2.2.1 - Attachment 2 - Evaluation Criteria_RGV.LRT.DRT BBT S TI Maint_DRAFT.docx

ATTACHMENT 2

EVALUATION CRITERIA (DRAFT)

70B01C25R00000038 Attachment 2

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Del Rio Texas Sector (DRT)

A. INTRODUCTION

The Tactical Infrastructure (TI) Maintenance Program within the Program Management Office Directorate (PMOD) of the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), a component of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), requires contract support services to perform both periodic inspection and maintenance of Tactical Infrastructure (TI), as well as unscheduled repairs. These services will be performed along the Southwest Border and surrounding areas on fences/gates (including concertina wire & razor wire), roads/bridges (including: boat ramps & slips), drainage/grate systems, lighting/electrical systems, vegetation control/debris removal (including: hyacinth, hydrilla & Carrizo Cane), TI attributes including generators & shelters and tunnel remediation. Border Patrol, in conjunction with TI Maintenance, is working to define routine requirements for TI; however, in addition to routine maintenance that can be planned and scheduled, there are also work requirements that cannot be scheduled. Damage caused by vandalism and the forces of nature comprise the majority of the work requirement, and unfortunately, that work cannot be predicted. The proposed contracts must provide for routine maintenance and have the flexibility to provide short notice support for unexpected, urgent mission critical repairs.

This acquisition does not involve operations, technologies, or activities with any DHS component except CBP.

Section102 of the Secure Fence Act requires the DHS to construct – in the most expeditious manner possible – the infrastructure necessary to deter and prevent illegal entry across our Southwest Border. This includes pedestrian and vehicle fencing, roads, and technology. Gaining effective control of our Nation’s borders is a critical element of national security, and CBP is constructing tactical infrastructure to better execute this vital mission. The TI Maintenance Program develops and installs physical components designed to provide persistent impedance of illicit cross-border activity. The main categories of TI are roads, fences/gates (including concertina wire & razor wire), roads/bridges (including boat ramps & slips), drainage/grate systems, lighting/electrical systems, vegetation control/debris removal (including: hyacinth, hydrilla & Carrizo Cane), TI attributes including generators & shelters and tunnel remediation.

The program currently manages two major projects to meet the goals set forth by the Secure Fence Act, the construction of pedestrian fence and vehicle fence. The various types of fencing have been tailor-made to suit the type of environment (urban, rural, or remote), type of geographic and climatic characteristics (hills, rivers, mountains, forest, desert, etc.), and operational requirements of the Border Patrol (BP). TI has been constructed along section of California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, encompassing the San Diego (SDC), El Centro (ELC), Yuma (YUM), Tucson (TCA), El Paso (EPT), Big Bend (BBT), Del Rio (DRT), Laredo (LRT) and Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Sectors. In support of DHS’s commitment, the TI Maintenance program has a total of approximately 777 miles of primary and secondary barrier, as well as roads, lighting, drainage gates and grates–as part of the right mix of tactical infrastructure, personnel, and technology. As of fiscal year 2024, the value of the TIM Portfolio is valued at approximately $9.5 billion of owned assets along the Southwest border.

B. ACQUISITION STRATEGY

The Government intends to award a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) / Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract for maintenance efforts associated with TI for this acquisition. The TI Maintenance –Rio Grande Valley, Laredo, Del Rio/Big Bend South Sectors acquisition and source selection are being conducted in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Parts 15 and 19.

The TI Maintenance program through the DHS, CBP, will be managing maintenance support for its TI assets along the U.S.-Mexico international border. The scope of this requirement for TI Maintenance encompasses the maintenance fences/gates (including concertina wire & razor wire), roads/bridges (including: boat ramps & slips), drainage/grate systems, lighting/electrical systems, vegetation control/debris removal (including: hyacinth, hydrilla & Carrizo Cane), TI attributes including generators & shelters and tunnel remediation.

This allows the BP to safely and efficiently fulfill its priority mission of preventing terrorists and terrorists’ weapons, including weapons of mass destruction, from entering the United States.

C. EVALUATION METHODOLOGY

All quotations will be evaluated on the basis of the factors stated in the solicitation. By submitting a proposal in response to this solicitation, offerors agree to comply with all terms and conditions contained in the solicitation. In this solicitation, the words “offer”, and “proposal” are used interchangeably (See definition of “offer” at FAR 2.101). Except for any portions of the offeror’s proposal incorporated into the resulting contract by reference, the terms and conditions included in the solicitation, including any amendments, shall take precedence over the offeror’s proposal.

Failure to include all information requested may adversely affect the evaluation. A proposal that merely reiterates or promises to accomplish the requirements of the solicitation will be considered non-responsive.

A proposal that is orderly and sufficiently documented will be easy for the Government to understand and will enable the Government to perform a thorough and fair evaluation.

The Government intends to award a single Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Contract to an offeror on a Best Value, Tradeoff basis. Award will be made to a responsible Offeror whose proposal provides the combination of criteria offering the Best Value to the Government and which conforms to all the required terms and conditions of this solicitation.

The proposal will include the offeror’s proposed solution for the entire scope of work for the Tactical Infrastructure Maintenance project based on the applicable requirements in the SOW (Attachment 4).

The award will consider non-price and price factors.

The following factors will be used to evaluate offers:

· Factor 1– Experience (Oral Presentation, Written references not to exceed 4 pages, plus references for key personnel)

· Mandatory Down-Select

· Factor 2 – Management Approach (Written Proposal not to exceed 15 pages)

· Factor 3 – Technical Capabilities (Written Proposal not to exceed 25 pages)

· Factor 4 – Price

b. Order of Importance – Factor 1 is less important than Factor 2 and Factor 3. Factors 2 and 3 are more important than Factor 4. All non-price (Factors 2 and 3) factors when combined are approximately equal to price. The Government is more concerned with obtaining superior technical performance capability (represented by the non-cost evaluation categories) than with making an award at the lowest overall evaluated price.

As the technical evaluation of proposals approaches equality, price becomes more important in making the award determination. The importance of price will increase as the difference in confidence rating for non-price factors between the Offerors decreases. In the event that two or more proposals are determined not to have any substantial technical differences for non-price factors (i.e., are technically equivalent), award may be made to the lowest priced proposal.

D. EVALUATION PROCEDURES

A Source Selection Evaluation Board (SSEB) will assess its level of confidence that the offering contractor will successfully perform all requirements in regard to experience, past performance, and technical approach. The evaluation will be based on the content of the proposal, proposal corrections and in the case of experience, any information obtained from other sources, e.g., past performance information.

Offerors are cautioned to put forth their best efforts for the submission and to furnish all information clearly to allow the Government to determine their performance capability. Offerors should not assume that they would have an opportunity to clarify or correct anything in their quotation after submitting.

The Government reserves the right to allow quotation revisions in accordance with FAR 15.306, Exchanges with Offerors after Receipt of Proposals, if deemed necessary to determine the most highly qualified Offeror.

After evaluation, the Technical Evaluation Team (TET) will assign a confidence rating to each factor. The ratings will reflect the Government’s confidence in each Offeror’s ability to perform the requirements.

E. EVALUATION FACTORS

E.1 Factor 1 – Experience: Limited to 4 pages, plus references for key personnel

(a) Method: Phone Interview

(b) Duration: 60-minute estimate.

(c) Process:

(i) Each Quoter must request to schedule a Phase 1 phone interview. The Phone Interview will evaluate Factor One- Experience. Failure to participate in Phase 1 of the procurement denies further consideration of a Quoter to proceed to Phase 2. Based on the Government’s evaluation of this interview (which includes some questions provided in advance and some during the interview), a mandatory down-select will then be issued by the Government, whereby Quoters will be advised whether they are invited to participate in Phase 2. Quoters shall not record the call. The Government may record the call.

(ii) In the phone call, the Quoter shall identify a maximum of three (3) past contracts/orders that are most similar in size and scope to the work of this RFP. The Quoter shall also describe the following corporate experience relevant to this requirement: (A) its own recent experiences (last 3 years) in providing similar services in circumstances similar to CBP’s, (B) the similarities and the differences in the work, (C) the value it brought to those experiences, and (D) the value to the Government that comes with its experiences. The Government estimates these questions (A-D) to take 30 - 40 minutes, and the Government will ask questions during the phone interview and provide a Corporate Experience Questionnaire to be completed and discuss during the oral interview.

Table 1. Experience Confidence Ratings

E.1.1 Mandatory Down-Select Mandatory Down-Select Notification:

(i) Based on its evaluation of Phase 1 - Factor One, the Government intends to select up to three (3) contractors who are most highly rated for Factor One to proceed to Phase 2.

(ii) After the Government completes evaluation of Factor One, Quoters will receive a notification via e-mail from the CO. This notification will advise the Quoter of the Government’s decision to proceed or not to proceed with Phase 2 submission. Quoters who are rated most highly for Factor One will be selected to proceed to Phase 2 of the quote submission process. Quoters who were not among the most highly rated will be advised that they are not selected to proceed to Phase 2. The intent of this method minimize quote development costs for those Quoters with little to no chance of receiving an award.

(iii) For Quoters rated most highly and advised to proceed to Phase 2 of the quote submission process, the CO will include the Phase 2 submission instructions on the advisory down-select notification, and the due date for the written portion of the Phase 2 submission. The Phase 2 written submission due date will be a minimum of two (2) weeks from the date of the mandatory down select notification. The Government will release the sample Notional Work Plan with the Phase 2 notice. The Government recommends Quoters begin preparation of Phase 2 quotations only after receipt of the Phase 1 down-select notice. The notices will provide the date and time by which Quoters participating in Phase 2 must submit the Phase 2 quotation.

E.2 Factor 2 – Management Approach: Limited to 15 Pages The Government will evaluate this factor based on following:

Self-Performance Submission Requirements: Offeror shall submit documentation describing ability to self-perform work and at what percentage.

Evaluation: Offeror describes ability with percentages, to self-perform work in all six (6) work area categories – 1) fence and gates; 2) roads and bridges; 3) drainage and grate systems; 4) lighting and electrical system; and 5) vegetation control and debris removal 6) TI attributes: structures and generators. An offeror who self-performs more of the work will be viewed more favorably.

Organizational Structure Submission Requirements: Offeror shall furnish a company organizational chart, with titles indicating roles and responsibilities in delivering TI Maintenance services under the SOW.

Evaluation: A viable organizational structure, including partnering with subcontractors, and a sound approach to working effectively with the TI Program Management Office (PMO) sector. Organization structure presented as a simple chart showing titles indicating roles and responsibilities delivering innovative TI Maintenance services and developing work plan. Provide narrative on organization structure and how offeror intends to meet the requirements of the SOW.

Work Plan Management & Execution A Work Plan incorporates a sound approach in managing and executing requirements on schedule and within budget, and how performance issues are identified and addressed; includes responding to urgent and routine requirements by work category.

Submission Requirements: A Notional Work Plan with instructions will be provided in the RFP. Offeror shall submit a detailed estimate of resources for each work order task, using the included Work Estimate Forms.

Evaluation: Offeror shall demonstrate a sound approach in the development of an effective work plan using the provided Notional Work Plan and templates. Resource estimates shall demonstrate a realistic approach to planning and performing urgent and routine work requirements, by type and quantity to include: time, labor & equipment.

Submitted estimates shall reflect reasonable resource items and quantities needed to perform the associated work order tasks in an efficient manner.

Offeror’s approach should lay out a plan to manage and execute work that: Identifies procedures for executing urgent and routine work. Identifies controls to be used in directing work. Identifies procedures for managing changes directed to the work plan. Must specify work to be performed by any subcontractors.

Table 2. Technical Approach Confidence Ratings

E.3 Factor 3 – Technical Capabilities: Limited to 25 Pages The Government will evaluate this factor based on the offeror’s response to the following:

Technical and Resource Capabilities Submission Requirements: Offeror shall demonstrate knowledge of SOW requirements and Tactical Infrastructure Design Standards (TIDS), and how the standards comply with work identified on the work plan. In addition, the Offeror shall demonstrate its ability in resource allocation and capability to support routine and urgent work requirements across the Sector’s Area of Responsibility (AOR).

Evaluation: The Government will evaluate depth and breadth of offeror’s understanding and knowledge of SOW requirements and TIDS. In addition, the degree to which the Offeror’s resources, including people, materials, equipment, and financing, provide sufficient capability and capacity to support routine and urgent work requirements by work category across a sector. The Offeror shall have an office within each sector AOR. Resources may include Agreements with specific subcontractors to leverage response capacity.

Key Personnel Qualifications Submission Requirements: Offeror shall provide resumes for Key Personnel.

Evaluation: The resumes of the Key Personnel identified in the RFP, Section H, must demonstrate that they meet or exceed the requirements set out in the RFP/SOW and will be evaluated for their depth and breadth of qualifications.

Table 3. Past Performance Confidence Ratings

E.4 Factor 4 – Price Separately and apart from the technical evaluation, the Government will conduct a price evaluation of the Quoter’s price quote the Government will use the information in the Quoter’s Proposed Unit Price Rate Worksheet and line-item summary for each sector to conduct the price evaluation. A price analysis will be conducted to determine fairness and reasonableness in accordance with FAR part 15 procedures.

Failure by a Quoter to comply with Pricing Worksheet Instructions requirements may result in an elimination from consideration.

The evaluation of pricing shall be as follows:

Submission Requirements: Offeror shall complete and submit a Scheduled Work Task Order/Sector cost, Program management (PMO) cost, Unit Price Rate Work Sheet, and the Line-Item summary Sheet included in RFP.

The Total Price shall include the Base Period plus Option Periods.

Except when it is determined in accordance with FAR 17.206(b) not to be in the Government’s best interests, the Government will evaluate offers or quotations for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement to determine the total evaluated price. This includes options under FAR 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services, which applies to this solicitation. Evaluation of options will not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).

The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. To account for the option periods possible under FAR 52.217-8 (maximum of six months), the Government will evaluate the option to extend services by adding six months of the offeror’s final option period price to the offeror’s total price. This amount will be the total evaluated price. The Government may choose to exercise the Option to Extend Services at the end of any performance period (base or option periods). Prices for the base and option periods, including the 6-month option available under FAR 52.217-8, will be evaluated to ensure that they are fair and reasonable for performance of the requirements established in the solicitation and as proposed in the technical submission. The price for the effort associated with FAR 52.217-8 will not be included in the total awarded value at contract award. If, at the end of the contract’s/order’s period of performance (the end of the base period or any option period) and within the time period established in the clause, the Government chooses to exercise this option, the pricing will be pursuant to the rates specified in the contract for the preceding performance period.