The Department of Veterans Affairs, VAMC Bedford, located at 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA 01730 has a requirement for the providing Oxygen Tank Rental and Liquid Oxygen for Bld 2,4 and 78 as indicated in the below Statement of Work. We are seeking in any Small Businesses exist in the area that can meet this requirement. If there are, please submit your capabilities, references, years of experience, certificate of insurance and company history to the Contracting Officer: James Corbett by 12:00pm on 08-14-2013. e-mail address is
[email protected] General 1.1 The purpose of this solicitation is to establish a committed source of supply of medical-grade liquid bulk oxygen for the facilities included in the solicitation. If the Government facility does not own its own bulk oxygen tank, the contractor shall also provide a contractor-owned tank with an appropriate back-up system. (i.e. reserve tank or cylinder bank). Specifications for each facility are listed in the solicitation schedule. 1.2 The quantities shown in the solicitation schedule are estimates of the facility's annual requirements. There is no express or implied guarantee that these quantities will be purchased. The base contract period for all contracts awarded under this solicitation will be October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014. Please note that contracts that include the installation of contractor-owned equipment will include a 90 day transition period at the beginning and end of the contract period. (See page 5, paragraph 5.1). All contracts awarded under the solicitation will include a Base + Four (4) one-year option periods which may be exercised by the Government.. 1.3 A Contracting Officer Technical Representative (COTR) has been designated in the solicitation schedule for each ordering facility. The COTR is responsible for local contract administration issues such as ordering and providing specific delivery instructions. A letter of delegation that outlines the COTR's specific responsibilities will be provided to the contractor and COTR at the time of contract award. Within 15 days after notification of contract award, the contractor shall meet with the COTR to ensure mutual understanding of facility requirements relating to the ordering method and specific details of any delivery instructions that are included in the solicitation schedule. If agreement cannot be reached between the contractor and COTR regarding any issue, the matter shall be referred to the Contracting Officer for resolution. 1.4 Prior to first filling, contractor must perform in-service training to include the following facets for contractor owned and government owned systems: the refill procedure, any preventive maintenance support requirements that may be needed from the medical center systems, and an explanation of all the volume alarm and low pressure set-points. The contractor will provide written procedures and training for VA staff for protocols to accomplish emergency shutdowns or other sudden, unplanned termination of the refilling process. Contractor will provide 24/7 emergency contact name(s) and telephone number(s). 1.5 Prior to first filling, and semi annually thereafter, alarm set-point testing and written verification must be presented through the use of a qualified third party expert per current edition of NFPA 99 for contractor owned and government owned systems. Any code deficiencies in the Medical Center's existing system, as defined by NFPA 50, 1.3.3, "Bulk Oxygen System", must be identified by the contractor. A detailed explanation of these deficiencies must be presented in writing to the COTR. Receipt of this written explanation must be signed for by the COTR. 1.6 Prior to first filling, and semi annually thereafter, the contractor must verify, in writing, the accuracy of all gauges on contractor owned tanks. If the gauge(s) are government owned, contractor will provide, if requested after award, a written proposal with price to verify accuracy of the gauge(s). The Government may choose to exercise this option at its desire. 2. Acronyms 2.1 This section lists acronyms that are used in this Statement of Work and other parts of the solicitation. BOP - Federal Bureau of Prisons CCF - 100 cubic feet CF - Cubic feet CGA - Compressed Gas Association CGMP - Current Good Manufacturing Practices CO - Contractor owned COTR - Contracting Officer Technical Representative DOD - Department of Defense DOT - Department of Transportation FDA - U.S. Food & Drug Administration GO - Government owned IHS - Indian Health Service NFPA - National Fire Protection Association OGA - Other Government Agency (Other than VA) OSHA - U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration USP - United States Pharmacopeia VA - Department of Veterans Affairs 3. Government-Furnished Property 3.1 The solicitation schedule will identify the bulk oxygen storage tank(s) at each facility as being either GO (Government Owned) or CO (Contractor Owned). Government owned bulk oxygen storage tanks and appurtenances will be maintained by and at the expense of the Government in a manner that will insure compliance with applicable regulations, standards and normal good practices. 3.2 Each Government facility that requires installation of contractor owned equipment shall provide a suitable location and foundation for the installation of the contractor owned bulk oxygen tank(s). Additionally, each facility shall provide access to an electrical power source and hook-up to a facility-maintained alarm system. The contractor shall perform the hook-up of contractor owned equipment to the facility-maintained alarm system. 4. Contractor-Furnished Equipment 4.1 For those facilities listed in the schedule as having contractor owned tanks, the contractor shall provide, install and maintain bulk oxygen tank(s) with appropriate back-up system(s). Through the duration of the contract, the contractor shall be liable for the integrity, suitability, and safety of contractor owned tank(s) that will insure compliance with applicable regulations, standards and normal good practices. The tank capacity and reserve system shown in the schedule are minimum capacities required by the using facilities. Manifold, cylinders for the reserve supply, liquid converter, alarm switch, regulator, valves, level indicator, and any other devices or connections required for proper tie-ins with the facility's gas system shall be furnished by the contractor, without cost to the Government. The manifold or liquid converter shall deliver gas at a pressure and rate of flow adequate to supply the system. Each liquid oxygen storage container shall have an outlet that allows access for testing the purity of the oxygen. 4.2 All equipment and materials required to perform on the contract (other than what is specifically listed in section 3, Government-Furnished Property) shall be provided by the contractor. Contractor owned equipment shall be installed, inspected and maintained by the contractor without additional cost to the Government. (i.e., all installation, inspection and maintenance costs shall be included in the contract's monthly equipment rental fee for the applicable facility.) Contractor owned equipment shall be kept in good operating condition and appearance, in accordance with applicable regulations, standards and normal good practices. The contractor shall be provided reasonable access to the bulk oxygen systems for this purpose. 5. Installation of Contractor-Owned Equipment 5.1 Unless otherwise directed by the using facility, contractor owned equipment shall be installed by the effective date of the contract and shall be connected to the medical gas system on that date; provided: that the contractor shall be allowed a maximum of ninety days after receipt of notice of award to complete installation. If the contractor's equipment replaces equipment already in use, the exchange of equipment shall be accomplished without interruption of gas supply to the using facility. Contractor installed equipment shall remain the property of the contractor and shall be removed upon termination of the contract, when directed by the ordering facility and in full cooperation with the succeeding contractor so as to avoid interruption of gas supply. 5.2 To permit orderly transition from one contractor to another, the contractor shall continue to honor the contract's monthly equipment rental fee and bulk oxygen contract price for a maximum of ninety days beyond the scheduled expiration of the contract period, unless transition from one contractor to another is completed prior to the ninety day transition period. For any partial month, the contractor shall prorate the monthly equipment rental fee accordingly. The contractor shall continue to provide and maintain its equipment during this transition period. 5.3 No guarantee is given or implied that data included in the schedule regarding contractor owned equipment currently located at the facilities is complete and accurate as to the factors affecting the cost of furnishing and installing the required contractor owned tanks and appurtenances. Offerors are strongly encouraged to visit the facility sites prior to submitting a bid and take other steps as may be reasonably necessary to ascertain the nature and location of the work, and the general and local conditions which can affect the work or the cost thereof. Failure to do so shall not relieve offerors from the responsibility of estimating properly the difficulty and cost of successfully performing the work. Site visits may be arranged by contacting the COTR designated in the solicitation schedule. 5.4 All contractor owned equipment shall be installed in accordance with current editions of NFPA 50: Standard for Bulk Oxygen Systems at Consumer Sites, , NFPA 99 Standard for Health Care Facilities and FDA's Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP) Regulations. The contractor shall comply with all OSHA standards and applicable safety requirements, including proper signage and use of personal protective equipment. 6. Delivery of Medical Liquid Bulk Oxygen 6.1 Bulk oxygen is ordered by and delivered to the individual ordering facilities. The list of facilities and information regarding their unique delivery requirements is included in the solicitation schedule. Facilities are listed alphabetically by state. 6.2 The contractor shall deliver medical-grade liquid oxygen within the time-frame specified in the schedule for each facility. The time-frame identified may be either the number of calendar days after receipt of the Government's order, the specific days of the week for delivery, the specific time intervals between deliveries, a specified reorder point, or other specified ordering and delivery methods. If the time frame for contractor delivery is not identified in the facility requirements, the contractor must provide 24-hour notice prior to delivery or upon mutual agreement between the facility and contractor, alternate ordering/delivery methods such as pre-scheduled deliveries, calling for tank level readings, installing a telemetry unit, etc. may be arranged. If for any reason the contractor is unable to delivery at the agreed upon day or time, the contractor will provide 24-hour notice to the COTR, so that the facility can initiate an alternate backup action. In accordance with VHA Patient Safety Alert dated April 5, 2004, all deliveries must be monitored by a qualified and trained technical representative that will be designated by each facility. Contractor will be provided with names and contact information of primary and back-up facility representatives. This applies to all deliveries regardless of time or day of execution. 6.3 Tanks(s) will be filled to maximum functional capacity at each refilling procedure unless otherwise specified in the facility requirements or as agreed upon in a written document signed and dated by the COTR. 6.4 At the time of each delivery, contractor must provide a legible signed and dated written document that identifies the tank level prior to fill, the level after fill, and the quantity delivered. This document must be counter-signed by the facility representative supervising the delivery. 6.5 Emergency delivery will be provided within 24 hours after receipt of Government notification. Contractor must respond to the facility by either telephone or email within one hour to confirm receipt of emergency notification to ascertain the nature of the emergency. Emergency status is determined by the Government when conditions warrant, such as an actuated main bulk tank low level alarm, imminent alarm condition, or system leak. Failure of the contractor to remain current with agreed delivery schedule and requirements does not constitute an "emergency" for purposes of charging an emergency delivery fee. ? 7. Quality Assurance Specifications and Requirements 7.1 All medical gas manufacturers and fillers of medical gases must be registered with FDA as drug manufacturers. All oxygen shall be manufactured, processed, packed, transported, and stored according to FDA's Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP) regulations, and all labeling shall comply with FDA's labeling regulations (21 CFR Part 201). 7.2 All liquid bulk oxygen delivered under the contract shall be medical-grade and shall meet or exceed the standards cited in the current edition of the United States Pharmacopoeia/National Formulary (U.S.P.). 7.3 A valid certificate of analysis shall be provided with each delivery of liquid oxygen. The certificate shall include, at a minimum: a) Supplier's name and complete address b) Name of the Product (i.e. Oxygen U.S.P.) c) An Air Liquefaction Statement where appropriate d) Lot number or other unique identification number e) Actual analytical results for full U.S.P. monograph testing. (A statement that only states that the product meets the minimum purity of 99.5%, etc. is not acceptable.) f) Test method used to perform the analysis. (A statement such as "Meets U.S.P. specifications" is not acceptable; nor would "Tested via Servomex" be acceptable since the specific model number is not provided.) g) Signature of authorized supplier representative and date. 7.5 Material Safety Data Sheets shall be provided to the facility COTR upon request. 7.6 A copy of all inspection reports shall be provided to the facility COTR upon the completion of any contractor owned or government owned bulk oxygen system inspections that are required by regulation. 7.7 All contractor owned equipment shall be maintained or repaired in accordance with current editions of NFPA 50: Standard for Bulk Oxygen Systems at Consumer Sites and FDA's Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMP) Regulations. ? 8. Applicable Regulations & Standards The following is a list of some of the regulations and standards that are applicable to this contract. The list is not comprehensive, and the contractor is responsible for ensuring that all products, equipment and services provided under the contract are in compliance with applicable Federal, state, and local regulations. If applicable, the editions in effect as of the date of this solicitation are listed. Contractor is responsible for remaining compliant with any future revisions that are effective at the time of contract performance. Title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 210 & 211 - CGMP regulations for supplying medical grade oxygen. 29 CFR 1910.104 Applies to the installation of bulk oxygen systems on industrial and institutional consumer premises 49 CFR - Transportation Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act NFPA 50: Standard for Bulk Oxygen Systems at Consumer Sites, 2001 Edition NFPA 99: Standard for Health Care Facilities, 2002 Edition U.S.P. 23 Density data and volume measurement equivalents published in Compressed Gas Association Pamphlet No. P-6, titled "Standard Density Data, Atmospheric Gases and Hydrogen," shall be used when necessary to convert measurement of gases from one form to another. For example, the following conversion factor shall apply for conversion from gallons to cubic feet. Calculation based on data in CGA P-6 1 ft³ liquid O2 = 860.6 ft³ gas (Table 1) 1 ft³ liquid O2 = 7.48052 gal ((Table 2) Therefore: 7.48052 gal (1 ft³) liquid O2 = 860.6 ft³ gas 1 gal liquid O2 = 860.6 ft³ gas 7.48052 1 gal liquid O2 = 115.05 ft³ gas or more commonly quoted as 1 gal liquid O2 = 115.1 ft³ gas ? 9. Contractor Owned Cylinders 9.1 This section applies to all contractor owned cylinders that are provided under this contract as a back-up system to a primary bulk oxygen system. 9.2 Laws and Regulations: Cylinders and other containers for gaseous and liquid forms of gases shall comply with the Department of Transportation specifications and shall be maintained, filled, marked, labeled, and shipped to comply with current and subsequent updates to DOT regulations (Title 49-Transportation, Code of Federal Regulations). Packaging, labeling, etc., for medical gases shall also comply with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. 9.3 Marking: In addition to marking required by the aforementioned laws and regulations, marking shall comply with American National Standards Z48.1-1954 (R 1971), "Method of Marking Portable Compressed Gas Containers to Identify the Material Contained." 9.4 All unauthorized or inapplicable markings, tags, and labels shall be removed. When shipment is by commercial carrier, shipping tags complying with current version of Federal Standard 123F shall be attached to each cylinder so as to be protected by the valve protection cap. The contract data markings required by the applicable standard shall be applied to one side of the tag and the identification markings on the reverse side. Consignee markings may be omitted when shipment is by contractor's truck. 9.5 Valves: Valves shall comply with current edition of Compressed Gas Associates Standard CGA-V-1, "Standard for Compressed Gas Cylinder Valve Outlet and Inlet Connections." Valve protection caps for cylinders designed to receive such caps shall be securely attached to the cylinders in a manner to protect the valves from injury during transit and delivery to the purchaser's receiving area. Refer to 49 CFR 173.301(g)). 9.6 Color Coding: All cylinders shall be color coded in accordance with the Compressed Gas Association Pamphlet CGA C-9-1988, "Standard Color Marking Of Compressed Gas Containers Intended For Medical Use." 9.7 The contractor shall be responsible for all testing required by regulation of contractor owned cylinders at no additional cost to the Government. 9. Contractor Owned Cylinders (continued) 9.9 The bidder's price for the oxygen shall include the furnishing of, at no additional cost, all services which are required at each and every filling of a cylinder to comply with applicable regulations, specifications, and normal good practices. Such services are of the type normally provided in the supply of medical cylinder gases, and shall include, but not be limited to: tags indicating cylinder is "Full," In Use," or "Empty"; inspection, testing, evaluation, and cleaning services required at each and every filling; pin-indexing, when required, and attachment of Government-furnished warning tags, when required. Attaching of oxygen cylinders to manifold systems, when required, shall also be performed by the contractor at no additional cost. In addition to services listed in this paragraph, the contractor is responsible for all maintenance and testing of contractor-owned cylinders. 10. Government Owned Cylinders 10.1 Individual Agency Ownership of Cylinders: Government owned cylinders shall remain the property of the individual ordering (owning) agency and shall not be exchanged for other cylinders, either government-owned or contractor-owned, without authorization of the Contracting Officer Technical Representative (COTR) at the ordering agency.