Title:   Gilson HPLC Purification System and upgrade

Description:

(i)         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.

(ii)        The solicitation number is :  HHS-NIH-NIDA-(SS/SA)-SBSS-14-247 and the solicitation is issued as a Request for Proposal (RFP).

This acquisition is for a commercial item or service and is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation FAR Part 12—Acquisition of Commercial Items, and FAR subpart 15 – Contracting by Negotiation at an amount exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold.  

(iii)       The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-76, dated July 25,2014.

(iv)       The associated NAICS code is 423450— Medical, Dental, and Hospital Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers and the small business size standard is 100 employees.

(v)       Project Title: HPLC Instrumentation General

(vi)       Purchase Description:

Hardware:

·         System should be able to perform both sample injection and fraction collection on the same liquid handling platform.

·         System needs to have a sampling probe with at least 125 mm of travel in order to reach the bottom of deeper sample tubes.  Fraction collection and injection must have separate fluid pathways to avoid cross contamination.  Fractions should not be collected through the probe. 

·         System must offer syringe-less pumping technology for aspirating and injecting samples.

·         System must have a UV/VIS detector capable of monitoring up to four different wavelengths simultaneously.

·          System should incorporate six sample or fraction collection racks that can accommodate common test tubes sizes.  This maximizes flexibility of the instrument allowing multiple users to share one instrument.

·         Pump system must be capable of binary gradient formation with high pressure mixing, flow rates up to 200 mL/min, and pressures up to 3,000 PSI.

·         The liquid handler must be able to perform at least 3 stages of probe rinsing (one inside rinse and two outside rinses) at startup, shutdown, and between sample injections as needed to prevent cross-contamination. 

·         Liquid handler must support the optional use of up to 3 separate injection modules. Liquid handler must support a Z-injection loop with direct aspiration into the loop (port-less injection).

·         Sample probes must be available in both septum piercing and non-septum piercing styles. Liquid handling equipment must have on/off buttons on the front of the instrument. 

Software:

·         System should utilize icon based software, with graphical drag-and-drop method creation. 

Operating SW must allow for user-defined variables such as the sample number, fraction start tube, wavelength, and injection volume.   This flexibility allows for multiple users to use the same methods.

·         Software must allow for fraction collection based on the slope or level of the primary detector signal.

·         System must support conditional logic fraction collection, which incorporates multiple wavelengths and collection modes in the fraction collection process. 

·         Software must include flexible numbering patterns for fraction tubes, so that the tube numbers in the software can be set up to correspond exactly to the tube numbers on the actual racks / overlays.

·         Software should offer manual control option for performing routine functions such as priming the pump, homing instruments and zeroing the detector signal.

·         Software must include error handling feature so that in the event of an instrument error, leak or over-pressure during unattended operation the instrument will run the shutdown protocol automatically, with no user intervention.  

·         System must be compatible with Microsoft® Windows 7 operating system. 

Period of Performance: 30 days from receipt of award

Contract Type: The Government intends to issue a firm fixed priced contract unrestricted for this requirement.

i.              The place of performance will be at the contractor work site and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, Bethesda Maryland. 

ii.             The provision of FAR clause 52,212-1, Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Items(Apr 2014), applies to this acquisition.      

iii.            The provision of FAR clause 52.212-2, Evaluation – Commercial Items (January 1999), applies to this acquisition.

iv.            The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation on the basis of best value in relation to pricing. The major evaluation factors for this solicitation include technical (which encompasses experience/capability and past performance factors), and cost/price factors. Evaluation will be made in accordance to the contractor’s ability of meeting each of the criteria listed in the purchase description. Although technical factors are of paramount consideration in the award of the contract, cost/price is also important to the overall contract award decision. All evaluation factors other than cost or price, when combined, are significantly more important than cost or price.

The price quoted will be evaluated taking into consideration any price reductions. A best value analysis will be performed taking into consideration the results of the technical evaluation, price evaluation, and the ability to complete the work within the Government’s required schedule.

The Government intends to make an award(s) to that offeror whose proposal provides the best overall value to the government.

v.             The Offeror must include a completed copy of the provision at FAR clause 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications – Commercial Items (August 2013), with its offer.   The FAR clause is located at http://www.acquisition.gov/far/.

vi.            FAR clause at 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions – Commercial Items (July 2013), applies to this acquisition.  

vii.           FAR clause at 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders–Commercial Items (September 2013), applies to this acquisition.  

viii.          There are no additional contract requirement(s) or terms and conditions determined by the contracting officer to be necessary for this acquisition and consistent with customary commercial practices.

ix.            The Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) are not applicable to this requirement.

x.             Responses to this notice shall contain sufficient information to establish the interested parties’ bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: the technical proposal, cost-price proposal, prompt payment discount terms, the F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.”

All responses must be received by August 29, 2014, 12pm EST. Eastern standard time and must reference number HHS-NIH-NIDA-(SS/SA)-SBSS-14-277.  Responses may be submitted electronically to [email protected]  Attention: Farrin Stanton.  Fax responses will not be accepted.

(xix)     Contact Farrin Stanton at [email protected] for information regarding the solicitation.