NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE - SINGLE LAYER CHROMIUM ELECTROPLATED ON NICKEL SUBSTRATE

NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD SOLE SOURCE EASTERN APPLIED RESEARCH INC. Single Layer Chromium Electroplated on Nickel Substrate The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO) on behalf of the Office of Quality Operations intends to award a sole source, firm-fixed-price contract for Single Layer Chromium Electroplated on Nickel Substrate at the Washington D.C. Facility (DCF).

The intended contractor is Eastern Applied Research Inc. The Government intends to award a sole source contract utilizing a Justification & Approval in accordance with FAR 13.106-1(b). The Office of Quality Operations aims to acquire twenty-seven (27) Single Layer Chromium Electroplated on Nickel Substrates. These will serve as Certified Reference Material (CRM) to support process monitoring and testing of BEP-manufactured printing plate materials, along with other analytical testing.

The suitable CRMs are single layer chromium electroplated coatings of customized thicknesses of 4.00 µm, 6.00 µm, 8.00 µm, 10.0 µm, 12.0 µm, 14.0 µm, 16.0 µm, and 18.0 µm. These coatings are grown by an electroplating process on a pure nickel substrate. The CRM is intended for use throughout the BEP to support an analytical method recently implemented in DCF.

This method confirms that the chromium thickness in currency printing plates, manufactured in-house using a similar electroplating process, falls within the target range for the platemaking process. A determination not to compete this requirement is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement.

Any cost associated with the preparation and submission of data or information or any other costs incurred in responding to this notice is the sole responsibility of the respondent and will not be reimbursed by the Government. Responses MUST be received NO LATER THAN 2:00 PM, EASTERN, 21 August 2024. Additionally, interested sources must be registered and currently active in the System for Award Management (SAM), found at https://www/sam/gov. Responses MUST be submitted in writing ONLY via email to Ronnell.Leggett@bep.gov and Naweed.Nezam@bep.gov within the closing date/time of publication of this notice.