The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Office of Acquisition and Agreements Management, on behalf of the Chemical Sciences Division, intends to enter into a sole source purchase order with Spectro Analytical Instruments, Inc. of Mahwah, NJ, under the authority of 41 USC 253 (c)(1) - only one responsible source - for maintenance of a Spectro ARCOS ICP-OES instrument.

The Chemical Sciences Division provides the measurement science, standards, technology, data and chemical informatics required to support the nation's needs in the determination of the chemical structure of gases within organic and inorganic species as well as in the measurement of a wide variety of chemical properties and processes, including chemical reactivity and mechanisms, and thermochemical properties. One of the fundamental tools to fulfill this mission is a Spectro ARCOS ICP-OES instrument.

Sole source is based on the following:
The instrument's design and maintenance procedures are proprietary to Specto Analytical Instruments Inc. Spectro Analytical Instruments Inc. has no authorized distributors or resellers capable of providing component parts, spare parts, software, technical support, software upgrades, and engineering resources necessary to maintain the instrument's original operating specifications.

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 811219 - Other Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair and Maintenance; the Small Business Size Standard is $19.0M.

No solicitation package will be issued. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations; however, responses received by March 19, 2014, will be considered by the Government.

A determination by the Government not to compete the proposed acquisition based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct a competitive procurement.

Bid Protests Not Available