Sources Sought Notice_NLM OCCS_Chemical Database Support_ChemiDplus v2.pdf

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE: NLM/ Office of Computer and Communications Systems (OCCS) Services.

Notice Number:

75N97021R00007

Issued By:

National Library of Medicine (NLM), Office of Acquisitions (OA) https://www.nlm.nih.gov/oam/oamhome.html

Key Dates:

Capability Statement Due Date: May 19, 2021 by 11:00AM EST

This Small Business Sources Sought Notice (SBSS) is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the National Library of Medicine (NLM).

The purpose of this Sources Sought Notice is to identify qualified small business concerns including 8(a), HUBZone or Service-Disabled Veteran-owned business concerns that are interested in and capable of performing the work described herein. The NLM does not intend to award a contract on the basis of responses received nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. An organization that is not considered a small business under the applicable NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice. This requirement is assigned North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 518210 with a size standard of $35.0 M is being considered.

As a result of this Sources Sought Notice, the NLM may issue a combined synopsis solicitation through FedBizOpps. THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against the NLM shall arise as a result of a response to this Sources Sought Notice or the NLM’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent requirement.

The Office of Computer and Communications Systems (OCCS) provides efficient, cost-effective computing and networking services, technical advice, and collaboration in informational sciences in support of the research and management programs offered through the NLM.

The OCCS develops and provides the NLM backbone computer networking facilities, and supports, guides, and assists other NLM components in local area networking. The Division provides professional programming services and computational and data processing facilities to meet the NLM program needs; operates and maintains the NLM Computer Center; designs and develops software; and provides extensive customer support, training courses and seminars, and documentation for computer and network users.

The OCCS helps to coordinate, integrate, and standardize the vast array of computer services available throughout all of the organizations comprising the NLM. The Division also serves as a technological resource for other parts of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) and for other Federal organizations with biomedical, statistical, and administrative computing needs.

The Division promotes the application of High Performance Computing and Communication to biomedical problems, including image processing.

The OCCS staff develops computer-based systems for information retrieval applications, conducts computer science and engineering research and development, and consults and collaborates in the area of advanced electronic office automation facilities. In addition, the OCCS support software systems to perform these services, and conduct research and evaluations for best fit solutions to information access needs.

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/oam/oamhome.html

A. Background Information

Analysis of ChemIDplus data, features, and usage

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) offers a variety of toxicological and environmental health databases to the public through the web including the ChemIDplus database. The files are built and maintained by the National Library of Medicine. The database is updated every day, and new features and data are required to be kept in synchronization for the users. This is crucial because the ChemIDplus points to over 100 internet resources, including PubMed and PubChem. A specialized component of the ChemIDplus database is the chemical structure data and search capability. Specifically, 2D structures are entered and updated, and 3D chemical structures and structure identifiers must be generated from these structures for the database. Moreover, the loading of these structures must be incorporated into the database maintenance system to allow public access and searching of these structures by scientists, other professionals, and the general public.

B. Purpose and Objectives

The NLM requires professional services for integration, analysis and development of chemical structure data and software with the ChemIDplus database system. The purpose is to generate 3D chemical structures and other chemical structure identifiers, including Simplified Molecular Input Line Entry Specification (SMILES) and International Chemical Identifier (InChI) and its corresponding InChI Key for incorporation into the database.

Also, professional services are required to assist database web developers with complex code to integrate chemical structure software within the database maintenance system.

C. Scope of Work

Tasks include the following:

1. Maintain 3D structures using Corina for all compounds in ChemIDplus.

2. Maintain SMILES strings and InChI strings and keys for all compounds.

3. Maintain a maintenance program to generate these data when a structure is entered or modified.

4. Modify maintenance and retrieval web pages as needed for new features in ChemIDplus.

5. Run the program Accelrys Cheshire to systematize the representation of chemical structures in

ChemIDplus using a web interface.

6. Assist database web developers with complex code to integrate chemical structure software within the database maintenance system.

7. Ensure proper editing and normalizing of chemical structures for accurate database querying and rendering.

8. Use Pipeline Pilot to clean up chemical structures.

9. Travel approximately once per year to attend and participate in a 1 or 2- day, multi-agency, chemical database meeting or conference held in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, if scheduled.

D. Required Qualifications and Skills

The Developer shall possess an advanced degree in chemistry, toxicology or closely related field of science. A Master’s degree is required, but a PhD is preferred. Extensive background and experience in chemical and biological information is required, including Oracle experience. The Developer must possess specialized knowledge and experience with chemical structure software and technologies including BIOVIA, Pipeline Pilot, CORINA, Cheshire, Accelrys Draw, Accelrys Direct, JDraw, JSDraw, JMol, CHIME, SMILES, InCHI strings and keys, molfiles and SDfiles.

E. Government Responsibilities

The Contracting Officer Representative (COR) will provide tasks and assign relative priority and determine appropriate timelines which will vary.

F. Government-Furnished Information

The NLM will provide IT equipment, such as government furnished equipment (a laptop), all required hardcopy and access to electronic resources needed for tasks specified in this SOW.

G. Transition Plan

To ensure an orderly transition of contract-related materials to a successor contractor, the Contractor (the incumbent) shall accomplish the following Transition Plan:

Sixty days prior to completion of this Purchase Order, the Contractor shall submit to the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), for review and approval, a written Transition Plan. The Contractor shall make any necessary edits and/or modifications based upon the COR’s feedback and submit a final approved plan no later than 30 days prior to the completion of this Purchase Order.

The Contractor shall transfer any equipment, data, back-up tapes, disk drives and software to the successor Contractor per procedures received from the COR. Complete documentation shall accompany all software. Any software and documentation developed for all systems under this Purchase Order shall be the property of the Government.

The Contractor shall provide the successor Contractor with all acquired publications, reprints, abstracts and any other documents, results of all searches, database entries, and files necessary for the continuation of the work under this Purchase Order to a successor Contractor.

H. Reporting Requirements and Deliverables

A monthly progress report is required and is due by the 10th of the following month (i.e. July report due by August 10th) and submitted via email to the COR. The Contractor shall attend weekly or bi-weekly meetings as scheduled by the COR. Deliverables include file updates and system modifications as needed. After the COR approves the analysis of upgrades to ChemIDplus, the changes are entered into the system. The Contractor shall bill/invoice each month (specific billing instructions will be provided within the purchase order).

I. Section 508 Compliance

The Contractor shall provide completed tasks and deliverables that comply with the following Section 508 criteria for information and communications technology (ICT), Section 508 related information can be found at https://section508.gov.

Technical Criteria: Information Content Services | Section508.gov

• E205.1 General Electronic content shall comply with E205.

• E205.2 Public Facing - Electronic content that is public facing shall conform to the accessibility requirements specified in E205.4, with the exception of these four requirements:

Exceptions:

• 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks -

• 2.4.5 Multiple Ways -

• 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation -https://section508.gov/ https://www.section508.gov/sample-procurement/information-content-services

• 3.2.4 Consistent Identification -

All functional Performance Criteria, as follows here, are applicable:

• 301.1 Scope - The requirements of Chapter 3 shall apply to ICT where required by 508 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), 255 Chapter 2 (Scoping Requirements), and where otherwise referenced in any other chapter of the Revised 508 Standards or Revised 255 Guidelines.

• 302.1 Without Vision - Where a visual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require user vision.

• 302.2 With Limited Vision - Where a visual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that enables users to make use of limited vision.

• 302.3 Without Perception of Color - Where a visual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one visual mode of operation that does not require user perception of color.

• 302.4 Without Hearing - Where an audible mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require user hearing.

• 302.5 With Limited Hearing - Where an audible mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that enables users to make use of limited hearing.

• 302.6 Without Speech - Where speech is used for input, control, or operation, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require user speech.

• 302.7 With Limited Manipulation - Where a manual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that does not require fine motor control or simultaneous manual operations.

• 302.8 With Limited Reach and Strength - Where a manual mode of operation is provided, ICT shall provide at least one mode of operation that is operable with limited reach and limited strength.

• 302.9 With Limited Language, Cognitive, and Learning Abilities - ICT shall provide features making its use by individuals with limited cognitive, language, and learning abilities simpler and easier.

Requirements for accessibility based on Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), with updates from the “Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Final Standards and Guidelines (36 CFR Parts 1193 and 1194).

The ICT Section 508 ‘refresh” also directs conformance with WCAG 2.0 standards (Levels A and AA). All electronic documents submitted shall be conformant with Section 508 and the ICT. Additional information about testing documents for Section 508 compliance, including specific checklists, by application, can be found at:

http://www.hhs.gov/web/508/index.html under "Making Files Accessible." Document formatting instructions and checklists can be found at http://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/making-files-accessible/index.html. The Government reserves the right to inspect and evaluate any document, or application interface, for Section 508-conformance and accessibility.

J. Period of Performance

The period of performance shall be for a 12-month Base Period plus two successive 12-month Option Periods from award date. The anticipated award date is September 2021.

K. Inspection and Acceptance Requirements

The NLM COR will assign tasks and work will be reviewed for completeness and quality.

L. Estimated Effort

The Contractor shall provide the following resources (estimated, not to exceed) in the performance of the SOW:

LABOR HOURS (Estimated, Not To Exceed)

Categories Base Period

(12 months, 9/17/2021- 9/16/2022)

Option Period 1

(12 months, 9/17/2022- 9/16/2023)

Option Period 2

(12 months, 9/17/2023- 9/16/2024)

Total 3 Years

Base Effort:

Developer 200 200 200 600

Total Labor Hours (Estimated, Not to Exceed)

200 200 200 600

Period of Performance is 12 months from effective date of award with options for 2 additional years if the contract exercises.

M. POST-AWARD EVALUATION OF CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE

Contractor Performance Evaluations

Interim and final evaluations of the Contractor performance will be prepared on this Purchase Order in accordance with FAR 42.15. The final performance evaluation will be prepared at the time of completion of work. In addition to the final evaluation, interim evaluations will be prepared annually to coincide with the anniversary date of the Purchase Order.

Interim and final evaluations will be provided to the Contractor as soon as practicable after completion of the evaluation. The Contractor will be permitted thirty days to review the document and submit additional information or a rebutting statement. If an agreement cannot be reached between the parties, the matter will be referred to an individual one level above the Contracting Officer, whose decision will be final.

Copies of the evaluations, the Contractor responses, and review comments, if any, will be retained as part of the Purchase Order file, and may be used to support future award decisions.

Electronic Access to Contractor Performance Evaluations

The Contractors may access evaluations through a secure Web site for review and comment at the following address: http://www.cpars.gov

N. CONTRACTING OFFICER’S REPRESENTATIVE (COR)

The following Contracting Officer’s Representative(s) (CORs) will represent the Government for the purpose of this Purchase Order:

COR: TBD

The COR is responsible for: (1) monitoring the Contractor's technical progress, including the surveillance and assessment of performance and recommending to the Contracting Officer changes in requirements; (2) interpreting the SOW and any other technical performance requirements; (3) performing technical evaluation as required; (4) performing technical inspections and acceptances required by this Purchase Order; and (5) assisting in the resolution of technical problems encountered during performance.

The Contracting Officer is the only person with authority to act as agent of the Government under this Purchase Order. Only the Contracting Officer has authority to: (1) direct or negotiate any changes in the SOW;

(2) modify or extend the period of performance; (3) change the delivery schedule; (4) authorize reimbursement to the Contractor for any costs incurred during the performance of this Purchase Order; (5) otherwise change any terms and conditions of this Purchase Order; or (6) sign written licensing agreements. Any signed agreement shall be incorporated by reference in Provision 32.0, ATTACHMENTS, of this SOW.

The Government may unilaterally change its COR designation.

O. KEY PERSONNEL, HHSAR 352.237-75 (December 2015)

The key personnel specified in this Purchase Order are considered to be essential to work performance. At least 30 days prior to the Contractor voluntarily diverting any of the specified individuals to other programs or contracts, the Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer and shall submit a justification for the diversion or replacement and a request to replace the individual. The request must identify the proposed replacement and provide an explanation of how the replacement's skills, experience, and credentials meet or exceed the requirements of the Purchase Order. If the employee of the Contractor is terminated for cause or separates from the Contractor voluntarily with less than thirty days’ notice, the Contractor shall provide the maximum notice practicable under the circumstances. The Contractor shall not divert, replace, or announce any such change to key personnel without the written consent of the Contracting Officer. This Purchase Order will be modified to add or delete key personnel as necessary to reflect the agreement of the parties.

(End of Clause)

The following are Key Personnel:

Labor Category

Developer/Chemist

P. NON-PERSONAL SERVICES AND INHERENTLY GOVERNMENTAL FUNCTIONS

Pursuant to FAR 37.1, no personal services shall be performed under this SOW. All work requirements shall flow only from the COR to the Contractor Project Manager. No Contractor employee will be directly supervised by the Government. All individual employee assignments, and daily work direction, shall be given by the applicable Contractor supervisor. If the Contractor believes any Government action or communication has been given that would create a personal services relationship between the Government and any Contractor employee, the Contractor shall promptly notify the Contracting Officer of this communication or action.

Pursuant to FAR 7.5, the Contractor shall not perform any inherently governmental actions under this SOW. No Contractor employee shall hold him or herself out to be a Government employee, agent, or representative. No

Contractor employee shall state orally or in writing at any time that he or she is acting on behalf of the Government. In all communications with third parties in connection with this SOW, the Contractor employees shall identify themselves as Contractor employees and specify the name of the company for which they work. In all communications with other Government Contractors in connection with this SOW, the Contractor employee shall state that they have no authority to in any way change this SOW and that if the other Contractor believes this communication to be a direction to change their contract, the Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer for that contract and not carry out the direction until a clarification has been issued by the Contracting Officer.

The Contractor shall insure that all of its employees working under this SOW are informed of the substance of this article. Nothing in this article shall limit the Government’s rights in any way under the other provisions of this SOW, including those related to the Government’s right to inspect and accept the services to be performed under this SOW. The substance of this article shall be included in all subcontracts at any tier.

Q. ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to ensure that the Contractor (1) is not biased because of its financial, contractual, organizational, or other interest which relate to the work under this Purchase Order, and (2) does not obtain any unfair competitive advantage over other parties by virtue of its performance of this Purchase Order.

Scope: The restrictions described herein shall apply to performance or participation by the Contractor and any of its affiliates or their successors in interest (hereinafter collectively referred to as "Contractor") in activities covered by this article as a prime contractor, subcontractor, cosponsor, joint venture, consultant, or in any similar capacity. For the purpose of this article, affiliation occurs when a business concern is controlled by or has the power to control another or when a third party has the power to control both.

"Organizational conflict of interest" means that because of other activities or relationships with other persons, a person is unable or potentially unable to render impartial assistance or advice to the Government, or the person's objectivity in performing the contract work is or might be otherwise impaired, or a person has an unfair competitive advantage (FAR 9.501). An organizational conflict of interest may result when factors create an actual or potential conflict of interest on an instant contract, or when the nature of the work to be performed on the instant contract creates an actual or potential conflict of interest on a future acquisition (FAR 9.502(c)).

Because of the unusual nature of the work performed under this Purchase Order, and the fact that the Contractor will have access from time to time to sensitive Government information, and because some of the work will be performed in Government facilities, the Government must maintain a special, close relationship with the Contractor and the Contractor's personnel in various important areas.

The Contractor shall not use this privileged information or access to facilities to compete with the private sector.

The Contractor is required to conduct its business in a manner befitting its special relationship with the Government, to operate in the public interest with objectivity and independence, to be free from organizational conflicts of interest, and to have full disclosure of its affairs to the sponsoring agency.

The Contractor shall be ineligible to participate in any capacity in contracts, subcontracts, or proposals therefore (solicited and unsolicited) which stem directly from the Contractor's performance of work under this contract for a period of one (1) year after the completion of this Purchase Order, except as provided hereinafter.

If, under this Purchase Order, the Contractor prepares a complete or essentially complete statement of work or specifications to be used in competitive acquisitions, the Contractor shall be ineligible to perform or participate in any capacity in any contractual effort that is based on such statement of work or specifications. The Contractor shall not incorporate its products or services in such statement of work or specifications unless approved in writing by the Contracting Officer, in which case the restriction in this subparagraph shall not apply.

It is imperative that the Contractor be proactive in order to avoid organizational conflicts of interest. The Contractor shall take all reasonable measures to assure that organizational conflicts of interest do not occur. As part of the Contractor's efforts to avoid organizational conflict of interest situations, the Contractor shall inform the Government of any actual, potential, or apparent conflicts of interest. The Contractor is responsible for providing a detailed written report of actual, potential, or apparent organizational conflicts of interest to the Contracting Officer as soon as the circumstance is known, describing the conflict and how the Contractor plans to resolve the problem.

Subcontracts: The Contractor shall include an article, substantially similar to this article, in subcontracts involving the performance of advisory and assistance services as that term is defined at FAR 37.201. The terms "contract," "contractor," and "contracting officer" shall be appropriately modified to preserve the Government's rights.

R. RIGHTS IN DATA

The Contractor agrees that upon completion (or termination with or without cause) of this Purchase Order, it shall have no property or possessor rights to any of the correspondence, files, or materials of whatever kind or description, or any copies or duplicates of such, whether developed or prepared by it or furnished to it by the Government in connection with the performance of this Purchase Order; and that upon demand it shall surrender immediately to the Contracting Officer such items, matters, materials, and copies.

The Contractor shall not provide any Government documents, information or licensed material in any form to sources not authorized by the Government, during or after performance of this Purchase Order, without the written approval of the COR.

All data/information first produced as a result of performing task assignments under this Purchase Order shall become the Federal Government’s property and the Contractor shall surrender any and all rights to its ownership.

To this end, the Contractor hereby agrees to accept the terms and conditions of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clause 52.227-17, Rights in Data – Special Works (December 2007) which is incorporated into this Purchase Order by reference.

For purposes of this Purchase Order, the FAR 52.227-17, Rights in Data – Special Works (December 2007) clause supersedes the FAR 52.227- 14, Rights in Data – General (December 2007) clause.

How to Submit a Response:

1. Page Limitations:

Interested qualified small business organizations should submit a tailored capability statement for this requirement not to exceed 10 single sided pages including all attachments, resumes, charts, etc. (single spaced, 12 point font minimum) that clearly details the ability to perform the requirements of the notice described above. All proprietary information should be marked as such. Responses should include a minimum of two pages demonstrating experience over the past two years meeting the requirements of this notice. Statements should also include an indication of current certified small business status; this indication should be clearly marked on the first page of your capability statement (preferable placed under the eligible small business concern’s name and address). Responses will be reviewed only by NIH personnel and will be held in a confidential manner.

2. Due Date:

Capability statements are due no later than 11:00 am. EST on May 19, 2021.

3. Delivery Point:

All information furnished must be in writing and must contain sufficient detail to allow the NLM to determine if it can meet the unique specifications described herein. Written responses can be emailed to Kathy Elliott, Contracting Officer at Elliottk@mail.nih.gov or mailed to the address located under Point of Contact. All questions must be in writing and emailed to Elliottk@mail.nih.gov. A determination by the Government not to compete this requirement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. In order to receive an award, Contractors must have valid registration and certification in the System for Award Management (SAM) through www.beta.SAM.gov. No collect calls will be accepted. Please reference number 75N97021R00007 all correspondence.

Disclaimer and Important Notes:

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 to allow the Government to determine the organization’s qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, an RFQ may be published on FedBizOpps.

However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation(s).

Point of Contact:

Inquiries concerning this Notice may be direct to:

Kathy Elliott 6707 Democracy Boulevard, Room 105Q29 Bethesda, MD 20817 Elliottk@mail.nih.gov mailto:Elliottk@mail.nih.gov mailto:Elliottk@mail.nih.gov

LABOR HOURS (Estimated, Not To Exceed)