Inactive

THIS IS A NON-COMPETITIVE (NOTICE OF INTENT) SYNOPSIS TO AWARD A CONTRACT WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME). The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and St... THIS IS A NON-COMPETITIVE (NOTICE OF INTENT) SYNOPSIS TO AWARD A CONTRACT WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME). The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) intends to solicit by a request for quotation from Nikon Instruments Inc., for award on or around August 20, 2021. The purpose of this purchase order will be to provide the NINDS with hardware and software components required for integration onto an existing A1R microscope system with NIS Elements. NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE and SET ASIDE STATUS The intended procurement is classified under NAICS code 333314 - Optical Instrument and Lens Manufacturing with a Size Standard of 500 employees. REGULATORY AUTHORITY This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures. Contracts awarded using FAR Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures are exempt from the requirements of FAR Part 6—Competition Requirements. FAR Subpart 13.106-1 (b) Soliciting from a single source provides that: For purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, the contracting officer may solicit from one source IF the contracting officer determines that the circumstances of the contract action deem only one source reasonably available (e.g., urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, brand-name OR industrial mobilization). The resultant contract will include all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through the Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) No. 2021-06, dated June 10, 2021. Background / Purpose / Objective: The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), Synaptic Transmission Section (STS) laboratory is working on endocytosis. Synaptic vesicle endocytosis retrieves fused vesicles from the plasma membrane to sustain synaptic transmission, which is essential for cell functioning. The STS laboratory is conducting research on endocytosis by live imaging, electron microscopy, western blot, and molecular biology, and involving several genes. The purpose of this requirement is to replace an iXon3 camera purchased eight (8) years ago which is no longer functioning optimally and is at the end of its term of use. The iXON Life EMCCD camera will be a considerable update in functionality and enable the laboratory to produce better results. This requirement will also include Smart Shutter components, to improve the signal quality in the experiments and for automated opening and closing of a light path on a microscope. Anticipated period of performance / delivery date: Thirty (30) days after contract award. CONTRACTING WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME) DETERMINATION The determination by the Government to award a contract without providing for full and open competition is based upon the market research conducted. Specifically, only Nikon trained personnel can integrate the hardware items (Smart Shutter and iXON Life EMCCD camera) and software modules (for NIS Elements) onto the existing A1R microscope system with NIS Elements. The software on the new camera must be compatible with the existing proprietary software on the microscope system. Nikon is the only source for the hardware and software components. Therefore, Nikon Instruments Inc. is the only sole source provider. CLOSING STATEMENT THIS SYNOPSIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency. The information received will normally be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to proceed on a non-competitive basis or to conduct a competitive procurement. Responses to this notice shall contain sufficient information to establish the interested parties' bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, the delivery period after contract award, the prompt payment discount terms, the F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov. All responses must be received by the closing date and time of this announcement and must reference the solicitation number, NIMH-NOI-21-006152. Responses must be submitted electronically to kim.stapleton@nih.gov. U.S. Mail and fax responses will not be accepted.