CSS 1333ND24QNB730287_FINAL.pdf

CLASSIFICATION CODE: B - Special Studies/Analysis, Not Research and Development

TITLE: Procurement of Metal-Powder Binder Jetting 3D Printer

SOLICITATION NUMBER: 1333ND24QNB730287

RESPONSE DATE: 08/09/2024

CONTACT POINTS: Robert Cowins, Contract Specialist, (301) 975-8335

Hing Pan Wong, Contracting Officer, (301) 975-6289

DESCRIPTION:

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has a requirement for the procurement of support services to be utilized by the Engineering Laboratory (EL) at NIST, Gaithersburg, MD campus.

THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL

ITEMS PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN FAR SUBPART 12.6-STREAMLINED

PROCEDURES FOR EVALUATION AND SOLICITATION

FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS-AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN

THIS NOTICE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; QUOTATIONS ARE

BEING REQUESTED, AND A SEPARATE WRITTEN SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED.

THE SOLICITATION IS BEING ISSUED USING SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES UNDER THE

AUTHORITY OF FAR PART 13.

This solicitation is a Request for Quotations (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2024-05 dated 04/26/2024.

1352.215-72 INQUIRIES (APR 2010)

Offerors must submit all questions concerning this solicitation in writing to robert.cowins@nist.gov. Questions should be received no later than three calendar days after the issuance date of this solicitation. Any responses to questions will be made in writing, without identification of the questioner, and will be included in an amendment to the solicitation. Even if provided in other form, only the question responses included in the amendment to the solicitation will govern performance of the contract.

(End of Provision)

The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 334516 (Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing), as those domestic sources of 1,000 employees or less.

This is acquisition being solicited as a 100% small business set-aside.

All offerors must provide a quotation for the following line items:

CLIN 0001:

Description: The contractor must provide a Metal-Powder Binder Jetting 3D Printer in accordance with the incorporated Statement of Work.

QTY: 1

Unit of Issue: LO Period of Performance: 12 months from the date of award mailto:robert.cowins@nist.gov

STATEMENT OF WORK

Title: Metal-Powder Binder Jetting 3D Printer

I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The Production Systems Group (PSG) in the NIST Engineering Laboratory conducts research in metals-based additive manufacturing (AM) to develop and deploy advances in measurement science that will enable rapid design-to-product transformation. The PSG is expanding its repertoire of additive manufacturing research to include binder jetting process-based AM. This is an additive technology, that uses a powder-based material (e.g., metal powder) and a suitable binder (in liquid form, which acts as a glue) for that powder material. The print head moves in X and Y directions over the spread-powder layer, precisely depositing the binder onto the particles at pre-defined locations.

After that, another layer of the powder is spread, and the binder is deposited again at pre-defined locations. The binder also acts as a glue between the previous and the new layer. The powder spreading and binder depositing process is repeated to form a 3D object (i.e., just by gluing, particle by particle, in X, Y, and Z directions). After this, the loose powder is removed, and the 3D object is heat-treated to produce a viable 3D metal part. Usually, the binder jetting 3D printer and ancillary instruments are sold together. The ancillary instruments include a powder preparation system, a curing oven, a depowdering station, and a debinding & sintering station.

The PSG aims to procure the above-mentioned metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer and the ancillary instruments to be installed at the Additive Manufacturing Research Center (AMRC) at NIST Gaithersburg, Maryland campus. The PSG has identified the scope of measurement science by identifying the challenges faced by key stakeholders in binder-jetting-based high-throughput manufacturing.

Purpose/Objective:

The PSG will utilize the metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer to conduct research that will improve the productivity, efficiency, and usability of binder jetting-based high-throughput manufacturing for the U.S. industry.

Various aspects of binder jetting-based manufacturing research will be conducted, including but not limited to in-situ process monitoring, powder spreadability, powder compaction, densification, powder segregation, binder-powder interaction, part surface metrology, part distortion, and geometric accuracy metrology, etc.

II. SCOPE

The contractor must deliver (1) one, fully operational metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer and ancillary instruments (powder preparation system, curing oven, depowdering system, debinding and sintering furnace) delivered to NIST Gaithersburg campus (2) rigging, assembly, and installation by a trained technician (3) testing and validation of system operation (4) training of NIST personnel on programming and safe operation of the system. All are inclusive of FOB Destination delivery, installation, warranty and training.

III. REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor must provide a system that meets all technical specifications identified below. All items must be new.

Used or remanufactured equipment will not be considered for award. Experimental, prototype, or custom items will not be considered. The use of “gray market” components are not authorized for sale in the U.S. by the Contractor is not acceptable. All line items must be shipped in the original manufacturer’s packaging and include all original documentation and software, when applicable.

Metal-Powder Binder Jetting 3D Printer Description: The contractor must provide a fully operational metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer.

Quantity: 1

A. Technical Specifications:

a. System size (footprint):

i. The unit, its unassembled components, or the shipping containers must fit through a doorway that is 80 inches height and 64.5 inches width.

ii. The maximum external height (installed) is 70 inches tall, not including door or other accessory components

iii. The maximum external width (installed) is 44 inches wide, not including door or other accessory components

iv. The maximum external length (installed) is 110 inches long, not including door or other accessory components.

b. Build volume and dimensions:

i. The volume must be a minimum of 9 L.

ii. Each dimension must be a minimum of 250 mm (L) x 200 mm (W) x 180 mm (H).

c. Powder material deposition:

i. The unit must use a powder applicator with a hopper that moves across the building box. A hopper carries and dispenses powder.

d. Printer head resolution:

i. The unit must have a minimum of 800 dpi,

ii. Units with a resolution of 1200 dpi or greater are preferred.

iii. Units with a droplet size less than or equal to 3 pL are be preferred.

e. Productivity:

i. Capable of printing at or greater than 1,000 cubic centimeters/hour.

f. Material compatibility:

i. Capable of printing with stainless steels, nickel alloys, copper, and titanium alloys.

Powder preparation system Description: A powder preparation system is required to handle used powder. Users must be able to sieve the used powder, mix it with fresh powder, and get rid of the moisture content from the used powder in safe manner that contains the powder with the system.

Quantity: 1

A. Technical Specifications

a. The system must include appropriate sieves to prepare the powder for use in the Metal-Powder Binder

Jetting 3D Printer (Line Item 0001).

b. The system must blend or mix the powder.

c. The system must provide a means to reduce moisture in the powder such as an oven.

d. The system must confine the powder such as a glove box or down-draft table.

e. The system must be flexible allowing for use of different materials without a high probability of cross-contamination.

Curing oven Description: The contractor must provide a curing oven to remove the solvent agent from the binder of the freshly built wet part (green part).

Quantity: 1

A. Technical Specifications

a. The usable oven volume for curing must be between 10 L and 100 L.

b. The oven must be able to process under controlled atmospheres (e.g., inert gas).

c. Ovens that allow for curing and debinding (burnout of binder material) are preferred.

Manual Depowdering System Description: Contractor must supply a manual depowderding station. Depowdering means removing the excess (unbound powder) from the build box in order to further process printed parts.

Quantity: 1

A. Technical Specifications

a. The depowdering unit must be sized appropriately to accommodate the largest build that could come from the metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer (Line Item 0001).

b. The depowdering unit must allow for users to manually remove powder with hand tools such as a brush and air nozzle.

c. The depowdering unit must collect excess powder for reuse.

d. The depowdering unit must contain the powder such as a glove box.

e. The depowdering unit should be ergonomically designed for the manual operation of depowdering and handling printed parts.

Automated Depowdering System Description: An automated depowderding station that removes unbound powder using a programmable machine based on CAD of the printed parts and their layout in the build box is preferred in addition to Line Item 0004.

Quantity: 1

A. Technical Specifications

a. The automated depowdering machine must be programmable to perform depowdering in an automated fashion.

b. The depowdering unit must be sized appropriately to accommodate the largest build that could come from the metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer (Line Item 0001).

c. The depowdering unit must collect excess powder for reuse.

d. The depowdering machine must contain the powder.

Debinding and Sintering Furnace Description: The contractor must provide a furnace to remove the binder and sinter the printed parts to achieve a high density.

A. Technical Specifications

a. The working volume must be between 2.5 L and 10 L.

b. The smallest dimension of the working volume is 3 inches.

c. The furnace must fit on benchtop.

d. Voltage must be 208/240 1-Phase.

e. The debinding and sintering furnace must allow for controlled atmosphere: inert, reducing, and/or vacuum.

Printing Software Description: The contractor must provide software to convert CAD files into print ready files and assign printing parameters.

A. Technical Specifications

a. The software must convert CAD files (e.g., .STL files) to printer ready format.

b. The printing software must allow users to change the main process parameters including the powder layer thickness (i.e., open parameter sets).

c. The software must account for part shrinkage in some manner.

Default process parameters Description: The contractor must provide default process parameters that have demonstrated consistent process and part performance. A parameter set includes process parameters for (1) feedstock requirements, (2) printing, (3) curing,

(4) debinding, and (5) sintering. A material specification describes the part performance for the parameter set.

A. Technical Specifications

a. The contractor must provide process parameters for (1) 316L stainless steel and (2) a nickel alloy

(e.g., 625 or 718).

b. The contractor must provide a material specification sheet with typical chemistry, density and mechanical properties for the aforementioned 316L stainless steel parameter set.

c. The process parameters must be provided as software and/or electronic documentation.

d. Parameters sets and material specs as described above for additional alloys are preferred.

Starter materials/supplies Description: The binder jet process uses consumables. Some initial supplies are needed to get started. The contract must supply starter materials/supplies that are compatible with binder jet machine (Line item 001) and process parameters (Line item 008).

A. Technical Specifications

a. The contractor must provide a minimum of 50 kg of 316L stainless steel.

b. The contractor must provide a minimum of 50 kg of nickel alloy 625 or 718.

c. The contractor must provide a sufficient binder to print these materials.

IV. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

NIST Gaithersburg, Maryland, Building 304 Room 124

V. DELIVERY DATE

Installation and training should occur within 4 months after award.

VI. DELIVERY TERMS

Delivery must be F.O.B Destination and must occur no later than 4 months after award.

FOB Destination means: The contractor must pack and mark the shipment in conformance with carrier requirements, deliver the shipment in good order and condition to the point of delivery specified in the purchase order, be responsible for any loss of and/or damage to the goods occurring before receipt and acceptance of the shipment by the consignee at the delivery point specified in the purchase order; and pay all charges to the specified point of delivery.

The contractor must deliver all Line Items to:

***Due to ongoing limited site access of the NIST facilities, the Awardee MUST confirm with the Designated Government Official and the Contracting Officer prior to ANY shipment to NIST***

VII. INSTALLATION

The system must be installed by the Contractor and meet contract specifications no later than two weeks after delivery. Installation, at a minimum, must include uncrating/unpackaging of all equipment, rigging, set-up and hook-up of the system, demonstration of all specifications, and removal of trash. Onsite installation and demonstration must be done at NIST, (Gaithersburg, MD- Building 304 Room 124).

VIII. TRAINING

The contractor must conduct training session for up to 5 (five) users at NIST. The training must provide a thorough demonstration of all system/solution functions, maintenance, data administration, and basic troubleshooting.

The training may be completed at NIST Monday – Friday during the operating hours of 8 am to 5 pm immediately after installation and demonstration of specifications and must be completed no later than 5 days after installation.

Further training requirements are identified below:

A. Training should include modules on:

a. Operation of all hardware and software components required for metal-powder binder jetting 3D printer, powder preparation system, curing oven, depowdering station, and debinding & sintering station.

B. Contractor will provide electronic and hard copies of manuals covered during training.

IX. INSPECTION & ACCEPTANCE

In addition to the inspection and acceptance terms articulated in 52.212-4, the Government reserves the right to perform such performance tests and evaluations as defined below to verify specified system performance. Such tests and evaluations, if performed, must be conducted within the environment that the system is to be operated. The Contractor has the right to be present during the tests and evaluations, if performed, at the Contractor’s expense.

NIST may choose at its discretion to forego this part of acceptance testing.

A visual inspection of the equipment will be performed by the NIST TPOC to identify surface defects or any form of indication that any equipment was damaged during transport to NIST. The Government must have sole discretion to require repair or replacement of damaged and/or nonconforming supplies at no cost to the Government. The Government at any time prior to acceptance must reject the equipment due to defects and/or nonconformance. The contractor is responsible for latent defects discovered any time after final inspection. However, the extent of its liability must be prorated over the useful life of the equipment.

Ownership of the equipment must transfer to NIST upon acceptance by the Government.

The Government will test, inspect, and accept or reject the equipment within 10 (ten) days of the receipt of the equipment unless otherwise indicated above. The Government reserves the right to conduct quality assurance testing to confirm that a given instrument(s) meets the manufacturer’s and/or the Government’s performance specifications. It is anticipated that the equipment will meet all manufacturer’s specifications and/or the Government’s performance specifications identified in the most recent operations and maintenance manual for each piece of equipment and/or in this document.

X. WARRANTY

The contractor must warranty the entire system for a period of a minimum of 1 year after receipt of the equipment and must be in accordance with terms in FAR 52.212-4. Warranty must commence upon acceptance of the system by the Government.

XI. PAYMENT SCHEDULE

Advance payment is not authorized. The Contractor must invoice in arrears according to the payment schedule. The Contractor must be paid, in accordance with Net 30-day payment terms, upon receipt and acceptance of a proper invoice, in accordance with the following schedule:

1. 100% after installation and acceptance by the COR of fully installed system, AND

2. After the successful completion of the testing requirements set forth in this document under section set forth in this document, AND

3. After successful demonstration by the instrumentation that it performs IAW the technical requirements set forth in this document AND

4. After receiving an invoice submitted properly, IAW the purchase order terms and conditions.

NOTE: Partial shipments and partial invoices will not be accepted, unless otherwise requested and accepted by the Contracting Officer prior to award offer. Proposed payment schedules must be submitted with contractor’s response to the RFQ for consideration.

XII. MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

Safety: The Contractor employee must be responsible for knowing and complying with all installation safety prevention regulations. Such regulations include, but are not limited to, general safety, fire prevention, and waste disposal.

Security: NIST is a restricted campus. An identification badge is required for access for entry into buildings and is shown to the armed Security Police when entering the campus.

Regular Business Hours. Regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Time, excluding Federal holidays and NIST closures.

Identification Badges: Contractor employees must comply with NIST identification and access requirements. Each Contractor employee must wear a visible identification badge provided by the NIST Security Office.

Vehicle Registration: All Contractor employees must register their vehicles with the NIST Security Office to gain access to the campus. A valid driver’s license, Government-furnished civilian ID, proof of insurance and current registration must be presented to the NIST Security Office, at which time a NIST vehicle pass will be issued. The pass must be displayed on the vehicle in accordance with NIST Security Office instructions.

FAR Provisions

52.204-7, System for Award Management 52.204-16, Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting FAR 52.204-17, Ownership or Control of Offeror (JUL 2016) 52.204-24, Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment 52.204-26, Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services-Representation 52.209-2 Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations – Representation 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services.

52.225-25, Prohibition on Contracting with Entities Engaging in Sanctioned Activities Relating to Iran 52.203-18 Prohibition on Contracting with Entities that Require Certain Internal Confidentiality Agreements or Statements-Representation.

52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors - Commercial Items 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items

52.204-20 Predecessor of Offeror

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision– “Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code” means–

(1) An identifier assigned to entities located in the United States and its outlying areas by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Contractor and Government Entity (CAGE) Branch to identify a commercial or government entity, or

(2) An identifier assigned by a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) or by NATO’s Support Agency (NSPA) to entities located outside the United States and its outlying areas that DLA Contractor and Government Entity (CAGE) Branch records and maintains in the CAGE master file. This type of code is known as an NCAGE code.

“Predecessor” means an entity that is replaced by a successor and includes any predecessors of the predecessor.

“Successor” means an entity that has replaced a predecessor by acquiring the assets and carrying out the affairs of the predecessor under a new name (often through acquisition or merger). The term “successor” does not include new offices/divisions of the same company or a company that only changes its name. The extent of the responsibility of the successor for the liabilities of the predecessor may vary, depending on State law and specific circumstances.

(b) The Offeror represents that it □ is or □ is not a successor to a predecessor that held a Federal contract or grant within the last three years.

(c) If the Offeror has indicated “is” in paragraph (b) of this provision, enter the following information for all predecessors that held a Federal contract or grant within the last three years (if more than one predecessor, list in reverse chronological order):

Predecessor CAGE code: ________ (or mark “Unknown”) Predecessor legal name: _________________________ (Do not use a “doing business as” name)

(End of provision)

52.209-11 Representation by Corporations Regarding Delinquent Tax Liability or a Felony Conviction under any Federal Law.

(a) As required by sections 744 and 745 of Division E of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (Pub. L. 113-235), and similar provisions, if contained in subsequent appropriations acts, the Government will not enter into a contract with any corporation that—

(1) Has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an agreement with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability, where the awarding agency is aware of the unpaid tax liability, unless an agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that suspension or debarment is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government; or

(2) Was convicted of a felony criminal violation under any Federal law within the preceding 24 months, where the awarding agency is aware of the conviction, unless an agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government.

(b) The Offeror represents that—

(1) It is □ is not □ a corporation that has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an agreement with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability; and

(2) It is □ is not □ a corporation that was convicted of a felony criminal violation under a Federal law within the preceding 24 months.

52.212-2 Evaluation - Commercial Items

(a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors must be used to evaluate offers:

The quotation received will be evaluated for its technical merits, conformance with requirements identified in the solicitation, and for price reasonableness. A quotation will only be considered technically acceptable if it clearly demonstrates compliance with the requirements as detailed in the incorporated Specifications.

(b) Options. The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced. Evaluation of options must not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).

(c) A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, must result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer`s specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award.

52.252-1 Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference.

This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es):

Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR): www.acquisition.gov/far/ Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR): http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl

(End of provision) http://www.acquisition.gov/far/ http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl

FAR Clauses

FAR 52.252-2 Clauses Incorporated by Reference.

This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es):

Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR): www.acquisition.gov/far/ Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR): http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl

52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance 52.204-18, Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance 52.204-19, Incorporation by Reference of Representations and Certifications 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions—Commercial Items 52.232-39 Unenforceability of Unauthorized Obligations 52.232-40 Providing Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Items (APR 2010)-- including subparagraphs:

52.204-10 - Reporting Executive Compensation and First-Tier Subcontract Awards 52.209-6 - Protecting the Government’s Interests when Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment 52.219-28 - Post Award Small Business Program Representation 52.222-3 - Convict Labor 52.222-19 - Child Labor - Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies;

52.222-21 - Prohibition of Segregated Facilities 52-222-26 - Equal Opportunity;

52,222-36 – Equal Opportunity for Works with Disabilities 52.222-37 - Employment Reports on Veterans 52.222-50 - Combating Trafficking in Persons 52.223-18 - Encouraging Contractor Policies to Ban Text Messaging While Driving 52.225-3 - Buy American-Free Trade Agreements-Israeli Trade Act 52.225-5 - Trade Agreements 52.225-13 - Restriction on Certain Foreign Purchases 52.232-33 - Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer- System for Award Management

(End of clause)

Department of Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR) clauses. Please view the full text of these clauses at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl.

Commerce Acquisition Regulations (CAR) Provisions and Clauses:

1352.237-71 Security processing requirements - low risk contracts

CAR Provisions CAR 1352.233-70 Agency Protests

(a) An agency protest may be filed with either: (1) the contracting officer, or (2) at a level above the contracting officer, with the appropriate agency Protest Decision Authority. See 64 Fed. Reg. 16,651 (April 6, 1999)

(b) Agency protests filed with the Contracting Officer must be sent to the following address:

NIST/ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT DIVISION

http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl

ATTN: HING PAN WONG, CONTRACTING OFFICER

100 Bureau Drive, MS 1640 Gaithersburg, MD 20899

(c) Agency protests filed with the agency Protest Decision Authority must be sent to the following address:

NIST/ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT DIVISION

ATTN: HEAD OF THE CONTRACTING OFFICE (HCO)

100 Bureau Drive, MS 1640 Gaithersburg, MD 20899

(d) A complete copy of all agency protests, including all attachments, must be served upon the Contract Law Division of the Office of the General Counsel within one day of filing a protest with either the Contracting Officer or the Protest Decision Authority.

(e) Service upon the Contract Law Division must be made as follows:

U.S. Department of Commerce Office of the General Counsel Chief, Contract Law Division Room 5893, Herbert C.

Hoover Building 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20230.

FAX: (202) 482-5858

CAR 1352.233-71 GAO and Court of Federal Claims Protests

(a) A protest may be filed with either the Government Accountability Office (GAO) or the Court of Federal Claims unless an agency protest has been filed.

(b) A complete copy of all GAO or Court of Federal Claims protests, including all attachments, must be served upon

(i) the Contracting Officer, and (ii) the Contract Law Division of the Office of the General Counsel, within one day of filing a protest with either GAO or the Court of Federal Claims.

(c) Service upon the Contract Law Division must be made as follows:

U.S. Department of Commerce Office of the General Counsel Chief, Contract Law Division Room 5893 Herbert C. Hoover Building 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20230.

FAX: (202) 482-5858

CAR Clauses 1352.201-70 Contracting Officer’s Authority 1352.209-73 Compliance with The Laws 1352.209-74 Organizational Conflict of Interest

NIST Local Clauses

NIST LOCAL-53 Contract Performance During Changes in NIST Operating Status Unless otherwise stated in the contract terms and conditions, normal days of business operation are Monday through Friday, excluding Federal Holidays. However, throughout the contract period of performance, there may be circumstances beyond the control of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), that will impact normal days of business operation, such as inclement weather, power outages, etc. In circumstances such as these, the Contractor must call the appropriate NIST campus status line to verify the operating status:

Gaithersburg Campus Operating Status Line:

(301) 975-8000

(800) 437-4385 x8000 (toll free)

Boulder Campus Operating Status Line:

(303) 497-4000

During a lapse in appropriation, access to Government facilities and resources, including equipment and systems, will be limited to excepted personnel for both Federal employees and Contractor personnel. If performance of the contract is onsite and/or requires Government interaction, unless you have been, or are notified that you are to work under an excepted status, you will automatically enter a temporary work stoppage. The work stoppage must remain in effect until the lapse is resolved and notification is provided via the NIST website at https://www.nist.gov/ and/or the NIST operating status lines. Additionally, Contractors are encouraged to monitor public broadcasts or the Office of Personnel Management’s website at www.opm.gov for the Federal Government operating status.

NIST will provide notification to all contractors that are determined to have excepted status. All excepted contractors are required to continue performance and communicate with the appointed Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) for further guidance, or NIST Contracting Officer if a COR is not appointed.

Contractors with supply or service contracts that are fully funded at the time of contract award and do not require access to Government facilities, resources, or active administration by Government personnel in a manner that would cause the government to incur additional obligations during the lapse in appropriation may continue performance.

NIST LOCAL-54 Electronic Billing Instructions

NIST requires that Invoice/Voucher submissions are sent electronically via email to INVOICE@NIST.GOV.

Each Invoice or Voucher submitted must include the following:

(1) Contract number;

(2) Contractor name and address;

(3) Unique entity identifier (see www.sam.gov for the designated entity for establishing unique entity identifiers);

(4) Date of invoice;

(5) Invoice number;

(6) Amount of invoice and cumulative amount invoiced to-date;

(7) Contract Line Item Number (CLIN);

(8) Description, quantity, unit of measure, unit price, and extended price of supplies/services delivered;

(9) Prompt payment discount terms, if offered; and

(10) Any other information or documentation required by the contract.

NIST Local Clause 56 Invoicing Processing Platform- Alternate I (DEC 2022)

Upon written notice from the contracting officer the following supersedes all other instructions for the submission of payment requests. Accordingly, following written notice payment requests must be submitted electronically through the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Invoice Processing Platform System (IPP).

"Payment request" means any request for contract financing payment or invoice payment by the Contractor. To constitute a proper invoice, the payment request must comply with the requirements identified in the applicable payment request or invoicing instructions, Prompt Payment clause included in the contract, or the clause 52.212-4

Contract Terms and Conditions - Commercial Items included in commercial item contracts. The IPP website address is https://www.ipp.gov.

Under this contract, the following documents are required to be submitted as an attachment to the IPP invoice: **

The Contractor must use the IPP website to register, access, and use IPP for submitting payment requests. If not already enrolled, the Contractor Government Business Point of Contact (as listed in SAM) will receive enrollment instructions via email within three to five business days of the addition of the contract award to IPP. Contractor assistance with enrollment can be obtained by contacting the IPP Production Helpdesk via email:

IPPCustomerSupport@fiscal.treasury.gov or phone (866) 973-3131.

If the Contractor is unable to comply with the requirement to use IPP for submitting payment requests, the Contractor must submit a waiver request in writing to the Contracting Officer with its proposal or quotation. Contact the contracting officer for more information on submitting a waiver request.

INSTRUCTIONS:

System for Award Management (SAM)

In accordance with FAR 52.204-7, offerors are required to be registered in SAM when submitting an offer or quotation and must continue to be registered until time of award, during performance, and through final payment of any contract, basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchasing agreement resulting from this solicitation. Offerors without active SAM registration will not be considered.

Required Information

The government will not consider any quotation without the information required by this solicitation.

Due Date for Quotations

Offerors must submit their quotations so that NIST receives them not later than 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time, 08/09/2024. FAX and hard-copy quotations must not be accepted. E-mail quotations must be accepted at robert.cowins@nist.gov. Offerors’ quotations must not be deemed received by the Government until the quotation is entered the e-mail address inbox set forth above. Late quotes will not be accepted.

Addendum to FAR 52.212-1, Proposal Preparation Instructions

1) Price Proposal: The pricing quotation must be separate from any other portion of the quotation. The offeror must propose a firm-fixed-price for each CLIN. Price quotations must remain valid for a period of 90 days from the date quotations are due.

2) Technical Proposal: The technical proposal must address the following:

Technical Capability: The offeror must submit a technical description or product literature for the equipment it is proposing, which clearly identifies the manufacturer, make and model. The offeror must demonstrate that its proposed equipment meets or exceeds the minimum requirements described in the specifications by providing a citation to the relevant section of its technical description or product literature. Evidence that the Offeror is authorized by the original equipment manufacturer to provide the item(s) should be included in the quotation if the offeror is not the manufacturer.

3) Past Performance: The offeror must provide past performance information regarding relevant contracts over the past three (3) years with Federal, state, or local governments, or commercial customers. If the offeror intends to subcontract with another firm(s) for part of this requirement, that firm’s past performance information must also be provided. If the offeror has no relevant past performance, it may include a statement to that effect in its quotation. The mailto:robert.cowins@nist.gov government reserves the right to consider data obtained from sources other than those described by the offeror in its quotation. It is recommended that approximately 3-5 contracts be referenced.

The description of each contract/order described in this section must not exceed one half page in length. For each contract/order, the offeror must provide the following information:

1. Contract number;

2. Description and relevance to solicitation requirements including dollar value;

3. Period of Performance – indicate by month and year the state and completion (or “ongoing”) dates for the contract;

4. Reference Contact – If a non-Government contract, identify the name and address of the client with current telephone number and email address of a point of contact of the client responsible for the contract;

5. Contracting Office – If a Government contract (Federal or state), identify the Procuring Contracting Officer (PCO), Administrative Contracting Officer (ACO), and Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), and their names, current telephone numbers and email addresses.

6. Problems Encountered – include information regarding information regarding any problems encountered on the contracts described above and corrective actions taken to resolve those problems.

Acceptance of Terms and Conditions: This is an open-market solicitation for equipment as defined herein. The Government intends to award a Purchase Order as a result of this solicitation that will include the clauses set forth herein. The proposal should include one of the following statements:

“The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document without modification, deletion, or addition.”

OR

“The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document with the exception, deletion, or addition of the following:

Offeror must list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s)

Note: This procurement is not being conducted under the GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program or another Government-Wide Area Contract (GWAC). If an offeror submits a proposal based upon an FSS or GWAC contract, the Government will accept the quoted price. However, the terms and conditions stated herein will be included in any resultant Purchase Order, not the terms and conditions of the offeror’s FSS or GWAC contract, and the statement required above must be included in the proposal.

QUOTATION EVALUATION:

The Government reserves the right to make an award without discussions based solely upon initial quotations.

Therefore, offerors should ensure that their initial quotation constitutes their best offer in terms of both price and the technical solution being proposed.

Basis of Award

Evaluation Factors

The Government intends to award a purchase order resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose quotation, conforming to the solicitation, represents best value to the Agency. Best value shall be determined using the trade-off evaluation method.

Quotations shall be evaluated against the following non-price evaluation factors and price. Non-price evaluation factors include the following in descending order of importance: 1) Technical Capability 2) Past Performance, and 3) Price. Non-price factors when combined are more important than price for this requirement. The Government anticipates making an award without discussions. It is requested that the contractor submit its best quotation and the contractor is encouraged to provide discounts from its current pricing list.

Technical Capability: No prototypes, demonstration models, used or refurbished instruments will be considered. Evaluation of technical capability must be based on the information provided in the quotation. NIST will evaluate whether the offeror has demonstrated that its proposed equipment meets or exceeds all minimum requirements. Quotations that do not demonstrate the proposed equipment meets all requirements will not be considered further for award. If an offeror does not indicate whether its proposed equipment meets a certain minimum requirement, NIST will determine that it does not.

Past Performance: The Government will evaluate the Offeror's past performance information and, if appropriate, its proposed subcontractors' past performance to determine its relevance to the current requirement and the extent to which it demonstrates that the offeror has successfully completed relevant contracts in the past five years. In assessing the offeror's past performance information, NIST will evaluate the quality, timeliness, and ability to control cost and schedule of the past work. The Government will evaluate past performance information by contacting appropriate references, including NIST references, if applicable. The Government may also consider other available information in evaluating the Offeror’s past performance. The Government will assign a neutral rating if the offeror has no relevant past performance information.

Past Performance and Price must not be evaluated on quotations that are determined technically unacceptable under the Technical Capability Evaluation factor.