Consolidated_RFP_Questions_And_Answers.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 25 KB Posted
- Solicitation number
- W900KK-27-D-SSV2
About this file
This is a Consolidated Questions and Answers document addressing 57 clarification requests submitted by potential respondents for a commercial maritime test-platform and event-support services solicitation (W900KK-27-D-SSV2). The Government seeks to charter a commercially operated vessel to support research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) and training events involving autonomous and uncrewed maritime systems, with an anticipated IDIQ contract award and initial task order beginning January 2027. Solution briefs are due by November 6 or 12, 2026 (depending on version), with questions due by November 2, 2026.
The vessel must be homeported at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, Virginia, with operating areas including Virginia Beach/Norfolk, Massachusetts Bay, Narragansett Bay, and Panama City. Minimum vessel specifications include approximately 78 meters in length and 5 meters draft, with Dynamic Positioning Class 2 capability, 690 square meters of deck space, and lift capacity of 15 tons to support launch and recovery of uncrewed systems up to 11,000 wet pounds (dimensions 19 feet by 4 feet). Crew must be U.S. citizens cleared for CUI//NOFORN information access. The Government will provide applicable security requirements through the contract process, with clearances required only at task-order stage, not at IDIQ award. U.S.-flag and Jones Act qualification are not required; foreign-flagged vessels are acceptable. The vessel must accommodate up to 16 government personnel and designated test participants in berthing separate from crew accommodations, provide three meals daily, include bridge workspace for up to five personnel, and maintain availability for approximately 2–3 weeks underway operations every two months with maximum durations near 30 days, permitting scheduled maintenance. Vessel fuel, port fees, and modifications are included in contract pricing. The Government will conduct uncrewed system operations and data collection, while vessel crew assist with launch and recovery. No additional contractor personnel beyond the operating crew are anticipated. PDF format is preferred for submission, with vessel specification sheets, certificates, deck plans, deviation tables, and risk registers permitted as appendices outside the 10-page solution brief limit.
View the file
Other files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| SSV2 CFS_CAO 15OCT.pdf |
On GovTribe
Work with this file
- Download the original file
- Contacts named in this file
- Similar government files
- Ask GovTribe AI about this file
Text version
Consolidated Q&A Tracker
| Consolidated RFP Clarification & Question Tracker | |||||
| Item # | RFP Section Number | RFP Reference | Question / Clarification Request | Government Response | |
| Q-001 | 3.1 | "Place of Performance: Government-designated pier-side locations, U.S. and international waters, approved maritime ranges, and contractor facilities as required." The SAM listing identifies Norfolk, Virginia as the place of performance. | Is Norfolk the anticipated homeport or primary mobilization location, or is it only an administrative place-of-performance entry? | Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story will be the primary homeport/primary mobilization point. | |
| Q-002 | 3.1 | "Place of Performance: Government-designated pier-side locations, U.S. and international waters, approved maritime ranges, and contractor facilities as required." The SAM listing identifies Norfolk, Virginia as the place of performance. | What locations or operating regions should respondents use for availability, mobilization, fuel, port, crewing, and pricing assumptions? | The vessel will be based out of Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, VA. Operating areas include, but are not limited to, Virginia Beach/Norfolk, Massachusetts Bay, Narragansett Bay, and Panama City. | |
| Q-003 | 9 | "The Government will provide applicable security requirements, including any DD Form 254, through the authorized solicitation and contract process." | Will the crew be required to hold security clearances? | Required to be cleared for CUI//NOFORN. TBR. | |
| Q-004 | 9 | "The Government will provide applicable security requirements, including any DD Form 254, through the authorized solicitation and contract process." | Are the crew required to be U.S. citizens? | Yes. | |
| Q-005 | 5; 10.3; 6.3 | Section 5 asks for "Dynamic Positioning Class 2 capability or equivalent station-keeping capability." | What station-keeping performance will the Government accept as equivalent (for example, position and heading tolerance, sea state, and duration during launch and recovery)? | Vessel must be DP2. | |
| Q-006 | 5; 10.3; 6.3 | Section 5 asks for "Dynamic Positioning Class 2 capability or equivalent station-keeping capability." | Will a DP Class 1 vessel with documented station-keeping procedures be considered? | The vessel must meet the redundancy threshold of a DP2 system. | |
| Q-007 | 3.1; 10.4; 10.7 | Section 3.1, "Place of Performance: Government-designated pier-side locations, U.S. and international waters, approved maritime ranges, and contractor facilities as required." | What port of embarkation and general operating area does the Government anticipate for the initial task order (1 JAN 27 – 31 MAR 27)? | Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Fort Story. | |
| Q-008 | 5; 6.3 | Section 6.3 states, "The contractor shall support Government-led experimentation involving uncrewed surface vehicles, uncrewed underwater vehicles, remotely operated vehicles, and other autonomous systems." | What are the size and weight of the largest government-furnished uncrewed system (USV, UUV, or ROV) expected to be launched and recovered (weight in air, length, beam/diameter, and lift-point configuration)? | 16ft x 4ft, 6800 dry lbs, ~11,000 wet lbs. One central lift point with connection points forward and aft for tag lines. | |
| Q-009 | 5 | Capability to support launch and recovery operations; (A-Frame / Knuckleboom Crane with articulated docking head) | Will the articulated docking head and the transducer pole be government-furnished, or should the respondent provide them? | Both should be furnished through the contractor. | |
| Q-010 | 5 | Capability to support launch and recovery operations; (A-Frame / Knuckleboom Crane with articulated docking head) | If the articulated docking head and transducer pole will be government-furnished, can the Government provide interface specifications? | Criteria outstanding | |
| Q-011 | 5; 6.3 | Section 5, Sufficient onboard power (230V 3-phase minimum) to support embarked Government systems; | What total electrical load is anticipated for embarked government systems? | Criteria outstanding | |
| Q-012 | 5; 6.3 | Section 5, Sufficient onboard power (230V 3-phase minimum) to support embarked Government systems; | How many 230V 3-phase connections are required? | Criteria outstanding | |
| Q-013 | 5; 6.3 | Section 5, Sufficient onboard power (230V 3-phase minimum) to support embarked Government systems; | Please confirm the frequency (60 Hz or 50 Hz). | Criteria outstanding | |
| Q-014 | 5 | Berthing to support minimum 16 personnel, not including ship’s crew | Please confirm that the minimum 16 berths (not including ship's crew) are for government personnel and government-designated test participants. | Correct, the berths are for government personnel and designated test participants | |
| Q-015 | 5 | Berthing to support minimum 16 personnel, not including ship’s crew | Should berthing for contractor event-support personnel be counted separately? | Yes. | |
| Q-016 | 5; 3.2; 4.6; 10.3; 10.4 | Section 5, "Suitability for Government-directed pier-side and underway RDT&E events." | For the initial task order, can the Government provide an estimated number of pier-side days, underway days, and events, or a notional event cadence? This will help respondents describe availability, minimum commitment periods, and mobilization assumptions. | Approximately 2-3 weeks underway every two months. | |
| Q-017 | 10.7; 13 | Section 13, "0006, Specialized equipment, third-party support, or authorized other direct costs | |||
| Fixed Unit / Authorized Cost" | For planning commercial terms, will fuel, port fees, and dockage be included in the respondent's day rates, or treated as authorized other direct costs under CLIN 0006? | Criteria outstanding | |||
| Q-018 | 10.5 | "Provide up to three examples of relevant prior or current efforts involving commercial maritime, offshore, autonomous-system, uncrewed-system, test-and-evaluation, or comparable event-support services." | May relevant experience examples include work performed by a proposed subcontractor or teaming partner (for example, the vessel owner or operator), provided the respondent identifies the performing entity? | Yes. | |
| Q-019 | 10.2; 10.4 | Section 10.2, "Description of the commercially available vessel, services, equipment, operating practices, and support capabilities proposed;" | At the solution-brief stage, must the respondent identify a specific named vessel, or may it propose a vessel class with a primary vessel and an identified alternate? | Specific names vessel and an alternate is acceptable. | |
| Q-020 | 9; 10.8 | Section 9, "The Government will provide applicable security requirements, including any DD Form 254, through the authorized solicitation and contract process." | Will a facility security clearance be required at IDIQ award or only under a task order? | Only under a task order. | |
| Q-021 | 9; 10.8 | Section 9, "The Government will provide applicable security requirements, including any DD Form 254, through the authorized solicitation and contract process." | What personnel clearance level and citizenship requirements are anticipated for ship's crew and embarked contractor personnel? | US Citizens. Required to be cleared for CUI//NOFORN. TBR. | |
| Q-022 | 10 | "Respondents shall submit a solution brief of no more than 10 pages, excluding commercial literature, resumes, and appendices." | Please confirm that vessel specification sheets, certificates, deck plans, a deviation table, and a risk register may be included as appendices outside the 10-page limit. | They may be included outside of the ten page limit. | |
| Q-023 | 10 | "Respondents shall submit a solution brief of no more than 10 pages, excluding commercial literature, resumes, and appendices." | Please provide a preferred file format. | PDF is preferred. | |
| Q-024 | 10 | "Respondents shall submit a solution brief of no more than 10 pages, excluding commercial literature, resumes, and appendices." | Please provide a maximum email attachment size, if applicable. | N/A | |
| Q-025 | 10 | "Respondents shall submit a solution brief of no more than 10 pages, excluding commercial literature, resumes, and appendices." | For whom are resumes required in this submission? | None | |
| Q-026 | 3.1, 5, and 10.8 | U.S.-flag and Jones Act qualification | Please confirm whether the vessel must be U.S.-flagged and whether it must also be Jones Act-qualified. Would a U.S.-flag vessel that is not Jones Act-qualified be acceptable, or would foreign-flag vessels also be considered? | Foreign flagged, non jones act qualified are acceptable for submission. | |
| Q-027 | 3.1–3.2 and 6.3 | Where the vessel will operate | Where will the vessel be based, and which ports and test areas will it visit? Will personnel and equipment return to the same location where they boarded or were loaded, or could they leave the vessel at a different U.S. location? | The vessel will be based out of Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, VA. Operating areas include, but are not limited to, Virginia Beach/Norfolk, Massachusetts Bay, Narragansett Bay, and Panama City. | |
| Q-028 | 9 and 10.8 | Security and personnel requirements | What security clearances or access restrictions will apply to the company, crew, and other contractor personnel? Will the company need a facility security clearance, and when must all required clearances be in place? If U.S. flag is not required, are there crew nationality restrictions? | US Citizens. Required to be cleared for CUI//NOFORN. TBR. | |
| Q-029 | 5 | Vessel size and ability to hold position | Are the listed vessel dimensions preferred sizes, or are they limits dictated by the ports and test areas? | Vessel dimensions are requirements driven by testing parameters. 78 m length and 5m draft are minimum acceptable criteria. | |
| Q-030 | 5 and 6.3 | Equipment size and lifting requirements | What are the largest dimensions and heaviest weights of the equipment the vessel must carry, lift, and place in or recover from the water? How much open deck space is needed, and in what sea conditions must these activities be performed? Must the lifting equipment include the specified articulated docking head, or would another arrangement be acceptable? | Largest dimensions required for launch and recovery are 6,800lbs (dry), 11,000lbs (wet) 19ftx4ft length in sea state up to 5. Deck must be able to accommodate two zodiacs and/or jet skis, 690 square meters is acceptable. | |
| Q-031 | 6.1–6.5 | Who performs the technical work | May the vessel operator serve as the prime contractor and use subcontractors for technical test support? Which activities will Government personnel perform, and which must the contractor perform, including operating the uncrewed systems, collecting data, and preparing test reports? | The government will conduct uncrewed system operations, data collection, and reports. Vessel crew will be expected to assist or conduct launch and recovery operations. | |
| Q-032 | 5 | Accommodation for Government and support personnel | What is the maximum number of personnel the vessel must accommodate in addition to its crew? Are there specific requirements for shared or private cabins, offices, secure workspaces, meals, or medical support? | Required to support up to 12 personnel. Three meals a day are required with one workspace for embarked personnel and ability to accommodate up to five people on the bridge. | |
| Q-033 | 3.2, 10.4, and 13 | Vessel availability and work schedule | Approximately how many days will it operate at sea versus remain at the pier, will around-the-clock operations be required, and how long must it remain at sea without returning to port? Will scheduled maintenance be permitted? | vessel can expect to operate for 2-3 weeks at sea approximately every two months with around the clock operations possible. Maximum duration expected is approximately 30 days. Scheduled maintenance is permitted. | |
| Q-034 | 3.2 and 10.4 | Mobilization and Availability | When does the Government expect to award the contract, and where must the vessel report? What inspections or demonstrations must the vessel pass before the Government accepts it for service? | Expected award date is 01JAN26. Vessel will report to JEB Little Creek Fort Story. | |
| Q-035 | 10.7 and 13 | Costs, delays, and responsibility for damage | Who will pay for fuel, port fees, vessel modifications, and removal of installed equipment after the work ends? What insurance and responsibility for injury or damage will be required, including damage to Government equipment? | The contract will pay for fuel, port fees, and any modifications to the vessel. | |
| Q-036 | 12. 1. Personnel Staffing and Security Requirements | ||||
| Q-037 | What contractor-provided personnel are anticipated beyond the vessel's operating crew, including labor categories, staffing quantities, and required security clearances? Which positions will be Government-staffed? | There won’t be any additional personnel beyond the vessel’s operating crew. Any additional personnel that will be on the vessel will be attached to the government personnel entourage and will embark / debark as they do. | |||
| Q-038 | Should contractor personnel be staffed for a standard 40-hour workweek, or will extended hours, weekend operations, shift coverage, or on-call availability be required during the initial 90-day period | A workweek prediction will depend on current operations. The crew can expect some weeks when a standard 40-hour workweek will occur, with the ship available to government personnel throughout the week to move gear, conduct inventory, etc. There will also be 2–3-week periods when the vessel will need to be underway for that entire time. Our operational area will change to meet requirements so at times the vessel will be told to switch locations to meet those requirements, i.e. Boston, MA; Key West, FL; Newport, RI; etc. | |||
| Q-039 | What is the maximum anticipated onboard complement, including Government personnel, contractor mission-support personnel, and vessel crew? | Maximum complement of government personnel is 15 | |||
| Q-040 | 17. 2. Vessel Availability and OPTEMPO | ||||
| Q-041 | How many underway or active operating days are anticipated during the initial 90-day period? What are the expected event frequency, duration, and daily operating hours? Must the vessel remain available continuously, including weekends and non-operational days? | Our schedule operates on roughly an underway schedule of 2-3 weeks every 2 months but is fluid to change. During operational tasks, the ship will be underway for the entirety of those 2-3 weeks, with government personnel and support party embarked. The vessel will need to always remain continuously available to government personnel during the week, not just in an operational period. Weekends are typically not needed for access, but if they are, personnel will contact a vessel rep beforehand to work out those details. | |||
| Q-042 | What is the estimated breakdown of pier-side versus underway days? Will pier-side standby, integration, maintenance, and event preparation be considered operational days? | Most of our operations are underway, with limited days of pier-side work that will be coordinated beforehand. In terms of breakdown of ship location, in port vs underway, that is dependent on the operational schedule. When the ship does not need to be underway to support operations, it will be pier side. | |||
| Q-043 | Will supplemental chase boats or RHIBs be required? If so, how many operating days and vessels should offerors anticipate, and will support be continuous or event-driven? | No, neither of those items are needed. We will bring our own CRRCs and Jet Skis on board, there just needs to be a way to launch and recover those vehicles. | |||
| Q-044 | 22. 3. Vessel Requirements | ||||
| Q-045 | Must the vessel have both an A-frame and a knuckleboom crane with articulated docking head, or would either system independently satisfy the requirement? | Commercial support requirements: Critical launch and recover criteria: a vehicle up to 15 tons and a way to launch and recover CRRCs and jet skis. Essential: docking-head crane modification/ integration. | |||
| Q-046 | What are the anticipated maximum dimensions, weight, and deck footprint of Government-furnished equipment, including any additional deck-loading or stowage requirements? | Largest dimensions required for launch and recovery are 6,800lbs (dry), 11,000lbs (wet) 19ftx4ft length in sea state up to 5. Deck must be able to accommodate two zodiacs and/or jet skis, 690 square meters is acceptable. | |||
| Q-047 | Should offerors include vessel fuel in their pricing, or will fuel be Government-provided or separately reimbursed? | Include vessel fuel in contract pricing. | |||
| Q-048 | Length and draft. Section 5 describes a vessel of approximately 78–100 m in length with an approximately 5 m draft. Are these threshold requirements, or objectives the Government will trade against functional capability? Specifically, would the Government consider a purpose-built uncrewed-systems mothership of approximately 49 m length and 1.5 m draft? This vessel (Oceanus VI) has an in-hull moonpool and elevator for UUV/USV launch and recovery, a 53' x 42' flight deck, and berthing for 22 embarked personnel. It is currently being chartered by USSOCOM as a test platform for unmanned systems. | The vessel dimensions are required in support of operational testing parameters. | |||
| Q-049 | Basis for a larger ocean-going hull. What operational conditions drive the preference for a larger hull? For example: anticipated sea states, distance offshore, water depth at event sites, or the size and weight of the largest Government-furnished system to be embarked or recovered. This would help respondents propose the right hull for the events planned under the initial task order. | The vessel dimensions are required in support of operational testing parameters. Larger ocean going hulls are also preferred for stability in higher sea states off shore. | |||
| Q-050 | Alternate hull in the same brief. can also offer a larger commercial offshore vessel. That vessel would be temporarily and reversibly configured for mission support, consistent with Section 6.2, vice OCEANUS VI, which is purpose built. May a respondent present a primary solution and an alternate hull within a single 10-page solution brief? Or should alternates be submitted as separate briefs? | Alternates should be submitted as separate briefs. | |||
| Q-051 | Hull assignment under the IDIQ. Would the Government consider a solution that assigns different hulls to different task orders or events based on operating environment? For example, a shallow-draft mothership for littoral and pier-side events, and a larger offshore vessel for open-ocean events. | No. | |||
| Q-052 | Sizing parameters. To size the larger-hull configuration, can the Government provide approximate minimums for clear deck area, deck load, and lift capacity? Can it also provide the maximum dimensions and weight of the uncrewed systems to be launched and recovered? | 690 square meters of deck space, deck load of 1050 tons, lifting capacity of 15 tons | |||
| Q-053 | Where will operations take place, which country/countries? | The United States | |||
| Q-054 | Does the Vessel need to be Jones act compliant? | No. | |||
| Q-055 | What size of A-frame / crane do you require for launch and recovery? | 15 ton | |||
| Q-056 | Is there a minimum deck size you require? | 690 square meters. | |||
| Q-057 | Will the vessel be able to utilize DLA Energy as a fuel supply source | Yes we will look into the availability of DLA as a potentional fuel source. |
File details come from the government source that posted it. Updated .