SOLICITATION NOTICE
37 -- Portable Avian Isolation Cages
- Notice Date
- 8/22/2003
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, South Atlantic Area Office/Athens, GA, 950 College Station Rd., Athens, GA, 30605
- ZIP Code
- 30605
- Solicitation Number
- RFQ-039-4384-03
- Response Due
- 9/12/2003
- Archive Date
- 9/27/2003
- Point of Contact
- Patricia Jones, Procurement Technician, Phone 706-546-3533, Fax 706-546-3444, - Alan Moore, Contract Specialist, Phone 706-546-3530, Fax 706-546-3444,
- E-Mail Address
-
pljones@saa.ars.usda.gov, amoore@saa.ars.usda.gov
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- (i) This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; prices are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. (ii) This solicitation number RFQ-039-4384-03 is issued as a request for quotation. (iii) The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2001-15. (iv) FAR 52.219-6, Notice of Total Small Business Set-Aside is applicable to this acquisition. The NAICS code is 333111. The small business size standard is 500 employees. (v) CLIN 1 - Molded Isolation Units, estimated maximum quantity of 56, unit of issue is each. (vi) The isolator shall be a solid rotational molded polyethylene box designed to raise groups of young chickens or turkeys for several weeks or months, isolated from the outside environment. Such chickens or turkeys will be infected with contagious poultry viruses. The purpose of this isolator system is (1) to prevent virus infection in one cage from spreading to chickens or turkeys in adjacent cages, (2) to prevent the escape of contaminated cage exhaust air to the outside environment, and (3) to raise chickens and/or turkeys according to USDA Animal Care guidelines. The cage accessory parts must be removable for cleaning or replacement. The construction must provide an air and watertight environment within the cage when the outside door is in place and all other openings are sealed. This will be determined by pressure testing the finished isolators by the government. (See paragraph “O.”) – TECHNICAL DETAILS A. SIZE: The isolator cage and dropping pan shall be solid molded 938 linear low density polyethylene. Outside dimensions shall be 38" wide, 32" high, and 25" deep. Inside dimensions shall be 36" wide, 30" high at the front to 29" at the back and 25" deep. B. CONSTRUCTION: The isolator cage shall be a 5-walled solid molded polyethylene unit with a 1" flange around the front door opening. The molded flanges on all four sides shall turn to the outside of the unit and the surface shall be flat for the 1” wide closed cell door gasket to provide an airtight seal. The molded flange shall have a 1-3/8" x 1" x 11 gauge stainless angle around the perimeter of the front opening attached to the back side of the flange. The 1-3/8" angle will be attached to the flange and the 1" angle turned out to reinforce the flanged opening and for attaching the stainless door clamps. C. DOOR & WINDOW: The 38" x 32" door shall be ½" thick Lexan. Closed cell gasket, 1" wide x 1/4" thick shall be attached to the flange around the door opening. The 10" x 20" window on the door shall be 3/8" Lexan, the edges smoothed with 1/16" chamfer on all edges and shall be attached at the bottom of the window by a 1" stainless steel offset piano hinge to allow the door to hang down flat against the cage front. The small window/door shall have ½" wide closed cell gasket attached to the cage front. Stainless toggle clamps, McMaster stock #5091A36 or equal, will hold both doors closed. D. FLOOR & PAN: The isolator cage floor shall have a 1" slope from back to front to allow for drainage. The dropping pan shall be solid molded polyethylene, 3/8" thick and shall have a vertical front and back when inserted into the cage. E. SUPPORT FRAME: The cage support frame shall be constructed with 1 inch, 16 gauge square stainless steel tubing for the front vertical supports and 3/4" unistrut for the back vertical supports with 1" x 1" x 1/8" angle for the cage runners. The frame shall hold two cages, one over the other, with 8" between the cages and the bottom cage shall be 8" from the floor. The frame shall be mounted on 3" rubber wheel, swivel casters (McMaster stock #8805T32 or equal). The front casters on each frame shall have locks. The frame shall be constructed to allow the top cage to be offset 4" to the right side of the frame. (Support frame - 78" high x 40" wide x 26" deep) F. CAGE OPENINGS: The cage unit shall have the following openings: 1. Air intake port: There shall be a 3" NPT spinweld fitting located in the back, 3-½" OC above the wire floor of the cage when in place, 12" OC from the right wall (12" from left wall facing the back). A removable stainless steel, 4" x 4" air deflector or baffle plate, spaced 1" from opening, shall be provided for the intake port. This deflector shall be fabricated using 1/4" stainless expanded metal, rolled to fit into the 3" x 2 PVC fitting that will be installed in the 3" spinweld fitting. 2. Air exhaust port: There shall be a filter housing, 10" x 10" x 3" high, located on the top left corner of the unit with a 1 ½" NPT spinweld fitting on the back side, 5" OC from the left edge extending from the front flange. The filter housing shall be shaped with a 1/2" offset on each side to accept a 10" x 10" x 1" filter and shall be molded to the top of the cage and accessible from the inside of the cage. A stainless steel, ½" expanded metal filter retainer, hinged on the left side, shall be provided. This retainer shall be attached with a stainless piano hinge, to the inside top of the cage, with spring clip fasteners to hold the filter retainer in place. 3. Feed entry port: There shall be a 3" NPT spinweld fitting located on the top right corner directly above the feeder location. (3-½" OC from right edge and 3-½" OC from front flange). 4. Light globe: There shall be a 3-1/4" OD glass globe, (Part # Thepitt TP7600 or equal), protruding into the cage and sealed to the cage (3-1/8" hole needed), 4-1/4" OC from the top and centered in the back wall. (The 25 watt flourescent light shall fit into the globe ). Light holder shall be a red*dot RL80 BR or equal fixture. 5. Drinker port: There shall be a 3/4" NPT spinweld fitting located on the top left side 1-½" OC from the edge and 12" OC from the back. 6. Thermostat port: There shall be a 1/2" NPT spinweld fitting located on the top left side 1-½" OC from the edge and 16" OC from the back. 7. Thermometer port: There shall be a 1/4" NPT spinweld fitting located in the front center of the filter box 2-½" OC from the top edge. G. FEEDER & SUPPORTS: The feeder shall be 24" wide x 12" high constructed with 24 gauge stainless. The feeder shall be held in place by stainless hangers (two sets for two different feeder heights). The two feeder height adjustment hangers should allow the feeder to be flush with the wire floor and 4" above the floor respectively. H. AUTOMATIC DRINKER: The automatic drinker shall be fabricated with ½" CPVC pipe and fittings with two commercially available drinker cups (Val drinker cup). (See #5 above). The ½" CPVC drinker pipe shall be attached to the drinker port with a ½" Quest compression fitting. I. DROPPING PAN: The pan shall be 5" deep and shall move easily on the sloping isolator bottom. The sides of the pan shall extend up to the floor support with the back wall of the pan angled slightly to meet the back wall of the cage to compensate for the slope of the floor. The pan shall fit under the side and back floor supports to prohibit droppings from accumulating between pan and wall. (See note “D”) J. WIRE FLOOR: The cage floor shall be constructed of stainless steel welded wire, ½" X ½" x11 gauge, with a 4 gauge peripheral support rod. Two additional 4 gauge support rods shall be spaced equally across floor. The floor shall be capable of supporting up to 30 pounds of weight. The ledge, molded in place, shall support the wire floor with no more than 1/4" between the wire floor and side of the cage. K. WIRE INNER PARTITION: The front partition shall be constructed of stainless steel welded wire, 1" x 1" x 11 gauge, supported on four angle support brackets with 3/8" holes, two on each side of the isolator, 1" inside the front of the cage. In the center, to line up with the window/door opening, there shall be a 10" x 10" hinged access door, with spring retainers, to allow for the removal of individual birds. Horizontal 4 gauge rods shall be located above and below the 10" x 10" door and shall extend to each side and turn down to fit into the 3/8" hole in the angle support brackets mounted on the sides of the isolator. The wire partition shall be 1" less in width than the front opening to allow the partition to be easily inserted into the opening with the floor in place. Vertical 4 gauge rods shall be located on each side of the 10" x 10" door. The vertical rods shall extend 1" below the bottom of the partition and bend at a 90 degree angle to the inside to support the front of the floor. L. HEATER: The 500 watt finned heat strip, McMaster Part #3575K11, shall be mounted in a box fabricated with 20 gauge stainless steel, 12" x 12" x 4", with a 2" OD x 2" long air inlet and outlet pipe welded on top and bottom of the heater box. The heat strip shall be accessible by a cover attached to the box with screws. A silicone gasket ½" wide x 1/8" thick shall be attached to the cover for an airtight seal. The electrical wire shall be high temperature rated and must pass through a grommet. M. HEPA FILTERS: HEPA filters, 8" x 8" x 6", shall be installed on the supply and exhaust air pipes. The diameter of the schedule 40 PVC pipe shall be 2" on the supply pipe and 1 ½" diameter on the exhaust pipe. A 1 ½" ball valve shall be mounted in line with a 1 ½" PVC union. The union will hold an orifice disc with a 1" diameter hole to control the air flow in the isolator. All PVC pipe connections that cannot be glued shall be made with Fernco fittings. N. ELECTRICAL SERVICE: There shall be an electrical control box mounted on the left side of the isolator rack by the top isolator with a set of three toggle switches for each top and bottom isolator. This electrical source shall control the exhaust blower, light and heat. It shall be wired for the heater to be controlled by the thermostat. The heater must not operate unless the exhaust blower is running. There shall be a light to indicate when the heat strip is on. The isolator flourescent interior 25 watt light will be controlled with a toggle switch. O. BLOWER: The exhaust blower shall be mounted on the top of the right vertical unistrut of the support rack. The blower shall be a Dayton, 115 volt, model # 4C006 or equal, which provides 42 cfm @ 1.2" pressure drop. The square to round transition for the exhaust opening on the blower shall be schedule 10 stainless pipe 2 ½" ID x 3" long. P. TESTING: A first article (a completely assembled prototype of two isolators and support rack) shall be constructed and approved before the remainder of the items on the delivery order is shipped. Upon approval of the prototype units, the Contracting Officer will provide the Contractor a release order (a statement acknowledging acceptance of the first article and requesting shipment of the balance of the delivery order). The Contracting Officer will test the first article unit for (1) compliance with these specifications, and (2) air leakage. The tests will be conducted within seven days after delivery. This leakage test will be done with all ports sealed and with dry, clean gaskets. The isolator unit shall be pressurized to 2" W.C. with air. The air supply shall be turned off and the isolator static pressure measured after 15 minutes. A leakage of 25% of the original pressure will be the maximum acceptable leakage. In the event the first article is not approved due to a minor defect (one not likely to reduce materially the usability of the unit for its intended purpose, or is a departure from the established standards having little bearing of the effective use or operation of the unit), the Contractor shall modify, repair, or replace the article for a subsequent inspection within 30 days of receipt of notice of rejection. In the event the first article is not approved due to a major defect (one likely to result in failure, or to reduce materially the usability of the unit for its intended purpose), the Contractor shall replace the article for a subsequent inspection within 30 days of receipt of notice of rejection. The Contractor shall give the Contracting Officer a schedule of corrective actions anticipated by the Contractor within ten days of receipt of the notice of rejection. Acceptance of defective material is not permitted under any circumstances. The isolators not passing this test will be returned at the Contractor’s expense. The approved first article will serve as the manufacturing model and count as part of the production quantity. Failure of the first article to pass inspection after three testing procedures (either to modified or repaired first articles or to additional first articles) will be indicative of the Contractor’s inability to meet the contract requirements and shall constitute grounds for termination for default in accordance with the termination for cause clause of this contract. Q. DELIVERY: The Government requires delivery of a fully operational cage ready for first article testing within 45 days of contract award. When the unit is shipped, the Contractor shall provide the Contracting Officer notice that it has been shipped and the anticipated delivery date. After first article testing is completed, the Contracting Officer shall notify the Contractor of the results of the inspection through a release order, upon receipt of which the Contractor should proceed with the delivery of units remaining on the initial delivery order. These units shall be delivered within 60 days of the receipt of the release order. (vii) Delivery shall be FOB Destination, 934 College Station Road, Athens, Georgia, within 60 days of contract award. Acceptance shall be made at destination. See additional information elsewhere in this solicitation regarding delivery of the different units. (viii) The provision at Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.212-1, Instruction to Offerors - Commercial, applies to this acquisition. NOTE: Since this is a combined synopsis/solicitation and no written solicitation will be issued, please disregard references to the SF 1449 in this provision; other instructions still apply. In addition to your pricing information, submit past performance information for at least three similar projects. This shall include the following elements of information: Owner, Customer, or Client; Contract Number; Title or Description of Project; Contract Amount; and Contact Name, Title, Telephone Number, and Fax Number. (ix) The provision at 52.212-2, Evaluation - Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following evaluation criteria are included in paragraph (a) of that provision: past performance and price, approximately equal in importance. See instructions below regarding past performance information. (x) Offerors shall include a completed copy of the provision at FAR 52.212-3, Offeror/Representations and Certifications - Commercial Items, with its proposal. A copy of this provision (and all FAR clauses and provisions referenced herein) can be downloaded from http://www.arnet.gov/far/loadmainre.html and following the appropriate links in part 52. (xi) FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions - Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following terms and conditions are added as an addendum to this clause: This is a requirements contract, effective for one year from acceptance. As such, FAR clauses 52.216-18, 52.216-19, and 52.216-21 apply. The minimum order will be one unit, and the maximum order limitation (one order or successive orders within a 30-day period) is 40. Orders may be placed in excess of this quantity, but the Contractor is not bound to honor that order unless he fails to return the order within 10 days of receipt with a written notice it will not be honored. Agriculture Acquisition Regulation (AGAR) clause 452.247-72 also applies. (xii) FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders - Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following FAR clauses cited in 52.212-5, which are to be indicated by the contracting officer as incorporated by reference, are applicable to this acquisition: 52.203-6; 52.219-8; 52.219-14; 52.222-21; 52.222-26; 52.222-35; 52.222-36; 52.222-37; 52.225-13; and 52.232-34. (xiii) (a) The contractor shall extend to the Government the full coverage of any standard commercial warranty normally offered in a similar commercial sale, provided such warranty is available at no additional cost to the Government. Acceptance of the standard commercial warranty does not waive the Government’s rights under the Inspection clause nor does it limit the Government’s rights with regard to the other terms and conditions of this contract. In the event of a conflict, the terms and conditions of the contract shall take precedence over the standard commercial warranty. The contractor shall provide a copy of its standard commercial warranty (if applicable) with its response. (b) To facilitate EFT for contract payments, FAR clause 52.232-34 requires the submission of information by the Contractor to the payment office. Upon award, the Contractor shall contact the Miscellaneous Payments Section at the National Finance Center (NFC) to initiate the enrollment process of the Vendor Express Program (VXP), which will result in a number being assigned to the Contractor for payment under EFT. NFC can be reached on 1-800-421-0323. (c) The contractor will be required to acknowledge acceptance of the purchase order by signing and returning a formal acceptance within seven days of receipt of the purchase order. (d) Effective October 1, registration in the CCR database will become a requirement for any vendor before a federal contract can be awarded to that vendor by any Federal agency. Vendors must update or renew their registration annually to maintain an active status. You are advised to complete registration in the CCR now if you have not already done so. Log on to http://www.ccr.gov to begin the registration process. (e) Upon written request, drawings may be made available. (xiv) Responses are due by 4:00 pm local time, Friday, September 12, 2003, at USDA ARS Area Procurement Office, 950 College Station Road, Athens, GA 30605-2720 (or P. O. Box 5677, Athens, GA 30604-5677). (xv) Point of contact for this acquisition is Pat Jones, Procurement Assistant, (706) 546-3533, fax (706) 546-3444.
- Web Link
-
Link to FedBizOpps document.
(http://www.eps.gov/spg/USDA/ARS/SAA-GA-A/RFQ-039-4384-03/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Delivery will be to: USDA ARS Southeast Poultry Research Lab 934 College Station Road Athens, GA 30605
- Record
- SN00410506-F 20030824/030822223614 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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