Cell Counter

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. The solicitation number is HHS-NIH-NIDA-CSS-20-006629 and the solicitation is issued as a request for quotation (RFQ). This acquisition is for a commercial item or service and is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures; FAR Subpart 13.5—Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items; and FAR Part 12—Acquisition of Commercial Items and is not expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. THIS IS A NON-COMPETITIVE (NOTICE OF INTENT) COMBINED SYNOPSIS SOLICITATION TO AWARD A CONTRACT OR PURCHASE ORDER WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME). The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Office of Acquisition (OA), on behalf of the National Institute on Aging (NIA), intends to negotiate and award a purchase order without providing for full and open competition (including brand-name) to a company that is able to provide a DeNovix brand Cell Counter. This acquisition is conducted as non-competitive for a commercial item or service and is conducted pursuant to FAR 13.106-(b)(1). The rationale for the brand-name justification is the use of the non-plastic slides in this DeNovix product, which reduces waste but also provides consistent outputs from batch to batch and has a low variability rate. This is required for the NIA research. The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) Number 2020-05, with effective date March 30, 2020. The associated NAICS code is 334519 and the small business size standard is 500 employees. This requirement has no set-aside restrictions. The core work for the iNDI program is cell culture management. This is a very critical aspect of the program to support its analysis applications to study the effect of neurodegeneration-related mutations on critical cell biological processes on a biochemistry level. This cell counter will be used to read consistently and accurately cell counts during culture and maintenance of cell lines. This will support the research in identifying converging mechanisms of disease across hundreds of isogenic iPSC-derived CNS cell types. The iPSC neurodegenerative disease initiative (iNDI) requires a cell counter for the large amount of reading without the waste. Specific Requirements: The reader requires no plastic chambers, cartridges or slides, due to permanently mounted optical sapphire sample surfaces thereby reducing long term costs and plastic waste. This unit has a very fast count time – 3.5 seconds (brightfield) 8.5 sec (fluorescence) all others are 10+ seconds for brightfield and 30 seconds for fluorescence to ensure viability of the cells long enough to count them, ensuring accuracy. I The unit has a variable chamber height for various variable volumes allowing to read from 5, 10, and 40uL. The unit must be able to read in bright field mode as well as have the dual chamber for fluorescence reads. The reader needs to be able to have a wide range to handle large ranges of concentrations; 7 x 102 – 2.5 x 107 cells/ml. The unit has the ability to count a large size range of cells, from 4-400 microns. For maintaining proper laboratory notes, the unit has to be able to export data into multiple formats, such as CSV, PDF, and PNG. Able to connect to Wifi connect as well as USB capability to retrieve the data needed for record keeping. Must be able to store a large capacity of data, up to 120GB. Instrument is covered by a two-year warranty, which includes parts, labor and shipping. SALIENT CHARACTERISTICS: All deliverables required under this contract shall be packaged, marked and shipped in accordance with Government specifications. At a minimum, all deliverables shall be marked with the contract number and Contractor name. The Contractor shall guarantee that all required materials shall be delivered in immediate usable and acceptable condition. Quantity: QTY 4: Dual Fluorescence + Brightfield Cell Counter QTY 4: CellDrop FL Demo Pack QTY 4: AO/PI Viability Assay for CellDrop FL The Government anticipates award of a firm fixed-price purchase order for this acquisition. Delivery will be 90 days after receipt of purchase order. The provision at FAR 52.252-1, Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998), applies to this acquisition. This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at these addresses: https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far https://www.hhs.gov/grants/contracts/contract-policies-regulations/hhsar/index.html (End of provision) The following provisions apply to this acquisition and are incorporated by reference: FAR 52.204-7, System for Award Management (OCT 2018) FAR 52.204-16, Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (JUL 2016) FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors--Commercial Items (MAR 2020) FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications – Commercial Items (MAR 2020) FAR 52.222-48, Exemption from Application of the Service Contract Labor Standards to Contracts for Maintenance, Calibration, or Repair of Certain Equipment-Certification (MAY 2014) HHSAR 352.239-73, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Notice (December 18, 2015) The clause at FAR 52.252-2, Clauses Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998), applies to this acquisition. This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at these addresses: https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far https://www.hhs.gov/grants/contracts/contract-policies-regulations/hhsar/index.html (End of clause) The following clauses apply to this acquisition and are incorporated by reference: FAR 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance (OCT 2018) FAR 52.204-18 Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance (JUL 2016) 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions Commercial Items (OCT 2018) HHSAR 352.222-70 Contractor Cooperation in Equal Employment Opportunity Investigations (December 18, 2015) 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders Commercial Items (MAR 2020) The following clauses within 52.212-5 apply to this acquisition: 52.204-10 Reporting Executive Compensation and First-Tier Subcontract Awards (OCT 2018) 52.209-6 Protecting the Government’s Interest When Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment (OCT 2015) 52.219-28 Post Award Small Business Program Representation (2020) 52.222-3 Convict Labor (JUNE 2003) 52.222-19 Child Labor-Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies (JAN 2020) 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (APR 2015) 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity (SEPT 2016) 52.222-36 Equal Opportunity for Workers with Disabilities (JUL 2014) 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons (JAN 2019) 52.223-18 Encouraging Contractor Policies to Ban Text Messaging While Driving (AUG 2011) 52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases (JUN 2008) 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer—System for Award Management (OCT 2018) 52.222-51 Exemption from Application of the Service Contract Labor Standards to Contracts for Maintenance, Calibration, or Repair of Certain Equipment-Requirements (MAY 2014) The following provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition and is attached in full text: Standard NIH Invoice and Payment Provisions (FEB 2014) Interim NIH Invoice and Payment Provisions (APR 2020) The provision at FAR clause 52.212-2, Evaluation-Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. Instructions to Offeror (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: (i) technical capability of the item offered to meet the Government requirement; and (ii) price. (b) A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer’s specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award. Offerors shall include a completed copy of the provision at FAR clause 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items, with its offer. There are no additional contract requirement(s) or terms and conditions applicable to this acquisition. The Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) are not applicable to this requirement. Responses to this solicitation must include clear and convincing evidence of the offeror’s capability of fulfilling the requirement as it relates to the technical evaluation criteria. The price proposal must include the labor categories, an estimate of the number of hours required for each labor category, fully loaded fixed hourly rate or each labor category, breakdown and rationale for other direct costs or materials, and the total amount. Respondents that believe that they are manufacturers or authorized resellers of the brand-name product specified in this announcement must provide, as part of their response: (a) product, catalog, model, and/or part number(s); (b) product description; (c) all relevant information and documentation that the item(s) offered meets the salient physical, functional, or performance characteristics as specified in the purchase description; quantity; estimated price or cost; shipping, handling, and/or installation charges; and delivery date after receipt of order. The Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size must be included in the response. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov . All quotations must be received by Tuesday, May 12th, 2020 at 3:00 pm Eastern Daylight/Standard Time and must reference solicitation number HHS-NIH-NIDA-CSS-20-006629. Responses must be submitted electronically to Rashiid Cummins, Contract Specialist, at [email protected] Fax responses will not be accepted. The name and of the individual to contact for information regarding the solicitation: Rashiid Cummins Contract Specialist [email protected]