NIST seeks 3 additional high-performance computers from a small business
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is looking for three high-performance computers to bolster a cluster used by researchers at its headquarters within 60 days of a contract award, according to a request for quotes.
A small business of 250 employees or less will be chosen on a lowest-price-technically-acceptable basis to provide the additional computing power, which must include central processing units totaling 64 cores and capable of running 128 simultaneous independent execution threads at 2.0 gigahertz, as well as 512 gigabytes of memory — at minimum.
The Materials Science and Engineering Division will use a Collaborating for Impact Now (COIN) program award, intended to promote collaboration across NIST‘s components, to cover the cost of the high-performance computers.
“The current acquisition will enhance the capability of an existing cluster by increasing the computational resources available to users for scientific computing,” according to the solicitation released in early May. “The requirement consists of three high-performance computer systems, suitable for integration into a resource-managed cluster computing system, and interconnection infrastructure for these systems.”
Equipment racks and cabling won’t be necessary because NIST will insert the systems into existing cabinets with existing connecting infrastructure.
The awardee must deliver the computers within 60 days of ensuring NIST’s Gaithersburg, Maryland, headquarters is open with the contracting officer.
Bidders have until 1 p.m. ET on May 19, 2022, to respond to the solicitation.
