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THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT AND NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTATIONS

This notice is published in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 5.101(a)(1) requiring the dissemination of information regarding proposed contract actions. This is a Notice of Intent to award a sole source, firm-fixed price purchase order under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 1901 as implemented by FAR 13.106-1 only one responsible source and No Other Supplies or Service Will Satisfy Agency Requirements and is not a request for competitive quotes.

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with FEI Company, 5350 NE Dawson Creek Drive, Hillsboro, OR 97124, for a renewal of their yearly subscription for 4 concurrent users – same LAN for the Amira Software.

The period of performance of the base plus four (4) option periods is as follows:

Base Year: March 28, 2024 – March 27, 2025

Option Year 1: March 28, 2025 – March 27, 2026

Option Year 2: March 28, 2026 – March 27, 2027

Option Year 3: March 28, 2027 – March 27, 2028

Option Year 4: March 28, 2028 – March 27, 2029

The Electron Microscopy Unit (EMU) within the Research Technologies Section (RTS) of the Research Technologies Branch (RTB) at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) provides state-of-the-art technologies to support the ultrastructural imaging needs of the Institute’s scientists located in both the Bethesda, Maryland area and the Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML) in Hamilton, Montana. The facility provides sample preparation and analysis ranging from basic to high-resolution structural studies to immuno-localization of selected antigens for various specimens. Various methods, protocols, and equipment are employed to accommodate different preparative and imaging needs. Real-time viewing of samples by video image-sharing is available to NIAID users, allowing scientists at distant locations to view samples simultaneously with microscopy staff. To continue supporting the needs of NIAID researchers, the RTB must continue to upgrade and maintain its instrumentation and license agreements.

The EMU’s specialized support and scientific expertise enhance the research efforts of NIAID investigators with various state-of-the-art microscopy techniques and technologies. The 3-dimensional data generated by electron tomography and focused ion beam techniques need to be processed for visualization to help NIAID investigators with their research. As such, the Amira software has been utilized for visualizing and analyzing these datasets. NIAID’s current Amira license subscription is set to expire on March 27, 2023, and therefore, needs to be renewed so EMU can continue to generate 3-D datasets and fulfill other visualization and analysis needs of generated datasets. The required services include the following:

• Full access to Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Customer Support Center, which includes access to a team of OEM certified technicians who are readily available to address any technical issues, inquiries, or concerns.


• Software malfunction fixes.


• Access to repository of guides, tutorials, and educational materials.


• Access to a repository of custom tools for data analysis that are created by the software user community or developed by NIAID.


• A token based floating point license server that allows multiple concurrent users to launch the program and work on their systems at the same time.


• Automated alignment and correction of mrc or tif stacks generated by focused ion beam scanning electron microscopes.


• Ability to load large 3D image volumes and perform image segmentation of that volume without needing to crop or reduce image quality.


• Software installers for Windows, Mac, and Linux environments.


• Ability to maintain current and ongoing studies paramotors for processing date that include clinical studies.

The North American Industry Classification (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 513210 – Software Publishers, which has a size standard of $47.0 million. FEI Company is not a small business.

This will be the only notice of the Government’s intent to solicit, negotiate, and award to one source to satisfy this requirement. The Government plans to award a contract for this requirement within 25 days of this notice.

While this synopsis does not constitute a solicitation, interested vendors may identify their interest and capability to satisfy this requirement. The Government understands that FEI Company is the only vendor who can provide the requested services for NIAID. However, firms that believe they can provide the capability required to fully meet the Government's requirement may submit a capabilities statement, including past performance, in writing to the identified point of contact within 15 days after publication of this notice. Such documentation shall be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this procurement on a competitive basis. A determination not to compete this requirement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government. Interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to the requirement or submit offers on NOI-NIAID-24-2204718.

This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for any information provided in 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.

For additional information or to submit responses, please contact Kathy Song, Contract Specialist at kathy.song@nih.gov.

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