Combined Synopsis/Solicitation for

Plastic Bags, Coin Bags, Spear Envelopes, Cable Ties and Plastic Bottles.



This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, in conjunction with FAR 13.5, as applicable, and as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This acquisition is being conducted in accordance with FAR Subpart 13.5 test program procedures for commercial items. Simplified acquisition procedures will be followed. (ii) This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotations are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. (iii) This requirement is a small business set aside. The NAICS Code is 322232 Envelope Manufacturing, 326111 Plastic Bags, 326160 Plastic Bottles and 326199 All Other Plastics Product Manufacturing with a small business size standard of 500 employees, or less. (iv) This combined synopsis/solicitation could result in the award of multiple Blanket Purchase Agreements (BPA’s) for the same or different items. The Contractor shall provide supplies under the BPA only as directed in orders. (v) The provisions and clauses incorporated into this solicitation document are those in effect at the time of publication. Provisions and clauses incorporated by reference have the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. The full text of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) can be accessed on the Internet at http://www.arnet.gov/far/ (vi) REQUIREMENT: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA), Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS), facilitates the marketing of U.S. grain and related agricultural products through the establishment of Official Standards for grain quality assessments. These Official Standards for grain are used by sellers and buyers to communicate the type and quality of grain bought and sold. FGIS provides impartial grain inspection service based on these standards through a network of Federal, State, and private inspection agencies known as the “official system.” The official system is nationwide and includes 9 Federal Field offices with 10 Federal sub-offices/duty points, and 56 State and private agencies, each providing grain inspection service at multiple locations called specified service points (SSP). These supplies are used by the Official System during and after the grain grading process for: A. keeping separate the various grain grading factors, B. providing 5 pound composite samples to interested parties, C. Shipping grain samples to the FGIS board of Appeal and Review to resolve quality dispute, D. Shipping referee/survey samples, and opinion samples. FGIS, Field Management Division is responsible for providing to its field offices and the State and private agencies supplies, which includes plastic bags, coin envelopes, plastic ties, and plastic bottles. FGIS is seeking one or more contractors to supply one or more of the items mention above and described in section IV, Statement of Work. The contractor must drop-ship items to approximately 80 different field locations within the official system. (vii) QUANTITIES: Each field office is authorized to place orders with vary quantities depending on individual office needs, but will be limited to the dollar ceiling limit at the micro purchase level of $3,000. Orders above that micro purchase threshold will need to be approved through the USDA, APHIS, MRPBS, ASD, Contracting Office, Minneapolis, MN 55403. The following are the approximate total quantities of supplies used yearly by the official system. A. 145,200 Plastic Cable Ties, B. 375,250 Plastic Bags, C. 221,000 Coin Envelopes, D. 15,600 Spear envelopes and E. 2,200 Plastic Quart Bottles, with a combined total dollar amount not to exceed $75,000.00 per year. Each BPA issued will consist of one line item for each of the specific items available by that Vendor/Supplier. (viii) Each order placed shall include shipping for FOB destination, therefore, shipping of the items must be included in the price for all line items. Invoice for all order shipments will be send to and processed by Denise Ruggles, at USDA GIPSA FGIS, Beacon Facility, Stop 1404, Attn: Denise Ruggles, P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO 64141-6205. (ix) DELIVERABLES: Deliverables and acceptance of items will be FOB destination to the specified field office cited in each delivery order issued. Arrange for specific hours of delivery at each location excluding federal holidays. (xi) The PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Each BPA issued will have a base period for 1 year and 4 option years for a period of performance of up to 5 years. (xii) TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:

A. Nylon Intermediate Cable Ties (zip lock) 1. Length of 6”, tie width .130”, 2. Tensile rating INT 30 lbs, 3. Temperature rating 185 F, 4. Material nylon natural, 5. Packed in lots of 1,000 cables per package or bundle.

B. Polyethylene Bags 1. Sizes 8”W x 18”H x 6 mil thickness and 6”W x 12”H x 6 mil thickness, 2. Made of tough, transparent polyethylene material that will not become brittle, 3. Odorless, non-toxic, and heat sealable, 4. Packed in lots of 1,000 bags per box or carton.

C. Coin Envelopes 1. Sizes 2 ½”W x 4 ¼”H and 3 ½”W x 5”H, 2. Made from brown Kraft paper, 3. Water proof glues on seams so they won’t separate under moist conditions, 4. Gummed open end sealable flap, 5. Packed in lots of 500 envelopes per box or carton.



D. Spear Envelopes 1. Size of 4 ½”W x 7”H to hold a capacity of 6 ounces, 2. Made of a heavy jute stock in neutral solid colors, 3. Made with a fold down, tuck-in flap, 4. Packed in lots of 100 envelopes per package.



E. Plastic Quart Bottles 1. Size of 3 ¾” L x 3 ¾” W x 7” H with 1 ¾” neck opening, 2. Made of a durable polyethylene, 3. Odorless, and non-toxic, 4. Includes an enameled plastic screw-top cap with a gasket insert to provide an air-tight seal. (xiii) QUALITY ASSURANCE, A. The government will evaluate the Contractor's performance under this contract. Nonperformance or substandard task performance will be documented when it occurs. B. The Government will monitor quality control procedures under this contract. The Contractor will submit a quality control plan before the contract start date. The plan must include methods to be used for identifying and preventing defects in the quality of service performed and records to be kept to document corrective or preventive actions taken. The contractor must make appropriate modifications and obtain acceptance of the plan by the contracting officer before the contract start date. (xiv) Vendors will be required to submit bid samples of their product and must agree to deliver the same product throughout the contract. The following number of bid samples for each product from all interested vendors must be submitted to the following address for evaluation for approval prior to award, USDA, GIPSA, FMD, PPB, Attn: Henry Greenwood, 1400 Independence Ave SW, Room 2429-S, Washington, DC 20250-2429, Phone: 202-720-1732, A. 10 bid samples of Plastic Cable Ties, B. 10 bid samples of each size Plastic Bag, C. 10 bid samples of each size Coin Envelope, D. 10 bid samples of Spear envelopes, E. 5 bid samples of Plastic Quart Bottles. Each Vendors product will be evaluated for technical acceptability as described in the Statement of Work attached. (xv) The provision at 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors - Commercial applies to this solicitation. (xvi) The provision at 52.212-2 Evaluation - Commercial Items applies to this solicitation. Award(s) will be made to offerors in the following descending order: Delivery Schedule, Price, Technical/Product Sample review and Past Performance. The Government intends to evaluate offers and award without discussion, however, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions later if determined necessary by the Contracting Officer. (xvii) The provision 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications - Commercial Items applies to this solicitation. The contractor shall either complete the on-line Offeror Representations and Certifications or return a completed copy of the Offeror Representations and Certifications with their quotation. The Online Reps and Certs Application Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA) can be found at http://www.bpn.gov., or a hard copy of the provision may be attained from http://www.arnet.gov/far. (xviii) The clause at 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions - Commercial Items applies to this acquisition. (xix) The clause at 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes Or Executive Orders Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following FAR clauses identified in FAR 52.212-5 are considered checked and are applicable to this acquisition: 52.203-6 Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government ALT I; 52.219-6 Notice of Total Small Business Set-Aside; 52.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns; 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting; 52.222-3 Convict Labor; 52.222-19 Child Labor – Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies; 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities; 52.222-22 Previous Contracts and Compliance Reports; 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity; 52.222-35 Equal Opportunity for Special Disabled Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans; 52.222-25 Affirmative Action Compliance; 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities; 52.222-37 Employment Reports on Special Disabled Veterans, Veterans of the Vietnam Era, and Other Eligible Veterans; 52.222-39 Notification of Employee Rights Concerning Payment of Union Dues or Fees; 52.225-5 Trade Agreements; Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases; 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer Central Contractor Registration (CCR). To be awarded this contract, the offeror must be registered in the CCR. CCR information may be found at http://www.ccr.gov. (xx) Quotations are due to the United States Department of Agriculture, Minneapolis Contracting Office, 100 North Sixth Street, Butler Square, 5th Floor, Minneapolis, MN 55403 by 4:00 P.M. Central Time, 7/25/2008. The Samples of your items will be sent to USDA, GIPSA, FMD, PPB, Attn: Henry Greenwood, 1400 Independence Ave SW, Room 2429-S, Washington, DC 20250-2429, Phone: 202-720-1732, Please reference the quote number on all your documents. Faxed quotes are acceptable. (xxi) The assigned Contracting Officer is Mr. Leigh Eberhart, e-mail address Leigh.Eberhart@aphis.usda.gov, (612) 336-3206 or by fax at (612) 336-3550. (xxii) A COMPLETE QUOTE WILL CONSIST OF THE FOLLOWING the items listed in attachment 1 and the Statement of Work. If an offeror’s quote does not contain all of the items listed above, the quote may be considered incomplete for evaluation purposes and no further consideration will be given to the offerors quote, thereby making an offeror ineligible for award.

Multi awards to 3 Contractors:



1. Spear Envelope

2802 Hedberg Drive

Hopkins, MN 55305-3403



2. Seedburo Equip Co

1022 West Jackson Blvd

Chicago, IL 60607



3. C&S International

3646 246th Ave SE

Issaquah, WA 98029-6559