17T0189.rtf

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

MARKET RESEARCH

PR: 0011007260

ASFI CLASSIFICATION: A

NAICS: 541711 Research and Development in Biotechnology

SIC: 8999

FSC: AJ51

Size Standard: 1,000

CLASSIFICATION CODE AND TITLE:

SOLICITATION NUMBER: W81XWH-17-T-0189

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

POSTING DATE: 02 June 2017

RESPONSE DATE: 15 JUNE 2017

SUBJECT: Off-Target Broad Panel Screening of Novel Therapeutic Candidates

DESCRIPTION:

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) TO DETERMINE IF THERE ARE SMALL BUSINESSES AVAILABLE AND CAPABLE OF PROVIDING BROAD PANEL SCREENING OF NOVEL THERAPEUTIC CANDIDATES.

THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) OR A REQUEST FOR QUOTATIONS (RFQ); IT IS STRICTLY AN RFI FOR THE PURPOSES OF MARKET RESEARCH. NEITHER UNSOLICITED PROPOSALS NOR ANY OTHER KINDS OF OFFERS WILL BE CONSIDERED IN RESPONSE TO THIS SOURCE SOUGHT. NO CONTRACT WILL BE AWARDED PURSUANT TO THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

The United States Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA) is conducting market research on behalf of the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), located at Fort Detrick, Maryland. The research is to determine the availability of small business sources capable of providing non-personal scientific support services for conducting off-target broad panel binding analysis of novel therapeutic candidates. Information gathered from this notice will assist with determining the procurement strategy prior to issuance of a solicitation.

DISCLAIMER:

This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. Neither unsolicited proposals nor any other kind of offers will be considered in response to this RFI. Responses to this notice are not offers and will not be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Respondents are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked Proprietary will be handled accordingly. Information and representative samples as responses to the RFI will not be returned. At this time, USAMRIID will not entertain any questions concerning the composition, requirements, or the nature of services to be performed under any future RFP.

BACKGROUND:

Since 1969, USAMRIID has served as the Department of Defense's (DoD) lead laboratory for medical biological defense research. While its core mission is to protect the warfighter from biological threats, USAMRIID also investigates disease outbreaks and threats to public health. Research conducted leads to medical solutions—therapeutics, vaccines, diagnostics, and information—that benefit both military personnel and civilians. USAMRIID is a subordinate laboratory of the United States Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC) at Fort Detrick, located in Frederick, MD.

For some of the most serious biothreat agents, such as alphaviruses, Burkholderia pseudo mallei, and Klebsiella pneumonia, there are still no Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved therapeutic treatments available to the warfighter. Various programs at USAMRIID have focused on screening novel small molecule libraries in efforts to identify potential therapeutics to treat these biothreat agents. However, many compounds that are found to be active against biothreat agents in vitro do not selectively modulate a single pharmacological target at efficacious drug plasma levels in vivo. This ‘off-target pharmacology’ often either confounds the interpretation of in vivo results or leads to off-target toxicity, precluding if from further development. The most efficient way to asses a compound for off-target pharmacology is to test it for activity against a broad panel of receptors, channels and enzymes. The purpose of this requirement is to identify a source to conduct broad panel screening to evaluate off-target pharmacology of compounds to support further evaluation of these molecules in vivo.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Respondents should address the following in their capabilities statement:

A product development plan demonstrating realistic and attainable timelines for conducting off-target broad panel screening of novel therapeutic candidates that have been identified by USAMRIID that warrant further evaluation.

The Government anticipates release of a solicitation to industry for a single Firm Fixed Priced Purchase Order with a Period of Performance consisting of one (1) twelve-month base period plus four (4) optional periods that total forty eight (48) months.

Upon review of industry response to this RFI, the Government will determine whether the requirement will be solicited on a small business set aside or full and open basis. It is requested that all interested parties submit to the contracting office a brief capabilities statement package (no more than 10 pages in length) demonstrating its ability to perform the requested services.

RESPONSE SUBMISSION:

Responses are due on Monday, 15 June 2017 by 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time to the attention of Ms. Sharon Smith, email: sharon.r.smith.civ@mail.mil.

Responses in reference to this RFI shall be submitted via e-mail. Please include point of contact, phone number, email address, and web site information. Respondents shall certify whether the company they represent is a U.S. business. The response should describe the company’s capability to offer, field, and sustain a solution as characterized by the requirements addressed in this RFI. If unable to provide a solution capable of meeting all requirements, the respondent should offer tradeoff considerations for unmet requirements.

Respondents should mark all proprietary data as appropriate. USAMRAA and USAMRIID will protect proprietary information from unauthorized use and disclosure. Unless clearly marked otherwise, submission of a response to this RFI signifies agreement to allow USAMRIID personnel to use the information to aid in developing an acquisition approach.

OWNERSHIP OF RESPONSE TO RFI:

All material submitted in response to this RFI shall become the property of Government.

RELEASE OF CLAIMS, LIABILITY, AND PREPARATION EXPENSES:

Under no circumstances shall the Government be responsible for any contractor expenses in preparation of this RFI, such as: submission costs, any other expenses, costs, damages, or whatever nature incurred. Respondent understands and agrees that respond submission is at their own risk and expense, and the Government is released from any claim for damages or other liability arising out of the RFI process.

The Government is not obligated to and will not pay for any information received from potential sources as a result of this notice.