in vitro transcription (IVT) production and bottling service for mRNA drug-like substance material
Commerce (all) · DEPT OF COMMERCE NIST
Capture briefs (a one-page, shareable copy of this page) are part of Pro. The CSV here holds the notice, its timeline and past awards.
Where this opportunity stands
Every notice posted under solicitation NB645080-26-02073 in this department, oldest first.
- Aug 11, 2026 · this noticeSpecial Notice
Next steps for this stage
Standard steps for the notice type; not advice about this buyer.
- Answer the notice: this is when the requirement can still be shaped.
- Contact the contracting officer named on the notice.
- Check who won similar work; they are the likely bidders.
What the notice says
FBO ANNOUNCEMENT: PRESOLICITATION NOTICE, NOTICE OF INTENT ACTION CODE: SPECIAL NOTICE SUBJECT: Sole source � in vitro transcription (IVT) production and bottling service for mRNA drug-like substance material SOLICITATION NUMBER: NB645080-26-02073 RESPONSE DATE: 8/25/26 DESCRIPTION: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Material Measurement Laboratory (MML), Biomolecular Measurement Division (BMD) in Gaithersburg, Maryland is responsible for the development of reference standards to accomplish NIST�s mission to support the Biomanufacturing industry and underpin measurement… (show all)
s for therapeutics and health, and to carry out sale of standard reference materials in accordance with Code of Federal Regulations 15 CFR Part 230. The production of an mRNA reference material provides the Biomanufacturing community and instrument vendors a well-characterized, traceable, certified reference standard to underpin critical quality attribute (CQAs) measurement assays for mRNA drug substance. The reference standard enables quality control of mRNA assays over time and between assays, establishing necessary traceability for assuring safety and supporting regulatory submissions. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) intends to negotiate on a sole source basis, under the authority of FAR Part 12.102(b) with CellScript located in Madison, WI, for this reference material. Sole Source justification is based on the following: Market research has shown that CELLSCRIPT, LLC (Madison, WI) is the only known source with the necessary intellectual property rights and licensing authority (USPatent 8278036 and US10702600) to produce and provide mRNA generated by in vitro transcription (IVT) using modified uridines in a manner that permits lawful resale and redistribution through NIST as a Standard Reference Material (SRM). NIST stakeholders (the biomanufacturing industry) almost exclusively use modified uridines when producing their mRNA-based therapeutics to submit through clinical trials, and require a Reference Standard made with that attribute. Although other entities may have the technical capability to synthesize mRNA, they do not possess the required licensing rights for this specific application. CELLSCRIPT serves as the licensing authority for the relevant patented technology and is the only vendor able to provide the material while ensuring compliance with applicable intellectual property restrictions. NAICS code for this requirement will be 325414� Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing with a small business size of 1,250 employees. No solicitation package will be issued. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations; however, interested parties who regard themselves as capable of fulfilling these requirements are invited to submit responses to the Government for consideration. Responses received by 1:00AM EST on 8/25/26 will be considered by the Government. A determination by the Government not to compete the proposed acquisition based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Inquiry POCs Erik.Fycklund@nist.gov Primary Donald.Graham@nist.gov Secondary National Institutes of Standards and Technologies NIST Acquisition Management Division (AMD) 100 Bureau Dr. Mail Stop 1640 Gaithersburg, MD. 20899-1640
Recent Agency Awards (Loose Match)
775 award notices on SAM.gov in the last 24 months. Matched by: Same agency (Commerce (all)), any industry: a loose match.
Loose match: same agency, any industry. Read the titles before treating these as competitors.
Single-winner award sizes (744): middle half $39K to $458K, median $100K; range $3K to $8.0B.
| Winner | Awards | Value | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| GROUND LEVEL SERVICES LLC | 15 | $22.5M | Sep 23, 2026 |
| TECHNICAL COMMUNITIES, INC. | 12 | $2.4M | Oct 7, 2026 |
| GOVERNMENT SCIENTIFIC SOURCE INC | 7 | $411K | Sep 22, 2026 |
| TOPTICA PHOTONICS INC | 6 | $614K | Oct 7, 2026 |
| TITANIUM LOGISTIC SERVICES, LLC | 6 | $558K | Feb 24, 2026 |
| PARYMON CORP | 5 | $3.5M | Sep 21, 2026 |
| Carl Zeiss Microscopy, LLC | 4 | $2.7M | Sep 24, 2026 |
| AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES INC · $A · $7.4B | 4 | $1.5M | Sep 23, 2025 |
| Rohde & Schwarz USA, Inc. | 4 | $1.0M | Sep 30, 2026 |
| GOVAGE, INC. | 4 | $898K | Oct 1, 2026 |
Value counts new single-winner awards. "Shared" awards are multiple-award contracts that list every winner with the same total ceiling (same contract, or the same office, day and amount); that ceiling is not one company's win, so it is not added in. Contract modifications are not new awards and are not added in either (1 here). Revenue next to a ticker is the company's revenue over the latest 12 months in its SEC filings.
- $A reported $7.4B revenue (12 months to Jul 31, 2026). The median single-winner award in these 744 past awards, $100K, is under 0.1% of that. SEC filing
One award's total value against one year of revenue; many awards are paid over several years.
- Oct 14, 2026CASTAGNOLA TUG SERVICE, INC.$21KV--Vessel Charter - Buoy Recovery and Deployment - SaNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 14, 2026THE GORDIAN GROUP, INC.$72K14 RS Means License RenewalNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 13, 2026SANGUINE BIOSCIENCES, INC.$200KBlood Bank Sample ServicesNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 13, 2026YOKOGAWA FLUID IMAGING TECHNOLOGIES, INC.$147KFlow Imaging Microscopy combined with Light Obscuration CapabilitiesNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 8, 2026SCIENTA OMICRON, INC.$1.2MHigh-pressure XPS SystemNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 7, 2026TECHNICAL COMMUNITIES, INC.$410KANRITSU FREQUENCY EXTENSION SYSTEM BRAND NAME ONLYNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 7, 2026AVANTES, INC$41KNLIR IR SPECTROMETER SYSTEM MODEL S-MIDWAVE-2050-400-2K-F (BRAND NAME ONLY)No listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 7, 2026SPINNER ICT INC$98KPrimary S-Parameter Standards for Plasma Etching RecordNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 7, 2026PC VISION INC$104KOpto-Isolated High Voltage Switch, G3VM-101LRNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Oct 7, 2026TELEDYNE LECROY, INC.$102KArbitrary Waveform GeneratorNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
Competitive landscape
For the 8 most frequent past winners above. Lobbying is matched by the company's exact name or exact ticker; agencies are as named on the filings.
- 0 of these past winners lobbied Commerce, Dept of (DOC) since 2024 (0 filings)
- 0 of their lobbyists list a past Commerce, Dept of (DOC) job
- No corporate PAC money from them to the overseeing committees since 2024
- 0 foreign-agent (FARA) registrations
Policy around it
Bills the past winners named while lobbying this agency's issues, rules from the department, and executive orders that name the agency, last 12 months.
- 0 bills named on the past winners' lobbying filings
- 373 rules from the department in the last 12 months
- 0 executive orders naming the agency in the last 12 months
Market
For past winners matched exactly to a listed company. Insider trades are open-market buys and sells (Form 4) in the last 90 days, shown as facts; our own study found insiders do not reliably buy ahead of awards. A sale marked 10b5-1 was made under a trading plan set up in advance.
- 1 of the past winners are listed companies
- 0 insider buys and 1 insider sells at them in the last 90 days
Sources: SAM.gov notices and award notices; Senate LDA lobbying filings; FEC filings; FARA; Federal Register; congress.gov; SEC Form 4. Every row above links to its record.
Companies are matched to tickers by exact name, including the subsidiaries a company lists in its SEC filings. A company we could not match shows no market rows; that is a miss, not a finding.