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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), Cold Regions Research Laboratory (CRREL) intends to award a contract on a sole source basis to Center for Snow & Avalanche Studies upon the basis of the authority provided at FAR 13.106-1(b).

ERDC-CRREL intends to procure specialized technical services for a Contractor to provide snow samples, site access, and instrument operations and maintenance at the Senator Beck Study Plot (SBSP) located north of Silverton, Colorado at Red Mountain Pass for on-going basic and applied research projects supporting military research and development involving the characterization of snow properties.

Requirements: The TCSB has collected historical snow data at this site and requires continued access to the site allowing the continuance of snow research observations for the current and next two (2) snow seasons. Specifically, the Contractor shall:

(a) Provide copies of data collected by CSAS at the study site via CSAS instruments;

(b) Provide maintenance support to CRREL instruments deployed at the study site;

(c) Collect snow samples which must be collected within 24-48 hours of a dust-on-snow event;

(d) Provide the CRREL Super User access to the research site.

Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies (CSAS) has been identified as the only source capable of fulfilling the Government’s requirement. The CRREL has collected historical snow datasets provided by CSAS at the Senator Beck Basin Study Area located on U.S. Forest Service lands. CSAS operates the Senator Beck Basin Study Area at Red Mountain Pass as the primary sentry site where CSAS and CRREL’s instrumentation are located for the purposes of data collection and as such, all access to the site is controlled by CSAS. The study site available through CSAS is unique in the availability of providing long-term meteorology data, and the necessary climate conditions. CSAS is the only Contractor in the vicinity of the study site which is vital in achieving the project objectives of 24-48 hours timeline required for sampling events. The instrumentation being used have unique attributes in its historical datasets collected as which the Government would not be able to replicate. These datasets are necessary to meet the specifications for this requirement. Due to the unique nature of the requested historical and future datasets, timeline for sampling events, the necessity for required on-site access and support, and maintenance and operation of instrumentation already established, Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies is the only provider capable of fulfilling the Government’s requirements.

This Notice of Intent is not a request for competitive quotations. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this requirement. Any interested party that believes they can fulfill this requirement should submit a capability statement to be reviewed. All submissions will be considered, however there is no guarantee that submissions in response to this notice will in any way alter the Government's acquisition strategy.

Responses to this notice shall be submitted NLT 12:00 PM CST, 15 May 2023 to Lisa.A.Bernard@usace.army.mil

Telephone responses will not be accepted.

Responses to this notice will not be considered as a response to any solicitation, a request to be added to a prospective offerors list, or to receive a copy of any solicitation. A determination by the Government not to compete the contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement.

Note: In order to be eligible for award of a Government contract, vendors must be actively registered in the System for Award Management (SAM), have no active exclusions, and complete the FAR and DFARS representations and certifications.