INTRODUCTION THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NON-COMPETITIVE (NOTICE OF INTENT) SYNOPSIS TO AWARD A CONTRACT WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME). The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Station Support and Simplified Acquisitions (SSSA) Branch intends to solicit by confirming a written quotation from Brooks Automation for award on or around September 14, 2015. The purpose of this purchase order will be to provide the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) with an Automated Microtiter Plate Desealer as described in this notice. NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE and SET ASIDE STATUS The intended procurement is classified under NAICS code 334519 with a Size Standard of 500 employees. This acquisition is NOT set aside for small businesses. REGULATORY AUTHORITY This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13-Simplified Acquisition Procedures. Contracts awarded using FAR Part 13-Simplified Acquisition Procedures are exempt from the requirements of FAR Part 6-Competition Requirements. FAR Subpart 13.106-1 (b) Soliciting from a single source provides that: For purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, Contracting officers may solicit from one source IF the contracting officer determines that the circumstances of the contract action deem only one source reasonably available (e.g., urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, brand-name OR industrial mobilization). The resultant contract will include all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through the Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-83 dated August 3, 2015. DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENT Objective The Brooks Automation XPeel is a microplate de-sealer which allows the automated removal of the seals from plates. This alleviates the need for manual peeling of seals allowing time to be used more efficiently. The XPeel will be integrated onto the automated Wako system used for in-house cherry picking to follow up on siRNA screens that have been completed. Requirements Device must remove ANY seal material and adhesive from any microtiter plate type (Cyclic olefin copolymer, polystyrene, polypropylene, etc.) at any density (384, 1536 well format etc.) in an automated fashion. The device must allow removal of up to 200 seals per hour. In order to ensure compatibility with existing equipment, the device must be no larger than: 30" (76.2 cm)(L) x 15" (38.1 cm)(H) x 15" (38.1 cm)(W) Delivery Date Within 30 days after award. Place of Performance 9800 Medical Center Dr. Room 1026 Rockville, MD 20892 CONTRACTING WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME) DETERMINATION The determination by the Government to award a contract without providing for full and open competition is based upon the market research conducted. Specifically, Brooks Automation is the only vendor in the marketplace that can provide the products required by NCATS. In accordance with FAR part 10, extensive market research was conducted to reach this determination. Specifically, a sources sought notice was posted to FedBizOpps referencing the above detailed requirements and no responses were received from other vendors. Additionally, contacts with knowledgeable individuals both in industry and Government, as well as reviews of available product literature, revealed no other sources. Finally, a review of the GSA Advantage, Dynamic Small Business Search, and previous government acquisitions returned no results that meet all of the requirements. It has been determined that there are no other products available from any other vendors for automated seal peeling of microplates. Therefore, only Brooks Automation is capable of meeting the needs of this requirement. The intended source is: Brooks Automation 15 Elizabeth Dr. Chelmsford, MA 01824-4111 CLOSING STATEMENT THIS SYNOPSIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency. The information received will normally be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to proceed on a non-competitive basis or to conduct a competitive procurement. Responses to this notice shall contain sufficient information to establish the interested parties' bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, the delivery period after contract award, the prompt payment discount terms, the F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov. All responses must be received by the closing date and time of this announcement and must reference the solicitation number, HHS-NIH-NIDA-SSSA-NOI-15-762. Responses must be submitted electronically to Matthew Antonini, Contract Specialist, at
contact@example.gov. U.S. Mail and Fax responses will not be accepted.
