Notice of Sources Sought
The purpose of this Sources Sought Announcement is for market research to make appropriate acquisition decisions and to gain knowledge of potential qualified Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB), Veteran Owned Small Businesses (VOSB), and Small Businesses interested and capable of providing the services requested, as well as any large businesses. The results from this source sought notice will be used to determine the appropriate set-aside.
The intended contract is a firm-fixed price service contract.
The SBA Non-Manufacturer Rule is not applicable as the intended contract is for services.
The Department of Veterans Affairs, NCO20 is looking for manufacturer authorized service providers with access to OEM parts of the following requirement:
Preventative maintenance and repair of Bruker Spatial Biology CellScape Proteomics System (Serial number CS_24-048)
Statement of Work:
Statement of Work. Service agreement for a Bruker Spatial Biology CellScape Proteomics System
Background. Research Services at the Boise VAMC acquired a CellScape Spatial Proteomics system, serial number CS_24-048, in 2024, which is used by researchers to automatically immuno-stain and image samples for biomarker analysis.
Scope. The instrument s initial warranty will expire on 7/23/2026 and will require a preventative maintenance and repair contract to maintain its functionality. Bruker is the sole manufacturer of the instrument. All service work must be performed by Bruker trained and certified technicians and only OEM parts may be used or risk voiding and nullifying any applicable warranties. The site of the work will be in Research Services, building #117, room 128.
Specific Tasks.
For base year and all option years the following must be covered:
Annual preventative maintenance.
Service calls to repair instrument malfunctions.
Cost of all replacement parts, including shipping and handling costs.
Labor and travel.
Software updates.
Hours of Coverage & Federal Holidays. The contractor will be required to work during normal Boise VA Medical Center s business hours. Those hours are defined as Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. All visits must be scheduled in advance with Research Services.
Services will not be performed on the following legal government holidays:
New Year s Day Jan 1st
Martin Luther King Day 3rd Monday in January
President s Day 3rd Monday in February
Memorial Day Last Monday in May
Juneteenth June 19th
Independence Day July 4th
Labor Day 1st Monday in September
Columbus Day 2nd Monday in October
Veteran Day November 11th
Thanksgiving 4th Thursday in November
Christmas December 25th
Technical Point of Contact. The point of contact (POC) will be a Research staff member familiar with the operation of the instrument. The POC is NOT a Contracting Officer Representative (COR).
Performance Monitoring. The POC will escort the contractor while in the Research facility and will be available to respond to inquiries by the contractor. The contractor will review all services performed on the instrument with the POC and provide a copy (hard or electronic) of the service report for Research s records within 2 weeks of the service call. The POC will notify the AO of Research Services of all work completed by the contractor.
Security Requirements. The contractor will not have the need or have access to the VA internet network system or patient information and will not require routine access to VA Facilities. No security clause is required. The C&A requirements do not apply, and a Security Accreditation Package is not required.
The contractor will require intermittent access to the Research building only during scheduled visits and will be escorted by a VA Research employee during those times. No background investigation is required.
Government-Furnished Equipment (GFE)/Government-Furnished Information (GFI). No GFE or GFI will be needed or provided, since the imager system is a stand-alone instrument. The contractor does not require access to any additional equipment or materials.
Other Pertinent Information or Special Considerations. The contractor must be Bruker trained and authorized to repair and provide service to this system according to the manufacturer to avoid invalidating existing warranties.
a. Identification of Possible Follow-on Work
Repairs that cannot be completed during the initial visit.
b. Identification of Potential Conflicts of Interest (COI)
It has been determined by the AO that no conflict of interest exists with the contract.
c. Inspection and Acceptance Criteria
With the contractor present, the POC will verify that the contractual work has been performed and will relay the information to the AO of Research.
Risk Control. Research building 117 is designated as a BSL-2 facility. The rooms are marked to denote specific hazards that are currently in use. In the rooms where the work will be performed, the PPE requirements will be noted, as per policy and PPE will be available. Additionally, there are no patients, nor patient care in the research buildings.
As per contractor s requirements, the instrument will be cleaned and disinfected, if necessary, before work commences.
Place of Performance.
Boise VAMC
Research Building #117
500 W. Fort Street
Boise, ID 83702
Payment. The invoice for the service contract must be submitted via the Financial Services Center Mandatory Electronic Invoice System, Tungsten, on an annual basis. All invoices must include the following information: vendor s name, service contract number, the billed period of performance and PO number. Payment of submitted invoices will be approved by the AO of Research.
Period of Performance.
Base Year: July 24, 2026 July 23, 2027
Option Year One: July 24, 2027 July 23, 2028
Option Year Two: July 24, 2028 July 23, 2029
Option Year Three: July 24, 2029 July 23, 2030
Option Year Four: July 24, 2030 July 23, 2031
Delivery Schedule.
Timeline
Task
Deliverable
Documentation
Base year
Invoice
Annual
Submission to Tungsten & 1 copy to POC
Base year
Service call(s) as required
Service report will be provided within 2 weeks of the visit
1 copy to POC
Option year 1
Invoice
Annual
Submission to Tungsten & 1 copy to POC
Option year 1
Service call(s) as required
Service report will be provided within 2 weeks of the visit
1 copy to POC
Option year 2
Invoice
Annual
Submission to Tungsten & 1 copy to POC
Option year 2
Service call(s) as required
Service report will be provided within 2 weeks of the visit
1 copy to POC
Option year 3
Invoice
Annual
Submission to Tungsten & 1 copy to POC
Option year 3
Service call(s) as required
Service report will be provided within 2 weeks of the visit
1 copy to POC
Option year 4
Invoice
Annual
Submission to Tungsten & 1 copy to POC
Option year 4
Service call(s) as required
Service report will be provided within 2 weeks of the visit
1 copy to POC
Required Information in Your Response to Sources Sought:
In order to be considered a valid source that can impact the set-aside determination of a possible future solicitation, potential contractors shall provide, at a minimum, the following information to peter.park2@va.gov by below response deadline:
1) Company name, address, and point of contact, phone number, e-mail address, and UEI.
2) Please identify your company s size in comparison to the anticipated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 811210 Laboratory Instrument Repair and Maintenance Services. To be considered a small business your company must have less than 34 million dollars in average annual receipts. This notice is to determine the marketplace for this specific requirement. Please check one of the following:
[ ] yes [ ] no Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB)
[ ] yes [ ] no Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB)
[ ] yes [ ] no Women Owned Small Business (WOSB)
[ ] yes [ ] no HUBZone
[ ] yes [ ] no Small Business Manufacturers
[ ] yes [ ] no All other Small Business (SB)
[ ] yes [ ] no Other than Small Business
3) Any socioeconomic business must have an SBA certification at https://search.certifications.sba.gov/.
4) Only authorized service representatives/providers of the manufacturer (Bruker) with access to OEM parts will be considered. No used, refurbished, remanufactured, or counterfeit parts will be allowed. Please provide a proof of authorized service provider letter from manufacturer stating you have access to OEM parts for repairs. Your response will not count for a set-aside without a proof of authorized service provider.
5) Please provide a courtesy quote in response to this request to evaluate price reasonableness for any set-aside determination. (Base + 4 Option Years)
6) Capabilities Statement addressing the requirements in the Statement of Work to include:
References for similar services currently being provided or previously provided at the required service levels as outlined in the Statement of Work.
The Government is not obligated to nor will it pay for or reimburse any costs associated with responding to this sources sought notice. This notice shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach. The Government will in no way be bound to this information if any solicitation is issued.
Notice to Potential Offerors: All Offerors who provide goods or services to the United States Federal Government must be registered in the System Award Management (SAM located on the web at www.sam.gov). It is desirable that any Offeror to have completed their business Online Representations and Certifications Application in the System for Award Management (SAM).
Service Address:
Boise VA Medical Center
Search Building #117
500 W. Fort Street
Boise, ID 83702
Point of Contact:
Peter Park
Contracting Officer
peter.park2@va.gov
Response Deadline:
04/22/2026 by 3:00pm Pacific Time
