Short Term Sole Source Extension

Contract HHSN271200723721C, "NINDS Center for Clinical Trial Research Data Management, Methodology, Statistical Design, and Quality Control", with KAI Research Inc. is currently due to expire on May 14, 2012 and will need to be extended for 4.5 months on a sole-source basis in order to allow for continuity/provision of ongoing services pending the outcome of the Institute's small business set-aside re-competition of this requirement (see FedBizOpps Pre-Soliciation Announcement for RFP-NIH-NINDS-12-01, "NINDS Center for Clinical Trial Resources"). The NINDS anticipates a new 5-year term contract for this requirement to be awarded on or about September 30, 2012. The current contract, HHSN271200723721C, awarded on May 15, 2008 for a five year term, provides ongoing services in support of NINDS sponsored clinical trials in the areas of quality assurance/quality control monitoring services, clinical project tracking and maintenance of the classification system, statistical and methodological support, clinical data acquisition and archiving, data quality control monitoring of the Specialized Program of Translational Research in Acute Stroke (SPOTRAIS) program, and common data element development support. If the current contract were not to be extended for the 4.5 month period pending the outcome of the re-competition, the NINDS would lose critical quality control support of its sponsored clinical trials/studies, endure major disruption and unacceptable delays to current and ongoing common data element development and implementation, lose access to ongoing methodological and statistical support and encounter serious delays in the distribution of archived data sets to the research community. Extension of the current contract for 4.5 months on a sole-source basis, under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1) as set forth in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302-1(a)(1), is deemed necessary in order to avoid unacceptable delays in fulfilling the agency's requirements and substantial duplication of cost to the Government that would likely result from pursuing this 4.5 month requirement on a competitive basis. The current contractor is the only source capable of maintaining services for this brief time period without substantial delays, and the duplication in costs for a different contractor to prepare to take over these services for 4.5 months could not reasonably be expected to be recovered by any potential cost savings to be had from competition. This 4.5 month extension is being pursued on a sole source basis in order to serve a continuing need pending the outcome of the re-competition of this requirement being pursued under Request for Proposals (RFP) RFP-NIH-NINDS-12-01, "NINDS Center for Clinical Trial Resources", open to all qualified small business sources. A new five-year term contract for this requirement, pursued on a competitive basis per the terms of the aforementioned RFP, will follow this 4.5 month sole-source extension of the currently existing contract. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency. The determination by the Government not to compete this 4.5 month extension to the current contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Authority: 41 U.S.C.(c)(1), as set forth in FAR 6.302-1. This is not a formal solicitation or an announcement that a Request for Proposals for this 4.5 month extension is available.