will work prior to cruise. Although the location of the buried cable is known (an ROV survey of the entire route has been conducted), unless the accuracy of the navigation system is sufficient, locating the cable visually by the former trench along the seafloor can be problematic. The ROV or submersible is required to maintain its position directly over the buried cable when transects are conducted along the cable. The ROV or submersible shall be outfitted with a contractor- supplied conductivity, temperature, depth & oxygen-sensing array that is linked to an operational data logging system. It is preferred that this information is received as an electronic file. The ROV or submersible must be capable of collecting benthic infauna organisms and sediment cores at depths ranging between approximately 60 to 350m. The samples will be processed by OCNMS for grain size and benthic taxonomy, at a minimum. The sample collection is part of this SOW (e.g. manipulator arm and sampling device on the submersible or ROV, and a contractor-supplied winch operator working with OCNMS staff during night operations), but the sample processing is not. The three types of sample are: 1) a method of quantitatively collecting & holding 3 or 5 sediment cores of approximate 15 cm diameter, 10 cm depth or 15 cubic centimeter box cores or equivalent per dive on an ROV or submersible; 2) a method for collecting benthic infauna covering approximately 0.1m2 area to a depth of approximately 6 cm, (e.g. suction sampler, grab sampler or equivalent device); and 3) a winch & davit or A-Frame plus operator to help conduct shipboard sediment sampling. OCNMS shall provide the sediment sampler for this latter shipboard method. The sediment and benthic infauna samplers (1 and 2 above) are to be provided by the contractor after approval by OCNMS. Additional Requirements: Reports & Documentation: Marine Operations Abstract (MOA) - The contractor shall record & maintain an MOA throughout the cruise. The MOA is a form for recording operational milestones along with date, time, & position. The MOA shall be logged at every significant operational event & every 30 minutes during the cruise. OCNMS will provide the MOA forms. All times shall be recorded in Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Other forms required by OCNMS will be integrated into the MOA. A copy of the completed MOA shall be provided to ONCNMS upon completion of the cruise. The contractor shall record digitally the geographic position of the vessel throughout the cruise with positions logged every minute. Geographic positions shall be in NAD83 or WGS84 coordinates & recorded to accuracy equivalent to the 5th decimal place using decimal degrees. A digital track line file in ASCII format shall be provided to OCNMS at the completion of the project. Data recording by the contractor shall include daily reports describing the dive(s) occurring during each 24 hr period. This information should include at a minimum, the dive number, depth of the dive, latitude and longitude of dive, latitude and longitude for the beginning and end of any transects conducted, latitude and longitude of any samples collected, type of sample collected, and notes of any other types of data collected on the dive (e.g. temperature, visibility, estimated current speed). The latitude and longitude records can be included as part of the navigation files but must include identification of the events associated with records (e.g. "sample 1 collected"). OCNMS will work with the contractor to define what should be recorded. Communications: Because the scientific staff may need to communicate with other research vessels, commercial vessels, & shore based facilities, the Chief Scientist or designee shall have access to use of radio transceivers & other available communication equipment Mechanical Breakdown: The contractor is responsible for maintaining all contractor provided equipment & vessels in a safe operating condition during the contract performance. If a mechanical breakdown occurs of the vessel or ROV or submersible that is >12 hrs, the vessel & ROV/submersible shall be considered to be off charter for the purposes of billing. The contractor shall make every reasonable effort to solve any problem causing the vessel and/or ROV/submersible and/or equipment to be out of service, & bring it back into service as quickly as possible to continue contract performance. Fuel & Water: The contractor is responsible for providing all fuel needed to perform the contract. Any breaks from contract work to take fuel or water will be considered time off charter, for billing purposes. Selection: The selection of a contractor will be on the basis of price & technical ability. Technical ability includes past performance & ability to meet the intent of OCNMS researchers. The technical evaluation & price evaluation are equal in importance. The price evaluation will involve comparing the price of 8 days ROV operation to 16 days submersible operation since this provides an approximate equivalent bottom viewing time. Proposal Requirements 1. Evidence that the crew is comprised of competent operators for all shipboard, submersible, ROV, audio-visual equipment, including as a winch/davit operator for shipboard night operations. 2. Include drawing of the vessel's deck configuration and confirm that the space, power and water source requirements listed in the SOW are available. 3. Include dates available to perform this contract within th 12 August to 20 September 2002 window. 4. List at least 3 previous contracts for similar performance, with names & telephone numbers of contact points. These contracts provided should include work at depths of at least 200m. 5. Assume all berths are occupied and 24 hr operations are underway for the duration of 8 days of research in the Sanctuary - describe fuel and water capacity for the charter, and any breaks needed from charter for fuel, water or for any other need. Projecting out, at what point if any, in the 16 days maximum cruise would refueling or re-supply of water be necessary? 6. Offer a firm-fixed price for mobilization & demobilization, a firm-fixed price for a base performance period of the minimum days stated (8 days) not including the mobilization and demobilization days, and a daily firm-fixed price for the additional option days. 7. Describe the launch and recovery system. 8. Describe wind speed and wave height and swell conditions that the contractor has operated under for similar programs and the limitations for each: launch, operation and recovery. 9. Describe the remote positioning system. 10. Describe video and still camera equipment, the lasers and lighting. This should include the following: 1) image sensor, 2) pixels/effective pixels, 3) horizontal lines of resolution, 4) vertical lines of resolution, and 5) picture elements (vertical and horizontal). Also describe the ability to confirm that the photos/video have been successfully taken. 11. Confirm that you can operate at the same time, a vertical video camera with 2-4 lasers, an oblique angle video camera with 2 lasers, and either a vertically mounted still camera or a live feed frame grabber in sync with the vertically mounted camera. 12. OCNMS plans to collect 1) sediments for grain size analysis and chemistry, 2) samples for invertebrate infauna/epifauna enumeration, and 3) possibly individual epifaunal organisms to confirm identification. Please clearly describe the capabilities you are providing for sampling each of these (e.g. box core sampler, slurp or suction sampler, etc.). A minimum sample size of 0.1m2 is required for the infauna, and a core 15cm in diameter 10cm deep for sediments, both of which must be collected using the ROV/submersible. Please specify the dimensions of any devices proposed and the number and type of samples you are able to collect per dive and how they are to be stored until you reach the boat deck. 13. Explain how buried fiber optic cable will be detected and tracked and how station and course will be maintained directly over cable. Also provide documentation that the cable sensor (magnetometer and/ or toner) will work and client contacts for projects where you have used this technique. 14. Describe the forward speed that the ROV or submersible is capable of and in what current speeds (knots) it can operate effectively. 15. Describe the control the submersible or ROV has for maintaining a slow speed of less than one knot and at what current speeds it would be unable to do so. 16. Describe the audio-video equipment available, including deck play back and grabs off of live feed (ROV). Relevant to Submersible Only: Sub-16. Include a current ABS (American Bureau of Shippers) or recognized equivalent certification documents (e.g., Lloyds, Det Norsk Veritas) for a submersible. Sub-17. Describe submersible ability to accommodate a minimum of one contractor supplied operator and one OCNMS scientist, with viewing ports accessible to the scientist at all times during the dive. Sub-18. Describe capabilities of the underwater communications system and safety features of the submersible. Relevant to ROV's only: ROV-16. For ROV offerors, explain how many hours can be actual dive (underwater) time assuming workable weather conditions before scheduled down time is needed (e.g., a maximum of 16 hr dive time before a 4 hr maintenance period is needed). ROV-17. How do you propose to staff a 24 hr operation? The provision at 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial applies to this acquisition and there are no addenda to this provision. Offers shall include a completed copy of the provision at 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items, with its offer. FAR clause 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition and there are no addenda to this provision. FAR clause 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition and the following additional FAR clause cited in the clause are applicable to this acquisition: 52.203-6, Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government, with Alternate I (41 U.S.C. 253g and 10U.S.C. 2402), 52.215-5, Facsimile Proposals, 52.219-8, Utilization of Small Business Concerns and Small Disadvantaged Business Concerns (15 U.S.C. 637 (d)(2) and (3), 52.219-14,Limitation on Subcontracting 915 U.S.C. 637(a)(14), 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity (E.O. 11246), 52.222-35, Affirmative Action for Special Disabled and Vietnam Era Veterans (38 U.S.C. 4212), 52.222-36, Affirmative Action for Handicapped Workers (29 U.S.C. 793), 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Special Disabled Veterans and Veterans of the Vietnam Era (38 U.S.C. 4212), 52.225-3, Buy American Act- Supplies(41 U.S.C.10) and 52.225-9, Buy American Act-Trade Agreements Act-Balance of Payments Program(41 U.S.C. 10,19 U.S.C.2501-2582) . Proposals may be faxed to (206) 527-3915, or mailed to U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, WASC, AMD, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115 Attention: Stephanie Kyles, or sent by email to Stephanie.M.Kyles@noaa.gov. Emailed proposals shall be readable by WordPerfect. Offerors which email proposals, shall fax or deliver a hardcopy of a statement with an original signature, of their intentions to be bound by the email proposal. Deadline for receipt of proposals and statements accompanying email proposals is 2:00 p.m. PST on April 1, 2002. Late, or incomplete proposals will not be considered. Full text of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) can be accessed on the Internet at http://www.arnet.gov/far.
 

Place of Performance

Address: Seattle,WA

Zip Code: 98115

Country: USA
 

Record

SN00045255-W 20020321/020319213508 (fbodaily.com)
 

Source

FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)

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