SOLICITATION NOTICE
F -- CONDUCT RIGHT WHALE/SHIPPING INDUSTRY LIAISON ACTIVITIES
- Notice Date
- 8/31/2005
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 541990
— All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Central Region Acquisition Division, 601 East 12th Street, Room 1756, Kansas City, MO, 64106
- ZIP Code
- 64106
- Solicitation Number
- WC133F-05-RQ-1897
- Response Due
- 9/14/2005
- Archive Date
- 9/30/2005
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial services prepared in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12.6 and supplemented with the information included in this announcement. This is a Request for Quotes (RFQ) for the United States (U.S.) Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Southeast Regional Office (SERO), Protected Resources Division, in St. Petersburg, FL, to Conduct Right Whale/Shipping Industry Liaison Activities during the period from September 29, 2005, through September 28, 2006. This constitutes the only solicitation that will be issued for this acquisition. Written offers are being requested; however, no written solicitation will be issued. This notice is hereby issued as RFQ No. WC133F-05-RQ-1897. This acquisition is set aside 100% for small business. The applicable NAICS code is 541990, and the size standard is $6.0 million. There is one contract line item. SECTION B ? SCHEDULE OF PRICES Provide itemized pricing as follows: ITEM NO. DESCRIPTION UNIT QTY UNIT PRICE TOTAL 0001 Conduct Right Whale/Ship- 1 JB $__________ $__________ ping Industry Liaison Activities (FOB: Destination) GRAND TOTAL: $__________ SECTION C - CONTRACT CLAUSES The FAR and Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR) clauses incorporated into this RFQ are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-04. The FAR clauses incorporated into this RFQ are these: 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions ? Commercial Items (Oct 2003); 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders ? Commercial Items (Jul 2005) (Sections [b] 5[i], 7, 9, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 26, and 31 and [c] 1 and 2. The one applicable equivalent rate for a Federal Hire is $44.19 for a Biologist GS-0401-13/01.); 52.247-34 F.O.B. Destination (Nov 1991) (The geographical area of responsibility is from North Carolina to Melbourne, FL. However, the principal area of activity will be in the Jacksonville, FL, area.); 52.203-3 Gratuities (Apr 1984); 52.204-4 Printed or Copied Double-Sided on Recycled Paper (Aug 2000); 52.204-7 Central Contractor Registration (Oct 2003); 52.215-21 Requirements for Cost or Pricing Data or Information Other than Cost or Pricing Data ? Modifications (Oct 1997) - Alt IV (Oct 1997) (Submission of cost or pricing data is not required. However, offerors may be required to provide information relating to price pursuant to FAR 15.403-3.); The CAR clauses incorporated into this RFQ are these: 1352.216-70 Contract Type (Mar. 2000) (Firm Fixed-Price contract for services.); 1352.246-70 Inspection and Acceptance (Mar. 2000) (The Contracting Officer or the duly authorized representative will perform inspection and acceptance of the services performed under this contract. Inspection and acceptance will be performed at NMFS, SERO, Protected Resources Division, 2382 Sadler Road, Fernandina Beach, FL 32034.); 1352.215-70 Period of Performance (The period of performance shall be from September 29, 2005, through September 28, 2006, inclusive.); 1352.201-70 Contracting Officer?s Authority (Mar 2000); 1352.201-71 Contracting Officer?s Technical Representative (COTR) (Feb 2005) (To be named at time of award.); 1352.208-70 Printing (Mar. 2000); 1352.209-71 Organizational Conflict of Interest (Mar. 2000); 1352.209-73 Compliance with Laws (Mar. 2000); 1352.233-70 Harmless From Liability (Mar. 2000). SECTION D ? CONTRACT DOCUMENTS, EXHIBITS, OR ATTACHMENTS The following documents are made a part of this RFQ and any resultant purchase order: 1. CAR 1352.211-70 Statement of Work/Specifications (Mar 2000). The Contractor shall furnish the necessary personnel, material, equipment, and services to perform the following statement of work/specifications: a. PURPOSE AND LOCATION: The status of the right whale in the North Atlantic is one of the most critical endangered species issues on the East Coast. The population of approximately 300 is stable at best, but probably declining, and vessel strikes are a major source of mortality. Efforts to address vessel strikes required Presidential intervention to pass a Mandatory Ship Reporting System (MSR) through the International Maritime Organization (IMO). This year, Congress provided NOAA Fisheries approximately $10 million for right whale recovery efforts. The purpose of this acquisition is to increase and improve NOAA Fisheries? communications with federal, commercial and recreational maritime representatives (including shipping industry representatives, port agents/ports authorities, harbor masters, shipping/ports/maritime associations, vessel pilot organizations, cruise lines, Navy, Coast Guard, Corps of Engineers, and other state and federal vessel interests.), provide outreach and education regarding the plight of the critically endangered northern right whale, and show what can be done to prevent vessel collisions with these and other whales. The Contractor shall also communicate to commercial and recreational vessel operators and representatives the status of NOAA Fisheries? efforts to implement ship strike reduction and related plans, obtain feedback from user groups, alert NOAA Fisheries to potential issues, and assist in resolving problems. The specific goals are these: (1) Implement an education and outreach program informing commercial mariners of: (a) The critical status of right whales and current right whale-related issues; (b) How to mitigate vessel-related threats to right whales; (c) NOAA Fisheries? efforts to implement ship strike reduction and related plans for right whales; and (d) The need for and importance of participating in these programs. (2) Achieve cooperation and compliance with voluntary and regulatory means of reducing the potential for whale/vessel collisions. (3) Work together with these entities in developing possible regulatory measures such as seasonal vessel routing requirements or speed restrictions. (4) Develop and facilitate implementation of an outreach strategy for recreational vessel operators. Location is flexible, but ideally, the Contractor would be located in the Fernandina Beach or Jacksonville, FL area. However, the area of responsibility shall be from North Carolina to Melbourne, Florida. b. SCOPE OF WORK: Over the 12-month time-frame, 9/29/2005 to 9/28/2006, the Contractor will be responsible for developing, fostering, and maintaining partnerships with the shipping community in the area from North Carolina to Melbourne, Florida. Partnerships shall be established and maintained at all levels, but particularly with shipping agents, shipping companies, port operator groups (port authorities as well as companies with private shipping facilities), local/regional marine transportation organizations, harbor pilot associations, and tug and barge operators, for the express purpose of increasing awareness of right whales and the need to adopt special operating procedures when traveling in or near the right whale Southeast U.S. critical habitat. The Contractor shall coordinate closely with the NOAA Fisheries SE right whale conservation program coordinator and the Chair of the Southeast Implementation Team (SEIT) for the Recovery of the Northern Right Whale. The Contractor may be required to coordinate with similar counterparts in the NOAA Fisheries Northeast Regional Office. (1) SEIT Requirements: The Contractor shall participate in SEIT semi-annual meetings and other related projects as needed. SEIT-related responsibilities shall include refining and implementing the newly developed education and outreach strategy initiated by the SEIT and facilitating the development and distribution of outreach materials by industry-related organizations represented by SEIT members (i.e. port authorities could be doing more to assist in education and outreach efforts). The Contractor shall also investigate and propose incentive programs for encouraging marine transportation best management practices to better protect right whales. (2) Mandatory Ship Reporting System (MSR): Examine MSR compliance data supplied by NOAA Fisheries or Coast Guard (CG) to identify potential trends in noncompliance. Work with industry and CG Marine Safety Offices (MSO) to increase the MSR compliance rate. Inform the mariner community of MSR requirements. Provide input to the NOAA Fisheries? MSR committee, as requested or necessary, to maintain and enhance the MSR. (3) Identify and Attend Industry Meetings and Conduct Site Visits: The Contractor shall identify potential commercial ship and tug/barge-related organizations, maritime organizations, harbor pilot associations, and port authorities that exist within the area of responsibility, but are not included in Appendix A. The Contractor shall include the previously unknown organizations in the table presented in Appendix A. Additionally, the Contractor shall identify and include meeting schedules in the table for each of the added organizations. An updated electronic and hard copy of the data table shall be provided to NOAA Fisheries no later than October 2005. Updates to the data table shall be provided in electronic and hard copy to NOAA Fisheries as addenda to subsequent monthly reports. The Contractor shall contact the appropriate organization representative and offer to present right whale-related information at meetings of the following organizations in the specified months: Organization Month NC State Ports Authority Oct, Dec, Feb, Apr Maritime Association of the Port of Charleston Oct, Dec, Feb, Apr Savannah Maritime Association Nov, Dec, Jan, Mar Jacksonville Marine Transportation Exchange Nov-Mar During presentations at these meetings, the Contractor shall apprise maritime interests (as outlined above) of NOAA Fisheries? requirement under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to develop measures to essentially eliminate right whale/vessel collisions and work directly with these entities to develop possible solutions to the problem Atlantic-wide, but with particular emphasis on the area of responsibility. (4) Harbor Pilot Associations: The Contractor shall attempt to attend all regularly scheduled meetings for the harbor pilot associations identified in Section b(3) of this scope of work and, particularly, prior to the estimated seasonal arrival of right whales in the area of operation for each harbor pilot association. Additionally, the Contractor shall appraise maritime interests (as outlined above) of NOAA Fisheries? requirements under the ESA to develop measures to essentially eliminate right whale/vessel collisions and work directly with these entities to develop possible solutions to the problem Atlantic-wide, but with particular emphasis in the area of responsibility. The Contractor shall provide right whale educational materials/packages for harbor pilots to distribute directly to the owners and operators of ships within their sphere of influence. (5) Develop and Implement Management Strategies/Regulations: The Contractor shall work with NOAA Fisheries in developing and drafting recommendations to the IMO and/or Coast Guard regarding possible regulatory restrictions on vessel traffic in the Southeast right whale calving grounds, and shall work with NOAA Fisheries regions and Headquarters (HQ), as well as the U.S. Coast Guard, to draft such regulations via the Coast Guard and/or IMO channels. The Contractor shall review and update Coast Pilot language, as necessary. The Contractor shall review, compile, and summarize all CG-related notices to mariners regarding right whales, to include local notice to mariners (LNM), broadcast notice to mariners (BNM), and Maritime Safety Broadcasts (Navtex). Information shall be provided no later than the November 2005 monthly report to NOAA Fisheries. The Contractor shall also suggest appropriate enhancements to these notices, as necessary, and recommend other CG publications that may be underused. (6) Reporting and Invoicing: The Contractor shall provide the COTR with informal verbal progress reports as frequently as is deemed necessary by the COTR. In addition to information specified above, monthly progress reports shall consist of summaries listing industry meetings attended, ports visited, number of maritime interests the Contractor met with (including contact information for all key parties involved), number of workshops conducted, and all other relevant contacts that occurred during the reporting period. The report shall describe the outcome of these various contacts, the conclusions and recommendations voiced at meetings, and all other results from those contacts. Finally, monthly reports will include information on plans to attend future meetings in the subsequent month. (i.e. The March report shall contain information on plans to attend April meetings.) At least semiannually, the reports shall also provide recommendations for additional informational (e.g. research needs), strategies, or monetary resources that may help inform and improve NOAA Fisheries? efforts to prevent whale/vessel collisions. The Contractor may invoice for services after submission of mandatory monthly progress reports. The Contractor will be reimbursed for travel costs up to amounts authorized under the current NOAA government travel regulations. All invoices shall include the contract number and a complete description of the service for easy identification. Payment for services shall be contingent upon successful completion of the above requirements, including the participation in maritime organization meetings as specified in Section b (3). c. EXPECTED RESULTS AND BENEFITS: A number of recommendations have been made to NOAA Fisheries regarding how to achieve reduction in whale/vessel collisions. Such recommendations have included a strong public outreach component. There is a great need to continue to develop and enhance industry contacts, provide the shipping industry with information on right whales, and initiate and maintain continuous dialogue with maritime organizations about ship-strike prevention. There are also needs for distributing region-specific outreach materials; reporting on mariners' current knowledge of (1) right whales and their plight, in general; (2) how to identify right whales; and (3) how to avoid them; and eliciting additional industry recommendations for practicable and effective means to further reduce the potential for collisions. It is also hoped that having an individual work directly with the maritime industry will promote a spirit of cooperation and ultimately result in a better, more effective whale interaction prevention program that will have better industry support and better compliance. d. DELIVERABLES: (1) The Contractor shall provide input on the development of outreach materials, as needed, and shall ensure distribution of these materials via meetings, workshops, mailings, and other available means. (2) Monthly progress reports shall be provided to the COTR within 7 days following the completion of a calendar month (i.e. January progress report will be submitted by February 7) and will summarize progress in ensuring that all mariners from North Carolina through Atlantic coastal Florida are aware of the right whale/vessel interaction issue and in obtaining their support of a plan to prevent such incidents. Monthly reports shall also include recommendations and suggested implementation strategies regarding any aspects the Contractor believes will benefit NOAA Fisheries? whale/vessel collision prevention efforts, such as additional informational or fiscal resources that may aid NOAA Fisheries in development of a better vessel collision prevention program or summarizing and providing conclusions regarding mariners' concerns. The following shall also be submitted in or with the specified monthly report: Monthly Report Additional Deliverable to be Submitted In or With Specific Monthly Report October 2005 1. Table of maritime organizations, contact information and organization meeting schedules. 2. Outcome of meetings listed under Section b (3), including information presented and feedback received. November 2005 1. Review, compile, and summarize all CG-related notices to mariners concerning right whales, including local notice to mariners (LNM), broadcast notice to mariners (BNM), and Navtex 2. Outcome of meetings listed under Section b (3), including information presented and feedback received. 3. MSR Compliance related activities Dec 2005-March 2006 1. MSR Compliance related activities 2. Outcome of meetings listed under Section b (3), including information presented and feedback received. April-September 2006 1. Outcome of meetings listed under Section b (3), including information presented and feedback received. (3) The Contractor shall assist in drafting documents for intra- and inter-agency and Congressional briefings, regulations, and supporting National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documentation. e. DELIVERY LOCATION: Shipments of deliverable items, including reports, shall be sent to both of the following addresses (unless otherwise specified by the COTR): Barb Zoodsma NOAA Fisheries SERO, Protected Resources Division 2382 Sadler Road, Suite 5 Fernandina Beach, FL 32034 or Barb.Zoodsma@noaa.gov And Vicki Cornish NOAA Fisheries SERO, Protected Resources Division 263 13th Avenue South St. Petersburg, FL 33701 or Vicki.Cornish@noaa.gov 2. Wage Determination Number 1994-2116, Revision Number 29, dated 05/23/2005. 3. The Offerer?s Representations and Certifications completed under FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications ? Commercial Items (Jan 2005), in Section E are incorporated by reference. SECTION E ? SOLICITATION PROVISIONS The FAR and CAR provisions incorporated into this RFQ are those in effect through FAC 2005-04. The FAR provisions incorporated into the RFQ are these: 52.212-1, Instruction to Offerors ? Commercial Items (Jan. 2005); 52.212-2 Evaluation -- Commercial Items (Jan. 1999) (The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: (1) Minimum Qualifications: At a minimum, offerors must demonstrate (a) Familiarity with and experience in working with the commercial shipping industry in the southeastern U.S., and (b) Familiarity with and active support of efforts to protect endangered right whales from ship collisions. (2) Technical Factors: The evaluation factors and sub-factors are presented in descending order of importance. (a) Technical Capability and Past Performance: Offerors must provide evidence that they?ve accomplished similar jobs successfully in the past and that they have direct experience working with the commercial shipping industry to address complex environmental issues. In evaluating technical capability and past performance, the Government may contact previous Customers of the offeror. Offers must address the offeror?s qualifications related to each of the following evaluation sub-factors: (i) Experience in working with commercial shipping entities. (ii) Experience working with harbor pilot and other marine transportation organizations along the Atlantic Coast from North Carolina to Florida. (iii) Experience with the Mandatory Ship Reporting System reporting requirements and compliance issues. (iv) Familiarity with NOAA Fisheries Ship Strike Reduction Plan. (v) Ability to summarize and respond to stakeholder concerns. (vi) Experience in presenting information in a cohesive and understandable format to stakeholder groups. (vii) Experience in coordinating and working collaboratively with external agencies and organizations. (viii) Flexibility to respond to changes requested by the Government. Offerors must provide a list of contacts, including phone numbers, for firms for whom the offeror has successfully performed similar services in the past five years. (b) Project Management: Offerors shall present their organization and plan for successfully executing the statement of work and present evidence that they have the skills, resources, and organization to perform the job successfully. Offers must address the offeror?s qualifications related to each of the following evaluation sub-factors: (i) Responsiveness to requirements of the statement of work. (ii) Adequate staffing suitable for the project. (iii) Ability to select and operate from a convenient, cost-effective work site. For the purposes of this RFQ, Technical Capability and Past Performance and Project Management, when combined, are significantly more important than price. However, price will not be ignored in making the final selection. The proposed price will be evaluated but not scored. The price evaluation will determine whether the proposed price is realistic, complete and reasonable in relation to the solicitation requirements. This is a best value acquisition. The closer technical scores are to each other, the more important price will become. Conversely, the closer proposed prices are to each other, the more important technical factors will become. The Government reserves the right to award to other than the lowest priced offer or to other than the offeror with the highest technical score if the Contracting Officer determines that to do so will result in the best value to the Government.); 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications ? Commercial Items (Jan 2005) (Offerors shall include a completed copy of the representations and certifications with the offer.). The CAR provisions incorporated into this RFQ are these: 1352.215-71 Proposal Preparation (March 2000) (Proposals are expected to conform to this solicitation provision and be prepared in accordance with the instructions. The proposal shall be clearly and concisely written as well as being neat and logically assembled. The proposal shall provide information relative to the evaluation criteria set forth in FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation -- Commercial Items.); 1352.215-73 Inquiries (Mar. 2000). All FAR clauses and provisions are available on the Internet Website http://www.acqnet.gov/far. All CAR clauses and provisions can be found at http://oamweb.osec.doc.gov/CAPPS car.html. NOAA requires that all Contractors doing business with this Acquisition office be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) data base. NO award can be made unless the vendor is registered in CCR. For additional information and to register in CCR, access the following website: http://www.ccr.gov/. In order to register with the CCR and to be eligible to receive an award from this Acquisition office, all offerors must have a Dun & Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) identifier. A DUNS identifier can be obtained free of charge at https://www.dnb.com/product/eupdate/requestOptions.html or at (800) 333-0505. Signed and dated offers with the technical proposal and price proposal (one original and two copies) must be submitted to the U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, CRAD, Attn: William Becker, 601 E. 12th Street, Room 1756, Kansas City, MO 64106, not later than 2:00 p.m. CDT, on September 14, 2005. Contact William Becker at 816-426-7453.
- Place of Performance
- Address: NOAA Fisheries, SERO, Protected Resources Division, 2382 Sadler Road, Suite 5, Fernandina Beach, FL
- Zip Code: 32034
- Country: USA
- Zip Code: 32034
- Record
- SN00883541-W 20050902/050831211923 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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