Sources Sought
NOAAPort Replacement Capabilities
Department of Commerce · National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration · Sol. 142083-27-0002
Due in 18 days
Track this notice by email. We'll email you if it's amended or awarded, and a week and two days before responses are due.
AI summary Beta
NOAA's National Weather Service is running a Sources Sought / Request for Information to learn how industry could replace NOAAPort, the satellite broadcast that sends weather data to field offices, emergency managers and commercial weather users. This is market research only: no award will come from it, and no contract has been funded. Responses are due October 29, 2026 by email; the work would be centered in Silver Spring, MD.
Watch out for
- Market research only, no award. Responding does not lead to a contract and takes real effort (up to about 17 pages plus case studies) with no payment.
The Government will not pay for, reimburse, or otherwise compensate respondents for costs incurred in preparing or submitting a response
- Very tight transition timeline. The legacy broadcast may be shut off as early as August 31, 2027, so any follow-on work could be urgent and technically demanding.
The NOAAPort SBN is scheduled for deactivation as early as August 31, 2027.
- Demanding performance goals. The Government wants 99.99% availability, priority delivery of life-safety alerts and service to thousands of concurrent users, which is a big technical lift for a small firm.
meeting or exceeding 99.99% operational availability, even during severe weather outbreaks or regional network disruptions.
- Proprietary information may be disclosed. Responses can be reviewed by outside support personnel and may be released under FOIA, so mark sensitive material carefully.
Information submitted in response to this RFI may be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552.
Read from the notice and 2 attachments.
- 142083-27-0002_NOAAPort_RFI.pdf
- 142083-27-0002_NOAAPort_RFI_Questions.pdf
Full brief
What they want
- Ideas for cloud, hybrid, terrestrial, satellite or other ways to deliver high-volume weather data (100 Mbps minimum) to thousands of users
- Low-latency, highly reliable delivery (99.99% availability goal) with priority handling for life-safety warnings
- Backup and fallback connectivity that keeps working in severe weather and power or telecom outages
- Security approaches for data integrity, source authentication and protection from tampering or denial of service
- A transition plan and timeline to move users off the legacy broadcast, which may shut down as early as August 31, 2027
- Recommended contract model and a rough order of magnitude (ROM) cost range, split into one-time and recurring costs
- Case studies, existing contract vehicles and any SBIR/STTR work relevant to the replacement
- Contract type
- None yet. This is a Sources Sought / RFI; the Government asks respondents to recommend a contract model (firm-fixed-price, managed services, subscription, Data-as-a-Service, IDIQ, etc.)
- Place of performance
- Silver Spring, MD, USA
- How they'll choose
- Not applicable. Responses are not evaluated or scored; the Government will use them for market research and acquisition planning
- Offers due
- October 29, 2026, 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time (questions due October 15, 2026, 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time)
- How to submit
- Email to both jennifer.roesner@noaa.gov and timothy.wampler@noaa.gov, subject line: Company Name__NOAAPort_RFI_Response
- Page limits
- Respondent Information 1 page; Existing Federal Contracting Vehicles and SBIR/STTR 2 pages; NAICS Code Recommendation 2 pages; Response to RFI Questions 12 pages; Supporting Reference Material and Case Studies have no page limit
What to include when you submit
- Submit in Microsoft Word or PDF format
- Use Times New Roman, 10 point or larger, with 1-inch margins; text in tables and figures 9 point or larger
- Email limit is 25 MB total; if larger, split into several emails and label them (e.g., Email 1 of 2)
- Cover letter should give legal name, address, website, UEI, SAM.gov registration status, point of contact, NAICS codes with size standards and socioeconomic status, and interest in industry engagement
- Questions go by email to both contacts by October 15, 2026, 12:00 p.m. Eastern, subject line: Company Name__NOAAPort_RFI_Questions
- Mark any proprietary information; responses may be subject to FOIA
- If you lack full capability alone, describe teaming, joint venture or subcontracting arrangements
You must have
- No eligibility requirement to respond; anyone may send an RFI response, and responding is not required for any future acquisition
Responding to this RFI is not a prerequisite for participating in any future acquisition
- Respondents should list the NAICS codes under which they qualify as a small business and any socioeconomic status (the anticipated NAICS is 541512 with a $34 million size standard)
The anticipated NAICS code for this requirement is 541512 – Computer Systems Design Services (Size Standard of $34 Million).
Current contractor
The current AWIPS Satellite Broadcast Network is operated by an unnamed commercial satellite communications provider over C-band (Galaxy 31 satellite); no contractor name or contract number is given
Not in the notice text
- Contract type, length, options and budget for any future acquisition (the notice says no funds have been authorized)
- Whether a future solicitation will be set aside for small business (the RFI says responses will inform that decision)
- Whether an industry day or one-on-one meetings will be held
- The final NAICS code (541512 is preliminary)
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Key facts
- Response due
- Oct 29, 2026, 4:00 PM UTC
- Posted
- Oct 8, 2026
- Notice type
- Sources Sought
- Solicitation
- 142083-27-0002
- Agency
- Department of Commerce · National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Office
- Dept of Commerce NOAA
- NAICS
- 541512
- Business type
- IT, software & telecom
- Place of performance
- Silver Spring, MD
- Contracting contact
- Timothy WamplerTimothy.Wampler@noaa.gov7574416563
What similar contracts paid
120 contracts at this agency under the same NAICS code, in the same state, had activity in the last 5 years, according to USAspending.gov. Small businesses won 34% of the dollars in this market over the last 3 fiscal years.
Typical contract$3.9MMiddle half: $1.4M to $7M
Typical per year$1.5MValue divided by years of performance
Possible incumbent's contract endsNov 2026A similar contract in this state, ending near when this one starts
Before you respond
Full notice text from SAM.gov
**THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTE** **THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION FOR MARKET RESEARCH ONLY – NO AWARD WILL BE MADE FROM THIS NOTICE. ** SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE (SSN) FOR REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) NO. 142083-27-0002 NOAAPORT REPLACEMENT CAPABILITIES QUESTIONS AND RESPONSE DEADLINES Questions are due October 15, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time. RFI responses are due October 29, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Submit questions and responses by email to both: • Jennifer Roesner: jennifer.roesner@noaa.gov • Timothy Wampler: timothy.wampler@noaa.gov Use the applicable email subject line: • Questions: Company Name__NOAAPort_RFI_Questions • Responses: Company Name__NOAAPort_RFI_Response Responses must be submitted in Microsoft Word or PDF format. Follow the attachment’s instructions regarding the 25 MB email size limit and submissions requiring multiple emails. Participation is voluntary. The Government will not reimburse costs incurred in preparing or submitting responses. Responses are information only and cannot be accepted to form a binding contract. Responding to this RFI is not a prerequisite for participating in any future acquisition, and this notice does not commit the Government to issue a solicitation. See the accompanying attachments for the complete information request, response organization, page limitations, formatting requirements, and submission instructions. Respondents should review all attachments before preparing their submissions. Respondents should monitor this SAM.gov notice for amendments, answers to questions, and additional information.
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