SOLICITATION NOTICE
66 -- Digital Slide Scanner
- Notice Date
- 6/11/2008
- Notice Type
- Presolicitation
- NAICS
- 334516
— Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Office of Acquisitions, 6120 Executive Blvd., EPS Suite 600, Rockville, Maryland, 20852
- ZIP Code
- 20852
- Solicitation Number
- NCI-80091-NG
- Archive Date
- 7/8/2008
- Point of Contact
- Malinda L Holdcraft, Phone: (301) 402-4509, Caren N Rasmussen,, Phone: (301) 402-4509
- E-Mail Address
-
holdcram@exchange.nih.gov, cr214i@nih.gov
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- The National Cancer Institute (NCI) plans to procure as a sole source the brand Digital Slide Scanner and Telepathology System with Aperio Technologies; 1360 Park Center Drive; Vista, California 92081. This acquisition will be conducted under the procedures for acquiring commercial items authorized in FAR Part 12 and under the authority to use simplified procedures for commercial requirements as provided in FAR 13.501. The North American Industry Classification System code is 334516 and the business size standard is 500 employees. This notice is not a request for competitive quotation. However, if any interested party believes it can meet the above requirement, it may submit a statement of capabilities. The statement of capabilities and any other information furnished must be in writing and must contain material in sufficient detail to allow NCI to determine if the party can perform the requirement. No faxed or emailed capability statements will be accepted. Contractor shall provide one (1) original and one (1) copy of the capability statement. Capability statements must be received in the contracting office by 11:00 AM EST, by June 23, 2008. All questions must be in writing and can be faxed or emailed to: Malinda Holdcraft, Contract Specialist via electronic mail at holdcram@exchange.nih.gov or fax 301-402-4513. It is the vendors’ responsibility to ensure all questions have been received in the contracting office. A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed requirement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. No collect calls will be accepted. In order to receive an award, contractors must be registered and have valid certification in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and the Online Representations and Certifications Applications (ORCA). Reference: NCI-80091-NG on all correspondence. JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION: Part I: Background information and description of requirements: The Molecular Pathology Unit (MPU) is a CCR resource unit that has 2 key interrelated roles. The MPU develops, correlates and interprets novel protocols in molecular diagnostics and plays a role in developing applications in noninvasive medical imaging for animal models. The Unit also operates a PhD-granting research training program in comparative molecular pathology through a university- NCI graduate partnership program. Through its training program, the MPU both extends comparative pathology expertise provided by veterinarians to the CCR, and it conducts research, which serves as a source of research training experience for its GPP molecular pathologist trainees. The program’s vision includes pathologist as investigator and collaborator, vertically-integrated from basic discovery to translational research application. This disciplinary perspective and approach leverages pathology expertise within CCR. NCI’s Goal is to provide a digitally scanned archive which will contain digital images of all the specimens and include all data generated through use of it’s materials. To move ahead with this project it is necessary to purchase a proven digital slide scanner with database capable of searching images and data and one that has password security already in place. Furthermore, a high quality, proven digital slide scanner will provide essential links within the CCR, and with the Pathology Histology Laboratory (PHL), and our GPP University partners for interaction with organ systems and comparative pathology experts. Part II: Facts and Reasons to Justify Other than Full and Open Competition: Statutory Authority Statute: This justification has been prepared under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 253 (c)(1) as set forth in 13.106-1 (b)(2) and 13.501(a)(1). (b) Soliciting from a single source. (2) For sole source acquisitions of commercial items in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold conducted pursuant to subpart 13.5, the requirements at 13.501(a) apply. No other requirement and/or type for supply or service will satisfy agency need. Justification: The cited authority is being used to propose that Aperio Technologies, Inc. supply the required instrument. Specifications itemized below to fulfill the government’s requirements were determined in order to provide for an instrument capable of creating virtual microscopic image files for use and analysis within the existing research environment. Instrumentation is required that will be fully functional with pre-existing instruments located in other laboratories within the institution. The instrument must use similar technology and produce images to include image file management parameters that are equal to and fully compatible with existing instruments. The government has determined that, for the specific research applications in place, files created with image tiling technology are not suitable for use and analysis in its research. The Aperio digital slide scanner is already being used successfully in other NCI laboratories and has been proven to produce high resolution images. The database hierarchy structure provides the utility to investigators, collaborators within and outside the NIH. The database provides secure password protected access to be granted to specific folders, or data groups. It is fully searchable, incorporates barcoding necessary for high volume studies, and complimentary documents (reports, MRI scans, photos, etc.) can be scanned directly into and added to the database. This system provides for multi-user, multi-site digital slide conferencing enhancing the ability of true collaborative efforts. This system uniquely provides automated image analysis using positive pixel count and color deconvolution, and also creates images that can be exported for use with third party image analysis software. Specifications of instrumentation needed: To accommodate our digital slide scanning and corresponding database needs for both high throughput archival material and research material the following requirements must be met: 1.Imaging capabilities: a.The scanner must be capable of fully scanning both 1x3 and 2x3 slides b.The scanner must produce images with no discernible “stitching” artifacts c.The scanner must produce “high” quality images at 20x and 40x optical resolutions d.The scanner must produce images with an appropriate numeric aperture (at least 0.75) e.The scanner must be able to produce z-stack images f.The scanner must produce self contained images in an accepted ISO format 2.High throughput and ease of use: a.The scanner must be able to hold at lease 100 slides in a given processing batch b.The scanner must be able to scan an entire batch of slides without user intervention, including finding the appropriate tissue area's and full multi-point auto-focus c.Should the scanner fail to scan a given slide in a processing batch, the scanner must be able to recover and complete the remainder of the batch without user interventions d.The expected failure rate should be less then 5% e.The scanner should be able to scan and have ready for viewing an area of 1.5cmx1.5cm in less than 2 minutes f.Once a batch of slides has been scanned, the instrument must be capable of accessing the slides in a random access manner so that slides can be rescanned if needed 3.Image analysis requirements: a. The web viewing interface must be capable of displaying and manipulating images in all current major web browsers (EI, 6 and 7, Opera9, Firefox 2x and Safari) on Windows XP and Mac OSX b.Must be able to view multiple images simultaneously and link images for parallel viewing c. Image analysis capabilities must include at minimum the ability to analyze histological material for positive and negative staining areas as well as the ability to divide the image into three separate color channels to allow visualization of superimposed staining areas d. Image analysis must be able to be performed on the image server and be initiated by a remote user e.Image analysis must be able to be initiated in a batch analysis fashion by a remote user f.Analysis results must be able to be exported for an entire project or batch in a group fashion by a remote user g.Digital slide conferencing allowing for multi-site, multi-users, “live” viewing and annotation 4.Database requirements: a. The system must be able to store all its annotations on an external database with a published schema such that the database may be read from an outside application b.New images must be able to be added to the server and cataloged into the database without the need of any operator intervention c.The database must be able to control individual access rights to images and data so that unauthorized access and changes are prevented d.The database must be able to organize and manage other image types ( such as standalone camera’s), documents, and data from other sources e.The database must be accessible through a web viewing interface in all current major web browsers (EI, 6 and 7, Opera9, Firefox 2x and Safari) on Windows XP and Mac OSX f.The instrumentation must come with a full database management system with the minimum capability to : a)Organize images into a hierarchy system according to our specific classifications b)Handle multiple users with multiple user permissions based on passwords c)Produce custom pathology reports d)Decode barcodes including 2D datamatrix and 1D 2-of-5
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