SOLICITATION NOTICE
F -- ELECTRONIC MONITORING ON FISHING VESSELS
- Notice Date
- 8/24/2009
- Notice Type
- Combined Synopsis/Solicitation
- NAICS
- 541990
— All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Eastern Region Acquisition Division, Norfolk Federal Building, 200 Granby Street, Norfolk, Virginia, 23510
- ZIP Code
- 23510
- Solicitation Number
- EA133F-09-RQ-1074
- Point of Contact
- Lynne B. Phipps, Phone: (757) 441-6881, Marion L. Veber, Phone: 757-441-6647
- E-Mail Address
-
lynne.b.phipps@noaa.gov, marion.veber@noaa.gov
(lynne.b.phipps@noaa.gov, marion.veber@noaa.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- (i) This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, STREAMLINED PROCEDURES FOR EVALUATION AND SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the solicitation; quotes are being requested. (ii) Solicitation number EA133F-09-RQ-1074 is issued as a Request for Quote (RFQ) pursuant to FAR subpart 13.5, Test Program for Certain Commercial Items. (iii) The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-35 (iv) The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 541990 with a small business size standard of $7.0M. This requirement is unrestricted. (v) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) has a requirement for the following: 1. Scope The contractor shall provide and install electronic monitoring units (EMS) (video cameras and sensors) on 10 commercial fishing vessels. The contractor shall provide field support in installing and uninstalling equipment at the docks, meeting with industry and NMFS personnel, and troubleshooting shore-side. Working with NMFS staff, the contractor shall provide initial advice and training on processing the electronic data, such as viewing and auditing video footage, down loading and interpreting sensor data, and mapping location and fishing activity. The processing, as described above, of the electronic data will be performed at the NEFSC by staff provided by FSB. The electronic data, including all video footage, will be the property of the government and will be treated as confidential observer data under the Magnuson Act. The contractor shall work with NEFSC staff to compare electronic monitoring data to the proposed sector reports (vessel trip reports, dealer reports, human at-sea monitor data, and observer data). The contractor shall work with NEFSC staff to evaluate the effectiveness of electronic monitoring in sector fisheries, and draft a set of possible minimum standards that should be considered by the government in developing EM requirements in monitoring plans for groundfish sectors. 2. Background 2.1. Overview The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce (DOC) is the government agency responsible for monitoring and managing Federal fisheries. Within the NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Science Center, the Fisheries and Ecosystems Monitoring and Analysis Division (FEMAD), Fisheries Sampling Branch (FSB) is responsible for monitoring and observing fishing in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic U.S. FSB collects, processes, manages, and provides fishery dependent data and biological samples obtained from fishing vessels. Collection of these data is mandated or otherwise needed for management under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Atlantic Tuna Convention Act, and the Endangered Species Act. Branch staff and observers under contract perform at-sea operations aboard commercial vessels to collect information on fishing operations, fishing effort, catch, including by-catch and discard information, economic data and vessel efficiency, and biological samples of landed catch and discard. This contract is in support of the current at-sea observer program administered by FSB and specifically addresses monitoring of sector fisheries, and in particular gear types including trawl, gillnet, and bottom longline. The Northeast Fisheries Management Council (NEFMC) defines a sector as "a group of persons holding limited access vessel permits in the fishery management plan through which the sector is being formed, who have voluntarily entered into a contract and agree to certain fishing restrictions for a specified period of time, and which has been granted a Total Allowable Catch(s) in order to achieve objectives consistent with applicable Fisheries Management Plan goals and objectives." Electronic Monitoring Systems (EMS) may be an applicable monitoring tool for a certain portion of the fleet in lieu of human observers or monitors, depending on the monitoring goals specified by sectors. This statement of work describes an electronic monitoring project to be designed for and deployed on the commercial vessels operating off the coasts of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Maine. The overall goal of this project is to test and evaluate EMS as a means to monitor bycatch real-time in the Northeast groundfish fisheries. 2.2. Sector fisheries The Northeast groundfish sector fleet includes primarily sink gillnet, otter trawl, and bottom longline vessels. In May 2010 there may be up to nineteen groundfish sectors. A sector is a group of permit holders who agree to cooperate with one another and follow certain rules in order to harvest their collective total allowable catch. The sector requirements are detailed in Amendment 16 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (www.nefmc.org)These fisheries incidentally take overfished groundfish species as bycatch. Each sector is awarded a total allowable catch of each requested groundfish species by stock area. Sector members may be held jointly liable for catch overages, discarding of legal-sized fish, and misreporting of catch. Sectors using an acceptable monitoring system will use real time observations (by human or video) to estimate their discards at-sea and therefore estimate total catch (landed and discard). There are weekly reporting requirements, which include kept and discarded fish totals, for sectors to report their catch to NMFS. Monitoring the fleet for fish discarded at-sea is essential to provide an estimate of total mortality to fishery managers (sector managers and NMFS). 2.3. Timeline The term of this project will be conducted over approximately 18 months from the award of the contract, to include 3 months of pre-planning, 12 months of data collection, and 3 months of data analysis and report writing. Data analysis will include linking data collection streams (multiple sources from EMS, at-sea monitoring data, NEFOP observer data, vessel trip reports, and dealer data), comparing catch and location information, and summarizing results. The final report will include, at a minimum, a project description, summary of observations, interpretations of results, and conclusions and recommendations for future use of EMS. There will be two option periods, pending satisfactory performance and sufficient funding. 2.4. Objectives overview The FSB desires to test the applicability of EMS technology to collect catch and effort data aboard vessels, and evaluate the utility of EMS in monitoring catch in the sector fisheries. 3. Service Requirements 3.1. Meetings The contractor shall have several meetings with NOAA Fisheries staff and commercial fishing industry members throughout the course of the contract to ensure that the project is on schedule and discuss any challenges or complications. 3.1.1. The contractor shall initially meet with NOAA Fisheries staff (in Falmouth) to review monitoring objectives, hardware and software requirements, specifications of equipment (such as the resolution and angles of lenses and when the video should be triggered to go on and off), and project logistics. 3.1.2. The contractor shall meet with fishing industry groups (combined with NOAA Fisheries staff) up to three times per year each in Chatham MA, Scituate MA, Gloucester MA, Point Judith RI, Martha's Vineyard MA, and Port Clyde ME to discuss EMS technology and the status of the pilot project. The contractor shall be responsible for the meeting venue, facilitation of meeting, agenda, producing meeting minutes, and documenting attendance. Installing EMS on commercial fishing vessels is voluntary on the part of the fishermen, so this project seeks the voluntary cooperation of the industry, but may also entail that they fish or handle the fish in a slightly modified way. The contractor shall provide compensation to industry members who attend the meetings and should be described in the quote. 3.1.3. The contractor shall provide a trainer to train the video auditors (video auditors to be supplied by FSB, NEFSC). Video auditors will view 30% of the collected video. Thirty percent of that video will be reviewed twice using two different auditors, as a quality control. Video auditors should also be trained in how to rate the quality of video footage. 3.2. EMS Units to be supplied The contractor shall provide EMS units necessary to provide at-sea coverage on a cross section of the sector fisheries in all gear types. Using EMS, NOAA Fisheries would like to test EMS in the groundfish with 10 systems (where a system would include all equipment needed to outfit a vessel) [3 vessels in Chatham MA (2 gillnet, 1 hook), 1 in Scituate MA, 1 in Gloucester MA, 2 in Point Judith, RI, 1 in Martha's Vineyard MA, and 2 in Port Clyde ME]. Ideally, the EMS unit would stay on the vessel for twelve months to capture a full year of fishing in all seasons. The installation location of equipment aboard vessels shall be discussed with the sector managers, industry members, and NOAA Fisheries. The units supplied by the contractor will have the following technical requirements, or better. 3.2.1. EMS Equipment Specifications - At the minimum, the electronic monitoring equipment shall include the following components: • EMS computer box for logging digital video imagery and other vessel data • High capacity hard drives for storage of digital imagery (at least 160 GB) • CCTV cameras • Sensor for Global Positioning System (GPS) • Winch or hydraulic pressure sensors to indicate fishing activity • 12 VDC to 110 VAC power inverter (if necessary) • Unique power source (if necessary) • Discard "table" or "chute" with size markings to estimate size of fish discards 3.2.2. EMS Data Capture Specifications - EMS units shall be configured to provide the following data: • GPS location and date at all times while the vessel is at sea • CCTV imagery of all fishing operations with adequate resolution for species and estimate of fish size (for species with a minimum size limit) 3.3. Installation of EMS units aboard vessels Prior to commencement of the active data collection component of the project, the contractor shall install, test and initialize all the EMS equipment on the fishing vessels. Each vessel shall be fully outfitted with EMS equipment and the vessels' crews shall be provided instruction on the use and care of the EMS equipment. The contractor shall provide a detailed description of what is involved in the setting up and removal of equipment. The contractor shall determine the scheduling of the EMS installation for each vessel and will take into account vessels' schedules and concerns. Installation and maintenance of the EMS technology shall not unduly delay any vessel from participating in the fishery. EMS shall be used during commercial fishing trips. The contractor must work with the vessels and fishermen for their willing participation and collaboration in this project. FSB has a listing of vessels interested in participating in this study, which will be provided to the contractor. As this project may require the captain to meet the equipment installer, not tamper with the equipment, ensure the equipment is on and operable prior to departing, perhaps discard fish from a given location on the vessel, maintain an unobstructed view for the cameras, notify the contractor when landing, and allow access to the vessel to exchange the hard drive, the contractor should suggest a method for compensation to the vessels. Each vessel agreeing to the installation of EMS should receive a small monetary award for their participation (to be described in the proposal). 3.4 Data analysis Data collected under this contract will be the property of the NOAA Fisheries and will be subject to the same data confidentiality guidelines as observer data. The contractor and NOAA Fisheries personnel will jointly examine the EMS data collected aboard the sector vessels and judge the adequacy of the collected data for use by NOAA Fisheries. The hard drives shall be collected as soon as possible after the vessel offload, then delivered to the Observer Training Center in East Falmouth, Massachusetts. Specific data analysis and tasks to be carried out by the contractor include: 3.4.1 Training of 3 auditors (imagery viewing) to complete this work jointly at a site in Massachusetts arranged by NOAA Fisheries; 3.4.2 Inventory of all data retrieved; 3.4.3 Establishing a schedule for data processing to be agreed upon by the contractor and NOAA Fisheries staff, with a target goal of within 7 days from the trip landing; 3.4.4 Examining vessel sensor data to assess quality and completeness of the data set; 3.4.5 Identifying fishing episodes; 3.4.6 Estimating total fishing effort and catch; 3.4.7 Speciating of catch by disposition; 3.4.8 Identifying anomalous events in the data set that may warrant further investigation; 3.4.9 Assessing all vessels in each sector in the context of compatibility of the EMS equipment and detailing any deficiencies identified in the fleet that would not be condusive to collecting EMS information; 3.4.10 Exploring and detailing how EMS data collected in this project could be integrated into other sector reporting requirements; 3.4.11 Comparing EMS to data collected by at-sea monitors (supplied by NEFSC) who will be deployed on some proportion of these trips (depending on availability and scheduling); and 3.4.12 Collating additional fishing events as identified by NOAA Fisheries staff and the contractor. 3.5 Removal of EMS units from all fishing vessels The contractor shall be responsible for removing all EMS units from the vessels at the end of the project. The contractor shall remove all evidence of the EMS installation on every vessel. Each vessel must be returned to the state it was in prior to the installation of the EMS unit. The removal shall not unduly delay vessels from departing to commercially fish. 3.6 Final report The contractor shall provide NOAA Fisheries with a draft and final report on this project in a format to be agreed upon by both parties. The draft shall allow NOAA Fisheries to provide comments and edit text. The final report, incorporating changes suggested by NOAA Fisheries, shall be clear, straightforward and will incorporate an overview of the EMS project, analysis of the EMS data, lessons learned and applicability in other Northeast fisheries. It shall also include an objective review of the positives and negatives of the EMS applicability to the various gear and vessel configurations, all incidences of at-sea discards, positions and track lines of all vessel tows, comparison to at-sea monitor collected data, and any other unique circumstances that may have arisen. 3.7 Ownership of materials All reports, summaries, information collected during this project, and collected video and sensor data will be the property of NOAA Fisheries and will be maintained onsite by the FSB. Copies will be supplied to vessel owners (and/or sector managers) upon request and completion of a signed waiver by the vessel owner. The EMS data will be used solely for this project and will be protected as confidential data under observer information [Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act amended Section 402(b)]. 4 Required skills The contractor shall have expertise in providing dependable electronic monitoring systems and must have a proven track record in applying this technology to multiple fishery applications including small vessels (< 120 feet) in commercial fisheries. Successful performance with similar projects in the past, proven success of deploying EMS in other fisheries of similar scale, experience implementing and servicing EMS units in the field, knowledge of Northeast fisheries management and current issues, and demonstrated experience and ability in resolving liability and privacy concerns inherent in the collection of images on vessels. 5. Schedule of Deliverables Following is a schedule of all deliverables, including administrative deliverables, required during the period of performance of this task order: Item Description Due Date Deliver To 0001 10 EMSs 5 months ARO COR 0002 Draft final report 6 months ARO COR 0003 Schematic of design Of EMS 5 months ARO COR 0004 Data collection results Per trip 7 days of complete of trip COR 0005 Meeting agendas 5 days in advance of mtg COR 0006 Meeting attendance, minutes 3 days after meeting COR 0007 Outreach pamphlet 6 months after award COR 0008 Training instructions 5 months after award COR 0009 Instruction for collecting Hard drives 5 months after award COR All qualified contractors shall provide a firm fixed price for the following items based on a 18 month base period of performance (monthly billing) and two 18-month option periods: BASE PERIOD (9/15/09 or date of award, whichever is later, through 18 months thereafter) 0001 - Provide and install electronic monitoring units (video cameras and sensors) on 10 commercial fishing vessels in accordance with the Statement of Work OPTION PERIOD 1 (from expiration of base period through 18 months thereafter) 0002 - Electronic monitoring onboard commercial fishing vessels OPTION PERIOD 2 (from expiration of option period 1 through 18 months thereafter) 0003 - Electronic monitoring onboard commercial fishing vessels (vi) The contract shall be effective on September 15, 2009 or date of award, whichever is later, and shall have a base period from date of award through 18 months thereafter. The contract will include option provisions for two additional 18-month option periods. (vii) FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items (April 2008), applies to this acquisition. Paragraph (f), Late submissions, modification, revisions and withdrawals of offers is deleted in its entirety. Addendum to FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items (Jun 2008) The contractor shall submit a quote that does not exceed 10 pages in length and shall include: Description of proposed means of accomplishing the requirements of this SOW and demonstrate experience in installing video technology and sensors aboard fishing vessels, meeting facilitation, mapping software, scientific report writing, accessing databases, dealing with sensitive and confidential data, ability to work with fishermen, collecting commercial fishing data to be used for fishery management, working with a Government agency, and working with fishery observer programs. The quote shall also demonstrate knowledge of fishing vessel characteristics, the nature of fishing operations, and regulatory reporting requirements for Northeast groundfish. Past performance information. (viii) FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation - Commercial Items (Jan 1999), applies to this acquisition. Paragraph (c) is deleted in its entirety. (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate quotes, in descending order of importance: Technical capability Past performance Technical and past performance, when combined, is more important than price. (b) Options. The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s). (c) This subparagraph is not applicable. (ix) In accordance with FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications - Commercial Items (Feb 2009), offerors shall complete annual representations and certifications on-line at http://orca.bpn.gov. If paragraph (j) of the provision applies, a written submission is required. (x) The clause at FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions - Commercial Items (Mar 2009), applies to this acquisition. The following additional Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR) clauses are applicable to this acquisition: 1352.201-70 Contracting Officer's Authority (Mar 2000), 1352.201-71 Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) (Feb 2005), 1352.208-70 Printing (Mar 2000), 1352.209-72 Restrictions Against Disclosure (Mar 2000), 1352.209-73 Compliance with the Laws (Mar 2000), 1352.233-70 Harmless from Liability (Mar 2000), 1352.252-70 Regulatory Notice (Mar 2000), 1352.239-73 Security Requirements for Information Technology Resources (Dec 2006). Commerce Acquisition Clauses provisions can be obtained at http://oamweb.osec.doc.gov. (xi) The clause at FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders - Commercial Items (Jun 2009), applies to this acquisition. The following additional FAR clauses cited in the clause are applicable to this acquisition: 52.203-6 Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government (Sep 2006) with Alternate 1 (Oct 1995) 52.222-3 Convict Labor (Jun 2003); 52.222-19 Child Labor (Feb 2008); 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (Feb 1999); 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity (Mar 2007); 52.222-35 Equal Opportunity for Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and other Eligible Veterans (Sep 2006) 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities (Jun 1998) 52.222-37 Employment Reports on Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and other eligible Veterans (Sep 2006) 52.222-39 Notification of Employee Rights Concerning Payment of Union Dues or Fees (Dec 2004) 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer - Central Contractor Registration (Oct 2003) 52.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns (May 2004) 52.219-28 Post Award Small Business Program Representation (Jun 2007) 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons (Apr 2006) 52.223-3 Protest After Award (Aug 1996) 52.233-4 Applicable Law for Breach of Contract Claim (Oct 2004) Clauses and provisions are incorporated by reference and apply to this acquisition. Clauses and provisions can be obtained at http://www.acquisition.gov. (xii) The response deadline for receipt of quotes at the contracting office is September 4, 2009, 2:00 p.m., EDT. Quotes are to be submitted electronically in Adobe.pdf or MSWord format to Lynne Phipps, Contract Specialist at lynne.b.phipps@noaa.gov. NOAA reserves the right to consider quotes received after the submission deadline at our discretion. (xiii) All questions concerning this request for quotes shall be submitted to the Contract Specialist in writing by e-mail to Lynne.B.Phipps@noaa.gov before August 31, 2009, 2:00 p.m., EDT, to reasonably expect a response from the Government. Those questions not within the prescribed date will not be considered. (xiv) CCR Requirement - Company must be registered on Central Contractor Registration (CCR) before an award could be made to them. If company is not registered in CCR, they may do so by going to CCR web site at http://www.ccr.gov.
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