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FBO DAILY - FEDBIZOPPS ISSUE OF JUNE 18, 2014 FBO #4589
SOURCES SOUGHT

66 -- Custom Field Emission Scanning Electron Miscroscope

Notice Date

6/16/2014
 

Notice Type

Sources Sought
 

NAICS

334516 — Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing
 

Contracting Office

Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Station Support/Simplified Acquisitions, 31 Center Drive, Room 1B59, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892
 

ZIP Code

20892
 

Solicitation Number

HHS-NIH-NIDA-SSSA-SBSS-14-317
 

Archive Date

7/10/2014
 

Point of Contact

Lauren M. Phelps, Phone: 3015942490
 

E-Mail Address

lauren.phelps@nih.gov
(lauren.phelps@nih.gov)
 

Small Business Set-Aside

N/A
 

Description

Contracting Office Address: Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Station Support Simplified Acquisitions, 31 Center Drive, Room 1B59, Bethesda, MD 20892, UNITED STATES. Introduction: This is a Small Business Sources Sought notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding: (1) the availability and capability of qualified small business sources, (2) whether they are small businesses; HUBZone small businesses, service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses; 8(a) small businesses; veteran-owned small businesses; woman-owned small businesses; or small disadvantaged businesses; and (3) their size classification relative to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for the proposed acquisition. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. Purpose and Objectives for the Procurement: The purpose of this potential requirement is acquisition of one (1) custom field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) to support the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Intramural Research Program (IRP) Electron Microscopy Core. Project Requirements: The Contractor must be able to provide one (1) custom FE-SEM in accordance with the following requirements: 1. The FE-SEM must come with all software and hardware necessary to fully utilize the FE-SEMs capabilities. 2. The FE-SEM must offer a single, integrated FE-SEM-in situ serial blockface ultramicrotome solution. The in situ serial blockface ultramicrotome must be integrated in the Electron Microscope factory prior to delivery to the customer. 3. The FE-SEM must include both a FE-SEM stage and a serial blockface ultramicrotome stage. The FE-SEM must include an apparatus that allows for safe and efficient exchange of these stages. This exchange must be performable without the assistance of SEM service engineer support. 4. The FE-SEM must be capable of magnification from 12x to 1,000,000x, continuously adjustable in fine and course modes. 5. The FE-SEM must precisely correct magnification automatically for changes in working distance and accelerating voltage. 6. The FE-SEM must include hard copy output devices. The FE-SEM precisely correct for displayed magnification changes in hard copy output devices. 7. The FE-SEM must be capable of accelerating voltage ranging from 0.1 to 30kV and continuously adjustable in at least 10V steps. 8. The FE-SEM must have a high vacuum mode capable of at least 2x10-4Pa and capable of variable pressure between 2 and 133Pa. 9. The FE-SEM must be high resolution and capable of achieving 20nA current. 10. The FE-SEM must provide continuously adjustable current from 4pA to 20nA. The current shall be adjustable through use of FE-SEM software to allow for optimizing imaging conditions under a wide variety of samples by automatically adjusting aperture diameter, extraction voltage. 11. The software must allow the user to set the desired current value through use of a moving slider in the FE-SEM software. The vendor shall provide the FE-SEM software. 12. The FE-SEM must allow a user to maximize the amount of data acquired in a single flat field image, from slice to slice, up to 32,000 pixels by 25,000 pixels in size. 13. The FE-SEM must be defined through a series of at least 6 apertures. The apertures shall be selectable through use of software. This software must be provided by the vendor. 14. The FE-SEM must allow a user to achieve above variable pressure and return to high vacuum mode with only a single button click in the software. 15. The FE-SEM must use a thermionic field emission source and allow for imaging stability during long term serial blockface imaging sessions of at least 2 days. 16. The FE-SEM must use a column design that is suited to optimize imaging of the tissue block face as such block face imaging is the basis of the serial blockface ultramicrotome system functionality. 17. The FE-SEM serial blockface ultra-microtome stage and FE-SEM stage must be mounted on the FE-SEM chamber door and guided onto the FE-SEM with rails. 18. The serial blockface ultramicrotome stage must consist of the stage for sample mounting of specimens on pin stubs. It must also incorporate a diamond knife for serial sectioning and high sensitivity backscatter detector for image acquisition. 19. The FE-SEM stage must be capable of correlation with an already existing confocal and multiphoton microscope equipped with 5 visible laser lines and one IR line. Objectives of the current microscope range from 5x through and including 63x, with continuously adjustable optical zoom associated with the confocal microscope. Optical zoom ranges from 0.6 to >8.5x in 0.1x increments. Confocal scan rotation is available, through 360o in the current microscope. Scan resolution is up to 6144x6144 pixels at all magnifications in the current microscope. 20. The FE-SEM hardware must include sample holders with integrated fiducial marks. The hardware must able to be mounted directly on both the confocal/multiphoton microscope and FE-SEM with appropriate adapters. Software to locate fiducials must be fully integrated with both the existing confocal/multiphoton microscope and FE-SEM such that one can utilize all capabilities and imaging modes either platform for correlation. Post-acquisition cross correlation must be possible. 21. The serial blockface stage must be capable of 15nm step advancement of the stage, in Z, thereby producing at least 15nm thick slices. The FE-SEM stage must be a 5-axix compucentric motorized stage with 3 accessory ports. The FE-SEM stage must allow for 125mm travel in X and Y and 50mm in Z with -10 o to 90 o tilt with 360o rotation with scan rotation through 360 o. 22. The FE-SEM must include a mechanism for sealing and pumpdown to vacuum of the stage which is not in use. This mechanism must be dedicated to the storage of the stage which is not in use. One additional pump shall also be provided with the FE-SEM. 23. The FE-SEM must include an electron beam. Software shall control the electron beam and must be capable of managing accelerating voltages below 3 kV. This must be done via electromagnetic and electrostatic objective lens systems using water cooling for best thermal stability and reproducibility. 24. The FE-SEM low accelerating voltage must be achievable without biasing influences outside of the electron beam column. The accelerating voltage resolution of the FE-SEM must not involve any stage biasing. Additionally, the FE-SEM must be capable of at least 3nm resolution at 1kV without the use of stage biasing. 25. The FE-SEM electron column must allow for electron beam travel through the column without crossover of the electron beam. The electron column must be crossover free so that a flat field of at least 160 microns by 120 microns for imaging is easily achievable while aberrations which might blur image edges are minimized. 26. The FE-SEM must be optimally configured for 3D SEM imaging and coupled to a serial blockface in situ ultra-microtome for imaging biological tissues. Optimal configuration indicates an electron column that is capable of high resolution imaging at low voltages when the in situ ultramicrotome is in position for 3D data collection. 27. The FE-SEM shall include equipment for transportation and storage, beneath the vacuum, of both the FE-SEM stage and in situ ultramicrotome stage. This equipment must include a cart designed to secure the FE-SEM stage or serial blockface ultramicrotome stage to the FE-SEM storage table for safe transport. The storage table must be designed to securely hold either stage under the vacuum at all times. 28. The FE-SEM must come with software and hardware to operate the FE-SEM with full function. Accordingly, the FE-SEM must come with a computer which is in addition to the computer used for serial blockface imaging. 29. The FE-SEM computer must run 64-bit Windows 7 and software must be capable of controlling the FE-SEM beam for serial blockface image acquisition. 30. The FE-SEM software must allow for scanning at up to 15 non-interlaced scanning speeds in fast, reduced raster, spot and line scan modes with automatic tilt correction. Additionally, the vendor shall be required to provide all personnel and equipment required to deliver and install the FE-SEM at the NIDA Site. Further, the contractor shall provide an applications specialist and service engineer for up to 16 labor hours to perform resolution imaging tests for comparison to factory image tests following delivery. The contractor will also provide 24 hours of on-site FE-SEM applications training to familiarize users with the proper functioning and control of the equipment as well as 24 hours of on-site serial block face imaging applications training. This is a grand total of 48 hours of on-site training after delivery. Anticipated Period of Performance: It is expected that delivery will be completed within 14 weeks after receipt of order. A firm fixed price contract is contemplated. Capability Statement: Contractors that believe they possess the ability to provide the required equipment should submit documentation of their ability to meet each of the project requirements to the Contract Specialist. Contractors must provide their Company Name, DUNS number, Physical Address, and Point of Contact Information. Interested organizations are required to identify their type of business, applicable North American Industry Classification System Code, and size standards in accordance with the Small Business Administration. The government requests that no proprietary or confidential business data be submitted in a response to this notice. However, responses that indicate the information therein is proprietary will be properly safeguarded for Government use only. Capability statements must include the name and telephone number of a point of contact having authority and knowledge to discuss responses with Government representatives. Capability statements in response to this market survey that do not provide sufficient information for evaluation will be considered non-responsive. When submitting this information, please reference the solicitation notice number. All capability statements sent in response to this Sources Sought Notice must be submitted electronically (via email) to Lauren Phelps, Contract Specialist, at Lauren.Phelps@nih.gov in MS Word format by or before the closing date of this announcement. All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered. Note: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in the response. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After review of the responses received, pre-solicitation and solicitation notices may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. The solicitation release date is pending. The Government intends to negotiate a fixed-price contract.
 

Web Link

FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/NIDA-2/HHS-NIH-NIDA-SSSA-SBSS-14-317/listing.html)
 

Place of Performance

Address: Baltimore, Maryland, 21224, United States

Zip Code: 21224
 

Record

SN03396431-W 20140618/140616235027-faafd41fc1f55f230b4d8d070487cbce (fbodaily.com)
 

Source

FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)

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