VAISALA

The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) is pursuing a sole source procurement for weather forecasting services from Vaisala Inc. This solicitation specifically targets pavement and atmospheric weather information services, with the intent to award a direct contract to Vaisala without competitive bidding. The procurement was officially issued on August 21, 2019, with proposal submissions required online at http://www.procurement.sc.gov by August 28, 2019, at 2:30 p.m. Interested offerors were instructed to submit any questions to Procurement Officer Vernell H. Goodwin at goodwinvh@scdot.org by the same deadline. The procurement is being conducted under South Carolina Code Sections 11-35-1560 and 11-35-4210, which authorize sole source acquisitions under specific circumstances. Potential bidders were advised of their protest rights, with a requirement to notify the Chief Procurement Officer in writing within ten business days of award notification.

The solicitation does not specify any set-aside designations, disadvantaged enterprise requirements, or specific vendor restrictions beyond the sole source nature of the award. No detailed pricing information, contract term length, or renewal options were provided in the available documentation. Additionally, the solicitation does not outline specific budget ranges or total contract value. The procurement appears focused exclusively on Vaisala's unique capabilities in providing weather forecasting and pavement information services. Prospective protesters were informed they could submit written protests to the Chief Procurement Officer via email to protest-mmo@mmo.state.sc.us or by postal mail to 1201 Main Street, Suite 600, Columbia, SC 29201, with a fifteen-day window from the award or intent to award notification. The procurement is geographically scoped to Richland County within the state of South Carolina.