Maintenance, Repair, and Rebuilding of Equipment

Document Type: Presolicitation Notice Solicitation No.: NHLBI-PB-EB-2008-128/JNB Posted Date: April 21, 2008 Response Date: April 30, 2008 Classification Code: J- Maintenance, Repair, and Rebuilding of Equipment NAICS Code: 811219 Decription: Maintenance and Repair Services THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT, NOT A REQUEST FOR A PROPOSAL. A SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED AND PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE REQUESTED. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), Office of Acquisition (OA), for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) http://www.nibibi.nih.gov , intend to award a single, fixed priced purchase order on a noncompetitive (sole source) basis to FEI Company, 5350 N.E. Dawson Creek Drive, Hillsboro, Oregon 97124, for the performance of routine maintenance, repair, and emergency repair to laboratory equipment and systems, located on the main campus of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This acquisition is being conducted under FAR Part 13, http://www.acqnet.gov/Far, simplified acquisition procedures and the resultant purchase order will include all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through the Federal Acquisition Circular 05-23. The total contracted dollar amount, including options will not exceed $5 million. This action is under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 253), as set forth in FAR 6.302-1 and HHSAR 306-302-1. Only one responsible source and no other supplier or service will satisfy requirements. The reference number for this announcement is NHLBI-PB-EB-2008-128/JNB. The acquisition is being conducted as noncompetitive, with no set aside restrictions . The North American Classification System (NAICS) code applicable to this requirement is 811219 and the associated small business size standard is $6 million. The proposed period of performance for this requirement is twelve (12) months. The place of performance is the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, Bethesda, Maryland. Market research conducted by the Government has determined that the FEI Company is the only source with the capability to perform the required level of maintenance and repair services on the Laboratory and support equipment, and comply with research study Reference Frame guidelines. The sole source determination is based upon the fact that FEI Company is the manufacturer of the main equipment. Reference Frames can not be altered during equipment re-calibrations, in which industry variances for the calibration of laboratory equipment are be in a range of up to plus or minus five percent for accuracy. Changing equipment calibrations, by changing services providers during research, would bring in to question the results of the studies conducted. The highest priority would be protecting the integrity and credibility of the experiments, research efforts, and reporting. The vendor must employ factory trained service engineers/technicians, have proprietary rights to the software, schematics, required materials, and parts to service and maintain cell sorters and support systems. In addition, the vendor must be capable of providing qualified personnel with the technical expertise necessary to operate the system sufficiently for troubleshooting purposes. Interested parties must meet all regulatory requirements to include the Federal Acquisition Regulations, certifications, and licenses. All interested parties shall provide detailed information on the proposed products which clearly meet the requirement stated above. The services to be provided are to include scheduled maintenance; telephone support; replacement parts and components; service agreement; and service request. Each category is described as follows: Scheduled Maintenance: A minimum of two scheduled preventative maintenance visits for each covered instrument shall be provided during the term of the contract. The visits shall occur at reasonably spaced intervals. During the course of scheduled visits, ordinary repair and adjustments arising from normal usage of the equipment shall be made. The contractor shall perform a compliance review of the equipment and shall clean and align the equipment, as necessary for the full functioning of the equipment. Scheduled visits shall be scheduled for mutually agreed upon dates and times. If both parties do not agree upon dates and times, the Government will designate a date and time. Unscheduled Maintenance: The Government may place corrective unscheduled maintenance ( repair) service calls to the contractor at no additional cost in the event of equipment failures requiring immediate repair. The contractor shall respond to unscheduled maintenance calls within 48 hours if being notified of the need for repair by the Government. Telephone Support: The contractor shall provide telephone support for repair maintenance of the equipment during NIH working hours M-F, (8:00am - 5:00pm), excluding federal holidays. Telephone support shall include response to question about practices, application use and service issues that could be diagnosed and resolve with technical assistance over the telephone. Replacement Parts and Components: The contractor shall ship new parts within twenty-four (24) hours after identifying the need for a replacement part for the equipment, subject to availability. The contractor may supply reconditioned parts that meet the manufacturer's specification, at the option of the Government. Service Agreement: Includes labor, travel, living expenses and parts coverage (including system software and/or software upgrades applicable to customers current configuration). Coverage includes all parts of the equipment unless specifically excluded under hours (8:00 am - 5:00 pm), with a targeted response time of forty-eight (48) hours. Requesting Service: Vendor shall supply a telephone number to their customer service center for use in requesting contractor service or advice regarding equipment. The equipment to be maintained are as follows: TECNAIF30STEM TRANSMISSION MICROSCOPE, SN: D243, and GATAN 894 ULTRASOUND, SN: D243.1. This notice does not constitute a request for proposal (RFP) and submission of any information provided in response to this announcement is purely voluntary, and the Government assumes no financial responsibility for nor costs incurred. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive proposal, however all responses received within (10) days after publication will be considered by the government. 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. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a future competitive procurement. For any questions regarding the announcement, please contact Jeffery Battle, Contract Specialist, Phone 301-435-0343, via email at battlej2@nhlbi.nih.gov referencing Number NHLBI-PB-EB-2008-128/JNB. This acquisition is being conducted under FAR Part 13, simplified acquisition procedures. It is noted that FAR Part 6, Competition requirements are not applicable to this acquisition.