Section_L_-_Instructions.pdf

SECTION L 1

FIELD OFFICE SUPPORT SERVICES 2

INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS OR RESPONDENTS 3

L.1 PROPOSAL DUE DATE 6

Proposals submitted in response to this Request for Proposal (RFP) are due [enter calendar date 8 proposals are due], 4:00 PM [enter Eastern Standard Time or Eastern Daylight Savings Time, as 9 appropriate]. 10

L.2 QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE RFP 12

All questions and inquiries from prospective offerors for information about any aspect of this 14 RFP shall be submitted to the Contracting Officer (CO). Questions or inquiries are to be 15 submitted within [enter number of days] work days after release of the RFP to allow PBGC an 16 opportunity to respond. Any question or inquiry received after that date may not be answered 17 before the proposal due date. Responses will not be provided to questions or inquiries received 18 telephonically or via facsimile. 19 Prospective offerors are instructed to submit their questions or inquiries in writing using the 21 following template in Microsoft Excel. 22

Question Number

RFP Document or Attachment (or state “General”)

Page and Paragraph Number

Offeror Question or Inquiry

Responses will be published by amendment to the RFP. Responses to questions and inquiries 25 will be provided to all firms solicited, giving due regard to the proper protection of proprietary 26 information. 27 Prospective offerors are warned against contacting any PBGC personnel other than the CO prior 29 to award of a contract resulting from this RFP. If such contact occurs and is found to be 30 prejudicial to competing firms, the offeror making such contact may be excluded from award 31 consideration. 32

L.3 PROPOSAL PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS 34

L3.1 PROPOSAL FORMAT 36

These instructions assist in performing a fair and equitable evaluation of all proposals. The 38 Government may determine that proposals failing to adhere to this format are non-compliant and 39 may be eliminated from further consideration. 40 Proposals are to be provided in a clear, concise manner, and in understandable terms. Offerors 42 are advised not to make generalized statements such as “the offeror understands and will comply 43 with the requirement,” “standard procedures will be used,” “well known techniques will be 44 used,” “best known practices,” or statements that paraphrase the RFP in whole or part. 45 Proposals shall conform to the format specified below. 47

8.5 by 11 inch pages; 48 12 point or larger, Times New Roman style font; 49 1 inch margin at the top, bottom, and both sides of each page; 50 all pages single spaced; and 51 each page sequentially numbered, with page number centered in the bottom margin. 52 Proposals are to be separated into four volumes: Volume I – Technical, Volume II – Past 54 Performance, Volume III – Cost/Price, and Volume IV – Small Business Participation. A table 55 of contents is to be included in each volume. 56

L.3.2 VOLUME I – TECHNICAL 58

Offerors’ proposals shall address all aspects of the Government’s technical requirements, and 60 provide a cross reference to the location of each requirement in the requirements document to 61 ensure that all technical requirements are satisfied. Offerors who provide details that substantiate 62 how their proposal meets the requirements of the PWS will be rated higher than Offerors whose 63 proposal contains unclear or ambiguous language, or that merely paraphrases or restates the 64 Government’s requirements. 65 No materials shall be incorporated by reference, as this volume must be a standalone document. 67 No pricing information is to be included in this volume to ensure that the technical evaluation is 69 not influenced by cost/price. 70 The Government will not assume that Offeror(s) possess any capability, understanding, or 72 commitment not clearly described in its proposal. It is an Offeror’s responsibility to submit a 73 well-written proposal, with adequately detailed information that clearly demonstrates an 74 understanding of and the ability to comply with the PWS requirements to allow for a meaningful 75 review. 76 Offerors shall identify any exceptions, deviations, or assumptions made and provide sufficient 78 description, including explanation of benefits to the Government, to permit evaluation. 79 Exceptions, deviations, and assumptions which do not provide significant benefit to the 80 Government or which the Government finds unacceptable may preclude an offeror’s proposal 81 from further consideration. 82

L.3.3 VOLUME II – PAST PERFORMANCE 85

Offerors shall provide past performance reference information for three contracts they performed 87 that are recent and relevant, using the following template. For the purpose of this RFP, recent is 88 defined as current or within the past 3 years, and relevant is defined as of similar size, scope, and 89 dollar value. 90

PAST PERFOMANCE

REFERENCE INFORMATION

CONTRACT X

Contractor Name Contract/Task Order Number Contract Title Brief Contract Description Brief Narrative Identifying why the Contract is Relevant to the Performance Areas of this Solicitation

Customer Government Agency/Organization

Total Contract Value Contract Type (e.g., FP, T&M, LH, CR)

Period of Performance Current Contract Status (e.g., Completed, In Progress)

Customer Reference Name Customer Reference Phone Number

Customer Reference e-mail Address

Customer CO Name Customer CO Phone Number Customer CO e-mail Address

Offerors shall use the PBGC Past Performance Questionnaire (included as an attachment in 93 Section J of this RFP) to solicit past performance information from three of their customer 94 references. The following process is to be followed to ensure the completed PBGC Past 95 Performance Questionnaires are provided to the CO for the past performance evaluation. 96 Offerors are to complete Part I of three PBGC Past Performance Questionnaires for their 98 customer references. Offerors are to provide the PBGC Past Performance Questionnaires to their 99 three customer references, requesting that they complete Part II of the Questionnaire and e-mail 100 the completed Questionnaire directly to the PBGC CO (not to the offeror) as soon as possible, 101 but prior to the proposal due date. 102

Failure of the CO to receive a completed Questionnaire directly from the customer reference, or 104 by the proposal due date, will preclude evaluation and result in the assignment of a 105 “Neutral/Unknown” past performance rating for that contract. 106

L.3.4 VOLUME III – COST/PRICE 108

Offerors shall complete and sign the “Offeror” section of the SF 33, Solicitation, Offer and 110 Award, and include it in this volume as the cover letter for the proposal. 111 Offerors shall include a table of contents identifying the contents of each proposal volume. 112 Offerors shall provide a statement in this volume specifying the extent of agreement with all 114 terms, conditions, and provisions included in this RFP, and agreement to furnish any or all items 115 offered at the prices contained in Section B of this RFP. 116 Offerors shall provide the unit prices for all the Contract Line Item Numbers (CLINs) and 118 periods contained in the price schedule of Section B of this RFP. 119 For FP CLINs: No additional documentation is required. 121 For LH CLINs: Offerors shall provide conformation all prices proposed are fully burdened and 123 include all direct and indirect charges.] 124 Large Businesses shall submit a copy of their subcontracting plan in this volume. 126 When an offeror teaming arrangement is proposed, such offerors shall submit adequate 128 documentation to substantiate a bona fide arrangement exists between the team partners in this 129 volume. This documentation shall fully disclose the company relationships along with any other 130 evidence supporting the existence of the offeror teaming arrangements. 131 Offerors must disclose any personal or business relationships or financial interests, which could 133 present the appearance of an existing or potential conflict of interest in this volume. Failure to 134 do so, if it becomes known by any other means could result in a determination of 135 nonresponsibility prior to award, or termination after award. 136

L.3.5 VOLUME IV – SMALL BUSINESS PARTICIPATION 138

The small business participation factor, as used in this solicitation, assesses the offerors plan to 140 maximize opportunities for small business in the performance of the solicitation requirements. 141

STRICT COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT: THE OFFEROR SHALL SUBMIT THE 143

FOLLOWING DOCUMENTATION OR ITS PROPOSAL WILL BE REMOVED FROM 144

FURTHER CONSIDERATION AND WILL NO LONGER BE ELIGIBLE FOR AWARD: 145

• A completed Contract Participation Matrix. 146

• The proposed subcontractor’s written certification of size and socio-economic status for 147 each proposed subcontractor. However, for HUBZone certified subcontractors, the 148 offeror shall provide evidence of HUBZone certification using one of the methods in 149 FAR clause 52.219-8(d)(2). 150

• Documentation demonstrating the offerors commitment to small business. This 151 documentation shall also address historical small business performance. 152

Definitions: 154

• Participant, as used in this factor, includes the offeror as well as any subcontractor. 155

• Participation, as used in this factor, includes the work (dollars) performed by the offeror, 156 as well as the work (dollars) of any subcontractor. 157

• Recent, as used in this factor, is defined as any contract action where services or 158 deliverables were performed or still being performed anytime within three (3) years of 159 issuance of this RFP. 160

The offeror’s proposal shall include a completed Contract Participation Matrix. The Contract 162 Participation Matrix shall identify: 163

• Each proposed participant, including: 164

• Full Company Name 165

• CAGE Code 166

• Each Socio-Economic Category for which the participant qualifies, i.e., Small 167

Disadvantaged Businesses (SDB), Women Owned Small Businesses (WOSB), HUBZone 168 certified Small Businesses (HUBZone), Veteran Owned Small Businesses (VOSB), or 169 Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB). 170

• Total Dollars allocated to the participant. 171

• The total dollars proposed to each category (Small Businesses (SB), SDB, WOSB, 172

HUBZone, VOSB, SDVOSB, and Other than Small 173

• The total participation dollars (total dollars proposed to Small Businesses + total dollars 174 proposed to Other than Small Businesses). The total participation dollars shall equal 175 $100,000,000.00. 176

• The percentage of participation (goal) for each socio-economic category. 177 Note: Small Business participation shall include total dollars allocated for the business in each 179 category for which the business qualifies. For example, if the offeror allocates $100 to a 180 HUBZone-certified SDVOSB, the offeror would include $100 in the SB category, $100 in the 181 HUBZone category, $100 in the SDVOSB category, and $100 in the VOSB category. 182 The offeror shall provide the written certification of size and socio-economic status for each 184 small business subcontractor proposed for this procurement. The offeror may, but is not required 185 to, provide a copy of the System for Award Management (SAM) certifications for clause 52.219-186 1, Small Business Program Representations in lieu of written certifications. However, for 187 HUBZone certified subcontractors, the offeror shall provide evidence of HUBZone certification 188 using one of the methods in FAR clause 52.219- 8(d)(2). The written certifications shall match 189 the size and socio-economic status identified in the Contract Participation Matrix for each 190 subcontractor. 191

The offeror’s proposal shall also provide evidence supporting the offeror’s commitment to small 193 business and information on its historical small business participation. This information shall 194 address: 195

• Compliance with all terms and conditions of FAR 52.219-8, Utilization of Small 196 Business Concerns (when required on recent contracts). This shall include procedures 197 established to ensure timely payments to small business subcontractors. This clause is 198 normally in most Federal contracts, and is also applicable to small businesses. If not 199 required in any recent contracts, the offeror shall so state. 200

• Compliance with terms and conditions of FAR 52.219-9, Small Business Subcontracting 201 plan (when required on recent contracts). If not required in any recent contracts, the 202 offeror shall so state. 203

• Actual small business utilization compared to small business participation goals 204 identified in the approved subcontracting plan for each recent contract that included a 205 subcontracting plan. Offerors shall identify the date of the last Individual Subcontracting 206 Report (ISR)/Summary Subcontracting Report (SSR). Offerors shall address achievement 207 on each individual goal stated within the subcontracting plan including good faith effort 208 if the goal was not achieved. If not required in any recent contracts, the offeror shall so 209 state. 210

The offeror also may submit bilateral teaming arrangements, an explanation of internal 212 controls/documentation/systems, or any other documentation the offeror feels demonstrates a 213 commitment to small business. The offeror’s submission should also explain how the 214 documentation demonstrates a commitment to small business. 215 Note for other than small businesses ONLY. Separate from Small Business Participation, other 217 than small business offerors shall also submit a Small Business Subcontracting Plan as required 218 by FAR 19.7 (FAR clause 52.219-9, Small Business Subcontracting Plan). The Small Business 219 Subcontracting Plan shall be consistent with proposed small business participation. 220

L.4 PAGE LIMITS 222

The page limit for each proposal volume is specified below. 224 Volume I – Technical – 40 pages. 225 Volume II - Past Performance – 2 pages per past performance reference? 226 Volume III – Cost/Price – No page limit. 227

L.5 PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS 229

Proposals responding to this RFP must be submitted electronically via the PBGC Secure 231 Proposal site. Submission of proposals shall be accomplished by offerors using the procedures 232 listed below. 233 Password protect proposal file. 235 Go to https://pbge.leapfile.com. 236 Select “Secure Upload.” 237 Enter e-mail addresses for CO and their designee, and select “Start.” 238 https://pbge.leapfile.com/

Enter offeror contact information. 239 Enter offeror message and description of submission (this information will be included in 240 notification sent to CO and their designee). 241 Select “Notification” checkbox to ensure offeror receives notification when proposal file is 242 downloaded by CO or their designee. 243 Select appropriate upload method—“Regular” or “Enhanced.” “Regular” upload works with all 244 browsers, while “Enhanced” works with Java enabled browsers. 245 Select proposal file (or files) to be submitted. 246 Select “Upload & Send.” 247 Offeror will receive an automated system confirmation upon successful proposal file upload, and 249 an automated system e-mail notification when CO or their designee downloads proposal file. 250

L.6 PROPOSAL REVISIONS 252

Offerors are responsible for submitting any proposal revisions so as to reach the CO by the 254 proposal due date. Offerors may submit revisions to their proposals at any time before the 255 proposal due date, and may submit a revision in response an amendment or to correct a mistake 256 at any time before award. 257 Offerors may submit a revised proposal only if requested or allowed by the CO. 259 Any revisions an offeror makes to its proposal shall be accomplished by providing replacement 261 pages. Revisions from the original proposal shall be identified on the outside margin of the page 262 by a vertical line adjacent to the change. The offeror shall include the date of the revision in the 263 lower right corner of each replacement page. 264

L.7 EXPENSES RELATED TO PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION 266

The Government is not liable for any costs incurred by any offeror associated with the 268 preparation or submission of proposals in response to this RFP. 269