SOLICITATION NOTICE
66 -- Flow Cytometer
- Notice Date
- 6/26/2009
- Notice Type
- Combined Synopsis/Solicitation
- NAICS
- 334516
— Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Acquisition Management Division, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 301, Room B129, Mail Stop 1640, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899-1640
- ZIP Code
- 20899-1640
- Solicitation Number
- SB1341-09-RQ-0348
- Archive Date
- 7/25/2009
- Point of Contact
- Carol A. Wood, Phone: 301-975-8172, Todd D Hill, Phone: 301-975-8802
- E-Mail Address
-
carol.wood@nist.gov, todd.hill@nist.gov
(carol.wood@nist.gov, todd.hill@nist.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- 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 WRITTEN SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED. THIS SOLICITATION IS BEING ISSUED USING SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF FAR SUBPART 13.5 TEST PROGRAM FOR CERTAIN COMMERCIAL ITEMS. This solicitation is a Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-33, effective June 15, 2009. The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 334516 with a small business size standard of 500 employees. This acquisition is being procured using full and open competition. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Bioassay Methods Group of the Biochemical Science Division, has as one of its goals to develop the basis for quantitative assay of cell receptors. The number of specific cell receptors is used in disease diagnosis and treatment evaluation. Important components of the mission are the development of methodology for quantitation and the development of the required reference materials needed for quantitation. The acquisition of a flow cytometer/sorter will provide the needed equipment to carry out the mission outlined above. Of special importance is the capability to perform the analysis/sorting in the context of interlaboratory comparison studies. The flow cytometer sorter allows the measurement of the number of several specific cell receptors present on the surface of a cell. The requirement is that at least 13 different cell receptors can be simultaneously identified and measured on any given cell. The measurement of the number of receptors on a cell is a quantitative measurement and constitutes an analysis of the cell properties. In many cases, it is necessary to sort the cells into populations defined by the number and type of the receptors present on the cell. This permits further studies of the different populations in combination with genetic information. DEFINITIONS “Instrument” refers to the flow cytometer sorter; “Operational Design” refers to the requirement that the instrument must be designed in such a way that after the detection of the fluorescence excited by the three laser beams, the cells can be sorted into specified containers. The flow cytometer design must provide for sequential fluorescence measurement and the sorting; “Aerosol Management System” (AMS) refers to the production of droplets containing the cells and the control of the droplet paths. The AMS must recognize malfunction (usually clogging) of the mechanism that produces droplets. This is critical to maintain the integrity of the collected cell populations. The integrity can be determined by further analysis (not with the flow cytometer) of the collected populations. “Smart Fluidics” implies that diagnostics are designed into the fluidic system. The diagnostics provide for the detecting clogging, possible contamination, and for maintenance of conditions for stable operation; “Workstation Bundle” refers to the physical components which allow the operator to manipulate the instrument. LINE ITEM 0001: Quantity one (1) each Flow Cytometer Sorter, including all of the following components and meeting or exceeding all of the following required specifications: COMPONENT #1 - Flow Cytometer Sorter with Three Excitation Lasers and Thirteen Fluorescence Detection Channels 1. System must include three excitation lasers specified in component #2 below and a signal detection system capable of simultaneous analyses of thirteen fluorescence channels (with wavelengths from 420 nm to 800 nm) and two scattering channels. The instrument operational design must allow freedom of analysis only AND analysis/sorting; 2. Aerosol management system must include automatic calculation of the drop delay in place for automatic and accurate sorting, i.e. capable of displaying and maintaining a constant breakoff, and of stopping sorting if a clog is detected. Both two-way sorting and four-way sorting formats must be provided, and sort tube collection mount must allow easy insertion and removal of collection tubes. The term easy means that a new user can remove or insert tubes without oversight or specialized training on the instrument; 3. Smart fluidics and nozzle (70, 85, and 100 mm tips) designs must enable not only consistent analysis and sorting of a wide range of particles (<150 mm in diameter) but also easy aseptic setup and effective cleaning. A fixed alignment of cuvette flow cell with respect to lasers and signal collection optics is required for the instrument performance. A fluidics cart shall be provided. The cart dimensions shall be comparable to the sorter; 4. Instrument workstation bundle shall be provided (i.e. connections, tubes, electrical etc.); 5. Temperature control and agitation of sample injection chamber must be included. Temperature must be controlled that the equipment and sample do not reach temperatures that would cause an adverse effect on either. Agitation and temperature control must be controlled separately; 6. Must have both quantitative fluorescence measurement capability and accurate cell sorting function. Accuracy shall be evaluated based on the purity of the sorted cell. Higher purity is preferred; 7. Software specified in component #4 must be provided; 8. LCD monitors, and a LaserJet color printer shall be provided; 9. Workstation table assembly shall be provided. Table dimensions must be comparable to the set-up. COMPONENT #2: Lasers and Excitation Optics for Flow Cytometer System. 1. Must have three lasers with specified wavelengths, 405 nm, 488 nm, and 633 nm; 2. Minimum laser power of 10 mW; 3. Lasers must be air cooled and operate with standard US power receptacles and US power; 4. The following dedicated excitation optics must be provided, at a minimum, to ensure high laser beam collection efficiency, and constant laser beam alignment: optic cables, prisms and focusing lens. COMPONENT #3: Signal Detection System for Flow Cytometer 1. Must use digital electronics for data acquisition at rates up to 70,000 events per second for up to 13 parameters, with linear signals over up to 4 orders of magnitude; 2. Collection optics must be set up in a compacted manner, such as arrays, that maximize the efficiency of signal collection of each PMT from each laser. COMPONENT #4: Software 1. Software must be all in one design, i.e. include automated QA/QC of cytometer performance i.e. laser power and PMT linearity, performance tracking capability over period of time (months), data acquisition, analysis and evaluation in single package. Additionally, the software must also support data exporting format, FCS 3.0. 2. Software must also include the ability for smart aerosol management in the same package, i.e. injection chamber temperature control and sample agitation, minimization of contamination during sorting and in the event of clogging. LINE ITEM 0002: INSTALLATION: The Contractor shall install the system. Installation shall include, at a minimum, uncrating/unpackaging of all equipment, set-up and hook-up of all equipment, start-up, and demonstration of all required specifications. Qualified personnel shall install the system and perform all activities necessary to ensure the system is fully functional and meets all required specifications. LINE ITEM 0003: ON-SITE TRAINING: The Contractor shall schedule and facilitate a 2-day training session for three (3) NIST personnel, on-site at NIST Gaithersburg. The training session shall include, at a minimum, a demonstration of all equipment functions and equipment operation which will allow NIST personnel to operate the system to its full capabilities, basic troubleshooting, maintenance and tuning operations. Installation and training must be scheduled, in advance, with the NIST Technical Contact to be identified at the time of award. LINE ITEM 0004: OFF-SITE TRAINING NIST personnel are interested in attending the Contractor’s standard training program for this equipment. This training is estimated to be 4 days in length and to be conducted at the Contractor’s facility. The Contractor shall include a quotation for 2 NIST personnel to attend their standard training program. NIST shall pay all travel and per diem costs. NIST personnel will attend the training not later than 1 year from the date the equipment is accepted by the Government. The price quoted shall remain in effect for one year from the date of award. LINE ITEM 0005: WARRANTY: The Contractor shall provide, a one (1) year warranty for the equipment. The warranty shall be on-site at NIST Gaithersburg during business hours only. All parts, labor and travel shall be included. The Contractor must respond to the NIST Technical Contact via telephone or e-mail not later than 48 hours after a warranty call is placed. The Contractor must arrive on-site at NIST Gaithersburg not later than 2 weeks after the date the call is placed. The Contractor shall exhort every effort to minimize repair time. In the event that an equipment malfunction renders the instrument unusable for a period of 30 days or more, the Government reserves the right to pursue consideration from the Contractor which fairly and equitably protects the mission of the Biochemical Sciences Division. LINE ITEM 0006: SERVICE AGREEMENT: The Contractor shall provide a three year service contract for the equipment which shall commence the day following the expiration of the Contractor’s commercial warranty. The terms of the service contract shall be identical to the terms of the warranty. DELIVERY Delivery, installation and on-site training shall be completed not later than 120 days after receipt of a purchase order. NIST personnel will attend off-site training not later than 1 year from the date of award. Delivery term shall be FOB Destination. 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. INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA Inspection will be done at the NIST facility upon completion of installation. NIST shall utilize reference material to evaluate the instrument prior to acceptance. FINAL ACCEPTANCE NIST will provide payment in full upon successful completion of delivery, installation, training, demonstration of specifications, all required inspection and acceptance testing, and submission of a proper invoice from the Contractor. Payment terms shall be Net 30 Days. EVALUATION CRITERIA AND BASIS FOR AWARD Award will be made to the Contractor whose quote offers the best value to the Government price and non-price factors considered. The Government will evaluate quotations based on the following evaluation criteria: (1) Technical Capability: Meeting or Exceeding the Requirement, (2) Previous Experience, (3) Past Performance, and Price. Technical Capability, Previous Experience, and Past Performance, when combined, shall be approximately equal in importance to price. Best value shall be determined based on the overall value of the proposed equipment to the Government, price and non-price factors considered. Technical Capability: Evaluation of Technical Capability shall be based on the documentation provided in the quotation. Documentation submitted in the quotation shall be evaluated to determine that the proposed equipment meets or exceeds all required specifications identified herein. Test data, if required, shall be evaluated to further validate the equipment meets all required specifications. Previous Experience: Previous experience shall be evaluated to determine the degree of experience the Contractor has in manufacturing equipment for the same or similar applications. Quoters must demonstrate a minimum of 5 years of experience performing research and clinical applications on the proposed equipment and/or earlier versions of the proposed equipment and/or predecessor versions. Past Performance: Past Performance shall be evaluated to determine the overall quality of the product and service provided by the Contractor. Evaluation of Past Performance shall be based on the references provided and/or information provided by NIST and its affiliates. REQUIRED SUBMISSIONS All quoters shall submit the following: 1) An original and one copy of a price quotation which addresses all line items; 2) For the purpose of technical evaluation quoters shall submit two copies of technical description and/or product literature which clearly details the manufacturer, make and model of the proposed product(s), addresses all required specifications, and clearly documents that the offered product(s) meet(s) or exceeds the salient characteristics stated herein; 3) For the purpose of previous experience evaluation, quoters shall submit: a. A written discussion of the research and clinical applications performed on the proposed instrument and/or its predecessors; and b. Publications by other purchasers or users on the same instrument or its early versions. The Contractor may submit hard copies or website links for publications. A five year record must be discernable through the information submitted. 4) For the purpose of past performance evaluation: A list of at least three (3) recent and relevant past performance references. The list of references shall include, at a minimum: The name of the company or organization and the reference contact person; the telephone number, and e-mail address of the reference contact person; the contract or grant number; the amount of the contract; the address and telephone number of the Contracting Officer if applicable; and the date of delivery or the date services were completed; 5) The Government reserves the right to require quoters to submit test data. Test data shall result from tests performed on an instrument identical in specification to that being quoted. Test shall be run and test data provided at no cost to the Government. The Government will perform an initial technical evaluation of quotations submitted. Quoters determined to be technically acceptable under the Technical Capability factor “Meeting or Exceeding the Requirement”, may be required to submit test data, at the Government’s discretion. The Government will then evaluate the results of the test data, as well as the information provided with the original written quote submission, in determining the quote that provides the best-value. If test data is required, NIST shall provide samples via 2-day shipment to the quoter at NIST’s expense. Quoters shall have 7 business days to complete all tests and return the data to the NIST Contract Specialist. Test data must include the data sets on all channels obtained using multiple hard-dyed bead populations. 6) This is an Open-Market Combined Synopsis/Solicitation for equipment as defined herein. The Government intends to award a Purchase Order as a result of this Combined Synopsis/Solicitation that will include the terms and conditions that are set forth herein. In order to facilitate the award process, ALL quotes shall include a statement regarding the terms and conditions herein as follows: The offeror shall state “The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document without modification, deletion, or addition.” OR The offeror 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: Offeror shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s) 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 an offeror 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 offeror’s FSS or GWAC contract, and the statement required above shall be included in the quotation. DUE DATE FOR QUOTATIONS All quotations shall be sent to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Acquisition Management Division, Attn: Carol A. Wood, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 1640, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1640. All offerors shall ensure the RFQ number is visible on the outermost packaging. Submission must be received not later than 3:30 p.m. local time on July 10, 2009. FAX quotations shall not be accepted. E-mail quotations shall be accepted. Because of heightened security, FED-EX, UPS, or similar delivery methods are the preferred method of delivery of quotes. If quotes are hand delivered, delivery shall be made on the actual due date through Gate A, and a 48 hour (excluding weekends and holidays) prior notice shall be provided to Carol Wood, Contract Specialist on 301-975-8172. NIST is not responsible for late delivery due to the added security measures. In addition, quoters who do not provide 24-hour notification in order to coordinate entrance to the NIST campus shall assume the risk of not being able to deliver quotes on time. PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES The full text of a FAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at www.acqnet.gov/far. The following provisions apply to this acquisition: 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors — Commercial; 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications — Commercial Items. In accordance with FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications — Commercial Items, offerors must complete annual representations and certifications on-line at http://orca.bpn.gov. If paragraph (j) of the provision applies, a written submission is required; The following clauses apply to this acquisition: 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions—Commercial Items; 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Items including subparagraphs: 52.203-6, Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government with Alternate I; 52.219-8, Utilization of Small Business Concerns; 52.219-28, Post-Award Small Business Program Representation; 52.222-3, Convict Labor; 52.222-19, Child Labor—Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies; 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities; 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity; 52.222-35, Equal Opportunity for Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans; 52.222-36, Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities; 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans; 52.222-39 Notification of Employee Rights Concerning Payment of Union Dues or Fees; 52.225-5, Trade Agreements; 52.225-13 Restriction on Certain Foreign Purchases (E.O. 12722, 12724, 13059, 13067, 13121, and 13129; and 52.232-33, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer--Central Contractor Registration; and Department of Commerce Agency-Level Protest Procedures Level above the Contracting Officer is also incorporated. It can be downloaded at www.nist.gov/admin/od/contract/agency.htm.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/DOC/NIST/AcAsD/SB1341-09-RQ-0348/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Ship to:, NIST, Shipping and Receiving, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899, United States
- Zip Code: 20899
- Zip Code: 20899
- Record
- SN01858757-W 20090628/090627001440-253e00d9e843e9be85ca17a4c3078fce (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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