Sources Sought Notice_FINAL.pdf

Request for Information/ Sources Procurement of Open Radio Access Network (ORAN) System Sought Notice for

Notice ID: AMD-SSN-26-00003

Contract Opportunity Type Sources Sought

Response Date: 06/17/2026

Product Service Code 7A - IT and Telecom – Applications

NAICS Code 513210 - Software Publishers

BACKGROUND

This is a notice to Request Information (RFI)/Sources Sought Notice (SSN) from industry to help determine the availability and capability of small business and other than small businesses that are capable of providing any or all of the services required by the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). NIST is conducting market research to identify potential sources that can provide complete ORAN solution as detailed in Attachment I.

This notice is strictly to request information for market research purposes to help NIST determine the appropriate acquisition strategy for this requirement. This notice shall not be construed as a solicitation, an obligation, or commitment by the NIST.

OVERVIEW

The NIST has a need for to acquire a complete, functional end-to-end ORAN 5G system integrated with our existing 3gpp compliant 5G core. The required system shall consist of an Open Radio Unit, an Open Distributed Unit, an Open Centralized Unit and the hardware platforms that support it.

***See Attachment I: Draft Statement of Work (SOW)

ANTICIPATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

NIST anticipates that it will require services that are similar to those in the Draft SOW for one year, with the the ability of a 6-month extension in accordance with FAR clause 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services.

INFORMATION REQUESTED FROM INDUSTRY SOURCES:

NIST invites industry sources to review this notice carefully and to familiarize themselves with the Draft SOW. Thereafter, NIST encourages those sources to submit the following:

• Company Summary:

1. Notice ID and its Title for this posting

2. Your company’s name, address, website address and Unique Entity Identifier (if the company has one)

3. Company point of contact, their phone number, and their email address

4. Your company’s size status as it relates to NAICS 513210 - Software Publishers. See table of business size standards at https://www.sba.gov/document/support-table-size-standards for more information.

5. Indicate whether your company has an active registration for procurement purposes in sam.gov.

• Draft SOW: Please provide any suggestions to improve the Draft SOW in a way that makes it more clear and as competitive as possible.

• Potential evaluation factors for upcoming solicitation: Please provide any suggested evaluation factors for award that you believe would be meaningful for NIST to consider using for the forthcoming competitive acquisition.

• Standard Commercial Pricing: If your company has standard commercial pricing for its standard commercial products/services, please explain what it includes. You may also provide an estimate for the Draft SOW requirements if you would like to do so. Do not include a proposal with specific pricing for the Draft SOW; such information will not be considered. NIST will use commercial pricing information to help it estimate a fair market price for the upcoming acquisition.

Please note this section does not count toward the page limit.

• Safety and Handling: If applicable, detail your company’s safety program.

• Transportation and Regulations: If applicable, detail your how your company ensures compliance with applicable U.S. Department of Transportation regulations.

• Quality and Purity: If applicable, detail your company’s experience with meeting high-purity standards.

• Operational Requirements: If applicable, detail your company’s capability to monitor liquid tank levels remotely and the ability to have Government personnel users access that information.

• Subcontracting Compliance: Detail if your company is a small business for the NAICS code included in this notice, indicate whether your company can comply with FAR clause 52.219-14, Limitations on Subcontracting (OCT 2022), if this acquisition were to be conducted as a total small business set-aside and provide supporting explanation. See https://www.acquisition.gov/far/part-52#FAR_52_219_14 for the full text of this clause.

• Existing Contract Vehicles: Indicate whether your company has a GSA Multiple Award Schedule contract or other federal contract under which NIST would be authorized to place an order., if so, provide a copy of that contract (including contract number, name and contact information for contracting officer, contract SOW, contract terms and conditions and contract prices).

The Government reserves the right to follow up on a one-on-one basis with respondents to request additional information or clarifications about information submitted.

THIS IS STRICTLY MARKET RESEARCH. NIST WILL NOT RESPOND TO QUESTIONS REGARDING

THE RESULTS OF THIS MARKET RESEARCH. REQUESTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION WILL

https://www.sba.gov/document/support-table-size-standards https://www.acquisition.gov/far/part-52#FAR_52_219_14

NOT BE PROVIDED.

SUBMMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Interested parties shall submit responses to by the closing date of this notice to robert.cowins@nist.gov .

• Microsoft Word (or PDF) document, and 12-inch font.

• Submission shall not exceed ten (10) pages. Any cover page OR Standard Commercial Pricing

Sections is not included in the total page count.

• Respondents are requested to state their capabilities and expertise in clear and concise language.

• Respondents are strongly encouraged to avoid use of excessive marketing and sales language

Cover Page Respondents shall include the following Business information on the Cover Page:

1. Sources Sought Notice number, title, and date of issuance

2. Unique Entity ID

3. Company Name

4. Company Address

5. company website address,

6. Company Point of Contact, Phone, and Email address

7. Validation of business status under NAICS: 513210 - Software Publishers

See table of business size standards at https://www.sba.gov/document/support-table-size-standards for more information.

8. Indicate whether your company has an active registration for procurement purposes in sam.gov.

This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of NIST.

NIST does not intend to award a contract based on responses nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. As a result of this notice, NIST may issue a Request for Quote (RFQ) or Request for Proposal (RFP).

THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against NIST shall arise because of a response to this notice or NIST’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation

Confidentiality Do not include proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information in a response to this notice. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary information as it deems appropriate in establishing requirements for its upcoming acquisition.

mailto:robert.cowins@nist.gov

Teaming Arrangements Firms seeking to respond to this notice as a team or to rely on subcontractors to perform any portion of the work must include the above-requested information and certifications for each entity on the proposed team or each proposed subcontractor. Any proposed teaming arrangement proposed by small business must comply with FAR clause 52.219-14, Limitations on Subcontracting (OCT 2022).

DISCLAIMER

This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed. Information provided will be used to help NIST assess alternatives available for the potential requirement and may lead to the development of a solicitation. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received and other market research, NIST may publish a solicitation on SAM.gov or on GSA ebuy, depending on the acquisition strategy chosen by NIST. NIST will not consider proposals submitted directly in response to this notice for award. Responses received after the closing date for this notice may not be considered for market research purposes.