Department of the Navy, Carderock Division Headquarters, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Annopolis, MD 21402-5067

A -- BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT/SHIP HULL CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE SYSTEM SOL N61533-95-BAA-0066 DUE 051595 POC Darrell Bachman (410) 293-5273; William J. Barnes (410) 293-5311. This is a Broad Agency Announcement for applied research as defined at FAR 35.001 and 35.016 and is subject to FAR 6.102(d)(2). The U.S. Navy needs a method for underwater cleaning of marine fouling from antifouling (AF) paints without toxicant discharge to receiving waters and methods to monitor the condition of underwater hull systems on U.S. Navy ships. It is essential that these ship hulls be maintained free of marine fouling. The Navy loses $75-100M per year in propulsive fuel due to marine fouling induced drag on ship hulls. The current cleaning process is already under scrutiny and regulations are preventing the Navy from cleaning cuprious ion enhanced AF paints at some locations. The Navy also spends about $300M per year to drydock ships, of which $80M is for hull preservation. Expensive maintenance costs can be reduced with information provided by a hull monitoring system. This information can also support planning for the drydock work package. The ships to be cleaned and inspected have hull areas between 25,000 to 160,000 square feet and are typically moored at a pier in an industrial marine environment. All wetted areas of the hull need to be cleaned, up to and including, the waterline. The Navy is soliciting research proposals which will demonstrate technical advancements in the state of the art for ship hull cleaning and maintenance monitoring. This may include unmanned underwater systems capable of being deployed in the industrial marine environment as well as material applications. The proposal should address: 1) development and demonstration of systems and technologies which would support the application of innovative concepts to an underwater platform for deployment of government furnished tools and sensors; 2) technical approach structured into separate subtasks, schedules and milestone charts including the contractor's capability to perform the task based on recent experience and corporate facilities, and experience of the personnel who will perform the task; 3) provisions for on-site reviews, and quarterly progress and financial reports. The offeror should also provide a detailed cost breakdown for individual tasks as well as a program cost summary. It is anticipated that the effort proposed can be accomplished in 9 months. Proposals should not exceed twenty (20) pages. The primary basis for selection of the proposals will be their technical merit and the availability of funds. Proposals shall be evaluated as follows: A) technical approach and probability of success; B) management and organizational approach, personnel experience, program plan and milestones, and corporate capability; C) cost reasonableness and realism. The contracts expected to be negotiated, are firm fixed price and cost reimbursement. Potential offerors shall submit an original plus four copies of the proposal. The date of closing is 60 days after this announcement. Proposals can be submitted to Dana Lynn, Code 8520, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division, 3A Leggett Circle, Annapolis, MD 21402-5067. (0073)

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