NOTICE OF INTENT TO NEGOTIATE A SOLE-SOURCE AWARD - MAINTENANCE AND CALIBRATION FOR SEA-BIRD INSTRUMENTS - NMFS

NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE

NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service – Alaska Fisheries Science Center, intends to negotiate, on a sole source basis, under authority of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1); with Sea-Bird Electronics Inc. (13431 NE 20Th St, Bellevue, WA 98005), for the purchase of maintenance and calibration services for Sea-Bird SBE19 CTD Units and SBE39 Bathythermographs. Repairs and calibration services for Sea-Bird CTD and Bathythermograph Systems are exclusively provided by Sea-Bird Electronics Inc.

Sole Source Justification

The sole source determination is based on restrictive rights of the original equipment manufacturer; Sea-Bird Electronics Inc.  The source has proprietary and limited rights in data, patent rights, OEM required certifications, copyrights, or secret processes with regard to the supplies or services required. Sea-Bird Electronics Inc. is the original equipment manufacturer for the agency’s current Sea-Bird CTDs and bathythermographs.  All design drawings, tolerance data, and installation criteria are their proprietary information.  Any other vendor will be required to subcontract heavily (if allowed) with Sea-Bird Electronics Inc. to complete this requirement. NMFS fisheries research programs study the survival, reproduction, and population growth of marine organisms in Alaskan near-shore waters. CTDs and bathythermographs are used to measure environmental conditions in which marine organism populations live and develop.

Special Notice

This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotes and no solicitation package is available. However, firms that believe they can provide equipment or service that fully meets the Government's requirements may submit substantiating documentation to the identified point of contact within 15 days after publication of this synopsis. Such documentation will be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this procurement on a competitive basis. Responses can be sent via e-mail to jason.jenks@noaa.gov.  A determination by the Government not to conduct a competitive procurement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government. Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this notice.

All responsible sources may submit a Capability Statement in accordance with the solicitation, which shall be considered by the agency if received on or before 1600 PM PDT on Aug 22, 2025.  The Capability Statement must contain material in sufficient detail to allow NOAA to determine if the party can meet all of the requirements. Incomplete statements do not warrant consideration.

All electronic correspondence shall have the subject line read:

Announcement Number: ACQ-SAP25SAT-25-1017a
Project Title: National Marine Fisheries AFSC Sea-Bird Instrument Service and Calibrations FY25

NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service requires that all contractors doing business with this office be registered with the System for Award Management (SAM). No award can be made to a company unless registered in SAM. For additional information and to register in SAM, please access the following web site: www.sam.gov. To register, all contractors must have a valid Tax ID number and obtain a government-provided Unique Entity Identifier, which is available through SAM.gov.