SOLICITATION NOTICE
66 -- High Density Microarray Upgrade with Micro-Stimulation for Blackrock Microsystems NeuroPort Neurological Recording Equipment at NINDS
- Notice Date
- 3/30/2018
- Notice Type
- Presolicitation
- NAICS
- 334510
— Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 4211, MSC 9559, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892-9559, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20892-9559
- Solicitation Number
- NIH-NINDS-NOI-18-005155
- Archive Date
- 4/11/2018
- Point of Contact
- Jason Williams, Phone: 3014965985, Nancy Lamon-Kritikos, Phone: 301-480-2447
- E-Mail Address
-
Jason.Williams1@nih.hhs.gov, nancy.lamon-kritikos@nih.gov
(Jason.Williams1@nih.hhs.gov, nancy.lamon-kritikos@nih.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD ON A SOLE SOURCE BASIS. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTE/PROPOSALS. The NINDS Contracts Management Section of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), intends to solicit on a sole-source basis by a request for quotation to Blackrock Microsystems LLC on or around April 11, 2018 with an award issued on or around April 30, 2018. The purpose of the resultant purchase order will be to provide the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) with a high-density microarray upgrade with micro-stimulation capability to extant Blackrock Microsystems NeurPort neurological recording equipment currently in use at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery Unit. NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE and SET ASIDE STATUS The intended procurement is classified under NAICS code 334510 with a Size Standard of 1,250 employees or fewer. This acquisition is NOT set aside for small businesses, but rather is a sole-source acquisition to Blackrock Microsystems LLC. REGULATORY AUTHORITY This acquisition is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13-Simplified Acquisition Procedures. Contracts awarded using FAR Part 13-Simplified Acquisition Procedures are exempt from the requirements of FAR Part 6-Competition Requirements. FAR Subpart 13.106-1 (b) Soliciting from a single source provides that: For purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold, Contracting Officers may solicit from one source IF the Contracting Officer determines that the circumstances of the contract action deem only one source reasonably available (e.g., urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, brand-name OR industrial mobilization). BACKGROUND, PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES OF REQUIREMENT The Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery Unit (FRNU) of NINDS exploits the unique investigative opportunities provided by intracranial electrical recordings during neurosurgical procedures. Using recordings captured from epilepsy patients implanted with subdural and depth electrodes, we investigate the activation of cortical networks during memory encoding and recall, and using the recordings captured during the implantation of deep brain stimulators, we investigate the role of the basal ganglia in learning and decision making. The purpose of this acquisition is to upgrade existing microarray recording equipment at the Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery Unit (FRNU) within the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke with the ability to safely administer electrical stimulation to the human brain. The NINDS currently utilizes a Blackrock Microsystems NeuroPort recording and acquisition system with 128-channel neural signal processing units, a pneumatic inserter and digital hubs for Blackrock Microsystems CerePlex I headstages. NINDS has a requirement for equipment that will interface with an implantable device used to record neurological signals from and administer stimulation to the human brain. Arrays are requested to have micro-stimulation capability, stimulated by a Blackrock Microsystems CereStim R96 stimulator (or comparable equipment). The equipment will be installed by NINDS once the service to build the equipment is completed. The ability to administer stimulation is a requirement for the Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery Unit laboratory's research experiments, which aim to decipher the neural code of human memory. The FRNU laboratory at NINDS depends upon microarrays to capture information from 10 to 150 individual human neurons at once. CONTRACTING WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME) DETERMINATION The determination by the Government to award a contract without providing for full and open competition is based upon the market research conducted. Specifically, Blackrock Microsystems microarrays are the only high-density single-neuron recording devices currently approved for human use. Recently, Blackrock Microsystems has developed a proprietary method for administering low-levels of electrical stimulation to individual micro-array channels, and NINDS would like to upgrade its existing Blackrock Microsystems arrays to make use of this new technology. In order to ensure continuity of ongoing research experiments, it is imperative that (1) no component of NINDS' existing Blackrock Microsystems neural recording system is changed during the upgrade, and (2) that the microstimulation system integrates with NINDS' existing Blackrock neural recording equipment. For these reasons, Blackrock Microsystems is the only vendor capable of providing the service to enhance NINDS' existing arrays with stimulation capability. In accordance with FAR part 10, extensive market research was conducted to reach this determination. Specifically, a Sources Sought notice was posted to FedBizOpps referencing the above detailed requirements and no responses were received. Additionally, contacts with knowledgeable individuals both in industry and Government, as well as reviews of available product literature, revealed no other sources. Finally, a review of the GSA Advantage, Dynamic Small Business Search, and previous government acquisitions returned no results that meet all of the requirements. Therefore, only Blackrock Microsystems LLC is found to be capable of meeting the needs of this requirement. The intended source is: Blackrock Microsystems, LLC 630 S Komas Dr., Suite 200 Salt Lake City, UT 84108-1262 CLOSING STATEMENT THIS SYNOPSIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency. The information received will normally be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to proceed on a non-competitive basis or to conduct a competitive procurement. Responses to this notice shall contain sufficient information to establish the interested parties' bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, the delivery period after contract award, the prompt payment discount terms, the F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov. All responses must provide evidence that they can provide a microarray upgrade with microstimulation capability to Blackrock Microsystems NeuroPort neurological recording equipment (and without voiding the warranty on the extant Blackrock Microsystems neurological recording equipment currently in use at NINDS). All responses must be received by the closing date and time of this announcement and must reference the solicitation number, NIH-NINDS-NOI-18-4910346. Responses must be submitted electronically to Jason Williams, Contracting Officer, at willjas@mail.nih.gov. U.S. Mail and Fax responses will not be accepted.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/NIDA-01/NIH-NINDS-NOI-18-005155/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Contractor's facility, United States
- Record
- SN04873738-W 20180401/180330231120-4e547ec510f1741fbf4c841d7d356652 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |