Service Maintenance and Support for Siemens 7T Magnetom Terra X MRI Scanner and Chiller

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 Institutes of Health, Office of Logistics and Operations (OLAO) intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., for their yearly Service Maintenance and Support for Siemens 7T MAGNETOM Terra X MRI Scanner and Chiller. 

The period of performance of the base plus four (4) option periods is as follows: 
Base Year: One (1) Year from date of award.

Option Year 1: TBD
Option Year 2: TBD
Option Year 3: TBD
Option Year 4: TBD

The goal of this procurement is to obtain a comprehensive service contract covering preventive maintenance, routine upgrades and remedial service for the National Institute on Aging (NIA)’s Siemens 7T MAGNETOM Terra X MRI scanner and its associated system chiller, located at Medstar Harbor Hospital in Baltimore, MD. This is existing governmentowned laboratory equipment previously purchased from Siemens Medical Solutions. This equipment is used heavily and must be kept in operation with minimal downtime. Further, as an FDA-certified clinical diagnostic device, there are strict maintenance and quality control requirements for the continued operation of this scanner that must be met by purchasing a suitable service contract. Contract Type: This is a firm-fixed price, base plus 4 option-year type contract.

Items:
1. MAGNETOM Terra - Advance Plan Premium
2. Dimplex Chiller - Chillers Full Service

Specific Requirements:
Independently and not as an agent of the Government, the contractor will furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, materials, equipment, and facilities not otherwise provided by the Government as needed to perform preventative maintenance and remedial repair for the Siemens 7T Terra X MRI scanner (functional location 400-832106) and its associated Dimplex chiller (functional location 400-785500). 

The contractor will provide on-site maintenance and repair service at Harbor Hospital that includes the following provisions: (1) planned preventive maintenance inspection, which involves equipment inspection, problem troubleshooting, installation of software updates or enhancements as necessary, and training government staff, as needed; (2) Emergency or percall repair services, (3) Testing instruments and supplies; (4) Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) certified factory-trained technicians; and (5) all labor, replacement parts, and travel expenses. The MRI scanner is in the Gruehn Building (attached to Harbor Hospital 
Building), room number GNM 32, while the chiller is on the Hospital grounds just outside the 7T MRI building.

Specifically, the Contractor will perform planned Preventive Maintenance (PM) visits for equipment maintenance services during standard hours of coverage and scheduled at a mutually agreeable time with the designated COR or a COR-delegated official. Onsite preventive maintenance on the 7T MRI will include support on the chiller from at least the 
hours of 8:00 am-6:00 pm Monday through Friday.

The Contractor will provide remote proactive monitoring of subject instrumentation via an authorized network connection. Remote monitoring includes assessing magnet life support conditions (cryogen levels, cold head operation) so that service personnel and the NIA POC can be notified remotely prior to any degradation in magnet performance.

The Contractor must have access to proprietary parts and test instrumentation for effective repair in case of malfunction. Technical performance requirements include system coverage on the subject equipment by Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) factory-trained, authorized technicians. In addition, any required parts and software or proprietary diagnostic tools and software enhancements must be OEM-certified and compatible with the subject equipment.

Service will include labor and parts coverage, extended coverage hours as noted in paragraphs above, on-site labor response, technical telephone response (call-back to schedule), and planned maintenance, extended planned maintenance coverage hours, diagnostic software license and service documentation, user training, and preferred labor rate. 

Important: Due to the heavy workload on the scanner and the need to maintain FDA  certification for scanning human subjects, the contractor must ensure the following:  

1.The contractor must have either an adequate supply of parts in stock and readily available to the service technicians or be able to obtain any required part within 24 hours of the service technician’s request.
 
2.The service technicians working on the Siemens 7T Terra MRI scanner need to be Siemens (OEM) trained and certified.
3. The service technicians working on the Dimplex chiller need to be Dimplex (OEM) trained and certified.

The contractor shall provide 24/7 telephone and/or internet access to technical support personnel to report problems requiring diagnosis and a possible service visit. On-site preventive and remedial service for the scanner and clinical application support shall be provided between at least the hours of 8 AM to 6 PM Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. On-site preventive and remedial service for the chiller shall be provided between at least the hours of 8 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. 

The North American Industry Classification (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 811210 – Electronic and Precision Equipment Repair. Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. 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 Siemens is the only vendor who can provide the services requested for NIA. 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-PCA-NIA-01368. 

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 Tasha Lee, Contracting Specialist at tasha.lee@nih.gov.