Liquid Helium Fill Service for 600 MHz Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectrometer

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Acquisition and Grant Services has published a Special Notice regarding liquid helium fill services for a 600 MHz Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectrometer. This Notice of Intent to Sole Source indicates the FDA's intention to negotiate a firm-fixed-price contract with Bruker BioSpin Corporation for maintenance services at its Office of Pharmaceutical Quality Research facility in St. Louis, Missouri. The contract will operate under FAR 12.201-1 authority and is classified under NAICS code 811210 (Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair and Maintenance) and PSC code J066. The contract period is scheduled to run from April 1, 2026 through March 31, 2027. The FDA has opened this opportunity to interested parties and is accepting quotations through March 14, 2026, while reserving the right to pursue competitive procurement based on responses received.

The primary objective of this Special Notice is to secure liquid helium refill services to maintain the superconducting magnet of the FDA's NMR spectrometer, with two annual fills of 160 liters each anticipated in late March and August or September 2026. Prospective contractors must submit quotations to Contract Specialist Andrea Howard at andrea.howard1@fda.hhs.gov by March 13, 2026 at 10:00 A.M. EST. To be eligible, vendors must be OEM-authorized and certified by Bruker, capable of delivering helium refills within five business days of request while maintaining helium levels above 55%, and compliant with all federal, state, and local regulations regarding hazardous material handling and transport. Additionally, contractors must possess technical expertise to respond to rare quench events and restore magnet performance at no additional cost to the Government, and must provide detailed service reports documenting helium levels before and after each fill. All necessary permits and licenses for helium transportation and handling are the contractor's responsibility.