THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)/ SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE (SS) NOTICE ONLY – This Request for Information / Sources Sought (SS) Notice is issued solely for information and planning purposes – it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future.
The United States Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA) intends to issue and award a bridge, via a sole source contract, to Chenega Professional & Technical Services, LLC, 609 Independence Pkwy STE 210 Chesapeake, VA 23320-5209, under the authority of FAR 6.302-1, only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. This requirement is for Scientific and Technical Research Support Services for the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID). The Scientific and Technical Research Support Services requirement includes but not limited to:
- Personnel and Facility Security Clearances. A DD Form 254 Contract Security Classification Specification shall apply to this requirement and the prime contractor shall have a Secret Facility Clearance.
- BPRP. This requirement would include tasking that would be accomplished by contractor employees required to be enrolled in the Biological Personnel Reliability Program (BPRP) and Controlled Substances Personnel Reliability Program (CS-PRP) Enrollment.
- Providing research support;
- Providing technical support for technology development and evaluation, and animal research protocols;
- Providing equipment maintenance and validation for Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) compliance;
- Performing clinical pathology sample evaluation and reporting of data;
- Organizing study rooms with necessary equipment;
- Maintaining a current inventory of telemetry implants;
- Configuring hardware and software for data acquisition;
- Providing clinical and administrative support for clinical research programs associated with biological warfare defenses;
- Providing overall administration of medical and non-medical operations;
- Providing administrative and technical guidance with medical background;
- Working in conjunction with the various sciences divisions to project and identify research needs, develop and coordinate study protocols, and execute approved research projects;
- Providing scientific and technical support necessary to execute all aspects of the sciences divisions and USAMRIID’s current missions;
- Providing FDA GLP expertise;
- Maintaining all laboratory equipment and supplies;
- Developing new ultrastructural and molecular pathology techniques;
- Providing necropsy support in Biosafety Level (BSL) 2 – 4 containment;
- Being responsible for the overall performance of high complexity clinical and general laboratory testing in BSL 2 – 4 containment
The estimated period of performance of the requirement would consist of a 6-month base period followed by one, 4-month option period for a total of 10 months with performance commencing on 1 October 2025. The short-fused, short-timeframe requirement is intended to bridge services in anticipation of a competitively-issued re-compete effort that is currently in process. The award of a sole source, bridge contract will help establish a stop-gap measure to provide the services required to meet the existing mission of USAMRIID.
Chenega Professional & Technical Services, LLC, is the only source able to meet the Government requirements. The contract employees providing the services are required to be enrolled in the Defense Health Agency’s Biological Personnel Reliability Program (BPRP). Historically the process to enroll a new individual into the BPRP has taken at least 12 months to complete the process. The services require BPRP, which is highly specialized and unique Chenega Professional & Technical Services, LLC already has BPRP certified personnel in place capable of providing Scientific and Technical Research Support Services during the 10-month requirement; thus, avoiding a lapse in service. Given USAMRIID is the DoD’s lead laboratory for medical biological defense research, any lapse in service could result in USAMRIID not meeting its mission. At this juncture, no other contractor could replace Chenega Professional & Technical Services, LLC and successfully recruit, submit employee packages, obtain BPRP certification, complete orientation and have their employees in place in order to avoid a lapse in service. Acquiring the services from another contractor would adversely impact the Office of the Commander and USAMRIID Directorates and they would lose functionality and critical scientific and technical support services required to support the biodefense research being performed within USAMRIID and would not be able to meet mission requirements.
A DRAFT PWS is attached for review.
This RFI is not a request for competitive proposals and no solicitation document exists for the requirement. Sources interested in responding to this RFI are required to submit a capability statement that includes management and technical data and cost information, in sufficient detail and with convincing evidence that clearly demonstrates the capability to perform the required work. Capability statements shall not exceed five (8.5 x 11 inch) pages using a font size no smaller than 10-point. All capability statements received by the due date of this notice will be considered by the Government. A request for documentation or additional information or submissions that only ask questions will not be considered as an affirmative response. A determination by the Government not to compete based on responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement or to proceed with a sole source contract.
Capability statements are due by 10:00 AM Eastern Time, Monday 11 August 2025. Capability statements shall be submitted by email ONLY as a Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF attachment to the following addresses: Ms. Christina M. Lewis at christina.m.lewis14.civ@health.mil, Jayme L. Fletcher at jayme.l.fletcher2.civ@health.mil and Ms. Tonya Kreps at tonya.r.kreps.civ@health.mil.
