EDGETECH 4125i TELEMETRY SIDE SCAN SYSTEM AND AN EDGETECH 3400 POLE MOUNT SUB-BOTTOM PROFILER SYSTEM.

***THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION’S (NOAA) ACQUISITION & GRANTS OFFICE, EASTERN ACQUISITION DIVISION-NORFOLK, NATIONAL OCEAN SERVICE (NOS) OFFICE OF COAST SURVEY (OCS) CENTER OF EXCELLENCE FOR OPERATIONAL OCEAN AND GREAT LAKES MAPPING (COE), INTENDS TO NEGOTIATE AND AWARD A PURCHASE ORDER, ON A SOLE SOURCE BASIS, UNDER AUTHORITY OF RFO FAR 6.103-1, WITH EDGETECH OUT OF WAREHAM, MA FOR AN EDGETECH 4125I TELEMETRY SIDE SCAN SYSTEM AND AN EDGETECH 3400 POLE MOUNT SUB-BOTTOM PROFILER SYSTEM. NO SET ASIDE IS TO BE USED FOR THIS SOLE SOURCE REQUIREMENT. THE ASSOCIATED NAICS CODE IS 334511. ***THE SOLE SOURCE DETERMINATION IS BASED ON NOAA’S REQUIREMENT THAT EDGETECH IS THE MANUFACTURER OF THE 4125 TELEMETRY SIDE SCAN SYSTEM AND THE 3400 SERIES SUB-BOTTOM PROFILER SYSTEM. EDGETECH IS A SMALL BUSINESS AND HAS PARTNERED WITH NOAA FOR EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSIRE TO TRAIN HYDROGRAPHERS. EDGETECH IS THE MANUFACTURER AND A SMALL BUSINESS; THEREFORE THERE IS NO BENEFIT PURCHASING FROM A RESELLER. THE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE (COE) WILL USE THIS SPECIALIZED ACOUSTIC PROFILING EQUIPMENT TO DIRECTLY SUPPORT THE IMMEDIATE AND ONGOING EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF THE NOAA HYDROGRAPHIC WORKFORCE AND ITS EXTERNAL PARTNERS. CURRENTLY, NOAA'S OPERATIONAL INVENTORY SEVERELY LACKS A MAN-PORTABLE SUB-BOTTOM PROFILING CAPABILITY. AS NOAA ACTIVELY EXPANDS ITS MAPPING PORTFOLIO TO ENCOMPASS SUB-SURFACE APPLICATIONS FOR CRITICAL MINERAL EXPLORATION, ACQUIRING THIS SYSTEM IS VITAL TO DEVELOPING STUDENT OPERATIONAL PROFICIENCY IN SUB-SURFACE ACOUSTIC IMAGING, GEOLOGICAL SURVEYS, ENVIRONMENTAL SITE INVESTIGATIONS, SEDIMENT CLASSIFICATION, AND INFRASTRUCTURE MAPPING. THE EDGETECH 3400 TECHNOLOGY SERVES AS THE SINGLE BEST ENTRY POINT FOR STUDENTS AND HYDROGRAPHERS LEARNING TO OPERATE AND INTERPRET SUB-BOTTOM PROFILING DATA. IT GENERATES HIGH-RESOLUTION IMAGES OF SUB-BOTTOM STRATIGRAPHY IN OCEANS, LAKES, AND RIVERS, PROVIDING EXCELLENT PENETRATION ACROSS VARIOUS BOTTOM TYPES. THE SYSTEM USES A LINEAR SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE THAT NATIVELY OUTPUTS COMPLEX 'ANALYTIC SIGNAL' DATA FOR PRECISE SEDIMENT DETERMINATION, WHICH IS CRUCIAL FOR TEACHING SEDIMENT CLASSIFICATION. A "BRAND NAME OR EQUAL" DESCRIPTION CANNOT BE APPLIED HERE BECAUSE ALTERNATIVE PORTABLE SYSTEMS DO NOT UTILIZE THE STANDARD WIDEBAND CHIRP FRAMEWORK WITHIN AN EASILY MANAGED, PORTABLE FOOTPRINT THAT YIELDS STANDARD DATA FILES REQUIRED BY OUR CURRICULUM THE EDGETECH 3400 SERIES IS RECOGNIZED GLOBALLY AS THE BASELINE TECHNOLOGY STANDARD FOR ACADEMIC AND INDUSTRY MARINE RESEARCH. BECAUSE THE COE IS SIMULTANEOUSLY BUILDING ITS MULTI-SONAR WORKFLOWS AROUND EXISTING SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE FORMATS THAT MIRROR WHAT PERSONNEL ENCOUNTER ACROSS THE WIDER MAPPING COMMUNITY, THE PLATFORM-AGNOSTIC EDGETECH ECOSYSTEM INTEGRATES SEAMLESSLY. SHIFTING TO AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT ARCHITECTURE WOULD DISRUPT STANDARD OPERATING PROTOCOLS AND BREAK BASELINE CURRICULUM FORMATTING THE ONLY OTHER PORTABLE SUB-BOTTOM PROFILER IDENTIFIED ON THE MARKET IS MANUFACTURED BY INNOMAR. HOWEVER, THE INNOMAR SYSTEM FAILS TO MEET THE AGENCY'S NEEDS FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS: 1. BUY AMERICAN ACT RESTRICTIONS: THE INNOMAR SYSTEM IS NOT MANUFACTURED WITHIN THE UNITED STATES, CREATING REGULATORY CONFLICTS. BECAUSE A HIGHLY VIABLE, DOMESTIC ALTERNATIVE EXISTS IN EDGETECH, THE AGENCY MUST PRIORITIZE THE DOMESTIC PRODUCT TO REMAIN COMPLIANT WITH FEDERAL PROCUREMENT REQUIREMENTS. 2. PARAMETRIC SONAR ARCHITECTURE CONSTRAINTS: THE INNOMAR SYSTEM UTILIZES PARAMETRIC SUB-BOTTOM PROFILING TECHNOLOGY. WHILE INNOVATIVE, PARAMETRIC SYSTEMS OPERATE ON COMPLEX NON-LINEAR ACOUSTIC PRINCIPLES THAT CARRY AN EXCEPTIONALLY STEEP LEARNING CURVE FOR STUDENTS. THE EDGETECH SYSTEM USES A MORE TYPICAL, STANDARD CHIRP SUB-BOTTOM PROFILING ARCHITECTURE. THIS STANDARD METHOD IS EXACTLY WHAT NOAA PERSONNEL WILL ENCOUNTER IN THE FIELD AND FLEET, MAKING IT THE IDEAL TOOL FOR TEACHING FOUNDATIONAL SUB-BOTTOM PRINCIPLES WITHOUT INTRODUCING UNNECESSARY OPERATIONAL FRICTION. THEREFORE, THE EDGETECH 3400 SYSTEM IS THE UNIQUE PROVIDER FOR THIS CAPABILITY CLASS THAT FITS THE PLANNED INSTRUCTIONAL USE CASE. THE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE (COE) WILL UTILIZE THIS DEDICATED SIDE SCAN SONAR SYSTEM TO DIRECTLY SUPPORT THE IMMEDIATE AND ONGOING HANDS-ON EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF NOAA'S HYDROGRAPHIC MAPPERS AND SURVEYORS IN ACOUSTIC IMAGERY ACQUISITION, OBJECT DETECTION, AND HAZARD IDENTIFICATION. A DEDICATED TRAINING ASSET GUARANTEES EQUIPMENT AVAILABILITY DURING INSTRUCTIONAL BLOCKS, ELIMINATING RELIANCE ON SHARED OPERATIONAL FLEET ASSETS. WHEN NOT UTILIZED FOR CLASSES, THIS TURNKEY SYSTEM WILL SERVE A VITAL SECONDARY PURPOSE SUPPORTING LOCAL, AS-NEEDED RAPID RESPONSE AND EMERGENCY CHARTING WORK. THE EDGETECH 4125I SYSTEM IS A WORLD-RENOWNED GLOBAL STANDARD FOR ACOUSTIC IMAGING, MAKING IT THE SINGLE BEST PLATFORM AVAILABLE FOR HYDROGRAPHIC EDUCATION. PROCURING THIS DEDICATED HARDWARE ENSURES THAT THE HYDROGRAPHIC WORKFORCE RECEIVES REALISTIC, INDUSTRY-STANDARD FIELD EXPERIENCE THAT TRANSLATES SEAMLESSLY TO FLEET OPERATIONS. CRUCIALLY, THE SYSTEM FEATURES A HIGH-END TOWFISH EXPLICITLY ENGINEERED TO WEIGH UNDER 50 LBS, ENABLING SAFE LIFTING, QUICK ASSEMBLY, AND RAPID DEPLOYMENT BY A SINGLE OPERATOR FROM SMALL VESSELS OF OPPORTUNITY (UP TO 25 FEET). NO OTHER BRAND OFFERS A PORTABLE SIDE SCAN SONAR SYSTEM UNDER 50 LBS WITH THESE SPECIFIC IMAGING CAPABILITIES AND A RAPID DELIVERY TIMELINE, MAKING EDGETECH THE ONLY VIABLE OPTION ON THE MARKET. A "BRAND NAME OR EQUAL" DESCRIPTION CANNOT BE UTILIZED BECAUSE ALTERNATIVE PRODUCTS FAIL TO MEET THE SINGLE-OPERATOR SUB-50 LB WEIGHT THRESHOLD OR LACK THE STANDARDIZED SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE NECESSARY FOR UPCOMING INSTRUCTIONAL CYCLES. WITHOUT THIS SPECIFIC BRAND, THE COE WOULD FACE A CRITICAL TRAINING DEFICIT, SEVERELY DIMINISHING NOAA'S OPERATIONAL PROFICIENCY IN ACOUSTIC OBJECT DETECTION AND HAZARD IDENTIFICATION. PERSONNEL AND…