NOAA : ROTRONIC Humidity Probes and Cables for National Weather Service ( NWS )

2026-11-03

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) intends to award a firm fixed price contract for ROTRONIC Humidity Probes and Cables for the National Weather Service ( NWS ) National Data Buoy Center ( NDBC ) at Stennis Space Center , MS . The Government intends to make an award to the responsive responsible quoter providing the best value in accordance with FAR 12 . 203 ( c )( 2 ). Brand Name JustificationThe NDBC has been testing relative humidity sensors for decades . The Rotronic probe has shown the greatest accuracy and reliability in harsh marine environments with extensive marine testing . The combined air temperature and humidity probe must be compatible in all aspects ( form , fit , and function ) with NDBC weather buoy and CMAN systems and the source is uniquely qualified to meet the requirement . Manufacturers of meteorological instruments have a wide variance concerning technical specifications . New products require intensive laboratory testing prior to ever making it to a field trial . A field trial is then a minimum of a 1 - year side by side testing of the new probe versus the current certified probe . For the National Data Buoy Center ( NDBC ) that could mean a co - located buoy . The cost of this testing can go into excessive funding over multiple fiscal years . These instruments must return quality data because people ' s lives and their livelihoods depend on the NDBC returning the highest quality data for forecasting , warnings , and modeling . The purchase of other types of probes could result in sensors suffering premature failure rates , sensor corrosion , and inaccurate data . Accuracy is essential to protect life and property . The Government is not aware of any other humidity probes that meet the standard NDBC requirement of 0 . 8 % RH accuracy . This procurement is intended to replace the current humidity probes that are over 4 - years old , lost at sea , or damaged beyond repair during fiscal years 2024 & 2025 . Due to the specifications , it is recommended that this procurement of the HC2A - S3 probes and the associated accessories to be used on Coastal - Marine Automated Network ( C - MAN ) stations be Brand Name Specific to Rotronic Humidity Probes . The selection of an alternate relative humidity and air temperature sensor would result in extensive laboratory and field testing before it could be used on an operational station . This includes the side - by - side testing of full systems ( buoy hull / mast , and full payload and sensor suite ) since the C - MAN payloads are not equipped to add extra humidity sensors which would result in additional labor and time delays costing the government excessive additional funding . DOC , Eastern Acquisition Division requires that all contractors doing business with this office be registered with the System for Award Management ( SAM ). No award can be made to a company not registered in SAM . Contractors active in SAM have a unique entity identifier ( UEI ) that is used to do business with the federal government . The Government has moved to a free new , non - proprietary identifier that will have to be requested in , and assigned by , the System for Award Management ( SAM . gov ). You can register and access the site by going to www . sam . gov .

Mississippi

2026-04-29