NWWR99542200054 Statement of Need RFQ.docx

STATEMENT OF NEED

Objective: To provide hydrogen gas for inflating and lifting daily weather balloons at the National Weather Service (NWS) located in White Lake MI.

Period of Performance:

The base period of performance for this requirement is 7 months, beginning January 1, 2022 and ends July 31, 2022, with the options to extend up to four additional periods of one year each:

Base Period: January 1, 2022 – July 31, 2022 Option Year 1: August 1, 2022 – July 31, 2023 Option Year 2: August 1, 2023 – July 31, 2024 Option Year 3: August 1, 2024 – July 31, 2025 Option Year 4: August 1, 2025 – July 31, 2026

Delivery Address:

National Weather Service Detroit/White Lake MI 9200 White Lake Road White Lake, MI 48386-1126 248-625-4139 (answered by 24/7 staff)

Order and Delivery Specifications:

The delivery orders will be made upon request of NWS Detroit/White Lake MI personnel. Deliveries should occur every 2 weeks, and on the same day of the week if possible. Most deliveries will require approximately 8 full cylinders, and removal of all empty cylinders from the site. The first delivery shall be for 12 cylinders.

The total amount of hydrogen to be delivered for the 12 month period of this requirement will be a minimum of 38,400 CF, up to a maximum of 57,600 CF. The bi-weekly delivery of hydrogen should be 1,600 CF minimum up to a maximum of 2,400 CF.

National Weather Service personnel will escort delivery personnel and the truck from the main building to the gas storage location, will unlock the storage cabinets, and will be responsible for connecting the cylinders to the radiosonde gas distribution system.

The Vendor shall unload full cylinders from the truck and move them inside of the outdoor storage cabinets. Each cabinet holds six cylinders. The caps on all delivered cylinders shall be loosened by the Vendor at delivery. The Vendor shall also load the truck with all empty cylinders. This shall be done without assistance from National Weather Service personnel. The distance from the truck to the outdoor storage cabinets is roughly 40 feet and will require a cylinder dolly for safe transport.

In the event the Contractor is unable to provide a scheduled delivery, the Contractor is responsible for communicating the shortage to the NWS as soon as possible, but no less than two days prior to the next scheduled delivery. If the Contractor is unable to find a reasonable supply in time to fill the requirement, the NWS reserves the right to purchase hydrogen from another supplier outside of this contract.

Gas and Cylinder Specifications:

Hydrogen gas shall be “industrial grade” with a purity of 99.9% or better. The hydrogen cylinders shall be all DOT Size 200 cylinders (approximately 200 cubic feet of gas per cylinder).

Pricing shall include:

1. Cost of hydrogen gas with estimated usage rate of 1600 CF up to 2,400 CF every two weeks.

Note: Amount of hydrogen usage is an estimate. The contractor shall be paid for actual usage.

2. Delivery Charge

3. Cylinder Rentals

4. Emergency Delivery Charge

5. Hazmat Handling Charge per delivery

6. Other fees deemed necessary.

Evidence of Delivery:

The Driver shall provide evidence of delivery by way of receipt signed by an NWS representative at the time of delivery. A copy of the signed receipt shall be left with the NWS representative.

Compliance:

If any of the deliveries do not conform to contract requirements 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).

Safety and Security:

All rules concerning safety, not smoking and the security of the property must be observed at all times.

Materials Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) must be provided by the Contractor to the MIC or 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.

Invoicing:

The Contractor will invoice on a bi-weekly basis in arrears for the latest bi-weekly hydrogen deliveries and related surcharges (i.e. cylinder rental fee, etc.). The invoice must include the following items:

a. Name and address of the contractor, which must be the same as that on the Purchase Order

b. Invoice date and invoice number

c. Purchase Order number and associated line item number from the Purchase Order

d. Description, quantity, unit of measure, unit price and extended price of supplies delivered, and date of delivery

e. Evidence of delivery by way of receipt signed by NWS representative at the time of delivery

f. Name (where practicable), title, phone number, and mailing address of person to notify in the event of a defective invoice (a defective invoice is one that does not meet all the above requirements)