Notice End Date: April 19, 2023

Vendor Name: NK Photonics SuperK FIANIUM FIU-6 OCT laser source

Contract Amount: $107,492.50

Agency Procurement Manager: SC Young

Agency Procurement Manager Email: scy@clemson.edu

Agency Procurement Manager Telephone#: 8646562830

The Agency hereby provides notice that it intends to enter into a sole source contract per S.C. Code Ann. §11-35-1560 with Vendor for the following supplies, services, information technology, or construction:

The SuperK laser is a supercontinuum laser that is specifically designed for use in OCT and hyperspectral imaging. The SuperK FIANIUM FIU-6 OCT laser source has a repetition rate of 312 MHz and power stability of 0.5%. The single-mode output mode also allows for high quality Gaussian beams (M^2<1.1) and they claim up to 70% efficiency in single-mode fiber coupling. These properties will allow for an increase in sensitivity due to the high coupling, a reduction in noise from the repetition rate and power stability and a reduction in fringe artifacts in OCT imaging due to the high-quality Gaussian shape. It is my understanding that no other laser source company can provide a compact supercontinuum source with the high specifications needed to perform OCT imaging and HSI on bacteria biofilms. Other laser sources have significant wavelength instability which degrades the data needed for our imaging systems. For these reasons, this is a sole source request.

Agency's justification for a sole source procurement may be viewed or immediately obtained at: Agency Procurement Manager (Listed Above)

PROTESTS:
Any actual or prospective bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of this sole source contract, shall notify the appropriate chief Procurement officer in writing of its intent to protest within five (5) business days of the date this notice is posted. Any actual or prospective bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor who is aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of this sole source contract and has timely notified the appropriate chief procurement officer of its intent to protest, may protest to the appropriate chief procurement officer in the manner set forth below within fifteen days of the date this notice is posted; except that a matter that could have been raised as a protest of the solicitation may not be raised as a protest of the award or intended award of a contract.
A protest must be in writing, filed with the appropriate chief procurement officer, and set forth the grounds of the protest and the relief requested with enough particularity to give notice of the issues to be decided. The protest must be received by the appropriate chief procurement officer within the time provided above. Days are calculated as provided in S.C. Code Ann. § 11-35-310(13).

Any Notice Of Intent To Protest And Protest Must Be Addressed To: Materials Management Officer