Notice of Intent to Sole Source: Maintenance Services for Cytek Aurora 5-Laser Spectral for Cytometer

PUROSE AND BACKGROUND OF REQUIREMENT

THIS IS A PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD ON A SOLE SOURCE BASIS.  THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTE/PROPOSALS.

The purpose of this requirement is to provide the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) with maintenance services and support for a Cytek Aurora 5-Laser Spectral Cytometer used by the Infections of the Nervous Systems Section (INSS). The Aurora Spectral Cytometer is a unique and highly sensitive instrument containing complex laser and laser detection systems, which is able to run complex immunophenotyping of patient samples, especially peripheral blood and cerebrospinal fluid run in parallel.  The failure of the system being operational could result in the loss of extensive research efforts, and the current and future needs of NINDS investigators. It is thus essential that the scanner remain operational and able to perform in accordance with the original equipment manufacturer’s (OEM) specifications.

REGULATORY AUTHORITY

The resultant contract will include all applicable provisions and clauses of the Federal acquisition Regulation (FAR) in effect through the Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2024-05, dated 5/22/2024.

CONTRACTING WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL OR OPEN COMPETITION (INCLUDING BRAND-NAME) DETERMINATION

The Government intends to issue a sole source award to the following organization:

Cytek Biosciences Inc.(Cytek)

47215 Lakeview Blvd

Freemont, California 94538

Cyek is the only authorized service provider for the Cytek Aurora 5-Laser Spectral Cytometer, Specifically, Carl Zeiss has proprietary rights to the design and software utilized in this equipment and is the only company with access to proprietary performance verified component parts, spare parts, software, technical support, upgrades and engineering resources to maintain the original operating specifications. Additionally, Cytek has the only company-certified and factory-trained engineers available to service this instrument.

Given the amount of resources that NINDS has invested in this equipment, using an un-authorized service provider would pose too much risk to the Government. Additionally, procuring new equipment through a competitive solicitation is not financially feasible at this point in time and would not represent the best value to the Government. As a result, the Government intends to award this requirement to Cytek without providing full and open competition.

Contract Type:

The Government intends to award a firm-fixed price type contract for these services, consistent with commercial practices.

CLOSING STATEMENT

THIS NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD ON A SOLE-SOURCE BASIS 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 Universal Entity Identifier (UEI), 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 equipment that meets all of the requirements in this announcement.

All responses must be received by 07/26/2024 AT 5:00 PM EST and must reference the solicitation number, 75N95024Q00461. Responses must be submitted electronically to Evan Feely, Contracting Officer, at evan.feely@nih.gov.  U.S. Mail and Fax responses will NOT be accepted.