Notice_of_Intent_to_Sole_Source_-_NCI_HALO_1.pdf

United States Department of the Interior

INTERIOR BUSINESS CENTER

Washington, DC 20240

Notice of Intent to Sole Source

NCI CBIIT

HALO Digital Pathology Platform

Agency Contact Information:

U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), Interior Business Center (IBC), Acquisition Services Directorate (AQD), 381 Elden Street, Suite 2000A, Herndon, VA 20170 Contracting Officer: Russell Pfeiffer - russell_pfeiffer@ibc.doi.gov

Proposed Action:

The Government intends to negotiate on a sole source basis, a firm-fixed-price (FFP) acquisition with Indica Labs Inc (Indica) for HALO Digital Pathology Platform. This non-competitive action is being issued by the Acquisition Services Directorate on the behalf of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Center for Biomedical Informatics and Information Technology (CBIIT).

Place of Performance:

Contractor Facilities.

Description of Requirement:

The objective of this acquisition is to acquire the renewal of annual licenses for the HALO quantitative digital pathology software. NCI hosts an enterprise-wide installation of HALO digital pathology software in NCI’s Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud environment for use by all research staff within the NCI Intramural research program (IRP) and their collaborators within and beyond NIH. Significant custom infrastructure has been built by NCI to optimize operation of the software in this environment. Further, Indica has developed and delivered several custom capabilities and integrations specifically required by NCI’s environment and user needs.

This effort involves the following key requirements:

a. Web-based management and analysis of whole slide images (WSI)

b. Support for cell-based, object-based, and area-based analysis

c. In-platform AI-based analysis tools, including customizable pre-trained models and classifiers

d. Interoperability with pre-trained models and classifiers from other providers

e. Modules to support clinical pathology workflows and web-based clinical consultation

f. Maintenance of integration with the NIH Clinical Center’s LIS

g. Maintenance of integration with key instrumentation (e.g. Xyall tissector)

h. Modules to support secure collaboration with external collaborators

i. Support for all common brightfield and fluorescent WSI image formats

j. Support for quantification of multiplex and highplex biomarkers

k. Development and maintenance of scalable cloud-based architecture in NCI’s environment

Response Information:

This action is being processed in accordance with FAR 13.5. No other organization besides Indica is known to provide a platform that includes all of the required elements. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capabilities regarding this requirement by submitting a capabilities statement by the date specified herein.

A one-year base period and two (2) one-year option periods are anticipated for this effort. The Government will consider all capabilities statements received by 10:00 A.M. ET, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Please be advised that it is the offeror’s responsibility to ensure the Government receives your submission on or before the specified due date. Submissions shall be sent electronically to Russell Pfeiffer, Contracting Officer at russell_pfeiffer@ibc.doi.gov. Submissions shall not exceed ten (10) pages. Paper copies will not be accepted. Late responses will only be accepted if they contain extraordinary value to the Government. Submissions should be in a Microsoft Office compatible format (i.e., Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.) or Adobe Acrobat and not contain text smaller than 11-point font. The maximum file size of the submission shall not exceed 8 MB. Tables, graphs, etc. will count against the total page count. Font size smaller than 11 may be used to label tables and graphs but may not be smaller than 8-point font. All data received in response to this Special Notice that are marked or designated as corporate or proprietary information will be fully protected from release outside the Evaluation Panel. Proprietary information and trade secrets, if any, must be clearly marked on all materials. All information received that is marked Proprietary will be handled accordingly. Please be advised that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned. All Government and contractor personnel reviewing responses will have signed non-disclosure agreements and understand their responsibility for proper use and protection from unauthorized disclosure of proprietary information as described in 41 USC 423. The Government shall not be held liable for any damages incurred if proprietary information is not properly identified. Responders are advised that the Government will not reimburse for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this Special Notice; all costs associated with responding to this Special Notice will be solely at the interested parties' expense. This is NOT a request for competitive quotes. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed action based upon responses to this announcement is solely within the discretion of the Government.

Information received is solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive acquisition. The Government reserves the right to issue a Request for Quote (RFQ) as a result of this announcement. Please be advised that this announcement may constitute the only notice that will be posted for this acquisition, based on the review of any responses to this notice. Marketing brochures and/or generic company literature will not be considered. Not addressing all the requested information may result in the Government determining the responder is not capable of performing the scope of work required.