SOLICITATION NOTICE
R -- Support In The Design and Fabrication of Encasement for the Rubenstein Magna Carta
- Notice Date
- 7/14/2010
- Notice Type
- Combined Synopsis/Solicitation
- NAICS
- 541690
— Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Acquisition Management Division, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 301, Room B129, Mail Stop 1640, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899-1640
- ZIP Code
- 20899-1640
- Solicitation Number
- SB1341-10-RQ-0560
- Archive Date
- 8/6/2010
- Point of Contact
- Cheryl A. Coxen, Phone: 301-975-8838
- E-Mail Address
-
cheryl.coxen@nist.gov
(cheryl.coxen@nist.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- THIS IS A COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS PREPARED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FORMAT IN FAR SUBPART 12.6-STREAMLINED PROCEDURES FOR EVALUATION AND SOLICITATION FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS-AS SUPPLEMENTED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THIS NOTICE. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONSTITUTES THE ONLY SOLICITATION; QUOTATIONS ARE BEING REQUESTED, AND A WRITTEN SOLICITATION DOCUMENT WILL NOT BE ISSUED. ***This solicitation is being issued using Simplified Acquisition Procedures.*** ***This solicitation is a Request for Quotation (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-44.*** *** The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 541690 with a small business size standard of $7M. This requirement is a 100% Small Business Set-Aside.*** *** The National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking to purchase contractor support services to assist the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the design and fabrication of an encasement for the Rubenstein Magna Carta in accordance with the statement of work described below*** **** Statement of Work for Support for Protecting the Magna Carta 1.Background The Magna Carta of October 12, 1297 was issued in the name of King Edward I of England. The document is in Latin, written in brown ink on parchment in 68 lines of text. A large fragment of the Great Seal of the King of England hangs from a doubled strip of parchment laced through a slit in the fold over at the bottom of the parchment sheet. The document has repairs in several places along the horizontal folds and partial to complete loss of some text in small areas. The Magna Carta text is written on the recto of the parchment document. There are minimal annotations on the reverse. The document proper is ca. 15 inches wide by 18 inches high. A pendant wax seal is suspended on a strip of parchment from the bottom of the document. With seal and strip the total length of the document is approximately 27 inches. After purchase in Great Britain, this Magna Carta came to the United States in 1983. The only copy of the Magna Carta in the Americas, it has been on display at the National Archives Building for many of the years since 1983. Mr. David Rubenstein bought it at auction in December 2007. Mr. Rubenstein and the National Archives signed a loan agreement in 2008 returning the document to display at the National Archives. In accordance with the agreement the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) provides for the care and preservation of the Magna Carta while on exhibition at the National Archives. Work is underway to develop an agreement concerning a new encasement and display case for the Magna Carta, which will be the centerpiece of a new exhibit planned to showcase the Magna Carta. A new encasement for the Rubenstein Magna Carta will provide the primary preservation protection for the document. A separate display case will provide physical security and other controls, and also will impact the preservation environment that will govern the encasement interior to which the document will be exposed. The document will be stationary within its display case. Lighting will be exterior to the encasement proper. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently designed and fabricated argon-filled encasements for high-profile documents for the Library of Congress’ Waldseemüller Map and NARA’s Charters of Freedom. This experience will be applied to the Magna Carta encasement. 2.Parties The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an independent establishment in the executive branch of the United States Government. NARA’s mission is to ensure, for the Citizen and the Public Servant, for the President and the Congress and the Courts, ready access to essential evidence. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is a non-regulatory federal agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce. NIST's mission is to promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life. 3.Scope of Work The contractor shall assist the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the design, assembly, testing, gas fill, and documentation of a new encasement for the Rubenstein Magna Carta. The primary design objective is to maintain a properly humidified anoxic (not to exceed 0.5% oxygen) environment for 10 years. The encasement body shall employ the aluminum solid-block design used for the Charters and Waldseemueller encasement, a glass top, twin seals between the glass and the encasement body with an intermediate helium-leak-detection space, and plumbing and instrumentation mounted on the outside wall of the encasement. The seal between the glass and the encasement body shall be elastomer O-rings. All plumbing shall be welded stainless steel and metallic seals. A pressure relief valve shall not be included in the encasement, but the gas inlet pressure during the gas flush shall be restricted to 12 mbar or less above ambient atmosphere. 4.Specific Task Requirements The Contractor shall provide all support for project oversight, equipment and technical execution of this contract. The Contractor is responsible for maintaining accurate records of project activities. The Contractor shall: a.Encasement Design: Cooperate with the NIST design team to develop and test an improved clamping mechanism for the seal between the glass and the encasement body, and insure that the encasement design is compatible with the placement of plumbing, instrumentation, leak detection ports and the gas-flow requirements for the inert gas fill. Sketches with critical dimensions for plumbing and test fixtures shall be submitted to and discussed with the NIST design team, and used by NIST to generate proper shop drawings when needed (whether for fabrication or documentation purposes). b.Instrument Selection: Provide for the NIST Technical Information Contact’s (TIC’s) approval suggested instrumentation specifications, including specific models and cost. NARA is expected to evaluate archival compatibility of all sensors. Instrumentation for attachment to the encasement will include sensors for humidity, temperature, oxygen, and pressure. These instruments shall include self-contained electronics and visual displays. After the TIC’s approval, full specification, cost and contact information shall be provided for NIST procurement use. c.Gas Handling System: Design plumbing that accommodates the approved instrumentation, allows for inert-gas fill, and maintains a leak rate that will not compromise the anoxic lifetime. Provide a list of components with part numbers and cost for purchase by NIST. Provide sketches of modifications and purpose-built parts for NIST fabrication and welding. Clean and leak test components, assemble and leak test final assemblies. The Contractor shall ensure that purchased materials shall meet the following requirements: •The valves used with the Charters encasements are clean and have proven high reliability. •A sample of each of these two valves shall be helium leak tested to determine long-term leak rates using a NIST-fabricated test fixture and either a NIST or NARA helium leak detector. d.Encasement Assembly and Testing: In collaboration with NIST, assemble and test the completed encasement prior to delivery to NARA. The plumbing and its attachments to the encasement body will have been leak tested prior to assembly of the glass. The seal between the glass and the body will be helium leak tested after assembly. Pressure test the assembled, but empty, encasement to the limits determined by the prescribed range of ambient temperatures and pressures (-130 mbar to 170 mbar, assuming initial gas fill at 23oC and 1000 mbar). The helium leak rate through the seal will be monitored throughout this test. Note that no helium leak test of the entire fully-assembled encasement is proposed. The solid-block construction proposed for the Magna Carta has proven to be highly reliable (Charters and Waldseemueller encasements) and the substantial expense of a fully-assembled encasement helium leak test does not appear to be warranted. e.Encasement Sealing and Flushing In collaboration with NARA and NIST, assemble the encasement with document in place, helium leak test the glass seal and flush the encasement with humidified argon, using the NARA helium leak detector, Licor humidifier, argon flow controllers, high-purity argon, pressure regulator, water U-tube, chilled-mirror hygrometer, and associated stainless-steel hose, fittings, and valves. During the flush the encasement exhaust gas shall be monitored with the onboard oxygen sensor and the external chilled-mirror hygrometer. The water U-tube shall be used to limit the input pressure to the encasement to 12 mbar or 0.2 psi, less than one tenth of the previously tested pressure limits of the encasement. f.Encasement Monitoring and Documentation Collaborate with NARA to analyze monitoring data for six months following final seal of the encasement. Prepare a document with details of the installed plumbing and instrumentation and data analysis procedures. Prepare a user guide for the gas flush apparatus and the oxygen monitoring of the exhaust gas.   5.Deliverables and Deliverable Due Dates The contractor shall provide the following deliverables: a.Encasement design as CAD drawings is due no later than ten (10) months after award of this requirement. b.Instrumentation specifications, specific model, and cost are due no later than ten (10) months after award of this requirement. c.Gas Handling System design is due no later than 18 months after award of this requirement. d.The Encasement system shall be assembled and verified to comply with the performance standards in this statement of work no later than 20 months after award of this requirement. Submit six (6) months of monitoring data, test report and user guide for the gas flush apparatus and the oxygen monitoring of the exhaust gas no later than 9 months after award of this requirement. Standards for Acceptance of Deliverables: The Technical Information Contact (TIC) will provide comments on each deliverable within 30 calendars days from receipt of a given deliverable. The contractor shall make any needed changes to the deliverables within 15 calendar days from receipt of electronic or written comments from the TIC. 6.Period and Place of Performance The period of performance shall be 23 months after award of this requirement. Performance will be on site at NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD campus. Work shall be performed between the hours of 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM on normal workdays to enable face-to-face technical interactions with the COTR and other key NIST staff. Facility/Building/Campus Closures: During anticipated closure of the NIST Campus due to declared training holidays, administrative leave granted to the entire government staff, or other closure, contract employees may not be required to perform services, unless specifically scheduled. In the event of unplanned closure of the facility due to natural disasters, emergency, or severe weather, contract workers who are scheduled to work, shall not report to work unless notified differently by the COTR. Federal Holidays: The contract employee will not be paid on federal holidays unless contract employee is scheduled to work on a holiday and will be paid for hours worked at the hourly rate established in the contract. Holidays: The following is a list of legal federal holidays as referred to elsewhere in the contract. Contract employees may be required to work on legal holidays as determined by the COTR or OU Division Chief. •New Year’s Day, January 1st •Martin Luther King’s Birthday, 3rd Monday in January •President’s Day, 3rd Monday in February •Memorial Day, Last Monday in May •Independence Day, July 4th •Labor Day, 1st Monday in September •Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October •Veteran’s Day, November 11th •Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November •Christmas Day, December 25th 7.Government Furnished Property, Data and Information All property, data and information provided by the Government in the performance of this task remains the property of the Government and shall be surrendered to the government upon completion or termination of this requirement. Likewise, all deliverables generated under this requirement remain the property of the Government. The Government will not provide any property during the performance of this requirement. 8.Risk Assessment The HSPD-12 Security Risk Level assigned to this contract is low risk. 9.Payment Schedule The Contractor may invoice the Government upon receipt from the TIC that a given deliverable is of acceptable quality and that all other assigned tasks are up to date. 10.Contractor Qualifications Key Personnel - The Contractor shall have at least a Bachelor’s degree or higher in Physics. The Contractor shall also have at least five years of specialized experience and expertise in ultra high vacuum technology, vacuum and pressure measurements, precision instrumentation, gas leak measurements, and anoixc encasement development and monitoring. 11.General Information Misconduct or Disruption of Services: At any time during the performance period of this contract, the Contracting Officer, Technical Information Contact (TIC) or Operating Unit (OU) Director may request the Contractor employee be immediately removed from the premises if they determine, at their unilateral discretion, that any of the Contractor employee’s actions or impaired state to be a disruption to the workforce. Safety: The Contractor employee shall be responsible for knowing and complying with all installation safety prevention regulations. Such regulations include, but are not limited to, general safety, fire prevention, and waste disposal. Patent Rights: The Government retains a Government use license to all inventions arising from this work. Security: NIST is a restricted campus. An identification badge is required for access for entry into buildings and also is shown to the armed Security Police when entering the campus. Identification Badges: Contractor employees shall comply with NIST identification and access requirements. The Contractor employee is responsible for absences due to expired identification and access documents. Each Contractor employee shall wear a visible identification badge provided by the NIST Security Office. The badge must show the full name, title, and if required by NIST, the words “Contractor” in front. The Contractor employee shall turn in the NIST identification badge and vehicle pass to the TIC or Contracting Officer (CO) upon termination of their services under this contract. Vehicle Registration: All Contractor employees must register their vehicles with the NIST Security Office to gain access to the campus. A valid driver’s license, Government-furnished civilian ID, proof of insurance and current registration must be presented to the NIST Security Office, at which time a NIST vehicle pass will be issued. The pass shall be displayed on the vehicle’s rear view mirror in accordance with instructions. The Contractor employee shall follow NIST procedures for removal and turn-in of the vehicle pass upon termination of services under this contract. Media Inquiries: The Contractor employee shall not respond to any media inquiries. Any inquiries from the media shall be immediately relayed to the TIC and/or CO. There shall be no interviews, comments, or any other response without the knowledge and approval of the NIST Director. (End of Statement of Work) ***All interested Contractors may provide a quote for the following: Line Item 0001: Contractor support for services to assist NIST in the design, assembly, testing, fas fill and documentation of a new encasement for the Rubenstein Magna Carta as outlined below: 1.Task 1- Encasement Design ____ (No. of Hours) x _____(Fixed Labor Rate)=$________ 2.Task 2-Instrument Selection ¬____ (No. of Hours) x _____(Fixed Labor Rate)=$________ 3.Task 3- Gas Handling System ____ (No. of Hours) x _____(Fixed Labor Rate)=$________ 4.Task 4- Encasement Assembly & Testing ____ (No. of Hours) x _____(Fixed Labor Rate)=$________ 5.Task 5- Encasement Sealing & Flushing ____ (No. of Hours) x _____(Fixed Labor Rate)=$________ 6.Task 6-Encasement Monitoring & Documentation ____ (No. of Hours) x _____(Fixed Labor Rate)=$________ TOTAL FIXED PRICE:________________ ************************** QUOTATION CONTENTS: The following provides instruction with respect to the information and documents required for submission in response to this solicitation. 1. General Instructions: A. Period for Acceptance of Offers. Quotations shall remain valid for acceptance for a minimum of 120 days from receipt of quotations. B. Quotations are expected to conform to solicitation provisions and be prepared in accordance with this section. To aid in evaluation, the quotations shall be clearly and concisely written as well as being neat, indexed (cross-indexed as appropriate) and logically assembled. All pages of each part shall be appropriately numbered and identified with the name of the offeror, the date, and the solicitation number. Each quotation shall be on 8 and ½-inch x 11-inch paper, in a commercially standard font, not smaller than 12 point font. Each page in the quotation shall be separately numbered. The quotation shall be limited to twenty (20) single-sided pages (excluding letter of transmittal, resumes, representations, certifications, cover letter and letters of commitment and past performance). C. Quotations shall be submitted electronically by email to cheryl.coxen@nist.gov in MSWord or Adobe Acrobat pdf format by 4:00 pm EDT on JULY 22, 2010. It is the responsibility of the offeror to ensure delivery of the quotation is on time and to confirm receipt of quotation delivery date and time. D. Each quotation shall consist of two (2) separate electronic files: (a) Technical Quotation and (b) Price. The contents of each shall be as follows: Technical Quotation: No pricing information shall be included in the technical quotation. The technical quotation shall include the following: (1) Technical Capability and Experience (a) The offeror shall demonstrate its understanding of the requirements and provide a concise, detailed, and thorough discussion of its technical approach to successfully providing the required services. (b) The offeror must demonstrate specialized experience and expertise in ultra high vacuum technology, vacuum and pressure measurements, precision instrumentation, gas leak measurements, and anoxic encasement development and monitoring. (2) Past Performance The offeror shall provide past performance information regarding all relevant contracts for the PAST 3 YEARS with federal, state or local governments and commercial customers. The information shall describe contracts of similartype and scope as the current requirement. If the offeror intends to subcontract with another/other firm(s) for part of this requirement, that firm’s past performance information shall also be provided. If the offeror has no relevant past performance, it shall include a statement to that effect in its quotation. The government reserves the right to consider data obtained from sources other than those described by the offeror in its quotations. The description of each contract described in this section shall not exceed one page in length. For each of the above listed contracts,the offeror shall provide the following information: • Contract number • Description and relevance to solicitation requirements • Period of Performance- indicate by month and year the state and completion (or “ongoing”) dates for the contract •Name and address of the client with current telephone number and email address of a point of contact of the client responsible for the contract •Contracting Office – If a Government contract (federal or state), identify the procuring contracting officer (PCO), administrative contracting officer (ACO) and contracting officer’s representative (COR), and their names, current telephone numbers and email addresses •Contract performance- a brief summary of performance provided The offeror shall include information regarding any problems encountered on the contracts described above and corrective actions taken to resolve those problems. (3)Price, Offerors shall propose a firm fixed price for the required services described herein (see schedule above under Line Item 0001). Each firm fixed price shall include sufficient data to allow the Government to determine the amount, realism and consistency of the fixed price. The Government reserves the right to award a contract/order on the basis of evaluation of the original submissions, without negotiating or call for best and final offers. Offerors are urged to submit their best offer with the original submission. Award shall be made to the offeror whose quote is the best overall value and most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. An Offeror’s failure to address any factor may be considered indicative of the Offeror’s lack of understanding of the Government’s requirements and may result in the quotation being determined unacceptable. The Government will evaluate quotations based on the following evaluation criteria: 1) Technical Capability 2) Past Performance, and 3) Price. 1)Technical and Past Performance are equal in value, and when combined is more important than price. 2)The Government reserves the right to award to other than the lower-priced offer for better technical capability and/or better performance records. Factor (1) Technical Capability/Experience a. Evaluation of Technical Capability shall be based on the information provided in the quotation that demonstrates the degree of offeror’s understanding of fulfilling the requirements outlined in the Statement of Work ;and b) Evaluation of experience shall be based on demonstrated specialized experience and expertise in ultra high vacuum technology, vacuum and pressure measurements, precision instrumentation, gas leak measurements, and anoxic encasement development and monitoring. Factor (2) Past Performance: The Government will evaluate the Offeror's past performance information to determine its relevance to the current requirement and the extent to which it demonstrates that the offeror has successfully completed relevant contracts in the past five years. In assessing the offeror's past performance information, NIST will evaluate the quality and timeliness of the past work. Evaluation of this factor will be based on information contained in the technical portion of the quotation and information provided by references. The Government will evaluate past performance information by contacting appropriate references, including NIST references, if applicable. The Government may also consider other available information in evaluating the Offeror’s past performance. The Government will assign a neutral rating if the offeror has no relevant past performance information. Factor (3) Price will be evaluated for reasonableness in consistency with the technical quote. The price evaluation will determine whether the proposed costs are realistic, complete and reasonable in relation to the solicitation requirements. *** The full text of a FAR provision or clause may be accessed electronically at http://acquisition.gov/comp/far/index.html. *** *** The following provisions apply to this acquisition: 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items; 52.212-3 Offerors Representations and Certifications- Commercial Items. *** *** Offerors must complete annual representations and certifications on-line at http://orca.bpn.gov in accordance with FAR 52.212-3 Offerors Representations and Certifications- Commercial Items. If paragraph (j) of the provision is applicable, a written submission is required. ******The following clauses apply to this acquisition: 1.52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions—Commercial Items; 2.52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Items including subparagraphs: a.52.219-28 Post Award Small Business Program Representation b.52.222-3 Convict Labor c.52.222-19 Child Labor – Cooperation With Authorities And Remedies d.52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities e.52.222-26 Equal Opportunity f.52.222-35 Equal Opportunity for Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans g.52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities h.52.222-37 Employment Reports on Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans i.52.225-1 Buy American Act j.52.225-13 Restriction on Certain Foreign Purchases, and k.52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer-Central Contractor Registration. l. 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services Department of Commerce Agency-Level Protest Procedures Level above the Contracting Officer is also incorporated. It can be downloaded at www.nist.gov/admin/od/contract/agency.htm. *** This is an Open-Market Combined Synopsis/Solicitation for services as defined herein. The Government intends to award a Purchase Order as a result of this Combined Synopsis/Solicitation that will include the terms and conditions that are set forth herein. In order to facilitate the award process, ALL quotes shall include a statement regarding the terms and conditions herein as follows: The offeror shall state “The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document without modification, deletion, or addition.” OR The offeror shall state “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: Offeror shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s) Please note that this procurement is not being conducted under the GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program or another Government-Wide Area Contract (GWAC). If an offeror submits a quotation based upon an FSS or GWAC contract, the Government will accept the quoted price. However, the terms and conditions stated herein will be included in any resultant Purchase Order, not the terms and conditions of the offeror’s FSS or GWAC contract, and the statement required above shall be included in the quotation. ***Submission shall be received not later than 4:00 p.m. local time on July 22, 2010 to cheryl.coxen@nist.gov. NIST is not responsible for late delivery. Any questions or concerns regarding this solicitation should be forwarded in writing via e-mail to the Contract Specialist (cheryl.coxen@nist.gov) FAXED QUOTES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. HOWEVER, EMAILED QUOTES WILL BE ACCEPTED. ***
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- Place of Performance
- Address: National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899, United States
- Zip Code: 20899
- Zip Code: 20899
- Record
- SN02205515-W 20100716/100714234955-2747cabb727c191a70bae4e1ebe5ec09 (fbodaily.com)
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