Sources Sought Notice for Cooling Tower Maintenance

Active

Contract Opportunity

The purpose of this sources sought notice is to conduct market research and identify potential sources of commercial products/services that satisfy the Government’s anticipated needs.

BACKGROUND

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), NIST Center for Neutron Research (NCNR) owns and operates a heavy water-moderated nuclear test reactor and associated neutron beam research facility. The NCNR’s reactor is licensed with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) under the name National Bureau of Standards Reactor (NBSR).

The Reactor's secondary cooling water is cooled by a set of cooling towers. The cooling towers are located behind the NCNR (Building 235). The main cooling tower was built in 2002 by Balcke-Dürr. It's constructed on a concrete basin with pressure treated and marine grade wood and fiberglass siding. Exterior wood surfaces consist of a stairway, railings, and plywood decking. It has 3 cooling cells (#1, #2 and #3). The secondary cooling tower is a modular design. It was erected in 2011, is supported on steel pilons and is made of stainless steel. It is a BAC model 3781C tower. It has 2 cooling cells (#4 and #5). There are several subsystems that work in tandem with the main cooling tower structures. These systems include a deicing system, a fire protection system, and a plume abatement system.

While the overall condition of the cooling towers is good, they need routine maintenance, repairs, and cleaning. The NCNR operates 24/7 and could potentially require emergency repair assessment, services, and/or support at the facility in addition to regular maintenance and repair services.

NIST is seeking information from sources that may be capable of providing commercial services that will achieve the objectives described above, in addition to the following essential tasks:

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   1. Semi-Annual Maintenance
   
   
   
   

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   1. 
      
      
      
      1. Cleaning, inspection, and maintenance of deicing system
      
      
      2. Inspection of all cells with written report of findings, including recommendation of necessary additional maintenance or repairs to be completed.
         
         
         
         1. Recommend repair or replacement as appropriate (excludes cell doors and door drive systems)
         
         
         
         
      
      
      3. Fan Blade Clearance check, inspect for indications of blade contact on shroud.
      
      
      
      
   
   
   
   

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   1. Annual Maintenance
   
   
   
   

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   1. 
      
      
      
      1. Inspection, maintenance, and testing of fire sprinkler system in accordance with NFPA 25.
      
      
      2. Inspect and tighten structural bolts.
      
      
      3. Right angle gear drive oil flush and drain in accordance with manufacturer specifications.
         
         
         
         1. Perform IAW NCNR Maintenance Procedures
         
         
         
         
      
      
      4. Lubricate motors of all cells in accordance with manufacturer specifications.
         
         
         
         1. Perform IAW NCNR Maintenance Procedures
         
         
         
         
      
      
      5. Plume abatement heat exchanger inspection, cleaning, and maintenance of cells 1-3.
      
      
      6. Fan blade angle check and needed adjustments in accordance with manufacturer specifications.
      
      
      7. Fan blade clearance checks (verify no contact with shroud in both slow and fast speed operation)
      
      
      8. Cleaning of all cells to remove scale and biological buildup on fill, heat exchangers, and internal/external of structure including the basin.
      
      
      9. All replacement material used must be the same as, or shown to be equivalent to, that currently installed.
      
      
      
      
   
   
   
   

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   1. Additional Tasks (As needed)
   
   
   
   

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   1. 
      
      
      
      1. Emergency/Non-Emergency Repairs as identified by the COR.
      
      
      2. Emergency Response
      
      
      
      
   
   
   
   

Emergency repairs are required when the operation of the cooling tower is critical to the operation of the facility. Down time must be kept to a minimum. Emergency

hours are hours outside of the NIST Operating Schedule. NIST is a continual operation facility with scheduled shutdown periods. The cooling tower is critical to NIST operation and may require unanticipated repairs. In the event an emergency repair is required after or during normal business hours, the NIST COR will contact the Contractor Point of Contact (POC) via telephone to schedule emergency services.

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   1. 
      
      
      
      1. Emergency Repair Assessment
      
      
      
      
   
   
   
   

Upon arrival to the building, the Contractor shall inspect/examine the cooling tower in need of repair and immediately report the findings to the COR. Upon approval of the required services by the COR, the Contractor shall immediately begin to perform the required repairs. If the Contractor is not able to make any or all emergency repairs during this response, the Contractor must submit the following information within 24 hours of responding to NIST:

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   1. Document what repair services were not able to be rendered and what prevented the repair services from being completed.
   
   
   2. Anticipated materials required.
   
   
   3. Anticipated material costs
   
   
   4. Anticipated labor hours required.
   
   
   5. Anticipated labor cost
   
   
   
   

The Contractor and COR must schedule a repair date at a mutually agreed upon date and time, no longer than 3 days of the response date.

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   1. 
      
      
      
      1. Perform Repair Services
      
      
      
      
   
   
   
   

Example Emergency/Non-Emergency Repair services include:

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   1. Troubleshooting Electrical problems
   
   
   2. Replacing worn parts
   
   
   3. Resealing weathered surfaces on the exterior of the cooling tower
   
   
   4. Stripping and recoating the concrete basin.
   
   
   5. Repair/replacement of the elastomeric expansion joints/seals between the slabs in the concreate basin.
   
   
   6. Permanent installation of fall protection railings to meet applicable OSHA and NFPA standards for safe access to the fan motors and “dry cell” door motors and controllers.
   
   
   
   

HOW TO RESPOND TO THIS NOTICE

In responding to this notice, please DO NOT PROVIDE PROPRIETARY INFORMATION. Please include only the following information, readable in either Microsoft Word 365, Microsoft Excel 365, or .pdf format, in the response: Submit the response by email to the Primary Point of Contact and, if specified, to the Secondary Point of Contact listed in this notice as soon as possible, and preferably before the closing date and time of this notice. Please note that to be considered for award under any official solicitation, the entity must be registered and “active” in SAM at the time of solicitation response.

• Provide the complete name of your company, address, name of contact for follow-up questions, their email, their phone number and, if your company has an active registration in https://sam.gov, your company’s Unique Entity ID (UEI).

• Identify the equipment that your company sells that can meet the objectives addressed in the BACKGROUND section of this notice. For each product recommended to meet the Government’s requirement, provide the following:
  
  
  
  • Manufacturer name
  
  
  • Model number
  
  
  • Technical specifications
  
  
  • If your company is not the manufacturer, provide information on your company’s status as an authorized reseller of the product(s)
  
  
  
  

• Describe performance capabilities of the product(s) your company recommends to meet the Government’s requirements. Additionally, if there are other features or functions that you believe would assist NIST in meeting its objectives described above, please discuss in your response.
  
  
  
  • Discuss whether the equipment that your company sells and which you describe in your response to this notice may be customized to specifications and indicate any limits to customization.
  
  
  
  

• Identify any aspects of the NIST market research notice, including instructions, and draft minimum specifications in the BACKGROUND section you cannot meet and state why. Please offer suggestions for how the market research notice and draft minimum specifications could be made more competitive.

• State whether the proposed equipment is manufactured in the United States and, if not, state the name of the country where the equipment is manufactured.

• Identify any plans/possibilities for changes in manufacturing location of the aforementioned equipment and provide relevant details, including timeline.

• For the NAICS code listed in this notice:

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  • Indicate whether your company is (a) a small business or (b) other than small business. See the Table of Small Business Size Standards and the associated .pdf download file for small business size standards and additional information.
  
  
  
  

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  • If you believe the NAICS code listed in this notice is not the best NAICS code for the type of product addressed in this notice, identify an alternative NAICS code that you believe would be more appropriate for the planned procurement.
  
  
  
  

• Describe services that are available with the purchase of the aforementioned equipment from your company such as installation, training, and equipment maintenance.

• Describe standard terms and conditions of sale offered by your company for the recommended equipment such as: delivery time after your company accepts the order; FOB shipping terms; manufacturer warranty (including details regarding nature and duration); if available, description(s) of available extended warranty; equipment setup and test; operator and service instruction manual(s); cleanup after installation; and if applicable, other offered services. Provide a copy of manufacturer standard terms and conditions that typically relate to the sale of the specified equipment, if available.

• State whether your company offers facility renovation services related to installation of the recommended equipment at its delivery destination, if required per the NIST-identified minimum specifications, and provide description of said services. Indicate if your company performs the facility renovation services or typically subcontracts the work to another company. Indicate if your company would be interested in inspecting the intended installation site during the market research phase.

• State published price, discount, or rebate arrangements for recommended equipment and/or provide link to access company’s published prices for equipment and services.

• If the recommended equipment and related services are available for purchase on any existing Federal Supply Schedule contract(s) or other contracts against which NIST may be able to place orders, identify the contract number(s) and other relevant information.

• Identify any customers in the public or private sectors to which you provided the recommended or similar equipment. Include customer(s) information: company name, phone number, point of contact, email address.

• Provide any other information that you believe would be valuable for NIST to know as part of its market research for this requirement.

• State if you require NIST to provide additional information to improve your understanding of the government’s requirement and/or would like to meet with NIST representatives to discuss the requirement and the capabilities of the identified equipment.

QUESTIONS REGARDING THIS NOTICE

Questions regarding this notice may be submitted via email to the Primary Point of Contact and the Secondary Point of Contact listed in this notice. Questions should be submitted so that they are received 5 days prior to the response date. If the Contracting Officer determines that providing a written amendment to this notice to document question(s) received would benefit other potential respondents, the questions would be anonymized, and a written response to such question(s) would be provided via an amendment to this notice.

IMPORTANT NOTES

This notice is for market research purposes and should not be construed as a commitment by NIST to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. There is no solicitation available at this time.

This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response.

NIST reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate.

Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization’s capability.

Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted.

After a review of the responses received, a synopsis and solicitation may be published on GSA’s eBuy or SAM.gov. However, responses to this notice will not be considered an adequate response to any such solicitation(s).

Thank you for taking the time to submit a response to this request!

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