This is a service / maintenance or supply contract in Gastonia, North Carolina. Contact the soliciting agency for additional information.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Marketing and Regulatory Programs Business Services (MRPBS), Acquisition and Asset Management Division (AAMD) is conducting market research to determine potential sources for an upcoming procurement for USDA, AMS, LATD, National Science Laboratories (NSL) and Seed Regulatory & Testing Division (SRTD) - located at 801 Summit Crossing Place Suite B, Gastonia, NC 28054. The USDA NSL and SRTD perform mission critical analytical testing in the fields of Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Residue Chemistry, Food Chemistry, and Food Adulteration/Alteration in support of the seed regulatory act, various industries and other Federal organizations. As part of these mission critical activities the laboratories utilize an on-site generator to supply backup power to the refrigerated storage units and equipment of the laboratories in the event of a power shortage or loss. The laboratories require a service contract for the maintenance and service of the generator to ensure uninterrupted power to refrigerated units and equipment. Generator: MAKE: CATERPILLAR Generator MODEL: Model 3412 SERIAL #: 9EP02309 The Contractor shall provide a minimum of three (3) preventative maintenance inspections plus one preventative maintenance (PM) service per manufacturer's recommendations within the one year period of performance; the anticipated period of performance is February 1, 2023 through January 31, 2024. Inspections may be scheduled at appropriate intervals, e.g. monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, etc. to preclude equipment failures, damages, or shutdowns. The contractor will provide a detailed description of what each inspection and PM service encompasses including any exclusions as part of their quotation. The Contractor shall provide management, supervision, labor, materials, equipment, and supplies (shipping & handling) and shall be responsible for the efficient, effective, economical, and satisfactory preventative maintenance and service of the generator equipment. Inspections and maintenance per manufacturer's recommendations are to be documented preferably by a pre-defined checklist developed by the vendor and/or service report(s) submitted prior to invoicing/billing. Maintenance or repairs outside defined levels of service must be authorized in advance by the POCs before beginning. The Contractor's on-site technician shall be qualified and/or certified as capable of maintaining and servicing the generator equipment, and must maintain the schedule of PM and respond promptly to service requests. The acquisition strategy for this upcoming procurement is to compete the requirement to the maximum extent practicable, utilizing best value selection procedures (technical and price factors considered), with the exception of services that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled (see FAR Subpart 8.7). The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this anticipated procurement will be 561210, Facilities Support Services, and the size standard associated with this NAICS is $47 million. In order to be considered for award, a vendor must be registered and active in the System for Award Management at www.sam.gov. Interested parties who believe they can meet the capabilities and performance requirements outlined are requested to respond to this Sources Sought Notice by Friday, January 6, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. Central Time to Matthew Phillips (matthew.phillips3@usda.gov), with the information outlined below: 1. Company Information - Name of firm - Point of contact (name, phone number, and email address) - SAM.gov UEI number - Business Size (Large/Small) for NAICS 561210 - Socioeconomic Category(ies) (8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB)(if applicable) 2. Capabilities Narrative - Please indicate if you are seeking opportunities for generator maintenance services. - Are you interested in these opportunities as a prime contractor, or a Contractor Teaming Arrangement (CTA) - Provide information in sufficient detail regarding previous experience (indicate whether as a prime contractor or subcontractor) for generator maintenance services requirements. Include information such as generator make and model, a brief description of services performed, dollar value, location, government or commercial requirement, etc. to facilitate making a capability determination for each future requirement (please note that these requirements vary in size, complexity, and location so information submitted will be assessed for each requirement). - Indicate your experience working in the North Carolina and South Carolina areas. If you do not have experience, please describe your approach for assimilating into this market, including providing qualified on-site personnel to perform the required service. 4. Additional Information - Please include any other information and/or recommendations to assist USDA in its structuring of these contract requirements to facilitate competition, its approach to acquiring the services and the manner in which requirements are described for the identified items/services. Please limit responses to no more than five (5) pages and submit in either Microsoft Word or PDF file format. It is recommended to submit the information in the format as outlined above to minimize the effort of the respondent and structure the responses for ease of analysis by the Government. This notice does not constitute a Request for Quote (RFQ)/Invitation for Bid (IFB)/Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFQ, IFB, or RFP in the future. This notice does not commit USDA to contract for any supply or service. Further, USDA is not seeking quotes, bids or proposals at this time and will not accept unsolicited proposals in response to this sources sought notice. USDA will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this notice. Submittals will not be returned to the responder. All questions regarding this Sources Sought Notice must be submitted by email to the Contract Specialist, Matthew Phillips at Matthew.Phillips3@usda.gov. The method of contractor selection has not been determined at this time.