The Department of Veterans Affairs Network Contracting Office (NCO) 19, Rocky Mountain Acquisition Center is issuing this sources sought notice as a means of conducting market research to identify parties having an interest in, and the resources to support, this requirement to provide a Firm Fixed Priced Blanket Purchase agreement for Automated Special Stains Reagent Rental services. for the James Mountain Inhofe VA Medical System (JMIVAMC). Located at 1011 Honor Heights Dr, Muskogee, OK 74401. Salient Characteristics Operational features: Function as a stand-alone automated instrument for staining of anatomic pathology fixed tissue slides. Must be fully automated capability of baking, deparaffinization, and staining of special stains Must be capable of holding between 1-20 slides per slide carousel Must be capable of independent temperature control for each position and regulate between 37°C 75°C (98°F 167°F) Must have minimum 25 reagent positions Must be capable of staining slides sizes: 25 mm x 75 mm, 26 mm x 76 mm Bulk fluids: Up to four bulk fluids in 3 6 L onboard containers Must be CSA, EMC and CE compliant Due to space constraints, allowable instrument dimensions (WxDxH) are approximately: 20in W x 25in D x 53.3in H (50.8 cm x 63 cm x 135.4 cm) Instruments must be able to process following special stains: Stain Estimated Annual Slide Volume AFB 20 Alcian Blue 160 Congo Red 20 Elastic 20 Giemsa 100 GMS 150 Gram 20 Iron 100 Mucicarmine 20 PAS 150 Reticulum II 50 Trichrome Blue 20 Pap Stain (Optional) 150 Contractor Requirements: The contractor shall provide all equipment, parts, service, and maintenance necessary for cost per kit reagent/instrument rental operation of the equipment and shall pay routine shipping fees for such. This includes required provision of workstations and hard drives, replacement, shipping and service on workstations and hard drives. Period of Performance: April 1st 2026 March 31st 2031 Deliverable: Before March 1, 2026 NCO 19 is performing market research to determine if there is a sufficient number of qualified (1) Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); (2) Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB); (3) Small or emerging small business firms who can fulfill the requirement; and (4) Large businesses. This Sources Sought notice is issued for the purpose of market research in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12. All SDVOSB, VOSB, small and large businesses capable of fulfilling the requirement are invited to respond NAICS code to be used for this acquisition is 532490 All interested firms who can MEET and FULFILL the requirements stated in the Summary of Requirements below should respond, in writing, with the following information: In response to this announcement, please provide the information below. If this information is not provided, then it will be assumed the entire requirement cannot be met: NAICS Code: 532490 Company Name: Address: UEI (Unique Entity ID) Number: Contact Name: Phone No.: Email: Business Size Information - Select all that applies: Small Business Emerging Small Business Small Disadvantaged Business Certified under Section 8(a) of the Small Business Act HUBZone Woman Owned Certified Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Veteran Owned Small Business Large Business FSS/GSA Contract Holder: Yes No FSS/GSA Contract Number: Effective Date/ Expiration Date: Proposed solution is listed and available on the above FSS/GSA Contract: Yes No Available pricing structure of proposed solution (select all that are applicable below): Pricing Model Please Indicate Availability Below: (Yes / No / NA) All on FSS Open Market only Mix of FSS & Open Market Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Market Rearch Questions: Buy American Act (FAR 52.225) What percentage of the proposed product (including leases) is a: Domestic end product? _____________ (%) Foreign end product? _______________ (%) Country of Origin : Questions for Small Businesses ONLY: Limitations on Subcontracting (FAR 52.219-14) What percentage of the work would be subcontracted to another company? ________ If > 0, what is company s business size: __________ If subcontracting, what added value do you offer (FAR 52.215-23): _______________________________ Nonmanufacturer Rule (FAR 52.219-33): Does your company manufacturer these proposed items? [ ] yes [ ] no Does your company exceed 500 employees? [ ] yes [ ] no If yes, list # of employees: _________ Does your company primarily engaged in the retail or wholesale trade and normally sells the type of item being supplied? [ ] yes [ ] no Does your company take ownership or possession of the item(s) with its personnel, equipment or facilities in a manner consistent with industry practice? [ ] yes [ ] no Does your company supply the end item of a small business manufacturer, processor or producer made in the United States, or obtains a waiver of such requirement pursuant to paragraph (b)(5) CFR 121.406. [ ] yes [ ] no If yes, what is the manufacturer s name? ________________ The information submitted shall contain the company s business size status. This is a request for information and sources only, which may or may not lead to future solicitation. This is not a request for quote (RFQ). No questions will be answered. The VA will not pay for any information received resulting from this source sought notice. Requests for copies of a solicitation shall not be honored or acknowledged. Information should be forwarded to the Contracting Specialist. If your organization can provide all services of this potential requirement and is interested in this opportunity, please respond to Kadarius Griffin, Contracting Specialist, Department of Veterans Affairs, NCO 19. Or via email at
[email protected], and
[email protected] The deadline for this information to be received is Monday, December 22nd, 10:00AM Central Standard Time. PHONE CALLS NOT ACCEPTED.