Description
THIS NOTICE OF INTENT IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. This notice is for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. Vendors that believe they can provide the services listed above are invited to submit substantiating documentation in writing to the identified point of contact. This procurement will be processed pursuant to FAR part 12 and Part 13.5. No solicitation will be issued. Information received will be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Oral communications are not acceptable in response to this notice. A determination by the Government to compete this proposed contract based on responses to this notice is solely at the discretion of the Government. Responses are to be received within 10 days of this notice. No telephone calls are being accepted. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA),National Agricultural Library (NAL), intends to negotiate and award on a Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition (JOFOC) basis. A purchase order will be a one-year firm-fixed price (plus four option years) awarded to John Wiley & Sons, Inc of Hoboken NJ for Digital Archives of the New York Academy of Sciences, and backfiles for four journals with perpetual access via IP authentication for all USDA users. Anticipated Date of Award: 9/24/2018. NAL is mandated (7 U.S.C. 3101) to serve as the primary agricultural information resource of the United States. One of its functions in that role is the acquisition of information in all aspects of agriculture and allied sciences. In support of this function, the NAL acquires journal publications in electronic format from publishers and makes the journals accessible to USDA employees and library patrons via the internet. In keeping with its charge to collect agricultural and related information, it seeks to maintain a collection of publications in various formats from a variety of publishers and sources. The requirement will be used by NAL staff and USDA employees, contractors, cooperators and volunteers performing work on behalf of USDA worldwide who are considered as authorized locations and users of the journals. The publisher, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., will make the purchased content available for delivery via the internet. The publisher shall make purchased content accessible 24 hours per day. Authorized users will be granted access to the journal backfile content through the IP recognition authentication process without any impediments, with perpetual data rights to the purchased content. The publisher holds the copyright to the contents of these journals, which are unique and not available from any other publisher. These reference sources are published for scientists. In order to meet the needs of scientists who generate research, offer educational services to educators and student researchers, and provide highly respected outlets for publication. No other source, such as electronic resource providers (aggregators) may deliver contents without a direct license from the publisher. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. is the only source determined capable of supplying NAL's requirements for immediate and perpetual electronic access via IP authentication over the Internet to the journal backfiles of American Journal of Botany 1914-1996, Journal of the American Oil Chemists Society 1927-1996, Journal of Leukocyte Biology 1984-1996, and Lipids 1966-1996, and the New York Academy of Sciences Digital Archives collection. A market survey has provided information that there is only one source available. The vendor's website provided no other product vendors licensed to distribute this content. This was determined by attendance at vendor exhibitions such as the Special Libraries Association Annual Conference and the Computers in Libraries annual conference, and consultation with the Associations responsible for the content of these journals. The Wiley collections are proprietary. If the rights for distribution by other vendors becomes available, full and open competition will be considered.