B01 - RFI-Firefly Genomics 6 Head System.docx

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

GENERAL INFORMATION

CONTRACTING OFFICE

United States Army Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA)

DESCRIPTION

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY – This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes – it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. At this time a solicitation is not available and requests for a solicitation will not receive a response. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the United States Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary; the United States Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the United States Government. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued.

USAMRAA is issuing this RFI as a means of conducting market research to identify parties having an interest in and the resources to support the requirement identified in the below DRAFT Minimum Essential Characteristics-MEC’s

High-Precision Automated Liquid Handling + Pipetting Machine

The automated liquid handling machine must be capable of pipetting, dispensing, and aspirating extremely small volumes with high precision because the RATP-Ig protocol is based on single cell RNA extraction, reverse transcription, PCR, and cloning assembly. The machine must be able to operate in several configurations and ranges in volume from 0.5 µL to 100 µL, which is required for such small volume assays. Each of the machine’s disposable tips has its own individual piston rather than an air gap or system liquid. This unique feature offers true positive displacement, non-contact dispensing with no risk of cross-contamination that is critical for our research. This feature provides accurate, repeatable and highly reliable, wide dynamic range dispensing, every time, irrespective of liquid viscosity. Furthermore, the machine must be capable of processing single cells pre-sorted into plates. Miniaturization of sample preparation protocols will dramatically reduce cost per cell, which is essential for large-scale single cell studies.

The system shall be covered under warranty for one (1) year commencing on the date of installation. The power requirements are one mains power connection.

MECS

1. The system shall have a small footprint due to limited space availability, with dimensions of approximately 660 mm width x 560 mm depth x 790 mm height or less.

2. The system shall weigh approximately 120 kg or less.

3. The system shall require only one mains power connection and be supplied with an appropriate lead.

4. The system shall include a 384-tip air-displacement pipetting head, working in a minimum range of 0.5 µL to 100 µL.

5. The system’s pipetting precision shall have of a coefficient of variation (CV) of 5% or less, and no more than +/- 5% inaccuracy when pipetting volumes of 1 µL.

6. The system shall be capable of automatically exchanging plastic consumable tips and tips must be available in 384, 96, 8, and 16 channel arrays to allow for the flexibility to work with a wide variety of 96-well and 384-well plates. The system must be able to automatically switch between these formats for flexibility.

7. The system shall have a 6-head liquid dispensing module with TRUE positive displacement of liquids for aspiration and non-contact dispensing.

8. The liquid dispensing head shall be capable of dispensing a range of volumes from 200 nanoliter to 4 mL, with each syringe head also capable of being used as a reservoir for the multi-dispense of smaller volumes.

9. The system’s liquid dispensing module shall be capable of handling a wide range of liquid types from 80% ethanol through 50% (w/v) glycerol, with NO requirement for liquid classification. Common biological assay components such as aqueous buffers, DMSO, cells, or glycerol protein stocks must all be dispensed using the same standard settings, as well as particulates such as SPRI beads.

10. The system’s pipetting module shall use liquid classes to compensate for different liquid types and be well suited to a range of liquid types.

11. The system’s pipetting and dispensing modules shall be compatible with 96- and 384-well labware, including deepwell blocks and 96 format tubes up to 45 mm in height.

12. The system shall have a 2-tier moving deck system equipped with a gripper module capable of moving labware between the main deck and subdeck layers, as well as moving labware on or off of functional modules (such as shaker or heater/cooler module blocks).

13. The system shall have a gripper module capable of moving adaptor plates such that microplates or labware being maintained at a specific temperature on a heater/cooler plate can be moved to the main deck while maintaining temperature.

14. The system shall have a gripper module capable of moving labware with pipette tips in place for increased workflow efficiency.

15. The system shall have a gripper module mechanism that can be trained to pick and place a wide variety of ANSI/SBS labware.

16. The system shall include a microplate shaker, a heater cooler module for incubation capabilities, and a magnet plate.

17. The system’s functional modules should be enclosed behind panels and an interlocked door system in order to maintain a clean working environment.

18. The system shall include a one (1) year warranty commencing on the date of installation and covering parts and labor.

19. The Contractor shall provide on-site installation services and an on-site startup training for a minimum of one (1) person.

The information received as a result of this RFI, will be used within USAMRAA and the Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) to facilitate decision making and will not be disclosed outside of USAMRAA or USAMRIID. If the information provided contains propriety information, such information must be identified with an appropriate disclaimer.

If your organization has the potential capacity to perform these contract services, please provide the following information:

1) Fill out the chart (Organization name, address, website address, size and type of ownership for the organization, Cage Code, Unity Entity ID (from SAM.gov) and point of contact including their title, telephone number and email address;

2) Tailored capability statements addressing the particulars of this effort, with appropriate documentation to support claims of organizational and staff capability. If significant subcontracting or teaming is anticipated in order to deliver technical capability, organizations should address the administrative and management structure of such arrangements.

3) The capability statements shall address, at a minimum, the following items:

a. Technical Specification Sheet that addresses each MEC.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND SUBMISSION DETAILS

Fill in the below table and include it with your submission:

Company Name

Company Address

Point of Contact

Phone Number

E-mail Address

Tax Identification Number (TIN)

Cage Code

Unique Entity ID

Company Web Page

Company Location(s)

Company is / is not a Small Business

Company is / is not System for Award Management (SAM) Registered

Other Classifications (e.g. 8(a), HUBZone, Woman-Owned, Veteran-Owned, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned)

If 8(a), date that the company graduates from the program.

Interested parties capable of providing the requirements described in the MEC’s are requested to submit a Capabilities Statement of no more than ten (10) pages in length in Times New Roman font of no less than 10 pitch. All submissions shall be submitted in either Microsoft Word or Portable Document Format (PDF).

The Government welcomes input and will accept questions pertaining to this RFI; however, the Government reserves the right to answer or not to answer all questions received. Questions pertaining to this RFI are due by 1300 ET on 3 October 2025. Only one set of questions per vendor will be accepted. Contact with Government personnel, other than those specified in this request, by potential vendors or their employee’s regarding this requirement is not permitted.

All responses to this RFI must be provided via email no later than (NLT) 1300 Eastern Time on 13 October 2025 to Ryan Jorgensen via email at ryan.r.jorgensen.civ@health.mil. No extensions will be granted.