AUTOMATIC ROBOTIC MACHINES

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) intends to issue a Request for Quotation (RFQ) for five automatic robotics machines to support diagnostic testing and outbreak surge capacity at the Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (FADDL).  These instruments will perform the following activities: Sample preparation (aliquoting from submitter tubes to 96-well plates, decapping and recapping various sized cryovials, sealing plates), PCR mastermix preparation (using kit based PCR reagents to set up PCR plates with mastermix), serological assays (ELISA kit-based assays including plate washing, incubations and moving submitted samples from tube to plates) and sequencing preparation (library preparation, amplification on a conventional thermal cycler, small volume manipulation etc). The solicitation is issued as Unrestrictive and will result in a firm-fixed-price commercial contract. All responsible sources may submit a quotation, which will be considered by the agency. One or more of the items under this acquisition is subject to the World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement and Free Trade Agreements. All questions must be submitted in writing to Contracting Specialist Kathy Melby at Kathleen.melby@usda.gov.