Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) System Coupled with a Mass Spectrometry (MS) Detector

Federal Business Opportunities (FBO)SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE1. Solicitation Number: NIHDA2018004892. Title: Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) System Coupled with a Mass Spectrometry (MS) Detector3. Classification Code: 66 - Instruments & laboratory equipment4. NAICS Code: 3345165. Description:This is a Sources Sought notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of all qualified sources to perform a potential requirement.This notice is issued to help determine the availability of qualified companies technically capable of meeting the Government requirement and to determine the method of acquisition. It is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. Responses will not be considered as proposals or quotes. No award will be made as a result of this notice. The Government will NOT be

responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents to this notice. This notice is strictly for research and information purposes only.Background: Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) is a relatively new technique giving new possibilities in liquid chromatography, especially concerning decrease of time and solvent consumption. A UPLC chromatographic system is designed in a special way to withstand high system back-pressures.This instrument is necessary to accommodate the expanding scientific needs of the Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) and Automated Synthesis Platform for Innovative Research and Execution (ASPIRE) initiatives within NCATS. Under the auspices of these programs and in adherence with the NCATS translational mission of decreasing the time from research discovery to patient treatment, an Automated Chemistry Group was created to investigate and develop an expedient, robust, and flexible automated pipeline for the synthesis of chemical libraries related to biological targets of interest. Due to the potentially large number of samples that can be generated by automated synthesis in a very short amount of time, analytical analysis can easily become a process bottleneck. To meet these high-throughput demands, Analytical Chemistry must employ analysis techniques that have comparable throughput rates while maintaining requisite performance levels. Unfortunately, the current chromatographic analysis capabilities at DPI are limited to traditional High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The experimental runs times when using this instrumentation are on the order of five (5) minutes, which can lead to significant delays when analyzing a 384-well plate looking at reaction optimization. The utilization of a UPLC system provides a significant reduction in run time (1-2 min) while increasing resolution and sensitivity compared to traditional HPLC.Additional advantages include the need for smaller sample amounts and the use of less solvent per experimental run, which is a cost savings over time and increases safety due to minimized waste generation. UPLC-MS is an extremely powerful analytical tool that chemists can use in the identification and quantitation of various chemical entities ranging in size from small molecules to antibodies. Access to the top-of-the-line UPLC-MS instrument, which possesses the highest level of experimental capabilities is an imperative to propel DPI research forward in the successful pursuit of the NCATS mission.Purpose and Objectives: The Division of Preclinical Innovation (DPI) within the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) is requesting an Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) system coupled with a Mass Spectrometry (MS) detector for use in the Medicinal Chemistry Lab.Project requirements: The system that meets the needs of this requirement must be manufactured by Waters Technologies Corporation and include the following products/quantities:Mfg. Product # Qty Description176815023 1 ACQ. UPLC I-Class PLUS Triple w/QDa Sys176015112 1 ACQ. I-Class PLUS Sys. (CM-A) w/SM-FL-I176015090 1 ACQUITY UPLC I-Class PDA Detector700011803 1 ACQ. I-Class PDA Tubing Single Detector176003208 1 ACQUITY QDa Detector (Performance)176004266 1 ACQUITY I-Class PLUS QDa Kit205001275 1 Kit, Ethernet Switch Box w/ Bracket700009641 1 ESI PROBE ASSEMBLY 250mm176003244 1 ISM & ACQUITY Splitter Kit176015027 1 ACQUITY UPLC ELSD w/Nebulizer700002848 1 ACQUITY UPLC / UV and ELSD Qualification Standards Kit700002669 1 ACQUITY UPLC / UV Start Up Standards Kit700002741 1 ACQUITY / Quattro micro or Quattro Premier MS Start Up Solution Kit176001060 1 ML 4.1 & Standard PC668000273 1 MONITOR, Lenovo ThinkVision Flat Panel176015040 1 ACQUITY UPLC SO H/I-Class205001832 1 Kit, ACQUITY UPLC 4 x 50mm CM-A186007088 1 Certified Container Kit741000472 1 QDa SYSTEM INSTALLATION CERT176001075 1 OpenLynx Open Access v4.1These are the required specifications for the Centrifugal Vacuum Concentrator:1) Footprint of unit cannot exceed 13.5" W x 32"H x 28" D2) Must have operating temperature range of 4 - 40°C3) Must have sample plate capacity of 18 standard plates or 6 deep well plates4) Number of Solvents handled must be up to 45) Unit must include leak sensors and safe leak handling6) Unit must have a flow range of 0.010 to 2.0 mL/min, in .001mL increments7) Must have operating pressure of 18,000 psi up to 1mL/min8) Must include Load Ahead and Loop Offline modes for sample managementAnticipated period of performance: Eight (8) to twelve (12) weeks ARO.Other important considerations: N/ACapability statement /information sought. Clearly indicate whether respondents must provide, as part of their responses, a capability statement, "white paper," answers to questions/issues, etc. This may include requests for:• respondents' opinions about the difficulty and/or feasibility of the potential requirement or proposed acquisition, possible solutions and approaches that may currently exist in the marketplace, and information regarding innovative ideas or concepts;• information regarding respondents': (a) staff expertise, including their availability, experience, and formal and other training; (b) current in-house capability and capacity to perform the work; (c) prior completed projects of similar nature; (d) corporate experience and management capability; and (e) examples of prior completed Government contracts, references, and other related information;• general information regarding the respondent's estimate or rough order of magnitude of the effort or time that may be required for completion of the work. (NOTE: This type of information may only be requested as part of an RFI. However, care must be exercised in requesting such information. Information requested must be: (a) necessary; (b) broad in scope; and (c) used for planning purposes only. Detailed estimates must not be requested.);The respondent must also provide their DUNS number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HubZone, etc., pursuant to the applicable NAICS code and any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the acquisition requirements.One (1) copy of the response is required and must be in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format using 11-point or 12-point font, 8-1/2" x 11" paper size, with 1" top, bottom, left and right margins, and with single or double spacing.The information submitted must be must be in and outline format that addresses each of the elements of the project requirement and in the capability statement /information sought paragraphs stated herein. A cover page and an executive summary may be included but is not required.The response is limited to ten (10) page limit. The 10-page limit does not include the cover page, executive summary, or references, if requested.The response must include the respondents' technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses.All responses to this notice must be submitted electronically to the Contract Specialist and Contracting Officer. Facsimile responses are NOT accepted.The response must be submitted to Jessica Adams, Contract Specialist, at e-mail address jessica.adams@nih.gov.The response must be received on or before August 28, 2018, 1:00pm, Eastern Standard Time.Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the 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. After a review of the responses received, a presolicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.Confidentiality: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s)."