TechTrend LTAR WebApp, DIEnt Hosting, ARSLTARWP, A-GRIN WebApp, MyPhyloDB, WEPS WebApp
This is a SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals or quotes and does not obligate the Government to award a contract. This notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or an obligation or commitment by the Government, nor is it a Request for Proposal (RFQ) at this time. Responses to this Notice must be in writing.
The purpose of this Sources Sought Notice is to conduct market research to determine, in particular, the capability of Small Business firms to provide the supplies/services described below. Documentation of technical expertise must be presented in sufficient detail for the Government to determine that your company possesses the necessary experience to compete for this acquisition. Responses to this notice shall include the following: (a) company name; (b) address; (c) point of contact; (d) phone, fax and email; (e ) DUNS Number; (f) Cage Code; (g) socioeconomic category (i.e., small business, Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business, Veteran Owned Small Business, etc.); (h) a technical/capability statement as well as your existing customers (i) any GSA Schedule numbers and expiration dates and (j) if you accept credit cards.
ARS will accept responses from ALL socioeconomic categories in order to gain a more complete understanding of the market for these supplies.
The USDA, ARS, Plains Area across the US has a need for a Required TechTrend LTAR WebApp, DIEnt Hosting, ARSLTARWP, A-GRIN WebApp, MyPhyloDB, WEPS WebApp Cloud service contract from 8/14/2020 - 8/13/2021.
The unique requirements of the service are:
TechTrend LTAR WebApp, DIEnt Hosting, ARSLTARWP, A-GRIN WebApp, MyPhyloDB, WEPS WebApp
The NAICS Code for the expected acquisition is 541519, with a Size Standard $25M. Any subsequent procurement will be conducted as a commercial item purchase in accordance with FAR Part 8 and as a Simplified Acquisition Procedure in accordance with FAR Part 13.
Please email capability statements to: Shannon Robbie at Shannon.Robbie@usda.gov by 1200 noon Mountain Time on Monday, August 10th, 2020. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted. Please note "12805B20Q0136 TechTrend Services Sources Sought Notice" in the subject line of the email.
This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that the response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organizations qualifications to deliver the services. Respondents are also advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information or provide feedback about any of the information received. After review of the responses received, the Government may issue a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation in Federal Business Opportunities. No proprietary, sensitive, confidential or classified information shall be included with your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation.
12805B20Q0136 Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Field Research Implementation and Information Delivery Plains Area
8/7/20, 7:11 PM Department of State Digital Minimum Viable Product (MVP) Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
INSTRUCTIONS TO INTERESTED PARTIES
The Government is hoping to identify vendors that can apply mature digital services to federal agencies. As part of this process, this notice is seeking information from vendors to determine which companies have the skills and interest to support this effort. The necessary capabilities needed in support of this requirement are centered on: Agile Development, Design, API Development, Designer, and Front/Back End Development. Please note, this is a Request For Information and Sources Sought. Responses are for informational purposes only; this IS NOT a Request for Quotes (RFQ). Please see the Statement of Objective for specifics regarding the purpose of this RFI. The Government may engage Vendors that respond to this notice by seeking further information about capabilities or even an 8(a) direct award. Answers to Questions in Section 2 are due NLT July 7, 2020 at 11:00am in the format provided in Section 2 to Katherine Lugo at weakley-lugokf@state.gov.
All interested parties should be aware that contractor staff may review RFI responses and anything proprietary should be marked as such and sent in a separate document.
SECTION ONE: DRAFT STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this requirement is to use digital service techniques to identify and solve a core user need through the development and release to end users of a Digital Minimum Viable Product (MVP). This Statement of Objectives (SOO) is predicated on the fact that Department of State (DOS), Bureau of Information Resource Management (IRM), Operations (OPS), Office of Consolidated Customer Support (CCS) stakeholders understand User Experience (UX) design thinking and/or agile software development. For example, necessary job responsibilities within DOS/IRM/OPS/CCS have been redefined according to agile and/or human-centered design roles, and stakeholders are comfortable enough with modern technology concepts and are ready to start delivery of a digital service product by developing a MVP. In order to achieve this goal, quality partners must be able to establish and execute a framework for user centered design, usability research, and agile implementation.
OUTPUTS
The resulting contract will be considered successful when the following outputs have been delivered:
Eight automated processes based on eight CCS user stories identified in this document using UiPath software.
Identification of eight new help desk user stories for future automation.
Key help desk automation and usability metrics
Efficiency report based on success metrics.
Develop and deploy an initial digital version of the product in the development and production environments, respectively.
Conduct usability research with end users to determine whether the success criteria were met.
Determine and document what is necessary to create the levels of efficiency through the solution(s), if successful, or a plan to pivot to a different solution if unsuccessful.
PROBLEM STATEMENT
CCS seeks ways to automate routine processes in a user friendly and intuitive manner to reduce manual work performed by humans, thus eliminating redundancy and rework. In order to efficiently and effectively meet key business objectives in the DOS organization, CCS advocates for the design, co-creation, and implementation of automation that will provide value to stakeholders, customers, and users. CCS requires a project cost analysis including cost avoidance for each user story.
Four critical user stories have been identified to create process efficiencies with the goal to reduce the “time to resolve.” These user stories are currently completed manually.
Data Transfer Request
Password Reset Request
Data Access Request
User Account Disabled Request
Four additional user stories include:
Testing web-based systems to ensure they are running
Follow up emails for customer engagements
Automation of account disablement processes and subprocesses
Distribution List Modification
These user stories have been identified to increase help desk efficiency. Most activities of the help desk are completed manually.
BACKGROUND
CCS is modernizing and consolidating DOS helpdesks/service desks. Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is seen as a promising technology that can be implemented to gain efficiencies to existing processes and mitigate the need for additional labor as CCS consolidates 19 disparate helpdesks/service desks. Ideally, this MVP pilots the new technology with an Industry Partner versed in both RPA and help desk modernization. If successful, the user stories listed above as well as new user stories will be used to further RPA improvements as helpdesk are collapsed into a unitary service desk.
SCOPE
The MVP consists of four 30-day Sprints consulting with CCS Help Desk Subject Matter Experts (SME), Pilot Users, Testing and Deployment Engineers. These experts will be made available as needed to help the MVP be successful.
Functional Area 1: Discovery and Design
Objective: CCS SMEs and the Industry Partner will collaborate to determine how the problem will be solved through digitalization, utilize user centered design techniques and agile product management methods to create an approach to making the Help Desk more efficient, codified through metrics. The appropriate metrics will measured at the beginning of the project and after the pilot users have used the resulting attended bots for an iteration. Any corrections to the approach will be documented and used to revise the user stories for the next iteration
Tasks:
Conduct user story discovery to determine a digital solution to the agency problem and end user goals for this activity.
Create hypothesis statement(s) that can be tested by the release of the MVP.
Create a backlog of user stories in addition to those provided by CCS and listed in the SOO.
Codify the objectives in metrics used to improvements in Help Desk efficiency.
The successful solution, at a minimum, shall also include the following best practices as highlighted in the digital service playbook:
Understand what stakeholders need
The contractor shall begin this digital service project by exploring and pinpointing the needs of process operators who will use the service, and the ways the service will fit into their daily routine. The vendor shall continually test the products with end users to ensure delivery is focused on meeting their needs.
In delivery of this effort the contractor shall:
Early in the project, the contractor shall engage with current and prospective users of the service (SMEs and pilot team).
Use a range of qualitative and quantitative research methods to determine people’s goals, needs, and behaviors.
Develop and test mockups or prototypes of solutions with real people, in the field if possible.
Document the findings about user goals, needs, behaviors, and preferences.
Share findings with the team and agency leadership.
Create a prioritized list of tasks the user is trying to accomplish, also known as "user stories" to be utilized in the agile development process.
During development, continuously user-test the MVP to ensure it meets user needs.
Measure the resulting efficiencies with the pilot team and project those efficiencies on the entire help desk to show the result of using bots.
Functional Area 2: Development of Minimum Viable Product
Objective: Use agile software development methods a minimum viable product will be developed and released to end users.
Tasks:
Utilize an agile development method to write and manage epics, user stories, acceptance criteria.
Conduct iteration retrospectives, release planning, backlog grooming, and other common activities associated with iterative design and agile methodologies.
Implement best practice methods for automated testing and code reviews.
Work with (DOS/IRM/OPS/CCS) leadership to develop or manage continuous integration, code management processes, security, 508 compliance, privacy or any other agency policies that need to be incorporated in order to release the product into the production environment.
Use CCS provided UiPath development environment in the cloud to build the solution up to the point where it integrates with other systems.
Deploy the system to the OpenNet production environment for (DOS/IRM/OPS/CCS) testers and pilot users.
Test solution with end users and conduct user research activities.
Create and track metrics to determine whether the delivered solution meets end users’ needs and solves agency problem statement to some degree.
As a result of the feedback provide recommendations on what should be modified in future versions of the product
The successful solution, at a minimum, shall also include the following best practices as highlighted in the digital service playbook:
Address the whole experience, from start to finish
The contractor shall holistically account for the different ways people will interact with our services, including the actions they take online, through a mobile application, on a phone, or in person. Every encounter — whether it is online or offline — should move the user closer towards their goal.
In delivery of this effort the contractor shall:
Understand the different points at which people will interact with the service – both online and in person.
Identify pain points in the current way users interact with the service and prioritize these according to user needs.
Design the digital parts of the service so that they are integrated with the offline touch points people use to interact with the service.
Develop metrics that will measure how well the service is meeting user needs at each step of the service.
Make it simple and intuitive
Successful delivery of this contract requires that the services of and products delivered will not be stressful, confusing, or daunting. Therefore, the contractor shall build and release a digital MVP that is simple and intuitive enough that users succeed the first time, unaided.
In delivery of this effort the contractor shall:
Use a simple and flexible design style guide for the service. Use UiPath best practices to build production-quality bots for the pilot team.
Use the design style guide consistently for related digital services.
Give users clear information about where they are in each step of the process.
Follow accessibility best practices to ensure all people can use the service.
Provide users with a way to exit and return later to complete the process.
Use language that is familiar to the user and easy to understand.
Use language and design consistently throughout the service, including online and offline touch points.
Use data to drive decisions
At every stage of a project, the contractor shall measure how well our service is working for our users. This includes measuring how well a system performs and how people are interacting with it in real-time. These metrics shall be reported to the (DOS/IRM/OPS/CCS) Program Managers to find issues and identify which bug fixes and improvements should be prioritized. Along with monitoring tools, a feedback mechanism should be in place for people to report issues directly.
In delivery of this effort the contractor shall:
Monitor system-level resource utilization in real time.
Monitor system performance in real-time (e.g. response time, latency, throughput, and error rates).
Track concurrent users in real-time, and monitor user behaviors in the aggregate to determine how well the service meets user needs.
Provide metrics which may be published internally.
Provide metrics which may be published externally.
Functional Area 3: Retrospective: What worked, what didn’t, what to do next
Objective: Following each iteration, the (DOS/IRM/OPS/CCS) government and contractor team comes together to understand from a project viewpoint to identify improvement actions.
Tasks:
Conduct a project retrospective activity that analyzes data gathered during. performance around goals, timeline, budget, major events, and success or failures
Determine what roadblocks were mitigated and which ones still exist that need to be addressed.
Provide or update the Product Backlog for scaling the MVP through continuous design and agile processes.
Ensure all system documentation, user stories, acceptance criteria and test scripts are finalized.
Example Iteration Plan:
Sprint 1 (30 days): Learn Environment and Business
Meet with SMEs for 4 existing user stories
Identify Key Help Desk Automation Metrics
Identify and Scope User Stories
Develop the 4 existing user stories and have bots ready for test
Learn Environment (FRAME and Production)
Retrospective
Sprint 2 (30 days): Work Within Bot Development Lifecycle
Meet with SMEs to identify 2 new User Stories
Scope User Stories
Test 4 user stories
Receive Feedback from Test (Our Team) on 4 User Stories - Provide any Rework
Develop and deliver 2 new bots
Deploy 4 Bots
Retrospective
Sprint 3 (30 days): Optimize the Business
Identify 2 New User Stories to reduce the SDA human interaction by 10 percent in conjunction with Pilot Team/SMEs
Identify and Develop a Backlog of 11 high value user stories
Test 2 user stories
Provide any Rework from Test Results
Develop and deliver 2 bots
Deploy 2 Bots
Retrospective
Sprint 4: Wrap up
Identify 2 New User Stories to Continue Making SDAs Job Easier
Deliver Backlog of Remaining User Stories to Management
Test user stories
Deploy 2 Bots
Deliverables: Updated Concept of Operation, Lessons Learn Report and Efficiency Report Based on Help Desk Automation Metric
19AQMM20N10001 Department of State Office of Acquisition Management
7/16/20, 2:33 PM Capabilities Contract ID/IQ (CAPCON)
Preamble Regarding Solicitation of IDIQ Capabilities Contract (CAPCON).
CAPCON IDIQ is a ACC AMIC multiple-award Indefinite Delivery, Indefinate Quantity (IDIQ) with a proposed $430M ordering ceiling and eight year performance, intended for R&D (primarily) with Cost and FFP line items for classified requirements. Primary requirement owner is largely (but not necessarily) located in the state of Virginia.
Clauses and provisions are applicable to the CLINs as they pertain to their CLIN type. Not all clauses and provisions apply to the IDIQ and many are submitted for consideration on future task orders. Not all clauses or provisions intended for Fair Opportunity Proposal Requests (FOPR)s & Task Orders (TO)s are yet contemplated and may be added as the need arises or as negotiated.
Description
In accordance with FAR 35.007(a) the Government will use a qualifications-based selection approach for this R&D multiple award IDIQ contract. Cost/price is not an evaluation factor. All evaluation factors are equally important. In accordance with Public Law 114-328, Sec 825 “Exception to Requirement to Include Cost or Price to the Government as a Factor in the Evaluation of Proposals for Certain Multiple-Award Task or Delivery Order Contracts” cost or price will not be considered at the multiple award ID/IQ contract level.
Evaluation of offerors will be conducted in accordance with (IAW) FAR Part 15, as supplemented by DoD Source Selection Procedures, and Air Force Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (AFFARS) Mandatory Procedures MP5315.3 - Source Selection.
NOTICE
Classified Facility Clearance required IAW Factor 1, Sub-Factor 1. Performance Work Statement (PWS) Attachment 1 to this solicitation is SECRET ACCESS REQUIRED and is not available for posting in SAM BETA or any other public forum nor information system. Attachment 1 may be obtained by request to JoAnn Hamlet; joann.j.hamlet.civ@mail.smil.mil (Primary) and Charles Hertenstein; charles.f.hertenstein2.civ@mail.smil.mil (Alternate) or by physical arrangement with joann.j.hamlet.civ@mail.smil.mil to obtain a copy. See Attachment 5 for entry template.
It is not anticipated to receive classified proposals, however IAW Attachment 3, L-3.1, when appropriate classified proposals to SIPR at Charles.f.hertenstein2.civ@mail.smil.mil.
Notice to Offerors: Funds are not presently available for this effort. No award will be made under this solicitation until funds are available. The Government reserves the right to cancel this solicitation, either before or after the closing date. In the event the Government cancels this solicitation, the Government has no obligation to reimburse an offeror for any costs.
Posting History
Request for Information / Sources Sought posted FA4890-20-JWAC01 November 2019
Pre-Solicitation Notice posted as FA4890-20-R-JWAC_3031 on 10 February 2020
IAW FAR 5.203(e), a 45 day response time is given when research and development solicitations are issued.
Submission of Proposals
See Attachment 3, Section L-2 and L- 3. Proposals should be submitted via UNCLASSIFIED e-mail to charles.f.hertenstein2.civ@mail.mil, and john.t.seamon.civ@mail.mil or when appropriate classified proposals to SIPR at Charles.f.hertenstein2.civ@mail.smil.mil. In the event that a proposal cannot be submitted via email it can be submitted as electronic media (CD-R preferred) and shall be sent or hand delivered to the issuing office listed in Block 7 of the Standard Form 33 on/before the date/time specified on the front page. DOD SAFE may be an acceptable resource for unclassified content when accompanied with direct written notification of upload to the email provided. For exceptions to electronic media submission contact Mr. Charles Hertenstein at (540) 653-1422. Mark the front of the envelope/box with the following: “Proposal No. FA4890-21-R-0002, Attn: Mr. Charles Hertenstein, ACC AMIC, DO NOT OPEN IN MAIL ROOM.” If proposals are hand delivered, Offerors shall contact the Contracting Office at the numbers listed in L-2.2 above. Offerors are cautioned to strictly comply with all instructions within this solicitation to ensure submission of a complete proposal. Failure to furnish a complete proposal at the time of proposal submission may result in an unacceptable proposal that the Government eliminates from consideration for award. The Government will not accept any changes to proposals after the closing date of this solicitation (see FAR 15.201 for further information regarding late proposals). NOTE: Electronic media WILL NOT be returned.
FA489021R0002 Department of the Air Force Air Combat Command
10/28/20, 11:47 AM USDA APHIS eFile IT services
The effort will continue the integration and maintenance of CARPOL (Certification, Accreditation, Registration, Permitting, and Other Licenses) functions across four APHIS program units (AC, BRS, PPQ, and VS). In addition to the current permit, registration and license implementations, the solution must be scalable to include anticipated future growth that will include additional transaction types for certifications, accreditations, registrations, and licenses. The selected solution must integrate and reuse core components to support CARPOL functions. This effort will support the goal of a single solution with core components.
To date, the program has focused heavily on permits, which are the most complex of the CARPOL processes. Permits require a significant volume of data inputs and are highly variable by program and by type of commodity or permit item. The program has branched out to other CARPOL processes to support the growing needs of APHIS’ regulatory programs. The current work has included release of a BRS permits pilot, initial design and prototype of PPQ And VS permits, implementation of AC permits, implementation of multiple “assistants” to help applicants determine whether they need to obtain an authorization or not, implementation of Registrations and Licenses features for Animal Care (including related regulatory reporting processes) and build of a CARPOL Portal to enable end users to interact with the different features.
Partnering with APHIS, the current contractor has provided detailed strategic and integration services to support the implementation of the CARPOL Program. This has included services to analyze complex business processes, evaluate improvements to the process and technology, integrate functionality through an Agile implementation methodology, utilize human centered design and design thinking methods, analyze and convert legacy data, and maintain the production system. In support of the implementation, the current contractor has also provided a roadmap for implementation of key identified processes, in line with the fiscal year activities outline below:
With this BPA, APHIS seeks to obtain services for the following activities to continue the eFile implementation roadmap:
FY20:
Continue the current effort to modernize PPQ and VS permit processes on the Salesforce platform. At the end of this phase, PPQ and VS will be able to issue permits for specific areas of their programs (PPQ 587 permits and VS animal product permits)
Continue the elaboration and documentation of complex business logic scenarios for VS commodities
Implement additional sub-programs for PPQ and VS as applicable (e.g. VS Organisms and Vectors, PPQ Soil and Pest, or others)
Migrate AC and BRS permits from Salesforce Classic to Lightning platform
Implement changes to BRS permits-based potential changes to functional needs
Complete the implementation of AC processes that will enable AC to retire their legacy AC system ACIS. This will include finalizing the implementation of internal user Registration and License features and inspections processes, as well as legacy data analysis and migration.
Deliver ongoing Operations and Maintenance services for eFile processes that are live in production
FY 21:
Implement AC customer application submission process to enable external access to Registration and Licensing features.
Implement additional sub-programs for PPQ and VS as applicable (e.g. VS Live Animals, PPQ CITES, Plants for Planting, or others) to allow for the retirement of the ePermits system.
Deliver ongoing Operations and Maintenance services for eFile processes that are live in production.
12639520A0019 Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
8/4/20, 4:47 PM