Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

DESCRIPTION This Small Business Sources Sought Notice (SBSS) is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the National ... DESCRIPTION This Small Business Sources Sought Notice (SBSS) is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The purpose of this Sources Sought Notice is to identify qualified small business concerns including 8(a), HUBZone or Service-Disabled Veteran-owned business concerns that are interested in and capable of performing the work described herein. The NCI does not intend to award a contract based on responses received nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. An organization that is not considered a small business under the applicable American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code should not submit a response to this notice. This requirement is assigned NAICS code 334516 with a size standard of 1,000 employees is being considered. NCI may issue a request for quotation (RFQ) as a result of this Sources Sought Notice. THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against NCI shall arise as a result of a response to this Sources Sought Notice or the NCI’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent requirement. 1.0 BRAND NAME OR EQUAL This requirement is for the procurement of the brand name or equivalent instrument described in Section 4.0. The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) provision FAR 52.211-6, Brand Name or Equal (AUG 1999) is applicable to this requirement. 2.0 BACKGROUND The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Center for Cancer Research (CCR), Surgery Branch (SB) is a combined laboratory and clinical research unit devoted to the development of innovative cancer immunotherapies and their translation to the treatment of patients with cancer. The use of high-throughput benchtop sequencers has significantly expedited SB’s effort to develop novel immunotherapies for the treatment of patients with a variety of malignancies that include melanoma, kidney, lung, and bladder cancer. The utilization of a manual NGS prep kit (Whole-exome sequencing (WES) and RNA-Sequencing (RNASeq)) with start to finish timeline of 2-3 days is inefficient to produce sequencing ready samples and therefore SB requires an automated system to produce NGS libraries. Automated NGS library preps provide reproducible results, making it easy to assay multiple genes and complex genetic aberrations from genomic DNA including degraded samples. 3.0 TYPE OF ORDER This is a Firm-Fixed-Price Purchase Order. 4.0 PRODUCT FEATURES/SALIENT CHARACTERISTICS The following product features/characteristics are required for the Agilent Magnis Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Prep System or Equivalent. The required library prep system shall: Use and include Magnis SureSelect XT HS kits or equivalent which are the automated version of the existing SureSelect WES XT-HS/HS2 kits that are currently in use within the laboratory. The Magnis NGS library prep kits/reagents or equivalent shall come pre-aliquoted in Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) 8-well strips for each NGS protocol (e.g., WES kits). Be able to produce 8 individual WES libraries from post-DNA shearing to sequencing-ready samples in 8-9 hours. This allows the laboratory to process up to 16 samples within a 24-hour time frame. Include a bench-top instrument that self-detects the multiple steps in the NGS library prep protocols. Additionally, the instrument shall self-tune each step as the system is used more and more to produce NGS libraries. Include multiple pre-set protocols for running WES, RNASeq, and other NGS library prep protocols. Provide NGS libraries that are bead-purified on the system allowing for continuous production of samples from start to finish. Include an on-board PCR system allowing for hands-free workflow. Have a small footprint not exceeding the following dimensions due to existing laboratory space: W-25in x D-29in x H-28in 4.1 DELIVERY / INSTALLATION Delivery shall be within 10-12 weeks of the Purchase Order award. The Contractor shall coordinate delivery and tracking information with the NCI Technical Point of Contact (TPOC), TBD at award, with tracking information to anticipate delivery to the best extent possible. All shipping/handling (including FOB) and delivery/installation fees shall be included in the quote. Upon delivery, the Contractor shall notify the TPOC to schedule installation. The installation date and time shall occur within 10-15 business days after delivery. Installation shall be performed by, or under the direct supervision of, an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) certified operator. The Contractor shall deliver and install the equipment at the following address: The instrument shall be delivered and installed the following location: 10 Center Drive Building 10 CRC Room 3W3857 Bethesda, MD 20892 The TPOC for delivery and installation are below: TBD at award Phone: TBD at award Email: TBD at award 4.2 TRAINING The Contractor shall provide a minimum of a two-hour onsite training for a minimum of three primary users of the equipment. 4.3 WARRANTY The Contractor shall warrant that any instruments, equipment, components, or other supplies (“Supplies”) procured by this purchase are free of defects in design, material, or manufacture for a period of at least 12-months from date of installation. The Contractor shall warrant that all consumables or expendable parts are free of defects in design, material, or manufacture for a period of at least 90 calendar days from date of acceptance by the Government. Supplies which are repaired or replaced shall be warranted for the remainder of the initial warranty period or for 90-days – whichever is greater. 5.0 RESPONSE DELIVERY POINT Capability statements shall be submitted via email to Contract Specialist, Adam Hernandez, at adam.hernandez@nih.gov no later than 1:00 P.M. ET on Tuesday, May 4, 2021 (05/04/2021). All information furnished must be in writing and must contain enough detail to allow the NCI to determine if it can meet the unique specifications described herein. Please reference number 75N91021Q00080 on all correspondence. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization’s capability. 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 a review of the responses received, a RFQ may be published. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation(s).