U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, Office of Acquisition and Grants Services (RAD-30), 400 7th Street, S.W., Rm 8222, Washington, D.C. 20590

A -- NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING TO REPLACE HYDROSTATIC TESTING OF TANK CARS SOL DTFR53-93-C-00001, Task Order No. 116 DUE 042195 POC Contact Point, Contract Specialist, Robert Spratling, 202/366-0571/Contracting Officer, Robert Carpenter, 202/366-0564 The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with the Association of American Railroads (AAR) for ''Non-Destructive Testing (NDT)in lieu of Hydrostatic Testing of DOT Specification Tank Cars.'' Under this project, the contractor will be conducting research in collaboration with representatives of the railroad industry. In conducting the research activities, the contractor will be required to: (1) review and evaluate previous rail industry testing and inspection efforts relating to NDT methods; (2) perform inspection, test, and evaluation using at least five NDT inspection techniques; and (3) document the results of the research, including recommendations regarding the acceptability of actual NDT techniques that could implemented. It is contemplated that the contractor will be performing test and evaluation activities utilizing tank cars with significant but not easily detectable defects. The AAR is considered uniquely qualified to perform the proposed work due to its ability to conduct full-scale testing using the testing facilities at the Transportation Test Center, Pueblo, Colorado, and its unique position to effectively perform efforts requiring coordination with the rail industry. Consequently, the FRA intends to conduct the proposed efforts through a task order issued under the FRA's existing facilities management contract with the AAR. The applicable authority for this announced intention is that under 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1) as implemented by FAR 6.302-1, ''Only One Responsible Source.'' This task is not a competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) and a competitive RFP is not available. (0102)

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