A0001 - Government Response to Solicitation Questions.pdf

Government Response to Solicitation Questions – 36C10B25Q0207

1. Section E.11 (ii) PRICE: Instructions state that “The Quoter shall complete the Price Schedule section of the solicitation.” Section B.4 (Price Schedule) instructs vendors to “complete Section B.4 below and submit with their quote.” Does the government leave to the discretion of offerors how physically to respond to the Factor 2 requirement (e.g. as a stand-alone MS Excel file submitted separately from the written Factor 1 and Factor 3; or by reproducing the B.4 Schedule of Supplies/Services – completed by the offeror – as a section within the written response; or in some other manner)? GOV RESPONSE: Please complete Section B.4 within the RFQ document as instructed. (Please note, Section E.11 is now E.12)

2. Is there an incumbent contractor? If so, what is its name and contract number? GOV RESPONSE: There is an incumbent (Kennell and Associates, Inc.) currently performing work under contract number 36C10B20C0031.

3. If there is no incumbent contractor, then are there existing contractor(s) that are doing some of the work of this PWS? If so, what are their name(s) and contract number(s)? GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 2 above.

4. If there are no contractors doing any of the work currently, then how is the work of the PWS being done? Or is it not being done at all? GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 2 above.

5. If the work of the PWS is not being done at all right now, then is there a backlog that the incoming contractor will have to handle? If so, please explain and describe how much of a backlog there is. GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 2 above.

6. Pg. 99/ e.11 Quote submissions Are appendices—such as past performance examples or key personnel resumes—counted toward the 10-page limit, or may they be included as supplemental materials outside of the page count to demonstrate the vendor’s capability to perform the work? GOV RESPONSE: Resumes are not included in the page count. See Amendment 01, The Technical volume page limit has been increased from 10 to 15 pages.

7. P.98/ E.10 Basis of Award The government has outlined the evaluation criteria on page 98.

Could the government please clarify whether weightings or percentage values will be assigned to each evaluation criterion, and if so, can those be provided? GOV RESPONSE:

The Government will evaluate quotations as described in paragraph E.11 Basis of Award.

E.11 (c) states “The Government will evaluate quotations using the comparative evaluation process outlined in FAR 13.106-2 (b) (3), where quotations will be compared to one another to determine which provides the best benefit to the Government.”

8. P.98/ E.10 Basis of Award How will the Government evaluate the adequacy of the proposed staffing plan and level of effort? GOV RESPONSE: The Government will evaluate Technical based on the Quoter’s approach to the technical elements in Section E.11(1). Please refer to Section E.12(i).

9. E.11 Quote Submission Instructions Please clarify if responses to the Technical, Price, Veterans Involvement, and Award Documents and Certifications/Representations are to be submitted in a single volume, or if each should be a separate document. GOV RESPONSE:

Offerors need only submit two (2) separate documents with their proposal. 1) The “Technical” volume, to include their “Veterans Involvement” information and any resumes.

(Resumes are not required and are not counted in the 15 page Technical limit); and 2) the RFQ document with the Pricing and clause/provision fill-ins completed. The “Pricing” and “Solicitation, Quote, and Award Documents and Certifications/Representations” are not required to be separate volumes, and may be included in the one submitted/filled-in RFQ document.

10. Is there an incumbent contractor? If so, what is the expected transition process and timeline? GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 2.

11. Can the government address whether market research was able to satisfy the requirements for a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) and if so, why this acquisition is only a Small Business set-aside? GOV RESPONSE: Based upon the Government evaluation of the Market Research results, it was determined that this requirement be issued as a small business set aside.

12. B.4 Price Schedule Can the government confirm this Line Items is NSP and that no Unit

Price is required? GOV RESPONSE: Yes, CLIN 0002, 1002, 2002, 3002 and 4002 are all NSP.

The “Unit Price” column for these CLINs has been revised to reflect Not Separately Priced.

See RFQ Amendment 01.

13. Combined Synopsis / Solicitation Notice The Government has outlined a number of FAR clauses that require fill-in information as part of a separate volume. This includes a completed copy of “Offeror Representations and Certifications” – Commercial Items”. Can Offerors certify that they have updated and completed annual representations and certifications in the last 12 months electronically in SAM to satisfy this requirement? If so, what further FAR references are satisfied by this certification? GOV RESPONSE: FAR clause 52.212-3 OFFEROR REPS AND CERTS- COMMERCIAL ITEMS (MAY 2024) has been added via Amendment 01. If annual reps and certs in SAM.gov have been completed, only section B of 52.212-3 need be filled in. However, the remaining fill-ins for the other clauses/provisions initially identified in the RFQ must still be completed.

14. B.4 Price Schedule, p. 25 Last row in Schedule titled “Total Contract Value Inclusive of all option periods and optional task”: Please clarify whether Offerors are to include the $100,000 travel cost in this field or if the government will add $100,000 to the value provided in this field. GOV RESPONSE: The total not-to-exceed (NTE) amount for Travel for each period of performance is $25,000.00. As a result, the offeror is to include this amount in the total price when filling in the performance year and grand totals. The offeror is to include the $125,000.00 in their total proposed price.

15. B.4 Price Schedule, p. 5 Please confirm that Offerors are to provide a price for CLINs 0003, 0004, 0005, 0006, 0007; 1003, 1004, 1005, 1006, 1007; 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007;

3003, 3004, 3005, 3006, 3007; 4003, 4004, 4005, 4006, 4007; 5001. GOV RESPONSE: This is correct.

16. (ii) Price, p. 100 Please clarify how the government wants Offerors to submit pricing (i.e., Price Schedule table pulled out into a separate Excel file, entire copy of the RFQ+36C10B25Q0207+-+DaVINCI+Data+Sustainment with Price Schedule completed, Price Schedule table pulled out into a separate PDF file). GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 1.

17. E.11, p. 99 Per E. 11 Quote Submission Instructions, "Responses to Price, RFQ, Quote, and

Award Documents and Certifications/Representations will not be included in the page count of the Quote." Please confirm that there are a total of (4) four volumes that are required to be submitted, I: Technical Volume, II: Price Volume, III: Veterans Involvement, and IV: Solicitation, Quote, and Award Documents and Certifications/Representations? If there are not four separate volumes, please detail submission requirements and locations for each of the above sections? GOV RESPONSE: The “Pricing“ information should be filled in directly in Section B4 of the RFQ document. The “Solicitation, Quote, and Award Documents and Certifications/Representations” information should be filled directly into the provision fill-ins inside the RFQ document. Separate volumes are not required for this information and should be submitted via the filled-in RFQ document. See response to question 9.

18. E.11, p. 99, (iii) Per E.11 Quote Submission Instructions, "4) The Technical response shall be limited to 10 pages." Please confirm that the Technical Volume is the only volume with page limit requirements. GOV RESPONSE: This is correct.

19. B.4 Price Schedule, p. 5 Are Offerors required to develop their price based on their GSA MAS

Schedule? GOV RESPONSE: No.

20. B.4 Price Schedule, p. 5 For the Price Volume, in addition to the Price Schedule (Section B.4), does the Government require a breakdown of the labor categories, labor rates and hours for each CLIN? GOV RESPONSE: Labor hours per CLIN are not required. If in the performance of this contract, non-exempt personnel in accordance with the Service Contract Act will be utilized, the contractor must identify any personnel subject to the SCA and their corresponding region (state/county) and shall identify them in their solicitation response. See section E.12(ii) Price in the RFQ.

21. Section E, p. 89 RFP states " the offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed...and submitted with it's quotation..." Please clarify what volume acknowledgement of the FAR requirements listed in Section E should be placed?

GOV RESPONSE: The clause/provision fill-ins do not require a separate volume and should be filled in directly in the spaces indicated in the clause/provision in the RFQ document.

Please see responses to questions 9 and 17.

22. As there is a Veterans Involvement requirement, why was this not released as an SDVOSB set aside? Will the government consider revising the solicitation for it to be a SDOVSB set aside? GOV RESPONSE: Please see response to question 11.

23. Is the technical and price desired to be two separate volumes and if so, in which volume would the government like the documents for Veterans Involvement Factor and Certifications/Representations? GOV RESPONSE: Please see responses to questions 9 and 17.

24. In section 6.2.2, it says the contractor needs to prescreen personnel within the first 3 days of contract award but no key personnel are listed. Are there required personnel to be included? GOV RESPONSE: There are no key personnel designated for this procurement.

25. The pricing template appears to have the total for each option period pre-populated with the not-to-exceed amount from the travel CLIN. Can the Government confirm whether this was unintentional, and whether offerors should overwrite those cells with the correct total price for each option period? GOV RESPONSE: The pre-populated totals are inclusive of the Travel NTE amount. Please see the response to question 14.

26. If there is an incumbent contractor, has the scope or size of the contract changed in any nontrivial way between the incumbent contract and the present solicitation? GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 2. The only change in scope is the move from building to sustainment phase the scope of work in sustainment has remained constant.

27. Can the VA provide documentation on the current architecture, components, and technologies that comprise the DaVINCI platform to better understand the sustainment scope? GOV RESPONSE: All current/historical architecture documentation will be available on award. DoD data warehouse is hosted in AWS Redshift. VA’s data warehouse is hosted in Microsoft SQL Server. Data exchange takes place between these two systems.

28. What is the current state of OMOP Common Data Model implementation within the VA, and what specific support activities are expected from the contractor? GOV RESPONSE:

VA/VINCI has transformed a large part of its clinical data to the OMOP data model. This data is combined with DoD’s OMOP data and made available to operations and research users. DaVINCI is an active resource supporting approximately 130 research and operations projects. There is currently a group that supports the OMOP CDM for VINCI. As detailed in the SOW, this requirement is intended to support the DaVINCI arm of the VINCI

OMOP CDM.

29. Please provide specific VA security policies, frameworks, and requirements applicable to this contract, including any Authority to Operate (ATO) documentation requirements. GOV

RESPONSE: This work is specific to maintenance and sustainment of the DaVINCI data resource that resides within the VINCI environment operating under the VINCI ATO. VA and DoD data exchange operates within the framework of an interagency agreement to share data authorized by a current ATO.

30. Please define "business hours" for availability calculations and specify how system availability is measured, including which components are included in availability calculations. GOV RESPONSE: Normal operating hours for VINCI (Monday through Friday;

8:30AM to 10:30PM EST)." Other than pre-agreed maintenance windows, all systems and data must be available to users.

31. Please provide the specific timeframe requirements for each ETL process, including any dependencies or constraints that affect these timeframes. GOV RESPONSE: Currently, the data exchange and ETL process is repeated quarterly. ETL activity and processes are arranged naturally around this cycle, with dependencies on our DoD partners availability to provide their extracts and the QA of the data both sent and received.

32. Please specify which activities must be performed at government facilities and which can be performed remotely or at contractor facilities, including any security or network access considerations. GOV RESPONSE: Under the current contract work is performed remotely using the incumbent contractor facilities and equipment.

33. What is the current relationship between VINCI and VA? Does VINCI have a contract which will be active during the period of performance of the present anticipated contract? GOV RESPONSE: VINCI operates as a resource center working under the VA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD). VINCI contracting is not tied to this requirement.

34. If VINCI has an active VA contract, what is the scope of their contract? What services does it provide VA under this contract? GOV RESPONSE: VINCI operations is made up of both VA and contract staff. Contract staff are primarily focused on infrastructure support operating independently of this requirement.

35. Has Scope paragraph 5.5 "DOD TO OMOP CDM DATA ANALYSIS & MAPPING DESIGN RECOMMENDATIONS" ever been done before for DaVINCI or will this be a first time? If it was done before, how complete was the last mapping and recommendations? Is this item just to keep this up-to-date or perform Scope paragraph 5.5 from scratch? GOV RESPONSE: This is a sustainment requirement, all information from previous mappings and ETL information will be available for reference to support the requirement. This is to keep the design updated and make adjustment based on changes/additions to the data domains/elements.

36. Scope paragraph 5.8 asks for scope paragraph 5.5 to be performed again during each option periods, but this will already have been finished for the base period. How much is DaVINCI expected to change between consecutive performance periods? Please give some metrics so offerors can estimate the scale of the work for Scope paragraph 5.8 in each option period. GOV RESPONSE: Much of the basic mapping will be complete as DaVINCI is a dynamic data resource in the sustainment phase of the project. It is the expectation of the Government that the contractor provides and performs maintenance and updates to the mapping and ETL documentation as the source data matures and addition assets are added and removed. Option periods will include the same work as the base, in addition to any changes required in sustainment due to the addition of data domains/elements.

37. Is the offeror responsible for taking DaVINCI through its periodic authorization-to-operate (ATO) refresh? When was the last time it had an ATO? GOV RESPONSE: There is no ATO requirement/expectation tied to this requirement.

38. pg. 35/ 5.8.1 Options The government has identified deliverables for tasks 5.1 through 5.7 and also references these tasks within the option years. Could the government please clarify whether there are specific deliverables required during the base year, or if these deliverables are expected to be repeated or extended throughout the entire period of performance, including the option years? GOV RESPONSE: Yes, the deliverables remain constant throughout the periods of performance. All deliverables are expected to be repeated from base year thru any exercised option years.

39. Does the government require any specific labor categories that are considered essential for successful performance of this contract? GOV RESPONSE: No specific labor categories/key personnel are mandated by the Government. It is incumbent upon the offeror to propose the solution they best feel fits based on the RFQ. However, see response to question 20.

40. Can you provide more details on the expected staffing levels for each phase of the project, including the specific roles and responsibilities of each team member? GOV RESPONSE:

See response to question 39.

41. What is the anticipated level of effort for each task outlined in the Performance Work

Statement (PWS)? GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 39.

42. Are there any specific qualifications or certifications required for the personnel involved in this project? GOV RESPONSE: Personnel assigned should have the requisite credentials, training and skillset commensurate with industry standards and duty requirements.

43. Can you clarify the process for obtaining access to the data sources from both the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)? GOV RESPONSE: Access is granted through the Privacy offices providing necessary information to meet access requirements for both DoD and VHA. Upon being granted network access, contractors can ask for data access by submitting a request to the data steward/ management team. VA and DoD staff will provide instructions on the process.

44. Can you provide more details on the quality assurance and ETL testing procedures, including the criteria for successful completion? GOV RESPONSE: The PWS details minimum requirements for the QA program for frequency and types of testing required.

45. What are the expectations for the training sessions, including the format, frequency, and content? GOV RESPONSE: PWS details formats for the training sessions, the government will dictate the topics based on the needs of the research community. The frequency is typically one event per year.

46. P.32/ 5.3 System Administration What is the volume and frequency of ETL jobs currently managed within the DaVINCI environment? GOV RESPONSE: There are approximately 6,000 data elements, in 67 tables, totaling 26 billion records. This data needs to be updated quarterly. Current state is the exchange of data between VHA and DoD occurs on a quarterly basis with files including terabytes of data being exchanged over a SFTP server.

All ETL activity is centered around these quarterly exchanges of data.

47. P.32/ 5.3 System Administration Can the government provide an estimate of the frequency and scope of system setups (e.g., new accounts, new server environments, etc.) expected over the life of the contract? GOV RESPONSE: The contractor is generally not expected to set up new systems or accounts. These tasks are handled by other groups. System setup and server environment control are not a part of this requirement.

48. P.32/ 5.3 System Administration Is there an existing format or system (e.g., ticketing system, SharePoint, etc.) for the maintenance log, or is the contractor expected to develop and manage one? GOV RESPONSE: The contactor is expected to develop and manage the maintenance logs and documentation. System administration maintenance logs would be maintained by the contractor, there will be historical documentation available as well.

49. P.32/ 5.3 System Administration "The Contractor shall provide maintenance throughout the operating hours for VINCI (Monday through Friday; 8:30AM to 10:30PM EST)." Is 100% coverage expected throughout VINCI’s operating hours, or is on-call support acceptable during lower-activity windows? GOV RESPONSE: On-call support is acceptable during lower-activity windows. It is the responsibility of the contractor to ensure adequate coverage is available as stated in the Performance Work Statement.

50. P.32/ 5.4 Source Data How many unique data feeds are currently integrated from DoD and VA systems into DaVINCI? GOV RESPONSE: VA and DoD’s data warehouse, plus OMOP data sources.

51. P.32/ 5.5 DoD OMOP Are there specific ETL tools or platforms (e.g., Talend, Informatica, Pentaho, SQL-based scripting) that must be used or supported for the execution of this project? GOV RESPONSE: SQL Scripts and/or SSIS. There will be historical SQL scripting and business rules available for reference.

52. What are the current limitations or areas for improvement in the DaVINCI database that this contract aims to address? GOV RESPONSE: This is a sustainment/maintenance requirement for the DaVINCI data resource. There are no specific areas for improvement or limitations other than the sustainment and growth of the resource as the project matures. Historically, technology has been a limitation in that data transfer speed is limited, requiring improvements in ETL process to minimize transfer time.

53. Are there specific technical standards or frameworks that the contractor must adhere to when working with the DaVINCI database? GOV RESPONSE: There will be historical SQL scripting and business rules available for reference. It is anticipated that the current practices will be followed in sustainment and projects would suffer minimal interruption in any transition period.

54. Can the government provide more details on the expected level of interaction between the contractor and various agencies (DoD, VHA) in maintaining and developing the DaVINCI resource? GOV RESPONSE: Coordination with DoD’s OMOP and data warehouse teams, in addition to weekly project status/update calls with VINCI’s project management team and OMOP team.

55. 5.3b Performance Metrics What are the key performance indicators (KPIs) or service level agreements (SLAs) that will be used to measure the success of this contract? GOV RESPONSE: The Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) provides a systematic method to monitor Contractor performance. The PWS sets forth “what” service is required as well as the performance standards associated with that task, as opposed to “how” the Contractor should perform the work (i.e., results, not compliance). Reference Section D “Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan” in the RFQ for specifics.

56. 5.3 System Administration and Database Maintenance Services What is the current technology stack used for the DaVINCI database, and are there any plans for technology upgrades or migrations during this contract period? GOV RESPONSE: Microsoft SQL Server is used for storing DaVINCI data. There are no expected changes during contract period.

57. 5.5, p. 33 In Task 5.5 the RFP states that “The VA business ETL team will execute the ETL design document into operational programming code.” In Task 5.3 the RFP states that “The contractor shall provide system administration services, such as maintain current and set up new as needed, ETL…” Please clarify what ETL activities are required by the contractor in Task 5.3 since it appears that most ETL development work will be done by the VA business ETL team. GOV RESPONSE: The contractor will be responsible for creating and maintaining all ETL processes for transfer and set up of the data between VA and DoD.

58. 5.2 DoD & VA Data Access, p.32 RFP states "Contractor shall have obtained full access to data sources for both DoD and VA no later than within five (5) business days from date of award." Based on this requirement, only the incumbent will be able to access both VA and DoD data sources within 5 days of award. Approvals to obtain access to data stores can take a minimum of two weeks or more which gives the incumbent an unfair advantage.

Suggest modifying the requirement to state "no later than 15 business days from date of award". GOV RESPONSE: See Amendment 01; PWS Section 5.2 is changed to read as follows: “The Contractor shall request access no later than five (5) calendar days from contract award, with the goal of obtaining full access no later than 30 calendar days from date of award..”

59. Is the Contractor Project Management Plan, as mentioned for specific task 5.1 and 5.1.2, included in the 10-page technical limit or does it not count towards the page limit? If it is included, will the government consider extending the technical volume page limit to 20 pages? GOV RESPONSE: No, the CPMP is a deliverable under the contract and not a requirement for the proposal.

60. Would the Government consider increasing the page limit for the technical proposal from 10 pages to 15 pages? Given the scope and complexities of the technical approach, an increased limit would allow offerors to provide a more complete and thoughtful response.

GOV RESPONSE: See response to question 6.

61. 5.2 DoD & VA Data Access, p.32 Please clarify the specific VA and DoD data sources contractors will need to request and obtain access to. GOV RESPONSE: VA’s Corporate Data Warehouse (CDW) and OMOP data, plus DoD’s data warehouse and OMOP data.