Q-A Facilities 1284M820R0005.docx

FACILITIES PRE-AWARD TELECONFERENCE

SOLICITATION 1284M820R0005

QUESTIONS/ANSWERS

Question: Work hour contradiction on pages 9 and 47 of solicitation Answer: Pg. 9 is just citing standard work hours, not sure what page 47 is citing. However, each individual task order will provide any special work hours.

Question: Are contractors allowed to refuse Task Order requests due to financial concerns or bonding limits?

Answer: Contractors should make the “best effort” to provide proposals/quotes on every task order they receive. They should provide the contracting officer with rationale, if they will not be providing a quote. As for the bonding requirement a contractor doesn't need to actually be bonded for that amount NOW but they must have the CAPACITY to be able to bond for $1.4M in the event projects are received that could total this amount for the year or on any individual task order.

Question: What is the average size project (or range) that you expect to do through this contract?

Answer: The range of construction magnitude is $25K-$100.

Question: For the sample proposal, is it acceptable to use reasonable estimates based on historical data to represent material and subcontractor quotes?

Answer: Yes, the sample is to assist contractors in determining proper coefficients for pricing purposes on a typical project.

Question: Is the $7M maximum amount for the entire program and all sites? Or, is that the maximum for each contractor awarded a contract?

Answer: Each contract awarded will have a ceiling amount of $7M.

Question: Can we assume that a working Supt can be added to the Labor Costs component of the Task Order (T.O.) proposal, and serve as the site superintendent?

Answer: This category (Supervision, item #11) will be removed.

Question: Is all labor burden expected to be included in the Coefficients?

Answer: As shown in the list of items for the coefficients.

Question: Can the vehicles that are used to transport people, tools, and equipment be added to the Equipment Costs component of the T.O. proposal?

Answer: If they are part of the equipment required for the contract completion. If they are only for Transportation purposes, they are included with #13 on the list of coefficient items.

Question: Can vehicle operating costs (fuel, maintenance, etc.) be added to the Equipment Costs component of the T.O. proposal?

Answer: Yes if not part of #13 in coefficient items.

Question: Can travel time for crews be added to Labor Costs on a T.O. Proposal, or is that considered in the Coefficient?

Answer: Travel time is part of Coefficient.

Question: Do material shipping costs (allowable in T.O. Proposal) allow for shipping to the actual job site?

Answer: Yes

Question: If actual labor hours differ from the estimated labor hours used in the T.O. Proposal, will you expect a price adjustment (up or down) via change order?

Answer: No Final pricing is LUMP SUM amount for completed project.

Question: Will work be expected during winter months? If so, who is responsible to plow the roads to access the sites?

Answer: This is addressed on individual task orders if required. Typically snow plowing would be an additional cost.

Question: Will you allow for the crew(s) to lodge or camp on site in remote locations?

Answer: Onsite camping will be approved on a case by case basis and must be requested in writing.

Question: Per the cover sheet, for SF-1449 "OFFEROR TO COMPLETE BLOCKS 12, 17, 23, 24, & 30".

For Box 12, are there any specific requirements for Payment Terms in the solicitation? I tried finding this, but didn't see anything Answer: There was an error on the Instruction Sheet in regards to the SF document. The blocks that should be completed and signed are 19-20C. The payment terms will be cited on the contract and there are many clauses discussing Payment terms.

Question: Overall, would the solicitation Contracting Officer and related staff be open to changing the pricing structure with regards to itemized costs (Materials, Labor, Equipment, and Subcontracted Costs) vs. Location Coefficient entries as many of these costs are either a known rate (FICA, SUTA/FUTA, worker's comp, etc.) or they can change dramatically based on the job location, type of work & cost, local lodging/meals, etc.- Answer: Thus the reason there are different coefficients for every forest/district.

Question: For Section B - submitting Attachments B and C, these are just examples we can submit by following the sample Task Orders in the back of the package?

Answer: Yes, they are to assist the contractor to determine the coefficients and to show how the bids are to be submitted for individual task orders.

Question: For Task Order Pricing Proposals, must be absolutely follow the Excel file template shown, or are we allowed to deviate on formatting a bit, assuming we have all listed data on the sample Pricing Proposal format also listed and clearly identified on our own format?

Answer: Must submit the form for each task order, can attach your own type of data in addition for supporting information if requested. Also, Excel templates have been attached for use. The final pricing is lump sum for each task order, the forms are to have a consistent submittal for the CO to determine reasonability and/or for comparing multiple contractor pricing for an individual contract. This is the schedule of items for individual task orders.

Question: Sheet 3 of 14 of the plan drawings states “Remove loose and chipped paint and glazing from interior and exterior of window sashes, lightly wet sand for smooth transition between adhered paint layers and wood.” It appears that all door trim and fascia consist of the same paint.

Answer: Yes

Question: Do all door frames and fascia paint contain lead and need the same scope of work completed?

Answer: Yes, for the purposes of this example.

Question: Sheet 7 of 14 of the plan drawings shows a detail of a 3-rail railing as well as an example of railing with pickets spaced no more than 4” between each picket.

Answer: Would be dependent on final height of ramp per code. If ramp is over 30” above the ground, then a 4” picket is necessary.

Question: Which type of railing system is preferred?

Answer: For this site, ramp would be under 30” so the 3-rail railing is acceptable.

Question: Sheet 7 of 14, Ramp Section detail of the plan drawings states that “#4 bars @ 18” O.C., Both Directions” are to be used in the sonotube foundations.

Answer: Vertical and horizontal, or be a cage

Question: Will a #4 Bar concrete reinforcement cage be suitable for each foundation? Yes Sheet 7 of 14, Ramp Section detail of the plan drawings indicates “18 inch concrete filled sonotube foundation at least 24 inches below grade on the undisturbed earth 8-10 feet OC as directed by required length with a minimum of 2 per joist. Place to prevent interfering with railing post placement.” It appears that the existing concrete steps will obstruct the construction of the new foundations.

Answer: The contractor would submit a foundation placement plan to incorporated existing stairs for the example project.

Question: Will the existing steps need to be removed and disposed of prior to construction of the new ramp foundations?

Answer: No, foundations to be adjusted to incorporate existing stairs.

Question: Sheet 7 of 14, Ramp Elevation detail of the plan drawings indicates a bridge between the ramp and the building covering the existing stairs. Due to the height of the stairs compared to the door threshold it appears that the door may not be operable if a bridge is constructed up to the point of the door threshold.

Answer: The ramp will be flush with the threshold. The door is to be operable with a flush threshold ramp transition.

Question: Will the bridge for the ramp start at the exterior door threshold or will the bridge for the ramp start at end of the top step leaving the entire top step exposed?

Answer: Starts at the threshold

Question: Page 8- Flat Fee Schedule, Operation & Maintenance Manuals: Is the flat fee of $200 for three (3) copies of the manual, or is it $200 for each of the three (3) manuals; $200 for all three or $600 for all three? Answer: $200 for all three copies

Question: Page 40- Factor 2 – Project Management, Subfactor 1 – Key Project Management Qualifications/Experience: Submit a Letter of Commitment for the Key Personnel to accept employment on the contract. Who is considered key personnel? Does every person who a resume is presented need to complete the Letter of Commitment, or just the main reference on the SF1442?

Answer: Office managers, site managers, cost estimators, etc. People that are going to be around for the foreseeable future and will be involved in managing and conducting work at the sites. If the same person does multiple tasks, that should be identified.

Question: Is there a template letter that you would like companies to use?

Answer: No, it just needs to have information asked for in the Factor.

Question: Page 41- Factor 2 – Project Management, Subfactor 3 – Government Facility & Site Work Construction Experience: Do the ten (10) most recent Facility and site projects requested correlate with the projects requested in Factor 4 – Past Performance, Subfactor 5, or are these separate?

Answer: They may be related or even the same, but please provide separate identifiable responses to each Factor/subfactor.

Question: Page 41- Factor 4 – Past Performance, Subfactor 1 – Quality of Services and Subfactor 2 – Customer Satisfaction - Is this data the offeror is to collect from past clients in general, or is this information that will be gathered from the Past Performance Questionnaires (PPQ’s)?

Answer: Please provide a response that describes your performance, it should be correlated with the information provided by the PPQ’s but it is not the same.

Question: Subfactor 2 – Customer Satisfaction states, “explain how the past performance data provided demonstrates customer satisfaction.” What is the data provided?

Answer: Most of the data requested is contained within the PPQ’s; however, it’s best to provide this data in case the PPQs do not get submitted by the references.

Question: Are the Past Performance Questionnaires to be sent to the references used in the projects decided on in Factor 4 – Past Performance, Subfactor 5? If so, how many projects/PPQ would the Forest Service like the offeror to submit?

Answer: As many as you can within the recent past 5 years as stated in the solicitation.