Bio-Rad chromatography system maintenance & service

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY. This is not a solicitation for bids, proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this Sources Sought Notice is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of all qualified sources to perform a potential requirement. The responses received from interested contractors will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method. The intended contract is a firm-fixed price. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Network Contracting Office (NCO) 20, is conducting market research to identify potential sources which can provide a maintenance and service agreement for a Bio-Rad Next Gen Chromatography system as outlined below in support of the Veterans Health Administration, Boise VA Medical Center, 500 W. Fort Street, Boise, ID 83702. Potential candidates having the capabilities necessary to provide for this requirement at a fair and reasonable price are invited to respond to this Sources Sought Notice via e-mail to Nazanin Kreiner at Nazanin.kreiner@va.gov no later than March 26, 2026, 1PM, Mountain Time. No telephone inquiries will be accepted. RESPONSES SHOULD INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION: Company name, address, SAM UEI, and business size; point of contact name, phone number, and e-mail address; whether services are presently offered on a current GSA Federal Supply Schedule contract, NASA SEWP, or any other Federal contract. NAICS Code 339112 with size standard of 1,000 employees, is applicable to determine business size standard. Please indicate whether proposed system is manufactured in the United States. Any questions or concerns may also be directed via email to Nazanin Kreiner at Nazanin.kreiner@va.gov. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted. STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW) Statement of Work. Maintenance and service agreement for a Bio-Rad Next Gen Chromatography system Background. Research Services at the Boise VAMC has a Bio-Rad Next Generation Chromatography (NGC) System which is used by researchers in protein purification protocols. Because the instrument is aging and is heavily used, it requires preventative maintenance and service plan to maintain the functionality of the instrument. Scope. The site of the work will be in Research Services, building #117, room 212. The base plus 2-option-year contract will include preventative maintenance visits and service repairs, inclusive of travel, parts, and labor. Specific Tasks. One annual preventative maintenance visit. Unlimited on-site repair visits, including parts, labor, and travel expenses. All parts used for replacement and repair must be Bio-Rad OEM and must be performed by Bio-rad trained and authorized personnel to maintain existing warranties. Hours of Coverage & Federal Holidays. The contractor will be required to work during normal Boise VA Medical Center s business hours. Those hours are defined as Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. All visits must be scheduled in advance with Research Services. Services will not be performed on the following legal government holidays: New Year s Day Jan 1st Martin Luther King Day 3rd Monday in January President s Day 3rd Monday in February Memorial Day Last Monday in May Independence Day July 4th Labor Day 1st Monday in September Columbus Day 2nd Monday in October Veteran Day November 11th Thanksgiving 4th Thursday in November Christmas December 25th Technical Point of Contact. The point of contact (POC) will be a Research staff member familiar with the operation of the NGC. The POC is NOT a Contracting Officer Representative (COR). Performance Monitoring. The POC will escort the contractor while in the Research facility and will be available to respond to inquiries by the contractor. The contractor will review all services performed on the instrument with the POC and provide an electronic copy of the service report for Research s records. The POC will notify the AO of Research Services of all work completed by the contractor. Security Requirements. The contractor will not have the need or have access to the hospital s computer network, patient information and will not require routine access to VA Facilities. No security clause is required. The C&A requirements do not apply, and a Security Accreditation Package is not required. The contractor will require intermittent access to the NGC system only during scheduled visits and will be escorted by a VA Research employee while visiting the Research facilities. No background investigation is required. Government-Furnished Equipment (GFE)/Government-Furnished Information (GFI). No GFE or GFI will be needed or provided, since the chromatography system is a stand-alone instrument. The contractor does not require access to any additional equipment or materials. Other Pertinent Information or Special Considerations. The contractor must be Bio-Rad trained and authorized to repair and provide service to this system according to the manufacturer to avoid invalidating the existing warranties. a. Identification of Possible Follow-on Work Repairs that cannot be completed during the visit. b. Identification of Potential Conflicts of Interest (COI) It has been determined by the COR that no conflict of interest exists with the contract. c. Inspection and Acceptance Criteria With the contractor present, the POC will verify that the contractual work has been performed, save a copy of the electronic service report and will relay the information to the AO of Research who approves all contract invoices. Risk Control. The Research building is designated as a BSL-2 facility. The rooms are marked to denote specific hazards that are currently in use. In the rooms where the work will be performed, the PPE requirements will be noted, as per policy and PPE will be available. Additionally, there are no patients, nor patient care in the research buildings. As per contractor s requirements, the instrument will be cleaned and disinfected, if necessary, before work commences. Place of Performance. Boise VAMC Research Building #117 500 W. Fort Street Boise, ID 83702 Payment. Invoices must be submitted via the Financial Services Center (FSC) Electronic Invoice System, Tungsten, on an annual basis. Invoices must include the following information: name of the contractor, services performed, period of performance and purchase order number. Payment of submitted invoices will be approved by the AO of Research. Periods of Performance. Base Year plus 4 Option Years Delivery Schedule. Base Year Annual PM Service Report Within 2 weeks of visit 1 copy to POC Invoice for base year Annually 1 copy to POC and Tungsten Option Year 1 Annual PM Service Report Within 2 weeks of visit 1 copy to POC Invoice for OY1 Annually 1 copy to POC and Tungsten Option Year 2 Annual PM Service Report Within 2 weeks of visit 1 copy to POC Invoice for OY2 Annually 1 copy to POC and Tungsten Option Year 3 Annual PM Service Report Within 2 weeks of visit 1 copy to POC Invoice for OY3 Annually 1 copy to POC and Tungsten Option Year 4 Annual PM Service Report Within 2 weeks of visit 1 copy to POC Invoice for OY4 Annually 1 copy to POC and Tungsten Service call(s) As necessary Service Report Within 2 weeks of visit 1 copy to POC Disclaimer and Important Notes: This Sources Sought Notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. The Government will treat any information received as proprietary and will not share such information with other companies. Any organization responding to this Sources Sought 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. The Government may or may not issue a solicitation as a result of this announcement. There is no solicitation available at this time.