Request for Information (RFI) 475215, Helium-Water Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers

Brookhaven National Laboratory, operating under the Department of Energy Office of Science, is seeking information on the procurement of nine helium-water shell-and-tube heat exchangers to replace aging cryogenic equipment at the RHIC Central Helium Plant in Upton, New York. The RFI 475215, issued on February 13, 2026, targets qualified vendors capable of fabricating water-cooled gas-process heat exchangers engineered to ASME BPVC Section VIII standards with U-stamp certification and water-to-helium leak rates of 10-9 Torr-L/s. Key qualifications include U.S.-based manufacturing capabilities, demonstrated experience with similar heat exchanger systems, commercial product status per FAR 2.101, and SAM.gov registration with a valid Unique Entity Identification number. While this is solely an information-gathering notice and not a formal solicitation or commitment to award, respondents must provide evidence of technical capability, rough order of magnitude pricing, typical fabrication and delivery schedules, and domestic end product compliance status. Responses are due by February 27, 2026, and no evaluation criteria or award information has been established, as this RFI is designed to survey available market resources before the issuance of a future Request for Proposal.

The procurement involves no set-aside designations and no incumbent contractor has been identified in this RFI phase. The nine units consist of four primary intercoolers operating at 4.5 bar inlet pressure, four primary aftercoolers operating at 16.7 bar inlet pressure, and one utility compressor aftercooler operating at 17 bar inlet pressure, with each primary unit featuring 585,000 watts thermal duty. No specific award value or budget range has been disclosed in this pre-solicitation notice, as the RFI is intended to collect preliminary cost and schedule estimates to inform future solicitation planning. The procurement scope includes design, fabrication, testing, and delivery of the complete heat exchanger assemblies, with vendor responsibilities encompassing preliminary and final design reviews, detailed fabrication drawings, material certifications, and compliance testing. RHIC is scheduled to shut down in 2026 for upgrades to the Electron-Ion Collider, with the central helium plant undergoing repairs and upgrades to support EIC operations beginning in the early 2030s, establishing the timeline context for this replacement equipment effort.