Service/Maintenance Agreement for Air handler overhaul for the SelecT Automated Cell Culture system

NOTICE OF INTENT to Sole Source

1. SOLICITATION NUMBER: 75N95024Q00362

1. TITLE:  Service/Maintenance Agreement for Air handler overhaul for the SelecT Automated Cell Culture system – Annapurna Serial # E0TUL04000-00 NIH decal # 01907829

1. CLASSIFICATION CODE:

J066 – Maintenance/Repair/Rebuild of Equipment – Instruments and Laboratory Equipment

NAICS CODE: 811210 – Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair and Maintenance

1. RESPONSE DATE:

June 27, 2024, at 12:00 PM ET

1. PRIMARY POINT OF CONTACT:

Patricia da Silva

patricia.dasilva@nih.gov

Phone: 301.827.1980

1. DESCRIPTION:

INTRODUCTION

THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NON-COMPETITIVE (NOTICE OF INTENT) SYNOPSIS TO AWARD A CONTRACT WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME).

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with Sartorius Stedim North America Inc to provide a service and maintenance agreement for an existing Government-owned SelecT Automated Cell Culture system.

NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE and SET ASIDE STATUS

The intended procurement is classified under NAICS code 811210 – Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair and Maintenance with a Size Standard of $34 million.  

REGULATORY AUTHORITY

This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures. Contracts awarded using FAR Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures are exempt from the requirements of FAR Part 6—Competition Requirements. FAR Subpart 13.106-1 (b) Soliciting from a single source provides that: For purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, Contracting officers may solicit from one source IF the contracting officer determines that the circumstances of the contract action deem only one source reasonably available (e.g., urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, brand-name OR industrial mobilization).

The resultant contract will include all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through the Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2023-04 dated June 2, 2023.

DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENT

Service/Maintenance Agreement for the following systems with the below coverage:

Air handler overhaul for the SelecT Automated Cell Culture system – Annapurna Serial # E0TUL04000-00 NIH decal # 01907829.

The vendor shall provide the following –

• All activities, work and validations will be completed by the vendor within 30 days of receipt of an approved PO.
• Preliminary VHP decontamination of the system
• Replace Laminar HEPA filters and fan/capacitor assemblies’.
• Replace Return air HEPA filters and fan/capacitor assemblies’.
• Air flow balancing adjusted to within current system specifications
• Post VHP decontamination. The vendor shall provide any documentation within 5 business days from the date of the repairs.

PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES:

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 Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which mission it is to catalyze the generation of innovative methods and technologies that will enhance the development, testing and implementation of diagnostics and therapeutics across a wide range of human diseases and conditions.

The NCATS mission is to provide accelerated processes and procedures to develop and test chemical compounds to determine their efficacy as a therapeutic treatment in human disease. Those assays and experiments are developed using numerous automated devices and equipment to increase dependability and accuracy and reduce the time of development and validation. The repair of the air handling system is requested to provide continuity of automated cell culture processes performed on the system.

ESTIMATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE:

Base Year: 2024

CONTRACTING WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME) DETERMINATION

The determination by the Government to award a contract without providing for full and open competition is based upon the market research conducted. Specifically, Sartorius is the only vendor in the marketplace that can provide the products required by the NCATS.

The essential characteristics of the service agreement that limit the availability to a sole source are that Sartorius does not allow third party resellers or agents and they require only current Sartorius trained personnel to perform the service. Only this suggested source can furnish the requirements, to the exclusion of other sources.

The intended source is:

Sartorius Corporation

565 Johnson AVE

Bohemia, New York, 11716

CLOSING STATEMENT

THIS SYNOPSIS 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. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency. 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 notice shall contain sufficient information to establish the interested parties' bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, the delivery period after contract award, the prompt payment discount terms, the F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), the Unique Entity ID (UEI), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.

All responses must be received by the closing date and time of this announcement and must reference the solicitation number, 75N95024Q00362. Responses must be submitted electronically to Patricia da Silva, Contract Specialist, at patricia.dasilva@nih.gov.  U.S. Mail and fax responses will not be accepted.