Loren Data's SAM Daily™

FBO DAILY ISSUE OF JULY 24, 2011 FBO #3529
SOLICITATION NOTICE

B -- Determination of the Pure-Tone to Noise-Band Transfer Function for Audiometric Testing

Notice Date

7/22/2011
 

Notice Type

Presolicitation
 

NAICS

611310 — Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools
 

Contracting Office

Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Acquisition and Assistance Field Branch (Pittsburgh), Post Office Box 18070, Cochrans Mill Road, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15236-0070
 

ZIP Code

15236-0070
 

Solicitation Number

2011-Q-13733
 

Archive Date

10/24/2011
 

Point of Contact

Margaret L Mooney,
 

E-Mail Address

zia3@cdc.gov
(zia3@cdc.gov)
 

Small Business Set-Aside

N/A
 

Description

NOTICE OF INTENT TO ISSUE A PURCHASE ORDER. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Division Advanced Research Technology (DART) hereby announces its intent to issue a purchase order to the Western Michigan University for a contract Determination of the Pure-Tone to Noise-Band Transfer Function for Audiometric Testing and Fit Testing of Hearing Protectors. Background: Hearing Protection Devices (HPDs) are tested in a laboratory setting using one-third octave band noises in a diffuse sound field environment. The NIOSH project to perform field assessment of HPDs has developed a software application (HPD Well-Fit TM ) that is capable of simulating the diffuse sound field environment using a high-definition audio CODEC a pair of sound isolating circumaural headphones and an input device (mouse with a scroll wheel). One of the goals of the NIOSH project is to integrate audiometric testing with the fit-testing paradigm developed in HPD Well-Fit TM. Because the fit testing is accomplished by assessing the hearing threshold with and without the subject wearing hearing protection, the assessments of pure-tone thresholds and unoccluded noise-band thresholds are redundant. Furthermore, because pure-tone thresholds are single frequencies, the potential interaction of headphone placement, ear canal acoustics, tinnitus and threshold microstructure may produce undesirable resonances in the region of the stimulus. A narrow-band noise stimulus could span the threshold microstructure, be more detectable when tinnitus is present and present less of a problem when headphone placement and ear canal acoustics interact. NIOSH has been involved with a study of the reliability and variability of pure-tone thresholds measured when occupational screening methods are used. The project has utilized a protocol for assessing a wide age-range of male and female subjects where they have audiometric thresholds measured on multiple visits and multiple times within a visit. The preliminary data demonstrates that the variability of 6 and 8 kHz is slightly greater than the variability for lower frequencies. Because this effort is already funded through a contract to Western Michigan University's Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology, a significant sample of subjects who have been previously assessed for audiometric variability has already been established. These subjects can be contacted and could return to the WMU laboratory for additional tests under this proposed contract. In order to assess the comparative reliability of alternate hearing threshold stimuli such as noise bands, the contractor must have background data on a given subject's hearing threshold reliability. The current subject population for the Western Michigan "8 kHz" study is the only human database in the U.S. for whom such audiometric variability data exists. The only alternative approach would be to completely repeat the current Western Michigan "8 kHz" study at great expense (more than $400,000) and time (more than three years) to the government. Thus, it is in the best interests of the government to utilize the existing data and available pre-qualified subjects by awarding a sole source contract to Western Michigan University. Objectives: This effort will measure the transfer function for pure-tone to one-third and one-sixth octave noise-bands using supraaural and circumaural headphones. Subjects shall be evaluated for multiple thresholds within a single visit to the laboratory and across multiple visits to the laboratory to assess the variability of threshold with time and multiple headphone placements. This effort shall be accomplished by: 1. Determining the relative reliability of pure tone hearing thresholds as a function of repeated measures taken on the same day. 2. Determining the relative reliability of hearing thresholds for one-third octave noise bands as a function of repeated measures taken on the same day. 3. Determining the relative reliability of hearing thresholds for equivalent rectangular bands of noise as a function of repeated measures taken on the same day. 4. Determining the relative reliability of pure tone hearing thresholds as a function of repeated measures taken on different days. 5. Determining the relative reliability of hearing thresholds for one-third octave noise bands as a function of repeated measures taken on different days. 6. Determining the relative reliability of hearing thresholds for equivalent rectangular bands of noise as a function of repeated measures taken on different days. Responsible sources that believe they possess the expertise and capabilities identified above are encouraged to submit to the Contracting Officer within 15 days from the posting date of this notice, their written item description/item characteristics and pricing information in the format they choose, not to exceed 10 pages. Please forward the item description and pricing information to Margaret L. Mooney, CDC NIOSH, 626 Cochrans Mill Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15236, Reference 2011-Q-13733. All vendors must be registered in the Central Contractor Registry (CCR) prior to an award of a federal contract. The website is: www.ccr.gov. The Government will review any/all item descriptions and pricing information submitted and determine if other qualified sources do exist that could provide this requirement. Information received in response will be used solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. If no affirmative responses are received within 15 days, in accordance with FAR 13.106-1(b)(1), negotiations will be conducted with Western Michigan University, 1903 W. Michigan Avenue, Kalamazoo, MI 49008 as the only source and a purchase order will be issued without any additional notices being posted.
 

Web Link

FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/CDCP/CMBP/2011-Q-13733/listing.html)
 

Place of Performance

Address: 1903 W Michigan Avenue, Kalamazoo, Michigan, 49008, United States

Zip Code: 49008
 

Record

SN02508310-W 20110724/110723012936-64a4fefdf96c9a277be5c6f48a80f884 (fbodaily.com)
 

Source

FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)

---

| FSG Index  |  This Issue's Index  |  Today's FBO Daily Index Page |