Questions&Answers_for_RFP_NIHES201800019.pdf

Amendment 1 – Questions and Answers to RFP NIHES201800019 Title: Provision of Barrier Reared and Maintained Rabbits, Rats, Hamsters, Gerbils and Guinea Pigs Date: September 7, 2018

**Please note that the due date for proposal submission is now extended to September 25, 2018 by

4:00 PM EST**

QUESTION 1:

Page 5 - D.1.Packaging - Is there a preferred number of divided compartments?

A: Up to 4 compartments. This is dependent on the number and size of animals, sex of animals and if males whether they have been group housed previously and/or are littermates.

QUESTION 2:

Page 6 – D.2.Marking Are the referenced container labels required if no 3rd party shipper is used?

A: Yes

QUESTION 3:

Page 6 – D.2.Marking Please clarify if the NIEHS release# is the same as the RAD (mentioned on pg 10.)

A: No, the release number is our unique order number specific to that order (eSirius #). The RAD is the contract/task order number used for invoicing.

QUESTION 4:

Page 6 – D.2.Marking Item 7 on packing slip is listed as "Facility Area." Is this related to origin or destination?

A: Facility Area refers to the area of origin.

QUESTION 5:

Pages 6-7 - D.3.Shipping Does ambient temperature between 68 and 78 degrees Fahrenheit refer to the transport vehicle or inside the shipping container?

A: Transport vehicle

QUESTION 6:

Page 14 - H.5.Intro of Rodents and Products Does the Application need to be submitted as part of the RFP or prior to shipment of animals and is this required per shipment or on an annual basis?

A: We have identified an error in this clause. The application will not be required for the RFP and the clause is hereby removed from the solicitation and will be removed from the final contract documents.

QUESTION 7:

RFP Attachment 1 – Packaging and Delivery of Proposals

II. Formatting and Page Limitations A. Formatting for Proposals

1. Proposals shall not include links to internet web site addresses (URLs) or otherwise direct readers to alternate sources of information.

In the proposal, we will provide a comprehensive discussion in response to each RFP requirement.

Available strains, their housing location, and the barrier levels at which each strain is maintained are presented in detail on the public website or the catalogue. May we include links to our public website as references for this information?

A: We will accept links to the websites to access data to compliment the expected comprehensive responses to each RFP requirement.

QUESTION 8:

RFP Attachment 1 – Packaging and Delivery of Proposals In order to provide best cost estimate for proposal, would it be possible to obtain previous 12 months ordering data (species and qty)?

A: In the last 12 months of ordering, the NIEHS has received a total of 19,211 animals (various strains)/ 18,574 Mice and 637 rats from 3 current vendors.

QUESTION 9:

RFP Attachment 3 – SOW - D.1.a.2 In order to assess ability to meet this requirement in full, we would like clarification on approximate expected amounts or past 12 months usage data.

A: Orders of various blood, tissues, organs, and other biological specimens (per SOW D.1.a.2) have been extremely rare. No orders have been placed in the past 12 months, and future use would be based on future research needs.

QUESTION 10:

RFP Attachment 3 – SOW - D.2. (2nd paragraph)

Colony morbidity and mortality data shall be captured… - is this referring to the in-house maintained NIEHS colony or to total production site colony?

A: Colony morbidity and mortality data shall be captured on all in-house maintained NIEHS colonies.

QUESTION 11:

RFP Attachment 3 – SOW - D.3.a Could you provide a list of required surgically modified animals or would it be best to state here which ones we offer?

A: We request that contractor submit a list of surgically modified options.

QUESTION 12:

Attachment 3 – SOW, p. 4 - Additional Rejection Considerations Please clarify health status with regards to animal transportation. Barriers have different health status than isolators, some barriers have different health status from one another, but can be transported within the same vehicle (animals are maintained within their shipping containers from the time they leave their respective isolator/barrier facility). What agents are of concern?

A: As stated in the section entitled, “Additional Rejection Considerations”, we require that any “physical event which…could adversely influence the health status of the animals…shall be reported to the COR within 24 hours of the occurrence.” For transportation of animals, examples may include problems with the environmental control equipment during transport resulting in animal stress or adverse health conditions, loss of integrity of the shipping containers resulting in potential microbial contamination of the animals, etc.

QUESTION 13:

Attachment 3 – SOW – Attachment A The NIEHS Defined Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) Agent Exclusion List does not list which agents are required by animal species; as the RFP covers multiple species, can the Agent Exclusion List specify which animal species are to be screened for which agents?

A: Please see new, updated exclusion list to replace previous Attachment A.

QUESTION 14:

RFP Attachment 9 – Technical & Business Instructions

B. Technical Discussion

1. Quality Control-

Provide a copy of the two most recent health monitoring reports for all facilities from which government animals may be obtained. Provide information on any positive test results obtained during the past 24 months.

May we include a representative health report in our proposal response and reference these links for detailed health reports on each animal facility?

A: Representative samples of the required health report may be submitted by providing links to a website, and can be included to access individual room health data. We request 2 samples, with one showing a positive result. If links are not available, the requested health reports should be provided as requested.

Are all organisms on the SPF exclusion list included, or only Rank 1 organisms? What specific information is requested (date, animal stock/strain, test method, etc?)

A: We want information on any positive results during the last 24 months for all organisms on our SPF list and any organisms for which you test. Our expectation will be that a notice will be sent to indicate a change in the health status of the individual production room whether the organism is on our exclusion list or not. Information should include organism, date, room number, animal stock/strain, and corrective action. Ex. Staphlycoccus aureus in not listed on our exclusion list, however if stock animals have been supplied from a room that has historically been free from this organism, we would expect a notification of the health status change for that room.

QUESTION 15:

B. 3. Facilities Provide a list of animals (including strains and stocks) to be maintained in each room.

We maintain readily available strain/stocks/lines on-the-shelf in numerous Production and Repository rooms. Most Production strains are bred/held in multiple rooms, whereas Repository rooms generally hold many strains/line/stocks. The room location(s) for individual strain/stock/lines is reported on the individual data sheets posted on the Public Website. Could we reference these data sheets, rather than provide lists of strains/stocks/lines by room?

A: We will accept links to public websites if available. Offerors are responsible for ensuring all links are accurate and point to the required information.

QUESTION 16:

B. 3. Husbandry Provide a copy of the following standard operating procedures (SOPs) for 7 different areas.

We do not provide SOPs to external individuals or groups. Could we provide a comprehensive list of our SOPs which apply to various animal facilities? If individual SOPs from this list are required, would NIEHS be willing to work with our Quality group to access all necessary information?

A: A comprehensive list of SOPs can be sent in lieu of the individual SOPs and NIEHS is willing to work with offerors for specific information.

QUESTION 17:

B.5. Organizational Experience

Please clarify what information is requested? Length of time procuring services/models? Number of orders/items, or types of services included? Government contracts awarded?

A: Yes, please include any of information of this type that will provide a brief illustration of the organizational experience.

QUESTION 18:

We request consideration for a two-week extension to the proposal deadline due to the time required to compile proposal information.

A: Due to time constraints, we are unable to grant a full two-week extension. However, we will extend the due date for proposals until 4pm on September 25, 2018.