NIA 23-004254

Post Date/ Solicitation Issue Date

February 17, 2023 12:00 pm

Closing Response Date

February 27, 2023 5:00 pm

Proposed Award Date

March 3, 2023 12:00 pm

Project Title

Whole epigenome sequencing using NovaSeq after bisulfite conversion.

Contracting Office

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

Small Business Size Standard

$16.5M

FPDS Classification Code

Q301

Estimated Period of Performance

March 6, 2023 - September 8, 2023

Delivery of Goods

N/A

Competition Status

Competitive

Background/Description of Requirement

This acquisition is being conducted under Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Part 13 – Simplified Acquisition Procedures, and FAR Part 12—Acquisition of Commercial Items, and the resultant contract award will include all applicable provisions and clauses in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2023-01 dated December 30, 2022.

The purpose of this requirement is to procure sequencing services to examine drivers of altered functions in Multiple Sclerosis patients.  The National Institute on Aging (NIA), Intramural Research Program (IRP) Translational Gerontology Branch (TGB) Experimental Gerontology Section (EGS) requires whole Epigenome Sequencing in induced neuronal stem cells and fibroblasts to examine the drivers of altered functions in Multiple Sclerosis patients.  In performing the analysis of the epigenome of the induced neuronal stem cells and fibroblasts from control and Multiple Sclerosis patients, NIA/IRP/TGB/EGS wish to determine the epigenetic profile of our own samples and compare them to those of our collaborator. By doing so, we hope to determine the epigenetic drives that are producing an altered phenotype and function in these induced neuronal cells. Due to of lack of experience within the NIA/IRP in this form of sequencing, this project is best done with an outside source. 

Period of Performance:  March 6, 2023 - September 8, 2023

Place of Performance:  The place of performance shall be the NIA site located at 251 Bayview Blvd., 8^th Floor., Rm. 10C220, Baltimore, MD 21224.

SCOPE OF WORK

General Requirements:  Independently and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, material, equipment, and facilities, not otherwise provided by the Government as needed to perform the Statement of Work below:

The contractor shall provide the following services:

• Isolate and bisulfite convert DNA from eight samples of fibroblasts and induced neuronal stem cells provided by the government.
• Generate epigenome library preparations from eight samples of fibroblasts and induced neuronal stem cells provided by the government.  These eight libraries will then be sequenced at a minimum coverage of 30X ~240Gb data per sample. 
• The contractor will provide FASTQ files as a resultant read out of the libraries provided so the data can be analyzed in conjunction with prior library/sequencing generation.

LEVEL OF EFFORT:  One service contract at fixed pricing is anticipated for a period of performance of six months.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITIES:  The government will provide 8 samples (fibroblasts and induced neuronal stem cells) to the contractor.

DELIVERY OR DELIVERABLES:  

• The vendor will provide documentation to show the service was completed. The government POC will verify the quality of the data and sign documentation confirming the receipt.
• The contractor will provide FASTQ files via account access and on external hard drive.

DATA RIGHTS:  The NIA shall have unlimited rights to, and ownership of all deliverables provided under this procurement including reports, analyses, recommendations, briefings, work plans, created SOPs and all other deliverables. In addition, it includes any additional deliverables required by contract change. HHSAR clause 352.227-14, “Rights in Data-Exceptional Circumstances,” is hereby incorporated by reference and shall be made a part of any resulting contract/order.  Data is stored for a period of 3 months after the completion of the order, after which the data will be discarded.  All requests must be made in writing either via email or letter.

SUMMARY STATEMENT:  

The Unique Entity Identifier (UEI), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), certification of country of ownership, and the certification of business size must be included in the response.  

All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.

Quoter Terms and Conditions (To be completed by the Offeror):

1. Period of Performance OR Delivery Date After Receipt of Order:
2. Shipping Point (F.O.B. OR Destination):
3. Payment Discount Terms:
4. NIH BPA Number:
5. SAM UEI No:
6. Name of Company:
7. Street Address, City, State, Zip code:
8. Name of Person Authorized to Provide Quote:
9. Telephone Number and Email Address of Person Authorized to Provide Quote:

ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS, PROVISIONS, AND REPRESENTATIONS

The FAR Clauses are incorporated by reference and are provided in full text at https://www.acquisition.gov/

1. FAR Provision 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items (Nov 2021) is applicable to this solicitation.
2. FAR Provision 52.212.2 Evaluation-Commercial Items (Nov 2021) is applicable to this solicitation. The Government will evaluate quotations or offers in accordance with FAR 13.106-2 and award a purchase order from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose quote conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered.  The following factors shall be used to evaluate quotes: Technical capability of the item offered to meet the Government requirement; Price; and Past performance [see FAR 13.106-2(b)(3)]
3. FAR Provision 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (Dec 2022), is applicable to this solicitation. 
4. FAR Clause 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items (Dec 2022), is applicable to this solicitation.
5. FAR clause at 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items (Dec 2022) is applicable to this solicitation.

In addition, the following FAR provisions and clauses are applicable to this solicitation and incorporated by reference:

1. 52.204-7 System for Award Management (Oct 2018),
2. 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance (Oct 2018),
3. 52.204-16 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (Aug 2020),
4. 52.204-18 Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance (Aug 2020)
5. HHSAR 352.239-73, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Notice (December 18, 2015).

The following provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition and are incorporated as an attachment. Offerors MUST complete the provision at 52.204-24 and 52.204-26 and submit completed copies as separate documents with their quotation.

1. FAR 52.204-24, Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment (Nov 2021)
2. FAR 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment (Nov 2021)
3. FAR 52.204-26, Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services-Representation (Oct 2020)
4. NIH Invoice and Payment Provisions

All responses must be received by February 27, 2022 at 5 pm EST and must reference announcement/ solicitation number NIA-23-004254. Responses may be submitted electronically to Carla Blalock (Carla.blalock@nih.gov). Fax responses will not be accepted.