Attachment 1 - SON Hydrogen Gas Supply Delivery and Cylinder Rental WFO Little Rock 1305M326Q0157.pdf

STATEMENT OF NEED (SON)

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE (DOC)

NATIONAL OCEANIC ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION (NOAA)

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE (NWS)

WEATHER FORECAST OFFICE (WFO) Little Rock, AR

HYDROGEN GAS SUPPLY, DELIVERY AND CYLINDER RENTAL

1. BACKGROUND:

The National Weather Service (NWS) is a 24-hour, 365-day operation and is a public safety agency. The primary mission of the NWS is the protection of life and property. The NWS in 8400 Remount Rd, North Little Rock, AR 72118, launches weather balloons routinely twice a day at 0500 and 1700 Central Standard Time (CST). Each balloon requires approximately 75 cubic feet (CF) of hydrogen. Instrumentation is attached to each balloon that provides measurements of temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, and height. This data is transmitted worldwide, incorporated into weather models, and used to make weather forecasts out to 10 days into the future.

2. OBJECTIVE

The objective of the NWS is to receive and keep on-site an adequate supply of hydrogen gas in individual cylinders to perform the weather balloon launches on schedule.

3. SCOPE

The Contractor is responsible for supplying hydrogen to the NWS upper air building located at 8400 Remount Rd, North Little Rock, AR 72118. The total amount of hydrogen to be delivered for the 12-month period of this requirement will be a maximum of 300 full 200 CF hydrogen cylinders. The hydrogen will be supplied at regular intervals throughout the period, provided as individual cylinders.

See Delivery Schedule in Section 4, below, for details

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

All deliveries are to be made to the NWS office at 8400 Remount Rd, North Little Rock, AR 72118. The point of delivery is at the Upper Air Inflation Building, located past the main office and through the locked gate. The contractor must coordinate with the NWS office upon arrival to unlock the gate. The hydrogen truck is permitted to use the main driveway for delivery. The drop off door is located on the south side of the inflation building as depicted by the red arrow in the aerial picture below.

4. REQUIREMENTS

Site Storage and Usage: All hydrogen must be provided in individual cylinders as the facility is not arranged to allow for other configurations. The maximum number of 200 CF cylinders allowed to be stored onsite is 15. This site uses a minimum of 150 CF of hydrogen, every day of the year. Actual use has the potential to vary should NWS Little Rock have a need to launch extra balloons

Initial Delivery: The contractor will supply 15 full 200 CF individual cylinders. Initial delivery date will be at the start of the period of performance.

Delivery Schedule: The point of delivery is not staffed except for during the balloon launches. The

Contractor must supply hydrogen gas to the place of performance in accordance with the coordinated date and time schedule. Deliveries are to be made on Tuesday or Wednesday.

The Contractor will supply full 200 CF Cylinders. The Contractor will provide nine (9) cylinders every two weeks, unless an additional cylinder(s) is needed. If additional cylinders are needed the Weather Forecast Office (WFO) will coordinate with the contractor 48 hours in advance of the next scheduled delivery. The Contractor must then pick up the empty cylinders in the same trip; the empty cylinders to be picked up will be capped and marked as empty by NWS personnel. The total quantity of cylinders will not exceed 300 cylinders total per year.

The Contractor must contact NWS personnel at this location when arriving for a delivery. The loading area is located on the south side of the inflation building. The loading area will remain clear of obstructions and all safety rules must be followed. Cylinders can be rolled from a truck lift gate to its delivery point. All equipment necessary for loading and unloading the hydrogen must be provided by the Contractor.

The Contractor must ensure the bottles are securely strapped to the stand at delivery and placed in an orderly/neat and clean fashion with cap loose and nozzle facing out. The Contractor must perform the deliveries in such a manner that there will be minimal interruption to or interference with the normal operation of Government business on the premises. NWS personnel will not assist with loading or unloading of cylinders.

Transition Period: If this contract is awarded to a provider other than the incumbent Contractor, then prior to the first day of the contract, the new Contractor and one of the NWS points of contact listed in Section 9 below must establish the delivery schedule, including coordinating the initial delivery to coincide with the pickup of cylinders by the former Contractor. Likewise, upon completion of this contract, if the new follow-on contract is awarded to a provider other than the current Contractor, the current Contractor must participate in the transition coordination efforts in order to minimize the risk of a missed balloon launch due to the hydrogen being unavailable at the launch site. The end-of-contract transition period may include a lighter delivery in the final weeks of the contract.

Evidence of Delivery: The driver must provide evidence of delivery by way of receipt signed by a NWS representative at the time of delivery. A copy of the signed receipt must be left with the NWS representative.

The NWS has a total of five (5) business days to notify the Contractor of any cylinders that were delivered empty. The Contractor will be obligated to either 1) replace the empty cylinder(s) within five (5) business days or 2) adjust the invoice to reflect the accurate count of full cylinders delivered.

Compliance: If any of the deliveries do not conform to contract requirements (i.e. a delivery of tanks not completely filled), the Government reserves the right to require the Contractor to bring the delivery into conformity with contract requirements, at no increase in contract amount (i.e. without additional delivery charges).

5. SAFETY AND SECURITY

All applicable material handling, safety, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) compliance, including but not limited to not smoking and the security of the property, must be adhered to by the contractor at all times.

Safety Data Sheets (SDS) must be provided by the Contractor to the Meteorologist-in-Charge (MIC) or Administrative Support Assistant (ASA) at each office, where the information will be kept on file in accordance with applicable guidelines of the OSHA Hazard Communications Standard. Requirements pertaining to recordkeeping will be strictly followed, with copy(s) provided to MIC as necessary and upon request.

6. POINTS OF CONTACT

The Government contacts at the NWS office in 8400 Remount Rd, North Little Rock, AR 72118, are:

● Meteorologist-in-Charge:

To be determined at award

● Upper Air Program Point-of-Contact:

To be determined at award