This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation or commitment by the Government. This notice is intended strictly for Market Research. The National Library of Medicine (NLM) is conducting a market survey to help determine the availability and technical capability of qualified small businesses, veteran-owned small businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses and/or HUBZone small businesses capable of serving the needs identified below. Background The National Library of Medicine owns over 40,000 monographs printed prior to 1923 in the Americas (Canada, the Caribbean, Latin America, Mexico, and the United States). In 2009 NLM began scanning these items as part of a mass digital project, called Medicine in the Americas. Over 10,000 volumes dated before 1900 have already been scanned and uploaded to NLM's Digital Collections repository (collections.nlm.nih.gov) and the Internet Archive (archive.org). In 2007, NLM conducted a pilot project which revealed that the availability of consistent metadata prior to scanning promotes efficiency during the digitization workflow. According to a random survey of Americana titles conducted in 2008, almost 80% of these monographs have cataloging records that lack Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) terms. Many of these records were created prior to the implementation of national cataloging standards, such as the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (2nd edition, revised) (AACR2r) or Resource, Description, and Access (RDA). Thousands of records must be upgraded to meet the national standards for full-level cataloging and ensure the consistency that is required for optimal metadata transfer into NLM's digital repository. Additionally, some Medicine in the Americas titles do not have distinct cataloging records in NLM's online catalogue, LocatorPlus. Decades ago, NLM used a single record approach for cataloging titles that appeared in multiple editions. Although many of these "multiple-edition records" have been re-cataloged over the years to meet the current standard of one record per edition, there are still several hundred editions that need separate records. These titles need full-level records created for them, either by using available OCLC copy or by creating an original record using Exlibris' Voyager software. There are also an unknown number of monographs that may be bound with other titles, but do not have individual cataloging records. Many Medicine in the Americas titles are part of NLM's Bound Pamphlet collection which has been sporadically cataloged over the years. When the Voyager system was implemented in 1998, cataloging records from the old system were migrated, but individual holdings and item records were mistakenly created for each title. To facilitate proper circulation of these materials the bibliographic records need to be linked to each other through the use of one holdings and item record. Approximately 75% of the Medicine in the Americas titles are written in English, with about 15% in Spanish, and less than 10% in French or German. A very small percentage are written in a variety of other languages. Purpose The objective of this requirement is to procure on-site services of a professional cataloger to upgrade monographic cataloging records to full-level national standards, including assigning a full complement of MeSH. The cataloger shall also create separate bibliographic records for titles cataloged on multiple-edition records in Voyager. Bibliographic records shall also be created for all bound-together titles or editions without separate records in Voyager. The cataloger shall ensure that bound-together titles are properly linked in Voyager to facilitate the proper circulation of the physical volumes. Vendor Requirements Independently, and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall provide an on-site professional cataloger for between 1-2 days (8-16 hours) per week and up to 4-5 days (32-40 hours) per week, depending on funding availability, not to exceed 1500 labor hours in a 12-month period. The cataloger shall perform the following duties: A. Confirm that there is only one bibliographic record for a title in the Voyager database and evaluate what type of cataloging work is necessary: none; record creation for uncataloged titles; single record upgrade; recataloging of multiple edition records; and/or holding and item record maintenance, including the linking of bound-together titles; B. Identify whether single edition records have been cataloged according to current full-level national standards, including a full complement of MeSH terms; C. Upgrade single edition records to current full-level national standards, as modified per NLM's local policies; D. Create separate bibliographic records for uncataloged titles and editions cataloged on multiple-edition records, either by using available OCLC copy or by creating an original record directly in Voyager; E. Confirm that all name headings used in the upgraded or created records have corresponding fully established authority records in Voyager; F. Ensure that all bibliographic records have accurate holdings and item records, according to NLM's local policies, including proper linking of bound-together titles; G. Provide Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) with proper documentation of upgraded and newly created bibliographic and authority records. The Contractor shall upgrade or create records in accordance with the following standards: MARC 21 Format for Bibliographic Data (MARC21); the Anglo American Cataloging Rules (2nd ed., 2002 rev, 2005 update) (AACR2), the Library of Congress Rule Interpretations (LCRI), Resource, Description, and Access (RDA), the Library of Congress-Program for Cooperative Cataloging Policy Statements (LC-PCC PS), and local NLM policy documentation. Holdings and item record data shall be verified and/or input according to the NLM Guidelines for Interpreting, Creating, and Maintaining Holdings Records and the NLM Guidelines for Interpreting, Creating and Maintaining Item Records. All work shall be performed in accordance with accepted principles of the NLM's quality standards, MeSH and NLM policies and in adherence to MARC21. The Contractor shall perform this work on-site in the History of Medicine Division at NLM, during standard business hours, 8:30-5:00, Monday-Friday. Adjustments to this schedule may be permitted at the discretion of the Contracting Officer's Representative. This is a Small Business Sources Sought Notice. This is not a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding: (1) the availability and capability of qualified small business sources; (2) whether they are small businesses; HUBZone small businesses; service-disable, veteran-owned small businesses; 8(a) small businesses; veteran-owned small businesses; woman-owned small businesses; or small disadvantaged businesses; and (3) their size classification relative to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for the proposed acquisition. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. This Sources Sought notice is not a Request for Proposals (RFP), nor is an RFP available. Interested firms responding to this sources sought notice must adhere to the following: (a) Provide a capability statement demonstrating relevant experience, skills and ability to fulfill the Government's requirements for the above. The capability statement should contain enough sufficient detail for the Government to make an informed decision regarding your capabilities; however, the statement should not exceed 10 pages. (b) The capability statement must identify the responder's small business type and size; DUNS number; NAICS code; and technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and email addresses. (c) All capability statements must be submitted electronically no later than 4:30pm Eastern Standard time on Tuesday July 1, 2014 to Ms. Uyen Phuong at
[email protected]. Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. Confidentiality: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).