Please note: This is a Sole Source Notification. This is a single source posting notification; there are no solicitation documents for download. This posting is not a Request for Bid (RFB) or Request for Proposal (RFP). MDH intends to enter into an agreement with bioMérieux for the purchase of a BIOFIRE® FILMARRAY® TORCH system (hereinafter “BIOFIRE System”), which will include the instrument, warranty service, tests, and verification kits. The System will allow The Infectious Diseases Laboratory Virology Unit of MDH (hereinafter “Virology Unit”) to run proprietary FDA-cleared kits on an automated platform that reduces hands-on and test turnaround times. The Virology Unit will primarily use the BIOFIRE System for viral respiratory illness diagnostic and surveillance testing with FDA-cleared panels that detect up to 22 respiratory pathogens. The instrument utilizes a closed, fully integrated system that automates sample preparation, PCR amplification, and result analysis, to provide results in approximately one hour. MDH found that only the BIOFIRE System meets all of the business and testing needs of the Virology Unit. The BIOFIRE System detects 22 targets from nasopharyngeal swabs, and 26 targets from a variety of lower respiratory specimens. Other systems detected a smaller, limited respiratory panel, or required swabs from symptomatic individuals, which do not meet the testing needs of the Virology Unit. Additionally, the BIOFIRE System is solely manufactured, marketed, and sold by bioMérieux. Service of the instrument must be conducted by bioMérieux engineers since bioMérieux does not cross train or certify non-bioMérieux engineers to service their equipment. For these reasons, MDH has deemed this to be a single source purchase.
