Contracting Office Address
Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Office of Acquisitions, 9609 Medical Center Drive, Room 1E136, Bethesda, MD 20892, UNITED STATES.

Non-USPS mail such as Fedex, UPS and other private carriers please use Rockville, MD 20850.

Description

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Division of the Center for Cancer Research (CCR) Experimental Transplantation and Immunology Branch (ETIB) intends to procure the Brand Name or equal XFe24 Extracellular Flux Analyzer.

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items, prepared in accordance with format in FAR 12.6 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation and a separate written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation: No. RFQ-NCI-130159-TG includes all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through FAR FAC 2005-69 (August 2013) simplified procedures for commercial items.

This acquisition is a 100% small business set-aside. The North American Industry Classification System code is 334516 and the business size standard is 500 employees.

Only one award will be made as a result of this solicitation. This will be awarded as a firm fixed price type contract.

I. Description of Requirement
The ETIB is dedicated to develop new T-cell-based immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer by simultaneously exploring mouse and human T cell biology. Specifically, ETIB is interested in uncovering the molecular as well as the metabolic mechanisms regulating the differentiation of T cells, which is a key determinant for the effectiveness of T cell-based therapies. ETIB is proposing to purchase the XFe24 Extracellular Flux Analyzer, an analytical instrument capable of simultaneously measuring the two major energy-producing pathways of the cell (i.e. mitochondrial oxygen consumption and cytoplasmic glycolysis). Because XF measurements are label-free and non-destructive, the metabolism of the same living cell population can be measured repeatedly and the cells reused in other assays. In addition, the integrated drug delivery ports of the XFe24 Extracellular Flux Analyzer allow for determining real-time kinetic response of cells to modulators of metabolism in a single experiment. The ability to perform these analyses will allow a deeper understanding of the metabolic attributes that are associated with the capacity of tumor-reactive T cells to kill tumor masses in vivo upon adoptive transfer. Moreover, it will help to design new therapeutic strategies based on the modulation of T cell metabolism

Parts required:

Xfe24 Extracellular Flux Analyzer including:

XFe24 FluxPak mini (2)
XF Cell Mito Stress Test Kit
XF Glycolysis Stress Test Kit
XF Assay Medium
1 Year Warranty
Training
XFe24 Installation Kit (FluxPak Mini)

The Salient Characteristics of the XFe24 Extracellular Flux Analyzer is as follows:

The following Salient Characteristics must be provided:

• Capable of simultaneously measuring the two major energy producing pathways of the cell (i.e. mitochondrial oxygen consumption and cytoplasmic glycolysis)
• Label-free and non-destructive measurements allowing for repeated measurements and ability for cell reuse in other assays.
• Integrated drug delivery ports allowing for determining real-time kinetic response of cells to modulators of metabolism in a single experiment.
• Convenient, easy-to-use XFe Stress Test Kits and reagents simplify the study of cellular
metabolism by providing pre-calibrated, pre-tested reagents for measuring mitochondrial
respiration, glycolysis and fatty acid oxidation in cells.
• Uses disposable cell culture microplates.
• OCR and ECAR rate are calculated in 2-5 minutes using data acquired every 14 seconds.
Measurements may be repeated indefinitely to measure kinetic responses.
• Typically requires only 30,000 to 80,000 cells per 24-well assay.
• No cleaning required. All parts that contact cells, media or drugs are disposable.
• Measures adherent cells without requiring trypsinization.
• Suspended cells may be measured using Cell-Tak® cell and tissue attachment medium.
• Up to four test compounds may be added automatically to each well during the assay.
• Measurements may be performed before and after each compound is added.
• Temperature controlled measurement chamber is maintained at 37C +/- 5°C.
for transfer into other statistical analysis programs.
• Standardized reagent kits and protocols designed for use with the XFe Analyzer.
• Convenient, quality controlled kits provide standardized metabolic measurements in an
easy-to-use format.

II. Delivery: Contractor(s) shall deliver the item within 90 days after award to: NIH/NCI Bethesda, Maryland 20892. The Contractor that receives the award will be provided with the complete mailing address and point of contact. Upon delivery, contractor must notify the NCI Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) to schedule the installation date and time.

III. Installation: To be carried out by the manufacturer and shall occur within approximately one week of delivery.

IV. Payment: Payment shall be made after delivery, installation, and successful operation of equipment. Payment authorization requires submission and approval of invoice to the NCI COR and NIH Commercial Accounts.

QUOTATIONS ARE DUE: September 20, 2013 at 11:00 am EST.

PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES: The following FAR provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition:

FAR clause 52.212-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS-COMMERCIAL ITEMS (Febraury 2012);
FAR clause 52.212-3 OFFEROR REPRESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS-COMMERCIAL ITEMS- (December 2012) WITH DUNS NUMBER ADDENDUM {52.204-6 (April 2008)};

FAR Clause 52.212-4 CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS - COMMERCIAL ITEMS (February 2012);

FAR Clause 52.212-5: CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS REQUIRED TO IMPLEMENT STATUTES OR EXECUTIVE ORDERS-COMMERCIAL ITEMS (January 2013). The following FAR clauses cited in paragraph (b) of the clause at FAR 52.212-5 are also applicable to this acquisition;
FAR Clause 52.203-6 Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government
FAR Clause 52.219-4 Notice of Price Evaluation Preference for HUBZone Small Business Concerns.
FAR Clause 52.219-6 Notice of Total Small Business Set-Aside
FAR Clause 52.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns
FAR Clause 52.219-28 Post Award Small Business Program Representation
FAR Clause 52.222-3 Convict Labor
FAR Clause 52.222-19 Child Labor-Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies
FAR Clause 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities
FAR Clause 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity
FAR Clause 52.222-35 Equal Opportunity for Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans
FAR Clause 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities
FAR Clause 52.222-37 Employment Reports of Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans
FAR Clause 52.222-39 Notification of Employee Rights Concerning Payment of Union Dues or Fees
FAR Clause 52.225-5 Trade Agreements
FAR Clause 52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases
Far Clause 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer-Central Contractor Registration
FAR Clause 52.247-64 Preference for Privately Owned U.S.-Flag Commercial Vessels

52.211-6 Brand Name or Equal. (Aug 1999)

(a) If an item in this solicitation is identified as "brand name or equal," the purchase description reflects the characteristics and level of quality that will satisfy the Government's needs. The salient physical, functional, or performance characteristics that "equal" products must meet are specified in the solicitation.

(b) To be considered for award, offers of "equal" products, including "equal" products of the brand name manufacturer, must-
(1) Meet the salient physical, functional, or performance characteristic specified in this solicitation;
(2) Clearly identify the item by-
(i) Brand name, if any; and
(ii) Make or model number;
(3) Include descriptive literature such as illustrations, drawings, or a clear reference to previously furnished descriptive data or information available to the Contracting Officer; and
(4) Clearly describe any modifications the offeror plans to make in a product to make it conform to the solicitation requirements. Mark any descriptive material to clearly show the modifications.

(c) The Contracting Officer will evaluate "equal" products on the basis of information furnished by the offeror or identified in the offer and reasonably available to the Contracting Officer. The Contracting Officer is not responsible for locating or obtaining any information not identified in the offer.

(d) Unless the offeror clearly indicates in its offer that the product being offered is an "equal" product, the offeror shall provide the brand name product referenced in the solicitation.
(End of provision)

Full text copies of the representations and certifications for other cited provisions and clauses may be obtained on line at the NCI website at http://rcb.cancer.gov/rcb-internet/index.jsp or from Terry Galloway, Contracting Officer at [email protected] .

OFFERORS: Offers must be submitted on an SF-1449 with a completed 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items-with DUNS Number Addendum, signed by an authorized representative of the offeror OR provide a copy of the valid certification registrations of the offeror's Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and Online Representations and Certifications Applications (ORCA) through sam.gov.

Quotations must be received in the NCI-OA contracting office by 11:00 a.m. EST on September 20. 2013. Please refer to solicitation number RFQ-NCI-130159-TG on all correspondence. No collect calls will be accepted. Faxed or electronic mail quotations will NOT be accepted.

All questions shall be in writing and may be addressed to the aforementioned individual noted above. No collect calls will be accepted. In order to receive an award, contractors must be registered and have valid certification in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and the Online Representations and Certifications Applications (ORCA) through sam.gov.

Bid Protests Not Available