Combination Synopsis-Solicitation for Commercial Purchases.docx

COMBO SYNOPSIS SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS

1. Class Code: 6640

2. NAICS Code: 334516

3. Subject: Quantity (Qty) one (1) Hybrid Heating Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) Furnace

4. Solicitation Number: W911QX-25-Q-0002

5. Set-Aside Code: N/A

6. Response Date: 11/15/2024

7. Place of Delivery/Performance:

U.S. Army Research Laboratory

8.

(i) This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.

(ii) The solicitation number is W911QX-25-Q-0002 This acquisition is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ).

(iii) The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2024-00, effective 30 September 2024.

(iv) The associated NAICS code is 334516. The small business size standard is 1000 employees.

(v) The following is a list of contract line item number(s) and items, quantities and units of measure, (including option(s), if applicable):

CLIN 0001 – Quantity (Qty) One (1) Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) furnace with hybrid heating capabilities.

CLIN 0002 – Quantity (Qty) One (1) Spare parts needed for the SPS furnace CLIN 0002 – Shipping and Handling of all items to the destination

An extended description of all requirements of the SPS furnace can be found in the next section.

(vi) Description of requirements:

Spark Plasma Sintering

1. The spark plasma sintering furnace shall be capable of sustainably reaching 2300°C operating temperature with 2500°C or higher maximum temperature.

1. Hydraulic/pneumatic press shall reach a maximum compressive force of 100 kilonewton(kN) or higher

1. Maximum output power shall be 40 Kilowatt (kW) or higher

1. Maximum heating rate shall be 300°C/min or higher

1. Maximum reach between the pressing rams shall be 200 Millimeter (mm) or higher

1. Pulsed direct current (DC) shall have a minimum pulse length of 1 millisecond (ms) or lower

1. Temperature measurement from room temperature to maximum operating temperature by optical pyrometer(s) or a combination of retractable thermocouple and optical pyrometer

1. Shall be capable of operating in high voltage “flash sintering” mode at voltages of 180 Volt (V) or higher, with maximum power of 5kW or higher

Secondary Heating

1. Secondary heating option using either graphite resistive elements or induction coils, shall be capable of reaching 2200°C or higher independent of spark plasma sintering heating

1. Maximum secondary heating power output shall be 27kW or higher

1. Secondary heating shall be able to be used independent of or in conjunction with the spark plasma sintering system using either low or high voltage modes

Atmosphere Systems

1. Shall be capable of reaching vacuum pressures of 5 x 10-5 torr or better by use of a turbomolecular pump in conjunction with a mechanical roughing pump.

1. Leakage rate shall be < 1 x 10-4 mbar x l/s

1. Shall be capable of operating in low vacuum conditions by use of roughing pump without engaging turbomolecular pump

1. Shall be capable of operating in flowing inert gas (Ar, N2) with flow rates controllable by mass flow controllers in the range of 0-5 LPM or greater.

Instrumentation

1. Shall be fully automated control with instrumented data capture of temperature, power, pressing force, ram displacement, vacuum pressure, etc.; multiple programmable operations via Personal Computer (PC) or Programmable Logic Controller (PLC); no 3rd party license fees for software, firmware, or hardware.

1. All operational and captured data shall be recordable at full sensor fidelity into non-proprietary open-source data formats (Comma Separated Values (CSV), JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), etc.), including sensor metadata.

1. Shall have all primary furnace functions sensorized with continuous data logging controlled by the centralized PLC including the following areas:

17. Voltage

17. Amperage

17. Setpoints

17. Power

17. Temperature

17. Ram force

17. Ram displacement

17. Vacuum Pressure

17. Gas flow Power and Cooling

1. Unit shall operate via 480V, 3 phase, 60 hertz (Hz) facility power.

1. Shall contain stainless-steel water-cooled jacket construction.

1. Assembled unit shall comply with electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) code of the United States (US): FCC Radio Frequency Devices Regulations, 47 CFR Part 15 (or internationally recognized equivalent).

Graphite Tooling

1. Shall include graphite dies and punches suitable for pressing 25mm disks at pressures up to 150 Megapascal (MPa)

21. 100 each graphite dies

21. 200 each graphite punches

21. 25 each graphite spacers

1. Shall include graphite dies and punches suitable for pressing 38mm disks at pressures up to 150 MPa

22. 100 each graphite dies

22. 200 each graphite punches

22. 25 each graphite spacers

Spare Parts

1. Shall come with two (2) sets each of all wear parts and consumables, including but not limited to:

23. Secondary heating element

23. Insulation package, if applicable

23. Fuses

23. O-rings

Additional Requirements

1. The assembled system shall have footprint dimensions of no more than 96in x 66in.

1. The system as delivered in packaging must be able to fit through a doorway with dimensions of 66in x 93 in (W x H)

1. All safety and regulation systems/devices shall have redundancies to ensure automatic shutdown (return to safe) in the event of total power failure at peak operating temperature.

1. Shall be able to data transfer (and/or capture) to a PC computer with additional Universal Serial Bus (USB) / Secure Digital (SD) card port.

1. Unit shall be capable of stand-alone operation without the need for internet or other remote interfacing.

1. Shall have a Factory Acceptance Test to witness testing up to 2300°C or higher with SPS.

1. On site service for set up and training of complete system shall be provided.

1. Delivery to DEVCOM-ARL at 6300 Rodman Road FCDD-RLW-ME, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, MD

1. Shall provide support of system for a minimum of 10 years.

1. Shall provide free phone support.

1. Only original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of the high temperature furnace is acceptable. Third party, unauthorized resellers are not acceptable.

(vii) Delivery is required by 30 April 2025. Delivery shall be made to 6375 Johnson Rd, Building 321, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, 21005. Acceptance shall be performed at 6375 Johnson Rd, Building 321, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, 21005. The FOB point is the Destination.

(viii) The provision at 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors – Commercial, applies to this acquisition. The following addenda have been attached to this provision: None

(ix) The provision at FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation - Commercial Items is applicable to this acquisition. The specific evaluation criteria to be included in paragraph (a) of that provision are as follows:

In accordance with FAR 13.106-2(b)(3), comparative evaluation procedures will be utilized. Comparative evaluation is the comparison of all offers received in response to this solicitation against each other. An item-by-item comparison of each offer to one another will be performed to determine which offer provides the most benefit to the Government. Award will be made to the offer that is most advantageous to the Government. The Government may award to the lowest priced offeror that meets the Government’s minimum requirements; however, the Government reserves the right to award to a higher priced offeror exceeding the minimum requirements if it is most advantageous to the Government. In order to be considered for award, an offer must meet the Government’s minimum technical requirement contained in this solicitation. The below evaluation factors will be utilized during evaluation (in no order of relative importance):

Price Technical Capabilities/Specification Past Performance

(x) Offerors shall include a completed copy of the provision at FAR 52.212-3 (with its Alternate I), Offeror Representations with its offer.

(xi) The clause at 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions - Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following addenda have been attached to this clause: None

(xii) The clause at 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders - Commercial Items and the selected clauses listed in DFARS 212.301 Solicitation provisions and Contract Clauses for the Acquisition of Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following additional FAR/DFARS clauses cited in this clause are applicable:

FAR:

52.204-10: REPORTING EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION AND FIRST-TIER SUBCONTRACT AWARDS (OCT 2018) 52.204-25: PROHIBITON ON CONTRACTING FOR CERTAIN TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND SURVEILLANCE SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT (NOV 2021)

52.204-27: PROHIBITION ON A BYTEDANCE COVERED APPLICATION (JUN 2023)

52.209-6: PROTECTING THE GOVERNMENT’ INTEREST WHEN SUBCONTRACTING WITH CONTRACTORS DEBARRED, SUSPENDED, OR PROPOSED FOR DEBARMENT (NOV 2021)

52.219-28: POST-AWARD SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM REREPRESENTATION (SEP 2021)

52.222-3: CONVICT LABOR (JUN 2003)

52.222-19: CHILD LABOR--COOPERATION WITH AUTHORITIES AND REMEDIES (JAN 2022)

52.222-21: PROHIBITION OF SEGREGATED FACILITIES (APR 2015)

52.222-26: EQUAL OPPORTUNITY (SEP 2016)

52.222-35: EQUAL OPPORTUNITY FOR VETERANS (OCT 2015)

52.222-36: AFFIRMATIVE ACTION FOR WORKERS WITH DISABILITIES (JUL 2014)

52.222-37: EMPLOYMENT REPORTS ON SPECIAL DISABLED VETERANS, VETERANS OF THE VIETNAM ERA, AND OTHER ELIGIBLE VETERANS (FEB 2016)

52.222-50: COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (NOV 2021)

52.223-18: ENCOURAGING CONTRACTOR POLICIES TO BAN TEXT MESSAGING WHILE DRIVING (AUG 2011)

52.225-13: RESTRICTIONS ON CERTAIN FOREIGN PURCHASES (JUN 2008)

52.232-33: PAYMENT BY ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER—CENTRAL CONTRACTOR REGISTRATION (OCT 2018)

(xiii) The following additional contract requirement(s) or terms and conditions apply (full text of all FAR/DFARS clauses that contain fill-in information, as well as all local clauses, can be found in the attached Provisions and Clauses Full-Text document):

FAR PROVISIONS:

52.204-7: SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT (OCT 2018)

52.204-16: COMMERCIAL AND GOVERNMENT ENTITY CODE REPORTING (AUG 2020)

52.204-20: PREDECESSOR OF OFFEROR (AUG 2020)

52.204-24: REPRESENTATION REGARDING CERTAIN TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND VIDEO SURVEILLANCE SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT (NOV 2021) 52.204-26: COVERED TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT OR SERVICES-REPRESENTATION (OCT 2020)

52.233-2: SERVICE OF PROTEST (SEP 2006)

52.252-1: SOLICITATION PROVISIONS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998)

FAR/DFARS CLAUSES:

52.201-1: DEFINITIONS (JUN 2020)

52.203-3: GRATUITIES (APR 1984)

52.204-13: SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT (OCT 2018)

52.204-18: COMMERCIAL AND GOVERNMENT ENTITY CODE MAINTENANCE (AUG 2020)

52.204-19: INCORPORATON BY REFERENCE OF REPRESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS (DEC 2014)

52.232-39: UNEFORCEABILITY OF UNAUTHORIZED OBLIGATIONS (JUN 2013)

52.243-1: CHANGES—FIXED PRICE (AUG 1987)

52.247-34: F.O.B. DESTINATION (NOV 1991)

52.252-2: CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998)

252.203-7000: REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO COMPENSATION OF FORMER DOD OFFICIALS (SEP 2011)

252.203-7002: REQUIREMENT TO INFORM EMPLOYEES OF WHISTLEBLOWER RIGHTS (SEP 2013)

252.204-7000: DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION (OCT 2016)

252.204-7003: CONTROL OF GOVERNMENT PERSONNEL WORK PRODUCT (APR 1992)

252.204-7012: SAFEGUARDING COVERDED DEFENSE INFORMATION AND CYBER INCIDENT REPORTING (DEC 2019)

252.211-7003: ITEM UNIQUE IDENTIFICATION AND VALUATION (MAR 2022)

252.225-7048, EXPORT-CONTROLLED ITEMS (JUN 2013)

252.232-7003: ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION OF PAYMENT REQUESTS AND RECEIVING REPORTS (DEC 2018)

252.232-7006: WIDE AREA WORKFLOW PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS (DEC 2018)

252.243-7001: PRICING OF CONTRACT MODIFICATIONS (DEC 1991)

Adelphi Local Instructions:

ACC - APG POINT OF CONTACT

TECHNICAL POINT OF CONTACT

TYPE OF CONTRACT

GOV INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

TAX EXEMPTION CERT. (ARL)

PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS

RECEIVING ROOM REQUIREMENT – APG

DFARS COMMERCIAL CLAUSES

*EXCEPTIONS IN PROPOSAL

*AWARD OF CONTRACT

*ADELPHI CONTR. DIVISION URL

*PAYMENT TERMS

(xiv) This acquisition is rated under the Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) as N/A

(xv) The following notes apply to this announcement:

In accordance with FAR 32.003, the Government cannot provide contract financing for this acquisition.

(xvi) Offers are due Ten (10) business days after solicitation posting, by 11:59 AM Eastern Standard Time via email to Acquisition Specialist, Thomas Jurgens, thomas.c.jurgens@army.mil.

(xvii) For information regarding this solicitation, please contact Acquistion Specialist, Thomas Jurgens, (301) 394.3438, thomas.c.jurgens.ctr@army.mil.

Contracting Officer:

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