Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

The Government is seeking Capability Statements on behalf of The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) from Small Business organizations under the North American Industry Classification System (N... The Government is seeking Capability Statements on behalf of The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) from Small Business organizations under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 811210, that are authorized Olympus VS200 Slide Scanning Microscope System maintenance and service technicians who have access to Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) updates and upgrades and the demonstrated capability of providing maintenance and repair services for Olympus VS200 Slide Scanning Microscope System. This is a 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 business sources; (2) the availability of capable 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. The established NAICS code is 811210, Electronic and precision equipment repair and maintenance. The U.S. Small Business Administration establishes a size standard for 811210 as $34,000,000 in revenue or less. BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND OBJECTIVE: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the nation’s leading medical research agency and the primary Federal agency whose mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to make medical discoveries that improve people’s health and save lives. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), Laboratory of Neuropsychology (LN) and Laboratory of Brain and Cognition (LBC) investigators perform experiments in which they need to collect light microscope images of very large amounts of sectioned material. This is frequently of entire brains from marmosets and macaques. The material is cut into sections that may be 20-40 microns thick and mounted onto slides. Depending on the species, the section thickness, and whether all sections or a sampling are used, a brain may create several hundred sections. It may be necessary to image them in either brightfield or fluorescence. Depending on details of the experimental information required, it may be appropriate to image at relatively low magnification (2.5-5X), medium (10-20X), or high (40X) magnification, or to initially image at low magnification and subsequently image selected regions of interest at higher magnification. It may be appropriate to collect images from a single focal plane or to collect images from multiple focal planes at each position. With the large volume of brain specimens being processed, the microscope system requires prompt and timely repair and updates to keep it in well maintained working condition. The complex specificity of this microscope system is such that only the Platinum Service Contract provided by Evident (formerly Olympus) will meet the required needs. NIMH awarded preventative maintenance and service for the Olympus VS200 Slide Scanning Microscope System on December 6, 2023. NIMH requires a renewal to the preventative maintenance and service agreement for NIMH’s M Olympus VS200 Slide Scanning Microscope System. NIMH requires a service agreement for a 12-month Base Period plus three (3) additional 12-month option periods. Without this contract in place, repair costs are extremely high and instrument downtime is much longer, causing significant decrease in scientific productivity. The contractor shall provide all resources necessary to accomplish the tasks and deliverables described in this Statement of Work (SOW). The contractor shall provide maintenance support and guidance for the hardware and software on this system which supports the on-going research performed on this system. PROJECT REQUIREMENTS: The Contractor shall provide preventative maintenance and service agreement coverage during each 12-month period including one (1) preventative maintenance (PM) visit, all available software updates, and unlimited on-site troubleshooting and repair with standard response time including parts for the repair for the Olympus VS200 Slide Scanning Microscope System (including the VS with AutoLoader with Fluorescence) described in the General Requirements section, and to include at minimum the following: 1. Preventative maintenance services which shall consist of, but not limited to, inspection, examination of all functioning parts, thorough cleaning, proper lubrication, replacement, or repair of worn or unserviceable parts, adjustment and calibration made with the expressed intent of maintaining the instrument to the manufacturer’s original specifications. When necessary, this includes complete dismantling, parts replacement, reassembly, and thorough testing and adjusting. 2. Emergency repair service shall be provided on an unlimited basis during the term of this contract at no additional cost to the Government. Emergency service shall be provided between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM on Monday through Friday excluding weekends and Federal holidays. Upon receipt of notice that any part of the equipment is not functioning properly, the Contractor shall furnish a factory-trained service representative to inspect the equipment and perform all repairs and adjustments necessary to restore the equipment to normal and efficient operating condition. 3. The Contractor shall provide preventive maintenance, service repairs, and technical support between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM on Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays. 4. On-site service and repairs shall be performed between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM on Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. 5. The Contractor shall use only OEM-certified parts and components for all preventive maintenance and repairs, except for consumables, at no additional cost to the Government. 6. Contractor shall be responsible for shipping and handling costs of each equipment instrument’s replacement parts and components. 7. The Contractor shall provide unlimited technical support, including by phone, email and web support. 8. The Contractor shall provide, at no additional cost to the Government, all necessary documentation, repair parts, replacement parts, spare parts, accessories, maintenance supplies, special tools, test and support equipment, travel and transportation, personnel skill requirements, and other related services required to maintain the instrument in fully functioning condition, except for costs of repairs occasioned by fault or negligence of the Government. 9. The services and preventive maintenance shall be performed by a factory certified and fully trained OEM technician in order to assure proper repair and operation of the system in accordance with manufacturer guidelines. 10. The Contractor shall provide, at no additional cost to the Government, expendable repair parts normally used up or consumed in service. 11. The coverage includes upgrading the operating system and software of the workstation running the slide scanner. 12. The government shall have priority service scheduling over non-contracted customers. Documentation shall be provided by the Contractor to the Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) or point of contact (POC) to show they completed the work. The service technician is to present a service ticket that briefly details the work performed to the POC for signature and a copy of the ticket is to be left with the POC. The Contractor shall submit a detailed written report of any service to be submitted to the COR, or a delegated entity, within 24 hours of service being performed. INSTRUCTIONS: Capability statement /information sought. Companies that believe they possess the capabilities to provide the required product/service should submit documentation of their ability to meet each of the project requirements to the Contracting Officer. 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 and/or other government-wide acquisition contracts (GWACs) by which all of the requirements may be met, if applicable, and 4) any other information considered relevant to this program. Capability statements must also include the Company Name, Unique Entity ID from SAM.gov, Physical Address, and Point of Contact Information. The response must include the respondents’ technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses. Interested companies are required to identify their type of business, applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) 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 established NAICS code is 811210. Respondents must provide clear and convincing documentation of their capability of providing the products and support services specified in this notice. Also, information must be provided in sufficient details of the respondents’ (a) staff expertise, including their availability, experience, formal and other training; (b) capability to perform the work; (c) prior completed projects of similar nature; (d) compliance with requirements: Vendors must identify and demonstrate specifically how they will meet the requirements listed above. Any other specific and relevant information about this particular area of procurement that would improve our consideration and evaluation of the information presented is desirable. Documentation may include, but not be limited to, contracts both Government and commercial the organization performed, references, i.e., names, titles, telephone numbers and any other information serving to document the organizations capability, e.g., awards, commendations, etc. 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 requirement and in the capability statement paragraphs stated herein. A cover page and an executive summary may be included but is not required. Any business concerns that believe they possess the capability necessary to successfully undertake the work described above must SUBMIT CAPABILITY STATEMENTS ELECTRONICALLY to the Contract Specialist, Rob Bailey at Rob.Bailey@nih.gov, NO LATER THAN 9:00 a.m. EST on July 22, 2024. The Subject line for the submission should include this Sources Sought Number and organization name. NIDA will not accept paper or faxed capability statements. THIS NOTICE IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. This notice is for information and planning purposes only and does not commit the Government to any contractual agreement. 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 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 a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published on SAM.gov. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. 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).