Cepheid

Cepheid Inc., a for-profit manufacturer of molecular diagnostic systems and reagents headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, supplies diagnostic reagents, test kits, and equipment maintenance services to federal healthcare agencies as a prime contractor under full-and-open competition, with no set-aside participation across its portfolio. Cepheid is a subsidiary of Beckman Coulter, Inc.

Cepheid's core federal capability centers on the GeneXpert diagnostic platform—rapid PCR-based molecular testing systems for detecting infectious diseases including COVID-19, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, tuberculosis, MRSA, Clostridioides difficile, and sexually transmitted infections. The vendor supplies diagnostic test cartridges (Xpert Xpress, Xpert 4-Plex, and specialty kits), molecular diagnostic reagents and assays, benchtop and modular analyzers (ranging from 4-module to 16 and 48-module configurations), preventative maintenance and service agreements, and equipment repair services across federal healthcare networks. Representative work includes a $2.571 million firm fixed-price BPA call from Veterans Integrated Service Network 15 (August 2026) for in-vitro reagents and test kits serving Columbia and Kansas City VA Medical Centers; a $1.373 million delivery order from the Defense Health Agency (October 2026) for COVID and STEP testing analyzers and supplies for Brooke Army Medical Center; a $22.534 million single-award indefinite-delivery contract with the Indian Health Service (September 2026) for molecular diagnostic reagent test kits and consumables across the Great Plains Area through 2031; and numerous sub-$500,000 delivery orders from the Defense Logistics Agency Medical Supply Chain for diagnostic test cartridges and reagents.

Customer concentration is extreme and anchored entirely to federal healthcare logistics. The Defense Logistics Agency Medical Supply Chain dominates both volume and dollar value—7,188 awards (49% of all awards) valued at $1.31 billion (29% of combined potential value). The Indian Health Service ranks second by both metrics: 511 awards valued at $294.2 million. Multiple Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISN 10, 23, 4, 8, 19, 1, 2, 6, 16, and 17 appear in the source) collectively place hundreds of orders across molecular diagnostics and maintenance contracts. The Defense Health Agency and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention represent minor but recurring customers. Together, the top five customers (DLA Medical Supply Chain, IHS, VA VISN 8, VA VISN 19, and Defense Health Agency) account for roughly 44% of combined potential value across the source data.

Cepheid holds positions on multiple federal procurement vehicles. The top five parent vehicles by task order count are Indefinite Delivery Contract SPE2DE24D0013 (4,163 orders, $39.7 million), Indefinite Delivery Contract SPE2DE22D0011 (3,039 orders, $47.4 million), an unnamed "Invitro Diagnostics, Reagents, Test" vehicle (2,464 orders, $325.5 million), the GSA Multiple Award Schedule (850 orders, $156.3 million), and VA IDC VA263P0057 (232 orders, $13.7 million). Most individual Defense Logistics Agency Medical Supply Chain orders flow through unnamed parent IDCs referenced by product line SKU (XPRS4PLEX-10, XPRSMVP-10, GXCT/NG-10). Cepheid also holds single-award indefinite-delivery contracts directly with the Indian Health Service ($22.534 million, through 2031) and Veterans Integrated Service Network 17 ($1.75 million, through 2031), as well as evidence of a $32.8 million IDC with VISN 6 referenced in the source material.

Activity has remained relatively stable year over year across the trailing five years (2022–2026), ranging from 1,146 to 2,024 awards annually, with 2025 representing the peak at 2,024 awards. This high-volume, transactional pattern reflects the vendor's dominant position as the primary supplier of GeneXpert consumables and reagents to federal healthcare logistics. Cepheid faces a recompete cliff with 199 awards valued at $106 million scheduled for ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, representing risk of contract loss or renegotiation against this established base.

Cepheid's federal footprint is almost entirely prime contractor work (100% of the 14,537 awards in the source are prime; 14 sub-awards appear, including a malaria diagnostic maintenance sub-contract to Chemonics International in 2023 and a Candida BSI test development sub-award to Johns Hopkins University in 2026). The vendor does not compete under any SBA set-aside categories; all awards carry "No Set-Aside Used" designation, reflecting full-and-open competition posture. By NAICS concentration, Cepheid's work splits across Medical, Dental, and Hospital Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers (7,257 awards), In-Vitro Diagnostic Substance Manufacturing (3,723 awards), and Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing (1,973 awards). PSC coding confirms this profile: Laboratory Equipment and Supplies (9,137 awards), Medical and Surgical Instruments, Equipment, and Supplies (1,989 awards), and In Vitro Diagnostic Substances, Reagents, Test Kits and Sets (1,498 awards). The vendor obligated $1.78 billion against $4.45 billion in combined potential value across all awards, indicating 40% drawdown of available contract ceilings year to date.