Description
NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE The Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Boston Healthcare System, intends to negotiate a sole source contract under Simplified Acquisition Procedures and the authority of FAR Part 6.302-1, Only One Responsible Source to Cortech Solutions for a 64-channel upgrade to the existing 64-channel Biosemi ActiveTwo EEG System. There is no other known source in the United States that can provide this equipment. A firm fixed price contract with no option years is anticipated and shall be awarded. It is the Governments belief that only the proposed candidate possesses the required capabilities to successfully meet this requirement. It is the Governments intention to solicit and negotiate only with this source. This is not a request for proposal. However, companies that can provide an equal product must submit their technical capabilities to include technical, specifications of their product, pass performance information, price and delivery time. This information will be reviewed by the Government technical representatives for consideration for future requirements. Email statements are preferred. Statements are due no later than January 19, 2010. Phone inquiries will not be accepted. This is not a solicitation; it is a Notice of Intent to Sole Source requirement. JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION 1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity. VA BOSTON Healthcare System, Research Service 2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved. Sole Source procurement of a 64-channel upgrade to an existing 64-channel Biosemi ActiveTwo EEG system, bringing the total number of channels to 128, plus miscellaneous lab equipment. 3. Description of the supplies or services required to meet the agencys needs (including the estimated value). All parts, software support and upgrades, and labor. The following items will be procured: the 64 channel hardware (to be added to the existing 64 channels), 128 channel electrode caps, photocell sensor for synchronizing visual stimuli to EEG recordings, sound level meter with earphone coupler (for calibrating auditory stimuli), electromagnetic field tester (for minimizing environmental electrical noise that interferes with EEG recordings), labor involved in reconfiguring existing hardware and electrode caps, and shipping. The 64 channel upgrade cost is $30,862 the lab calibration equipment $1,443 and shipping is $425. 4. Identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition. FAR 6.302-1, USC 253(C) (1) 5. Demonstration that the proposed contractors unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited. This vendor is the sole US distributor of Biosemi products. Biosemi is a German company. The upgrade and other equipment can only work with a Biosemi system, so there are no other vendors. 6. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable, including whether a FedBizOps notice was or will be publicized as required by subpart 5.2 (copy attached) and, if not, which exception under 5.202 applies. A sole source notice will be published in FedBizOps.gov. 7. Determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the government will be fair and reasonable. The anticipated cost or price to the government for this contract action is determined to be fair and reasonable. 8. Description of the market survey conducted (i.e., names of firms and the date(s) the firms were contacted) and the results or a statement of the reasons a market survey was not conducted. I went to the Biosemi website and found that Cortech Solutions was the only US distributor of their products. 9. Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition, such as an explanation why technical data packages, specifications, engineering descriptions, statements of work, or purchase descriptions suitable for full and open competition have not been developed or are not available. This EEG system will be used for recording high-frequency (gamma) brainwaves from patients (chronic schizophrenics) and healthy control subjects. The nature of the research requires that a dense electrode array (64 channels) be used for accurate topographic mapping and source localization. While traditional low-impedance EEG systems can provide a high signal-to-noise ratio, which is critical for measuring gamma brainwaves, the electrode application procedure used with these systems is burdensome and tedious for subjects, especially patients. Each electrode location must be cleaned by abrading the skin, a process which is uncomfortable and can take a long time. For dense electrode arrays, electrode application can take more then 30 minutes, particularly for patients whose hair may not be clean. Also, traditional electrode caps are not very comfortable for subjects. In recent years, high-impedance EEG systems have been developed which have claimed to reduce the time of the electrode application process. However, these systems have suffered from low signal-to-noise ratios, which makes them poorly-suited for recording gamma brainwaves. The ActiveTwo EEG system is the only high-impedance EEG system that can provide 1) a high signal-to-noise ratio; 2) fast setup time; and 3) improved subject comfort. What makes this system unique is that it utilizes state-of-the-art active electrode recording technology, so that no skin abrasion is necessary. The high signal-to-noise ratio is made possible by using fiber optics and battery-powered electronics. After the cap is fitted, each electrode position is filled with a small amount of gel (smaller than with traditional systems). Our experience with this system has shown that electrode application for the ActiveTwo takes less than half the time required for a traditional system. Furthermore, our subjects greatly prefer the ActiveTwo electrode cap to the traditional cap, as it is lighter and more comfortable to wear. Since the electrode application process is shorter and more enjoyable, our subjects perform better and have a much more enjoyable experience in the laboratory. For all of these reasons, the ActiveTwo EEG system is the ideal EEG system for our research. It is also important to note that it is important to purchase this particular system for collaborations between this laboratory and EEG labs at the Bedford and Brockton VA campuses. These labs use the same system and therefore collaborating with them would not be possible without it. 10. A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition. No other vendors of this equipment exist. 11. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services required. Contracting Activity will continue to encourage full and open competition whenever possible.