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SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE
This is a Sources Sought Notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of all qualified sources to perform a potential requirement.
This notice is issued to help determine the availability of qualified companies technically capable of meeting the Government requirement and to determine the method of acquisition. It is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. Responses will not be considered as proposals or quotes. No award will be made as a result of this notice. The Government will NOT be responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents to this notice. This notice is strictly for research and information purposes only.
Background: The National Institute on Aging (NIA), one of the 27 Institutes and Centers of NIH, leads a broad scientific effort to understand the nature of aging and to extend the healthy, active years of life. The Intramural Research Program (IRP) of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) provides a stimulating setting for a comprehensive effort to understand aging through multidisciplinary investigator-initiated research, in this regard.
The Laboratory of Cardiovascular Science (LCS) was created in 1985 as an outgrowth of a small (two-person) Cardiovascular Section within the Laboratory of Clinical Investigation (LCI). The overall goals of the Laboratory of Cardiovascular Sciences are: (1) to identify age associated changes that occur within the cardiovascular system and to determine the mechanisms for these changes; (2) to determine how aging of the heart and vasculature interacts with chronic disease states to enhance the risk for CV diseases in older persons; (3) to study basic mechanisms of excitation-contraction coupling in cardiac myocytes and automaticity in pacemaker cells, and how these are modulated by surface receptor signaling pathways, and to characterize how they become altered as age advances; (4) to elucidate mechanisms that govern cardiac and vascular cell survival; (5) to determine mechanisms that govern neuro-hormonal aspects of hypertension; and (6) to establish the potentials and limitations of novel therapeutic approaches such as changes in lifestyle, novel pharmacologic agents or gene therapies to delay or ameliorate the effects of aging or cardiovascular disease in older persons.
Purpose and Objectives: The purpose of this acquisition is to purchase an upgrade for the Lab’s existing Zeiss LSM980 microscope. The upgrade will consist of two parts. First, capacity for the new FLIM (Fluorescent Lifetime Imaging Microscopy) technique of Pulsed Interleaved Excitation (PIE) image acquisition and the addition of a GaASP detector. Second is a full package software with offline workstations for postprocessing of images that are acquired by any Zen Zeiss software on Zeiss microscopes in NIA.
Project requirements:
The Contractor shall provide the following:
Requested Response:
The intent of this sources sought notice is to define the procurement strategy (e.g. set-aside, sole source, unrestricted) for a solicitation that is intended to be posted soon. Interested contractors are requested to respond by (1) identifying how their proposed product meets or exceeds the project requirements listed above; and (2) providing product literature, white papers, or capability statements that demonstrate their bona fide ability to supply such an item within the time frame described above.
In addition, please state your business size status and whether you are the manufacturer or authorized distributor of the item you propose.
Please note that NIA is particularly interested in small business sources. If you are a small business, please state the type of small business (small business; HUBZone; service-disabled, veteran-owned; 8(a); veteran-owned; woman-owned; or small disadvantaged businesses) and your size classification relative to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for the proposed acquisition. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible.
The respondent must also provide their DUNS number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HubZone, etc.), pursuant to the applicable NAICS code and any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the acquisition requirements.
The information submitted must be must be in an outline format that addresses each of the elements of the project requirements and in the capability statement /information sought paragraphs stated herein. A cover page and an executive summary may be included but is not required.
The response must include the respondents’ technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses.
All responses to this notice must be submitted electronically to the Contracting Officer. Facsimile responses are NOT accepted.
The response must be submitted to Kevin Alvarez, Contracting Officer, at e-mail address [email protected].
The response must be received on or before May 31, 2024, 9:00am, Eastern Time.
Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization’s qualifications to perform the work.
Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a presolicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published at SAM.gov. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.
Confidentiality: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).