Service and Maintenance for LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer

NOTICE OF INTENT to Sole Source

SOLICITATION NUMBER:

NIH-NCI-NOI-75N91026Q00004

TITLE:

Service and Maintenance for LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer

CLASSIFICATION CODE:

J066

Maintenance and Repair of Instruments and Laboratory Equipment

NAICS CODE:

811219 – Other Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair and Maintenance

RESPONSE DATE:

February 9, 2026

PRIMARY POINT OF CONTACT:

Shayna Simpson, Contract Specialist

Office of Acquisition Management Services

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Shayna.Simpson@hhs.gov

DESCRIPTION:

THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD ON A SOLE SOURCE BASIS.  THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTE/PROPOSALS.

On behalf of the. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Center for Cancer Research (CCR), intends to solicit on a sole-source basis by a request for quotation to USBDB Service Contract Admin (BD Biosciences) to acquire maintenance services for the LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer on or around February 15, 2026 with an award issued on or around March 17, 2026. The purpose of this acquisition is to acquire preventative maintenance and service for an existing LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer that was originally manufactured by BD Biosciences. These maintenance services shall be provided by an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)-Authorized Service Provider of the LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer, and all maintenance services shall be performed by OEM certified factory-trained technicians using OEM certified parts.

NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE and SET ASIDE STATUS

The intended procurement is classified under NAICS code 811219 with a Size Standard of $22M.

This acquisition is NOT set aside for small businesses but rather is a sole-source acquisition to BD Biosciences.

REGULATORY AUTHORITY

This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Subpart 13.106-1 (b) Soliciting from a single source.

BACKGROUND, PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES OF REQUIREMENT

 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Center for Cancer Research (CCR) requires maintenance and support for one (1) Government-owned USBDB Service Contract Admin (BD Biosciences) LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer. The LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer (is used extensively in support of ongoing cancer research and patient care efforts by the National Cancer Institute Surgical Oncology Program (SOP). The SOP performs clinical trials focused on gastrointestinal and endocrine cancers as well as endocrine tumor syndromes. The SOP Flow Cytometry Core Facility provides flow cytometry services to the National Cancer Institute community for the analysis and isolation of cells and cell populations from a wide variety of sources. It is available to investigators seven days per week, twenty-four hours per day. The LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer (Serial No. R647800L6075) for which the services are required is equipped with five lasers and a FACS flow supply system (Serial No. N3492775203) and includes a computer workstation. The LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer with its cutting-edge technology it is essential to maintain and service this equipment on a regular maintenance schedule. 

CONTRACTING WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME) DETERMINATION

 BD Biosciences is the sole manufacturer and service provider for the LSR Fortessa flow cytometer. This instrument is used daily in the Center for Cancer Research Surgical Oncology Program Flow Cytometry Core facility to analyze samples from clinical research studies using human samples. Due to the significant number of efforts this core facility supports, the equipment cannot be out of service for any length of time without causing significant delays to research efforts across the branch, and potential financial injury to the government due to the loss of analytical data from expensive and often irreplaceable experimental samples not being processed in a timely manner. BD Biosciences is the only source for factory trained and certified technicians to maintain and service the equipment.

The equipment requiring maintenance is continually used for research purposes. Non-functional equipment, inappropriately calibrated equipment, or equipment with incorrect parts, software updates, or other unsupported service provided by a non-authorized vendor, would void data standardization and could cause irreparably damage to NIH research data. Furthermore, use of any other contractor for maintenance would void equipment warranties and jeopardize system integrity and functionality.

Only an OEM-authorized service provider has access to the latest services and support information. Replacement parts or accessories must be compatible with the existing equipment, and only BD Biosciences can certify compatibility. An OEM-authorized service provider is the only source with direct access to these parts and labor.

BD Biosciences is the only source authorized by the OEM to provide maintenance services for this equipment. Use of an OEM-Authorized Service Provider is essential for maintaining the integrity of the system.

The intended source is:

USBDB Service Contract Admin (BD Biosciences)

155 North McCarthy Boulevard

Milpitas CA 95035

Salient characteristics:

Contractor shall provide maintenance services and monitor this equipment’s to proactively maintain and monitor this equipment’s performance.  Planned maintenance inspections are included to assure peak performance and reproducibility, and to minimize costly down time. BD Biosciences is the sole manufacturer and service provider for the LSR Fortessa flow cytometer. This instrument is used daily in the National Cancer Institute Surgical Oncology Program Flow Cytometry Core facility to analyze samples from clinical research studies using human samples. Due to the significant number of efforts this core facility supports, the equipment cannot be out of service for any length of time without causing significant delays to research efforts across the branch, and potential financial injury to the government due to the loss of analytical data from expensive and often irreplaceable experimental samples not being processed in a timely manner.

BD Biosciences is the only direct service provider that has the ability to provide an on-site service response for BD Biosciences instruments which is critical for reducing instrument downtimes.  Additionally, it is critical that the instrument is maintained by factory-trained and authorized technicians to ensure minimal downtime, as well as scientific accuracy of the equipment. BD Biosciences does not authorize third-party service providers. As such BD Biosciences is the only source for factory-trained and certified technicians with access to proprietary parts, system schematics, software, and configurations required to maintain the equipment. The five lasers and the FACS flow supply system that are supplied with this BD Biosciences flow cytometer are configured for use in this instrument. Only lasers configured by BD Biosciences for use in this instrument can be used without voiding the applicable warranties and ensuring that the system performs as intended. Thus, BD Biosciences is the only source known to National Cancer Institute to guarantee maintenance and repair and meet the Government’s needs at this time.

This is a service and maintenance requirement for the LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer. Independently and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, material, equipment, and facilities, not otherwise provided by the Government as needed to provide preventative maintenance and service, including onsite engineer calibrations and onsite engineer services, for the LSR Fortessa Flow Cytometer. The Contractor shall supply all replacement parts to maintain the equipment at OEM specifications. The Contractor shall provide all necessary documentation, repair parts, spare parts, accessories, maintenance supplies, all special tools, test and support equipment, any travel and transportation, personnel skill requirements, and other related services required in performance of maintenance tasks to keep the equipment in good operating condition.

Estimated Period of Performance:

Base period:                  March 17, 2026 through March 16, 2027

Option period 1:           March 17, 2027 through March 16, 2028

Option period 2:           March 17, 2028 through March 16, 2029

Place of Performance:

National Institutes of Health

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

10 Center Drive

Bldg 10

Room 5B56

Bethesda, MD 20892

Contract Type:

A firm-fixed price type contract with option periods is planned for this acquisition, consistent with commercial practices.

CLOSING STATEMENT

THIS NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD ON A SOLE-SOURCE BASIS 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), UNIQUE ENTITY ID, 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 provide evidence that they can provide equipment that meets all of the requirements in this announcement.

All responses must be received by the closing date and time of this announcement and must reference the solicitation number, NIH-NCI-NOI-75N91026Q00004. Responses must be submitted electronically to Shayna Simpson, Contract Specialist, Office of Acquisition Management Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services at Shayna.Simpson@hhs.gov.  U.S. Mail and Fax responses will not be accepted.