***NOAA's Acquisition & Grants Office, Western Acquisition Division-Boulder, intends to negotiate, on a sole source basis, under authority of FAR 13.106-1(b)(1), with Vaisala, Inc. of Louisville, Colorado for assisting the Office of Atmospheric Research (OAR) Global Monitoring Division (GMD) in providing three (3) Vaisala CL51 Ceilometers to be installed at three (3) SURFRAD Network sites, with a government option of purchasing four (4) additional units to outfit all seven SURFRAD sites.

***The sole source determination is based on the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Office of Atmospheric Research's (OAR) requirement for three (3) Vaisala CL51 Ceilometers to be installed at three (3) SURFRAD Network sites, with a government option of purchasing four (4) additional units to outfit all seven SURFRAD sites. The Vaisala CL51Ceilometer is essential to the timeline and research goals necessitating its purchase. There are other Ceilometers on the market, but only the CL51 meets programmatic requirements. NOAA colleagues and non-NOAA affiliates alike operate Vaisala ceilometers, so any other brand of ceilometer would harm scientific collaboration and provide skewed research results. Vaisala does not authorize resellers to distribute the CL51 Ceilometer. Direct purchasing from the company is the only available option. The period of performance is from the date of award through February 15, 2018.

***This notice of intent is not a request for competitive proposals and no solicitation package is available. However, firms that believe they can fully meet the Government's requirements may submit substantiating documentation in writing to the identified point of contact within 15 days after publication of this synopsis. Such documentation will be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this procurement on a competitive basis. A determination by the Government not to conduct a competitive procurement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the government. Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this notice.