Notice Number: - 75N94019Q00028
Title: INDIRECT CALORIMETRY SYSTEM
NAICS Code: 334516 (Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing)
NAICS Size Standard: 1000
This is a Small Business Sources Sought Notice. This notice is intended strictly for Market Research. This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation or commitment by the Government. The Government will not pay for information solicited on this notice.

Requirement: The National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), is conducting a market survey to determine the availability and technical capability of qualified small business, veteran-owned small business, service-disabled veteran-owned small business or HUBZone small businesses capable of providing CLAMS-HC Interface & Software.

Obesity has become a serious health concern worldwide and is accompanied by metabolic diseases. Researchers in NIDDK have been using the OxyMax Indirect Calorimetry System purchased in 2010 from Columbus Instruments to measure metabolic rates in mice. This current system only allows for measuring 12 mice at a time. The NIDDK will be able to run twice as many mice per test using both the existing and new indirect calorimetry systems to meet the increasing demand from our investigators. The new system must be compatible with the existing one since both systems will be running simultaneously. It is required that the new system is purchased from the same manufacturer to avoid introducing new variable into the experimental results.

The goal of this acquisition is to increase the capacity to measure metabolic rate indirectly in mice. NIDDK has been using the OxyMax system to indirectly measure metabolic rate in order to minimize effects such as mouse handling on the metabolism. The new indirect calorimetry system needs to be compatible to the existing one otherwise the results are not comparable to the ones obtained from the existing system. If acquisition is anything other than the OxyMax indirect Calorimetry System, we then require this to be a system that can analyze 24 mice simultaneously with the same resolution and precision as the existing equipment so the capacity of measuring metabolic rate in mice can be doubled from the current capacity in order to meet the increasing demand of such assay from NIDDK and NIH investigators.

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. Interested parties are expected to review this Notice to familiarize themselves with the requirements of this project; failure to do so will be at your firm's own risk.

INFORMATION & SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS :

1. Page Limitations:

Interested qualified small business organizations should submit a tailored capability statement for this requirement not to exceed fifteen (15) single-sided pages including all attachments, resumes, charts, etc. (12-point font minimum) that clearly details the firm's ability to perform the aspects of the notice described above. Tailored capability 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 (preferable placed under the eligible small business concern's name and address) as well as the eligible small business concern's name, point of contact, address and DUNS number.

2. Response & Submission:

Responses to this notice shall contain enough information to establish the interested parties bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: certification by the OEM that you are authorized to provide services. All Capability Statements sent in response to this SMALL BUSINESS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE must be submitted electronically (via e-mail) in MS Word or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) to the Contract Specialist/Contracting Officer as follows:

Verne Griffin
Business Opportunity Specialist
Office of Acquisitions ASB Branch, NICHD
National Institutes of Health
[email protected]
Note: The e-mail subject line must specify the Notice Number specified above.

3. Due Date:

All Capability Statements sent in response to this SMALL BUSINESS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE are due no later than 11:00 AM (EST), April 15, 2019. Responses and/or submissions via Facsimile will not be accepted. All questions pertaining to this notice must include the Notice Number specified above.

CAPABILITY STATEMENTS RECEIVED AFTER SPECIFIED DATE AND TIME WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

PLEASE NOTE: In order to receive an award, Contractor must be registered and have a valid certification in the System for Award Management (SAM), formerly known as Central Contractor Registration (CCR).

DISCLAIMER AND IMPORTANT NOTES: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in this 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 Federal Business Opportunities at www.fbo.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).