SOLE SOURCE: YSI Nile Water Level Sensors for the National Ocean Service Engineering Division in Chesapeake, VA.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Acquisition and Grants Office, Eastern Acquisition Division-Kansas City intends to negotiate and award, on a sole source basis, under authority of RFO FAR 6.103-1, with YSI Inc.for Nile custom water level sensors (P/N: 203360) and associated cables as required replacements for the National Ocean Service Engineering Division in Chesapeake, VA.

Sole Source Justification:

The sole source determination is based on NOAA’s Sole Source Justification. Only one source is capable- The NOAA Nile, FMR51 Design Analysis radar water level sensor, Part Number: 203360 (Formally Series 3611) is CO-OPS standard noncontact primary water level sensor used at environmental monitoring stations on the Atlantic coast, the Gulf of America coast, throughout the Pacific, the Great Lakes, the Caribbean, and in coastal areas of Alaska. The NOAA Nile is a line­of-sight microwave radar instrument that measures range to a target by transmitting a series of pulses, detecting the resulting return echoes, and then using the time of flight of the return pulse to calculate a range to the target. YSI/xylem is the sole manufacturer and sole distributor of the equipment in this purchase. As the manufacture only YSI/xylem has the proprietary rights and knowledge to produce the specialized oceanographic equipment in this purchase. Significant engineering effort was utilized to ensure these sensors not only provide the precise measurements required but also are capable of withstanding the harsh marine environments they are deployed in for extended periods of time and that the power consumption, size, and other characteristics are appropriate for the specialized data acquisition and logging system to which it is connected. This purchase is for spare parts to support monitoring station stations within PORTS® throughout the United States. Implementing different components will result in additional cost and resources. Also, there will be resulting delay for testing, training, and purchase of support equipment. 

Under the current CO-OPS operating system any environmental monitoring equipment that has not previously been approved must be subjected to a series of tests to ensure the quality of the data and the durability of the equipment for the intended use. These tests usually include bench testing using controlled conditions and physical measurement, controlled environmental testing to check a sensor's reliability under different conditions, and long-term comparison testing with accepted equipment at multiple real-world locations. These tests and the analysis of the resulting data take a large amount of time, money, and resources to conduct. 
CO-OPS environmental monitoring systems are designed to operate with the components in this purchase. Implementing different components will result in compatibility issues and require extensive system integration efforts. Modifications to the existing infrastructure of the stations would also be necessary to accommodate the new equipment, requiring additional funding and engineering resources.

Currently CO-OPS field personal and contractors are trained in the use and maintenance of the systems and components in this purchase. Additional cost will incur from having to train field personal and contractors on the use and maintenance of new equipment.  CO-OPS also has the ability and equipment to test, calibrate, and repair the sensors in this purchase. If new sensors are purchased additional parts and equipment will need to be purchased to support the new equipment. Additional training will also be required for those tasked with calibrating and repairing this equipment. 

This pre-solicitation notice is not a request for competitive proposals and no solicitation package is available. However, firms that believe they can fully meet the government’s requirements may submit substantiating documentation or a request for additional information in writing to the (Contract Specialist) within 15 days after publication of this pre-solicitation notice. Such requests and documentation will be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this procurement on a competitive basis. A determination by the government not to conduct a competitive procurement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely
within the discretion of the government. Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this pre-solicitation notice.