Maintenance plan for Qiagen EZ1 Extraction Instruments

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission is requesting bids on an annual preventative maintenance plan for two Qiagen EZ1 Advanced XL extraction instruments at the Texas Department of State Health Services Laboratory in Austin, with bids due July 28, 2026 at 10:30 a.m. and questions due July 17, 2026 at 10:30 a.m.

The scope encompasses one annual preventive maintenance visit, unlimited telephone support, on-site remedial maintenance within 24 hours of request, and 24/7 technical call center support. All labor, travel, expenses, and parts must be furnished by the vendor on an exchange basis as new or equivalent refurbished components. Service engineers must be factory-trained on Qiagen equipment and submit training certificates and experience summaries at bid time. The vendor must directly perform all service without subcontracting due to the critical public health nature of the equipment used for rabies virus identification and testing.

Bidders must demonstrate a minimum of five years of relevant experience with assigned personnel holding at least three years of relevant experience and factory training on Qiagen equipment. A minimum of three verifiable references for similar services within the last three years are required. Insurance must include workers' compensation, commercial general liability with $1,000,000 per occurrence limits, commercial automobile liability, professional liability, and $1,000,000 umbrella liability coverage.

The initial contract term runs September 1, 2026 through August 31, 2027, with three optional one-year renewal periods through August 31, 2030 and one additional discretionary one-year extension. Pricing must be submitted as firm, fixed prices on the required Pricing Sheet (Exhibit C), with acceptable ranges between $0.01 and $999,999 annually. Price adjustments are permitted at HHSC discretion based on Consumer Price Index formula or Federal Minimum Wage increases. Bids are accepted via in-person submission at 1100 W. 49th Street, Austin, or optionally through the HHS Online Bid Room. Responses to questions will be posted July 21, 2026. The anticipated contract start date is September 1, 2026. HUB subcontracting opportunities are encouraged but not required.