FORD-class Dry Docking Capability Request for Information

Active

Contract Opportunity

This announcement is issued in accordance with FAR 5.101 in anticipation of potential future procurement. This is market research conducted by the Department of the Navy’s Program Executive Office Industrial Infrastructure (PEO II). It is a request for information (RFI) only, and your response will not be considered an offer. This RFI does not commit the government to pay any costs incurred in the preparation or submission to this RFI or to contract for services.

All conditions mentioned in this RFI are points of departure. The Navy does NOT have a pre-conceived concept of how an arrangement would be structured for use of the dry dock.

PEO II requests information on interest, timing, business arrangement, financial structure, and cost sharing to have a FORD-class aircraft carrier capable dry dock available for use by the Navy on the West Coast of the United States in Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, and California. The Navy desires the ability to dry dock a FORD-class aircraft carrier and lesser-sized ships to include NIMITZ-class aircraft carriers, nuclear powered submarines and other Navy surface ships for scheduled maintenance and/or emergent repairs. Relevant ship characteristics are shown in Table 1 (see Sources Sought Attachment).

The Navy seeks to understand if a commercial entity would be interested in a business partnership for a large dry dock (floating or graving) to perform FORD-class dry docking maintenance, and when not in use for carrier maintenance, the dock would be available for commercial work and to compete for federal work.

This RFI seeks industry input of the viability of a public-private venture, such that a commercial entity would build, own, operate, and maintain a docking capability for FORD-class aircraft carriers.

A dry dock capable of supporting a FORD-class aircraft carrier would have the desired characteristics shown in Table 2 (see Sources Sought Attachment). These are above the minimum necessary.

Note: Utilities do not have to be permanently installed on the dry dock or shore infrastructure.

Questions for Industry. Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability and return the completed questionnaire to the point of contact listed below via email. Respondents will NOT be notified of the results of this evaluation. All information will be kept confidential and will not be disseminated to the public. Not all questions must be answered, and additional comments, recommendations, ideas, and excursions are encouraged.

1. Where would the dry dock be constructed?


2. What type of dock would it be (e.g. floating or graving)?


3. Would you construct new, modify, or purchase the dry dock?


4. What entity would construct it? (The Navy contemplates that only a U.S.-based entity would be acceptable.)


5. Where would it operate or be based? Be as specific as possible.


6. Would the (floating) dry dock require maintenance elsewhere? If so, where would that maintenance occur?


7. What characteristics, beyond those described in Table 2, would you contemplate the dry dock having?


8. What characteristics of Table 2 would you recommend for modification due to technology, price, cost/benefit, or other reasons?


9. When could it be ready for use? Provide, if available, a basic schedule through such steps as contracting, planning, permitting, design, dry dock construction, and supporting facilities construction.


10. What characteristics are required beyond what would be needed for commercial purposes, including the ability to compete for Navy conventional ship maintenance contracts (i.e., what features of a FORD-class dock would the Navy have to directly compensate the owner for)?


11. What cost sharing arrangement (business structure, contract type, payment schedule, etc.) do you recommend for acquisition of the dry dock?


12. What cost sharing arrangement (business structure, contract type, payment schedule, etc.) do you recommend for life-cycle maintenance costs, including maintaining or achieving certification for FORD-class use?


13. What level of services would you like to provide the ship in dock and how would you propose to deliver those services? Examples include using organic workforce, government employees, or a combined organic and government team. How would the workforce be hired, trained, and maintained during periods of non-Navy work? The Navy contemplates that services could include
    
    
    
    1. Provision of the dry dock for maintenance by others
    
    
    2. Lifting and handling
    
    
    3. Some or all utility services
    
    
    4. Basic ship maintenance (e.g., hull preservation)
    
    
    5. Some or all ship repair
    
    
    
    


14. What business structure, contract mechanism, and fee structure would you recommend for the continuum of potential work in the previous question?


15. How would FORD-class services (e.g. power, water, steam) be supplied? Permanent, temporary?


16. Using the FORD-class capable dock, would you compete for maintenance contracts for other Navy vessels?


17. Using the FORD-class capable dock, would you compete for maintenance contracts for non-Navy vessels?


18. How could/should ship maintenance contracts be combined with the dry dock lease acquisition? How would this affect the financial viability?


19. What mechanism would be used if it was required to displace a civilian or Navy vessel from the dry dock to perform emergent Navy repairs?


20. How do you recommend environmental responsibilities (e.g., permitting) be handled?


21. How do you recommend that National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements and U.S. Tribal treaty obligations, if affected, be addressed?


22. What is your company’s relevant experience and certifications for performing ship maintenance? If applicable, identify the number of docks delivered, dates delivered and customers for previous docks constructed, docks operated, ships maintained, etc.


23. What is your company’s experience with nuclear ship maintenance or other nuclear matters?


24. If you are not interested in providing a FORD-class docking capability, would you be interested in providing a lesser capability (e.g., non-nuclear, different class of ship)? Answers to all the above questions are welcome, based on the lesser capability. The Navy would potentially be interested in an alternative that still increases the United States’ maritime industrial base.


25. Provide any other information desired.

Submission Requirements: Interested parties are free to submit any information which may assist the Navy in its market research.

1. There is no page requirement or limit.


2. A detailed proposal is not requested.


3. Submission in PDF format is desired, with drawings sized to 8.5” X 11“or 11” X 17”. All other documentation should be sized to 8.5” X 11”.

With the submission provide

1. Company name


2. CAGE Code


3. DUNS Number


4. SAM Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) Number


5. Company Address


6. Point of Contact (POC)


7. POC Title


8. POC Email Address


9. POC Phone Number

Further Information: If you have the ability to construct, maintain, and operate the docking capability described by this RFI and wish to speak to PEO II about your response, indicate your interest for a possible follow-up.

Responses: Responses are requested via email to the points of contact.

Attachments/Links