6515--Surgical Slush Machine

THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) / SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE IS ISSUED  SOLELY FOR INFORMATION AND PLANNING PURPOSES. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION ABOUT PRICING, DELIVERY, THE MARKET, AND CAPABILITIES IS HIGHLY ENCOURAGED AND ALLOWED UNDER THIS RFI FOR PLANNING PURPOSES IN ACCORDANCE WITH (IAW) FAR 15.201(e). DISCLAIMER This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. IAW FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. SOURCES SOUGHT/RFI DESCRIPTION This is NOT a solicitation announcement. This is a Sources Sought Notice / RFI only. The purpose of this Sources Sought Notice / RFI is to gain information about potential qualified sources and their size classification relative to NAICS 339113 (size standard of 800 Employees). Responses to this Sources Sought Notice / RFI will be used by the Government to make appropriate acquisition decisions. After review of the responses to this Sources Sought Notice / RFI, further RFIs and/or a solicitation or other announcements may be published. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is seeking sources capable of providing three (3) each of surgical slush machine equivalent to Microtek Hush Slush 2.0 ESW7L and one (1) case of slush machine drape equivalent to Microtek ESD340. The list of DRAFT characteristics is intended to be descriptive, not restrictive, of the supplies/services that are required.
Request Title: Surgical Slush Machine
Background: The Microtek Hush Slush units are essential medical devices used primarily in surgical settings to prepare and maintain sterile slush solutions. These slush solutions are employed to preserve organs and tissues during surgical procedures, effectively reducing the metabolic rate and preventing tissue damage by keeping them at a lower temperature. The units provide a controlled and consistent supply of slush that is crucial for successful organ transplantation, cardiovascular surgeries, and other critical operations requiring hypothermic conditions
Scope: Southern Arizona VA Health Care System s needs to replace our current Hush Slush ice machine units, which have served us for over 20 years. They have now reached their end of their life expectancy. Due to their age, the manufacturer can no longer provide support or maintenance for these units, making it essential for us to replace them to ensure continued reliability and efficiency in our operations. We propose acquiring the Microtek Hush Slush 2.0 with a 4L slush basin capacity, warmer, and Auto Stir 2.0 (model ESW7L) to maintain optimal performance and meet our operational needs.
Specific Tasks: Upgrading the current Hush Slush units to the new Microtek Hush Slush 2.0 models is a necessary and strategic move to ensure reliability, enhance patient safety, comply with regulations, and maintain operational efficiency. It is an investment that will yield long-term benefits, including improved surgical outcomes, cost savings, and heightened staff morale. Requesting this gets purchased with the startup consumables. Need date is prior to June 2026.
Deliverables: Line Item Description Qty UOM 0001 Surgical Slush Machine equivalent to Microtek Hush Slush 2.0 ESW7L 3 EA 0002 Slush Machine Drape equivalent to Microtek ESD340 (24EA/CS) 1 CS
Salient Characteristics:
Surgical Slush Machine: Must have Power: 120VAC ~ 60 Hz, 12.0 A Must have Slush Fuse Must have Warmer Fuse Must have Warmer Basin Temperature Set Point: 20° to 49° ± 1.5°C (68° to 120° ± 2.5°F) Must have minimum fluid volume for use in slush basin: 2.0 L Must have a maximum fluid volume for use in warmer basin: 3.2 L Must have equipment mass including working load is 53.46 Kg
Surgical Slush Machine Drape: Must be a sterile, single-use, heavy-duty plastic sheet Must be compatible with the quoted surgical slush machine model
Place of Performance: Department of Veterans Affairs 3601 S. 6th Ave, Tucson, AZ 85723
If your company is interested and capable of providing the required supplies/services, please provide the information indicated below. Response to this notice should include company name, address, point of contact, size of business pursuant to the following questions: (1) Submit your capabilities statement illustrating how your organization can/cannot meet the list of SOW requirements. For instances where your company cannot meet the SOW requirement(s), please explain. For instances where your company can meet the SOW requirement(s), please show how your company meets/exceeds each requirement. (2) Please review the list of SOW requirements and provide any additional feedback or suggestions. If none, please reply as N/A. (3) Please indicate the size status and representations of your business, such as but not limited to: Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB), HUBZone, Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB), Large Business, etc. (4) Is your company considered small under the NAICS code identified in this RFI? (5) Are you the manufacturer, authorized distributor, and/or can your company provide a solution to the required supplies/services described in the list of SOW? (6) If you are a large business, do you have any designated/authorized distributors? If so, please provide their company name, telephone, point of contact and size status (if available). (7) If you re a small business and you are an authorized distributor/reseller for the items identified above, do you alter; assemble; modify; the items requested in any way? If you do, state how and what is altered; assembled; modified. (8) Limitations on Subcontracting: How does your business ensure compliance with the limitations on subcontracting as outlined in 13 CFR § 125.6? (9) Are the items you are identifying/providing considered Commercial of the Shelf (COTS) items as defined in FAR Part 2.101 under commercial items? (10) Non-Manufacturer Rule: If applicable, can you confirm your business complies with the Non-Manufacturer rule? Specifically, does your company: Provide a product from a small business manufacturer or processor? Not exceed 500 employees? Primarily engage in the retail or wholesale trade and normally sell the type of item being supplied? Take ownership or possession of the item(s) with its personnel, equipment or facilities in a manner consistent with industry practice? (11) Please indicate whether your product conforms to the requirements of the Buy American Act? (12) What is your lead time to deliver a single unit with all components? Is there scale in lead time with greater quantities? Please elaborate. (13) What is estimated life span of your solution? What support/services does that entail? (14) Does your proposed equipment have FDA clearance? Please specify what FDA clearance(s) have been obtained. (15) Does your organization offer a leasing solution? Please elaborate. (16) Does your company have a Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) GSA/NAC/SAC/BPA/NASA SEWP or any other Federal Government contract? If so, please provide the contract number(s). (17) If you are an FSS GSA/NAC/SAC/BPA/NASA SEWP or any other Federal Government contract holder, are all the items/solutions you are providing information about available on your schedule/contract? Please state if all or some items are available on the contract. (18) General pricing of your products/solution is encouraged. Pricing will be used for the purpose of market research only. It will not be used to evaluate for any type of award. (19) Please provide your SAM.gov Unique Entity ID/Cage Code number. Responses to this notice shall be submitted via email to Hestia.Sim@va.gov. Telephone responses will not be accepted. Responses must be received no later than Friday, May 8, 2026, by 10AM Pacific Local Time. All responses to this Sources Sought/RFI will be used for planning purposes only. Responses to this Sources Sought Notice / RFI are not considered a request to be added to a prospective bidders list or to receive a copy of the solicitation. If further RFIs and/or a solicitation or other announcement is issued as a result of the information provided from this RFI, all interested parties must respond to the specific posting separately IAW the specifications of that announcement.