PHMSA's Pipeline Safety Mission Subject Matter Expert Based Technical Synthesis Reporting

Title: PHMSA's Pipeline Safety Mission Subject Matter Technical Expertise Support Requirement.

Professional, administrative, and management support services.

NAICS Codes: 541990 - All Other Professional, Scientific and Technical Services.

This procurement has been set-aside 100% for small business concerns.  Large businesses interested in this requirement must team with an eligible small business concern.

Response Date: March 11, 2011 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time

Primary Point of Contact: George D. Bozadjian
Secondary Point of Contact: Warren Osterberg

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) intends to solicit, negotiate, and award a competitive Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for technical expertise support services in the following three program areas:

Program Area 1: Assessing the Rigors and Effectiveness of Consensus Standards, Industry Guidelines, and Technology with Existing and Emerging Technical Issues:
Technical reporting in this area would synthesize all the related and interrelated issues regarding integrity threats such as corrosion or welding/joining and how relevant standards may address the threat.  A hypothetical goal could be to better understand if current standards are comprehensive in addressing threats and if new knowledge may be needed to better strengthen them.

Program Area 2: Assessing regulatory, technical, and consensus standards issues between the U.S. and Canada and the U.S. and Mexico:
PHMSA's cross border coordination with the National Energy Board of Canada is vital for safe and efficient energy movement into the U.S.  Understanding and quantifying differences between North American pipeline consensus standards is important before implementing a strategy of increased harmonization.  A technical report in this area would synthesize all the related and interrelated issues in comparing U.S. and Canadian standards.  The focus is currently with the Canadian border but future work assessing the Mexican border and other international bodies or regulators is possible.

Program Area 3: Assessing regulatory, technical, and consensus standard issues for frontier regions such as the Outer Continental Shelf and the Arctic:
PHMSA shares safety oversight of our Nation's offshore pipelines with the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement.  Preventing incidents and improving performance will require the creation of technical reports to synthesize all the related and interrelated issues regarding integrity threats.  A hypothetical goal could be to better understand how procedures or processes targeting pipeline integrity could be strengthened.  Arctic challenges still remain as new pipeline construction occurs in Alaska.  Technical reporting in this area would ducktail with previous investigations which documented many of the Arctic challenges for pipeline safety.