Sea-Bird SBE37 Oceanographic Sensing Instruments

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has published a special notice announcing its intent to negotiate a sole source procurement for twenty-four SBE37 oceanographic sensing instruments with Sea-Bird Electronics Inc. of Bellevue, Washington. The procurement is being conducted by NOAA's Acquisition & Grants Office, Western Acquisition Division-Boulder, in support of the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL). The agency intends to utilize FAR 13.106-1(b)(1) authority to justify the sole source approach, citing Sea-Bird Electronics as the exclusive manufacturer of these specialized instruments. The instruments are classified under NAICS code 334519 for Other Measuring and Controlling Device Manufacturing and PSC code 6660 for Meteorological Instruments and Apparatus. Delivery is required no later than September 30, 2025, to Seattle, Washington.

The sole source determination is based on NOAA's requirement for instruments that can utilize the Sea-Bird inductive modem protocol, which is essential for communication with PMEL's FLEX electronics system and is the standard used by major oceanographic organizations including NOAA's National Data Buoy Center and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. While this notice does not constitute a request for competitive proposals, firms believing they can fully meet the government's requirements may submit substantiating documentation within 15 days of publication to demonstrate their capabilities. The agency will evaluate such responses solely to determine whether to conduct the procurement on a competitive basis, though the decision to maintain sole source procurement remains at the government's discretion. Oral communications are not acceptable, and all responses must be submitted in writing to the identified point of contact. The instruments will be deployed on buoy measuring platforms for conducting conductivity and temperature measurements in oceanographic research applications.