A--Determination of Nutrient Concentration in Water Samples of Varying Salinities.

THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN FAR SUBPART 12.6, AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THIS NOTICE. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will be issued via the US EPA RTP website at http://www.epa.gov/oam/rtp_cmd. The solicitation number is PR-NC-10-10587 and the solicitation is being issued as full and open competition using FAR Part 13 - Simplified Acquisition Procedures and Part 12 - Acquisition of Commercial Items. The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 05-37. The NAICS Code for this procurement is 541380 and the Small Business Size Standard is $12 Million. An indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract is anticipated to result from the award of this solicitation with a 12 month base period of performance and three (3) 12 month option periods. The IDIQ contract will consist of a minimum of 1,875 samples (7,500 analytes) and a maximum of 14,240 samples (56,960 analytes) for the life of the contract. EPA has a requirement to perform nutrient analyses in water of varying salinity. During the period of performance of this contract samples (consisting of 4 analytes per sample) will be shipped to the contractor. Approximately 90% of the samples will be from the water column (river, estuary, coastal ocean); the remaining 10% will be water of high nutrient (HN) content; this will commonly be interstitial water collected from within sediments but may be other waters as well. All the water column and high nutrient samples may require results for up to 4 analytes (nitrate+nitrite, ammonium, orthophosphate, and silicate). Interstitial water samples will be delivered to the analytical laboratory particle free and in the frozen state. The matrices of the water column and interstitial water samples could range from fresh water to ~32 psu. The matrix attributes and analytes would be specified, by sample, in the shipping information. Samples will be shipped in batches of between 25 and 300 samples. Refer to the statement of work for more details regarding this procurement, including associated deliverables This procurement will be awarded on a best value basis per the following evaluation criteria (in order of importance): (i) TECHNICAL: 1.)Demonstration of Minimum Qualification Requirements: (a) Lab management or personnel with at least 1 year experience analyzing seawater samples for the 4 nutrients at concentrations as low as the low end of the standardization range in the Statement of Work, Section 3.c.(1); (b) Ability to meet the 3-week minimum turn around requirement for the duration of the study (Statement of Work, Section 4);(c) Ability to perform the 4 analyses with a minimum of 15 ml of sample; 2.) Demonstration of evidence of participation in any state or federal laboratory certification programs, or a list of at least 2 publications in marine science journals that have used nutrient data provided by them; 3.) Submission of an electronic version of what the offeror would consider a "Quality Assurance Manual" that is used to support the routine quality of its data; this document shall be in a Word (.doc) or Portable Document Format (.pdf) format; 4.) Offerors shall submit a response to the question, "How does your laboratory deal with samples of varying salinities (that are approximately known) when performing nutrient analyses?" and if 'matching the salinity matrix of samples' is necessary for your instrumentation, answer the question, "How close does the standard matrix need to be to the sample matrix?"; 5.) Offerors shall submit a response to the question, "How does your laboratory deal with samples of widely varying concentrations (see Section 3.c.(1) of the Statement of Work for possible ranges) such as those that may be found in a batch of samples that contain interstitial water samples (high ammonia) and fresh water (high silicate)?" Would dilution and reanalysis following an initial determination be the strategy and would there be an additional charge for each sample requiring this treatment to obtain values within the instrument calibration? (ii) PAST PERFORMANCE: Submit a list of at least 3 clients who have submitted seawater samples for analysis within the past 3 years. Include specific individuals to contact and their phone numbers. (Past performance will be evaluated as follows: quality of product or service, timeliness of performance - ability to adhere to deadlines, and overall customer satisfaction); (iii) PRICE The following FAR provisions shall apply to this solicitation: 52-212-1, Instructions to Offerors--Commercial Items, 52.212-2, Evaluation--Commercial Items, 52.223-13, Certification of Toxic Chemical Release Reporting, 52.233-2, Service of Protest. All offerors are to include with their offer a completed copy of provisions 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications--Commercial Items, 52.204-4 Printed or Copied Double-Sided on Recycled Paper, 52.204-7 Central Contractor Registration. The following FAR clause applies to this acquisition: 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions--Commercial Items, 52.223-14, Toxic Chemical Release Reporting. The following additional FAR clauses which are cited in Clause 52.212-5 are applicable to the acquisition: 52.203-6, Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government (Sept 2006), with Alternate I (Oct 1995), 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds TransferCentral Contractor Registration, 52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases, 52.233-3 Protest after Award, 52.233-4 Applicable Law for Breach of Contract Claim. The RFQ any subsequent amendments will be available via the Internet World Wide Web at http://www.epa.gov/oam/rtp_cmd only. Hard copies or diskettes will not be available. It will be your responsibility to frequently check the same site where the notice is posted for any amendments. All responsible sources may submit a proposal, via email (contact@example.gov), referencing the Solicitation # PR-NC-10-10587 5:00 p.m. EST, July 27, 2010. No telephonic or fax requests will be honored.