Sources Sought_Automated Blood Bank Instrumentation

Notice from the United States Air Force, Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC), Installation Contracting Division, Base Support Contracting Branch at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB), Ohio:

INTRODUCTION: The AFLCMC Operational Contracting Branch at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, on behalf of the 88th Medical Group (88 MDG), is conducting market research through a Sources Sought Notice to identify potential sources, including Small Businesses (SB), capable of providing an Automated Blood Bank Instrumentation for automate critical clinical pre-transfusion laboratory testing—such as blood typing, antibody screening, and titration studies—while seamlessly integrating patient results with military electronic health record systems like MHS Genesis and CHCS. This notice is to determine the availability of qualified sources to support this requirement. A set-aside decision has not yet been made for this acquisition.

REQUIREMENTS: The Government requires a contractor to provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision, and other items and services necessary to perform Automated Blood Bank Instrumentation laboratory testing at the 88 MDG, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

The required items and services include, but are not limited to:

1. System and Compatibility Requirements:

a. Testing system must use Column Agglutination Technology (Gel Card) and be fully compatible with the facility's existing testing methodologies to eliminate re-validation delays.

b. The testing system must not utilize proprietary system liquids.

c. System must have the capability to interface directly with the government's laboratory information systems, specifically CHCS and MHS Genesis.

1. Performance and Operational Specifications:

a. The instrument must be capable of fully automated serial dilutions for titration studies.

b. The instrument must offer up to 24 hours of walkaway time to maximize laboratory efficiency.

c. When operational, the instrument must always remain in a "ready" mode and at no time go into a hibernation or "sleep" state.

d. The instrument system must have a pipette conditioning (e.g., dead) volume of <20 ul.

e. The optical resolution of the on-board camera must be at least 5 megapixels, down to 32 x 32 microns, and must possess the capability to store a digital image of both the front and back of each gel card to record test results.

1. Reagents and Consumables:

a. The testing system must have the capability to run a minimum of three pre-diluted antibody identification panels that are FDA-cleared for use in conjunction with the instrument.

b. The instrument must be able to run selected pre-diluted antibody identification panels.

c. The supplier's pre-diluted reagent red blood cells must utilize United States-based donors. Reagent red blood cells and column agglutination technology cards must use United States-based manufacturing.

d. The vendor must have a demonstrated ability to supply automated and non-automated FDA-licensed reagents for blood bank or transfusion service testing under their own brand.

1. Physical and Safety Specifications:

a. The vendor must supply an analyzer capable of space-saving benchtop installation inside the clinical laboratory.

b. Fully loaded waste containers shall each not weigh more than 11 lbs. and must be easily accessible to waist height for laboratory safety.

SUBMISSION DETAILS: Interested parties are requested to submit a capability package that provides clear and convincing evidence of their ability to provide the services outlined above. In addition, interested parties must provide the following information:

• Company Name, Address, CAGE Code, and Unique Entity ID (UEI).
• Point of Contact (Name, Phone Number, and Email Address).
• Company business size status under a relevant NAICS code 334516. Prospective contractors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database at https://www.sam.gov to be eligible for a Department of Defense contract award.

CLOSING: Responses to this Sources Sought notice must be submitted via email no later than August 27, 2026, at 11:00am Eastern Time. All correspondence sent via email must contain the subject line: “FA860126Q0128, Sources Sought: Automated Blood Bank Instrumentation.” Be advised that due to network filters, attachments ending in .zip or .exe are not allowable and will be deleted.

Please submit all response packages directly to the following Points of Contact (POCs):

• Contract Specialist:
  • Name: Alejandro Quiles
  • Email: alejandro.quiles_sanchez.1@us.af.mil
• Contracting Officer:
  • Name: Claire Hess
  • Email: claire.hess@us.af.mil

This is a Sources Sought notice for market research purposes only. In accordance with Revolutionary FAR Overall (RFO) 15.201, responses to this notice are not considered offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Any information submitted by respondents to this notice is strictly voluntary and will not be reimbursed by the Government. The Government’s assessment of the capability statements received will factor in whether any forthcoming solicitation will be conducted as a full and open competition or as a set-aside.

Attachments:

1. Statement of Work_Aug 2026
2. List of Required Items_Redacted