Inactive

(i) This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This annou... (i) This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. (ii) The solicitation number is 75N95023Q00439 and the solicitation is issued as a request for quotation (RFQ). This acquisition is for a commercial item or service and is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures; and FAR Part 12—Acquisition of Commercial Items, and is not expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. THIS IS A NON?COMPETITIVE COMBINED (NOTICE OF INTENT) SYNOPSIS SOLICITATION TO AWARD A CONTRACT OR PURCHASE ORDER WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND?NAME). The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Office of Acquisition (OA), on behalf of the National Institute on Aging (NIA), intends to negotiate and award a purchase order without providing for full and open competition (including brand-name) to NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE, 21 LOWER KENT RIDGE ROAD, UNIVERSITY HALL, LEE KONG CHIAN WING, UHL-05-02, SINGAPORE. This acquisition is conducted as non-competitive for a commercial service and is conducted pursuant to FAR 13.106-1(b)(1). The rationale for the brand-name justification: The electrophysiological studies in the proposed acquisition will characterize the ability of candidate AD drugs to rescue a form of hippocampal synaptic plasticity called late long-term potentiation (L-LTP) which is believed to be important for the brain to store and retrieve remote memories. Impaired L-LTP is thought to be responsible for cognitive impairment in AD as well as age-associated cognitive impairment. This fundamental biological phenomenon is dependent on the synthesis of synaptic proteins through a mechanism called synaptic tagging and capture (STC). Characterization of L-LTP and STC in hippocampal slice preparations from transgenic AD mouse models requires sophisticated equipment and highly skilled personnel to generate these data. Their interpretation must be performed by an experienced scientist with highly specialized expertise in synaptic physiology. It is critical that the study in the proposed acquisition is performed in the same laboratory and with the same methods and protocols used in prior studies currently being performed under contract 75N95021P00404. (iii) The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) Number 2023-04, with effective date June 2, 2023. (iv) The associated NAICS code 621511 and the small business size standard $41.5 million. This requirement has no set-aside restrictions. (v) This requirement is for the following services: There is currently a pressing need to identify effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). With the repeated failures of multiple pivotal phase-III clinical trials in patients with AD, it is critical to test novel methods of discovering disease-modifying AD treatments. As part of a recently completed study called the Drug Repurposing for Effective Alzheimer’s Medicines (DREAM) study, the National Institute on Aging (NIA) Intramural Research Program (IRP) is testing whether exposure to commonly prescribed, Food and and Drug Administraton (FDA)-approved drugs will be associated with protection against AD. DREAM has tested approximately 20 drugs that NIA have nominated as ‘candidate AD treatments.’ NIA has selected the most promising drugs from the DREAM study to test in the recently funded Experimental Validation of candidate Alzheimer’s disease treatments identified by multi-omics analyses (PREVENT-AD) study. The NIA is additionally testing additional FDA approved and experimental drugs in ongoing contracts including phenotypic screening in cell culture. In the proposed acquisition, NIA will test the efficacy of the most promising drugs (emerging from the DREAM study, the PREVENT-AD study, ongoing contracts and proteomic/ metabolomic studies in the NIA IRP) to determine whether they rescue impaired hippocampal synaptic plasticity. This will be accomplished by studying their effects on late long term potentiation (LTP) in hippocampal slices obtained from the APP/PS1 transgenic AD mouse model. (vi) Project requirements: Independently and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, material, equipment, and facilities, not otherwise provided by the Government as needed to perform the Statement of Work attached to this notice. (vii) Anticipated periods of performance: September 30, 2023 – September 29, 2025 The Government anticipates award of a firm fixed-price purchase order. (viii) The provision at FAR 52.252-1, Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998), applies to this acquisition. This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at these addresses: https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far https://www.hhs.gov/grants/contracts/contract-policies-regulations/hhsar/index.html (End of provision) The following provisions apply to this acquisition and are incorporated by reference: FAR 52.204-7, System for Award Management (Oct 2018) FAR 52.204-16, Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (Aug 2020) FAR 52.211-6, Brand Name or Equal (AUG 1999) FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items (Nov 2021) FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (Nov 2021) FAR 52.225-4, Buy American-Free Trade Agreements-Israel Trade Act Certificate (May 2014) HHSAR 352.239-73, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Notice (December 18, 2015) The clause at FAR 52.252-2, Clauses Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998), applies to this acquisition. This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at these addresses: https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far https://www.hhs.gov/grants/contracts/contract-policies-regulations/hhsar/index.html (End of clause) The following clauses apply to this acquisition and are incorporated by reference: FAR 52.204-13, System for Award Management Maintenance (Oct 2018) FAR 52.204-18, Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance (Aug 2020) FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items (Nov 2021). Addendum to this FAR clause applies to this acquisition and is attached. HHSAR 352.222-70, Contractor Cooperation in Equal Employment Opportunity Investigations (December 18, 2015) HHSAR 352.239-74, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility (December 18, 2015) The following provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition and are attached in full text. Offerors MUST complete the provisions at 52.204-24 and 52.204-26 and submit completed copies as separate documents with their proposal. FAR 52.204-24 Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment (Nov 2021) FAR 52.204-26 Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services-Representation (Oct 2020) FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items (May 2022) Invoice Instructions Without IPP (ix) The provision at FAR clause 52.212-2, Evaluation-Commercial Items (Nov 2021), applies to this acquisition. (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: (i) technical capability of the item offered to meet the Government requirement; (ii) past performance [see FAR 13.106-2(b)(3)]; (iii) price. Technical capability and past performance, when combined, are significantly more important than price. (b) A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer’s specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award. If you are providing an “equal” product, you must submit additional documentation that highlights and describes how your offering is equal in accordance with FAR clause 52.211-6. (x) The Offerors to include a completed copy of the provision at FAR clause 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (Nov 2021), with its offer. If the offeror has completed FAR clause 52.212-3 at www.sam.gov, then the offeror does not need to provide a completed copy with its offer. (xi) The clause at FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items (DEC 2022), applies to this acquisition. Addendum to this FAR clause applies to this acquisition and is attached. (xii) There are no additional contract requirement(s) or terms and conditions applicable to this acquisition. (xiii) The Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) are not applicable to this requirement. (xiv) Responses to this solicitation must include sufficient information to establish the interested parties’ bona-fide capabilities of providing the product or service. The price quote shall include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, delivery days after contract award, delivery terms, prompt payment discount terms, F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), product or catalog number(s), product description, and any other information or factors that may be considered in the award decision. Such factors may include: past performance, special features required for effective program performance, trade-in considerations, probable life of the item selected as compared with that of a comparable item, warranty considerations, maintenance availability, and environmental and energy efficiency considerations. Respondents proposing on an equal product of the brand-name product specified in this announcement must provide, as part of their response: (a) product, catalog, model, and/or part number(s); (b) product description; (c) all relevant information and documentation that the item(s) offered meets the salient physical, functional, or performance characteristics as specified in the purchase description; quantity; estimated price or cost; shipping, handling, and/or installation charges; and delivery date after receipt of order. The Unique Entity ID from SAM.gov, the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size must be included in the response. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov. All quotations must be submitted electronically (by email) to Fred Ettehadieh, Contracting Officer, at Fred.Ettehadieh@nih.gov by the closing date and time of this solicitation, and reference Soliciataion number 75N95023Q00439. Fax responses will not be accepted.

Inactive

This is a Small Business Sources Sought notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding: (1) the avai... This is a Small Business Sources Sought notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding: (1) the availability and capability of qualified small business sources; (2) whether they are small businesses; HUBZone small businesses; service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses; 8(a) small businesses; veteran-owned small businesses; woman-owned small businesses; or small disadvantaged businesses; and (3) their size classification relative to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for the proposed acquisition. 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 NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice. This notice is issued to help determine the availability of qualified companies technically capable of meeting the Government requirement and to determine the method of acquisition. It is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. Responses will not be considered as proposals or quotes. No award will be made as a result of this notice. The Government will NOT be responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents to this notice. This notice is strictly for research and information purposes only. Background and Objectives: Research in the NIA IRP has identified several FDA approved drugs that may target metabolic abnormalities associated with AD and be of utility as effective disease-modifying treatments. Repurposing of approved drugs for AD is a promising approach that can accelerate the development of novel AD treatments. As part of the DREAM study, NIA will perform pharmacoepidemiologic analyses of approximately 20 FDA approved drugs to test whether older individuals exposed to these ‘candidate AD treatments’ are at lower risk of AD. In parallel with these analyses, NIA also test whether these drugs ameliorate pathological changes associated with AD at the cellular level. In one ongoing contract (75N95021P00404; ‘Testing the efficacy of candidate Alzheimer’s disease treatments in rescuing impaired hippocampal synaptic plasticity’) the NIA is testing the effects of 5 candidate AD drugs on LTP. The acquisition objective is to test the efficacy of four candidate AD drugs in rescuing impaired hippocampal synaptic plasticity using the APP/PS1 transgenic mouse model of AD. Project Requirements: Independently and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, material, equipment, and facilities, not otherwise provided by the Government as needed. The main objective of the requirement is: 1. Perform in vitro electrophysiological recordings on hippocampal slice preparations from the APP/PS1 AD mouse model and corresponding wild type animal controls in order to test whether candidate AD drugs rescue impairment in late LTP known to occur in this well-characterized AD mouse model. 2. Perform statistical analyses to test whether a candidate AD drug(s) significantly restores impairment in hippocampal synaptic plasticity relative to the vehicle control. 3. Perform additional biochemical/western blot analyses to establish plausible pharmacological mechanisms of drug action associated with rescue of hippocampal plasticity by a drug(s). Anticipated Period of Performance: Twenty-four (24) months. Capability Statement/information sought: Small business concerns that believe they possess the capabilities to provide the required services should submit documentation of their ability to meet each of the project requirements to the Contracting Off icer. The capability statement must specifically address each of the project requirements separately. Additionally, the capability statement should include 1) the total number of employees, 2) the professional qualifications of personnel as it relates to the requirements outlined, 3) any contractor GSA Schedule contracts by which all of the requirements may be met, if applicable, and 4) any other information considered relevant to this program. Small businesses must also provide their Company Name, Unique Entity ID from SAM.gov, Physical Address, and Point of Contact Information. Interested small businesses are required to identify their type of business, applicable North American Industry Classification System Code, and size standards in accordance with the Small Business Administration. The government requests that no proprietary or confidential business data be submitted in a response to this notice. However, responses that indicate the information therein is proprietary will be properly safeguarded for Government use only. Capability statements must include the name and telephone number of a point of contact having authority and knowledge to discuss responses with Government representatives. Capability statements in response to this market survey that do not provide sufficient information for evaluation will be considered non-responsive. When submitting this information, please reference the solicitation notice number. The respondent must also provide their Unique Entity ID from SAM.gov, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g.,8(a), HubZone, etc., pursuant to the applicable NAICS code and any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the acquisition requirements. One (1) copy of the response is required and must be in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format using 11-point or 12-point font, 8-1/2” x 11” paper size, with 1” top, bottom, left and right margins, and with single or double spacing. The information submitted must be in an outline format that addresses each of the elements of the project requirements and in the capability statement /information sought paragraphs stated herein. A cover page and an executive summary may be included but is not required. The response is limited to ten (10) pages. The 10-page limit does not include the cover page, executive summary, or references, if requested. The response must include the respondents’ technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses. All capability statements sent in response to this Small Business Sources Sought Notice must be submitted to Fred Ettehadieh, Contracting Officer, by email at fred.ettehadieh@nih.gov before the closing date and time of this announcement. All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered. Facsimile responses are not acceptable. Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in the response. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your 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 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, pre-solicitation and solicitation notices may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. The solicitation release date is pending. Confidentiality: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).