USDA, ARS, North Atlantic Area, Contracting Office, 600 East Mermaid Lane, Wyndmoor, PA 19038

70 -- MIDI SHERLOCK SOFTWARE SYSTEM AND ACCESSORIES POC Lisa M. Botella, (215) 233-6551, fax (215) 233-6558, Point of Contact and Contracting Officer The USDA, Agricultural Research Service (ARS), intends to negotiate solely with MIDI, Inc., of Newark, Delaware, to furnish, deliver F.O.B. Destination, within Consignee's Premises and install a MIDI Sherlock Software System for a Gas Chromatograph system and all related accessories for the hardware and software at the ARS, N.E. Plant, Soil & Water Research Lab, located in Orono, Maine. The MIDI Sherlock Software System automates the identification of root and soil microorganisms based on combining fatty acid analysis with computerized high resolution gas chromatography. The system automatically determines the fatty acid composition of unknown isolates then searches extensive databases of compositions of known strains for accurate species identification. The Databases enable identification of more than two thousand microbes, including bacteria, actinomycetes, yeasts, and fungi, as well as many difficult-to-identify environmental strains. The system shall also be used for monitoring and characterizing soil and root microbial communities by fatty acid profiles, and is equipped with library generation software which allows creation of user-generated databases needed for use with these microbial community analyses. The MIDI Sherlock system includes: (1 each), MIDI Sherlock system software; and (1 each), Library Generation Software, which includes the following: Aerobic bacteria library, Anaerobic bacteria library, Yeast and fungi library, and data export software. These software and libraries allow automatic operation of the GC, calibration and peak naming, data storage, and comparisons to one or more libraries using covariance, principal components analysis, and pattern recognition software. All software shall be Y2K compliant. (1 each), HP 6890 series Gas Chromatograph, with capillary column, flame ionization detector, auto-injector, auto-sampler, and all other GC hardware required for operation. Accessories include (1 each), HP GC Chemstation bundle, (1 each), ChemStation software (GP2070AA), (1 each), HP Vectra XA6/266 computer (64 MB, 4.3GB HD, CD-ROM, (1 each), Laserjet 6 printer, (1 each), 17 inch monitor, (1 each), Windows NT Operating System) and all supplies needed for computer-assisted operation of the GC. The equipment shall be 100 percent compatible with MIDI Software and Library Generation Software. The standard commercial warranties shall be provided for this equipment and software. A copy of each warranty shall be provided with the offer. Installation of the system, accessories and all software is required and shall be coordinated with the COR (to be named at time of award). The Contractor shall provide a minimum of two (2) days training for two end users at the Company's training facility within two (2) weeks of installation of the equipment. Training shall include all pertinent training materials and technical support to fully equip the users to properly and effectively use and maintain the system in peak operating condition is required. The company shall provide one (1) copy each of the sitepreparation, users, software, and maintenance manuals for the equipment and/or software (as appropriate). The site preparation manual shall be submitted prior to delivery and all other manuals shall be submitted at time of delivery. Delivery (F.O.B. Destination) and installation shall be made within 60 days of receipt of the purchase order. Companies with the demonstrated capability and financial capacity to provide and service such equipment must submit a written substantive statement outlining the Company's and systems' capabilities to the Contracting Officer within 15 days of publication of this notice. This is not a request for proposal. No solicitation is available. Posted 08/16/99 (W-SN368355). (0228)

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