PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICE for the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) Cincinnati Procurement Operations Division (CPOD), Office of Research and Development (ORD), National Center for Computational Toxicology (NCCT). This is solicitation is to be competed utilizing full and open competition under FAR Part 12 Commercial Procedures and FAR Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures. The government anticipates awarding a single firm fixed price contract for an Acoustic Liquid Handler and associated software. Specifically, the government requires the system and software as specified below: Acoustic Liquid Handler Specifications: Features: -"Touchless" transfer operations. No pipette tips or wash fluids. -Compatible with a wide range of fluid types including DMSO; buffers with or without proteins, nucleic acids, or detergents; serum/plasma, and solutions containing viscous reagents such as glycerol. -Equipment and software must be able to handle all liquid types on default settings/ software wizards, equipment does not need to be trained by the user for certain liquids. -Multiple 384- and 1536-well source plate options, with researcher¿s choice of destination plate formats from 96-well to 3456-well and glass slides. -Adjustable Z-dimension for low-base SBS plates without requiring aseptic shims. -No need to recalibrate and 'tweak' the machine when processes change -Measures and reports water content of DMSO automatically via an integrated (not additional or peripheral) system. -Adjusts fluid transfer properties based on DMSO hydration level-no user calibration required -Measures source-well fluid depth -Dispenses 2.5 nL and greater volumes -Volumetric transfer precision: <8%CV -DMSO hydration precision: <5%CV -Fluid depth precision: <5%CV -Logs empty wells and missed transfers -Optional barcode readers -Any-well to any-well transfers at any volume Sample Applications: -Plate replication and reformatting of compound libraries in DMSO -Plate compressions or expansion -From 384- or 1536-well source plates to 96-, 384-, 1536- or 3456-well destination plates -Genomics applications, including PCR, qPCR, NGS and more at highly-miniaturized volumes -Transfer of Compound, siRNA, DNA, Antibody and other sample types into a range of assays for screening. Required software must: -Cherry Pick- Enable transfer of any chosen volume from any source well into any destination well. -Dose-Response - Enable the preparation of IC50, EC50 or any type of dose-response curves by consolidating sample distribution, bulk-fluid back-fill and control sample transfer. Dose response curves created from single original well, not a serial dilution. -Plate Audit - Enable users to collect information on sample properties such as fluid height, fluid volume, and composition. -Plate Reformat - Provide a variety of plate transfer functions - plate replication, up-stack/down-stack reformatting, and custom regional mapping Unit Size: -Enclosed system to ensure durability of equipment components not to exceed 53.9cm width x 68.3cm depth x 92.5cm height (21.2 x 26.9x 36.4 inches) Warranty: -Standard Warranty -Extended Manufacturers Service Agreement This procurement will be conducted utilizing NAICS Code 334516 with a size standard of 500 employees. Award will be made to the offeror whose solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. Technical and Past Performance, when combined are approximately equal to price. Notices of any amendments to this FedBizOps synopsis, including the Requests for Quotation, will be posted using the FedConnect web portal at www.fedconnect.net. The Request for Quote will be posted on or about December 1, 2015. The anticipated award date is December 31, 2015. The Acoustic Liquid Handler is to be delivered to the following address within 10 weeks of award: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Shipping and Receiving 4930 Old Page Rd. Durham, NC 27703 FedConnect is a web portal that connects agencies and vendors to streamline the process of doing business with the federal government. Through FedConnect contractors will be able to receive, review and respond to contract pre- and post-award actions and documents such as correspondence, request for proposals, tasking instruments and contract modifications. The use of FedConnect also furthers the EPA's commitment to moving towards a paperless acquisition environment by reducing its carbon footprint and conducting its business in an ecologically friendly manner. Offerors must submit all technical questions concerning this synopsis electronically through FedConnect at www.fedconnect.net, reference number: SOL-CI-15-00034 within 15 calendar days of the date of publication of this notice. Offerors must register with FedConnect as an interested party to submit questions and to view responses. Telephone requests for the request for quotation will not be honored. To register in FedConnect vendors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) at www.sam.gov. Please note that vendors MUST have their SAM profile set to ¿public,¿ otherwise FedConnect will not be able to access the SAM information required to validate vendor credentials. There is no charge for registration in FedConnect or SAM. For assistance in registering or for other FedConnect technical questions please call the FedConnect Help Desk at (800) 899-6665 or email at
[email protected]. For technical issues or questions regarding FedConnect, either email
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