NB643020-25-02228 Statement of Work.pdf

STATEMENT OF WORK

TITLE: Procurement of a Fully Motorized Light Microscope System

NB643020-25-02228

LAB REQUESTING SERVICE: Material Measurement Laboratory, Materials Measurement Science Division

I. BACKGROUND and OBJECTIVES

The National Institute of Standards and Technology, Microscopy and Microanalysis Research Group performs fundamental research and develops metrology towards the compositional and morphological characterization of materials from the mesoscale to the nanoscale including electron, ion, and photon interactions with matter; detailed measurements, comprehensive analysis and modeling, and theoretical methods serve to advance microanalysis to address stakeholder needs in diverse areas of materials science.

The objective of this contract effort is to purchase a fully motorized microscope system that can be integrated into a correlative workflow that includes two existing Carl Zeiss Axioscan automated slide scanner systems (NIST property #s N132938 and 943994) that NIST is currently using in its particle analysis pipeline developed under an interagency agreement funding. This acquisition will allow continued development of an autonomous correlative particle analysis pipeline with the added functionality of automated high-resolution brightfield and polarized microscopy imaging of individual particles of interest identified from the whole slide images acquired using the Carl Zeiss Axioscan7 using the integrated coordinate transform capability provided through Zen Connect.

II. SCOPE OF WORK

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor shall provide a fully motorized Carl Zeiss Axio Imager microscope system to be used by the Materials Measurement Science Division, Materials Measurement Laboratory (MML) located in Gaithersburg, MD, in support of an on-going development of an automated, computer-controlled, particle analysis pipeline, funded through an interagency agreement.

The required fully motorized light microscope will become the high-resolution imaging component of a correlative workflow that will be integrated into an autonomous particle analysis pipeline NIST has developed. The new microscope must seamlessly integrate with the existing NIST particle analysis pipeline to perform microscopic imaging of samples under study. To achieve this, the microscope must have the requisite hardware and data interoperability (in the form of microscope hardware control application programming interface (API), stage coordinates, image file format, image metadata format, image quality, and image magnification comparability) to allow for rapid integration into the existing analysis pipeline without additional API development.

III. SPECIFICATIONS

The Contractor shall provide one (1) Carl Zeiss Axio Imager Motorized Microscope that meets or exceeds the following requirements:

System Requirements

1. The system shall be a fully motorized optical microscope with transmitted and reflected bright field imaging and polarized imaging.

2. The system shall have at a minimum motorized z-drive, motorized 6-position nosepiece, motorized turret, motorized light control, and motorized illumination control.

3. The system shall have a fully motorized stage that meets the following requirements:

a. The stage shall accommodate at least one 26 mm x 77 mm slide at a fixed repeatable position with a mechanical stop.

b. The stage travel range shall be at least 75 mm by 50 mm.

c. The stage shall have max speed of 100 m/s, 0.1 um resolution, +/- 1 um reproducibility, and

+/- 5 um position accuracy.

d. The stage shall accommodate maximum weight of 1 kg.

4. The system shall have a XY joystick interface for stage control.

5. The system shall include an illuminator for the transmitted and reflected light illumination.

6. The system shall be equipped with a polarizer and analyzer for the polarized imaging.

7. The system shall be equipped with a motorized condenser.

8. The system shall include EC Epiplan-Neofluar 10x and 20x objectives, or comparable, for transmitted light and polarized imaging with no cover glasses and long working distances (9.3 mm WD for 10x and 2.1 mm for 20x objectives).

9. The system shall include an optional EC Epiplan-Neofluar 50x objective and an optional EC EPN 100x objective.

10. The system shall include an object marker for marking the specimen.

11. The system shall include a Zeiss Axiocam 705C or comparable camera (5 megapixel USB3 (universal serial bus) color camera with minimum pixel size of 3.45 um x 3.45 um and pixel array dimension of 2464 x 2056 and support for adjustable camera functions).

12. The system shall include Zeiss Zen 3.12 or higher version image acquisition and processing software.

13. The system shall include Zeiss Zen Connect software for correlative workflow with the existing Zeiss

Axioscan systems.

14. The system shall include acquisition software to manage motorized and automated imaging processes.

15. The system shall include the developer toolkit for custom control of the system.

16. The system shall operate on 115 V AC and 60 Hz power.

Manual The contractor shall provide one (1) electronic version of the operations and maintenance manual stating the manufacturer’s operating standards, and directions on system operation, maintenance and troubleshooting.

Installation The Contractor shall install the instrument at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 217, Room F112, Gaithersburg, MD 20899. Installation shall include, at a minimum, uncrating/unpacking of all equipment, set-up and hook-up of all equipment, start-up, demonstration of specifications, and removal of all trash. Installation shall take place during normal business hours, between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm Eastern Time, Monday through Friday except Federal Holidays, and shall be coordinated with the NIST Technical Point of Contact (TPOC). Installation shall occur within 30 days after receipt of instrument.

Training The Contractor shall provide training for up to two (2) NIST personnel at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 217, Room F112, Gaithersburg, MD 20899. Training shall include a basic demonstration of the equipment functions, equipment operation, and basic troubleshooting.

The training may be completed on-site at NIST immediately after installation and demonstration of specifications. Training shall be provided during normal business hours, between 8:30am and 5:00pm Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays, and shall be coordinated with the NIST Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) to ensure maximum availability of NIST personnel. Training shall occur within 10 days of installation.

Warranty The Contractor shall provide, at a minimum, a one-year warranty for the equipment. The warranty shall cover all parts from defects, labor, and travel. The warranty shall commence upon successful completion of delivery, installation, training, and demonstration of all required specifications.

IV. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Delivery, installation, training, and maintenance services shall be accomplished at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 217, Room F112, Gaithersburg, MD 20899.

Normal duty hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with the exception of Federal holidays.

V. DELIVERABLES

Description Quantity Due Date

Delivery of the microscope system. One 160 days after award of this requirement.

Microscope Operational Manual One 160 days after award of this requirement.

Installation Once 30 days after receipt of instrument

Training for two (2) NIST personnel Once 10 days after installation

VI. ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA

Formal acceptance of the system shall be given at the time the Contractor successfully demonstrates that all performance standards in this statement of work have been met.

The microscope system shall be completely installed and must function according to manufacturer’s specifications. Additionally, an operations and maintenance manual shall be provided which must describe procedures for operating and maintaining the scanner system. The NIST TPOC shall review deliverables and determine if these criteria are met.

VII. TRAVEL

The Contractor shall travel to the NIST, Gaithersburg campus for installation, training, and maintenance services. All travel expenses shall be included in the firm fixed price of this contract.

VIII. MINIMUM CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS

The Contractor shall be responsible for ensuring certified and trained service engineer(s) are provided to install the automated slide scanner system.

IX. GENERAL INFORMATION

Safety: The Contractor employee shall 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 also is shown to the armed Security Police when entering the campus.

Regular Business Hours. Regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Time.

Identification Badges: Contractor employees shall comply with NIST identification and access requirements. Each Contractor employee shall 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 shall be displayed on the vehicle in accordance with NIST Security Office instructions.