Notice of Intent to Award a Sole Source Award For Cobalt-60 Reload of Foss Therapy Model 484F-C Cobalt-60 Irradiator

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ), Phoenix Rearing Facility intends to award a sole-source purchase order for Cobalt-60 reload services on a Foss Therapy Model 484F-C Cobalt-60 irradiator, with responses to a capability statement request due September 15, 2026. This is a total small business set-aside, and the Government has designated Foss Therapy Services, Inc. as the sole responsible source.

Performance will occur at the Phoenix Rearing Facility in Phoenix, Arizona. The facility uses the irradiator to sterilize navel orangeworm moths for production shipments. Current operational constraints require more than 8 minutes per irradiation cycle to achieve the necessary 30-kilorad dose, with more than 8 cycles needed per production run, resulting in total irradiation times exceeding 90 minutes. The reload requires approximately 20,000 curies of Cobalt-60 to be installed and will enable the facility to meet the coming year's production rate and reduce processing time.

Foss Therapy Services, Inc. holds exclusive regulatory authorization from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and California Radiologic Health Branch to perform maintenance and cobalt-60 source reloading on this equipment model. The company manufactures the irradiator exclusively and retains proprietary rights to its designs, engineering tolerances, and mechanical specifications. No other vendor possesses the required regulatory authorization, technical specifications, or manufacturer approval to complete this work safely and legally.

The Government issued this pre-solicitation notice under FAR 5.101(c) and invites all responsible sources to submit capability statements by September 15, 2026, for consideration. Submit responses to Latisha Hollman at Latisha.A.Hollman@usda.gov. The Government will not reimburse response costs and reserves discretion to conduct a competitive procurement based on capability statements received.