Solicitation
Nhotic Av System Replacement
Department of the Interior · Bureau of Land Management
AI summaryThe Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Oregon State Office wants all audio-visual (AV) systems replaced at the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center (NHOTIC) near Baker City, Oregon. It is one firm-fixed-price (FFP) contract: one set price, whatever the work ends up costing. Only small businesses can bid, the response due date is November 13, 2026, 5:00 PM Pacific, and the performance period is December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2028. More in the summary
AI summary Beta
This summary may miss requirements: 2 of 8 attachments weren't read (AV_Images_0002.zip, Questions_and_Answers_Oct_7_0002.xlsx). Check the attachments on SAM.gov.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Oregon State Office wants all audio-visual (AV) systems replaced at the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center (NHOTIC) near Baker City, Oregon. It is one firm-fixed-price (FFP) contract: one set price, whatever the work ends up costing. Only small businesses can bid, the response due date is November 13, 2026, 5:00 PM Pacific, and the performance period is December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2028.
Who can bid
- Must be a small business; this is a total small business set-aside
- Must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov)
How to submit: Email to matthew_duane@ios.doi.gov. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (11)
From the version posted Oct 20, 2026.
- Serious: Small businesses only. The contract is a total small business set-aside, so firms that are not small cannot bid.
- Worth checking: Limits on subcontracting. A small business prime must keep part of the work in house, yet the center expects electrical support to be subcontracted or done by a local electrician; the clause caps what may go to firms that are not similarly situated small businesses.
- Worth checking: Site visit urged but no date set. Quoters are urged and expected to inspect the site, which is strongly encouraged but not stated as required, and they must call to schedule a visit; the contact is Robert (Bobby) Reis at (541) 523-1842, rreis@blm.gov.
Show all 11Show fewer
- Worth checking: Touch panel quantities differ between versions. The Blue Mountain Encampment lists Qty 4 touch panels in Amendment 0002 and Qty 10 in the original solicitation, and the Trading Encampment lists Qty 1 and Qty 10; ask the contracting officer which is right before pricing.
- Worth checking: Named brands, but no proprietary parts. The tables name brands such as BrightSign, Crestron, JBL and Elo, yet the submittal may not include proprietary software, hardware or components, so you must show your equipment is equivalent.
- Minor: Response due date moved. Amendment 0003 extended the due date to November 13, 2026; Amendment 0002 had set October 30 and the original solicitation showed October 21, 2026, 5:00 PM, so use the current date.
- Minor: End of performance and delivery dates differ. The period of performance ends November 30, 2028, but the order form shows a delivery date of December 31, 2028.
- Minor: Service Contract Act wage rates. A Service Contract Act wage determination is attached, so pay for service workers must meet it; its text could not be read here.
- Minor: Asbestos may be present. The solicitation warns that asbestos-containing material may be found in the project areas, and material suspected to be hazardous must be reported to the contracting officer.
- Minor: Contractor checks the government drawings. The government plans are for information only, and the contractor must confirm the design meets building codes and verify site conditions, with all final designs subject to approval by the contracting officer's representative (COR).
- Minor: Place named two ways. The price section says the work is in Vale, Oregon, while the statement of work puts the center near Baker City, Oregon.
Read from the notice and 6 attachments. 2 of 8 not read. Show which files.
- Sol_140L4326Q0126_Amd_0003.pdf (read)
- Sol_140L4326Q0126_Amd_0002.pdf (read)
- Sol_140L4326Q0126_Amd_0001.pdf (read)
- Sol_140L4326Q0126.pdf (read)
- B03_Wage_Determination_0002.pdf (read)
- B03_Wage_Determination.pdf (read)
- AV_Images_0002.zip: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
- Questions_and_Answers_Oct_7_0002.xlsx: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
Full summary
What they want
- Replace the 1992 AV systems in the exhibit halls, lobby and offices: three theaters, Flagstaff Gallery, Orientation Gallery, Trading Encampment, Blue Mountain Encampment and the public address (PA) system
- Supply six touch screen reader rails, one portrait kiosk, one touch screen table and two touch screen monitors (the center writes the content under a separate contract)
- Replace the sound system, projector and video control in the Leo Adler Theater, and its stage lights and light control
- Build a small green screen studio for tele-learning
- Run all AV low and medium voltage wiring, data and communication cabling, and arrange the electrical support (conduit, line-voltage connections, circuit breakers) through a subcontractor or a qualified local electrician
- Use off-the-shelf parts the center can repair itself, with no proprietary software, no Wi-Fi or network link and no subscription fees; equivalent or better equipment is allowed
- Supply equipment lists, equivalency papers, user manuals and quick start guides, and take away your own debris
- Price five lump-sum (LS) items: AV system for exhibits, touch screen interactive, theater projector and sound, theater lights, and green screen studio
- Contract type
- Firm-fixed-price commercial services contract; five lump-sum items, and the contractor may ask for milestone payments that total no more than the fixed price
- Period of performance
- December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2028
- Place of performance
- National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, 22267 OR-86, Baker City, OR 97814 (atop Flagstaff Hill)
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- How they'll choose
- Award to the responsible quoter whose quote is most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered
- Offers due
- November 13, 2026, 5:00 PM Pacific
- How to submit
- Email to matthew_duane@ios.doi.gov
What they'll judge offers on
- Technical: how you plan to meet the Government's requirements
- Past Performance: recent contracts of similar scope; the Government may also use its own experience with you
- Price: a completed Section B price schedule
What to include when you submit
- Send the quotation in two parts: a non-price section and a price section
- Organize the non-price section by evaluation factor in this order: Factor 1 Technical (how you plan to meet the requirements), then Factor 2 Past Performance (information on your recent contracts of similar scope)
- Price section: return the completed Section B price schedule with a unit price and extended total for each of the five items; the price covers supervision, management, labor, transportation, equipment, materials, other direct costs, overhead and profit
- The statement of work says the contractor shall provide a description of how the work will be completed (timeline, documentation, warranty), an itemized equipment list, a list of any subcontractors and their roles, and papers showing selected equipment is equivalent
- Complete the representations and certifications (also kept current in SAM.gov) and the Buy American certificate in Section K
- If the offeror is a partnership or joint venture, all partners or joint venture representatives sign in Section K
- Acknowledge each amendment before the due time, by returning the signed form, by noting it on the quotation, or by a letter or email that names the solicitation and amendment numbers
- Send questions in writing to matthew_duane@ios.doi.gov two business days before the solicitation closes
Not in the notice text
- Parts of the solicitation were not read: the middle of Sol_140L4326Q0126_Amd_0002.pdf and Sol_140L4326Q0126.pdf (including the component lists for the touch screens, theater lights and green screen studio, and Sections D through H), the Questions and Answers dated October 7 (Questions_and_Answers_Oct_7_0002.xlsx) and the pictures (AV_Images_0002.zip). Check them on SAM.gov.
- The wage determination files (B03_Wage_Determination.pdf and B03_Wage_Determination_0002.pdf) could not be read; check the wage rates on SAM.gov
- How much weight Technical, Past Performance and Price each carry is not stated
- How many past contracts to list and what counts as recent and similar are not stated
- No site visit date is given; contact the BLM to schedule one
- The size standard for NAICS 238210 and the dollar value of the contract are not stated
Eligibility and how to respond
- Set aside for small businesses: only a business that counts as small under this notice's NAICS code can bid as the prime contractor. More open small business set-asides under NAICS 238210
- How to submit, from the AI summary: Email to matthew_duane@ios.doi.gov. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
- SAM.gov has no description for this notice beyond its title. The work is described in its attachments, listed under Notice details.
- Service contracts usually set minimum pay rates (the Service Contract Act). Price the labor with the SCA price calculator.
- Construction contracts over $2,000 pay at least the local Davis-Bacon wage rates, from the wage determination in the solicitation. Price your labor from it: How to price a government contract, and how Davis-Bacon differs from the Service Contract Act.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 20, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- Oregon State Office, Portland, OR
- Product/service code
- T016 · Photo/Map/Print/Publication – Audio/Visual
- Business type
- Construction & renovation (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 238210)
- Versions
4 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 20, 2026 · Amendment 0003 (this version)Due Nov 13, 2026 (changed)
- Oct 7, 2026 · Amendment 0002Due Oct 30, 2026 (changed)
- Sep 24, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Oct 21, 2026
- Sep 22, 2026 · SolicitationDue Oct 21, 2026
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
- How to respond to a solicitation (8 steps)
- How to read a government solicitation
- How to price a government contract
- Set-aside contracts explained
Terms on this notice: Solicitation, Set-aside
Full notice text from SAM.gov
NHOTIC AV SYSTEM REPLACEMENT