91 -- Gaseous Argon, Type I, Grade A

The Government intends to procure on a Full and Open Competition Basis, Gaseous Argon, Type 1, Grade A, NSN 9135-00-882-1793 (99.998% Purity), in accordance with MIL-PRF-27415A, dated 11 Dec 1997, Amendment 1 dated 20 Aug 1998 as well as ancillary services and cylinder maintenance for Two Regions, East and West. The contract(s) ordering period will be 1 October 2005 through 30 September 2010. The estimated yearly product and shipment requirements for each customer by region, East (620 Cylinders, CY) and West (781 CY). The contractor shall be required to store, service and maintain Government owned cylinders, approximately 1,450 Argon cylinders for the East region and approximately 1,550 Argon cylinders for the West region and five (5) pallets (Dimensions 58X42X52) for the East region. Overseas requirements will be transported to a Consolidated Containerization Point within each region for forward movement to the overseas customer location. Offerors may propose one fill point for both regions requirements or propose multiple fill points and/or storage locations for each region. If a different storage location other than the fill point is to be used during contract performance, offerors are advised that any costs associated with the shipping of cylinders from the contractors storage location to the fill point will be at the contractors expense. Further, any additional costs associated with the contractor utilizing a different fill point during contract performance than the one proposed and accepted by the Government will be at the contractor's expense. The product will be delivered FOB Origin into Government-furnished, High-Pressure cylinders. The cylinders must be delivered at a pressure of 6,000 psig at 70 F (578 standard cubic feet (scf)). Additionally, the solicitation will include a line item for product delivered FOB Origin into Government-furnished (Standard) High-Pressure cylinders at a pressure of 2,200 psig at 70 F (255 standard cubic feet (scf)). The total estimated quantity for the (Standard) High-Pressure cylinders will be four per year for a five-year total of 20 cylinders. The solicitation will include line items for cylinder related services including Evacuation and Purging; Palletization; Cylinder Re-certification; Painting; Replacement of Valves, Caps and Collars; Re-identification; and Disposal Preparation. Only written, e-mailed, or faxed requests for solicitation received directly from the requestor are acceptable. The solicitation, to be issued on or about 3 June 2005 will be posted to the FedBizOpps web page (http://www.fedbizops.gov). If you do not have Internet, a hard copy of the solicitation may be requested. Offers should be submitted in writing to the address stated above. E-mail (.PDF files) or facsimile offers will be accepted, but should be submitted by the closing time and followed up by hard copy. All responsible sources may submit a proposal and potential offerors should contact the contract specialist identified above for additional information and/or to communicate concerns. For questions regarding Small Business or Small Disadvantaged Business Affairs contact Mrs. Kathy Williams of the DESC Small Business Office at 1-800-523-2601 or 703-767- 9465.