Q_A_0001.docx

Q & A Solicitation # 140G0123Q0064

1. Can the USGS confirm that this work is to be completed remotely?

The work can be remote, we have no requirement for any on-site work

2. Does the USGS have a preferred communication method in mind in which technical support requests will be submitted? Or can the contractor use an in-house solution?

No preference so long as it is accessible to USGS staff and if there are any steps that we need to do, they are documented for us.

3. Does the USGS want the bid to be time and materials or a firm fixed price?

Please review the attached SF-1449 clause 52.216-31 Time-and-Materials/Labor-Hour Proposal Requirements-Commercial Acquisition

4. Since this contract is subject to SCA WD 2015-4281, please provide appropriate Occupation Code for the position? Also confirm whether the contract is covered by Executive Order (EO) 13706?

The wage determination lists the mandatory min wages for various labor categories. Please select the appropriate code that is most suitable to your company.

Yes, Executive Order (EO) 13706 is applicable please review clause 52.222-62 on solicitation.

5. Who is the incumbent for this opportunity? What is the incumbent contract value?

Refer to PO 140G0120P0437 on SAM.gov

6. Is there any special clearance required for the resource?

No special clearance, there will be no direct interaction with any government systems

7. Is this single FTE opportunity?

This is an “as needed” service requirement so not an FTE opportunity

8. Do we need to submit resume of the candidate?

We will not be evaluating resumes

9. Proposal instructions are missing in the RFP. Could you please confirm, what all information is expected in the response?

Please review the sf-1449 attached with the solicitation. The clauses you are looking for are:

· 52.216-31 Time-and-Materials/Labor-Hour Proposal Requirements-Commercial Acquisition

· 52.212-2 Evaluation - Commercial Products and Commercial Services

10. Is there any historic information available regarding the number of support requests received, type of requests received (ex. Emergency vs. non-emergency requests) occurring during any monitored period of time?

0 to 1 Emergency support requests and 1 to 8 non-emergency requests per year for the last 6 years.

11. We understand that no government furnished property will be required and support will not include directly accessing any government system – are we allowed to expose ETO users to a CACG provided and maintained ticketing platform (ex. JIRA / ServiceNow) for Issue Resolution tracking?

Yes - ETO staff can use a ticketing platform like Jira/Service Now to interact with the support staff

12. Do you anticipate any non-database but potentially related support as well (ex. Storage / Middleware/Network/ etc)? If so, please specify

No

13. Is it reasonable to assume that all servers would be maintained on the same version of MySQL Community Server?

Yes - they are maintained on the same version of MySQL Server Community Edition

14. Please advise (if this can be disclosed) what Operating System(s) the MySQL deployment resides on? (ex. MS Windows/RHEL/etc..)

Linux

15. Are there any surge or off-hour / on-call support requirements anticipated?

Support available by request between 9:00 am to 6:00 pm ET Monday through Friday

16. Please clarify the verbiage in parentheses in Section III.B of the SOW (Ref: III. B. “Period of Performance (expressed as number of days, must include the time necessary to test, review, and/or install the deliverable). – We assume that this refers to the government’s time for testing, reviewing and installation of the deliverable? If so, do we have any historic timelines regarding the ETO group’s timeframes for test-to-install or deploying similar deliverables?

Period of Performance will be on an annual basis and the are no historic timelines regarding the ETO group’s timeframes for test-to-install or deploying similar deliverables

17. Is the organization fully informed and aware of the benefits of live chat and chatbots to provide technical support?

Not applicable to this request

18. If so, how is the organization aware of chatbot benefits? Has the org seen a live demo?

Not applicable to this request

19. Is the organization considering a chatbot to offer the technical support services being requested? Why or why not?

No. AI services may require additional vetting and approval.

20. If so, would you work directly with a Live Chat and AI Chatbot developer as a subcontractor due to their complexities? Or would the chatbot developer need to subcontract with the primary vendor?

Reference answer #19

21. Does the organization have any existing chatbots deployed in their network of departments/organization? If yes, are you happy with its performance & functionality? Why or why not?

Not applicable to this request

22. Could you please let me know how many database servers are to be supported?

We currently have 5 production and 7 non-production databases

23. Do you need an Application DBA?

We need technical support for MySQL Server Community Edition

24. Do you need an Infrastructure DBA?

No

25. Do you need performance tuning work done?

We may ask questions about performance tuning if we need support in that area.

26. Will we have remote access to the systems?

No

27. how many individuals we will be providing services for MySQL help desk

ETO has 4 system administrators/database administrators that would potentially reach out for support.