DESCRIPTION: THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN FAR SUBPART 12.6-STREAMLINED PROCEDURES FOR EVALUATION AND SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS-AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THIS NOTICE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; QUOTATIONS ARE BEING REQUESTED, AND A WRITTEN SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED. ***This solicitation is being issued using Simplified Acquisition Procedures under the authority of 13.5 Test Program for Certain Commercial Items.*** ***This solicitation is a Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-23.*** *** The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 334516 with a small business size standard of 500 employees. ***This requirement is unrestricted and all interested Contractors may submit a quotation.*** *** The National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking to purchase a Z-Axis Drive and XY Stage for an Olympus IX71 Microscope.*** Background: One component of the mission of NIST?s MSEL Biomaterials Group (Polymers Division) is to develop methods for noninvasive imaging of biological systems. The item required, an inverted microscope, is to be used as an integral part of a coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) microscope, which is to be used for in-situ, non-invasive studies of cell growth and tissue generation in tissue scaffolds for regenerative medicine. ***All interested Contractors shall provide a quote for the following: Line Item 0001: Quantity One (1) Z-axis drive which shall meet or exceed the following minimum specifications: 1. Compatible with NIST?s existing Olympus IX71 Microscope; 2. Z-axis shall have slippage of less than 50 nm; 3. Drive shall mount to the fine focus shaft of the microscope. Line Item 0002: Quantity One (1) XY Stage which shall meet or exceed the following minimum specifications: 1. Compatible with NIST?s existing Olympus IX71 Microscope; 2. Stage shall be capable of motion in the X-Y plane of at least 10 cm range, with resolution of 50 nm; 3. Stage shall be capable of unidirectional repeatability with standard deviation of less than 300 nm; 4. Stage shall be capable of bidirectional repeatability with standard deviation of less than 1000 nm; 5. Stage shall provide pulsed output linked to encoder signals and raster scan firmware or software that allows for raster scans in predefined areas with resolution selectable in the range 100 to 5000 nm. Firmware is preferred. NIST is offering its existing MS-2000 XY stage as a trade-in. The existing stage was purchased from Applied Scientific Instrumentation, Inc. in 2003 and is configured for a Zeiss Axiovert 200 Microscope. This stage (serial number: 306 575 429 370) is in excellent condition. Contractors interested in offering a discount for the trade-in of this existing stage should note the trade-in discount as a line item on their quotation. Delivery terms shall be FOB Destination (Gaithersburg, MD). FOB Destination means: The contractor shall pack and mark the shipment in conformance with carrier requirements, deliver the shipment in good order and condition to the point of delivery specified in the purchase order, be responsible for any loss of and/or damage to the goods occurring before receipt and acceptance of the shipment by the consignee at the delivery point specified in the purchase order; and pay all charges to the specified point of delivery. The contractor shall deliver line items 0001 and 0002 to NIST, Building 301, Shipping and Receiving, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1640. Award shall be made to the quoter whose quote offers the best value to the Government, technical capability, past performance & price shall be considered. The Government will evaluate information based on the following evaluation criteria: 1) Technical Capability factor "Meeting or Exceeding the Requirement," 2) Past Performance and 3) Price. Technical capability and past performance, when combined, shall be approximately equal importance to price. If Technical Capability and Past Performance are equivalent, price shall be the determining factor. Under the technical capability factor, special consideration will be given to a quoted system that includes firmware as identified in Line Item 0002, specification 5. Technical Capability: Evaluation of Technical Capability will be based on the information provided in the quotation. Quoters shall include the manufacturer or brand name, make and model of the products, manufacturer sales literature or other product literature which addresses all salient characteristics, and clearly documents that the offered product meets the minimum specifications stated above. Past Performance: Past Performance will be evaluated to determine the overall quality of the product & service provided and the Contractor?s history of meeting delivery schedules for prior deliverables. Evaluation of Past Performance shall be based on the references provided and/or the quoters recent and relevant procurement history with NIST or its? affiliates. Offerors must provide a list of at least three (3) references to whom the same or similar equipment has been provided. The Contractor must include the references name, contact person, and contact information in the quotation. *** The full text of a FAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at http://acquisition.gov/comp/far/index.html. *** *** The following provisions apply to this acquisition: 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items; 52.212-3 Offerors Representations and Certifications- Commercial Items. *** *** Offerors must complete annual representations and certifications on-line at http://orca.bpn.gov in accordance with FAR 52.212-3 Offerors Representations and Certifications- Commercial Items. If paragraph (j) of the provision is applicable, a written submission is required. ******The following clauses apply to this acquisition: 1. 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions?Commercial Items; 2. 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders?Commercial Items including subparagraphs: a. (14) 52.222-3, Convict Labor; b. (15) 52.222-19 Child Labor ? Cooperation With Authorities And Remedies; c. (16) 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities; d. (17) 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity; e. (19) 52.222-36, Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities; f. (22) 52.222-50, Combating Trafficking in Persons; g. (24) 52.225-1, Buy American Act- Supplies; h. (26) 52.225-13 Restriction on Certain Foreign Purchases, and i. (31) 52.232-33, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer-Central Contractor Registration. Department of Commerce Agency-Level Protest Procedures Level above the Contracting Officer is also incorporated. It can be downloaded at www.nist.gov/admin/od/contract/agency.htm. *** ***All quoters shall submit the following: 1) An original and one (1) copy of a quotation which addresses Line Items 0001 and 0002; 2) An original and one (1) copy of the technical description and/or product literature; 3) Description of commercial warranty; 4) An original and one (1) copy of the most recent published price list(s), 5) A list of three (3) references which includes the contact?s name, phone number, and e-mail.*** ***All quotes shall be sent to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Acquisition Management Division, Attn: Paula Wilkison, Building 301, Room B175, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 1640, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1640. *** *** This is an Open-Market Combined Synopsis/Solicitation for equipment as defined herein. The Government intends to award a Purchase Order as a result of this Combined Synopsis/Solicitation that will include the terms and conditions that are set forth herein. In order to facilitate the award process, ALL quotes shall include a statement regarding the terms and conditions herein as follows: The offeror shall state ?The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document without modification, deletion, or addition.? OR The offeror shall state ?The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document with the exception, deletion, or addition of the following: Offeror shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s) *** ***Submission shall be received not later than 3:00 p.m. local time on February 17, 2008 at the National Institute of Standards & Technology, Acquisition Management Division, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 301, Room B175, Mail Stop 1640, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1640, Attention: Paula Wilkison. Because of heightened security, FedEx, UPS, or similar delivery methods are the preferred method of delivery of quotes. If quotes are hand delivered, delivery shall be made on the actual due date through Gate A, and a 48 hour (excluding weekends and holidays) prior notice shall be made to the Contracts Office at 301-975-4959. NIST is not responsible for late delivery due to the added security measures. In addition, offerors/quoters who do not provide 24-hour notification in order to coordinate entrance to the NIST campus shall assume the risk of not being able to deliver offers/quotes on time. The Government is not responsible for the amount of time required to clear unannounced visitors, visitors without proper identification and without complete information that would allow delivery (i.e. point of contact, telephone POC, Building, room number, etc.). If 24-hour notification was not provided, it is suggested your company representative or your courier service arrive at NIST at least 90 minutes prior to the closing time in order to process entry to the campus through the visitor center and complete delivery. Notice shall include the company name, name of the individual making the delivery, and the country of citizenship of the individual. For non-U.S. citizens, the following additional information will be required: title, employer/sponsor, and address. Please ensure that the individual making the delivery brings photo identification, or they will be denied access to the facility. Any questions or concerns regarding this solicitation should be forwarded in writing via e-mail to the Contract Specialist (Paula Wilkison) @ [email protected]. FAXED QUOTES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. HOWEVER, EMAILED QUOTES WILL BE ACCEPTED. ***

Bid Protests Not Available