Laboratory Sample Analysis/Process Special Slides

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6 and 13.5, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; QUOTES ARE BEING REQUESTED AND A WRITTEN SOLICITATION WILL NOT BE ISSUED. Solicitation number EE133F-11-RQ-0387 is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-49, effective January 24, 2011. The NAICS Code is 541711, small business size standard is 500 employees. The Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) is soliciting quotes for a contractor to provide services for the special processing of slides. The NEFSC collects fish gonad tissue samples and prepares this tissue for further processing by a histology laboratory. The scope of work is that the contractor shall provide final processing of the tissue which will be examined to study the reproductive biology of fish. The results of the work will be used in stock assessments, other reports, on the NEFSC website, as part of the new FSCS system, and in peer-reviewed publications. A new and important initiative for Population Biology Branch is to expand into reproductive studies of marine fishes, particularly economically-important groundfishes. The Chief of Population Biology has considerable experience with this type of research and is spearheading design and implementation of these studies. Histology is an essential component of this type of work. Histology is a highly technical laboratory process. It involves special chemicals (many of which are toxic), sophisticated equipment and trained staff: all of which are costly to purchase and maintain. Approximately 2000 samples are collected each year, the fresh tissue is fixed in 10% formalin. Later, the fixed tissue is rinsed, trimmed, and placed in a standard histology cassette. Prior to delivery, the cassettes are stored in gallon jars of 70% ethyl alcohol. A special staining technique, Schiffs-Mallory Trichrome (SMT) is to be used on these tissues at the histology processing laboratory (See Attachment 1). SMT enhances cytological features associated with processes of fish maturation and spawning events - cellular processes that are critical to this research. Work shall be performed in a histology facility capable of processing large batches of slides (500-1000) within a 1-3 months period of time after delivery. Samples shall be placed in paraffin wax, and thin sections (5 ?m) of embedded tissue shall be stained using Schiffs-Mallory trichrome (SMT) stains. The contractor facility shall be local within 150 miles of the Government facility as to avoid long distance travel and complex, costly shipping requirements associated with a large volume of tissue samples mixed in flammable chemical preservatives (ETOH = ethyl alcohol) . The Government will provide the contractor a batch of approximately 500-1000 tissue samples per task/delivery resulting in approximately 4-5 deliveries throughout the period of the contract. The tissue samples will be ground transported by the Government to and from the contractor's site/facility. Work shall be performed at the contractor's site and within 150 miles of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Woods Hole Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA 02543. Period of performance shall be from date of award through June 30, 2012. Additional time beyond June 30, 2012 would require prior approval by the Contracting Officer. The contractor shall provide one processed glass slide per sample after tissue has been mounted in wax, sectioned, stained in SMT, cover-slipped and labeled. Glass slides shall be organized in slide boxes (100 slides/box). The original tissue, mounted in wax, shall be returned to the Northeast Fisheries Science Center after the tissue has been processed and accepted slides have been delivered to the Government. Period of performance is date of award through June 30, 2012. BASE ITEM: Item 0001: Process 1,972 slides each OPTION ITEM: to be ordered in accordance with FAR 52.217-7 and if the need and funding is available prior to period of performance completion date. Item 0002: Process 1,400 slides each APPLICABLE PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES FOR THIS SOLICITATION: The Following FAR provisions and clauses apply to this solicitation: FAR 52.212-1; FAR 52.212-3 - NOTE: Offerors shall include paragraph (b) through (k) with quote OR enter electronically at https://orca.bpn.gov/, FAR 52.212-4; FAR 52.212-5, including 52.217-7, 52.217-8. All provisions and clauses can be viewed at http://acquisition.gov/comp/far/index.html. Potential contractors shall provide quotes no later than March 11, 2011, 5:00pm. This requirement is set aside for small business concerns. Quotes may be emailed to contact@example.gov or faxed to +1 (555) 000-0000. In order to comply with the debt collection improvement act of 1996, all contractors must be registered in the central contractor registration (CCR) to be considered for an award of a federal contract. For information regarding registration in CCR contact the CCR website at www.ccr.gov/index.cfm. All contractors must be registered with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR) in order to receive an award by the Government. For additional information and to register in CCR please access http://www.ccr.gov/. Awards will not be made to any contractor not registered in CCR.