PMEL-25-0080 Repair and Calibration of Sea-Bird Instruments

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Acquisition & Grants Office (AGO), Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL), intends to negotiate, on a sole source basis, under authority of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1), with Sea-Bird Electronics located in Bellevue, WA for repair and calibration of instruments, and purchase of SBE63 instruments to be delivered to NOAA/PMEL in Seattle, WA.

The sole source determination is based on NOAA’s requirement that Sea-Bird Electronics is the only authorized source for service, repair, and calibration of Sea-Bird instruments. Attempting to use another source for this service would call into question the quality and accuracy of the data collected. Service only being available from the manufacturer is standard practice across the scientific instrument industry.

For the purchase of the SBE63’s NOAA has standardized on this sensor and the platform they will be used in. Attempting to use another source would require re-design of the current platform and it’s physical and software interfaces. This change would reduce consistency across the fleet. These changes would result in additional cost, labor, and deployment practices. The time involved in these changes would be detrimental to the program and overall mission. Delivery 10/30/2025.

This notice of intent is not a request for competitive proposals and no solicitation package is available. However, firms that believe they can fully meet the government's requirements may submit substantiating documentation in writing 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. 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.