FBO_Announcement_-_Intent_to_Award_Notice__1.pdf

Intent to Award Notice – 140G0124Q0301

The US Geological Survey (USGS) has a requirement for GPS LOGGING Equipment.

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Cooperative Research Units in

Reston, VA, supporting the Ecosystems Mission Area, requests the purchases of GPS logging equipment.

The primary use is to support the field program of the South Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife

Research Unit. They will be used for studying gopher tortoise movement in a variety of forest habitats pursuant to research objectives associated with wildlife management, ecological sciences, and resource conservation. The work will support the USGS mission to provide reliable scientific information.

The total anticipated period of performance will be Date of Award – 09/20/2024.

The USGS is aware of no other source that can provide the above. Therefore, it intends to make an award to Advanced Telemetry Systems unless it is contacted by any vendor who believes they have can provide a product that can meet the needs of this requirement. Vendors are invited to contact the Contract Specialist, Tricia Rampersad via email at trampersad@usgs.gov no later than 1:00 PM EDT, Tuesday, September 10, 2024, with an affirmative answer.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) considers employee signatures to be Personal Protected Information, and therefore all employee signatures have been redacted. By posting this document, the Contracting

Officer attests all appropriate signatures have been obtained.

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (FAR 13.1)

The following information is provided to demonstrate the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications:

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Cooperative Research Units (CRU) is looking to purchase twelve

W510 Wildlink GPS Logger 2AA. This is a glue-on GPS logger made by Advanced Telemetry Systems

(ATS) to be used in a study of a tortoise population. The W510 Wildlink GPS Logger 2AA will be used to collect data on tortoises in a population where that model is currently being used to collect data, so it is necessary for data methods to be consistent and comparable across individuals. Different GPS loggers have different sensitivities and errors related to locational accuracy and precision, so it is imperative that the same model of logger is used to minimize non-target data variation.

The W510 Wildlink GPS Logger 2AA has a glue-on configuration that can be attached to the shell of the tortoises and is lightweight. Importantly, it is programmable so we can adjust the timing of logging and transmission, including light sensor-mediated transmission; this will make it possible to target specific events and limit unnecessary transmissions from within tortoise burrows and extend battery life. The ATS

GPS loggers can also transmit data to the same communication module as other loggers we have for this project. This type and similar models of GPS logger made by ATS are commonly used by field ecologists to study tortoises so our data will be consistent and comparable in the broader research field of tortoise movement ecology. Because these units are programmable, we are able to extend the battery life to >2 years by adjusting the settings, compared to 3-6 months with other brands. This allows the CRU to monitor individuals longer and reduce the frequency of which gopher tortoises need to be handled in order to retrieve and replace units. This logger has the best suite of specifications for the type of data needed to collect, and Advanced Telemetry System is the sole manufacturer and seller of this logger.

mailto:trampersad@usgs.gov