SOURCES SOUGHT
66 -- Vacuum Impregnation System
- Notice Date
- 7/20/2016
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 334516
— Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Acquisition Management Division, 100 Bureau Drive, Building 301, Room B130, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899-1410, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20899-1410
- Solicitation Number
- NB731030-16-05103
- Point of Contact
- Amber Gray, Phone: 301-975-3696, Divya Soni, Phone: 301-975-6394
- E-Mail Address
-
amber.gray@nist.gov, divya.soni@nist.gov
(amber.gray@nist.gov, divya.soni@nist.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Notice Number: NB731030-16-05103 Title: Vacuum Impregnation System Anticipated NAICS Code: 334516 - Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing Contracting Office Address National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Office of Acquisition and Agreements Management Acquisition Management Division 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 1640 Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1640 This Notice is for planning purposes only and is not a Request for Proposal, Request for Quotation, or an obligation on the part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for conducting a follow-on acquisition. NIST does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this Notice, or otherwise pay for the information requested. No entitlement or payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by NIST will arise as a result of submission of responses to this Notice and NIST use of such information. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is seeking to identify sources capable of providing a vacuum impregnation system. Background Information The Inorganic Materials Group within the Engineering Laboratory of the National Institute of Standards and Technology is involved in a multi-year study involving the effects of alkali-silica reaction (ASR) on nuclear concrete structures. A principal analytical requirement for this project involves use of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectrometry (EDS) coupled with image analysis on highly polished concrete and rock specimens under low vacuum conditions. Work conducted in parallel will also require polish specimens examined with the compound microscope to quantify microcracking and microstructural features associated with ASR. These methods require that porous concrete, rock, and powder samples be embedded in hardened epoxy prior to cutting and polishing operations. Impregnation of porous specimens requires vacuum impregnation of the materials epoxy to eliminate air from within the pores and cracks of the specimens. Existing equipment for vacuum impregnating samples used in the ASR project, as well as a wide range of other projects supported by the SEM-EDS lab was fabricated in-house and incapable of impregnating the larger (up to 6 in) concrete core sections and high sample throughput (on the order of hundreds) required of the ASR project. Moreover, insufficient vacuum on the existing system also makes it necessary to use ultra-low viscosity epoxy which is not optimal for our application. Description of Requirement The system must meet the following requirements: 1) The vacuum impregnation system must be an integrated system comprised of a vacuum chamber, vacuum system, and dosing mechanism to dispense epoxy and operated by an integral/integrated microprocessor with touch-sensitive keypad for variable vacuum adjustment and time control. 2) The system must have a vacuum chamber of diameter 8 in, 3) Specimen mounting cup holders must be included to process multiple (≥8) samples in cups of ~30 mm diameter 4) The system should also come with a supply of consumable epoxy dispensing tubes sufficient to process 100 samples, 5) The system should operate on 120V and 60 Hz. Installation and training are also required. Instructions / Required Submissions Interested parties shall describe the capabilities of their organization as it relates to the services described above. The small business size standard associated with the anticipated NAICS code for this effort is 334516 - Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing with a small business size standard of 1,000 employees. Interested parties shall include their business size classification and socio-economic status in response to this notice. The following information is required to be provided as part of the response to this sources sought notice: 1. Documentation/Description of capabilities, which clearly demonstrates the capability of providing the vacuum impregnation system; 2. Documentation of any relevant experience in providing the required sensors; 3. Name, Address, DUNS number, CAGE code, business size, and point of contact information of the company; 4. Indication of whether the services described in this notice are currently on one or more GSA Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) contract(s) or Government-wide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs) and, if so, the applicable contract number(s). 5. Any other relevant information that is not listed above, which the Government should consider in finalizing its market research. All information considered pertinent to the covered requirement shall be sent to Amber Gray, via e-mail at amber.gray@nist.gov. Information submitted shall be specific and address the aforementioned requirement. Submissions shall be received not later than 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on July 27, 2016. General Information After the results of this market research are obtained and analyzed, NIST may conduct a competitive procurement and subsequently award a contract. If at least two small businesses are identified during this market research, then a competitive procurement that results may be conducted as a small business set-aside.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/DOC/NIST/AcAsD/NB731030-16-05103/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Office of Acquisition and Agreements Management, Acquisition Management Division, 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 1640, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 20899, United States
- Zip Code: 20899
- Zip Code: 20899
- Record
- SN04190191-W 20160722/160720235239-dcdd4e1fc97463142d0bc9abc7d6c689 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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