36C25520Q0439.docx

Contract Opportunity Presolicitation Notice

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Required Field Contract Opportunity Presolicitation Notice D317 657-20-2-8818-0046 | Installation of a Text Message Appointment Reminder System | STL 66048 36C25520Q0439 06-04 -2020 12:00

CENTRAL TIME, CHICAGO, USA

N 517919 Department of Veterans Affairs Network Contracting Office (NCO) 15 3450 S 4th Street Trafficway Leavenworth KS 66048 Al Cheeks Albert.CheeksJr@VA.Gov VA St. Louis Health Care System John Cochran Division 915 North Grand Blvd St. Louis MO 63106

USA

Albert.CheeksJr@VA.Gov Albert.CheeksJr@VA.Gov This Sources Sought Notice is for planning purposes only and shall not be considered as an invitation for bid, request for quotation, request for proposal, or as an obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services. Your response to this Sources Sought Notice will be treated as information only. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission of responses to this announcement or the Government use of such information. This request does not constitute a solicitation for proposals or the authority to enter into negotiations to award a contract. No funds have been authorized, appropriated, or received for this effort.

The information provided may be used by the Department of Veterans Affairs in developing its acquisition approach, statement of work/statement of objectives and performance specifications. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary or competition sensitive information contained in their response. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this Sources Sought Notice or to otherwise pay for the information submitted in response to this Sources Sought Notice.

The purpose of this sources sought announcement is for market research to make appropriate acquisition decisions and to gain knowledge of potential qualified Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses, Veteran Owned Small Businesses, 8(a), HUBZone and other Small Businesses interested and capable of providing the services described below.

Documentation of technical expertise must be presented in sufficient detail for the Government to determine that your company possesses the necessary functional area expertise and experience to compete for this acquisition. Responses to this notice shall include the following: (a) company name (b) address (c) point of contact (d) phone, fax, and email (e) DUNS number (f) Cage Code (g) Tax ID Number (h) Type of small business, e.g. Services Disabled Veteran Owned small Business, Veteran-owned small business, 8(a), HUBZone, Women Owned Small Business, Small disadvantaged business, or Small Business HUBZone business and (i) must provide a capability statement that addresses the organizations qualifications and ability to perform as a contractor for the work described below.

(a) The VA Network Contracting Office (NCO) 15 located at 3450 South 4th Street, Leavenworth, KS, 66048-5055 is seeking to establish a service contract for acquisition of service and support of text message-based screening reminders. Important information: The Government is not obligated to nor will it pay for or reimburse any costs associated with responding to this sources sought synopsis request. This notice shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach. The Government will in no way be bound to this information if any solicitation is issued. Currently a total set-aside for Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs) and Veteran Owned Small Businesses (VOSBs) are being sought based on the Veterans Administration requirement with Public Law 109-461, Vets First Contracting Program. However, if response by SDVOSB or VOSB firms proves inadequate, an alternate set-aside or full and open competitive solicitation may result. No sub-contracting opportunity is anticipated. The North American Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 517919 (All Other Telecommunications). Notice to potential offerors: All offerors who provide goods or services to the United States Federal Government must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM located on the web at www.sam.gov). Additionally, all Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses or Veteran Owned Businesses who respond to a solicitation on this project must be registered with the Department of Veterans Affairs Center for Veterans Enterprise VetBiz Registry located at http://vip.vetbiz.gov. All interested Offerors should submit information by e-mail: Albert.CheeksJr@VA.Gov with the subject line containing: “36C25520Q0439, Text Messaging Services”. All information submissions should be received no later than 12:00 pm CST on Thursday, June 04, 2020. After review of the responses to this announcement, the Government intends to proceed with the acquisition and a subsequent solicitation will be published.

STATEMENT OF WORK:

I. General Information

(b) Service Agreement: The St. Louis VA Medical Center Whole Health Service is requesting to establish a service contract for acquisition of service and support of text message-based screening reminders. This contract shall cover both St. Louis VA Medical Center divisions including the associated Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs). The facilities are as follows:

VA St. Louis Healthcare System John Cochran Division 915 N. Grand Blvd.

St. Louis, MO 63106

VA St. Louis Healthcare System Jefferson Barracks Division 1 Jefferson Barracks Dr.

St. Louis, MO 63125

CBOCs:

Belleville IL CBOC Hope Recovery Center Primary Care Team 1; Manchester Ave Annex Primary Care Team 2; Washington Ave Annex St. Charles CBOC St. Louis CBOC Washington Missouri CBOC

(c) Scope of Work: The Contractor shall provide standardized automated text messages and phone calls to monitor condition-specific symptoms.

(d) Background: This contract is issued for one year, beginning on date of award of contract.

(e) Performance Period: The Contractor shall begin the work required under this SOW commencing with the effective date of award, unless otherwise directed by the CO, and shall provide continuous service until the date of contract expiration. The contract shall additionally have 4 fixed price Option Years, each one year in length to begin on the date of expiration of the year previous, that will be available to the Government to renew/extend the contract at its discretion.

(f) Type of Contract: Firm-fixed-price

(g) Extension of Contract: This contract may be extended in accordance with FAR Clause 52.237-3 – Continuity of Services, in order to transition the services to a successor.

II. Services to be Provided

The contractor shall provide activation and continued services, including emergencies, for staff to send the secure text message-based screening reminders to Veterans who opt-in to the service.

(a) Summary of Services

a. Contractor shall provide access to its servers and the underlying software that controls timing and content to allow for edits to content and timing by VA St Louis Healthcare System staff

b. Contractor shall provide access for unlimited Veteran users of the text based message service as needed within one year for the VA St Louis Healthcare System

(b) Services Not Covered by Contract

CO or COR authorization for any work outside the scope of this contract must be received prior to performance of work or payment will not be authorized.

III. Definitions/Acronyms

a. CO – Contracting Officer, Network Contracting Office (NCO) 15.

b. COR – Contracting Officer’s Representative appointed under the contract.

c. ESR - Engineering Service Report - Documentation provided by the vendor of the services rendered for each incidence of work performance under the terms and conditions of the contract.

d. FSE - Field Service Engineer - A person who is authorized by the contractor to perform maintenance (corrective and/or preventive) services on the AVAHCS premises.

e. NFPA - National Fire Protection Association.

f. OEM – Original Equipment Manufacturer.

g. OSHA – Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

h. PM - Preventive Maintenance Inspection. Services which are periodic in nature and are required to maintain the equipment in such condition that it may be operated in accordance with its intended design and functional capacity with minimal incidence of malfunction or inoperative conditions.

i. Unscheduled repairs – emergency services required to restore equipment to working condition outside normal hours of coverage.

j. UL – Underwriter’s Laboratories

IV. Conformance Standards

Contractor shall ensure that the equipment functions in conformance with the latest published edition of the applicable standards; including but not limited to Joint Commission, NFPA-99, UL, OSHA, VA, CDRH, etc. and the “Manufacturer's Performance standards/ specifications” as used when the equipment was originally procured and that any upgrades/updates will meet the stated standards/specifications.

V. Hours of Coverage

a. The contractor will provide all required services within the normal business hours (8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (CST) M-F).

b. All services shall be performed during these normal hours of coverage unless one of the following conditions exists:

i. The contractor wishes to furnish services at a time that is outside of the normal hours of coverage, at no additional cost to the Government, the contractor submits a request to the COR prior to the proposed start of the work, and the request is approved in writing by the COR before work is begun.

ii. The COR directs that the services be furnished at a time that is outside the normal hours of coverage and the additional cost is recommended by the COR and authorized by the CO.

c. Work performed outside the normal hours of coverage must be preapproved by the CO, COR or Alt COR. The Contractor will provide a written estimate of the charges prior to approval of the work.

d. Work performed outside the normal hours of coverage at the request of FSE/contractor shall be considered service performed during normal hours of coverage.

e. There will be no additional charge for time spent waiting during or after the normal hours of coverage for delivery of services.

Note: Hardware/software update/upgrade installations shall be scheduled and performed during normal hours of coverage at no additional charge to the government.

VI. Federal Holidays Observed by the VA Medical Center

President’s Day (Washington’s birthday), Memorial Day , Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and any other day specifically designated by the President of the United States.

VII. Security Requirements

Upon arrival at the VA Medical Center, all Contractor personnel shall be required to report to the VA Medical Center Police for a temporary ID and then to the COR for check-in. This check-in process is mandatory. When the service is completed, the personnel shall be required to check out with the COR. The contractor's field service employee shall wear visible identification at all times while on the premises of the VA Medical Center.

VIII. Competency of Contractor Personnel

a. The Contractor must have an established business, with an office and full time staff. The staff includes a "fully qualified" FSE and a "fully qualified" FSE who will serve as the backup.

b. “Fully Qualified" is based upon training and experience in the field. For training, the FSE(s) must have successfully completed a formal OEM Certified (or equivalent) training program for all equipment/services to be maintained and all equipment to be utilized in the performance of the contract. For field experience, the FSE(s) must have a minimum of two years of experience in the installation, calibration, maintenance and repair of the specific equipment identified in Section II.

c. All work shall be performed by "Fully Qualified" competent FSEs. The Contractor shall provide written assurance of the competency of their personnel and a list of credentials of approved FSEs. The CO may authenticate the training requirements by request training certificates or credentials from the Contractor at any time for any personnel who are providing services. The CO and/or the COR or Alt COR specifically reserve the right to reject any of the Contractor's personnel and refuse them permission to work on equipment.

d. If subcontractor(s) are used, they must meet the same competency standards as Contractor personnel and be preapproved by the CO. The Contractor shall submit any proposed change in subcontractor(s) to the CO for approval or disapproval.

IX. Exposure to Blood Borne or Infectious Material

There is a potential for exposure to blood borne or other infectious material with equipment throughout the medical centers. All maintenance persons must use the “Universal Precautions” (i.e. decontamination of medical equipment, wearing protective gloves, aprons, and goggles) during cleaning and maintenance/repair procedures.

X. Identification, Parking, Smoking, and VA Regulations

a. Contractor’s personnel shall wear visible identification at all times while on the premises of the VA. Identification shall include, as a minimum, the employee’s name, position, and the contractor’s trade name.

b. It is the responsibility of the contractor to park in the appropriate designated parking areas. Information on parking is available from VA Police Service. VA will not invalidate or make reimbursement for parking violations of the contractor under any conditions.

c. Possession of weapons is prohibited. Enclosed containers, including tool kits, shall be subject to search. Violations of VA regulations may result in citation answerable in the United States (Federal) District Court, not local district, state, or municipal court.

d. Smoking is prohibited inside all VA buildings.

e. Possession of weapons is prohibited. Enclosed containers, including tool kits, shall be subject to search. Violations of VA regulations may result in citation answerable in the United States (Federal) District Court, not a local district, state or municipal court.

XI. IT Security Requirements

VA information technology certification and accreditation requirements do not apply to this contract and a security accreditation package is not required.

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