Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

Sources Sought 12905B22SS0015– Sources Sought for full sized Italian honeybee colonies Description: This is a Sources Sought notice Only. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, ... Sources Sought 12905B22SS0015– Sources Sought for full sized Italian honeybee colonies Description: This is a Sources Sought notice Only. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. This Sources Sought is issued for information and planning purposes only as part of USDA ARS market research and does not itself constitute an RFQ. This requirement is covered under NAICS code 112910. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of qualified sources; Small Businesses; HUBZone small business; service-disabled, veteran-owned small business; 8(a) small business; veteran-owned small business; woman-owned small business; or small disadvantaged businesses; Responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service – 2000 E Allen Rd, Tucson, AZ has issued this sources sought announcement in order to determine if there are existing businesses sources capable of providing full size bee colonies, sold and delivered directly to the ARS location listed. The complete requirement is for full sized Italian honeybee colonies; each colony is a single 10 frame deep Langstroth hive including bees, brood, a European queen, honey, and pollen. The colonies come with a wooden Langstroth hive body, a migratory lid, and a temporary screened bottom board. All frames are drawn with honeycomb. The Italian queens must come from both California and Hawaii to meet certain research requirements. Full sized colonies will come directly from almond pollination and be delivered by truck overnight to the Tucson Carl Hayden Bee Research Center. Delivery is dependent upon release of bees out of almond contracts, and will occur no later than March 31st-April 1st, 2022 The location will require 122 full colonies. The Government does not intend to make an award based on responses to this inquiry. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the Government. Capability Statement All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary, and the Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the Government. Business concerns that possess the capabilities necessary to undertake this work should submit complete documentation of their capabilities to the Contracting Officer. Capability statements shall include the Contractors contact point to discuss their response. The capability statement should include: 1) Acknowledgement that they are able to provide the subject supplies/services being requested; 2) Interested vendors should identify their size standards in accordance with the Small Business Administration; 3) At least three previous requirements that are similar to the requirement include a discussion of the Contract type, delivery method, duration, etc.; 4) Any other information considered relevant to this requirement; and 5) The government requests that no proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in the response. Any vendor responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine their qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After review of the responses received, a combined synopsis/solicitation may be published on sam.gov depending on the responses received. All responses to this Sources Sought Notice must be received by the notice’s POC, Mr. Paige C. Francis (paige.francis@usda.gov) by the deadline of 5:00 PM, EST, January 28th, 2022, in order to be considered. Please ensure to note the sources sought number in the subject line of your email. Responses may not be returned. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this Inquiry. Do not submit pricing information in response to this request.