Notice of Intent to Sole Source - Plasma Therm, LLC equipment upgrades

The United States Department of Commerce (DOC), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Acquisition Management Division (AMD) intends to negotiate a firm fixed price purchase order, on a sole source basis, with Plasma-Therm, LLC. for the procurement of gas system upgrades for NIST's existing Plasma-Therm reactive ion etch and high density chemical vapor deposition system. The statutory authority for this sole source acquisition is FAR 13.106-1(b) by the authority of FAR Part 13 Simplified Acquisition Procedures. The CNST NanoFab has a need to update the gas panel on three existing Plasma-Therm systems. The current systems were equipped with a limited number of gas lines. In recent years, the number of research projects in NanoFab has grown dramatically, more process capabilities are being required. Adding an additional gas line to the system will bring more users and develop more processes on the system with a cost far less than full system replacement. Currently, users require NanoFab to have additional gas channels on our Plasma-Therm systems to support ongoing research efforts. To add this new process control capability, one more gas line is required for each of the systems. The Plasma-Therm systems operate with a proprietary control system that is not available from any other source. Which makes Plasma-Therm uniquely qualified to fulfill this current need. Adding a new gas line into the system shall require access the existing proprietary control scheme. No other control system can be substituted. Plasma-Therm, has the responsibility of maintaining these unique systems. As the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), they have the upgrades readily available within our expedited delivery schedules. Delivery shall be FOB DESTINATION and shall be in accordance with the Contractors established manufacturing lead times. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 333242, and the size standard is 1500 employees. No solicitation package will be issued. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations; however, all responsible sources interested may identify their interest and capability to respond to this requirement. The Government will consider responses received by established due date/time set forth in this notice. Inquiries will only be accepted via email to [email protected] . No telephone requests will be honored. A determination by the Government not to compete the proposed acquisition based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement in the future.