Amendment 0001: Response date extended to September 16, 2021 at 1:00PM EST SOLICITATION NUMBER: 1333ND21QNB640552 RESPONSE DATE: September 8, 2021 CONTACT POINTS: Donald Graham, Contracting Officer DESCRIPTION THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN FAR SUBPART 12.6-STREAMLINED PROCEDURES FOR EVALUATION AND SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS-AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THIS NOTICE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; QUOTATIONS ARE BEING REQUESTED, AND A SEPARATE WRITTEN SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED. THE SOLICITATION IS BEING ISSUED USING SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF FAR PARTS 12 AND 13. This solicitation is a Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) FAC 2021-06 effective July 12, 2021. The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 334516 - Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing with a small business size standard of 1000 Employees. This acquisition is being procured as a Brand Name only. Quoters must possess an ACTIVE registration in the System for Award Management system, www.SAM.gov, when submitting a quotation and shall continue to be registered until time of award, during performance, and through final payment of any contract resulting from this solicitation. The Contracting Officer will confirm that quoters have an “active” registration at the www.sam.gov website upon receipt of the quotation. If the SAM.Gov registration is not active, the quotation will not be considered for award. NIST requires a Digital PCR Instrument for use in certifying the concentration of Standard Reference Materials (SRM) produced by the Biomolecular Measurement Division. The instrument is required to produce high quality data for accurate measurement of SRM DNA samples. Brand Name Only requirement. The Applied Genetics Group (AGG) at NIST is engaged in the production of quantitative DNA-based reference materials traceable to the International System of Units (SI). For the purposes of certifying these materials the AGG requires a digital PCR system for complementary, orthogonal measurement to reduce sources of variability in certification of nucleic acid SRMs. The dPCR system shall be capable running and analyzing up to four plates (24-sample or 96-sample) simultaneously, must allow for additional plates to be loaded onto the instrument while it is running/analyzing plates should the four plate maximum not be reached in the initial setup. The ddPCR system shall be capable of analyzing at least five fluorescent channels (e.g. FAM, HEX, VIC, JOE, TAMRA, ROX, Cy5, etc). The dPCR system shall be able to partition the sample, thermal cycle, and image up to 96 samples without manual intervention in under two hours for the first plate, and 1 hour for additional plates. The system shall accommodate a flexible throughput by offering plate confiurations of 24-samples (8500-26000 partitions) or 96-samples (8500 partitions). The Applied Genetics Group has performed research on the Qiagen QIAcuity instrument using our Human DNA Quantitation Standard Reference Material (SRM 2372a) and found that it can detect multiple targets using different dye channels simultaneously, with concordant results to the Bio-Rad QX200. The Applied Genetics group analyzed over 40 plates (96 samples and/or 24 samples per plate) during the beta testing of the Qiagen QIAcuity platform and found concordant results between the QIAcuity and the Bio-Rad QX200, which is the instrument that was employed to certify the SRM concentration. Given its potential for SI-traceability, orthogonal methodology, and its multi-dye compatibility, only the Qiagen QIAcuity meets the government’s requirements. Other PCR systems on the market do not meet one or more of the Government requirements: System do not allow for the additional thermal cycling and imaging of plates. Additionally, they do not support the simultaneous or concurrent processing of up to four plates at a time. Partitions are not physically accessible for measurement to establish a SI-traceable volume estimate and they cannot process 96 samples in the required time and droplets are not accessible to measurement to establish an SI-traceable volume estimate. Therefore, only a Qiagen branded QIAcuity Four dPCR System will satisfy the Government's requirement. Quoters must submit the brand name identified within the solicitation. FOB DESTINATION MEANS: The contractor shall pack and mark the shipment in conformance with carrier requirements, deliver the shipment in good order and condition to the point of delivery specified in the purchase order, be responsible for loss of and/or damage to the goods occurring before receipt and acceptance of the shipment by the consignee at the delivery point specified in the purchase order; and pay all charges to the specified point of delivery. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS Responsible quoters shall provide a quotation for the following Contract Line Items (CLINs), in accordance with the specifications outlined in the attached Specifications. All equipment must be new. Used or remanufactured equipment will not be considered for award: BASE LINE ITEMS: Line Item 0001: (Quantity 1 Each) Qiagen QIAcuity Four dPCR System w Laptop IAW Specifications OPTION LINE ITEMS: Line Item 0002 Service Plan - one year of maintenance and repair services IAW Specifications Line Item 0003 Service Plan - one year of maintenance and repair services IAW Specifications Line Item 0004 Service Plan - one year of maintenance and repair services IAW Specifications Line Item 0005 Service Plan - one year of maintenance and repair services IAW Specifications EVALUATION CRITERIA & BASIS FOR AWARD: The Government intends to award a purchase order resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Contractor whose quotation, conforming to the solicitation, provides the lowest priced, technically acceptable quote. Technically acceptable means that the quote: Meets or exceeds the minimum equipment specifications listed within the Specifications document; Meets training, warranty, and installation requirements as applicable Meets the Service Plan requirements; and Meets the required delivery schedule. Price: The price evaluation will determine whether the quoted prices are fair and reasonable in relation to the solicitation requirements. Quoted prices must be entirely compatible with the technical quotation. INSTRUCTIONS: Completed Solicitation Provisions A completed version of all required solicitation provisions (see attached provisions/clauses document – required submissions highlighted in blue). Due Date for Quotations and Questions All quotations must be submitted, via e-mail, to Don Graham, Contracting officer, at
[email protected]. Submissions must be received no later than 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on September 8, 2021. FAX quotations will not be accepted. Quoters must reference the RFQ number in the subject line of the e-mail submission. Quotes shall not be deemed received by the Government until the quotation has entered the e-mail inbox of the individual(s) set forth above. Questions: All questions regarding this notice must be submitted via e-mail to Don Graham, at
[email protected], no later than 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on August 31, 2021. Quotation Preparation Instructions Each quotation shall consist of two (2) separate electronic files: (1) Technical Quotation and (2) Pricing Quotation. Technical Quotation: (1) Technical description and/or product literature. Quoters shall include the manufacturer, make and model of the product, manufacturer sales literature or other product literature which CLEARLY DOCUMENTS that the offered products meet or exceed all specifications outlined in the statement of requirements. It is the responsibility of the quoter to ensure that submitted documentation clearly addresses all specifications and requirements. (2) If product literature does not address any given specification, a discussion of how the Contractor will meet or exceed that required specification. Any quoted modification must be discussed. It is the responsibility of the quoter to ensure that the discussion clearly addresses the modification and how the required specification(s) will be met with the quoted modification. (3) The quoted delivery timeline for the base line item. (4) A description of the quoted training. (5) A description of the quoted warranty. (6) A description of the Service Plan(s) Price Quotation: (1) All Quoters shall submit a firm fixed price, FOB Destination, price quotation for the base and option line items. The quotation must include a unit price and total amount for each line item and the aggregate price for all base and option line items. (2) The price quotation shall include a cover page with the following information: The solicitation number 1333ND21QNB640552; The name and address, of the Quoter; The name, phone number, and email address of the Quoter’s point of contact; DUNS # for Quoter’s active SAM.Gov registration. Any applicable discount terms. A statement that the Contractor agrees to all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation. If the Contractor objects to any of the terms and conditions contained in this solicitation, the Contractor shall state “The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document with the exception, deletion, or addition of the following:” [Contractor shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s)]. It is the sole responsibility of the Contractor to identify in their quote any exceptions to the terms and conditions of the solicitation. A statement that the quotation is valid for a minimum of 60 days from the response deadline of this solicitation. Please note that this procurement IS NOT being conducted under the GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program or another Government-Wide Area Contract (GWAC). If a contractor submits a quotation based upon an FSS or GWAC contract, the Government will accept the quoted price. However, the terms and conditions stated herein will be included in any resultant Purchase Order, not the terms and conditions of the contractor’s FSS or GWAC contract. PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES: The provisions and clauses applicable to this solicitation are identified in Attachment 2 titled “Applicable Clauses & Provisions”. The full text of a Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) provision or clause may be accessed electronically at www.acquisition.gov/far. The full text of a Department of Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR) provision or clause may be accessed electronically at or http://www.osec.doc.gov/oam/acquistion_management/policy/. ATTACHMENTS: The following attachments apply to this solicitation: 1. Specifications 2. Applicable Clauses & Provisions