36C24124Q0387_1.docx

36C24124Q0387

PAGE 1 OF

1. REQUISITION NO.

2. CONTRACT NO.

3. AWARD/EFFECTIVE DATE

4. ORDER NO.

5. SOLICITATION NUMBER

6. SOLICITATION ISSUE DATE

a. NAME

b. TELEPHONE NO. (No Collect Calls)

8. OFFER DUE DATE/LOCAL

TIME

9. ISSUED BY

CODE

10. THIS ACQUISITION IS

UNRESTRICTED OR

SET ASIDE:

% FOR:

SMALL BUSINESS

HUBZONE SMALL

BUSINESS

SERVICE-DISABLED

VETERAN-OWNED

SMALL BUSINESS

WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS

(WOSB) ELIGIBLE UNDER THE WOMEN-OWNED

SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM

EDWOSB

8(A)

NAICS:

SIZE STANDARD:

11. DELIVERY FOR FOB DESTINA-

TION UNLESS BLOCK IS

MARKED

SEE SCHEDULE

12. DISCOUNT TERMS

13a. THIS CONTRACT IS A

RATED ORDER UNDER

DPAS (15 CFR 700)

13b. RATING

14. METHOD OF SOLICITATION

RFQ

IFB

RFP

15. DELIVER TO

CODE

16. ADMINISTERED BY

CODE

17a. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

CODE

FACILITY CODE

18a. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE BY

CODE

TELEPHONE NO.

UEI:

EFT:

PHONE:

FAX:

17b. CHECK IF REMITTANCE IS DIFFERENT AND PUT SUCH ADDRESS IN OFFER 18b. SUBMIT INVOICES TO ADDRESS SHOWN IN BLOCK 18a UNLESS BLOCK BELOW IS CHECKED

SEE ADDENDUM

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

ITEM NO.

SCHEDULE OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES

QUANTITY

UNIT

UNIT PRICE

AMOUNT

(Use Reverse and/or Attach Additional Sheets as Necessary)

25. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

26. TOTAL AWARD AMOUNT (For Govt. Use Only) 27a. SOLICITATION INCORPORATES BY REFERENCE FAR 52.212-1, 52.212-4. FAR 52.212-3 AND 52.212-5 ARE ATTACHED. ADDENDA

ARE

ARE NOT ATTACHED.

27b. CONTRACT/PURCHASE ORDER INCORPORATES BY REFERENCE FAR 52.212-4. FAR 52.212-5 IS ATTACHED. ADDENDA

ARE

ARE NOT ATTACHED

28. CONTRACTOR IS REQUIRED TO SIGN THIS DOCUMENT AND RETURN _______________

29. AWARD OF CONTRACT: REF. ___________________________________ OFFER

COPIES TO ISSUING OFFICE. CONTRACTOR AGREES TO FURNISH AND

DATED ________________________________. YOUR OFFER ON SOLICITATION

DELIVER ALL ITEMS SET FORTH OR OTHERWISE IDENTIFIED ABOVE AND ON ANY

(BLOCK 5), INCLUDING ANY ADDITIONS OR CHANGES WHICH ARE

ADDITIONAL SHEETS SUBJECT TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SPECIFIED

SET FORTH HEREIN IS ACCEPTED AS TO ITEMS:

30a. SIGNATURE OF OFFEROR/CONTRACTOR 31a. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (SIGNATURE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER) 30b. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER (TYPE OR PRINT) 30c. DATE SIGNED 31b. NAME OF CONTRACTING OFFICER (TYPE OR PRINT) 31c. DATE SIGNED

AUTHORIZED FOR LOCAL REPRODUCTION

(REV. NOV 2021)

PREVIOUS EDITION IS NOT USABLE

Prescribed by GSA - FAR (48 CFR) 53.212

7. FOR SOLICITATION

INFORMATION CALL:

STANDARD FORM 1449

SOLICITATION/CONTRACT/ORDER FOR COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES

OFFEROR TO COMPLETE BLOCKS 12, 17, 23, 24, & 30

36C24124Q0387 05-30-2024 Issa Shawki 774-826-3192 06-07-2024

12PM

EDT

36C241 Department of Veterans Affairs VA Boston Healthcare System Contracting Officer (90C) 940 Belmont Street Brockton

MA

02301 X X 541611 N/A X 36C241 Department of Veterans Affairs VA Boston Healthcare System 940 Belmont Street Brockton

MA

02301 36C241 Department of Veterans Affairs VA Boston Healthcare System Contracting Officer (90C) 940 Belmont Street Brockton

MA

02301

Department of Veterans Affairs Financial Services Center PO Box 149971 Austin

TX

78714-9971 See CONTINUATION Page The vendor shall complete all work in accordance with the Statement of Work.

The following Wage Determinations apply to this acquisition:

2015-4047, Revision 26, dated April 5, 2024 2015-4019, Revision 26, dated April 19, 2024 2015-4053, Revision 27, dated April 5, 2024 2015-4119, Revision 26, dated April 9, 2024 2015-4127, Revision 27, dated April 10, 2024 2015-4083, Revision 26, dated April 9, 2024 2015-4009, Revision 26, dated April 19, 2024 2015-4095, Revision 27, dated April 9, 2024 Copies of these Wage Determination have been attached to this solicitation.

See CONTINUATION Page X X Table of Contents

SECTION B - CONTINUATION OF SF 1449 BLOCKS

36C24124Q0387

Page 1 of Page 1 of Performance of Work Statement

A. General Requirement. This Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) provides services as requested by VISN 1 Medical Centers (pages 5-6) to maintain compliance with accreditation requirements related to The Joint Commission’s (TJC) Environment of Care (EC) and Life Safety (LS) standards.

B. Tasks. Perform the following services as requested by the Medical Centers:

1. On-site building survey.

2. Verify current occupancy classifications meet NFPA 101 definitions.

3. Update existing Features of Fire Protection drawings (LS drawings).

4. Develop new LS drawings for required areas where LS drawings do not exist.

5. Inspect regulated barrier assemblies for non-compliant penetrations.

6. Review inspection, testing, and maintenance records.

7. Review Basic Building Information (BBI).

8. Review equivalencies.

9. Compile all required information and produce a Statement of Conditions (SOC).

C. Information. The following information is necessary to determine which compliance standards are applicable for many of the tasks.

1. The VA Medical Centers are not deemed,

2. The VA follows the most recent edition of NFPA Codes and Standards,

3. The VA deviates from TJC EC and LS standards as documented by the most recent version of the VHA-Joint Commission Clarification Document: Summary of Discussion Issues Related to VHA Implementation of The Joint Commission Environment of Care (EC) and Life Safety (LS) Standards (Clarification Document).

D. Task Specifications.

1. On-site survey: Survey all buildings identified and designated by the Medical Center which contain patient care. List and detail all identified deficiencies of compliance with The Joint Commission’s LS accreditation standards and the current versions of NFPA 99, NFPA 101, and applicable Standards and Codes.

2. Verify current occupancy classifications: Evaluate all the patient care areas and verify they are classified correctly on the LS Drawings and BBI.

3. Update existing LS Drawings: Identify and document configuration changes of regulated fire and smoke compartmentation features as represented on existing LS Drawings. Make properly formatted corrections on the drawings.

4. Develop new LS drawings: Examine and document configurations of regulated fire and smoke compartmentation for designated areas where LS drawings do not exist.

Note: Ensure all Life Safety drawings contain the information as required by Issue 19 of the Clarification Document.

5. Regulated barrier assembly examinations: Examine 10% of the fire and smoke barriers in all health care and ambulatory care occupancies which are accessible by removing ceiling tiles and opening utility access panels or doors. Accessible means the ability to inspect those areas with no more than manual repositioning access points and the use of keys, a ladder, and/or a flashlight. Do not enter any hazardous spaces. List and detail all identified continuity deficiencies.

6. Review and assess each Medical Center’s Basic Building Information (BBI) for accuracy and compliance.

7. Review all existing Equivalencies for each Medical Center to ensure accuracy and compliance.

8. Document Review: Review inspection, testing, maintenance, and drill documents for compliance with the following:

a. The Clarification Document and,

b. The Joint Commission Standards/EPs EC.02.02.03, EC.02.03.05, EC.02.05.07, EC.02.05.09

9. Statement of Conditions (SOC): provide an updated set of documents (electronic and paper) to meet requirements of TJC’s SOC.

10. Document all deficiencies identified.

E. General Specifications.

1. Pages 5-6 list the VISN1 facilities expected to order these services and products.

2. Before Medical Centers order the services, they must contact the firm to coordinate and provide necessary information.

3. Each Medical Center will designate at least one point of contact (POC) to order the services and provide coordination. Coordination will include but not be limited to establishing and communicating local security and safety requirements for the contracted employees, establish dates and timelines, provide all applicable records for review, provide escorted access to all surveyed areas, ensure reviews of draft documents are conducted by knowledgeable facility staff, ensure any questions or comments from the review are communicated to the vendor, ensure the vendor provides satisfactory responses to questions and comments, and approves draft survey reports.

4. The vendor will ensure they receive all the required information from the Medical Center before starting any of the tasks. The POCs will have a working knowledge of the tasks but are not necessarily experts. Therefore, the vendor must provide the information needed and ask questions to elicit all the necessary information. For example, if a facility has only LS drawings for the health care and ambulatory occupancies within a mixed occupancy building, then the vendor must ensure they pull the info needed to develop LS drawings for the rest of the building.

5. The on-site portion of the site survey is expected to take no more than 5 business days. The vendor will assign enough qualified surveyors to complete all required on-site tasks within 5 consecutive business days unless otherwise mutually agreed upon by the respective Medical Center’s primary POC and the vendor.

6. Provide draft copies of the final reports and documents to the POC within 14 calendar days after completion of the site survey. Medical Center subject matter experts will review draft copies and provide approval or provide questions and notes for correction.

7. Anticipate that most inquiries made by the VA or vendor will be answered by telephone, teleconference, and /or email, i.e. additional trips by the contractor’s employees are not anticipated in order to complete this task unless an oversight by the contractor’s employees necessitates another site visit.

8. The goal is to have all questions answered, concerns successfully addressed, and a full set of draft survey documents approved by each Medical Center within 21 calendar days after completion of each respective site survey. Subsequently, the contractor will finalize and submit all documents to the VISN 1 Safety Program Manager and POCs of each respective Medical Center within ten calendar days.

9. The vendor must be able to perform at least two Task Orders simultaneously. In other words, if two of the VISN’s medical centers order the services listed in this BPA at the same time then the vendor will have the resources to carry both contracts out at the same time.

10. For consistency and standardization, all reports and documents shall strictly maintain the format of the most recently updated set of SOC and associated documents. The most recent set of SOC and associated documents will be provided by the medical center when the Task Order is submitted.

11. All reports and documents shall be identified with the Medical Center name and dates of survey. All draft documents will display the word “DRAFT” on each sheet or page. Unless otherwise noted or agreed upon, all reports and documents will be provided electronically in a standard MS Word format.

12. Provide updated and accurate Life Safety Drawings in Portable Document Format (.pdf) and AutoCad computer-aided design drawing format (.dwg). The files must be clearly annotated and formatted for 15 x 22 or 22 x 34 (ANSI D) size printing. Documents or portions of documents provided by the contractor shall not be protected, locked, or otherwise rendered non-editable by the VA.

13. Distribute all draft reports, final reports, and other required documents to the VISN and Medical Center POCs via standard electronic mail system or other efficient electronic file transfer system. Clearly name all files based on the files’ contents and specific medical center. Draft document files’ names will contain the word “draft.”

14. Ceiling tiles, doors, panels, or other access points will not be removed in areas which will require an infection control permit.

15. At no time will the vendor have access to sensitive information which includes VA documents not germane to the assigned tasks and information protected by VA privacy & security policies, the Privacy Act, and HIPAA.

16. At no time will the vendor have access to or connect any devices to the VA information network.

17. Qualifications for this project are delineated in Attachment 2.

18. Period of Performance:

a. The BPA will begin after the VA and the selected vendor sign the agreement.

b. This BPA will be in effect for five years with a baseline year (365 days) followed by four option years.

19. Hours of Operation.

a. The firm is responsible for conducting business between the hours of 8:00 am and 4:00 pm Monday thru Friday except Federal holidays or when the Government facility is closed due to local or national emergencies, administrative closings, or similar Government directed facility closings.

b. Work required during other than these hours (example: provide training to nightshift workers) may be amended by a documented mutual agreement between the firm and facility’s technical coordinator. Any amendment of this section will not result in additional charges to the VA.

20. Recognized Holidays: The contractor shall not have access to the facility on weekends or the following federal holidays:

Independence Day

21. Place of Performance: The work to be performed under this contract shall be in health care, ambulatory care, clinical, administrative and engineering/utility areas located at the facilities listed in pages 5-6 of this Statement of Work.

22. Security Requirements: The firm’s employees shall report to the Medical Center VA Police Department, provide appropriate identification and documents, and clearly wear the issued badge while on site. An authorized employee shall accompany them while in any VA facility to ensure safety, protection of sensitive data, and provide access into restricted and locked areas. Medical Centers will be responsible for providing the authorized employee with the appropriate access to the facilities and to coordinate the initial arrival of the firm’s employees at the VA Police Department.

23. Physical Security: The firm shall be responsible for safeguarding all government equipment, information and property provided for contractor use. At the close of each work period, government facilities, equipment, and materials shall be secured.

24. Information Security: At no time will the firm or their employees have access to or connect any devices to the VA information network. Sensitive information shall not be recorded, obtained, or otherwise released by the contracted firm or their employees without express written consent of the Contracting Officer.

25. Data Rights: The Government has unlimited rights to all documents/material produced under this BPA. All documents and materials, to include the source codes of any software, produced under this contract shall be Government owned and are the property of the Government with all rights and privileges of ownership and copyright belonging exclusively to the Government. These documents and materials may not be used or sold by the contractor without written permission from the Contracting Officer. All materials supplied to the Government shall be the sole property of the Government and may not be used for any other purpose. This right does not abrogate any other Government rights.

26. Precautions for hazardous conditions: A VA medical center is a complex and dynamic workplace and hazards may go unrecognized or evolve very quickly. The VA will not knowingly allow any people into hazardous areas without the proper controls in place. The firm will be responsible to ensure that their employees can recognize and subsequently do not expose themselves to known or potentially hazardous conditions without the proper hazard controls in place.

27. Special Precautions for COVID-19: The firm’s employees who perform the on-site evaluations shall be required to meet each facility’s precautionary disease prevention requirements prior to entering. Requirements may include, but are not limited to, COVID testing, quarantine, vaccination, daily screening questionnaires, and wearing of face coverings. Requirements for accessing VA healthcare facilities may change without notification. Therefore, the firm shall contact each facility within 2 days prior to arrival to determine the current Infection Prevention protocols.

28. Quality Control: The firm shall establish a quality control plan specifying standards of performance. The quality control plan shall be provided to the technical representative who will the firm’s performance achieves the standards,

29. Other Costs: None. Prices shall be inclusive of all labor, equipment, supplies, and travel expenses.

30. Network technical contacts:

Page 1 of

David Ivezic Network Safety Program Manager VA New England Healthcare System VISN1 Business: 207-522-4495 david.ivezic@va.gov

Cynthia Rosa Network Industrial Hygienist VA New England Healthcare System VISN1 Business: 617-939-7865 cynthia.rosa@va.gov

VISN 1 Medical Centers and Health Care Occupancy Building Information

QUALIFICATIONS

The firm must have experience, capability, and willingness to commit the resources necessary to plan, organize, and successfully complete tasks within the timeframe specified.

The firm directly employs fire protection engineers each with a BS in Fire Protection Engineering and a professional engineering registration in field of fire protection. The vendor has satisfactorily completed ten Statement of Conditions surveys and/or Life Safety Assessments in preparation for TJC Surveys for a level 1 complexity health care facility within the past five years.

The assigned project manager will have a current professional certification in the fields of fire safety, healthcare accreditation, NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, or NFPA 99 Health Care Facilities Code or demonstrated expert-level knowledge, skills, and abilities in those fields. The project manager will have at least 10 years of demonstrated experience in evaluating life safety systems in healthcare occupancies with respect to TJC and CMS standards.

The lead on-site surveyors for each facility will have a current professional certification in the fields of fire safety, healthcare accreditation, NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, NFPA 99 Health Care Facilities Code or demonstrated expert-level knowledge, skills, and abilities in those fields. The lead on-site surveyor will have at least 10 years of fire protection work experience with demonstrated experience in evaluating life safety systems in in level 1 complexity healthcare facilities with respect to TJC and CMS standards. The lead on-site Surveyor for each facility will have successfully completed at least ten fire protection designs and/or reviews, and ten life safety assessment projects involving all aspects of fire protection and life safety as the lead Surveyor in level 1 complexity healthcare facilities.

All quoters must provide proof of the qualifications highlighted in the paragraphs above to be considered for award.

B.1 PRICE/COST SCHEDULE

ITEM INFORMATION

B.2 TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The Contractor agrees to the following terms of a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) EXCLUSIVELY WITH the Department of Veterans Affairs:

B.3 ADMINISTRATIVE DATA

A Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) is hereby established between and the Department of Veterans Affairs under the following terms and conditions incorporated in this BPA:

Primary Point of Contact:

Alternate Point of Contact:

DUNS NUMBER:

Cognizant Office (Include complete address):

Department of Veterans Affairs VA Boston Healthcare System Contracting Officer (90C) 940 Belmont Street Brockton MA 02301

B.4 PRICING DATA

1. The prices included on the BPA list (or applicable "discounted" rates submitted in a proposal response to an RFQ resulting in award) that are in effect on the effective date of an order shall govern that order's basic performance period. With regard to any option years, which are later exercised, the proposed option year rates as incorporated into the order award are in effect until such time, if applicable, that the contractor has been authorized a rate increase culminating from a negotiation with the Contracting Officer.

2. The BPA holder can voluntarily reduce offered prices at any time by giving 24-hour advance notice (by facsimile or electronic-mail) to the Department of Veterans Affairs/Contracting Officer. This BPA also allows for additional discounts if a "large order" is placed at one time. An advanced notice is not required for discounts offered for only an individual order. Whether an order is large enough to warrant such a discount is subject to the discretion of the BPA holder.

3. The BPA holder may also increase BPA prices at any time. Any BPA price increase shall not take effect until the Department of Veterans Affairs Contracting Officer receives written notification (U.S. mail, facsimile, or electronic-mail). Any order already issued shall not be affected by any change to BPA pricing. The prices offered under this BPA will undergo annual review by the Department of Veterans Affairs Contracting Officer.

B.5 OPTION TO EXTEND THE TERM OF THE BPA

a. The Government may extend the term of this BPA by written notice to the Contractor at any time prior to the expiration of the BPA, provided that the Government shall give the Contractor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 30 days before the BPA expires. The preliminary notice does not commit the Government to an extension.

b. If the Government exercises this option, the extended BPA shall be considered to include this option provision.

B.6 COLLOCATION

The Government reserves the right to require the BPA holder at any given time to collocate a portion of its workforce with the Program Office supported. The Government will make available office and equipment support for any such collocation. Collocation can only be directed by the Contracting Officer and must be in writing. The Government estimates that the percentage of labor hours (ordered for the total of orders in effect at any one time during the period of performance for orders under this BPA) to be collocated will be approximately %. However, the Government reserves the right to require that all BPA holder personnel performing services on orders be located in BPA holder facilities. In the event that the Government requires collocation of more or less than % of contract employees performing on orders, this will not provide the basis for any equitable adjustment to the price, terms and/or conditions of the contract.

B.7 SEGREGATION OF COSTS

a. The "Payments under Time-and-Materials and Labor-Hour Contracts" clause provides for reimbursement to the contractor of costs incurred for certain items and services purchased directly for the contract, subject to certain limitations set forth in the clause. Such items may include the lease/purchase of equipment, travel expenses for Government- directed travel, consumable materials, tuition and registration fees for specialized training, and other services or items acquired for the Government's account under the Government Property clause. The items and services which the BPA holder is authorized to purchase on a cost- reimbursement basis shall be limited to only those specific items and services described in the order(s) issued to the BPA holder as authorized for purchase.

b. The BPA holder shall segregate costs associated with materials and other items authorized to be purchased on a cost-reimbursement basis (to be specified in each order) from other costs associated with the performance of this contract in such a manner that at any time the costs subject to reimbursement under each order shall be readily ascertainable.

c. The "Ceiling Price" referred to in the "Payments under Time and Materials and Labor-Hour Contracts" clause shall be the ceiling price as stated in each order.

B.8 GENERAL SERVICES ORDERS

a. The BPA holder shall furnish all the necessary qualified personnel, materials, facilities and management resources to furnish the services set forth in the Statement of Objectives (SOO) or the Performance Work Statement (PWS) within the terms specified and at the price(s) stated.

b. It is understood and agreed that the BPA holder shall provide Fixed-Price proposals when requested by the Contracting Officer (CO). The contractor's proposal shall be priced using labor rates and labor categories here in provided. The CO will issue Fixed Priced Orders upon completion of negotiations of contractor proposals.

B.9 LABOR HOUR ORDERS

a. It is intended that the majority of orders issued for performance under this BPA will be Fixed-Priced Orders. However, on occasion Labor Hour Orders may be issued. This section applies to such orders only.

b. The BPA holder shall furnish all the necessary qualified personnel, materials, facilities and management resources to furnish the services set forth in the Statement of Objectives (SOO) or the Performance Work Statement (PWS) within the terms specified and at the price(s) stated. All orders will be issued and modified at the labor rates in effect at the time the work is performed.

c. It is understood and agreed that the BPA holder shall use in the performance of the contract the labor categories and hours specified in each order.

d. The labor categories and hours specified in each order represent the current best estimate of the services to be performed. To enhance flexibility and to allow the BPA holder to determine the optimum labor mix for the order the BPA holder may without notice to the Government, increase or decrease the number of hours for each category specified in the individual order by no more than %. These adjustments are allowable only to the extent that the ceiling price and the total number of hours of the labor CLIN(s) are not exceeded. The BPA holder will not be paid more than the ceiling price of any individual order.

e. Government Reimbursement of BPA Holder-Incurred Training Costs in Support of Mission-Unique Department of Veterans Affairs Requirements. BPA holder\personnel are required to possess all the skills necessary to support at least the minimum requirements of the Performance Work Statement (PWS) tasking for the labor category under which they are performing. Training to meet such minimum requirements must be provided by the BPA holder and is included in the fixed price labor rates. In situations where the "Government User" being supported by an order under the basic contract requires some "unique" level of support beyond the minimum requirements of the PWS because of program/mission-unique needs, then the BPA holder may directly charge the order (in the same manner as one might charge work-related TDY expenses) in order to obtain the unique training required for successful support if authorized in the order. Such education/training might be provided by Government entities or by "third party" private entities such as companies who specialize in providing professional or specialized training/education seminars/classes. Direct labor expenses, and travel related expenses allowable under the Joint Travel Regulations (JTR), may be allowed to be billed on a cost reimbursement basis. Tuition/Registration/Book fees (costs) that may be applicable to an individual course/seminar may be recoverable as a direct cost if specifically authorized in a particular order. Documentation (in the form of a Department of Veterans Affairs Program Office signed memorandum that such contemplated labor, travel, and costs to be reimbursed by the Government are mission essential and in direct support of "unique" or special Program Office requirements) will be required to support the billing of such costs against the order, which authorized payment, therefore.

f. In the event the BPA holder expends fewer hours than set forth in the individual order, the total order shall be adjusted to reflect the actual number of hours expended and the final order price. In no case will the final price exceed the ceiling price of the order.

g. Notwithstanding any other provision, the BPA holder shall maintain sufficient accounting records for verification of the hours and categories of labor incurred in the performance of each order. It is further understood and agreed that the accounting records shall be available for Government review during the performance of the contract and until three years after final payment under the contract. In the event subcontract labor is included in the labor effort contained in paragraph (c) above, the foregoing records provisions shall be included in all applicable subcontracts.

h. Payment under individual orders for CLINs (to be specified in order) will be in accordance with FAR 52.232-7 entitled "Payments under Time-and-Materials and Labor-Hour Contracts." Withholding of amounts due as contemplated by the clause will apply to the total contract and not to individual orders. Withholding will not exceed $50,000.00 for the entire contract, regardless of the number of orders issued against the contract, and will apply to the first order and continue until the maximum withholding amount is reached. To facilitate closeout of early orders, the amount withheld may be transferred to any subsequent active order. Ceiling price, as used in the clause, applies to each individual order, not to the total contract.

B.10 AUTHORIZED LIMITS

The Government estimates, but does not guarantee, that individual BPA Orders placed against this Agreement may reach $50,000.00/per Order. This Order Limit may be increased by mutual agreement of the parties as necessary, in whole or part. The authorized Ceiling Limit of the Agreement is set at $750,000.00 over the period covered by the Agreement; this ceiling is also not a guarantee. The Ceiling Limit may also be raised in association with Order Limit increases or other conditions which, by mutual agreement of the parties, maybe considered necessary. Authorization for individual orders above the stated order and/or Ceiling Limits must be coordinated through the Contracting Officer before larger valued orders can be issued and prior to commencement of work. All unauthorized work, regardless of amount, will be processed through the ratification process.

B.11 OBLIGATION OF FUNDS

This BPA does not obligate any funds. The Government is obligated only to the extent of authorized orders actually issued under the BPA by the Contracting Officer.

B.12 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

This BPA expires on or such later ending date as determined by the exercise of any option.

B.13 AUTHORIZED INDIVIDUALS

Individuals Authorized to Place Orders:

DVA authorizes the following entities to place orders:

B.14 ORDER FORMAT

Orders will be placed against this BPA via e-mail, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), FAX, or in hardcopy format. Each individual BPA Order will describe the tasks, services and deliverables required.

B.15 AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVES

The primary Contracting Officer (CO) for this Agreement is:

issa.shawki@va.gov The Primary Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) for projects under this Agreement is:

The Secondary Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) for projects under this Agreement is:

The Primary and/or Secondary COR will be responsible for technical monitoring of the contractor's performance and deliveries. The COR and the Contractor's Representative shall work together to ensure that all contractual requirements are being met. The COR will interpret specifications or technical portions of the work. The COR is not authorized to perform, formally or informally, any of the following actions:

(1) Promise, award, agree to award, or execute any contract, contract modification, or notice of intent that changes or may change this contract;

(2) Waive or agree to modification of the delivery schedule;

(3) Make any final decision on any contract matter subject to the Disputes Clause;

(4) Terminate, for any reason, the contractor's right to proceed;

(5) Obligate in any way, the payment of money by the Government. Only a warranted Contracting Officer is authorized to obligate funds on this or any other contract action.

The contractor shall immediately notify the Contracting Officer in writing if the COR has taken an action (or fails to take action) or issues directions (written or oral) that the contractor considers to exceed the above limitations.

The contractor shall provide the Contracting Officer information copies of all correspondence to the COR.

B.16 FEDERAL HOLIDAYS

Unless specifically authorized in writing by the Contracting Officer, no services will be provided and no charges will be incurred and/or billed to any order on this contract on any of the Federal Holidays listed below.

Independence Day

B.17 BPA EMPLOYEE IDENTIFICATION

All support BPA holder personnel will be required to wear company identification badges in order to distinguish themselves from Government (organic) employees. When conversing with Government personnel during business meetings and over the telephone, support BPA holder personnel shall identify themselves as such to avoid situations arising where sensitive topics might be better discussed solely between Government employees. Where practicable, support BPA holders occupying collocated space with their Government program customer should identify their workspace area with their name and company affiliation.

B.18 PROHIBIT ACTIVITIES

The BPA holder shall not perform tasks under any resultant order which involve the following:

(a) preparation of any statement of requirements, objectives, or needs to be procured by the Government for services, whether to be acquired by future orders under the program, or by any other contract action at Department of Veterans Affairs;

(b) evaluation of the qualifications of a potential source or any proposal for a contract or order by the Government for services or any other supplies or services;

(c) formulation of "best value" criteria, acquisition plans, solicitations or strategies for the purchase of -like services;

(d) preparation of documentation for future orders for services.

B.19 NONPERSONAL SERVICES

a. In performance of this contract, the BPA holder will provide services as required by program offices to support management of their overall mission. This will be based upon the order's performance work statement for the specific effort. Orders will be formally issued to the BPA holder as opposed to individual BPA holder employees.

b. The services required under the Agreement constitute professional and management services within the definition provided by FAR 37.201. Under this Agreement the Government will obtain professional services, which are essential to the Department of Veterans Affairs mission but not otherwise available within Department of Veterans Affairs.

c. The Government will neither supervise BPA holder employees nor control the method by which the BPA holder performs the required tasks. Under no circumstances shall the Government assign tasks to, or prepare work schedules for, individual BPA holder employees. It shall be the responsibility of the BPA holder to manage their employees and to guard against any actions that are of the nature of personal services, or give the perception of personal services. If the BPA holder feels that any actions constitute, or are perceived to constitute personal services, it shall be the BPA holder's further responsibility to notify the Contracting Officer immediately.

d. These services shall not be used to perform work of a policy/ decision making or management nature. All decisions relative to programs supported by BPA holders will be the sole responsibility of the Government. Support services will not be ordered to circumvent personnel ceilings, pay limitations, or competitive employment procedures.

B.20 TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT

The Government will reimburse the cost of travel required in conjunction with performance of orders issued under this contract. Reimbursement for travel is limited to that which is required in the performance of the order. Specific Government direction to attend meetings or gather information shall be reimbursed on a cost reimbursable basis only. Local travel or the relocation of BPA holder personnel from other geographic areas for the purpose of staffing an order, are not subject to reimbursement. The Government will not pay travel charges for travel to and from the BPA holder employee's home and the DVA Office or to and from one company building to another (either within a company or to and from a prime to a sub company). Travel costs subject to reimbursement are limited to travel occurring at the direction of the Government, performed in conjunction with a specific requirement for a trip authorized in the order. Any administrative/clerical support travel costs shall be considered and approved by the Contracting Officer on a case-by-case basis.

B.21 ORDERING MANAGEMENT

a. Order Management Requirements: Delivery of services shall be implemented only if directed by an order. The BPA holder shall respond in no more than 2 working days from the issuance of the order to identify the Contractor's Task Leader. The Contractor's Task Leader shall arrange for a meeting between the BPA holder Task Leader and the COR to obtain the necessary detailed information to proceed with the task.

b. Order Procedures: Each Request for Proposal for an order will contain a Statement of Objectives (SOO), or other performance based work statement, describing the program to be supported, a description of the task, evaluation criteria, the deliverables, an order start and completion date, and the COR. The BPA holder(s) solicited will respond to the SOO with a Performance Work Statement (PWS), a proposed technical solution including labor mix and hours, and a proposed ceiling or fixed price for the order. Note: The Government will accept order proposals only from BPA holders that it has solicited. The PWS and labor mix will be incorporated into any resulting order. The proposed technical solution may also be incorporated in the order. The BPA holder on a per site basis will assign the Task Leader.

c. Order Accounting: The BPA holder's order accounting system shall provide traceability of all labor hour and cost reimbursable elements (e.g. travel, material, other authorized direct costs) ordered by each program's funding citation's Accounting Classification Reference Number (i.e. "acrn" assigned at the "SubCLIN" level in Section B), if required by the program office. Otherwise, traceability shall be at the CLIN level, to include segregation by Government appropriation (i.e. "color of money"), set forth in the order. Under no circumstances will any invoice exceed the period of performance, hours or dollar amount (ceiling price) for any funded order. The BPA holder will separately track and invoice US Government and FMS charges. All invoices submitted for payment shall clearly identify:

1. Government order number.

2. Period of performance

3. Amount due by CLIN

4. Labor hours provided per labor category

d. The BPA holder shall prepare and maintain a Funds and Man-hour Expenditure Report for each order. The BPA holder will submit reports, in contractor format, to the COR and Contracting Officer on a regular basis as defined by each order. Reporting shall include schedule by task, labor hour expenditures by labor category by task, cost reimbursable elements, calendar of supported travel, reviews, meetings and briefings, deliverables status and an estimated completion date. The report shall also identify the most significant cost driver(s) for each task (i.e. Schedule, Type of Program, and Complexity), the value of the driver, and a brief explanation. The Government shall identify a standard set of activities and definitions. For each task, the BPA holder shall identify the approximate percentage of hours allocated to those activities. Until such a time as the Government provides this standard set of activities, the BPA holder will not be required to provide this information. The Funds and Man-hour Expenditure Report will be prepared and submitted by those individuals covered by company overhead and will not be directly charged to any specific labor category on a specific order. These reports will be submitted electronically.

e. Closeout Procedures: To facilitate closeout of individual orders placed under this BPA, within thirty (30) days of completion of any individual order, the BPA holder shall present a final invoice to the Contracting Officer that contains a complete accounting of hours expended by category, the prices associated with those hours, any cost reimbursable expenses, and a proposed final price. If the Government concurs with the invoice and the proposed final price is within the ceiling price of the order, the Government will issue an order modification converting the order to a firm fixed price order at the proposed final price.

B.22 PERFORMANCE

The following terms and conditions are applicable:

a. All services will be initiated within 3 calendar days following receipt of a valid order, unless otherwise specified in the order.

b. The BPA holder shall be familiar with Federal Government and Department of Veterans Affairs acquisition regulations, directives and instructions. If a particular document is required in a specific order, it will be cited within the order's PWS.

c. The BPA holder shall not provide technical direction to any other acquisition BPA holder(s) or government personnel at any time. Neither shall the Government directly supervise BPA holder employees. The BPA holder Task Leader should conduct day to day supervision of BPA holder personnel wherever the BPA holder personnel are located. All direction of the BPA holder shall be through the Contracting Officer (CO) of the ordering organization specified in each individual order. Technical "tasking" assignments for the BPA holder will be transmitted by the program office's COR (or program manager) to the BPA holder's Task Leader.

d. The "ordering period" will run from BPA award to , or until such ending date of any option year, which may be exercised under the Agreement. The "performance period" will terminate with the end of the BPA, unless the ordering CO elects to extend performance as provided under the BPA. If the ordering CO elects to extend performance beyond the end of the BPA, he/she may extend performance up to six (6) months beyond the end of the order period.

e. Capitalization Requirements: The BPA holder shall provide their employees sufficient computer equipment to support orders. The BPA holder shall be able to support the automatic transmission of unclassified data only to the requiring Program Office by modem if so requested. Any computers connected to, or transmits to (connected or via magnetic media) the government shall be properly protected from computer viruses. The BPA holder shall be capable of supporting the software packages utilized by Department of Veterans Affairs for the indicated processors. Specific software packages utilized within a program office shall be stated in the order PWS if it is other than Microsoft Office Professional or Microsoft Project.

f. Cancellation: This BPA may be canceled if the BPA holder fails to perform in accordance with the terms and conditions of this BPA, any order established under this BPA, or if deemed as in the best interests of the Government. The BPA holder must strictly comply with all terms and conditions or the Department of Veterans Affairs/ Contracting Officer may determine that performance by the BPA holder has been unsatisfactory and cancel this BPA.

B.23 MANAGEMENT CONTROL

The BPA holder shall provide to the Contracting Officer (CO) a list of all teaming partners or subcontractors within 3 calendar days after order award. As subcontractors and/or teaming partners are added, and/or deleted, an updated listing will be provided to the CO within 2 calendar days of such change. All BPA holder personnel shall display identification badges at all times while charging hours to the order or at a government or government contractor location. Authorized Government personnel shall accompany all visits to Department of Veterans Affairs Program Offices, unless other specific arrangements have been made.

B.24 INVOICES

a. Inspection and acceptance shall be accomplished as follows: The Government, for all services furnished under any resulting order, hereby designates the COR in the program office as the point of final inspection and acceptance. The BPA holder will submit each invoice, including all back-up data, to the Contracting Officer (CO) for review and signature. When the CO receives an accurate and complete invoice, he/she will return a signed copy to the BPA holder within five (5) working days. If the invoice is incomplete or inaccurate, the CO will return the unsigned invoice to the BPA holder for correction. The Contracting Officer will then forward the signed invoice to the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for payment. Final payment for each order will be accomplished by final invoice accompanied by a receiving report.

b.