A Study on Vessel Design Challenge

U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD)

A Study on Vessel Design Challenge

RFP No. 693JF726R000016

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP):

The Maritime Administration’s (MARAD) Maritime Environmental and Technical Assistance (META) program is issuing a request for proposals (RFP) for a Vessel Design Challenge (Challenge). This Challenge intends to fund multiple design teams willing to undertake integrated design work to improve fuel efficiency and reduce vessel underwater radiated noise (URN) to create the next generation of U.S. vessels.

Individual awards depend on number of designs proposed for the package. Awards are intended to be for not less than $150k and likely not more than $450k. Project completion timeline is 12-18 months. Total funding available is up to $1.25 million.

1. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:

The META program (46 U.S.C. § 50307) is investigating the interconnections between broader fuel efficiency, reducing URN from vessels, and exploring potential co-benefits. It is the policy of the United States to revitalize and rebuild domestic maritime industries and workforce to promote national security and economic prosperity. Accomplishing this requires making United States-flagged and built vessels commercially competitive in international commerce, rebuilding America’s maritime manufacturing capabilities, and expanding and strengthening the recruitment, training, and retention of the relevant workforce.

The most promising opportunities for optimizing fuel efficiency gains and achieving URN reductions are in the early ship design stage, using a systems approach. This requires intentional and integrated ship designs that prioritize fuel efficiency while simultaneously reducing URN. Advanced fluid dynamic modeling enables comparison among hull, engine, and propeller design and arrangement, providing valuable information to the industry about the return on investment (ROI) for various technology and design optimizations at the design phase. Individual technologies claim to provide efficiency and noise reduction benefits, but the additive cost-savings have not been quantified for applying technologies in series and demonstrating increased efficiencies across multiple areas.

Recently published studies summarized the state of knowledge and availability of technologies that can be applied to vessels to improve energy efficiency while reducing vessel generated URN. Those reports crosswalk not only the interoperability of technologies and design elements, but the potential reductions, costs, and return on investment. The next phase is to demonstrate, through modeling, the benefits that can be realized through a systematic design approach integrating technologies with input from naval architects, shipyards, and technology suppliers on the efficacy of these approaches. By using this approach, Teams will begin at the drawing table to quantify the benefits of innovative technology integration into the design phase for application on new vessels. 

The Vessel Design Challenge is intended to facilitate the demonstration of novel vessel designs that meet or exceed international benchmarks for fuel efficiency and URN source levels. This Challenge is intended to fund multiple Design Teams willing to undertake this kind of integrated design work to create the next generation of U.S. vessels.

1. PROPOSAL CONTENT

Proposed Vessel Design:

Design proposals can include:

• Existing projects that would be redesigned,
• Forthcoming projects that are just beginning the design specification phase, and
• Designs that are theoretical or more experimental which aim to create a new approach or design.

There are no restrictions on eligible vessels, however, given the mission of the Maritime Administration, vessels should be commercially useful and generally would not include small watercraft, recreational vessels, or fisheries vessels. Eligible designs include vessels operating in coastal or inland waterways as well as the Great Lakes.

Ideal proposals will be for new design approaches or design modifications that couple hull-machinery-propulsion approaches to maximize fuel efficiency, URN reduction, and ROI. Technologies should be centered around performance and demonstrating the feasibility and economic achievability of these combined approaches and should be dictated by capacity needs set by industry requirements (tug capacity, crew capacity, operations support, range, TEU, cargo etc.). Designs should note specifically the technology readiness level and the commercial availability of any technologies used.

Design Team: The approach to the Challenge will include a design team. Teams should include description of partnerships, collaborations, and/or processes that will ensure success of the proposal. Further, proposals should identify the Team’s capabilities, related experience, techniques, or unique combinations of these that are integral factors for achieving the Challenge objectives to include experience that supports ability to successfully manage and achieve project goals and objectives of similar type and scope.

Development of an ideal team should represent the concept of a design-build approach and include:

• Naval architect(s)
• Marine Engineer(s)
• Shipyard(s)
• Owner/operator/buyer (can be more than one)
• Technology provider(s) (including fuel supplier, as needed)
• May include operator/charter party, BCO, logistics partners, port/city/public entity, private financing partner.

Teams may submit one or more vessel designs to the Challenge. Funding amounts will be based on:

• the number of vessel designs proposed
• their technology innovation, or
• a combination thereof

One or all proposed designs may be funded depending on proposals. There is no limit to number of teams an organization can participate in, however, an organization may only “lead” one team/proposal.  No identical teams with rotating “leads” will be permitted. Preference will be given to proposals with team leads represented by U.S. companies, those with U.S. headquarters, and those operating under the U.S. flag

Methods: Proposals must include a detailed description of the design and modeling approaches that will be used to meet the Design Challenge Parameters as noted below, including those for fuel burn estimates and URN source level as well as modeling for return on investment and similar economic estimates and valuations.

Timeline: The proposed plan should include the expected timeline (not to exceed 18 months) inclusive of kick off meetings with MARAD, design and technology integration and assessment, interim progress report detailing vessel design and technology application progress, data collection and analysis, and final report deliverables.

Budget: All proposals must include a compete, detailed, and justifiable budget with general line items for various design components and stages including fuel, URN, and ROI evaluation and calculations. Budgets should demonstrate market conditions or similar that support these budget estimates. Description of key personnel, qualifications, and expected level of effort should also be included.

Proposals may also include any additional considerations, outreach, or analysis recommended to achieve the goals of the project.

Design Challenge Parameters

Design specifications: The objective is for designs to meet or exceed these specifications for fuel efficiency improvement and noise reduction. Recognizing that this is a demonstration of technical feasibility and economic achievability, if these design specifications are not achievable, alternative efficiency and noise improvements should be documented demonstrating the current limits of technologies. These specifications should be considered aspirational to test the limits of the possible within the bounds of the practical.

Energy Efficiency: 30% efficiency improvement over a typical vessel design with conventional hull and machinery arrangements and fuels.

Underwater Radiated Noise Source Level:  Underwater radiated noise source level is defined using the radiated noise level (RNL). RNL is the source level that has been calculated assuming sound pressure decays geometrically with distance from the source, with no influence of the sea-surface or seabed and is often used to quantify source levels of vessels. Below are the equations for URN limits for self-propelled commercial vessels. The limits are stated in decidecade band RNL (dB re 1 μPa2·m2).

Frequency range / Hz

Transit

/ dB re 1 µPa2·m2

10-100

169.5+1.5log10(f)

100-1000

191-9.5log10(f)

1000-50000

199-12log10(f)

Operational Conditions: Vessels designs should be able to meet or exceed the specifications under what would be considered normal operational parameters for that vessel. The intent is not for these vessels to need to employ special operations or change their normal patterns, routes, or timetables to achieve the reductions. Normal operations should be considered:

• Typical transit/operating conditions
• Transit non-working; and working for under-tow/station keeping
• 85% maximum continuous rating

Measurement Standard: ANSI/ISO standards or an appropriate and defensible adaptation of these to suit the needs and conditions of the operational state should be described. Fuel efficiency estimation methods should be described based on industry and/or international reporting requirements (e.g. Class society, IMO)

Deliverables

The main deliverable is a preliminary vessel design that includes some technical details including the hull form for hydrodynamics and fuel efficiency and the selection of propulsion and power systems (engines, propellers, and other machinery) based on the ship’s operational requirements and sufficient to meet the design specifications of the Challenge.  Designs should also be validated for general stability and load analyses for the ship’s safety under various conditions.

Design analysis should include the technology combinations, design adjustments, machinery and propulsion arrangements that achieve desired efficiency and URN specifications. Designs should note the technology readiness level and the commercial availability of any technologies used. Each design must include a full breakdown of the anticipated costs compared to a conventional design, including an anticipated ROI timeline and total ROI for the anticipated lifetime of the vessel. This should include a description of the additional costs for each technology element and the design and anticipated construction costs. There is no preferred technology or fuel/engine approach, but final reports should describe in reasonable detail those arrangements and technology combinations used to achieve the specifications.

Since this is a concept demonstration for feasibility and economic achievability, challenges and barriers to meeting design specifications should be explicitly described. This should include findings regarding cost differences in achieving partial reductions; for example, the difference in cost between reducing fuel consumption increased rapidly after a certain point or the achievability of URN reduction became exponentially more expensive after a specific dB reduction. It should also include barriers to technology sourcing or availability and the realities of potentially building these vessels in the shipyard, i.e. does the experience exist at U.S. yards to integrate the design technologies and arrangements?

These design components, technology and cost evaluations, and lessons learned should be included in a final report that can be made publicly available. Any intellectual property or business sensitive information, to include design plans and/or drawings, results of modeling, or technology or cost specifics will remain internal to the project team and Maritime Administration as not to undermine any competitive advantage.  

The final deliverable is participation in a debrief with MARAD to share results and lessons learned. There may be opportunities to debrief with other Challenge teams, pending willingness and interest to do so.

1. FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION:

MARAD will provide funding through a cooperative agreement for the execution of this Design Challenge. This announcement is an expression of interest only and does not commit MARAD to make any award.

To be considered for selection, the contractor participating in the Challenge must be able to complete it within 18 months from time of award. The final report and other summary materials will be publicly available and posted to the META webpage.

Proposals in response to this RFP are limited to 20 pages and must be received within 120 days of the publication of this notice. Proposals will be screened for use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. Any use of AI tools in generating content for the proposal must be clearly identified and justified.

MARAD reserves the right to fund one or none of the proposals received under this RFP. MARAD is not responsible for reimbursing the costs that applicants incur to prepare and submit their proposals in response to this RFP. Technical and cost proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this RFP will not be returned. It is MARAD’s policy to treat all proposals submitted under this RFP as sensitive competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation. All applicants must be registered and current with SAM.gov at the time of award.

1. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION.

1. Eligible Applicants: Open to all types of domestic applicants other than individuals.

2. MARAD is seeking to provide full funding through cooperative agreement for the proposals that provides sufficient, verifiable, and detailed data on how to reach the objective of this Design Challenge. MARAD will fund 100% of the total cost of the project. Proposals must include a detailed cost breakdown that shows how Federal funds will be used for the project. Please see Section E.2 for information on proposal format requirements.

3. Systems for Award Management (SAM) Requirements.  MARAD will not make an award to an applicant until the applicant has complied with all applicable unique entity identifier and SAM requirements. If an applicant has not fully complied with the requirements by the time MARAD is ready to make an award, MARAD may determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive an award and use that determination as a basis for making an award to another applicant. Please see Section E.3 for information on SAM requirements. MARAD will not make an award to any applicant with an exclusion in SAM.

1. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

1. Address to Request Application Package.

This RFP contains all the information needed to submit a proposal and be considered for award. No specific application form or other materials need to be obtained from MARAD.

1. Content and Form of Application.

Proposals are limited to 20 pages and must be received within 120 days of the publication of this notice.

Proposals must provide sufficient, verifiable, and detailed information covering all elements of the “Proposal Content” described in section B.1 above.

1. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM).

Each applicant is required to: (a) be registered and current in SAM before submitting its application; (b) provide a valid unique entity identifier in its applicant; and (c) continue to maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an application or plan under consideration by a Federal awarding agency. MARAD will not make an award to an applicant until the applicant has complied with all applicable unique entity identifier and SAM requirements. If an applicant has not fully complied with the requirements by the time MARAD is ready to make an award, MARAD may determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive an award and use that determination as a basis for making an award to another applicant.

1. Submission Dates and Times.

The deadline for proposal submission is 12:00 PM EST on the closing date listed for this RFP on SAMS.gov Please submit proposals in PDF format attached to an email. Send proposals to Christian Onwudiegwu/Contract Specialist at Christian.onwudiegwu@dot.gov and Kelly Mitchell-Carroll at K.mitchell-carroll@dot.gov, Office of Acquisitions. Do not send paper copies, or other media of the proposal via post office or delivery service. Proposals received by MARAD after the deadline will not be considered for award. An email will be deemed “received” by MARAD on the date and time the email was “sent” to the email address in Section E.7, below, as determined by MARAD’s servers.

1. Intergovernmental Review.

This funding opportunity is not subject to Executive Order 12372, “Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.” l

1. Funding Restrictions.

Applicants are advised to review 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards as supplemented by 2 CFR Part 1201 for cost principles used to determine allowable costs of work performed under Federal awards.

1. Other Submission Requirements.

Proposals must be submitted by the deadline set forth in Section E.4 above by electronic mail to Christian Onwudiegwu at Christian.onwudiegwu@dot.gov and Kelly Mitchell-Carroll at K.mitchell-carroll@dot.gov. Please include the Funding Opportunity Number and Title in the Subject Line.

1. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

1. Review and Selection Process.

MARAD will set up an internal review team to evaluate all proposals that are submitted under this announcement. All eligible proposals will be evaluated within four weeks after the closing date. If the review team has any questions on an individual proposal, it will notify the applicant for clarification.

The proposals will be evaluated against the following criteria:

1. Well-documented and context-appropriate plan to undertake and successfully demonstrate the design integration of technology to achieve the fuel efficiency goal, URN limit, and economic analysis required by the Challenge.

1. Clear application of methods supporting vessel design, technology integration, data collection, assessment, and analysis to include specifications for fuel efficiency and URN modeling consistent with international and class standards and reference to existing guidelines, standards, and notations. Methodologies must include descriptions of major analytical approaches being proposed for the Challenge components to meet the Design Challenge Parameters. Methodology also includes any specific models and data sources intended to be used for each component of the Challenge.
2. The Team’s capabilities, related experience, technical knowledge, techniques, or unique combinations of these that are integral factors for achieving the Challenge objectives to include experience that supports ability to successfully manage and achieve Challenge goals and objectives of similar type and scope.
3. Detailed project timeline with descriptions of key decision points and areas of uncertainty.
4. Budget and justification demonstrating appropriate and defensible cost per component, personnel, timeline, and final deliverables; including consideration of the experience and capability of key personnel involved, the number of hours budgeted for key people, and the role, value, and level of participation of any noted partners.

1. FEDERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

1. Federal Award Notices.

The successful applicant(s) will be notified by MARAD’s Office of Acquisition via telephone; however, the telephone call is not the actual award or the authorization to begin performance. All awards will be made by a cooperative agreement signed by MARAD’s Agreement/Grants Officer. After an award has been made, a representative from the MARAD’s Office of Innovation will schedule a kick-off meeting for the project.

Unsuccessful applicants will be notified via email.

1. Administrative and National Policy Requirements.

Applicants are advised to review 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Costs Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards as supplemented by 2 CFR Part 1201, for applicable administrative and national policy requirements. For a copy of the general terms and conditions of the Federal award made under this RFP, please contact Christian Onwudiegwu at christian.onwudiegwu@dot.gov. Federal awards made under RFP may include additional terms that are specific to the project, including without limitation awardee information, project description, funding details, and appropriate data rights clauses.

1. Reporting.

Applicants are advised to review 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Costs Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, as supplemented by 2 CFR Part 1201, for applicable reporting requirements. Federal awards made under this RFP may include additional reporting requirements that are appropriate for the specific project to be funded by MARAD.

1. FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY CONTACT

For any questions relating to the technical or programmatic aspects of this RFP, please contact Alyson Azzara at Alyson.Azzara@dot.gov. 

For any questions about the administration of this funding opportunity and any awards, please contact Christian Onwudiegwu at Christian.onwudiegwu@dot.gov. cc: Kelly Mitchell-Carroll at K.mitchell-carroll@dot.gov.

1. OTHER INFORMATION

Applicants must identify all proprietary information in its submission. MARAD is not obligated to make any Federal award as a result of this RFP.