The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Region 3, Fort Snelling, Minnesota is issuing a Request for Proposal for the following acquisition. A firm fixed price contract will be awarded for this acquisition. Contractor to provide all labor, equipment, material, services and supplies required to provide one steel vessel, 95 feet in length, 30' beam with the option to include providing trawl winches, net reel, gill net lifter, electronic equipment for fish finding and net mensuration, and trawl nets and miscellaneous gear. It is the government's option to award the additional line items. Prospective offerors must provide price proposals for all line items. Bid, performance and payment bonds will be required for this acquisition. F.O.B. destination delivery to the vessel's home port of Cheboygan, MI is a requirement of this acquisition. Vessel will be used for fish stocking and fish assessment in the Great Lakes. This procurement is subject to the requirements of the Merchant Marine Act (a/k/a the Jones Act) (46 U.S.C. 883) and is therefore restricted to ship yards located within the United States. This procurement is also subject to the Walsh Healey Act (41 U.S.C. 35-45) in regard to applicable labor laws. The vessel will be a diesel powered, with twin screws and rudders, and a bow thruster. The design has been completed for the vessel, including contract drawings and specifications, although minor miscellaneous engineering will be required to accommodate equipment mounting, plumbing and electrical runs, etc. The vessel will be ABS Classed, and the drawings have been reviewed by ABS. The vessel will include ten removable fish tanks, approximately 1,000 gallons each, bolted to the aft deck, a deck crane, an oxygen concentration system and chilled water system for the fish tanks. Finished spaces will include a pilot house, a galley, and five staterooms. The options, in general, will include 1) providing trawl winches, net reel, and gill net lifter, 2) providing electronic equipment for fish finding and net mensuration, and 3) providing trawl nets and miscellaneous gear. Both the basic and option requirements include furnishing all labor, tools, equipment, materials, superintendence, and transportation; and all appurtenant work specified and shown in the contract documents. This procurement is issued unrestricted and is not set-aside exclusively for small business concerns. All offers will first be evaluated to determine technical acceptability. All offers found to be technically acceptable will be evaluated to determine the lowest priced of these offers. This solicitation will be awarded to the prospective offeror whose offer is found technically acceptable and provides the lowest price to the government, including all options. The following factors will be used to determine technical acceptability: 1) Management Proposal review to include organization, human resources, facilities and equipment, sub-contracting information, quality control, planning and scheduling and financial condition 2) Similar Design and Construction Experience 3) Past Performance 4) Product Proposal to include major equipment, propulsion & bow thruster control system and steering control system. Award may be made without discussions. The Government reserves the right to hold discussions and or perform site visits to the offerors' facilities if the government deems necessary. The North American Industry Classification Code (NAICS) for this acquisition is 336611, Ship Building and Repairing, with a size standard of 1,000 employees. Solicitation packages will be available on first-come-first-served basis, free of charge, on or about April 30, 2004 with proposals due on or about June 15, 2004. Period of performance is 426 calendar days after issuance of notice to proceed. Interested parties may request a copy of the solicitation by electronic mail at
[email protected], by facsimile to 612-713-5151, or in writing to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Attn: Clark Bartelt, 1 Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, MN 55111. NO telephone requests can be accepted. Please specify Solicitation No. 301814R032 when requesting plans and specifications.