VESSEL SUPPORT FOR FIELD CAMP DEPLOYMENTS IN THE NORTHWESTERN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

The National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) has a requirement for a contractor to provide a vessel that will support protected species field camp deployment, recovery, and ancillary operations in the Hawaiian Islands. Field camp support includes transporting personnel, supplies, scientific materials, and marine debris to and from remote islands and transferring them on and off the island via small boat. The contractor must be capable of transporting live monk seals safely between islands, in close coordination with the scientific party. Additional ancillary scientific activities may be conducted in conjunction with these activities in a manner not to interfere with the vessel's primary mission. This work will be conducted from a vessel with both contractor and government supplied small boats deployed from the vessel. The contractor must furnish the necessary personnel/crew, equipment, and services to support the scientific operations. The period of performance for the contract is planned for approximately April 1, 2021 through October 31, 2021. Planned trips will require the following: One to two (1-2) trips not to exceed a total of 56 days at sea along with four to six (4-6) days per trip to mobilize and demobilize and up to 14 days of required shelter in place (SIP) per trip for all seagoing personnel immediately prior to departure. Each trip may also involve multiple legs with short returns to Honolulu to pick up and/or drop off gear and/or personnel. If two trips are performed, the deployment trip will be in the May-June time period and recovery trip will be in the August-September time period with dates to be determined by the Government in conjunction with the contractor. If one trip is performed it may fall anywhere in the time period of July - September; charter dates to be determined by the Government in conjunction with the contractor. The length of trips and itineraries will be dependent on the berthing capabilities of the selected vessel as well as operational needs as decided by the chief scientist. Charter operations will begin and end at the Inouye Regional Center (IRC) in Pearl Harbor, Ford Island, Honolulu, Hawaii, and the majority of the work, including field camp support will be conducted in the main Hawaiian Islands (MHI) and in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI), within the boundaries of the PMNM. At the discretion of the Government, an in-port at Midway Atoll may be incorporated into the operational plan for the purposes of scientific surveys, personnel transfer, fuel and supply restocking. The furthest work site is expected to be Kure Atoll, located approximately 1,200 nautical miles (NM) from Honolulu, Hawaii. Minimum vessel requirements include, but are not limited to: Must be suitable for distant open-ocean work with sufficient fuel, sewage treatment, water, food stores and must meet all permitting requirements to transit and operate in the Papah?naumoku?kea Marine National Monument (PMNM); Must be able to maintain a minimum cruising speed of 8 knots in sea state 6 (sustained winds of 21 to 26 knots with 9 to 12 feet seas); Sufficient fuel capacity and reserves to accommodate 30 days of continuous operations; Sufficient endurance to depart Honolulu, conduct a minimum of 30 days of operations at sites as far away as Kure Atoll without resupply, and safely return to Honolulu; At least one compressed air hose near the on-deck work area, capable of 125 psi; Equipped with a crane that meets ABS standards for loading and offloading scientific equipment and supplies up to 1,000 lbs. per load; Able to carry, launch and recover at least 5 small boats up to 19 ft. LOA and 4,000 lbs. each with attached outboard motors; At least 800 sq. ft. for small boats, motors, scientific gear and accessories; Dry storage area of at least 300 cu ft. in the interior of the vessel for holding scientific equipment, electronics, and other items; Minimum of 20 cu ft. of freezer storage, exclusive of space for ship's stores, to stow scientific samples and supplies that may contain hazardous chemicals and an additional 300 cu ft. of freezer storage to store frozen food for field deployment and frozen fish for seal food; Clean and sanitary berthing accommodations and steward services for a minimum of twelve (12) male and female Government personnel; Potable fresh water supply for vessel and personal use (including showers and laundry) for all personnel aboard for the duration of the charter as well as for filling up to 200 6-gallon water jugs per day (1,200 gallons) for field deployment; Minimum of two heads and two freshwater showers available to Government personnel; Functioning washer and dryer for Government personnel laundry use; Ability to safely store a minimum of 1,500 gallons of unleaded gasoline and transport to field camps in designated storage containers; and Two (2) functioning small boats (such as a rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB), safeboat, landing craft, or similar) for transferring gear, equipment, and personnel between the vessel and the islands. A comprehensive list of requirements will be included in the Request for Quotation (RFQ). The Contractor shall furnish all necessary vessel(s), personnel, equipment, required for performance of the statement of work/specifications which will be provided in the RFQ. The proposed contract action is set aside for small business concerns. The NAICS code for this procurement is 483112 and the small business size standard for this requirement is 1,500 employees. It is highly encouraged that any vendor meeting this size standard and desiring to be considered for award be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) using this NAICS code or a NAICS code with an equivalent size standard. No award can be made unless the vendor is registered in SAM. For additional information and to register in SAM, please access the following web site: www.sam.gov. In order to register with the SAM and to be eligible to receive an award from this acquisition office, all offerors must also have a Dun & Bradstreet Number. A Dun & Bradstreet number may be acquired free of charge by contacting Dun & Bradstreet on-line at https://iupdate.dnb.com/iUpdate/viewiUpdateHome.htm or by phone at +1 (555) 000-0000. This procurement also requires offerors to complete the electronic representations and certifications at the SAM website. Any resulting contract will be awarded as firm-fixed-price, commercial item contract. Solicitation documents will be made available for download on or about January 6, 2021 at beta.SAM.gov. Paper copies of this solicitation will not be issued. Interested parties should use the beta.SAM.gov - follow feature to monitor changes to this notice, including RFQ posting as well as all postings of information associated with this solicitation thereafter. Each potential offeror is responsible for checking the beta.SAM.gov website to gain all current information related to the solicitation. The solicitation and any further announcements regarding the solicitation will be posted only at https://beta.sam.gov/. The date offers are due will be stated within the solicitation documents and will be adjusted based upon the actual release date of the solicitation. All questions of any nature regarding this procurement should be sent in writing to the Contracting Officer, Crystina Jubie at contact@example.gov.