OSA Advancing Innovation through Mentorship (AIM) Communication Support Services
Background:
NIH is the nation’s leading medical research agency and the primary federal agency whose mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability by supporting and making medical discoveries. NCATS is the only center at the NIH that focuses exclusively on all aspects of the translation of research with an innovative pipeline of treatment discoveries for all diseases. NCATS brings together a diverse group of scientists to translate basic science conducted elsewhere into products and services that help improve people’s health and lives. NCATS’ mission is to improve health through smarter science that results in better treatments faster for all diseases, rare or common.
Through this contract the Office of Strategic Alliance will use the services of a firm to provide logistical, administrative, evaluation and document development in support of the above stated curriculum.
General Requirements:
All capable contractors must demonstrate their ability to provide the following requirements:
Provide certified I-Corp trainers targeted for life sciences community.
Possess a deep subject matter expertise and extensive experience with the I-Corps at NIH program focusing on life sciences within the NIH intramural program.
Deliver intensive training in business model development and customer validation tools, patterned after the NSF I-Corps program
Track patent licensing and commercialization deals that course teams and participants established after participating in the AIM program.
75N95021Q00363 Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health National Institute on Drug Abuse
8/11/21, 3:36 PM OSA Advancing Innovation through Mentorship (AIM) Communication Support Services
PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE OF INTENT
NON-COMPETITIVE
INTRODUCTION
PURSUANT TO FAR Subpart 5.2—Synopses of Proposed Contract Actions, THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE OF A PROPOSED CONTRACT TO ACTION.
THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NON-COMPETITIVE NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD A CONTRACT OR PURCHASE ORDER WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME).
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Contracts Management Branch – Red (CMB) on behalf of the Office of Strategic Alliance (OSA) of the National Center for Translational Sciences (NCATS) intends to award a sole source contract to VentureWell (National Collegiate Inventors & Innovators Alliance, Inc.) OSA Mentorship Communication Support Services in support of the I-CORPS program without providing for full or open competition.
NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE
The intended procurement is classified under NAICS code 611430 with a Size Standard of $30 million.
REGULATORY AUTHORITY
The resultant contract will include all applicable provisions and clauses of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) in effect through the Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2021-04.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY
This acquisition is conducted as non-competitive under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 253(c) under provisions of the statutory authority of FAR Subpart 13.106-1 (b) Soliciting from a single source. (1) For purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, contracting officers may solicit from one source if the contracting officer determines that the circumstances of the contract action deem only one source reasonably available (e.g., urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, or industrial mobilization).
DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENT
Project Description
The Office of Strategic Alliance (OSA) of the National Center for Translational Sciences (NCATS) requires services to host and teach a curriculum that will be provided by NIH utilizing certified I-Corp trainers targeted for life sciences community.
Purpose and Objectives
NIH is the nation’s leading medical research agency and the primary federal agency whose mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability by supporting and making medical discoveries. NCATS is the only center at the NIH that focuses exclusively on all aspects of the translation of research with an innovative pipeline of treatment discoveries for all diseases. NCATS brings together a diverse group of scientists to translate basic science conducted elsewhere into products and services that help improve people’s health and lives. NCATS’ mission is to improve health through smarter science that results in better treatments faster for all diseases, rare or common.
The vendor shall:
• Provide certified I-Corp trainers targeted for life sciences community.
• Possess a deep subject matter expertise and extensive experience with the I-Corps at NIH program focusing on life sciences within the NIH intramural program.
• Deliver intensive training in business model development and customer validation tools, patterned after the NSF I-Corps program
• Track patent licensing and commercialization deals that course teams and participants established after participating in the AIM program.
• Host the platform for the on-line sessions.
• Program Officer/Manager will be responsible for program oversight, staff and consultant coordination and will serve as the liaison with NIH staff
• Instructor/Training Consultant will support delivery of course
• Implement a series of 1-2 pre-planning video conference calls prior to the start of each cohort PO/Manager coordinates meetings. Instructors and NIH staff attend meetings.
• Administer the AIM curriculum PO/Manager coordinates AIM Team meetings. Instructors and NIH staff attend meetings.
• Coordinate two pre-course webinars on topics such as “Introduction to LaunchPad Central” and “Customer Discovery”. PO/Manager will work with the Lead Instructor and Teaching Assistant to design, deliver and facilitate these webinars.
• Develop program materials, including the final schedule, final course syllabus and formative course evaluation. PO/Manager will coordinate these activities with support from research and evaluation staff. Materials will be reviewed by NCATS staff and Lead Instructor.
• Maintain a database capturing team and individual participants outcomes after the AIMS program at NCATS PO/Manager will deliver to NCATS database reports.
• Conduct a pre-course/intake survey, an evaluation of the kickoff workshop, and a final course evaluation. PO/Manager will deliver to NCATS the evaluation summaries with comparison to historical trends in responses
• Delivery a Final curriculum that includes course content, course schedule, syllabus, and I-Corps at NIH Teaching Guide
• Delivery Pre-Course Webinars: Use of Course Platform and Customer Discovery Interviewing
• Provide Electronic reports of course evaluation
• Conduct a pre-course/intake survey, an evaluation of the kickoff workshop, and a final course evaluation per each cohort. The vendor will craft the survey with input from the NIH. The vendor will provide NIH with the results after each survey/evaluation is completed.
Period of Performance:
Base: 09/20/2021 – 09/19/2022
Option 1: 09/20/2022 - 09/19/2023
Option 2: 09/20/2023 - 09/19/2024
CLOSING STATEMENT
This synopsis is not a request for competitive proposals. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice.
An interested Offeror must be able to demonstrate its capabability to independently, and not as an agent of the Government, provide I-Corps certified trainers targeted for life sciences community, and provide all required services described above.
Responses to this notice must include sufficient information to establish the interested parties’ bona-fide capabilities of providing the product or service. The price quote shall include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, delivery days after contract award, delivery terms, prompt payment discount terms, F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), product or catalog number(s); product description; and any other information or factors that may be considered in the award decision. Such factors may include: past performance; special features required for effective program performance; trade-in considerations; probable life of the item selected as compared with that of a comparable item; warranty considerations; maintenance availability; and environmental and energy efficiency considerations.
In addition the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size must be included in the response. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.”
A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. The information received will normally be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to proceed on a non-competitive basis or to conduct a competitive procurement.
All responses must be received by September 10, 2021, 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time and must reference number 75N95021Q00363.
Responses must be submitted electronically to Tracy Cain, Contracting Officer at llakim.dubroff@nih.gov & tracy.cain@nih.gov and must reference the solicitation number 75N95021Q00363 on your electronic request. FAX requests are not accepted.
“All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation, which shall be considered by the agency.”
75N95021Q00363 Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health National Institute on Drug Abuse
8/31/21, 3:49 PM