CSS_SOW_Vacuum Chamber.docx

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS & TECHNOLOGY

Cylindrical Vacuum Chamber

RFQ NUMBER 1333ND25QNB680190

100 Bureau Drive Gaithersburg, MD 20899

PAGE REFERENCE

FAR PART 13 – SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES

SECTION 5: Statement of Work Page, 6-9

SECTION 1: COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION

A. COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION

a. 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. This solicitation is being issued under the authority of FAR Part 13 Simplified Acquisition Procedures. 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) 2025-03 published January 3, 2025, and effective January 17, 2025.

b. The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 333242, Semiconductor Machinery Manufacturing which has a small business size standard of 1,500 employees, is the best fit for this acquisition. This acquisition is being competed full and open competition. All responsible, qualified business concerns can respond to this notice.

c. 1352.215-72 Inquiries (APR 2010); Offerors must submit all questions concerning this solicitation in writing to ranae.armstrong@nist.gov . Mailed and/or faxed questions will not be accepted. Any responses to questions will be made in writing, without identification of the questioner, and will be included in an amendment to the solicitation. Amendments to this solicitation (if applicable) will be posted on the SAM.GOV website under the solicitation. Inquires must be received no later than five (5) days after the RFQ is posted for Government response.

B. Solicitation Posting

a. This solicitation is only posted on the System for Award Management (SAM) website, www.sam.gov.

b. Attachments, amendments and other associated documents as applicable will be posted to the SAM.GOV website, under the solicitation.

C. Contract Type

a. This is a firm fixed-price contract type.

END OF SECTION 1

SECTION 2: SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT (SAM) REGISTRATION REQUIREMENT

A. SAM Registration

a. An Offeror is required to be active and registered in the System for Award Management when submitting an offer or quotation and shall 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, to comply with the annual representations and certification requirements. If an offeror is not active and registered in SAM, their submission will not be considered for award offer and will not be reviewed the Government. The Government will review the Offeror’s SAM registration and affirm the determination of responsibility. In addition, the Government will review the currently available credit/assessment/performance reports. The Government will also review an Offeror’s SAM exclusions record. A non-responsible determination may be made if an Offeror lacks adequate financial resources or has demonstrated poor past performance.

END OF SECTION 2

SECTION 3: QUOTATION SUBMISSION. LATE SUBMISSIONS, & RESPONSE DEADLINE

A. General Instructions Quotations are expected to conform to solicitation provisions and be prepared in accordance with this section. To aid in evaluation, the quotation shall be clearly and concisely written as well as being neat, indexed (cross-indexed as appropriate) and logically assembled. All pages of each part shall be appropriately numbered and identified with the name of the offeror, the date, and the solicitation number.

B. Electronic Submission Only The offeror shall submit their quotation electronically to ranae.armstrong@nist.gov with a cc to Donald.collie@nist.gov, FAXED AND/OR MAILED QUOTATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. Quotations must be received in the email inbox on or before the due date and time specified above. Only information received on or before the due date and time shall be considered for award. Any quotation, or part thereof, received after the due date and time, shall be deemed late and not considered for award. Offeror’s quotations shall not be deemed received by the Government until the quotation is entered in the e-mail inbox provided above.

C. All Offerors Shall Submit the Following:

a. For the purpose of evaluation of technical acceptability, the offeror must submit documentation that demonstrates the offered equipment/services meet the technical specifications and requirements as detailed in the Statement of Work.

b. Offerors shall provide a firm fixed-price offer for ALL line items, including option line items (when applicable).

c. A completed version of all required solicitation provisions (see attached provisions/clauses document – required submissions highlighted in blue). THE BUY AMERICAN ACT PORTION OF THE RFQ MUST BE COMPLETED AND RETURNED WITH THE QUOTATION.

d. Any award resulting from this solicitation will contain the following statement: “The Government’s terms and conditions, identified herein, shall be the prevailing terms and conditions governing this award. In the event of a conflict between the Government’s and contractor’s terms and conditions, the Government’s terms and conditions take precedence.” If the Contractor objects to any of the terms and conditions contained in this solicitation, the contractor shall state “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:” [Contractor shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s)]. It is the sole responsibility of the Contractor to identify in their quote any exceptions to the terms and conditions of the solicitation. If the contractor does not include such a statement, the submission of a quotation in response to this solicitation will be regarded as the Contractor’s acceptance of the Government’s terms and conditions for inclusion into the resultant purchase order as prevailing.

e. Offeror shall provide an active UEI # for the System for Award Management (SAM) registration.

f. Please note that this procurement IS NOT being conducted under the GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program or another Government-Wide Area Contract (GWAC). If a contractor submits a quotation 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 contractor’s FSS or GWAC contract, and the statement required above shall be included in the quotation.

D. Due Date for Quotations

a. All quotations must be submitted via e-mail to Contract Specialist Ranae Armstrong at RANAE.ARMSTRONG@NIST.GOV. Submission must be received not later than 05/27/25, 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. A quotation shall be considered received when it is received in the electronic inbox of Ranae Armstrong not later than the date and time identified herein.

b. The clauses and provisions applicable to this solicitation can be found under Applicable Clauses & Provisions. The full text of a FAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at or www.acquisition.gov/far. The full text of a CAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at or https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-48/chapter-13

E. Late Submissions and Withdrawals of Quotes

a. Any quote received in the inbox of ranae.armstrong@nist.gov after the date and time specified for receipt of Quotes may not be considered unless it is determined by the Contracting Officer that the submitted quotation is advantageous to the Government and/or is received before a purchase order is issued.

b. Quotes can only be submitted electronically. This is also applicable to any modified quotes. The request to withdraw a quote must be submitted electronically to the contract specialist and contracting officer.

F. Schedule Line Item Line Item 00:

Description: Cylindrical Vacuum Chamber Quantity: One (1)

END OF SECTION 3

SECTION 4: BASIS OF AWARD

A. Basis of Award – Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) The Government will award a firm fixed price purchase order resulting from this solicitation once the Contractor is verified as responsible and the quotation conforming to the solicitation is found to be the lowest price technically acceptable offer.

B. Evaluation Criteria The Government intends to award a single purchase order from this RFQ to the responsible offeror whose quotation, conforming to the solicitation, is the lowest price, technically acceptable quotation. The Government reserves the right not to award a purchase order.

Technically acceptable means that the offeror provides the equipment/services as specified in the Statement of Work. No prototypes or demonstration models will be considered. Evaluation of technical capability shall be based on the information provided in the quotation. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will evaluate whether the offeror has demonstrated that its proposed equipment/supplies meet all minimum requirements. If an offeror does not demonstrate how the equipment/services meet the required technical specifications NIST will determine the offer is not technically acceptable.

The proposed pricing will be evaluated to determine that the total price is consistent with the technical portion of the quotation and is a fair and reasonable overall price to the Government.

NIST intends to evaluate quotations and issue a purchase order based on the initial quotes received. Therefore, the offerors initial quote should contain the offerors best terms from a price and technical standpoint. NIST reserves the right to request revised quotes from, or negotiate final contract terms with, one or more, but not all, Contractors if later determined by the Contracting Officer to be necessary.

END OF SECTION 4

SECTION 5: STATEMENT OF WORK

NIST Requirements Document Title: Cylindrical Vacuum Chamber Requesting Lab: National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) Physical Measurements Lab (PML)

Background The NIST Sensor Science Division is responsible for advancing the measurement science, standards, and applications for sensing optical power, temperature, humidity, pressure, vacuum, flow, and related physical phenomena to support U.S. industry and trade. Our laboratory performs measurements and calibrations using cryogenic optical sources and detectors, and we operate a number of high vacuum chambers and cryostats for these experiments. The custom-designed vacuum chamber to be purchased will house a vacuum far-infrared source that will be used in the development and characterization of far-infrared optical systems and detectors.

Scope The contractor shall deliver a quantity of one (1) cylindrical vacuum chamber, inclusive of FOB Destination delivery terms (or equivalent terms, such as INCOTERMS Delivered Duties Paid) , and warranty.

Minimum Requirements The vendor shall submit a firm fixed price quotation for all line items. The offered products must meet or exceed the minimum requirements 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 not authorized for sale in the U.S. by the Contractor is not acceptable. All line items shall be shipped in the original manufacturer’s packaging and include all original documentation and software, when applicable.

Line Item 0001 Description: Cylindrical Vacuum Chamber Quantity: One (1)

A. Technical Specifications

1. Post award offer NIST will provide the contractor with design drawings for the fabrication of the vacuum chamber. Minor adjustments to the original design may be made to the NIST design to better conform to the contractor’s capabilities.

2. Must be able to reach high vacuum levels down to < 7.5 ´ 10-7 Torr (~ 1.0 ´ 10-4 Pa).

3. Cylindrical chamber must be fabricated with feet or a cradle, so that it can be mounted in a stable way to a cart or table.

4. High Vacuum Specifications:

a. Must be leak tight in leak testing down to 5 ´ 10-12 Torr∙L/s

b. Welds must be leak tested and exhibit no virtual leaks

c. Must reach pressure < 7.5 ´ 10-7 Torr in room temperature testing

5. Materials and Finish Specifications:

a. Full construction manufactured from stainless steel (304L or 316L) or aluminum

b. Finish may be brushed, polished, or electropolished

6. Chamber Geometry and Ports/Flanges Specifications:

a. All Ports and flanges must be standard ISO or Conflat sizes as indicated in design drawings.

Deliverables

Standards of Acceptance: The NIST TPOC shall review the initial and final design drawings and respond with an acceptance or request for revision email to the Contractor Point of Contact (POC) within seven (7) days of receipt of deliverable.

Delivery Delivery shall be FOB Destination (or equivalent terms, such as INCOTERMS Delivered Duties Paid) are required and shall occur not later than (NLT) 120 days after receipt of order (ARO).

FOB Destination means: The contractor shall 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 shall deliver all Line Items to:

The National Institute of Standards and Technology 100 Bureau Drive, BLDG 301 (receiving)

C/O TBD BLDG 221

Gaithersburg, MD 20899

Inspection and 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, shall 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.

Performance Tests:

1. The vacuum chamber must be tested by the manufacturer prior to shipping to ensure that it is leak tight and meets the geometric specifications of the design.

2. The system will be inspected for damage and then inspected for compliance with the machine drawing design.

3. If the manufactured chamber matches the design, the chamber will be blanked off at its ports and pumped out to test if it can reach the required room temperature base pressure of < 7.5 x 10-7 Torr.

The Government will test, inspect, and accept the equipment onsite within 7 business days of the receipt. Visual inspection of the vacuum chamber will be performed by the NIST TPOC to identify surface defects or any form of indication that the vacuum chamber was damaged during transport to NIST. The Government shall 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 shall reject the custom vacuum chamber due to defects and/or nonconformance.

Warranty The contractor shall warrant the entire system for a period of a minimum of 1 year after receipt of the equipment and shall be in accordance with terms in FAR 52.212-4

Payment Schedule Advance payment is not authorized. The Contractor must invoice in arrears according to the payment schedule. The Contractor shall be paid, in accordance with Net 30-day payment terms, upon receipt and acceptance of a proper invoice. An invoice will not be accepted if submitted prior the Government’s acceptance of the devices unless the Contracting Officer has accepted an alternate payment schedule.

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 shall be submitted with vendor’s response to the RFQ for consideration.

Attachments

1. Front View Drawing

2. Side View Drawing

3. Top View Drawing

END OF SECTION 5

SECTION 6: SOLICITATION ADMINISTRATION

A. Amendments and Modifications

a. Changes in terms and conditions of this solicitation shall be accomplished by written amendment only.

b. Changes in terms and conditions of any resulting contract shall be accomplished only by written modification signed by the Contracting Officer.

END OF SECTION 6

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