25K0001 SODCO Platform RFI.pdf

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

SCIENTIFIC OCEAN DRILLING COORDINATION OFFICE

OCEAN DRILLING PLATFORM

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

1. BACKGROUND

Scientific ocean drilling collects samples of rock and sediment below the seafloor bringing them to the surface for study. These samples allow scientists to understand how Earth’s climate has changed, informs understanding of past and present geological and climate hazards, and provides key insights into determining how life on Earth responds to environmental changes.

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) has supported scientific ocean drilling vessel operations for more than 50 years through the Deep-Sea Drilling Project (DSDP), the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP), the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP-1) and the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP-2). With the end of IODP-2 in September 2024, a new phase of U.S. scientific ocean drilling will commence utilizing a variety of expedition-specific drilling vessels or platforms to accomplish scientific objectives.

2. SCOPE OF WORK

This Request for Information (RFI) is requesting information on the provision of a scientific ocean drilling vessel or platform to support the research needs of the U.S. science community and to enable new science discoveries as defined in Exploring Earth by Scientific Ocean Drilling 2050 Science Framework (hereafter 2050 Framework). The platform provider will be expected to work in close collaboration with the soon to be established Scientific Ocean Drilling Coordination Office (SODCO).

Responses to this RFI must include: (1) vessel or platform characteristics; (2) projected operation costs under potential deployment scenarios with estimated yearly operational costs; (3) contact details of your organization; and (4) relevant qualifications and experience including staffing capabilities and details of relevant recent work.

3. SUBMISSION DETAILS

Responses to this request should not include any proprietary information. Please be advised that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned.

Responses shall clearly identify the following, regarding the interested organization(s):

(1) Business name, mailing address, CAGE code, and Unique Entity Identifier;

(2) Name of company representative, their contact information, and their business title;

(3) All applicable classifications for your organization (e.g., small business, woman-owned business, 8(a) business, Other than small business, small disadvantaged business, HUBZone business, SDVOB business, non-profit);

(4) Technical expertise and/or approach relevant to the needs listed in Section 2 above.

(5) Brief summary of relevant past performance. Your response shall include a list of at least one customer (Government/non-Government) within the past five years highlighting similar work in nature, scope, complexity, and difficulty with a brief description of the scope of work. Your submission for relevant past performance must include for each customer:

• Contract name or title;

https://iodp.org/iodp-future-doc/1086-2050-scienceframework-%20full-document/file https://iodp.org/iodp-future-doc/1086-2050-scienceframework-%20full-document/file

• Contracting entity, POC, and contact information;

• Whether your firm was the prime or a subcontractor;

• Period of performance;

• Description of work and how it relates to the requirements.

Responses shall be submitted as either a Microsoft Word or searchable Adobe PDF document and shall not exceed ten pages in length, using 12-point standard font.

Responses must be submitted via email no later than the date/time specified in the Contract Opportunities notice to the point of contact identified in the Contract Opportunities notice. The subject line of the submission email shall include “RFI 49100425K0001” and your business name.

Do not submit resumes, marketing materials, slide presentations, or technical papers.

After reviewing the responses, the NSF:

• May or may not choose to meet with responders. Such discussions would only be intended to get further clarification of potential capability and any concerns of the parties.

• Continue to refine the objectives of the requirement and/or associated tasks.

• May or may not choose to solicit quotes to procure one or more tasks/objectives identified in Section 2.

• May or may not provide responses to questions submitted as part of responses to this RFI.

• May or may not forward this information to the Scientific Ocean Drilling Coordination

Office upon establishment of that office.

4. DISCLAIMER

This notice is being issued solely for informational and planning purposes. Further, this notice does not constitute a procurement solicitation. This notice does not commit NSF to contract for any supply or service nor wed NSF to any particular contract type or process. All costs associated with responding to this notice will be solely at the interested party’s expense and any information provided under this notice is purely voluntary. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future competition or participation in future subcontract opportunities which may arise. NSF expects to release any future solicitation regarding this matter at the Federal Point of Entry, www.sam.gov. It is the responsibility of interested parties to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to notice. NSF also reserves all rights to update this announcement with additional information throughout and after the response period. NSF is not obligated to contact any or all respondents, hold meetings with any or all respondents, or solicit proposals as a result of this request.