J065--Histology Equipment Service

Description This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial products and commercial services prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 12.6, Streamlined Procedures for Evaluation and Solicitation for Commercial Products and Commercial Services, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested, and a written solicitation document will not be issued. This solicitation is issued as an RFQ. The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2025-01 November 12, 2024. This solicitation is set-aside for small business. The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 811210, with a small business size standard of $34M. The FSC/PSC is J065. The Department of Veterans Affairs, Network Contracting Office 1, located at Bedford MA, in support of VISN 01, is seeking to purchase corrective and preventive maintenance for the following laboratory histology equipment: Manufacturer Description Model Serial Number Shandon Microtome Finesse FN2287A1205 Shandon Microtome Finesse FN1557A0501 Leica Microtome RM2255 2831/06.2008 Leica Stainer Autostainer XL 3557/08.2013 Leica Cover Slipper CV5030 4196/05.2014 Sakura Embedding Center Tec 5 51012664-0712 Leica Cryostat CM1850 1451/10.2008 Leica Cryostat CM1860 00000003484 Sakura Tissue Processor Sakura 60300395 All interested companies shall provide quotations. The Blanket Purchase Agreement period of performance is 12/16/2024 12/15/2029. Place of Performance/Place of Delivery White River Junction VAMC 215 North Main Street White River Junction, VT 05009-0001 The full text of FAR provisions or clauses may be accessed electronically at http://acquisition.gov/comp/far/index.html. The following solicitation provisions apply to this acquisition: FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors Commercial Products and Commercial Services ADDENDUM to FAR 52.212-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO QUOTERS COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES (SEP 2023) Provisions that are incorporated by reference (by Citation Number, Title, and Date), have the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The version of FAR 52.212-1 in the addendum is tailored for Simplified Acquisition Procedures and supersedes the current version of FAR 52.212-1 contained in the FAR. The following provision is incorporated into 52.212-1 as an addendum to this solicitation: FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Quoters Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Sep 2023) (a) North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and small business size standard. The NAICS code(s) and small business size standard(s) for this acquisition appear elsewhere in the Request for Quote (RFQ). However, the small business size standard for a concern that submits a quote, other than on a construction or service acquisition, but proposes to furnish an end item that it did not itself manufacture, process, or produce is 500 employees if the acquisition Is set aside for small business and has a value above the simplified acquisition threshold; or Uses the HUBZone price evaluation preference regardless of dollar value, unless the quoter waives the price evaluation preference; or Is an 8(a), HUBZone, service-disabled veteran-owned, economically disadvantaged women-owned, or women-owned small business set-aside or sole-source award regardless of dollar value. (b) Submission of Quotes. Submit signed and dated quotes to the office specified in this Request for Quote (RFQ) at or before the exact time specified. Quotes may be submitted on letterhead stationery, or as otherwise specified in the RFQ. As a minimum, quotes must show            (1) The solicitation number;            (2) The time specified in the solicitation for receipt of quotations;            (3) The name, address, and telephone number of the quoter; A technical description of the items being quoted in sufficient detail to evaluate compliance with the requirements in the solicitation. This may include product literature, or other documents, if necessary;            (5) Terms of any express warranty;            (6) Price and any discount terms;            (7) "Remit to" address, if different than mailing address; (8) A completed copy of the representations and certifications at Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.212-3 (see FAR 52.212-3(b) for those representations and certifications that the quoter shall complete electronically);            (9) Acknowledgment Request for Quotation amendments; (10) Past performance information, when included as an evaluation factor, to include recent and relevant contracts for the same or similar items and other references (including contract numbers, points of contact with telephone numbers and other relevant information); and (11) Quote should include a statement specifying the extent of agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation. Quotes that fail to furnish required representations and certifications, information requested in (1) to (9) and accept the terms and conditions of the solicitation may be excluded from consideration. (c) Period for acceptance of Quotes. The quoter agrees to hold the prices in its quote firm for 30 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of quotes, unless another time period is specified in an addendum to the solicitation. (d) Product samples. When required by the solicitation, product samples shall be submitted at or prior to the time specified for receipt of quotes. Unless otherwise specified in this solicitation, these samples shall be submitted at no expense to the Government, and returned at the sender s request and expense, unless they are destroyed during testing. (e) Multiple Quotes. Quoters are encouraged to submit multiple quotes presenting alternative line items (provided that the alternative line items are consistent with FAR subpart  4.10), or alternative commercial products or commercial services for satisfying the requirements of this solicitation. Each quote submitted will be evaluated separately. (f) Late submissions, revisions, and withdrawals of quotes. (1) Quoters are responsible for submitting quotes so as to reach the Government office designated in the solicitation by the time specified in the solicitation. If no time is specified in the solicitation, the time for receipt is 4:30 p.m., local time, for the designated Government office on the date that quotes are due. (2) Any quotation received at the Government office designated in the solicitation after the exact time specified for receipt of quotes is "late" and may not be considered unless it is received before purchase order issuance and the Contracting Officer (CO) determines that accepting the late quotation would not unduly delay the acquisition. (3) If an emergency or unanticipated event interrupts normal Government processes so that quotations cannot be received at the Government office designated for receipt of quotes by the exact time specified in the solicitation, and urgent Government requirements preclude a notice of an extension of the closing date, the time specified for receipt of quotes will be deemed to be extended to the same time of day specified in the solicitation on the first work day on which normal Government processes resume. (g) Issuance of Purchase Order. The Government may issue a purchase order to one or more quoters as identified in the Request for Quote (RFQ). Therefore, the quoter s initial quote should contain the best terms from a price and technical standpoint. However, the Government may reject any or all quotes if such action is in the public s best interest. The Contracting Officer (CO) may issue a purchase order to other than the quoter with the lowest priced quotation. (h) Multiple awards. The Government may issue a purchase order for any item or group of items of a quotation, unless the quoter qualifies the quotation by specific limitations. Unless otherwise provided in the Schedule, quotations may not be submitted for quantities less than those specified. The Government reserves the right to issue a purchase order for a quantity less than the quantity quoted, at the unit prices quoted, unless the quoter specifies otherwise in the quotation.       (1) Availability of requirements documents cited in the solicitation. (i) The GSA Index of Federal Specifications, Standards and Commercial Item Descriptions, FPMR Part 101 29, and copies of Federal specifications, standards, and product descriptions can be downloaded from the ASSIST website at https://assist.dla.mil. (ii) If the General Services Administration, Department of Agriculture, or Department of Veterans Affairs issued this solicitation, a copy of specifications, standards, and commercial item descriptions cited in this solicitation may be obtained from the address in paragraph (i)(1)(i) of this provision. (2) Most unclassified Defense specifications and standards may be downloaded from the ASSIST website at https://assist.dla.mil.           (3) Defense documents not available from the ASSIST website may be requested from the Defense Standardization Program Office by (i) Using the ASSIST feedback module ( https://assist.dla.mil/ feedback); or (ii) Contacting the Defense Standardization Program Office by telephone at 571 767 6688 or email at assisthelp@dla.mil. (4) Nongovernment (voluntary) standards must be obtained from the organization responsible for their preparation, publication, or maintenance. (j) Unique entity identifier (UEI). Applies to all quotes that exceed the micro-purchase threshold, and quotes at or below the micro-purchase threshold if the solicitation requires the contractor to be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM).) The quoter must enter, in the block with its name and address on the cover page of its quote, the annotation "Unique Entity Identifier" followed by the unique entity identifier that identifies the quoters name and address. The quoter also must enter its Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) indicator, if applicable. The EFT indicator is a four-character suffix to the UEI. The suffix is assigned at the discretion of the quoter to establish additional SAM records for identifying alternative EFT accounts (see FAR subpart  32.11) for the same entity. If the quoter does not have a UEI, it should contact the entity designated at www.sam.gov for UEI establishment directly to obtain one. The quoter should indicate that it is a quoter for a Government contract when contacting the entity designated at www.sam.gov for establishing the UEI. (k) [Reserved] (l) Requests for information. The CO will not notify unsuccessful quoters that responded to this Request for Quotation (RFQ). However, quoters may request information on purchase order(s) resulting from this solicitation with the CO. Provisions that are incorporated by reference (by Citation Number, Title, and Date), have the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The following provisions are incorporated into 52.212-1 as an addendum to this solicitation: 52.252-1 SOLICITATION PROVISIONS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998) This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es): https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far https://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/ (End of Provision) FAR Number Title Date 52.204-24 REPRESENTATION REGARDING CERTAIN TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND VIDEO SURVEILLANCE SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT NOV 2021 52.204-29 FEDERAL ACQUISITION SUPPLY CHAIN SECURITY ACT ORDERS REPRESENTATION AND DISCLOSURES DEC 2023 52.216-1 TYPE OF CONTRACT APR 1984 52.204-7 SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT OCT 2018 52.204-16 COMMERCIAL AND GOVERNMENT ENTITY CODE REPORTING AUG 2020 52.229-11 TAX ON CERTAIN FOREIGN PROCUREMENTS NOTICE AND REPRESENTATION JUN 2020 852.239-75 INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY ACCESSIBILITY NOTICE FEB 2023 (End of Addendum to 52.212-1) (End of provision) FAR 52.212-3, Offerors Representations and Certifications Commercial Products and Commercial Services Offerors must complete annual representations and certifications electronically via the System for Award Management (SAM) website located at https://www.sam.gov/portal in accordance with FAR 52.212-3, Offerors Representations and Certifications Commercial Products and Commercial Services. If paragraph (j) of the provision is applicable, a written submission is required. The following contract clauses apply to this acquisition: FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Nov 2023) ADDENDUM to FAR 52.212-4 CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES Clauses that are incorporated by reference (by Citation Number, Title, and Date), have the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The following clauses are incorporated into 52.212-4 as an addendum to this contract: FAR Number Title Date 852.232-72 ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION OF PAYMENT REQUESTS NOV 2018 VAAR 852.242-71 ADMINISTRATIVE CONTRACTING OFFICER (OCT 2020) The Contracting Officer reserves the right to designate an Administrative Contracting Officer (ACO) for the purpose of performing certain tasks/duties in the administration of the contract. Such designation will be in writing through an ACO Letter of Delegation and will identify the responsibilities and limitations of the ACO. A copy of the ACO Letter of Delegation will be furnished to the Contractor. (End of Clause) 52.252-2 CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998) This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es): https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far https://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/ (End of Clause) FAR Number Title Date 52.203-17 CONTRACTOR EMPLOYEE WHISTLEBLOWER RIGHTS NOV 2023 52.204-9 PERSONAL IDENTITY VERIFICATION OF CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL JAN 2011 52.204-13 SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT MAINTENANCE OCT 2018 52.204-18 COMMERCIAL AND GOVERNMENT ENTITY CODE MAINTENANCE AUG 2020 852.203-70 COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING MAY 2018 852.204-70 PERSONAL IDENTITY VERIFICATION OF CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL MAY 2020 852.215-70 SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN-OWNED AND VETERAN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS EVALUATION FACTORS (DEVIATION) JAN 2023 852.215-71 EVALUATION FACTOR COMMITMENTS OCT 2019 (End of Addendum to 52.212-4) FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Nov 2024) The following subparagraphs of FAR 52.212-5 are applicable: (a)(1-7), (b)(5), (b)(9), (b)(11), (b)(12), (b)(18), (b)(26), (b)(31), (b)(33), (b)(34), (b)(36), (b)(37), (b)(39), (b)(46), (b)(51), (b)(55), (b)(56), (b)(59), (c)(1), (c)(5),(c)(7),(c)(8), (d), and (e). All quotes shall be sent to the Point of Contact at manases.cabrera@va.gov. Award will be based upon a comparative evaluation of quotes in accordance with the Simplified Acquisition Procedures of FAR 13. Comparative evaluation is the side-by-side pairwise comparison of quotes based on factors resulting in a Contracting Officer's decision for the quote most favorable to the Government. Options will be evaluated at the time of award. The following are the decision factors: Technical or Quality Past Performance Veterans Involvement Price ADDENDUM to 52.212-2 EVALUATION COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES Basis for Award. The Government will issue a blanket purchase agreement to the responsible quoter whose quotation conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate quotations: Technical or Quality Past Performance Veterans Involvement Price Evaluation Approach. The Government will evaluate quotations using the comparative evaluation process outlined in FAR 13.106-2 (b) (3), where quotations will be compared to one another to determine which provides the best benefit to the Government. The Government reserves the right to consider a quotation other than the lowest price that provides additional benefit(s). Quotations may exceed minimum requirements of the solicitation. The Government reserves the right to select a quotation that provides benefit to the Government that exceeds the minimum requirements of the solicitation, but is not required to do so. Each response must meet the minimum requirements of the solicitation. The Government isnot requesting or accepting alternate quotations. The evaluation will consider the following: Technical or Quality: The quotation will be evaluated to the extent to which it can meet and/or exceed the Government s requirements as outlined in the solicitation and based on the information requested in the instructions to quoters section of the solicitation. Past Performance: The past performance evaluation will assess the relative risks associated with a quoter s likelihood of success in fulfilling the solicitation s requirements as indicated by the quoter s record of past performance. The past performance evaluation may be based on the contracting officer s knowledge of and previous experience with the supply or service being acquired; Customer surveys, and past performance questionnaire replies; Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) at http://www.cpars.gov/; or any other reasonable basis. Veterans Involvement: In accordance with Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR) 852.215-70 (DEVIATION), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned and Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) Evaluation Factors, the Government will assign evaluation credit for a Quoter (i.e., prime contractor) which is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) or a VOSB. To receive credit, an offeror must be registered and verified in Vendor Information Pages (VIP) database at time of quotation submission and at time of award ( https://www.vip.vetbiz.va.gov/) and must meet federal small business size standards for the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code assigned to this solicitation. Non-SDVOSB/VOSB quotations that use SDVOSBs or VOSBs as subcontractors will receive some consideration under this evaluation Factor. Quoters must state in their quotations the names of the SDVOSBs and VOSBs with whom they intend to subcontract and provide a brief description of the proposed subcontracts and the approximate dollar values of the proposed subcontracts. In addition, the proposed subcontractors must be registered and verified in the VetBiz.gov VIP database ( https://www.vip.vetbiz.va.gov/) and must meet federal small business size standards for the NAICS code assigned to this solicitation at time of both quotation submission and at time of award. Price: The Government will evaluate the price by adding the total of all line item prices, including all options. The Total Evaluated Price will be that sum. Options. The Government will evaluate quotations for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. (End of Provision) The award will be made to the response most advantageous to the Government. Responses should contain your best terms, conditions. To facilitate the award process, all quotes must include a statement regarding the terms and conditions herein as follows: "The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document without modification, deletion, or addition." OR "The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document with the exception, deletion, or addition of the following:" Quoters shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s), if any. Submission of your response shall be received not later than December 11, 2024 at 4:30PM at manases.cabrera@va.gov The last day for questions is December 6, 2024, at 4:30PM. Late submissions shall be treated in accordance with the solicitation provision at FAR 52.212-1(f). Any questions or concerns regarding this solicitation should be forwarded in writing via e-mail to the Point of Contact listed below. Point of Contact Contracting POC Manases Cabrera at manases.cabrera@va.gov