MOD | D | RECOVERY - Algorithms, Adapters & Data Distribution Outreach 2010: Increasing the Impact of the Insight Toolkit (ITK)

FBO DAILY ISSUE OF APRIL 24, 2010 FBO #3073
MODIFICATION

D -- RECOVERY - Algorithms, Adapters & Data Distribution Outreach 2010: Increasing the Impact of the Insight Toolkit (ITK)

Notice Date: 4/22/2010
Notice Type: Modification/Amendment
NAICS: 541990 — All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
Contracting Office: Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine, 6707 Democracy Blvd., Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland, 20894, United States
ZIP Code: 20894
Solicitation Number: 10-107-CYC
Archive Date: 5/19/2010
Point of Contact: Cara Y Calimano, Phone: 301 496-6127
E-Mail Address: CalimaC@mail.nlm.nih.gov
(CalimaC@mail.nlm.nih.gov)
Small Business Set-Aside: N/A
Description: This modification is issued to extend the response time as follows: Due to extenuating circumstances arising from interrupted air travel caused by a volcanic eruption, we are providing a brief extension for the responses to the ITK-A2D2-2010 requirement. However, cover pages for the proposals remain due by the stated deadline in order to serve as a letter of intent to submit a proposal. A cover sheet must be submitted by the current deadline of April 30, 2010 for each proposal in order for that proposal to be considered. The instructions for submission state that a cover page for each proposal is required. The cover page is not part of the 5-page limit for the technical proposal. The cover page should include the following information: 1. Title for the Proposal 2. Name of the Offering Institution 3. Name of the Prinicipal Investigator 4. Expected cost (include direct and indirect/overhead costs) for the proposed work. 5. Short description or abstract of the proposed work (150 word limit) 6. Address of the Offering Institution (including e-mail, fax, phone, and surface-mail address). 7. List of all named personnel/investigators in the proposal along with their affiliations Electronic copies of the cover pages remain due by no later than 12noon EDT on April 30, 2010. All cover pages are to be submitted via email to Cara Calimano, Contract Specialist, Email: cc436e@nih.gov with electronic copies to Terry Yoo, Project Officer, Email: tyoo@mail.nih.gov, and Michael J. Ackerman, Alternate Project Officer, Email: ackerman@nlm.nih.gov. Electronic copies of the technical proposal are now due Tuesday, May 4, 2010, by 12noon EDT. In addition to the official electronic submission, two printed copies of the technical proposal are required. These printed hard copies should be printed, 3-hole punched, and submitted in binders. The official deadline for printed hard copy submissions has been extended to the close of business, Thursday May 6, 2010. Electronic copies of submissions should be sent via e-mail to the contracting specialist, Cara Calimano, at calimac@mail.nlm.nih.gov with electronic copies to Terry Yoo, Project Officer, Email: tyoo@mail.nih.gov, and Michael J. Ackerman, Alternate Project Officer, Email: ackerman@nlm.nih.gov. The submission may be split into multiple e-mails to accommodate e-mail servers. At the completion of the submission of responses to the RFQ, even if only a single e-mail is transmitted, an additional confirmation text-only e-mail should be transmitted, communicating that a complete submission has been sent and detailing the contents of each file and how many separate e-mail files should be expected. Paper copies may be submitted in writing to the National Library of Medicine, Office of Acquisitions Management, 6707 Democracy Blvd., Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland 20894, Attention: Cara Calimano, Contracting Specialist. All other information remains unchanged. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This project is funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) and is subject to the reporting requirements of the act. This is a combined synopsis/solicitation. This acquisition will be conducted under the procedures for acquiring commercial items authorized in FAR Part 12 and under the authority to use simplified acquisition procedures for commercial requirements provided in FAR 13.5. This announcement constitutes the formal Request for Quotation (RFQ) and a separate written solicitation WILL NOT be issued. The solicitation number is RFQ No. NLM-10-107-CYC. This acquisition is not a small business set-aside and the NAICS Code is 541990. Project Purpose In order to continue to provide leadership within the national research community in the area of software development for image analysis, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) is currently revising and updating its open-source image processing application programmers interface (API), known as the Insight Toolkit (ITK). NLM has determined that it is time to revisit the foundations of the toolkit to assure its viability for the next ten years. In the intervening decade since the original design of ITK, computing technologies have made radical advances including the advent of multi-core microprocessors, 64-bit CPU architectures, and a proliferation of graphics processing units (GPUs) capable of general purpose computing. NLM is in the process of funding a major new software release, ITK version 4.0 (ITK-v4), which will take advantage of these emerging computing technologies. We propose a new outreach effort to broaden the user community and deepen the impact of ITK. The objective of this program is to evaluate and demonstrate the effectiveness of revisions and improvements planned for ITK-v4. The emphasis of this new effort will be testing the software framework, broadening application development efforts, and data sharing to promote open science. Awardees under this program will contribute to the redesign process by supplying user requirements during the planning of the revision effort as well as evaluating the new version, ITK-v4, through their proposed projects. Individual ITK development projects under this procurement should not exceed $150,000 in cost nor surpass 1 year in duration. A. Background In 1999, the NLM Office of High Performance Computing and Communications awarded multiple contracts for the formation of a software development consortium to create and develop an application programmer interface (API) and first implementation of a segmentation and registration toolkit, subsequently named the Insight Toolkit (ITK). The original awards included six contractors: GE Global Research, Insightful, Inc., Kitware, Inc., the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Tennessee. The six contractors were partnered with five subcontractors: Harvard University Medical School, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, Columbia University, and the University of Utah. The period of performance for the original ITK awards began in 1999 and ended in 2003. The resulting system was originally intended for computer-assisted exploration of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) Visible Human (VHP) Male and Female data sets. The final deliverable for this group was an open-source software library concentrating on segmentation and registration algorithms, directly released to the public that now helps support research worldwide in image analysis and in other domains. In 2002 and later in 2004, NLM funded outreach efforts known as the program for "ITK Algorithms, Adapters, and Data Distribution" (ITK-A2D2). These programs promoted ITK, tested the ITK API, evaluated the coverage of the algorithm collection, and explored the versatility of the software architecture. In the past, twenty separate awards were made including funding for: Kitware, Inc. Ken Martin, P.I. Application of Segmentation and Registration Techniques to Volume Visualization Georgetown Univ., Kevin Cleary, P.I. Integrating ITK Segmentation Components into an Existing Software Application for RF Ablation Treatment Planning Mayo Clinic, Rich Robb, P.I. Interface for Direct and Seamless Use of ITK with Analyze and AVW Cognita, Corp., Dan Fritsch, P.I. Integrating the SNAP (Snake Automatic Partitioning) Segmentation Tool with the NLM Insight Toolkit Imperial College of London, Derek Hill, P.I. 2D-3D Registration Software for X-ray-to-CT Alignment to the Visible Human Insight Toolkit Univ. of Iowa, Vincent Magnotta, P.I. Images, Landmarks, and ROIs Univ. of Utah, Yarden Livnat, P.I. Software Design and Development for Integration of the Insight Toolkit and the SCIRun Problem Solving Environment Insightful, Inc., Lydia Ng, P.I. Shape-based Level Set Segmentation Univ. of Pittsburgh, George Stetten, P.I. Real Time 3D Echocardiographic Data with Semi-Automated Boundary Tracking Algorithms Harvard BWH Surgical Planning Laboratory, C.F. Westin, P.I. Vascular Segmentation Using Level Sets for Image Guided Therapy Kitware, Inc., W. Schroeder, P.I. 3D Widgets for Segmentation and Registration Univ. of Pennsylvania, Jim Gee, P.I. ITK Surface-based Analysis and Normalization Environment Univ. of Pennsylvania, Jim Gee, P.I. Graph-Based Methods of Energy Minimization in ITK Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Stephen Aylward, P.I. Neural Networks and Clustering Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Stephen Aylward, P.I. DICOM and Digital Libraries for Data Archiving Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Stephen Aylward, P.I. BatchMake and Validation Dashboards Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Stephen Aylward, P.I. Insight Software Consortium Georgetown Univ., Kevin Wong, P.I. ITK Implementation of Deformable Registration Methods for Time-Varying (4D) Imaging Data Georgetown Univ., Kevin Cleary, P.I. Tumor Volume Measurement and Volume Measurement Comparison Plug-in for ITK Kitware, Inc., Bill Hoffman P.I. The Insight Journal: an Open Access Repository for Technical Papers related to the Insight Toolkit (ITK) Open-source initiatives such as ITK help to lower the barriers to entry in complex research fields by providing the foundations of the software infrastructure necessary to conduct advanced investigations. Revising ITK is considered a contribution to the nation's infrastructure through software. Careful thought has been placed on the cultivation and maintenance of this software, assuring developers that the software will remain supported with new releases, bug fixes, and continuing growth. B. A general description of the required objectives and desired results The Insight Toolkit (ITK) is currently available with the release, ITK version 3.16, announced in September 2009 (see the URL: http://www.itk.org). NLM is funding a major revision, ITK-v4, and we are seeking to exercise the new version through a series of 1-year awards to both broaden the user base and evaluate how the new software version performs. The current funded effort for revising ITK (ITK-v4) will concentrate on four (4) areas: 1. Revise ITK - revise and restructure the toolkit with the intention of providing better organization, testing, and documentation. 2. Accelerate ITK - provide abstractions and infrastructure support to leverage emerging computing technologies and prepare the toolkit for use in the next decade. 3. Simplify ITK - ease the use of ITK through additional language bindings, better wrapping facilities, and possibly through restructuring of the software architecture. 4. Support for DICOM in ITK - update and revise DICOM facilities within ITK. In order to help provide user requirement information during the redesign of ITK and to provide real working tests for the new version, NLM is seeking proposals for: (A) algorithm validation, data collection, and data processing (with a focus on time-varying data applications such as longitudinal data collections on chronic, degenerative diseases) as well as tools for managing public data collections. The validation data component will emphasize the assembling of test data, including implementation of existing statistical methods and generation of ground truth segmentations or collections that capture human variation, provided that all examples, data, and software tools are compatible with the existing ITK software base. AND/OR (B) contract programming that extends ITK through incorporating additional algorithm families not already represented in ITK or projects that incorporate ITK into software and hardware systems in support of clinical or medical research applications (with an emphasis on multidisciplinary, practical applications not yet coverd by ITK such as microscopic image analysis, ultrasonography, video processing, and other topics). AND/OR (C) contract programming to overhaul and upgrade some valuable or necessary existing applications, examples, or algorithm family within ITK with the express purpose of improving compile and performance testing, enabling streaming for large data, out-of-core computing, promoting thread safety and encouraging multithreaded programming, and leveraging ITK hardware acceleration techniques arising from the new revision. Some example concepts for this work include incorporating ITK with: • Algorithms or families of methods not currently represented in ITK • Haptic or graphical visualization and segmentation assistance using ITK • A dashboard for 3D tumor evaluation, comparison, and validation (for example, a regression testing system for comparing ITK algorithms against manual tumor evaluations) providing regression testing and comparison of publicly submitted algorithms • Multiscale genome to physiological expression segmentation and visualization with ITK support. • Large data, out-of-core data processing applications including image analysis for microscopy • An image analysis framework for comparing algorithm performance which might include measure computer-aided diagnosis tools or biomarker evaluation through ROC analysis • Fast interaction techniques for low-latency visualization and segmentation navigation with ITK • Inner and middle ear modeling and segmentation including mechanical and electro-physiology simulation • Public data storage and deposition libraries and their supporting tools and infrastructure • Heart modeling • Tools for interpolating development and growth using time-varying data • A tumor volume measurement workstation with ITK plug-in capabilities • ITK supportable software for creating PACS research archives with automatic scrubbing and de-identification of patient information across PACS vendors. This is a list of example projects that might be covered under this acquisition. The list is not exhaustive nor does it cover all areas of interest. Multiple awards are expected, and a single group or offeror may receive more than one award for separate and discrete software development proposals. Individual projects are limited to one year in duration and a maximum of $150,000. All deliverables will be released under the existing ITK license as public, open-source software, and so all deliverables must be free from encumbering licenses or restrictions. The funding for this requirement will be made available under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) and all qualification criteria that arise from the use of ARRA funding apply to this requirement. NLM intends to make multiple awards to address these issues. NLM expects the final team to make approximately ten (10) separate awards. The period of performance for these awards is one (1) year. C. A detailed description of the technical requirements. Integration is considered the key to success for both this contract action as well as the success of the ITK toolkit in general. All offerors should be prepared to work closely with other NLM contractors and with the existing Insight software community. All software deliverables will be checked-in to the current source code control system and vetted through the style checker and regression testing dashboards currently in place. All deliverables will reside in the public domain (either through controlled Internet distribution from the NLM or through a third party electronic publisher), including all source code. As with the VHP data, controlled access to the source code and image processing tools will be through the issuance of no-cost licenses. The licenses are required solely to allow NLM to track the use, distribution, and proliferation of VHP program products. The eventual software developers will be held to high software standards, and extensive documentation for the software tools (including tutorials, manuals, and examples) are required. To meet the fairly rigorous demands of this collaborative software development project, in the case of algorithm-contributing contractors and software interface developing contractors, NLM is applying the following technical requirements: • Strong knowledge of C++ object-oriented programming. • Demonstrated experience with existing software either being ported to ITK or being adapted through a system interface. • Commitment to all software and documentation developed under these contracts being made available as open-source material. All software will be released according to the licensing agreements that apply to ITK. • Commitment to developing software or data collections under this contract under the style rules and architectural design of the Insight Toolkit. The NLM encourages relationships between industry and academia in this development process. A FTE commitment for programming staff from each of the parties in the consortium is essential. Since public distribution of all data and software is a fundamental principle of this project, in the case of data-contributing contractors, NLM requires that the contractor demonstrate, through the text of the proposal, a knowledge and understanding of the issues in distributing medical data including: the use of patient release forms for long-term authorization of data distribution; the scrubbing of metadata to protect patient privacy; and the reformatting of datasets to comply with standard forms of data files for use in medical software applications. D. Subordinate tasks or types of work. 1. Attend a contractor meeting. The contract PI is required to attend and may bring such support staff as needed to participate in a technical software engineering and development discussion. This meeting will take place from June 28, 2010 until June 30, 2010 at the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, Maryland. 2. Develop or modify software for use with ITK exhibiting practical clinical applications of the software or its derivative software engineering tools. Particular emphasis will be placed on clinical relevance or biomedical research, multiscale/multidisciplinary applications, and practical exploration of the uses of ITK. OR Contribute a dataset or data collection to the ITK distribution system that will enhance or improve the ITK offering by supplementing the software with test data for evaluating, validating, and improving algorithm development. The NLM is placing an emphasis on multiscale, multidisciplinary data (such as sensor data that augments volumetric images) as well as time-varying data from longitudinal studies for clinical trials on chronic degenerative diseases or developmental data associated with neural tract imaging and child development. Another area of interest for NLM is a collection of human datasets that demonstrate normal variation across populations 3. If providing software not currently in ITK into the Insight Toolkit software base, the successful award winner must also demonstrate the efficacy of the deliverable by contributing a validation test to ITK. This test should measure how well the software performs its designated tasks and demonstrates the software working with multiple computing platforms. Contractors will contribute all test data and testing and validation software to ITK. OR If contributing datasets or data collections, the successful award winner must take all measures necessary to protect patient privacy and to reformat the data as necessary to comply with the requirements for data distribution under the Visible Human Project. 4. Move the developed code or contributed data to a public repository and assure its placement in the public domain. 5. Contribute documentation, tutorial materials, and courseware. 6. Develop examples of proposed algorithms in ITK or provide renderings of all contributed data. 7. Perform all software and documentation development under the style guidelines and architectural rules of the Insight Toolkit. E. Quality Control. In keeping with the practices for the development of the current Insight Toolkit, all software deliverables will be required to pass through the ITK dashboard, the open-source system for regression testing and quality control. No deliverables will be considered acceptable without checking in the software to the source code repository, and cleared through the dashboard regression testing process. All software, including examples, must be accompanied by software tests, both run-time and regression test, suitable for implementation in the dashboard system. All deliverables must pass their own tests as well as not break other tests in the toolkit. Data deliverables will be checked to make sure that appropriate measures have been taken to protect patient privacy or that necessary releases have been secured in order to distribute the data. Coding style will be checked as a part of the testing process. NLM will create a software editorial committee. Representatives from each of the contracted programming teams will comprise the editorial committee. If an offeror submits a deliverable, the representative from that team will be recused from the editorial evaluation of the deliverable. The remaining committee members will review the deliverable, the software style, documentation, completeness, comprehensiveness and coverage of the software tests, and the correctness of the implementation. Approval of the editorial committee will be required before receiving can be entered for any software deliverable. F. Reporting Requirements. Progress reports will be requested quarterly, and electronic copies of slides, handouts, or documentation will serve as quarterly reports. Weekly teleconferences, videoconferences, or virtual conferences will be held to provide continuing communication among the project team. Attendance at these weekly meetings is highly recommended. Software deliverables will be checked-in to a source code repository and testing of deliverables will be covered in an automatic build and regression testing environment. H. Period of Performance. The period of performance for this requirement is one (1) year. I. Deliverables. All deliverables will reside in the public domain (either through controlled Internet distribution from the NLM or through a third party electronic publisher), including all source code. The NLM will use the Visible Human Project rights and data clause with this requirement, claiming ownership of all data and software generated under this requirement, including all source code. NLM intends to place the ITK license on all software and release it in the public domain. The eventual software developers will be held to high software standards, and extensive documentation for the software tools (including tutorials, manuals, and examples) are required. All deliverables will be checked-in to a source code repository. There will be one attendance deliverable. The contract PI is required to attend and may bring such support staff as needed to participate in a technical software engineering and development discussion. This meeting will take place from June 28, 2010 until June 30, 2010 at the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, Maryland. J. Technical Evaluations. Peer review of the proposals will be accomplished by a Technical Evaluation Group (TEG) in compliance with NIH policy and procedure. The technical evaluation criteria to be applied follow. Subcategories of each evaluation criteria carry equal weight. (Total Possible Points - 100) 1. Understanding the Requirement and Technical Approach (scientific, technical, or analytical approach to achieve project objectives, including a demonstrated understanding of potential problems. (35 Points) The proposal must demonstrate a thorough understanding of the requirements of the Statement of Objectives and Research Requirements and describes an approach that will demonstrate the achievement of timely and acceptable performance. The proposal presents a comprehensive statement of the problem, scope, and purpose of the project to demonstrate an understanding of the requirements from a management and technical standpoint. The proposal should describe: (1) a pre-existing algorithm or set of algorithms to be added to ITK; OR (2) a collection of relevant data and the analysis of that data to be added to the test and validation collection in ITK; OR (3) documented development of a software system such as software for medical visualization, simulation, treatment planning, computer-aided diagnosis, or microscopic image analysis. The proposal should describe how ITK and the software system should be integrated. Specifically the proposal must demonstrate: (a) Relevance of the proposed application area to the specific areas of interest outlined in the Statement of Objectives and Research Requirements, including the emphasis of the solicitation on 3D (or higher dimensional) algorithms or data suitable for algorithm validation. (b) The importance of the proposed application area, that is, the potential for its use as part of the Visible Human Project Insight Toolkit. Importance will be judged on the contribution of the datasets, the algorithms, or system interfaces to the broadening of the community of ITK users. Classes of algorithms that are already represented in ITK will be scored lower than methods that are not currently covered by the toolkit. Importance of data collections will be evaluated on the breadth of the datasets proposed for distribution with ITK, the number of datasets and relevance of that data to the medical community. Comprehensive data collections will be preferred over single, unique, specialty datasets. Proposed system interfaces to software products will be evaluated on the perceived impact of ITK on that system, and the relative benefit to the Insight project. Interfacing ITK to software packages with established user communities will help (c) amplify the contribution of the Insight project among researchers in medical image analysis. Proposals should describe the expected impact of their contribution both to the intended user group, and the concomitant benefit to the Visible Human Project Insight Toolkit. (d) The demonstrated level of understanding of the image understanding issues and problems related to the proposed application as they pertain to the analysis and processing of medical images. (e) The demonstrated level of understanding of the software development issues and problems associated with distributed code development among a consortium of programming teams; OR a demonstrated level of understanding of the data distribution issues and problems associated with the dissemination of biomedical data including privacy protection, licensing, copyright protection, and patient consent. 2. Qualifications and Availability of Proposed Personnel (demonstrated evidence of the qualifications, experience, and availability of professional and technical personnel comprising the necessary project staff.)(40 Points) The proposal must demonstrate and document the relevant expertise, education, availability, and experience of the proposed personnel to be assigned and available for work under the project. Specifically, the proposal must demonstrate and document: (a) Background expertise - the extent to which the key personnel and the project team as a whole have access to the range of educational backgrounds in software engineering for revising open source software. (b) Experience - the extent to which the key personnel and the project team include significant experience and expertise in the design and implementation of C++ object oriented programming. Qualifications may include: 1) Demonstrated and documented experience with ITK in the form of software contributions, bug fixes, examples, tutorials, testing, or other to ITK. 2) Published papers in the Insight Journal 3) Documented experience in advanced applications incorporating ITK. 4) Experience in volume data collection and data analysis for clinical applications, biomedical research, and/or algorithm validation. 5) Published materials documenting research projects that demonstrate programming experience in biomedical image analysis or biomedical data visualization using object-oriented languages 6) Other published materials documenting research projects that demonstrate user interface development to ease the use of complex programming environments. (c) Knowledge of Application Domains - Implementing ITK requires more than just programming expertise, but also knowledge of key scientific or biomedical user domains necessary to meet the objectives of this requirement. Proposals may be evaluated on the extent to which the key personnel and the project team include significant experience and expertise in the specific fields required for the applications area proposed. Qualifications may include: i) Experience in High Performance Computing for routine volume data analysis, including methods such as: general purpose GPU programming, multi-core/many-core computing, or cluster/grid/cloud computing, especially using C++. ii) Experience in improving user accessibility of complex computing environments, multiple language binding, or technical writing including tutorials, primers, or other user-level documentation. iii) Experience in data-intensive image processing fields such as high-resolution 3D microscopy or DICOM programming. The staffing plan must map named personnel to technical objectives or tasks described in criterion 1 of this technical evaluation plan. 3. Institutional Experience/Commitment (Commitment to open-source software and open science: a clear understanding and support from the institution that all deliverables will be part of the Insight Toolkit, that all deliverables will be released in the public domain as open source software, that no limitations will be placed on the intellectual property associated with any deliverables, and that the final deliverables will be released under the ITK license)(15 Points) The proposal must demonstrate and document the degree of commitment of the various entities involved in the proposed software development process and the commitment to distributing the product code and related deliverables in source-code form under the ITK license. Support of this experience and commitment should be expressed through (a) documentation of previous releases of ITK software, (b) a letter of support from the offeror's Dean or Chief Operating Officer or similar official stating the offeror's commitment to releasing patent privileges and copyrights of work performed under this requirement to the public domain, and/or (c) the text of the copyright or license, documented or clearly cited for its source, used by the offeror in previous releases of open source software and/or public domain data. 4. Proposed Facilities and Equipment (availability and proposed utilization.)(10 Points) The contractor should have a demonstrated ongoing active research interest and an in-house program in clinical or biomedical information processing or the use of medical computing in health services research. This requirement is necessary to ensure the contractor has the established background and knowledge required to make practical advances in these complex areas of research. NLM wishes to establish relationships with institutions or organizations that have independent/complementary research interests to ensure continued development towards the eventual goal of comprehensive algorithm coverage in ITK. The contractor should also have access to members of the principal user groups for which ITK is intended (i.e., computer software designers and toolbuilders for health sciences practitioners, educators, health services researchers, biomedical researchers) who can be used to test the effectiveness of the structures and models developed. The proposal must describe the availability and proposed utilization of appropriate facilities and equipment required to successfully perform work in the proposed application area. This includes access to source data and validation instrumentation. 5. Past Performance Past performance - a past performance evaluation will be performed as part of the review (by the Project Officer/Contracting Officer's Technical Representative, NOT by the technical evaluation committee, so no points are indicated in the technical evaluation). The evaluation will be based on information obtained from references provided by the offeror as well as other relevant past performance information obtained from other sources known to the government. Evaluation of Past Performance should include previous experience with Grants and other assistance vehicles as well as with previous contracts. Grants and contracts arising from other agencies such as DARPA and NSF will likely be part of the histories and should be evaluated without prejudice. K. Submission of Technical Proposals. Proposals should not exceed five (5) pages, covering: (i) the purpose of the proposed work; (ii) the relationship and benefits of the project to the ITK effort; (iii) the advantages that the proposed work derives from ITK; (iv) how the proposed work differs from or relates to existing work in ITK and its related software; (v) the personnel and resources to be committed to the proposed work; and (vi) a budget for the work. Beyond the 5 pages of technical proposal, resumes of key investigators, reprints of relevant technical papers, and other supplemental materials can be provided outside the page limit. Reviewers are instructed that the 5-page technical proposal is required reading, and supplemental materials are available as part of the support documentation but not required. A single offeror or institution may submit multiple project proposals for different deliverables, providing each proposal is a separate and discrete software development project. Multiple awards are anticipated, and a single P.I. may receive more than one award. ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS The Technical Proposal for each response to the RFQ shall be limited to 5 pages, single-spaced, 12 point font with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right). Beyond the 5 pages of technical proposal, resumes of key investigators, reprints of relevant technical papers, and other supplemental materials can be provided outside the page limit. Reviewers are instructed that the 5-page technical proposal is required reading, and supplemental materials are available as part of the support documentation but not required. A cover page for the Technical Proposal is required. The cover page is not part of the 5-page limit for the technical proposal. The cover page should include the following information: 1. Title for the Proposal 2. Name of the Offering Institution 3. Name of the Prinicipal Investigator 4. Expected cost (include direct and indirect/overhead costs) for the proposed work. 5. Short description or abstract of the proposed work (150 word limit) 6. Address of the Offering Institution (including e-mail, fax, phone, and surface-mail address). 7. List of all named personnel/investigators in the proposal along with their affiliations Quotes sent in response to the RFQ must be valid for up to 180 days. Electronic copies of the technical proposal are due by the application deadline. In addition to the official electronic submission, two printed copies of the technical proposal are required. These printed hard copies should be printed, 3-hole punched, and submitted in binders. NLM anticipates an official deadline for electronic submission by noon (12:00 PM), Friday April 30, 2010, with an official deadline for printed hard copy submission by close of business, Tuesday May 4, 2010. Electronic copies of submissions should be sent via e-mail to the contracting specialist, Cara Calimano, at calimac@mail.nlm.nih.gov. The submission may be split into multiple e-mails to accommodate e-mail servers. At the completion of the submission of responses to the RFQ, even if only a single e-mail is transmitted, an additional confirmation text-only e-mail should be transmitted, communicating that a complete submission has been sent and detailing the contents of each file and how many separate e-mail files should be expected. Paper copies may be submitted in writing to the National Library of Medicine, Office of Acquisitions Management, 6707 Democracy Blvd., Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland 20894, Attention: Cara Calimano, Contracting Specialist. ADDITIONAL BUSINESS PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS The Business Proposal for each offer shall be limited to 10 pages, single spaced, 12 point font with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right). The Business Proposal should include a description of the offering firm or institution, its history, location, and the place of performance for the proposed work. Since some or all of the funding for this effort is being provided by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA), the majority of the proposed work must be completed in a place of performance within the United States. The Business Proposal should also describe any experience by the offering institution for software quality assurance, open-source software development and delivery, and policies regarding the distribution of intellectual property under open source licenses (specifically the use of a BSD-style license, familiarity with the licensing practices associated with ITK, or direct release of property to the public domain). Since regular attendance at quarterly design meetings is encouraged, offerors should be prepared to include a description of their travel budget and a justification for these costs. Quotes sent in response to the RFQ must be valid for up to 180 days. A cover page for the Business Proposal is required. The cover page is not part of the 10-page limit for the business proposal. The cover page should include the following information: 1. Title for the Proposal 2. Name of the Offering Institution 3. Name of the Prinicipal Investigator 4. Expected cost (include direct and indirect/overhead costs) for the proposed work. 5. Short description or abstract of the proposed work (150 word limit) 6. Address of the Offering Institution (including e-mail, fax, phone, and surface-mail address). 7. List of all named personnel/investigators in the proposal along with their affiliations Electronic copies of the business proposal are due by the application deadline. In addition to the official electronic submission, two printed copies of the technical proposal are required. These printed hard copies should be printed, 3-hole punched, and submitted in binders. NLM anticipates an official deadline for electronic submission by noon (12:00 PM), Friday April 30, 2010, with an official deadline for printed hard copy submission by close of business, Tuesday May 4, 2010. Electronic copies of submissions should be sent via e-mail to the Contracting Specialist, Cara Calimano, at calimac@mail.nlm.nih.gov. The submission may be split into multiple e-mails to accommodate e-mail servers. At the completion of the submission of responses to the RFQ, even if only a single e-mail is transmitted, an additional confirmation text-only e-mail should be transmitted, communicating that a complete submission has been sent and detailing the contents of each file and how many separate e-mail files should be expected. Paper copies may be submitted in writing to the National Library of Medicine, Office of Acquisitions Management, 6707 Democracy Blvd., Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland 20894, Attention: Cara Calimano, Contracting Specialist. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) Unique Reporting Requirements: FAR Clause 52.204-11, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--Reporting Requirements (March 2009) (a) Definitions. As used in this clause- Contract, as defined in FAR 2.101, means a mutually binding legal relationship obligating the seller to furnish the supplies or services (including construction) and the buyer to pay for them. It includes all types of commitments that obligate the Government to an expenditure of appropriated funds and that, except as otherwise authorized, are in writing. In addition to bilateral instruments, contracts include (but are not limited to) awards and notices of awards; job orders or task letters issued under basic ordering agreements; letter contracts; orders, such as purchase orders, under which the contract becomes effective by written acceptance or performance; and bilateral contract modifications. Contracts do not include grants and cooperative agreements covered by 31 U.S.C. 6301, et seq. For discussion of various types of contracts, see FAR Part 16. First-tier subcontract means a subcontract awarded directly by a Federal Government prime contractor whose contract is funded by the Recovery Act. Jobs created means an estimate of those new positions created and filled, or previously existing unfilled positions that are filled, as a result of funding by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). This definition covers only prime contractor positions established in the United States and outlying areas (see definition in FAR 2.101). The number shall be expressed as "full-time equivalent" (FTE), calculated cumulatively as all hours worked divided by the total number of hours in a full-time schedule, as defined by the contractor. For instance, two full-time employees and one part-time employee working half days would be reported as 2.5 FTE in each calendar quarter. Jobs retained means an estimate of those previously existing filled positions that are retained as a result of funding by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). This definition covers only prime contractor positions established in the United States and outlying areas (see definition in FAR 2.101). The number shall be expressed as "full-time equivalent" (FTE), calculated cumulatively as all hours worked divided by the total number of hours in a full-time schedule, as defined by the contractor. For instance, two full-time employees and one part-time employee working half days would be reported as 2.5 FTE in each calendar quarter. Total compensation means the cash and noncash dollar value earned by the executive during the contractor's past fiscal year of the following (for more information see 17 CFR 229.402(c)(2)): (1) Salary and bonus. (2) Awards of stock, stock options, and stock appreciation rights. Use the dollar amount recognized for financial statement reporting purposes with respect to the fiscal year in accordance with the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123 (Revised 2004) (FAS 123R), Shared Based Payments. (3) Earnings for services under non-equity incentive plans. Does not include group life, health, hospitalization or medical reimbursement plans that do not discriminate in favor of executives, and are available generally to all salaried employees. (4) Change in pension value. This is the change in present value of defined benefit and actuarial pension plans. (5) Above-market earnings on deferred compensation which is not tax-qualified. (6) Other compensation. For example, severance, termination payments, value of life insurance paid on behalf of the employee, perquisites or property if the value for the executive exceeds $10,000. (b) This contract requires the contractor to provide products and/or services that are funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). Section 1512(c) of the Recovery Act requires each contractor to report on its use of Recovery Act funds under this contract. These reports will be made available to the public. (c) Reports from contractors for all work funded, in whole or in part, by the Recovery Act, and for which an invoice is submitted prior to June 30, 2009, are due no later than July 10, 2009. Thereafter, reports shall be submitted no later than the 10th day after the end of each calendar quarter. (d) The Contractor shall report the following information, using the online reporting tool available at http://www.FederalReporting.gov. (1) The Government contract and order number, as applicable. (2) The amount of Recovery Act funds invoiced by the contractor for the reporting period. A cumulative amount from all the reports submitted for this action will be maintained by the government's on-line reporting tool. (3) A list of all significant services performed or supplies delivered, including construction, for which the contractor invoiced in this calendar quarter. (4) Program or project title, if any. (5) A description of the overall purpose and expected outcomes or results of the contract, including significant deliverables and, if appropriate, associated units of measure. (6) An assessment of the contractor's progress towards the completion of the overall purpose and expected outcomes or results of the contract (i.e., not started, less than 50 percent completed, completed 50 percent or more, or fully completed). This covers the contract (or portion thereof) funded by the Recovery Act. (7) A narrative description of the employment impact of work funded by the Recovery Act. This narrative should be cumulative for each calendar quarter and only address the impact on the contractor's workforce. At a minimum, the contractor shall provide- (i) A brief description of the types of jobs created and jobs retained in the United States and outlying areas (see definition in FAR 2.101). This description may rely on job titles, broader labor categories, or the contractor's existing practice for describing jobs as long as the terms used are widely understood and describe the general nature of the work; and (ii) An estimate of the number of jobs created and jobs retained by the prime contractor, in the United States and outlying areas. A job cannot be reported as both created and retained. (8) Names and total compensation of each of the five most highly compensated officers of the Contractor for the calendar year in which the contract is awarded if-- (i) In the Contractor's preceding fiscal year, the Contractor received- (A) 80 percent or more of its annual gross revenues from Federal contracts (and subcontracts), loans, grants (and subgrants) and cooperative agreements; and (B) $25,000,000 or more in annual gross revenues from Federal contracts (and subcontracts), loans, grants (and subgrants) and cooperative agreements; and (ii) The public does not have access to information about the compensation of the senior executives through periodic reports filed under section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m(a), 78o(d)) or section 6104 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. (9) For subcontracts valued at less than $25,000 or any subcontracts awarded to an individual, or subcontracts awarded to a subcontractor that in the previous tax year had gross income under $300,000, the Contractor shall only report the aggregate number of such first tier subcontracts awarded in the quarter and their aggregate total dollar amount. (10) For any first-tier subcontract funded in whole or in part under the Recovery Act, that is over $25,000 and not subject to reporting under paragraph 9, the contractor shall require the subcontractor to provide the information described in (i), (ix), (x), and (xi) below to the contractor for the purposes of the quarterly report. The contractor shall advise the subcontractor that the information will be made available to the public as required by section 1512 of the Recovery Act. The contractor shall provide detailed information on these first-tier subcontracts as follows: (i) Unique identifier (DUNS Number) for the subcontractor receiving the award and for the subcontractor's parent company, if the subcontractor has a parent company. (ii) Name of the subcontractor. (iii) Amount of the subcontract award. (iv) Date of the subcontract award. (v) The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code. (vi) Funding agency. (vii) A description of the products or services (including construction) being provided under the subcontract, including the overall purpose and expected outcomes or results of the subcontract. (viii) Subcontract number (the contract number assigned by the prime contractor). (ix) Subcontractor's physical address including street address, city, state, and country. Also include the nine-digit zip code and congressional district if applicable. (x) Subcontract primary performance location including street address, city, state, and country. Also include the nine-digit zip code and congressional district if applicable. (xi) Names and total compensation of each of the subcontractor's five most highly compensated officers, for the calendar year in which the subcontract is awarded if-- (A) In the subcontractor's preceding fiscal year, the subcontractor received-- (1) 80 percent or more of its annual gross revenues in Federal contracts (and subcontracts), loans, grants (and subgrants), and cooperative agreements; and (2) $25,000,000 or more in annual gross revenues from Federal contracts (and subcontracts), loans, grants (and subgrants), and cooperative agreements; and (B) The public does not have access to information about the compensation of the senior executives through periodic reports filed under section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m(a), 78o(d)) or section 6104 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The following FAR provisions and clauses sited herein are also incorporated by reference into this solicitation. Full text of clauses and provisions are available at Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR): http://ww.arnet.gov/far/. 52.203-15 Whistleblower Protections Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. All Contractors which are awarded ARRA funding must be in compliance with the reporting requirements of 52.204-11, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act-Reporting Requirements. If the contractor fails to comply with the reporting requirements, the contracting officer shall exercise appropriate contractual remedies. The contracting officer shall make the contractor's failure to comply with the reporting requirements a part of the Contractor's performance information under Subpart 42.15. OFFERS NLM anticipates an official deadline for electronic submission by noon (12:00 PM), Friday April 30, 2010, with an official deadline for printed hard copy submission by close of business, Tuesday May 4, 2010. Electronic copies of submissions should be sent via e-mail to the contracting specialist, Cara Calimano, at calimac@mail.nlm.nih.gov. The submission may be split into multiple e-mails to accommodate e-mail servers. All questions regarding the combined synopsis/solicitation must be received by Wednesday April 14, 2010. Please reference the solicitation number "NLM-10-107-CYC" on your proposal and/or inquiries. Facsimile submissions are not authorized and collect calls with NOT be accepted. At the completion of the submission of responses to the RFQ, even if only a single e-mail is transmitted, an additional confirmation text-only e-mail should be transmitted, communicating that a complete submission has been sent and detailing the contents of each file and how many separate e-mail files should be expected. Paper copies may be submitted in writing to the National Library of Medicine, Office of Acquisitions Management, 6707 Democracy Blvd., Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland 20894, Attention: Cara Calimano, Contracting Specialist.
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Place of Performance: Address: 6707 Democracy Blvd. Suite 105, Bethesda, Maryland, 20878, United States; Zip Code: 20878
Record: SN02129707-W 20100424/100422235053-3d350b1f8144327ac0df021dd6d637e4 (fbodaily.com)
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