SOURCES SOUGHT
70 -- Software for Administration of Proficiency Testing and Quality Assurance Programs
- Notice Date
- 4/20/2017
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 511210
— Software Publishers
- Contracting Office
- Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Acquisition Management Division, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 301, Room B130, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899-1410, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20899-1410
- Solicitation Number
- NIST-MML-17-SS14
- Archive Date
- 5/13/2017
- Point of Contact
- Grace H. Garrity, Phone: 3019752345
- E-Mail Address
-
grace.garrity@nist.gov
(grace.garrity@nist.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This is a SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE for market research purposes. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. INFORMATION RECEIVED WILL BE USED FOR MARKET RESEARCH PURPOSES ONLY. After the results of this market research are obtained and analyzed, NIST may conduct a competitive procurement and subsequently award a contract. The National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST's) Chemical Sciences Division (CSD) provides the measurement science, standards, technology, data and chemical informatics required to support the nation's needs in the determination of chemical composition and chemical structure of gases, organic, and inorganic species and in the measurement of a wide variety of chemical properties and processes, including chemical reactivity and mechanisms, and thermochemical properties. In partnership with U.S. industry, government agencies, and academic scientific institutions, the Division performs fundamental and applied research to advance and create state-of-the-art chemical measurement capabilities, theory and computational methods for quantitative measurements, and sensing of solids, liquids, gases, plasmas, transient species, and multicomponent matrices. The Division also formulates and disseminates reference materials and measurement standards, and critically evaluates reference data. These activities support the chemical science, technology, and engineering enterprise with the intent of fostering innovation and confidence in measurements and technologies used in a wide range of applications, including chemical analysis, environmental and climate assessment, clinical health assessment, food and nutritional assessment, sensing, manufacturing, and energy transformation. To meet mission requirements, the CSD must acquire software capable of collecting, evaluating, and distributing data obtained as a part of numerous quality assurance programs (QAPs). This software will provide NIST the capability to deliver accurate and timely results to stakeholders and other Federal customers. NIST is currently seeking software capable of collecting, evaluating, and distributing data obtained as a part of numerous quality assurance programs. Interested business organizations that believe they may be capable of meeting NIST's requirements detailed below should respond to this notice with a narrative demonstrating their ability to meet NIST's requirements. Draft Requirements: The Contractor shall provide, install, train personnel on use of, and provide support for software capable of collecting, evaluating, and distributing data obtained as a part of numerous quality assurance programs (QAPs). The Contractor shall provide the following: 1.Full site licenses for twenty (20) NIST users and 300 external participants. a.Users must be able to set up a new QAP, including sample selection, assignment of analytes, values, and units, and number of measurements requested. i.All fields must be able to accommodate the use of text, numbers, and scientific symbols, including but not limited to Greek characters, degree symbols, less than/greater than, mathematical operators, etc. ii.Options for number of measurements requested must accommodate from 1 to 100. b.The software must allow an unlimited number of studies/tests/programs at any one time and an unlimited number of studies/tests/programs throughout the period of performance. c.The software must print labels for samples to be distributed to participating laboratories. d.The software must be capable of producing automated messages that integrate with an email account to communicate with registered participants in order to solicit participation, notify of upcoming shipments and due dates, and disseminate both individualized and collective study results. e.Users must be able to access QAP data submitted by participants and manipulate data into customizable tables and charts. i.Software must be provided with report, graph, and chart templates that can be customized with program specific information (program name, logo, axis titles, text, etc.) and saved individually for later use. ii.Software should be capable of plotting measured values, z-scores, histograms, kernel density estimations, measurement uncertainties, and Youden plots. iii.Charts must be capable of plotting based on analytical method, sample preparation method, or type of calibration approach. iv.Charts must be able to be exported as image files, including.png and.jpg. v.Reports and tables must be able to be exported as Excel, Word, or PDF files. f.Software must be capable of calculations that follow current ISO 13528 guidelines and be updated to reflect changes in the standard that may occur over the course of the period of performance. i.Assigned value options must include reference value, arithmetic mean of selected reference laboratories, robust mean, and mode of kernel density estimation. ii.Target standard deviation options must include empirical standard deviation, fixed absolute or relative reference standard deviation, Horwitz standard deviation (with or without capping), variance function, and robust standard deviation. iii.Outlier test options must include the Grubbs test and Cochran test. iv.Laboratory performance assessment approaches must include z-scores, zu-scores, z'-scores, zeta scores, as well as evaluation of a reported uncertainty compared to a required uncertainty or tolerance. v.Options for precision calculations should include repeatability and reproducibility standard deviation, intermediate standard deviation, and calculation based on data for chosen laboratories or chosen analytical methods. g.Software must manage contact information for participants and link historical participation data to contact records through assignment of administrator-defined laboratory codes. h.Software must be capable of storing and analyzing quantitative, semi-quantitative, and qualitative data. i.Software must take into consideration reporting of values that are below detection limit and distinguish these from values not measured or not reported. j.Software must be capable of documenting sample shipment and arrival, date of analysis, date of data upload, and name of analyst, and linking with participant record for data retrieval. k.Software must be capable of storing measurement values, detection methods, sample preparation steps, detection and quantification limits, and uncertainties for each participant and linking with participant record for data retrieval. l.Software should log all changes to the database and be capable of creating a backup file in case of catastrophic loss. m.Software should be compatible with Windows 7 and Windows 10, in both 32-bit and 64-bit formats. n.Software must be complete with detailed documentation, including an extensive user manual and complete help menus. Manual will be delivered in either hard copy or electronic format. 2.Limited site licenses for twenty (20) NIST associates and volunteers. This shall include customization of the software for this purpose, if necessary. a.Users should be able to manipulate data that has been collected from participants. b.Users must be able to access QAP data submitted by participants and manipulate data into customizable tables and charts. c.Software must be capable of calculations that follow current ISO 13528 guidelines and be updated to reflect changes in the standard that may occur over the course of the period of performance. 3.Online web service for 5,000 participants per year across all studies. a.Web service must include the cost of hosting the data on an external US web server. b.Web service must include custom design of the interface by NIST staff to meet the needs of each program, including modification of text, logos, menu options, etc. The Contractor will provide any necessary passwords, code, etc. to allow NIST staff to perform customizations to the outward-facing web interface. c.Web service must allow users to create their own accounts that can be managed by NIST staff and linked to historical data collected outside of the software program. d.Web service must allow web-based entry of measurement data from participants in a browser window. e.Web service must contain provision for uploading documents as part of the participant data submission. 4.All software updates released by the manufacturer throughout the period of performance. 5.The Contractor shall make the required software available to NIST personnel for installation via internet-based download or via CD, DVD, or flash drive. The contractor shall be available via telephone to support issues with the installation at minimum between 6:30 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time (11:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Central European Time) during the installation period of performance. The software will operate to manufacturer's specifications upon installation. 6.The contractor will supply one instance of a three day on-site training class for program coordinators, analysts, and participants to be held between award of contract and March 31, 2018, in Gaithersburg, MD, USA. 7.Telephone technical support between the hours of 6:30 am to 12:00 pm Eastern Time (11:30 am to 5:00 pm Central European Time). The contractor will respond to telephone inquiries within one hour and will resolve the issue within one business day. 8.Access to online technical support 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. 9.Software must meet NIST IT Security and Standard operating configuration requirements as follows: a.The Government will perform security assessments for authorization (A&A) and continuous monitoring, to include web, database, and operating system vulnerability scanning (as applicable) and will inform the Contractor of identified risks associated with missing patches and/or configuration settings. The Government will determine the risk rating of identified vulnerabilities. The Government prefers, but does not require, that the Contractor provide an action plan, and a schedule for implementing the action plan and providing and updated version of the software, at no cost to the Government, to mitigate security risks found during A&A and continuous monitoring activities not later than 90 days of NIST's notification of security risks. 10.DELIVERABLES Full site license: Quantity, Twenty (20), due no later than thirty (30) days after award of this requirement User's manual for site license: Quantity, Twenty (20), due no later than thirty (30) days after award of this requirement Software updates for site license: due within 30 days of release. Online web service: Quantity, One (1), due no later than sixty (60) days after award of this requirement Limited site license: Quantity,Twenty (20), due no later than ninety (90) days after award of this requirement Three-day training class: Quantity, One (1), due March 31, 2018 Telephone/Online support: Unlimited access during period of performance The National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) is currently seeking software capable of collecting, evaluating, and distributing data obtained as a part of numerous quality assurance programs. Please see the attaches Sources Sought notice for additional information.
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