Request for Information: Medium-Range Bulk Fuel Tanker Vessels

Background

Portfolio Acquisition Executive (PAE) Maritime is conducting market research to identify candidate non-developmental, commercial vessel designs for medium-range bulk fuel tankers to be built as consolidated cargo replenishment at sea (CONSOL) vessels, and to gain an understanding of design, cost and schedule impacts for incorporating equipment manufactured in the United States for compliance with Buy American Act and other applicable domestic sourcing restrictions such as 10 U.S.C. § 4864. Additionally, PAE Maritime is assessing the industrial base’s capability and capacity to support construction of up to 10 CONSOL tankers for the U.S. Navy.

Candidate Designs

For the purposes of this notice, a non-developmental vessel means a ship design that has completed functional design and is currently under contract to be built or has been built previously. Desired specifications for candidate designs include a minimum cargo capacity of 230,000 barrels and maximum draft of 44 feet (13.4 meters) at full load condition.

Information Sought

Interested parties may submit any relevant information that may assist PAE Maritime in understanding candidate ship designs, the existing industrial base, and impacts of any planned investments. There is no page requirement/limit for submissions. This notice is not a request for proposals and respondents should not submit detailed proposals.

A. Cover Page

All submissions must include a cover page with general demographic information as follows:

• Company name
• Contractor and Government Entity (CAGE) code
• Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number
• Mailing address and physical address (if different)
• Business size status (based on NAICS code 336611)
• Type of small business (if applicable)
• Point(s) of contact name, title, phone number, and email address
• Your company’s primary occupation (e.g., shipyard, design agent/engineering firm, or other—if other, please explain)
  • For design agent/engineering firms, which shipyard(s) are you teaming with to build your design?

B. Candidate Designs

1. Perceived Risk: Identify any concerns or areas of risk you may foresee based on the candidate design identified in your response.
2. Pricing methodology: Outline your proposed pricing approach for the CONSOL tanker construction program based on the proposed candidate design.
3. Please provide the following attributes of the candidate design:
   • a) Full load displacement cargo carrying capacity (in barrels)
   • b) Other cargo capacity (e.g., container landing locations)
   • c) Endurance and sustained speed (in knots) at full load displacement
   • d) Range at endurance, sustained, and maximum speeds at full load displacement (in nautical miles)
   • e) Propulsion and maneuvering machinery
   • f) Length, beam, and draft (at full load displacement) of the ship in feet
   • g) Berthing accommodations for crew and other embarked personnel including:
   • h) Frozen, refrigerated, and dry stores capacity
   • i) Potable water capacity
   • j) Gray and black water capacity
   • k) Standards to which berthing and hotel accommodations were designed
   • l) Regulatory body classification
4. How many ships of this design have been constructed or are under contract?
5. Provide a point of contact who can arrange a visit to see an existing ship of this design
6. When the ship was last constructed, what was the total material and construction cost at delivery?
7. Are there off-the-shelf American or National Technology and Industrial Base manufacturing options for complying with the tenets of Buy American Act and other applicable domestic sourcing restrictions such as 10 USC § 4864 that do not disrupt design?
8. How would your firm propose complying with statutory sourcing restrictions such as those listed above to minimize disruption to design, cost, and schedule?  

C. Shipyard Facilities

If your firm is a shipyard, provide information on your facility’s capability and capacity:

1. Describe all construction facilities and provide a yard plan which includes available build position(s) capable of handling the notional CONSOL tanker described above, transition, and launch process from build position(s); describe launch systems and docking capability (size constraints and water depth).
2. What type of launchway, facility and dry dock certifications do you have and are they current?
3. Explain or describe your planned facility capital investments or improvements prior to FY27.
   • a) What additional capital investments and improvements would be required to support CONSOL tanker production and delivery?
4. What is the maximum depth of water, channel width and air height (fixed bridges / overhead cableways) to open water?
   • a) Discuss any necessary channel, waterway dredging, or improvements required to support CONSOL tanker production and delivery.
5. How much warehousing and lay down area (square footage) is on-site?
6. What is your warehousing capacity for secure (access-controlled) and climate-controlled items?
7. What is the largest vessel (draft, beam, length, and tonnage) ever built at this facility?  Provide the maximum draft, beam, length, and tonnage for ship construction at your facility. If unable to accommodate the notional CONSOL tanker described above, please provide potential mitigations/facilities improvements required to alleviate those constraints.
8. Is the pier capable of tying up vessels during a major storm?
9. Describe the shore service capabilities such as:
   • a) Electrical services (shore power)                     
   • b) Potable water connections
   • c) Sewer connections
   • d) Oily waste removal

D. Shipyard Workforce

If your firm is a shipyard, provide the following information regarding your facility’s workforce.

1. Which typical labor trades and services do you contract out (example: HVAC, Joiner, Communications, Navigation) and how are they integrated into your master schedule?
2. What is your typical ratio of contract labor to in-house company labor at your facility?
3. How do you utilize an Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) in your day to day operation?
4. What is your current and projected orderbook for the next 3-8 years and how would CONSOL tanker construction affect your current production capacity?
5. What is your typical annual turnover rate for production employees?
6. What is your current labor trade skill breakdown and average years of experience per labor trade skill?
7. What is your capability and capacity to increase skilled production labor levels to support CONSOL tanker production and delivery?
   • a) Would they typically be contract labor or in-house company employees?
   • b) Is there enough existing infrastructure (e.g., parking, facilities, etc.) to support the required increase?
   • c) Is the local/regional labor pool suitable for ship production?
8. What is your capability and capacity to increase skilled production labor levels to support CONSOL tanker production and delivery?
9. What are your current manning levels for:
   • a) Production, skilled
   • b) Production, unskilled
   • c) Engineering
   • d) Design
   • e) Program Management
   • f) Testing

Response Submission

Please submit all response files in PDF format with filenames that reference the ID number for this notice and your company name. Email all submissions to the points of contact identified in this notice by the response date indicated.

Disclaimer

This notice is not a request for proposals. Responses to this notice do not constitute offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. This notice is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation or obligation on the part of the Government. The Government makes no representations that a solicitation for the requirements described in this notice will be issued. Responses to this notice are strictly voluntary and respondents are wholly responsible for any costs or expenses associated with submitting a response. No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this notice or any further requests for information relating to a response. Respondents will not be notified of the results of this notice. The information obtained from submitted responses may be used by the Government in the development of a procurement strategy. Respondents should properly mark any materials submitted with the appropriate restrictive markings. Information that is proprietary or competition-sensitive may be protected from disclosure under the public records statutes only if properly labeled as such.