Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, a private nonprofit oceanographic research organization headquartered in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, delivers marine science research, oceanographic instrumentation operation, autonomous underwater vehicle design and manufacturing, and specialized laboratory analytical services to federal agencies as a prime recipient and contractor across a distributed portfolio spanning 3,725 recent awards with combined potential value of $1.29 billion. WHOI competes in full-and-open procurement without set-aside designations, positioning itself as a leader in fundamental and applied oceanographic research serving the broader U.S. research enterprise.

WHOI's customer base spans 86 federal agencies with pronounced concentration in research-oriented funding. The National Science Foundation anchors the portfolio—937 awards across all NSF divisions, with Division of Ocean Sciences representing 311 awards—reflecting WHOI's dominant role in academic oceanographic research. The Department of the Navy, however, drives the largest dollar value: Naval Sea Systems Command holds 156 awards worth $948.5 million in combined potential value, and the Office of Naval Research delivers 227 awards valued at $144.2 million, positioning DoN as WHOI's primary customer by magnitude. NASA's Shared Services Center ranks third with 254 awards carrying $83.1 million combined potential value. NOAA and the U.S. Geological Survey round out the active set, reflecting WHOI's role as a research partner across civilian oceanographic agencies.

Capability delivery spans concrete oceanographic services grounded in recent award work. WHOI operates and maintains two research vessels—R/V Atlantis (274-foot multidisciplinary vessel supporting DSV Alvin deep-submergence operations) and R/V Neil Armstrong (238-foot vessel)—both part of the U.S. Academic Research Fleet. Representative contract work includes a $1.99 million Naval Sea Systems Command award (August 2025) for acquisition of a WHOI Generation 2 REMUS 600 autonomous underwater vehicle; a $1.823 million Naval Facilities Engineering Command definitive contract (September 2025) for research on temporary threshold shifts in underwater hearing sensitivity in sea turtles, with North Carolina State University subcontracting field and husbandry support; a $6.54 million Office of Naval Research definitive contract (July 2025) for long-range science and technology projects supporting Navy operations under cost-plus-fixed-fee pricing; and a $150,897 Naval Sea Systems Command award (June 2026) for unmanned underwater vehicle resilience in-water test support. WHOI also delivers specialized analytical services: a $484,000 USGS award (September 2025) for accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dating services supporting the National Water Quality Laboratory; a $31,265 USGS purchase order (July 2026) for ICP sample analysis of ferromanganese crusts and nodules; and a $162,081 USGS award (September 2026) for lease of a remotely operated vehicle and trained crew supporting seafloor geodetic operations.

Federal grant work reflects WHOI's position as a prime recipient in NSF and NOAA research programs. Recent NSF Ocean Sciences awards include $1.119 billion (August 2025) for interannual variability and connectivity of oxygen supply to the deep ocean from the Labrador and Irminger Seas; $878.706 million (July 2025) for investigation of the Cold Fresh Pulse extreme hydrographic event in the northwest Atlantic; $699.975 million (August 2025) for development of physics-informed artificial intelligence methods for estimating seafloor topography in coastal surf zones; $702.950 million (March 2025) for execution of a balanced science program aligned with NSF exploration initiatives on the Moon, lunar orbit, Mars, and beyond; and $456.751 million (August 2026) for reconstruction of Holocene sea ice history in the southern Bering Sea using interdisciplinary datasets. NOAA cooperative agreements include $1.76 million (June 2025) to assess harmful algal bloom toxin accumulation in Alaskan Arctic marine subsistence resources with sub-awards to North Slope Borough, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Ocean & Earth Environmental Services LLC; $249.972 million (July 2026) to assess deep-set buoy gear catch and bycatch in swordfish fisheries; and $240.408 million (October 2025) to examine ecological and physical processes in ocean surface convergences as microhabitats for American lobster postlarvae.

Parent vehicle positioning shows WHOI's deep integration into Navy acquisition architecture. The top vehicle, Indefinite Delivery Contract N6660414D0344 (likely a Navy expeditionary or research support IDIQ), carries 89 task orders valued at $30.8 million combined. Secondary vehicles include IDICs N6230607D9002 (24 task orders, $8.3 million), N6660409D1030 (21 task orders, $3.1 million), and N6230610D2004 (19 task orders, $8.5 million). A single-award USGS Indefinite Delivery Vehicle for radiocarbon laboratory services—established May 1, 2023, with a $249,999.99 ceiling and completion date of October 31, 2028—anchors WHOI's civilian research contract footprint.

Activity has remained steady and substantial across recent years: 129 awards in 2022, 144 in 2023, 153 in 2024, 133 in 2025, and 60 awards recorded for 2026 year-to-date (the source captures awards through October 15, 2026). The recompete cliff signals 163 awards reaching ultimate completion within the next 24 months, carrying combined potential value of $66.6 million—a significant recompete-management signal for WHOI and a recompete-opportunity window for competitors.

WHOI operates as a prime contractor on 96 percent of recent awards (3,565 primes) and subcontracts on 4 percent (160 subs), indicating a delivery model built around direct federal relationships rather than large-prime dependencies. Subcontract work includes acoustic micromodem hardware integration with Seacorp, LLC; passive acoustic monitoring systems under HDR Environmental; and engineering services through Serco-IPS Corporation. Service Contract Inventory data captures minimal SCI-reportable activity—the $0 invoiced prime revenue and sub-engagement data reflect that WHOI's federal work skews toward research contracts, grants, and goods (AUVs, instrumentation) rather than labor-intensive services above the $150,000 SCI threshold.

Corporate structure includes one named subsidiary, EOM Offshore, LLC, a self-certified small disadvantaged business organized as a limited liability company, which may provide vessel-support or specialized operations services to the parent.

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution competes as a full-and-open research institution without set-asides, delivering at global scale (operations noted in Massachusetts, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, and territories including Alaska) oceanographic research, autonomous systems development, analytical laboratory services, and research vessel operations that position it as a foundational asset in the U.S. federal ocean science enterprise.