Notice of Intent to Sole Source - Phased Art Conservation Svcs

NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE
The intent of this notice is to solicit and award a Firm Fixed Price type of contract pursuant to the authority granted under 41 U.S.C. 3304 (a)(1) and Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1, only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. This procurement shall be made under the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) Code: 711510, Independent Writers, Artists, and Performers with a size standard of $8 million.

This notice is not a Request for Quote (RFQ) or Request for Proposal (RFP). This is a notice of intent to award a sole-source award to McKay Lodge Conservation Laboratory, Inc., in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1, “Only One Responsible Source and No Other Suppliesor Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.”

PROJECT SUMMARY/BACKGROUND: Jason Salavon’s American Varietal (Atlas) is a computer based real-time interactive media system that was created to accompany the illuminated mural installed in 2009.The computer program that Salavon designed allows for a deeper exploration of his digital model of census data. The touchsensitive screen features interactive animations of the model, which will evolve over time as new census data is added every ten years. Commissioned through the Art in Architecture Program this component of the artwork was installed in the lobby of the U.S. Census Bureau Headquarters in 2013. The objective of this contract is to provide a new virtual machine, capable of running the artwork code in a stable Windows 7 environment. The contract will provide for minor customization of the VM to remove the “window” mode and add an auto-start and shutdown. Three identical back-up machines shall be built to matching specifications to act as attic stock for the work and safe guard against future
technical problems.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SCOPE OF WORK: This Intent to Sole Source Notice is being issued by the General Services Administration (GSA), National Capital Region, to program custom virtual machine to run artwork code in a Windows 7 environment. Provide customization to remove “window” mode and add an auto-start and shutdown. The 2014 Inspection Report rated the artwork as being in VERY GOOD condition. The 2016 Inspection Report rated the artwork as being in FAIR condition, noting that the touch-screen kiosk was not working and was in need of repair. A conservation assessment (attached) was completed in February 2017 by McKay Lodge Fine Arts Conservation Laboratory, Inc. (Project Name: 16130 Condition Assessment) and confirmed the 2016 rating. The 2018 Inspection Report rated the artwork as being in POOR condition, noting that the touch-screen was inoperable and conservation work was on-going with McKay Lodge Fine Arts Conservation Laboratory, Inc. In September 2019, McKay Lodge Fine Arts Conservation Laboratory, Inc. (Project Name: 18096 Conservation Treatment) determined that the coding was not operational in the current form and that documentation of the current system was the primarily result of this task order. The system’s coding is not sustainable in its current state. The current hardware is obsolete and no longer commercially available and the system’s code will be difficult to directly export due to its reliance upon the Windows 7 operating system. The virtual machine will allow the code to run on updated and more reliable hardware while providing the necessary operating environment.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: All firms and prime contractors doing business with the Federal Government shall have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) database at www.sam.gov