National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
Acquisition Management Division
Sources Sought for Commercial Product Purchase

THIS SOURCES SOUGHT IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTATION.

It is a market research tool being used to determine potential and eligible business firms that can provide the product described herein prior to determining the method of acquisition.

The National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) seeks information on vendors that can provide a Sub-Kelvin Cryostat with optional upgrades at a later date per Specifications attached herein.

This announcement is not a Request for Quotation (RFQ) and does not commit the Government to award a contract now or in the future. No solicitation is currently available. Additionally, The Government is not obligated to and will not pay for any information received from potential sources because of this Sources Sought announcement.  The results of this Sources Sought will be utilized to determine if any Small Business Set-aside opportunities exist. All Small Business Set-aside categories will be considered. In addition, this market research tool is being used to identify potential and eligible firms, of all sizes, prior to determining the method of acquisition and issuance of a solicitation.

Based on this Sources Sought announcement, NIST may conduct a competitive procurement on the System for Award Management (sam.gov) website and subsequently award a contract. If at least two qualified small businesses are identified during this market research stage that can fulfil the requirement, in accordance with the Specifications, then this acquisition shall be solicited as a small business set aside. However, NIST is seeking responses from all responsible sources, including large and small businesses (SB, SDB, WOSB, HUBZone, SDVOSB and VOSB). This requirement is assigned a 334516 – Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing with a small business size standard of 1,000 employees. The specific purpose of this Sources Sought announcement is to determine if there are small businesses, within the parameters identified above, that can provide the product identified in the Specifications document.

Interested business organizations that believe they can meet the requirement should submit electronic copies of their capability statement. Please limit responses to five (5) pages or less. Responses should include the following information:

1. Company Profile to include number of employees, office location(s), Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number and Cage Code. 

2. Name of company that will provide the product. 

3. Name of company that will manufacture and country of origin of the product. 

4.  Specification sheets and examples of products that meet the Specifications attached herein. 

5. Typical lead time to deliver the product after receipt of award to include installation time and any necessary training that is provided. 

6. Identification and verification of the company’s small business status. 

7. Any other relevant information that is not listed above which the Government should consider in developing our requirement and finalizing our market research. 

(Company sales brochures or marketing packages will not be considered).

REQUIREMENTS OVERVIEW:

See the attached Specifications Document.