NEFSC JJH Marine Sciences Laboratory Seawater Intake Line Repair

Background & Objective: 

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) James J. Howard Marine Sciences Laboratory, located at Highlands, NJ, relies on continuous, uninterrupted seawater delivery to support critical marine research, aquaculture, and experimental habitats. The existing 6-inch Schedule 80 PVC seawater intake lines have experienced operational constraints, requiring immediate targeted intervention on line #2. The objective of this contract is to safely mobilize, inspect, and perform specialized jetting operations in an effort to clear obstructions and restore functionality within seawater intake line #2.

Scope of Work:

The Contractor shall provide all labor, supervision, materials, equipment, tools, logistical support, and marine vessels necessary to complete the inspection and targeted obstruction clearance of seawater intake line #2.

The scope is divided into the following primary tasks:

Task 1: Mobilization, Logistics, and Site Preparation

• Marine & Land Mobilization: Mobilize all necessary workboats, dive support vessels, jetting equipment, and support tools to the James J. Howard Marine Lab waterfront.
• Safety & Environmental Controls: Implement appropriate safety barriers and environmental controls to protect the local marine environment and conform to Sandy Hook's strict environmental regulations.

Task 2: Inspection and Assessment

• Line Inspection: Conduct a thorough initial inspection of seawater intake line #2 to locate, identify, and assess the nature of the internal obstructions.
• Reporting: Document findings and coordinate with the onsite technical representative prior to or during jetting operations.

Task 3: Jetting and Obstruction Clearance Operations

• Jetting Operations: Deploy specialized marine jetting equipment into seawater intake line #2.
• Obstruction Clearance: Execute targeted jetting operations in a safe manner in an effort to dislodge, clear, and flush out the identified obstructions to restore line flow.

Task 4: Post-Jetting Testing and Verification

• Flow Verification: Perform functional flow or vacuum testing on line #2 following jetting operations to evaluate the success of the clearance efforts and verify restored operational capacity.

Task 5: Demobilization and Site Restoration

• Demobilization: Remove all boats, equipment, unused materials, and temporary safety barriers from the facility and surrounding waters.
• Site Restoration: Restore any disturbed land, dock, or staging areas to their pre-work conditions.

Government-Furnished Property/Information:

• The Government will provide access to the facility shorelines, relevant utilities (if available and coordinated in advance), and existing blueprints/as-built drawings of the current intake system infrastructure.
• The Contractor is responsible for field-verifying all dimensions and water depths prior to ordering materials or commencing work.

Sources Sought Response Instructions:

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY.

This notice is issued solely for information, market research, and acquisition planning purposes; it does not constitute a solicitation or a promise to issue a solicitation. Furthermore, those who respond to this notice should not anticipate feedback with regards to its submission; other than acknowledgment of receipt – ONLY IF a request for an acknowledgement is requested by the submitter. This notice does not commit the Government to contract for any service. NOAA is not seeking proposals at this time. Responders are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay any costs incurred in response to this Sources Sought notice. All costs associated with responding to this notice will be solely at the interested party’s expense.

The information provided in this notice is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. All submissions become the property of the Federal Government, and will not be returned.

Any information that the vendor considers proprietary should be clearly marked as such.

Vendor Questions: Provide all questions related to this notice within the response. Vendors responding should provide a point-of-contact, including: representative's name, email address, and telephone number. Some respondents may be asked to provide additional information regarding the matters addressed in this Sources Sought notice. Those respondents will be contacted directly if there is a need for further information.

Interested vendors shall respond in writing only (no page limitation is applicable). Submit all responses by the due date and time specified in this notice. All responses shall be submitted via e-mail to hannah.montoya@noaa.gov

Part I: Company Profile & Intent to Bid

1. Company Information: company name, address, point of contact (name, email, phone), and SAM UEI number
2. Socioeconomic Status: company’s business size and any applicable socioeconomic designations (e.g., Small Business, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, EDWOSB, WOSB)
3. Intent to Bid: If the Government releases a formal Request for Quotation (RFQ) based on this notice, does your company intend to submit a quote? (Yes/No/Undecided - If Undecided, please explain what factors would influence your decision).

Part II: Technical Capability & Experience

Please provide a capability statement demonstrating your firm’s ability to perform the work described in this notice. Responses should specifically address the following requirements:

• Specialized Pipeline Jetting & Inspection Capabilities:
  • Proven history of deploying specialized marine jetting equipment to dislodge and flush out internal obstructions in pipelines.
  • Experience working specifically with 6-inch Schedule 80 PVC seawater intake lines.
  • The ability to conduct thorough initial internal line inspections to identify obstructions.
  • Experience performing post-jetting functional flow or vacuum testing to verify operational capacity has been restored.
• Marine Logistics & Site Execution:
  • The ability to mobilize and demobilize all necessary workboats, dive support vessels, and specialized equipment to a waterfront location.
  • Experience coordinating marine operations around local tidal schedules and seasonal environmental windows.
  • Capability to provide all necessary labor, supervision, materials, equipment, and logistical support independently.
• Past projects completed under NOAA/NMFS, Clean Water Act, and National Park Service (NPS) regulations in sensitive marine zones. Note: Because this project takes place within a federal gateway marine zone, the Contractor must strictly comply with all NOAA NMFS environmental mandates, Clean Water Act regulations, and NPS requirements for the Sandy Hook area.
• Because this project is urgent, address your firm's capability to mobilize within 15 calendar days of NTP and any necessary lead times and potential barriers and limitations. Note: The period of performance shall be 60 calendar days from the date of the NTP. Marine operations must be tightly coordinated around local tidal schedules and any seasonal environmental windows (e.g., restrictions to protect migratory fish or birds). 
• Resource and Level of Effort Estimates: The Government is seeking estimates on the level of support required for the SOW. This information will be used to refine the Government estimate and is strictly for planning purposes only. Contractors shall NOT submit pricing information (including hourly rates), but rather provide general “ballpark” estimates on the number of resources (i.e., personnel, hours, transportation costs, equipment/parts/materials, contingency estimate for unforseen site conditions, etc.)
• Special qualifications and certifications and any other information at the discretion of the firm.