Solicitation
Routine and Surge Heterotrophic Plate Count (HPC) Testing Services. (Biloxi_ Pensacola_ Panama City Beach)
Department of Veterans Affairs · Sol. 36C25627Q0042
Due in 11 daysSDVOSB
Track this notice by email. We'll email you if it's amended or awarded, and a week and two days before responses are due.
AI summary Beta
The VA Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System wants an accredited lab to test drinking-water samples for bacteria (heterotrophic plate count, or HPC) from its Biloxi, MS medical center and its Pensacola and Panama City Beach, FL clinics. VA staff collect the samples and the contractor handles shipping, lab analysis, reporting and records. It is a service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB) set-aside for 1 base year starting Nov 1, 2026 plus 4 option years, with about 101 routine samples a year.
Watch out for
- Accredited lab required, and subcontracting is capped. You need ISO/IEC 17025 and NELAP accreditation for HPC, and if a non-veteran lab does the testing, no more than 50% of what the VA pays you can go to firms that are not certified SDVOSBs or VOSBs, which makes a pure reseller approach risky.
the contractor will not pay
- Tight sample hold times across three states. Analysis must start within 24 hours (8 hours for surface-water-rule samples) of collection, so you need reliable overnight courier service to Mississippi and the Florida panhandle.
Hold-time commences at collection.
- 24/7 surge response within 1 hour. You must keep surge capacity and after-hours receiving ready even though the surge line item is capped at $500 per year.
respond within one (1) hour (24x7), initiate analysis within contractual hold
- Very small order and short timeline. The routine volume is only about 101 samples a year, and quotes are due 13 days after posting with a Nov 1 start.
- Past performance instructions disagree. The statement of work asks for up to 5 relevant contracts while the quote instructions say up to 3 references are optional, so ask the contracting officer before the Oct 15 question deadline.
provide up to three relevant references.
- Unclear evaluation wording. The text says all factors are approximately equal to price, which does not say how technical and past performance are weighed against cost.
Read from the notice and 1 attachment.
- 36C25627Q0042-Routine and Surge Heterotrophic Plate Count (HPC) Testing Services.pdf
Full brief
What they want
- Routine HPC testing using Standard Methods 9215: about 35 samples a year for Biloxi, 46 for Pensacola and 20 for Panama City Beach
- Overnight cold-chain courier pickup so analysis starts within 24 hours of collection (8 hours for surface-water-rule samples)
- Lab analysis and electronic reports with method, medium, incubation conditions, results and quality notes; alert the VA when counts are above recommended levels
- Surge testing around the clock: respond within 1 hour when VA declares an urgent need
- Keep chain-of-custody and supporting records for at least 5 years
- Run an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited quality system and provide five named key staff (program manager, QA manager, lab technical director, senior microbiologist, logistics lead)
- Contract type
- Firm-fixed-price (commercial services, priced per sample on line items), with two small not-to-exceed lines per year: surge testing and next-day-early delivery, $500 each
- Period of performance
- 1 base year (Nov 1, 2026 to Oct 31, 2027) + four 12-month option years, through Oct 31, 2031
- Place of performance
- Biloxi VA Medical Center (400 Veterans Avenue, Biloxi, MS); Pensacola VA Clinic/JACC (790 Veterans Way, Pensacola, FL); Panama City Beach VA Clinic (2600 Veterans Way, Panama City Beach, FL). Testing is done at the contractor's accredited lab.
- How they'll choose
- Comparative evaluation under FAR 12.203(c)(2): quotes are compared with each other to find the best benefit to the government. Factors are Technical, Past Performance and Price.
- Offers due
- October 22, 2026, 10:00 AM Central (CDT). Questions are due October 15, 2026, 10:00 AM Central.
- How to submit
- Email one copy to Contracting Officer Anthony Marion at anthony.marion2@va.gov (Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF, virus checked). No fax.
- Page limits
- Volume 1 Technical: 20 pages or fewer, not counting appendices
What they'll judge offers on
- Technical (accreditations, method, sample handling, hold-time and logistics plan, QA/QC plan, key staff, surge support, sample report)
- Past Performance (CPARS and other government sources over the last 5 years; no relevant history is rated Neutral)
- Price (all line items must be priced; the government asks for discounts)
What to include when you submit
- Volume 1 is Technical only; Volume 2 is Pricing only (complete the B.2 price schedule, with every line item priced or the quote is unacceptable)
- Attach lab certificates and scopes: ISO/IEC 17025 covering HPC (SM 9215), NELAP recognition, Florida DOH-NELAP for the Florida sites, and MSDH certification or reciprocity for Biloxi
- Include the technical narratives: exact SM 9215 variant, medium, temperature and duration for each site; sample handling SOP and chain-of-custody templates; hold-time and logistics plan; QA/QC plan; staffing with resumes for five key personnel; surge plan; sample report
- Fill in and return Section B.1 Contract Administration and acknowledge all solicitation amendments
- Sign and return the VAAR 852.219-75 limitations on subcontracting certification, or the quote will be ineligible
- Identify any discount offered in the line-item description
- Optionally list up to 3 past performance references
You must have
- Must be an SDVOSB, actively registered in SAM and verified in SBA VetCert. The VA may reject the quote if it cannot verify your status.
As this is an SDVOSB set-aside, the contractor is required to be actively registered in the System
- Laboratories must hold current ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation and NELAP recognition, plus Florida DOH-NELAP for the Florida sites and Mississippi State Dept. of Health certification or reciprocity for Biloxi if required.
laboratories must possess current ISO/IEC 17025
- Five credentialed key personnel who are contractor employees, with credentials tied to ISO/IEC 17025 and SM 9215.
Minimum five credentialed key personnel
- Must certify compliance with the limitations on subcontracting (no more than 50% of payments to firms that are not certified SDVOSBs or VOSBs).
Offeror shall complete VAAR 852.219-75 certification/fill-in required per this Solicitation.
- Must follow VA security and privacy rules for handling sensitive data and PIV rules (VAAR 852.204-71, VA 6500 series, FAR 52.204-9, VHA Directive 1605.01).
Comply with VAAR 852.204-71, VAAR 839.101, VA 6500 series,
Not in the notice text
- Estimated contract value or budget (none stated)
- Who currently does this testing, if anyone
- How technical and past performance are weighted against price
- Contents of Sections C.1 to C.4 (option clauses and security clauses) and the end of the quality assurance table, which were left out of the text provided
- How large the surge volumes may be beyond the $500 not-to-exceed line
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Key facts
- Response due
- Oct 22, 2026, 3:00 PM UTC
- Posted
- Oct 9, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Solicitation
- 36C25627Q0042
- Agency
- Department of Veterans Affairs
- Office
- 256-Network Contract Office 16 (36C256)
- Set-aside
- Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Set-Aside (FAR 19.14)
- NAICS
- 541380
- Product/service code
- B533
- Business type
- Engineering, architecture & research
- Place of performance
- Biloxi, MS, 39531
- Contracting contact
- Anthony Marionanthony.marion2@va.gov
What similar contracts paid
15 contracts at this agency under the same NAICS code, in the same state, had activity in the last 5 years, according to USAspending.gov. Small businesses won 44% of the dollars in this market over the last 3 fiscal years.
Typical contract$77KMiddle half: $27.4K to $129K
Typical per year$54.5KValue divided by years of performance
Before you respond
Full notice text from SAM.gov
Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System (GCVHCS) requires routine and surge Heterotrophic Plate Count (HPC) Testing Services for the following locations: Biloxi VA Medical Center: 400 Veterans Avenue, Biloxi, MS 39531-2410 Pensacola VA Clinic/JACC – 790 Veterans Way, Pensacola, FL 32507-1000 Panama City Beach VA Clinic – 2600 Veterans Way, Panama City Beach, FL 32408-7186 Please review solicitation 36C25627Q0042 in its entirety and complete/submit required documentation per Section E of the Solicitation.
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