Inactive Buy Indian Set-Aside (specific to Department of Health and Human Services, Indian Health Services)

This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation, an obligation or commitment by the Indian Health Service. This notice is intend... This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation, an obligation or commitment by the Indian Health Service. This notice is intended strictly for market research to determine the availability of Indian Small Businesses Economic Enterprise (ISBEE), Indian Economic Enterprises (IEE), or Other Small Businesses. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. The anticipated applicable NAICS code for this acquisition is 311999, All Other Miscellaneous Food Manufacturing or comparable NAICS. OBJECTIVE The primary objective is to establish a six-month contract for miscellaneous subsistence and non-subsistence food items to be purchased on an “as needed” bases for the Pine Ridge Service Unit, Pine Ridge, South Dakota. SCOPE The department coordinates all aspects of patients’ nutritional care and provides attractive, nutritious meals made with high quality ingredients. In addition, we strive to offer a variety of menus to meet the preferences and needs of our patients. Menu options include vegetarian, heart-healthy, sodium restricted, diabetic, gluten-free, renal diets, dysphagia diets, pediatric or geriatric diets, allergy-safe diets, and Kosher diets. Nutritional supplements are available upon request. TYPE OF ORDER Firm Fixed-Price, Commercial Item. ANTICIPATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE Period of Performance: Date of Award through six months. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE The contractor must provide the identified food items to the following facility: IHS Pine Ridge Service Unit ATTN: Dietary Department 607 Indian Health Road Pine Ridge, SD 57770 Contractor shall ensure accuracy of orders. Inspection and acceptance will take place at time of delivery by appointed staff. No damaged items will be accepted. No items that are to be delivered to other facilities will be accepted. DELIVERY SCHEDULE/REQUIREMENTS PRSU requires a weekly food order, however under certain circumstances, the PRSU may require two food deliveries in a week. Delivery will be made between the hours of 08:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M., Monday through Friday. Alternate delivery schedule will have to be discussed and agreed upon with the POC. Vendor will be required to deliver all ordered line items directly to the Dietary department to be received by identified receiving staff. The deliverables shall be the food and supplies listed on the attached Excel spreadsheet that are ordered by the PRSU Dietary staff through an established ordering system. The purpose of the personal contacts is primarily to deliver quality food/supplies to the PRSU. Factual information is exchanged as well as planning and coordinating issues such as substituted items, inventory or quality issues, recall procedures, etc. Methodological problems and possible solutions are discussed to clarify information wanted, to resolve problems. Coordinates the schedule needed in order to meet the requirements with the Dietary Department. Four-week cycle menu with nutrient evaluation as required by hospital accreditation with ingredients available for the menu. Perishable (produce) food item temperatures shall be 34 to 40 degrees when inspected. Perishable food items 32 degrees and below will be considered frozen and shall be returned; melons, apples, oranges, kiwi, grapes, berries, carrots, celery, leaf vegetables, fresh herbs, etc. Frozen food items will be O to -10 degrees when inspected. Frozen food with temperatures above 25 degrees or visible yielding shall be returned; pliable, bendable, tender, etc. Identified food items with flawed packaging, frozen fresh produce, thawed frozen food, and adulterated foods will be returned to the contractor or representative upon delivery of food supplies or upon an agreed time and date for pick up. An invoice credit will be acknowledged and made to the same food invoice received. AUTHORIZED CALLERS ARE AS LISTED: Marilyn Parmenter, Dietary Supervisor, PRSU Rickta Brownlow, Work Leader, PRSU PAYMENT Will be required to utilize the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP) in accordance with HHSAR 352.232-71, Electronic Submission and Processing of Payment Requests. The IPP website address is: https://www.ipp.gov. If you require assistance registering or IPP account access, please contact the IPP Helpdesk at (866) 973-3131 (M-F 8AM to 6PM ET), or IPPCustomerSupport@fiscal.treasury.gov. CAPABILITY STATEMENT/INFORMATION: Interested parties are expected to review this notice to familiarize itself with the requirements of this project. Failure to do so will be at your firm’s own risk. The following information shall be included in the capability statement: A general overview of the respondent’s opinions about the difficulty and/or feasibility of the potential requirement. Information in sufficient detail of the respondent’s (a) current capability and capacity to provide food items and (b) examples of prior completed Government contracts and other related information. The respondents’ Unique Entity ID (UEI) number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HUBZone, etc.) Pursuant to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code: 311999, All Other Miscellaneous Food Manufacturing, or comparable NAICS. All respondents must register on the System for Award Management (SAM) located at http://www.sam.gov/. Geographic Coverage: Please identify the areas of the United States where your organization provides these services. Any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the requirements of the potential acquisition. Statements should also include an indication of current certified small business status; this indication should be clearly marked on the first page of your capability statement (preferably placed under the eligible small business concern’s name and address). Responses will be reviewed only by IHS personnel and will be held in a confidential manner. CLOSING STATEMENT Primary Point of Contact: Marilyn Parmenter, Dietary Supervisor, marilyn.parmenter@ihs.gov, 605-867-3217 SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: Interested parties shall submit capability via email to Kim Carpio, Purchasing Agent, at kim.carpio@ihs.gov. Must include Sources Sought Number PRIHS-SS-25-1506459 in the Subject line. The due date for receipt of statements is January 27, 2025, 3:00 p.m. Mountain Time. All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered. This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of IHS. IHS does not intend to award a contract on the basis of responses nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. As a result of this notice, IHS may issue a Request for Quote (RFQ). THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against IHS shall arise as a result of a response to this notice or IHS’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent requirement. Disclaimer and Important Notes. 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 in 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.