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The University of South Carolina, in accordance with §11-35-1560 (A) of the SC Consolidated Procurement Code, is announcing the intent to award without competition, a sole source contract to Rigaku Americas Corporation of Montgomert, Texas. The Justification is as follows: The Rigaku MiniFlex 6G is the only desktop XRD system that meets the needs of the intended experiments. Measurements will be made on bulk and powder samples from only a few milligrams of powder to large bulk solid materials for phase analysis, crystalline structure, and material properties of known and unknown samples. The Rigaku MiniFlex 6G is essential to our research on metal-organic frameworks and covalent-organic frameworks to analyze their X-ray scattering over a wide 2-theta range and subsequently gain structural information. Our materials require measuring at low diffraction angles with minimal background noise, which can be challenging; however, the Rigaku MiniFlex 6G is the only desktop XRD instrument equipped with a variable knife edge that allows for superb, high intensity data collection at low angles, as well as high intensity at high diffraction angles. This feature is unique to the Rigaku MiniFlex 6G and is not found on any other diffractometers, that are instead equipped with a fixed knife edge which is not suitable for applications in my research. The Rigaku MiniFlex 6G is the only diffractometer equipped with a continuously variable divergence slit allowing for the highest possible intensity of X-ray attenuation at low and high diffraction angles. The unique features of the Rigaku MiniFlex 6G in regard to suppression of X-ray fluorescence is particularly crucial for measuring diffraction of our metal-organic frameworks and covalent-organic frameworks. This notice is not a request for competitive proposals. Potential Offerors may identify their interest and capability to provide these services must notify the Procurement Officer at [email protected] no later than Friday December 18, 2020 (5:00 p.m. EST). PROTESTS If you are aggrieved in connection with the solicitation or award of the contract, you may be entitled to protest, but only as provided in Section 11-35-4210. To protest a solicitation, you must submit a protest within fifteen days of the date the applicable solicitation document is issued. To protest an award, you must (i) submit notice of your intent to protest within five business days of the date the award notice is posted, and (ii) submit your actual protest within fifteen days of the date the award notice is posted. Days are calculated as provided in Section 11-35-310(13). Both protests and notices of intent to protest must be in writing and must be received by the appropriate Chief Procurement Officer by email to protest-itmo.sc.gov within the time provided. The grounds of the protest and the relief requested must be set forth with enough particularity to give notice of the issues to be decided.

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