SOLICITATION NOTICE
A -- SEDIMENT CORE DATING
- Notice Date
- 9/5/2003
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- Environmental Protection Agency, Ord Service Center/Nheerl, Rtp Procurement Operations Division, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
- ZIP Code
- 27711
- Solicitation Number
- RFQ-RT-03-00421
- Response Due
- 9/22/2003
- Archive Date
- 10/22/2003
- Point of Contact
- Point of Contact, Jennifer Hill, Purchasing Agent, Phone (919) 541-3083
- E-Mail Address
-
Email your questions to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(hill.jennifer@epa.gov)
- Description
- NAICS Code: 541710 THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL SERVICES PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN SUBPART 12.6, AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THIS NOTICE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION. QUOTES ARE BEING REQUESTED AND A WRITTEN SOLICITATION WILL NOT BE ISSUED. The solicitation number is RFQ-RT-03-00421, and the solicitation is being issued as a full and open competition Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 01-15. The associated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code 541710, which has a size standard of 500 employees to qualify as a small business, is applicable. A firm, fixed-price purchase order is anticipated to result from the award of this solicitation. This procurement is for sediment dating of a total of 14 lake sediment cores collected as part of Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP). EPA shall deliver to the contractor approximately 1 gram of dry, homogenized sediment from each core slice for dating. EPA will supply the contractor with only one complete sediment core from each lake at any one time. EPA will keep duplicate sliced cores from sampled lakes in reserve in their laboratory. The contractor shall specify to EPA the exact requirements of the shipping containers to be used by EPA. The contractor shall analyze the sediment samples using non-destructive sediment dating and analytical techniques. After an appropriate number of sediment slices from an entire core have been successfully dated by the contractor, aliquots from each section of the core shall be labeled and returned to EPA by the Contractor for metal analysis to be performed by EPA. Therefore, it is imperative that the Contractor use extreme care in handling the sediments so that contamination of the sediment is avoided. Using gamma spectrometry, the contractor shall non-destructively process homogenized sub-samples of sediment slices obtained from lake sediment cores to develop data to be used by the contractor to develop acceptable, unambiguous, chronological dating calculations for the core. Given the small sample size available for the analysis, a well-type coaxial low background germanium detector equipped with Na(I) escape suppression shields shall be used to provide a low detection limit (i.e. 0.01 Bq for both 210 Pb and 226 Ra). A combination of naturally occurring radionuclides (i.e.210Pb) as well as anthropogenically derived radionuclides associated with atmospheric testing of thermo-nuclear weapons (i.e. 137Cs and 241Am) shall be used to calculate and verify sediment accumulation rates using the CRS (constant rate of 210Pb supply) and/or the CIC (constant initial concentration) models (Appleby and Oldfield, 1978, Robbins, 1978). The latter may be most appropriate if sediment discontinuities are present in a sediment core. In some cases, a given sediment core may require application of the models using a piecewise approach due to discontinuities in the nature of the core. The contractor shall apply these techniques and approaches as deemed appropriate given the data accumulated during analysis of the core sections. Each core shall be treated and approached using carefully applied testing and validation methods on an individual case-by-case basis. Three radionuclide records shall be examined to help in determining the quality of the sediment record as well as its chronology. Numerical techniques shall be applied in order to calculate cumulative dry mass in the core. Dry mass of each section based on in situ volume will be provided by the USEPA to the contractor for each sediment slice at the time sediment is shipped to the Contractor. Standard errors associated with calculated sediment dates shall be calculated and reported to the EPA by the Contractor. The work will be divided into three periods based on the progress of the planned field sampling to be conducted by EPA. The number of cores from different lakes to be dated by the contractor shall be as follows: Base Period ? 4 cores; Option Period 1 ? 4 cores, Option Period 2 ? 6 cores. Prior to initiating the work to date these cores, the contractor shall provide the EPA with a Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) containing the following information: 1.0 Project or Laboratory Description; 2.0 Project or Laboratory Organization and Responsibilities; 3.0 Quality Assurance Objectives; list precision, accuracy, and detection limit objectives for measurements. Objectives are the levels of precision, accuracy, and detection limits that the data need to meet in order to be used for the intended purpose; 4.0 Sample container and glassware preparation; 5.0 Sample custody, preparation, and preservation; describe how samples are tracked in the laboratory, storage conditions, and any sample processing or preservation procedures; 6.0 Analytical and calibration procedures; describe analytical methods and the calibration procedures used for analytical instruments; 7.0 Internal Quality Control Checks; describe procedures used to evaluate and control analytical processes; 8.0 Calculation of Data Quality Indicators; provide calculations used with data from QC checks to assess data quality; 9.0 Preventive Maintenance; summarize routine preventive maintenance procedures; 10.0 Data reduction, validation, and reporting; 11.0 Performance and system audits; describe performance evaluation programs or samples that are routinely analyzed by the laboratory; 12.0 References. The QAPP will be reviewed by EPA. If it is found to be acceptable, it will be approved via written communication to the Contractor. The Contractor shall be permitted to begin work on the sediment dating portion of the project upon approval of QAPP. Milestones and Deliverables. A QAPP following EPA guidelines shall be submitted to EPA electronically in MS Word format for the sediment dating project 30 days after the contract award. Option periods may be exercised at the discretion of the government. The work shall be divided into three periods containing a specific number of cores (see below). The contractor shall forward draft and final reports when completed. Individual sediment core reports will be combined by EPA into the three final reports listed below. The performance and report periods are as follows: Report #1-- Base Period (October 1, 2003 ? September 30, 2004) ? 4 different lake cores; Report #2-- Option Period 1 (October 1, 2004 ? September 30, 2005) ? 4 different lake cores; Report #3-- Option Period 2 (October 1, 2005 ? September 30, 2006) ? 6 different lake cores. An electronic, comprehensive report for each sediment core analyzed shall be provided to EPA within 6 months of receiving the ~ 1 g sediment core sub-samples and an electronic spreadsheet (Microsoft Excel) of sediment bulk density measurements on each strata (slice) from the USEPA. This report shall include a Microsoft EXCEL spread-sheet of all analytical results and QAPP requirements and a detailed narrative in Microsoft WORD that contains the following: A. A description of the overall core properties with respect to dating using radionuclides. A decision based on the Contractor's expertise as to whether the core can be dated accurately and unambiguously. If the core can be dated, the following elements will appear in the report: B. Mass flux calculations for each sediment depth increment; C. Calculated dates for each sediment depth increment; D. An overall sedimentation/mass flux rate for the entire core; E. Error estimates for all variables reported (i.e. mass flux estimates, radionuclide activity, age estimates, etc.); F. The results and interpretation of CRS and/or CIC model comparisons with independent chronostratigraphic dates given by, e.g., 137Cs and 241Am. The contract shall be for the analysis, data, dating calculations and interpretations of up to 14 different cores. The results submitted in the spreadsheet and accompanying narrative report shall be judged acceptable if each deliverable contains the information described above in section VI: (Para. A) only for cores found to not be datable and (Para. B-F) for all others. The reports shall be determined to be acceptable if they are complete, timely, fully documented and written in an unambiguous manner. The contractor shall revise the reports within 30 days of notification to fully comply with the elements described above, based on guidance and comments received from EPA if reports are not complete. Timeliness is of utmost concern. The contractor shall complete performance for each core within 6 months of receipt of core. For each 30 days or portion thereof for which a report is delinquent, a penalty amount 20% of the total cost of the deliverable shall be assessed and subtracted from the invoice. The following FAR provisions apply to this solicitation: 52-212-1, Instructions to Offerors?Commercial Items; 52.212-2, Evaluation--Commercial Items. Evaluation criteria to be included in paragraph (a) of provision 52.212-2 are as follows: (i) TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES CRITERIA: a) Demonstrate experience with the prescribed methods to include resumes of personnel. b) Provide a list of peer-reviewed publications on the topic of sediment dating techniques that span the last 10 years or more. (ii) PAST PERFORMANCE: Provide 3 references; include specific points of contact and phone numbers. Past Performance will be evaluated on quality of product or service, timeliness of performance (ability to adhere to deadlines), and overall customer satisfaction; and (iii) PRICE. Price will be evaluated inclusive of options. Award will be made to the offeror whose offer is determined the best overall value to the government, price and other factors considered. For the purpose of this best value evaluation of technically acceptable proposals, technical capabilities and past performance, when combined, are significantly more important than price. All offerors are to include with their offer a completed copy of provision 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications--Commercial Items. The following FAR clauses apply to this acquisition: 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions--Commercial Items; 52.246-11, Higher Level Contract Quality Requirement, 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders--Commercial Items and the following additional FAR clauses which are cited in Clause 52.212-5: 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities; 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity, 52.222-35, Affirmative Action for Special Disabled and Vietnam Era Veterans; 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Handicapped Workers; 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Special Disabled Veterans and Veterans of the Vietnam Era; 52-232-33, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer; 52.222-41, Service Contract Act of 1965, As Amended. Any applicable wage determination(s) will be made a part of the resultant purchase order. The completed Representations and Certifications should be included with the price proposal. All technical questions are to be forwarded via email to the Contracting Officer at the following email address: hill.jennifer@epa.gov. Offerors should review the Statement of Work and other information posted with this Request for Quotation on EPA's website at the following address: http://www.epa.gov/oam/rtp_cmd. Scroll down to the REQUEST FOR QUOTATION section and click on the solicitation. Scroll down below that section to COMMERCIAL BUY CLAUSES AND FORMS which are provided for your convenience. Please submit two copies of the technical proposal and price proposal to Jennifer B. Hill, Contracting Officer, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, RTP Procurement Operations Division (D143-01), Research Triangle Park, NC 27711. Courier delivery address is U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Attn: Jennifer B. Hill, RTP Procurement Operations Division (D143-01), 4930 Page Road, Durham, NC 27703. All offers are due by September 22, 2003, 12:00 p.m., EDT. No telephonic or faxed requests will be honored.
- Record
- SN00427685-W 20030907/030905220901 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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