5__Attachments_0001.pdf

Questions and Answers

1. Confirm that the cost for outbound and return shipping is borne by the Agency and should not be included in the vendor pricing.

The Agency will pay the cost of shipping.

2. To be clear, these are not color films, so adjusting color would not be required, correct?

The films are black and white, so color adjustment will not be necessary. Some adjustment may be required depending on the level of exposure.

3. Is it the expectation that a pair of large hard drives (2-5TB) can be bicycled back and forth as a delivery medium or must the vendor anticipate costs to provide a new USB drive with each delivery?

Hard drives may be swapped back and forth. Changes have been made to the SOW that hard disks should have 5TB capacity or greater.

4. 180 days-worth of scans could be quite a large amount of cloud/hosted storage. Can the agency estimate the number of reels which are expected to be scanned within that timeframe so the vendor can properly estimate storage.

This is going to be dependent on how quickly the vendor scans the films. We believe that 60 days should be fine. The SOW has been revised to reflect the change.

5. In lieu of storing all of the films online, can vendors provide access on demand same day or potentially upon request, then upload just the films in question, or does the agency really need all films accessible 24x7 for 180 days?

We believe that 60 days should be fine. The SOW has been revised to reflect the change.

6. We assume that enhancement is an extra effort to improve bad film or bad sections of film, not for scanning errors, correct?

Correct

7. Can we confirm that the quality assurance to identify deficiencies where a vendor would be required to repair at no cost, would be for scanning or naming errors, corrupt files, etc. not for enhancements which might be necessary for damaged originals, poor quality film or filming errors?

Confirmed

8. If previous scanning efforts did not identify problems with the film, is the agency just requesting the ability of the contractor to adjust if a filming problem is discovered by the agency and if so, how can the vendor be compensated for the time to make these adjustments if they cannot be predicted nor estimated in advance? Can the agency estimate a small number

140G0322Q0232 Page 3 of 12 of hours for enhancement for which vendors can respond with an hourly rate and be fairly compensated for the work if it is ever required?

Previous scanning efforts revealed very few problems with films, after the initial calibration. Agency would prefer a price quote that includes a per hour rate for enhancement of films, if necessary.

9. In order to facilitate a continuous scanning effort rather than starts and stops is it possible to manage a task order so that either all the film is shipped, or it is shipped in lots so that the vendor can be scanning subsequent batches while delivered batches are under review?

We anticipate being able to send films in batches, starting with a smaller number of films at first. As work progresses, we can ship increasing number of films on a semi regular basis, such that scanning can be performed relatively continuously. We prefer not to ship all the films at once.

10. The solicitation lists that quotes will be evaluated by comparative evaluation. Can the agency describe what this means in practice? Is there a weight applied to various evaluation criteria or is it just the lowest priced technically capable vendor. If the former can the agency provide the criteria, categories and weighted values since some scanning devices are optically better than legacy devices and vendors need to know if this will be a consideration in the initial evaluation or if it is just a capability statement and a price? Page 11 of the RFP speaks to evaluation but from this it is impossible to tell if the agency is looking for the least expensive solution that meets the minimum specs or the best solution at any cost. For example there is a considerable difference between scanning on a 15 year old frame scanning device with no vendor review, vs a newer ribbon scanner and 100% image review. Can vendors offer a price per foot for raw unattended scanning with an optional price per foot for 100% review so the agency can properly compare solutions?

Proposals will be evaluated against the non-price factors for compliance. Companies who are determined to be compliant will then be compared against each other to determine the offer most advantageous to the government. Price will be taken into consideration, but the government is not necessarily looking for the least expensive option nor will the government pay any cost. No weighted values will be applied. Evaluation factors are provided under the “Evaluation of Quotations and Submission Instructions”.

100% review is not necessary.

11. What type of reels/spools are the films on? Please provide photographs of the various film reels/spools.

All films are on 16mm films. Most are ~160 feet. A photo of a reel is shown in the SOW.

12. Is there an incumbent contractor or service provider who previously scanned Earthquake films?

If so, please name the company.

There is no incumbent.

13. For the films that have already been scanned, how are the images accessed or viewed now?

Images are stored as .jpeg files on hard disks.

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14. Do you anticipate one award or multiple awards?

One award will be made.

15. For the online web access can we upload the images to Box?

Box.com is an allowable option for providing access to the files.

16. Can the image adjustments including color, contrast, under or overexposed image to all scenes or to specific areas of a scene be made at the roll level?

At the roll level should be fine

17. Is the year, month, and day the same for each roll?

Each roll covers a single day. The date will be indicated on the box. In some cases, several rolls may be for the same day, but will have a network name. In the photos below, one network name is 31 and the other is 21 for September 10, 1978.

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We will want each image to be named using the following protocol

YYYY.MM.DD.Network.[image#].jpg

Where YYYY, MM, DD are year, month, day (listed on box containing each film), Network is the network name, and image number indicating digital image number within the individual film.

The SOW has been revised to reflect the change.

18. Can the image adjustments including color, contrast, under or overexposed image be made at the ‘roll’ level or are you looking for a very manual process of enhancing every millimeter of the film?

At the roll level is fine

19. Can the data be delivered on external hard drives?

Yes

20. Do you have a Document Management System in place to manage these images or are you looking for a solution for access to these images?

No solution is needed

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PERFORMANCE-BASED WORK STATEMENT

Revised 09/01/2022

1. GENERAL INFORMATION:

A. Introduction

The U.S. Geological Survey, Earthquake Science has a requirement to scan 16 mm film earthquake recordings and produce digital images of these films.

Recent USGS studies have shown the potential of recovering valuable information from 16mm, analog film.

The USGS does not have the capability to scan and digitize 16mm at all, much less at a high-enough resolution to analyze them with modern seismological techniques. The USGS has approximately 20,000 such films; at this time, we expect to be able to fund approximately 5,000 films in the first year of this contract. Future work will depend on the availability of funding.

B. Background

Description of Need:

To enable the USGS to analyze the data in a reasonable amount of time, the films need to be converted from film format to a digital image format. All seismological analysis will be carried out by the USGS, the only services required are conversion of films to digital images.

Description of Films

• Films are 16mm width and are on reels.

• Films range in length from 100 feet to 300 feet, with the vast majority being ~160 feet long.

• Films are of seismograms (i.e. wiggles) and are continuous recordings of ground motion and are not recorded in scenes or separate images. An example scan of film is shown below.

• The films are in reasonably good condition. Previous scanning projects have not identified problems with the condition of the films.

• The films are in boxes labeled with the date of the recording. In some cases, there is additional labeling indicating the network name or some other identifier.

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Example image of film

This image shows a very short piece of a film, appx 4 mm across the film (i.e. not the entire width of the film) and 10 mm along the length of the film.

Photo of 100-foot film reel

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C. Workplan

The contractor shall furnish necessary personnel, equipment, and supplies to perform the following services.

1. After award, the USGS Project Manager will provide the contractor a sample of 5 films and the contractor will be required to process this sample to completion. The contractor must be able to provide a complete service if needed and have the capability to enhance the quality. This may include but not limited to, adjusting the color, contrast, under or overexposed image to all scenes or to specific areas of a scene. The sample quality will be evaluated by the USGS Project Manager, and all quality adjustments must be made.

2. Once the sample has been approved by the USGS Project Manager full scanning may begin. If adjustments are necessary, as determined in C1, the contractor will apply adjustments developed in C1 to scenes or parts of scenes as necessary.

3. For each task order, develop a project timeline in coordination with the USGS Project Manager that will include the number of films to scan on a monthly basis.

4. Coordinate and schedule with the USGS Project Manager to arrange transport the films to the service location (either shipping or pick-up).

5. Coordinate and schedule with USGS Project Manager to return original films and electronic files (either shipping or pickup).

USGS Responsibilities

1. USGS will provide an inventory sheet for the contractor to sign for pick-up and return of films.

2. USGS Project Manager will inform the contractor when films are ready for pickup or shipping.

3. USGS Project Manager will review the deliverables as submitted within 10 working days of delivery. If corrections are necessary, the USGS Project Manager will have up to 10 additional working days, from the time a corrected scan is resubmitted to review the deliverable before acceptance is complete.

D. Deliverables

1. Digital images will be provided to USGS on one or more disks, accessible either by a Macintosh or Windows computer. Disks should have capacity of at least 5TB.

2. Digital images must be in .jpg format unless an alternative standard format is pre-approved by the USGS

Project Manager.

3. Because of the length of the films, it is expected that the scanning of each film will be divided into multiple images. Each film must be scanned in continuous fashion, such that the entire length of the film has been scanned, i.e., no piece of the film will be left unscanned. Images should partially overlap to ensure completeness of data.

4. Films must be scanned at high resolution (maximum pixel separation on film of 2 microns).

5. Digital images will be provided in greyscale.

6. Digital images will have an appropriate naming scheme, e.g., YYYY.MM.DD.[image#].name.jpg where:

a. YYYY, MM, DD are year, month, day (listed on box containing each film); and

b. image # indicates the digital image number within the individual film, where the numbering is continuous and sequential starting from 1.

c. “name” is the network name or identifier labeled on the box.

For example: 1978.09.10.0001.01.jpg for the first image for the film in the box below

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7. The images produced from each film will be placed in a folder distinct from all other films. The folder nomenclature shall be “YYYY.MM.DD.name” and it shall contain all the images for that film.

8. The Contractor will either provide online access to digital images through an online web-portal for quick analysis OR provide software such that the USGS can use similar software for rapid inspection of films.

Access to this portal/software will be available for 60 days after completion of scanning.

9. The Contractor will make every reasonable effort to physically protect the films throughout the scanning process, and in the event of damage caused by contractor, repair the films to a useable condition.

10. The Contractor will return the original films to the USGS Project Manager.

E. Acceptance Criteria

1. Quality assurance - Random sampling of scanned films will be conducted by the USGS to ensure quality standards are being maintained. Any deficiencies will be brought to the attention of the contractor within 10 business days. The Contractor will be required to address and if needed correct the deficiencies(s) within 10 business days.

2. All scanned films shall provide the same legibility and completeness as the original films.

3. All digital images shall be indexed for retrieval.

4. All films that are of poor quality that cannot be scanned to an acceptable digital image by the contractor shall be visibly flagged.

5. All films shall be returned, with film reels ordered by date. Individual films are boxed, with the box labeled with the date of the film.

2. SUPPORTING INFORMATION

A. Place of Performance

Work shall be performed at contractor’s location. The films to be scanned are located in Menlo Park, CA. The contactor will coordinate with the USGS to either pick up and return the films or have them shipped.

B. Period of Performance

The period of performance for the first task order is not to exceed 180 days and will begin one week after award.

C. Government Furnished Property (GFP)

Contractor shall supply their own equipment for all phases of this project. Films will be returned to the government for long-term storage.

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D. Special Considerations

The films are of variable length. Pricing should be per foot of film rather than per reel.

The USGS will either arrange for shipping films to the contractor for scanning and for the return of the films or provide the contractor with a FedEx account number.

The contractor should not pose a known security risk. However, data are non-sensitive and unclassified.

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Pricing 10/03/2022 - 10/02/2023

10/03/2023 – 10/02/2024

10/03/2024 – 10/02/2025

10/03/2025 – 10/02/2026

10/03/2026 – 10/02/2027

Price per foot of scanned film

Per hour rate for enhancement of films (if necessary)

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3. Exhibit A Pricing Sheet v2