Rapid MRI Rat Head Array Coil

Added: Jun 19, 2018 6:19 pm This is a Combined Synopsis/Solicitation (CSS) for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This acquisition is being conducted in accordance with the procedures of FAR Part 13--Simplified Acquisition Procedures, FAR Subpart 13.5--Test Program for Certain Commercial Items, and FAR Part 12--Acquisition of Commercial Items.

The solicitation number is HHS-NIH-NIDA(AG)-CSS-18-252 and the solicitation is issued as a PRE-SOLICITATION, NOTICE OF INTENT, to award a contract on a non-competitive basis to RAPID MR International, LLC, 1500 Lake Shore Dr., Suite 310, Columbus, Ohio 43204.

ACQUISITION AUTHORITY

This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13--Simplified Acquisition Procedures, Subpart 13.5--Test Program for Certain Commercial Items, and Subpart 6.302-1, Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements, and is expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. Contracts awarded using FAR Part 13--Simplified Acquisition Procedures are exempt from the requirements of FAR Part 6--Competition Requirements.

The non-competitive determination is based upon the market research conducted as prescribed in FAR Part 10--Market Research, specifically the results of market research concluded no other source of supply or service has the capability to provide a service contract for the

The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-97, dated January 2018.

CONTRACT TYPE

The Government intends to award a firm fixed price purchase order for this requirement.

NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE

The associated NAICS code for this requirement is 334516 with size standard of 1,000 Employees.

BACKGROUND

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the nation's leading medical research agency and the primary Federal agency whose mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability, conducting, supporting and making medical discoveries that improve people's health and save lives.

The National Institute on Aging (NIA) performs all neuroimaging studies of the rat brain using surface coils or arrays which fit over the dorsal (posterior) side of the animal's head. These coils give reasonable signal-to-noise but cannot detect signal from the deeper, more ventral regions of the brain. Moreover, the images they produce are shaded, with brightest intensity just inside the skull and decreasing intensity deeper into the brain. This shading complicates image processing and quantification, especially in MRI angiography studies.

PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this requirement is to procure an eight (8) channel receive only array coil for MRI of the rat brain. This coil will incorporate four (4) elements on the ventral side of the rat head and four (4) elements on a demountable frame that fits the dorsal side. It will accommodate rats with heads as large as 60 mm in diameter while maintaining the animal's shoulders and body entirely outside the head coil.

PROJECT REQUIREMENTS
Specifically, the following salient characteristics are deemed essential for this requirement:
1. Operation at 300.3 MHz for protons at 7 Tesla field strength
2. Electrical and mechanical compatibility with our existing 7 Tesla MRI scanner (Bruker Biospec 70/30 USR)
3. Receive-only operation with eight channels, providing full coverage of the rat brain in the anterior-posterior and left-right directions
4. Inner diameter of 60 mm to accommodate the head of a live rat of weight 1 kg or greater
5. Outer diameter small enough to fit entirely inside existing 86 mm quadrature volume coil (Bruker part number T12053V3)
6. Distance from front of coil to B1 field center no greater than 25 mm to permit ears to reach field center
7. Active decoupling for operation inside our existing 86 mm quadrature volume coil (Bruker part number T12053V3)
8. Stereotaxic head holder to support and immobilize rat's head inside receive-only coil. Head holder should allow adjustment of tooth bar along Z axis.
9. Mounting of coil and stereotaxic head holder to existing obese rat bed (RAPID part number LHRXGS-01796)
10. ODU interface with HWIDS chip for plug-and-play operation on our existing 7T MRI scanner.

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

National Institute on Aging
the Bayview Biomedical Research Center (BRC)
251 Bayview Blvd
Baltimore, MD 21224

ANTICPATED DELIVERY

Five (5) months after receipt of the award.

ANTICIPATED CONTRACT TYPE

A Firm Fixed Price Purchase Order is contemplated. The order shall be sourced via the Open Market on a single-source basis and is not expected to exceed $150,000.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITIES

This CSS is not a request for competitive proposals. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice.

A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. The information received will normally be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to proceed on a non-competitive basis or to conduct a competitive procurement.

Responses to this CSS must include sufficient information to establish the interested parties' bona-fide capabilities of providing the product or service. The price quote shall include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, delivery days after contract award, delivery terms, prompt payment discount terms, F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), product or catalog number(s); product description; and any other information or factors that may be considered in the award decision. Such factors may include: past performance; special features required for effective program performance; trade-in considerations; probable life of the item selected as compared with that of a comparable item; warranty considerations; maintenance availability; and environmental and energy efficiency considerations.

Respondents that believe that they are manufacturers or authorized resellers of the brand-name product specified in this announcement must provide, as part of their response: (a) product, catalog, model, and/or part number(s); (b) product description; (c) all relevant information and documentation that the item(s) offered meets the salient physical, functional, or performance characteristics as specified in the purchase description; quantity; estimated price or cost; shipping, handling, and/or installation charges; and delivery date after receipt of order.

The following FAR provisions shall apply to this solicitation: 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors--Commercial Items, 52.212-2, Evaluation--Commercial Items. Evaluation factors that will be used to evaluate the offer most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered, include ability to meet the technical requirements stated in this CSS and on basis of best value to the government. Offerors must include a completed copy of the provision at 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications Commercial Items, with their offer. The Clause at 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition and the Clause at 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders Commercial Items applies to this acquisition.

The Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) are not applicable to this requirement.

In addition, the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size must be included in the response. All Offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Responses received to this CSS will be evaluated on the basis of Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA). Offeror's submitting a response must provide a completed Price Quote to be evaluated and considered for award. Price quotes must indicate fixed unit pricing and total cost, including shipping cost and estimated time of delivery after receipt of order and any warranties. Responses to this solicitation must include clear and convincing evidence of the Offeror's capability of fulfilling the requirement as it relates to the essential government requirements stated in this solicitation. Under the LPTA process, Offerors' will be determined to be "technically acceptable" or "technically unacceptable."

All responsible sources may submit a bid, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency. All responses must be received by June 25, 2018 at 12:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time (EST) and must reference solicitation number HHS-NIH-NIDA-CSS-18-252. Responses may be submitted electronically (via e-mail) to the Contracting Officer at fred.ettehadieh@nih.gov. Facsimile responses are NOT accepted.