6640--Intent to award a sole source contract: Leica Cover Slipping Machine for the Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC), Bronx NY.

The Department of Veterans Affairs is intending to award a sole source contract to Government Scientific Source, Inc. for their Leica brand Cover Slipping Machine, HistoCore Chromax CV. The machine is designed to process up to 570 slides per hour and provides a unique multi-stain capability processing for H&E and Special stains simultaneously at high throughput with 52 stations. The contract is for the Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC) at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center in Bronx, NY. * The machine has a glass workstation that improves efficiency by 20% against other platforms. * It provides consistent staining from slides 1 to 1,600. * It offers the fastest glass coverslipping drying time on the market at only 5 minutes. * The machine has a unique color coded rack technology that provides clear visual distinction and starts individual protocols automatically when racks are inserted. * The contract is being conducted in accordance with FAR 13.106-1(b) (1)(ii), Soliciting from a Single Source. * The NAICS code utilized for this procurement is 334516, Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing with a Size Standard of 1,000 employees.