Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

THIS NOTICE OF INTENT IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. This notice is for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. This procurement will be processed pu... THIS NOTICE OF INTENT IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. This notice is for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. This procurement will be processed pursuant to FAR part 12, Acquisition of Commercial Items and FAR part 13 Simplified Acquisition Procedures. No solicitation will be issued. All responsible sources who believe they can provide the services listed may submit, in writing to the identified point of contact, a capability statement, proposal, or quotation, which shall be considered by the agency. Information received will be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this notice. A determination by the Government to compete this proposed contract based on responses to this notice is solely at the discretion of the Government. Responses are to be received within 24 hours of this notice. No telephone calls are being accepted. The United States Department Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation in Fort Collins, CO intends to award a firm-fixed price contract to Cryo Associates Inc for 4 Liquid Nitrogen Freezers, MVE-1842P-150-AF-GB, with TEC-3000, and SUC-1 boxes, for the critical storage of non-replaceable seed samples at the NLGRP Nation’s Seed Bank. Freezers must be double walled with a vacuum insulating layer between the walls; must be compatible with aluminum cane boxes (SUC-1) Dimensions: 2.5X2.5X11inches; must have TEC 3000 automatic controller to integrate into existing filling and monitoring system at the NLGRP. Seeds must be held in the vapor phase of LN2 in this freezer and the freezer must be able to maintain a consistent temperature. System must monitor temperature, LN2 level and send alarm when the freezer is out of tolerance. The National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation research location requires these exact Cryo freezers which are very specialized equipment for the storage of seed samples in the vapor phase of Liquid Nitrogen. This vendor is the only source of these exact specialized freezers. For continuity of mission critical operations all of their existing freezers were previously purchased from Cryo-Associates. When a freezer needs to be replaced or added it must be replaced with a like freezer and only Cryo-Associates can match these specifications without extensive modifications to the existing infrastructure. Additionally, this is the only freezer compatible with the TEC 3000 technology needed for adequate temperature monitoring, LN2 level monitoring, and control automatic filling. This system sends an alarm when the freezer foes beyond set thresholds, these systems are proprietary technology and can’t be purchased elsewhere. NAICS Code is 332420. Award is in accordance with both 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1) and FAR 13.106-1 (b)(1)(i).