Requested Information NASA Barge Pegasus

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

Notice ID:
80MSFC-Pegasus-2026
Notice Title:
Tugboat Services and Support, Vessel Technical Assessment, and Shipyard Maintenance Operations, and Support

3.0 REQUESTED INFORMATION:

3.1 Tug Services and Support Labor:

Request information about capabilities, pricing structures, timelines, and potential risks associated with towing a vessel of the below characteristics between NASA facilities and to/from shipyard locations:
Length Overall (LOA)
Beam
Draft
Displacement/Tonnage
Condition
Origin Ports
Estimated Tow’s/Year

310 feet

50 feet

15’9”
1457
New Orleans, LA; Huntsville, AL; Stennis, MS; Cape
Canaveral, FL
4-5

Specifically, the contractor will be required to provide tugboat services and support labor to transport NASA Barge Pegasus and its cargo along inland United States waterway routes to/from Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF), Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Stennis Space Center (SSC) located in southeastern US and along ocean routes to/from SSC/MAF and Kennedy Space Flight Center (KSC), or other destinations as needed. Movement to SSC or area proximity could be a contingency movement in case of hurricane threat. Support labor includes technical support for vessel preparation, loading, transportation and offloading. Note that the NASA Barge Pegasus will require on-board support of 4-5 crew as well as a NASA representative during transport, which could last as little as 12 hours and as long as several weeks.

3.2 Technical Support for Day-to-Day Maintenance of the Vessel: Assess, perform and track required maintenance of the vessel to assure readiness to support NASA shipments. - Conduct routine inspections of propulsion systems, steering mechanisms, electrical distribution panels, hydraulic systems, ballast systems, navigation electronics, and auxiliary machinery to ensure operational readiness.
- Perform preventive maintenance in accordance with OEM manuals, ABS requirements, and NASA mission support schedules, including lubrication, filter replacement, corrosion control, mechanical adjustments, and system diagnostics. - Maintain and update a maintenance log tracking all actions performed, deficiencies identified, corrective measures taken, and parts installed, with digital records made available to NASA on request.
- Provide rapid-response troubleshooting and repair capability to address emergent issues that may affect the vessel’s readiness for upcoming tows or mission operations. - Support NASA personnel by providing technical expertise during cargo preparation,