THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN FAR SUBPART 12.6-STREAMLINED PROCEDURES FOR EVALUATION AND SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS-AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THIS NOTICE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; QUOTATIONS ARE BEING REQUESTED, AND A SEPARATE WRITTEN SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED. THE SOLICITATION IS BEING ISSUED USING SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF FAR PARTS 12 AND 13.

This solicitation is a Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) FAC 2023-04 effective June 2, 2023.

The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 334516 with a small business size standard of 1,000 employees. This requirement is being solicited as a Full and Open competition.

Quoters must possess an ACTIVE registration in the System for Award Management system, www.SAM.gov, when submitting a quotation and shall continue to be registered until time of award, during performance, and through final payment of any contract resulting from this solicitation. The Contracting Officer will confirm that quoters have an “active” registration at the www.sam.gov website upon receipt of the quotation. If the SAM.Gov registration is not active, the quotation will not be considered for award.

The Biomolecular Structure and Function (BSF) group in the Biomolecular Measurement Division of the Materials Measurement Laboratory at the national Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) (1) advances novel measurement methods and models for the determination and analysis of the structure and function of biological macromolecules, including lipids, DNA, RNA, and proteins and macromolecular complexes and assemblies formed by these molecules; (2) advances methods to determine the physical and chemical factors which determine the specific interactions of macromolecules with cofactors and ligands; (3) studies the relationships between biomolecule structure, dynamics, function, and energetics using computational, biophysical and biochemical techniques; (4) develops reference databases for these properties; and (5) advances measurement methods for engineering complex biological systems.

In support of this mission, the BSF group is establishing a biomanufacturing testbed for representative processes used during the production of therapeutic proteins. To support this work, the group requires capabilities to perform offline characterization of protein properties by ultra-high performance size exclusion chromatography and of protein concentration by ultra-high performance affinity chromatography. It is anticipated that two ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) systems, in accordance with the Statement of Requirement (SOR), will meet this need.

The objective of this solicitation is to establish a Firm-Fixed-Price purchase order based on the specifications described in the attached SOR.

SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

Responsible quoters shall provide a quotation for the following Contract Line Items (CLINs), in accordance with the specifications outlined in the attached Statement of Requirement. All equipment must be new. Used or remanufactured equipment will not be considered for award.:

BASE LINE ITEMS:

• Line Item 0001: (Quantity 2 Each) Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography (UHPLC) Systems (one (1) with fluorescence detector and one (1) without fluorescence detector), inclusive of all required software packages, operations and maintenance manuals, delivery/shipping, installation, training, and initial warranty; in accordance with the Statement of Requirements.

OPTION LINE ITEMS:

• Line Item 0002: (Quantity 1 Year) Option Year 1- Extended warranty, in accordance with the Statement of Requirements.
• Line Item 0003: (Quantity 1 Year) Option Year 2- Extended warranty, in accordance with the Statement of Requirements.

DELIVERY TERMS

Delivery terms shall be FOB Destination. The Contractor shall pack and mark the shipment in conformance with carrier requirements, deliver the shipment in good order and condition to the point of delivery specified in the purchase order, be responsible for loss of and/or damage to the goods occurring before receipt and acceptance of the shipment by the consignee at the delivery point specified in the purchase order; and pay all charges to the specified point of delivery.

EVALUATION CRITERIA & BASIS FOR AWARD:

The Government intends to award a purchase order resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Contractor whose quotation, conforming to the solicitation, provides the lowest priced, technically acceptable quote.

Technically acceptable means that the quote:

1. Meets or exceeds the brand name only minimum equipment specifications listed within the Statement of Requirements;
2. Meets training, warranty, and installation requirements as applicable;
3. Meets the required delivery schedule; and
4. Meets Option Years 1-2 Extended Warranty.

Price:

The price evaluation will determine whether the quoted prices are fair and reasonable in relation to the solicitation requirements. Quoted prices must be entirely compatible with the technical quotation.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Completed Solicitation Provisions

A completed version of all required solicitation provisions (see attached provisions/clauses document – required submissions highlighted in blue).

Due Date for Quotations and Questions

All quotations must be submitted, via e-mail, to Sadaf Afkhami, Contract Specialist, at Sadaf.Afkhami@nist.gov. Submissions must be received no later than 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on September 1, 2023 FAX quotations will not be accepted. Quoters must reference the RFQ number in the subject line of the e-mail submission. Quotes shall not be deemed received by the Government until the quotation has entered the e-mail inbox of the individual(s) set forth above.

Questions: All questions regarding this notice must be submitted via e-mail to Sadaf Afkhami, at Sadaf.Afkhami@nist.gov, no later than 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on August 24, 2023.

Quotation Preparation Instructions

Each quotation shall consist of three (3) separate electronic files:

(1) Technical Quotation

(2) Pricing Quotation

(3) Completed copy of the Provisions and Clauses

Technical Quotation- Shall include the following:

(1) Technical description and/or product literature. Quoters shall include the manufacturer, make and model of the product, manufacturer sales literature or other product literature which CLEARLY DOCUMENTS that the offered products meet the brand name only specifications outlined in the statement of requirements. It is the responsibility of the quoter to ensure that submitted documentation clearly addresses all specifications and requirements.

(2) If product literature does not address any given specification, the Contractor must provide a discussion of how the Contractor will meet or exceed that required specification. Any modifications must be discussed. It is the responsibility of the quoter to ensure that the discussion clearly addresses the modification and how the required specification(s) will be met with the quoted modification. If such information is not provided, the Government will conclude that the minimum specifications have not been met.

(3) The quoted delivery timeline for the contract line items.

(4) A description of the quoted installation, training, and warranty.

(5) A description of the quoted Option Year 1and 2 Extended Warranty.

Price Quotation:

(1) All Quoters shall submit a firm fixed price, FOB Destination, price quotation for the contract line items. The quotation must include a unit price and total amount for each line item and the aggregate price for all contract line items.

(2) The price quotation shall include a cover page with the following information:

1. The solicitation number 1333ND23QNB640608;
2. The name and address, of the Quoter;
3. The name, phone number, and email address of the Quoter’s point of contact;
4. Unique Entity Identifier # for Quoter’s active SAM.Gov registration.
5. Any applicable discount terms.
6. A statement that the Contractor agrees to all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation. If the Contractor objects to any of the terms and conditions contained in this solicitation, the Contractor shall state “The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document with the exception, deletion, or addition of the following:” [Contractor shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s)]. It is the sole responsibility of the Contractor to identify in their quote any exceptions to the terms and conditions of the solicitation.
7. A statement that the quotation is valid for a minimum of 90 days from the response deadline of this solicitation.

Please note that this procurement IS NOT being conducted under the GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program or another Government-Wide Area Contract (GWAC). If a contractor submits a quotation based upon an FSS or GWAC contract, the Government will accept the quoted price. However, the terms and conditions stated herein will be included in any resultant Purchase Order, not the terms and conditions of the contractor’s FSS or GWAC contract, and the statement required above shall be included in the quotation.

PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES:

The clauses and provisions applicable to this solicitation can be found under Applicable Clauses & Provisions. The full text of a FAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at www.acquisition.gov/far. The full text of a CAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at http://www.osec.doc.gov/oam/acquistion_management/policy/.

ATTACHMENTS:

The following attachments apply to this solicitation:

1. The Statement of Requirements

2. Applicable Clauses & Provisions

Attachments/Links