Northwest Marine Technology Decimal Coded Wire Tags

The State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources issued Request for Proposal No. 1800000011 on February 23, 2018, for the procurement of Northwest Marine Technology Decimal Coded Wire Tags for fish marking operations. The State seeks magnetized stainless steel wire tags measuring 0.25mm in diameter, marked with digital numbers in standard length and decimal format, fully compatible with the Mark IV Automatic Tag Injector units currently operating at Michigan state fish hatcheries. Deliverables include tags across multiple quantity tiers ranging from 2,000 to over 1,000,000 tags per single order, with delivery options of either 90-day or 30-day fulfillment periods to any of six designated Michigan fish hatchery locations: Wolf Lake, Platte River, Oden, Thompson, Marquette, or Harrietta State Fish Hatcheries. Qualified bidders must be either the manufacturer or an authorized dealer/distributor of Northwest Marine Technology products, and proposals for alternate brands will not be considered. Evaluation criteria include product quality (25%), service capabilities (25%), delivery capabilities (25%), and vendor questions worksheet responses (25%), with a minimum technical score of 80 points required for pricing consideration; the State reserves the right to conduct facility tours, require oral presentations, and perform reference checks. Proposals must be submitted by 3:00 p.m. EST on March 23, 2018, with bidder questions due by March 9, 2018, and anticipated answers posted by March 16, 2018; the contract is anticipated to begin on May 1, 2018, and expire on April 30, 2021, with options for up to two additional one-year renewal periods.

This procurement is restricted to manufacturers or authorized dealers/distributors of Northwest Marine Technology products exclusively, with no set-asides or specific disadvantaged enterprise designations identified in the solicitation documents. No current incumbent vendor is identified in the available documentation. Contractors must integrate their products with the existing twelve Northwest Marine Technologies Mark IV Automatic Tag Injector units currently deployed at Michigan state fish hatcheries, as the tags must be 100% compatible with this specific equipment. Pricing must be firm for a 365-day period from the contract effective date, encompassing all associated costs including setup charges, shipping, handling, and palletizing expenses, with contractors encouraged to offer quick payment discount terms. The specific award value or total contract budget is not disclosed in the solicitation documents; however, contracts exceeding $500,000 require State Administrative Board approval. The State will not award solely to the lowest bidder and may consider prior performance history, overall economic impact including Michigan job creation and tax implications, and total-cost-of-ownership factors in its award decision.