OMAO/UxSOC - Parts, Repairs and Upgrade Support Services for the Uncrewed Surface Vehicle (USV) Exail Model DriX

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), specifically its Eastern Acquisitions Division and Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO), has published a Special Notice soliciting capability statements for Parts, Repairs, and Upgrade Support Services for the Uncrewed Surface Vehicle (USV) Exail Model DriX. This is a Sources Sought Notice indicating NOAA's intent to issue a sole source, Firm-Fixed-Price Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract. NOAA has determined that Exail, Inc. is the only source capable of meeting the specialized requirements within the required timeframe. The North American Industry Classification System Code for this opportunity is 336612 Boat Building. This solicitation was posted on January 15, 2026, and represents NOAA's formal notification to the market of its contracting intentions.

The primary objective of this Special Notice is to support NOAA's operational requirements for manufacturer-certified spare parts, hardware, software and firmware upgrades, technology refreshes, and over-the-horizon communications services for the Exail DriX USV platform. Interested parties must submit written capability statements by January 29, 2026, at 12:00 PM Eastern Time to austin.salmon@noaa.gov. While NOAA currently intends to sole source this requirement to Exail, Inc., the agency reserves the right to determine whether to conduct a competitive procurement based on responses received to this capability statement submission. Although the notice does not explicitly state restrictions, the sole source designation and manufacturer-specific nature of the requirements suggest that successful participants would need to demonstrate direct capability with the Exail DriX platform or equivalent technical expertise. This opportunity allows interested contractors to formally express their capabilities and potentially influence NOAA's final procurement decision.