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THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)/SOURCES SOUGHT

DISCLAIMER

This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI.

The submission of pricing, capabilities for planning purposes, and other market information is highly encouraged and allowed under this RFI In Accordance With (IAW) FAR Part 15.201(e).

SOURCES SOUGHT DESCRIPTION

This is NOT a solicitation announcement. This is a RFI/sources sought only. The purpose of this sources sought/RFI is to gain knowledge of potential qualified sources and their size classification relative to NAICS 333310 (size standard of 1000 Employees). Responses to this sources sought will be used by the Government to make appropriate acquisition decisions. After review of the responses to this sources sought, a solicitation announcement may be published. Responses to this sources sought synopsis are not considered adequate responses for a solicitation announcement.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), VISN 15 Network Contracting Office, is seeking sources that can provide the following:

Brand Name or equal: Holomonitor M4 Live Cell Imaging
Equipment must be tolerant to design of incubator leaving cells undisturbed in their preferred environment during the experiment.
Must use harmless laser illumination power
Must enable long-term, continuous time-lapse image acquisition and preserve cell integrity.
Must have motorized stage that ensures precise multiple-position imaging
Must be easy to use and understand
have software that allows visualization and provides quantitative data about a single cell or cell populations.
Should provide at least 1um resolution image quality at 20x magnification
Specially designed vessel lids.
Streamlined to save money and effort in laboratory experiments
No expensive consumables needed
Label-free operation with no phototoxicity
Minimize user bias with automated analysis
Must monitor cells and provide results in real-time
Must have direct and quantitative measurements
Must allow user to be able to continue using cells for other assays
Must allow re-analyzation of data using other applications

Other Information:
This piece of equipment must not utilize VA-sensitive information.
The instrument must fit under the cell culture incubator that is currently being used the approximate measurements being W200 mm x D 200mm X H 195 mm.
The instrument needs to calculate the live cells movement and motility for accurate results of experiments.
The instrument must determine the accuracy of the effects of investigational drugs.
The information identified above are intended to be descriptive, not restrictive, and to indicate the quality of the supplies/services that will be satisfactory. It is the responsibility of the interested source to demonstrate to the government that the interested parties can provide the supplies/services that fulfill the required specifications, or brand name equal.

If you are interested, and are capable of providing the sought out supplies/services, please provide the requested information as well as the information indicated below. Response to this notice should include company name, address, point of contact, size of business pursuant to the following questions:

Please indicate the size status and representations of your business, such as but not limited to: Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB), Hubzone, Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB), Large Business, etc.)?
Is your company considered small under the NAICS code identified under this RFI?

Are you the manufacturer, distributor, or an equivalent solution to the items being referenced above?

If you re a small business and you are an authorized distributor/reseller for the items identified above or an equivalent solution, do you alter; assemble; modify; the items requested in any way? If you do, state how and what is altered; assembled; modified?

Does your company have an FSS contract with GSA, VA NAC, NASA SEWP, or any other federal contract, that can be utilized to procure the requirement listed above? If so, please provide the contract number.


Please submit your capabilities that show clear, compelling, and convincing evidence that you can meet the requirement described in the attached SOW.

Please provide your UEI number.
Responses to this notice shall be submitted via email to Tracie Raggs at tracie.raggs@va.gov. Telephone responses shall not be accepted. Responses must be received no later than Wednesday, January 11 2023 at 2300 CST. If a solicitation is issued it shall be announced at a later date, and all interested parties must respond to that solicitation announcement separately from the responses to this sources sought. Responses to this sources sought notice are not a request to be added to a prospective bidders list or to receive a copy of the solicitation.

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