Lab Coat Cleaning and related services

This is NOT a solicitation for proposals or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding (1) the availability and capability of qualified small business sources; (2) whether they are small businesses; HUBZone small business; service disabled, veteran-owned small businesses; 8(a) small businesses; veteran-owned small businesses; woman-owned small businesses; or small disadvantaged businesses; and (3) their size classification relative to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for the proposed acquisition Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. An organization that is not considered a small business under the applicable NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice. The NIH investigates the causes, treatments, and preventive strategies for both common and rare diseases, helping to lead the way toward important medical discoveries that improve people's health and save lives. More than 80 percent of NIH's $31 billion budget goes to more than 300,000 research personnel at over 3,000 universities, medical schools, and other research institutions in every state and throughout the world. While most ICs receive direct appropriations from the U.S. Congress, from which they award research grants and support scientific programs, non-research funding ICs-located on the agency's campus in Bethesda, Maryland-include the NIH Clinical Center, the agency's combined research hospital and laboratory complex. About 10% of the NIH's budget supports projects conducted by approximately 5000 scientists in its own laboratories, most of which are on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland. These scientists are spread out in approximately 250 laboratories in some 50 buildings on a large campus in Bethesda, Maryland. Labs are also operated in Poolesville, MD, at The Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, and in several rental buildings in Bethesda, Baltimore, Gaithersburg, and Rockville, Maryland. At one time, all lab coats were delivered to a central location on the campus for cleaning. The lab coats were then picked up by the owner and taken back to the labs. Over the years as NIH grew, a system was developed to deliver the lab coats back to the labs since some were delinquent in picking up their lab coats. That further developed into the lab coats being picked up by a central service, being cleaned and then delivered back to the labs. This system remained in place for many years until the actual cost of the service was analyzed and was determined to be too expensive; therefore, this service was discontinued. The NIH anticipates a need for services to be provided for a base year, with four optional years possible as well. Option years will be exercised at the sole discretion of the Government. The services shall be provided to the main NIH campus in Bethesda, MD. That is, National Institutes of Health (NIH), 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland 20892. The NIH is conducting a market survey to determine the availability of businesses interested in providing , independently, and not as an agent of the Government, to furnish all labor, services, qualified professional and technical personnel, equipment, and facilities not otherwise provided by the Government under the terms of this contract as necessary to meet this requirement. This shall include offering a leased lab coat option for NIH staff. Innovative approaches to satisfying the requirement to appropriately clean both NIH owned, and potentially leased lab coats, are encouraged. If your organization is a small business and has the potential capacity to perform these contract services, please provide the following information: (1) Organization name, address, email address, web site address, and telephone number (2) size and type of ownership for the organization [i.e., small business, small disadvantage business, 8 (a) firm, etc]. Business experiences, sizes, types, and socioeconomic designations shall be included with the capability statements. Capability statements must be received by 10:30 am (Local Time) on June 28, 2012. Please send/deliver capability statements to the following address: National Institutes of Health, Office of Acquisitions, OLAO, 6011 Executive blvd., Room 529P, Attn: Lorraine Geiser, Bethesda maryland 20892-7663: NOTE: When hand delivering or using FedEX, UPS, and other courier services, you MUST use the following City, State and Zip code: Rockville, MD 20852.