Flow Cell Packs and Ligation Sequencing Kits

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT.  IT IS NOT A SOLICITATION, NOR DOES IT GUARANTEE A SOLICITATION WILL BE ISSUED.  REQUESTS FOR A SOLICITATION WILL NOT RECEIVE A RESPONSE.

Any information submitted in response to this Sources Sought Announcement is strictly voluntary.  The Government will neither award a contract solely based on this notice, nor pay for any information submitted by respondents.  This notice is a request by the Government to collect information from interested vendors for the purpose of market research.  Failing to provide a response to this announcement will not prohibit/exclude an interested vendor from participating in a future solicitation.

Background:

The Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) requires the procurement of Flow Cell Packs and Ligation Sequencing Kits for the development of a mission-critical molecular tools to genetically sequence environmental and wildlife tissue samples. The Government currently owns Nanopore sequencers, therefore all Flow Cells and kits will need to be compatible with existing equipment.

This procurement will support the development of a novel molecular technique (DNA methylation sex-markers) to identify the sex of hatchling sea turtles; this groundbreaking scientific research will allow for a non-invasive, large-scale, rapid, and real-time assessment of live hatchling sex ratios of all NMFS-managed green sea turtle populations for the first time ever. Since the early 1980s the sea turtle research community has tried and failed to identify a method to determine sea turtle sex because sea turtle hatchling sex is impossible to determine non-lethally and their sex cannot be determined externally until maturity (as sea turtles do not have sex chromosomes). These resulting data and establishment of a viable molecular technique to determine sea turtle hatchling sex can be transferable to all sea turtle species and could substantially accelerate management decisions. 

This procurement supports the development of a cutting-edge genetic tool which will allow for a more economical, efficient, and field-deployable method to identify the species composition of an environmental sample (e.g., water sample) to detect aquatic invasive species, identify seafood species, and assess fisheries resources and habitats. This new tool will allow for rapid data collection in a way that is not currently possible.

North American Industry Classification Code (NAICS):  334516 with a size standard of 1,000 employees.

Interested vendors are requested to provide the following information in response to this Sources Sought Announcement:

1). A statement that you believe your firm has the capability to meet all above stated requirements. 

2). A specification sheet for the proposed equipment

3). Your firm's UEI #

4). Your firm's SBA certified small business concern status.  Specifically identify if your firm is HUBZone-certified, Service Disabled Veteran Owned, or in the SBA’s 8(a) program, etc.  If your firm is not small, please state that it is a large business.

The information provided in response to this announcement is limited to five pages or less.  All information shall be provided free of charge to the Government.  The Government will not return any data provided in response to this announcement. 

This request for information does not constitute a commitment, implied or otherwise, that a procurement action will be issued. 

The Government shall not be liable for or suffer any consequential damages for proprietary information not properly identified.  Proprietary information will be safeguarded in accordance with the applicable Government regulations.

Responses shall be provided to Contracting Officer, Stephanie Garnett via email at Stephanie.M.Garnett@noaa.gov no later than 10:00 AM (Hawaii Time) on August 18, 2025.