Attachment A - Question and Answers.pdf

Solicitation: 36C25626Q0955 Amendment 0002

Attachment A – Question and Answers

The Network Contracting Office (NCO) 16 received questions in response to Request for Quote 36C25626Q0955.

Please see below for the Contractor’s questions and NCO 16’s respective answers accordingly.

Question Number Question Answer

Q1 Is there a site visit sign in sheet available for the site visit held on Monday 7/13? See Attachment D.

Q2 Will the Government be posting the sign-in sheet from Monday's site visit?

See Attachment D.

Q3 Can you provide copy of the visitor sign in list?

See Attachment D.

Q4 Is it possible to get a copy of the floor plans for the (8) sites? See Attachment C.

Q5

For this opportunity, could you please include NAICS Code 541519 note 18 reseller under 150? We would like to submit a bid under this NAICS code.

The solicitation identifies NAICS 561621 (Security Systems Services) as the principal NAICS code for this requirement. This NAICS assignment is based on the nature of the work described in the Statement of Work, which requires a turnkey Mass Notification System including installation, integration, cabling, hardware deployment, testing, commissioning, and training. These activities are aligned with NAICS 561621, as specified in Section B.2 of the solicitation.

Although FAR 52.212‑1 acknowledges that NAICS 541519 (IT Value-Added Resellers, 150-employee standard) may apply in certain IT reseller situations, this acquisition is not classified as an IT VAR procurement. The work requires installation of outdoor speaker arrays, electrical and communication integration, RF components, PA/fire panel interfaces, physical mounting, and site-based commissioning, which falls outside the scope of NAICS 541519 reseller activities.

Therefore, the Government will not add NAICS 541519 to this solicitation. Vendors must qualify under NAICS 561621, consistent with the published set‑aside designation.

Q6

Will the Government provide building schematics or floor plans for the Fayetteville VAMC campus and, if available, the CBOC locations, to support system design? If so, in what format and when will they be provided?

See Attachment C.

Q7

Does the Government have a conceptual design, device count, coverage map, or prior engineering assessment identifying the desired MNS deployment? If not, please confirm the contractor is responsible for performing the site survey, coverage design, and system engineering after award, and that offerors should propose and price their own engineered device quantities supported by a basis of estimate.

No conceptual designs or coverage maps exist. Contractors must perform all engineering design, coverage mapping, and device placement analysis to meet performance requirements.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.1–4.7:

Salient Characteristics (Attachment B).

Q8

To ensure quotations are priced on a comparable basis, will the Government establish minimum device quantities (e.g., outdoor speaker arrays by wattage configuration, indoor alert beacons, LED/text displays, desktop alerting licenses)? If not, please confirm offeror-proposed quantities are acceptable.

Yes. Minimum quantities are specified in Section 4.7 and serve as mandatory baseline deliverables. Contractors may propose additional quantities if needed for full coverage.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.7:

General Deliverable Quantities Required (Attachment B).

Q9

Please provide the approximate number of workstations/endpoints across VHSO (VAMC and CBOCs) to be covered by desktop notification licensing.

The SOW requires 3,000 desktop alerting licenses to support both VAMC and CBOC environments. This number forms the minimum baseline requirement.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.7:

General Deliverable Quantities Required (Attachment B).

Q10

Please confirm the alerting capabilities required at each of the seven CBOC locations: IP desktop notification only, or indoor audible/visual devices (alert beacons, strobes, text displays) as well? Are any outdoor alerting components required at CBOC locations?

CBOCs require software-based desktop alerting and VoIP integration only. No physical indoor or outdoor devices are required at any CBOC location.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 6:

Locations (Attachment B).

Q11

Are the CBOC facilities Government-owned or leased? For leased locations, will the Government coordinate any landlord approvals required for device mounting or building penetrations?

CBOCs are leased, but no hardware installation is required there. Software deployment does not require landlord approval, and any necessary coordination will be handled by the Government.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 6:

Locations (Attachment B).

Q12

To support integration pricing for the PA/text-to-speech audio injection requirement, please identify the make, model, and platform generation/version of the existing overhead paging head-end at the Fayetteville VAMC (and at any CBOC with overhead paging), including whether it is IP/SIP-capable or analog.

Paging systems vary by building, and details must be confirmed during the contractor’s site survey. Integration must support analog or digital text‑to‑speech injection depending on the existing system.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.3: Indoor Alerting (Attachment B).

Q13

Please identify the make and model of the fire alarm control panel(s) at each location where the fire alarm interface is required, and confirm the Government's preferred integration approach: audio injection for voice notification, alarm status monitoring relayed to the alerting system, or both.

Fire alarm systems include NCA-2, NFS2-3030, and potentially 320-series units.

Integration supports monitoring and optional audio injection depending on panel capabilities confirmed during survey.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.4:

Integration Requirements (Attachment B).

Q14

Please confirm the BlackBerry AtHoc integration is with the VA enterprise alerting environment (EAAS), and identify the tenant/administering organization the awardee will coordinate with for integration.

EAAS (BlackBerry AtHoc) integration is required as part of enterprise emergency messaging. Contractor will coordinate with the Government EAAS administrator for configuration.

Q15 Please identify the Vocera platform version in use and the approximate number of Vocera endpoints to be integrated.

VHSO uses Vocera Platform 6.x and Vocera Analytics 1.4.3. Endpoint numbers must be confirmed by contractor during workflow preservation analysis.

Q16

For the two-way radio integration, please confirm the radio system make/model, operating band and frequencies, analog or digital operation, repeater locations, and the holder of the applicable FCC license.

The facility uses a Kenwood non-conventional trunking radio system.

Contractor must determine specific frequencies, talk groups, and repeater paths during the site survey to ensure compatibility.

Q17

For the MNS central management/server component, will the Government provide a virtual machine within the VA environment?

Please describe the security authorization process and sponsoring office (e.g., local OIT) for placing MNS software on the VA network, Yes. Once the contractor provides system specifications, the Government will provision a secure VA-hosted virtual machine for MNS management.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 7:

and confirm this can be completed within the period of performance.

Government Roles and Responsibilities

Q18

Please confirm that proposed MNS software components (server and client) must hold a current VA Technical Reference Model (TRM) authorization permitting their use on the VA enterprise network for life-safety/mass-notification purposes, and whether offerors should document the TRM status of proposed products in their technical submission.

Yes. All MNS server and client software components must appear in the VA TRM as approved for life-safety and mass-notification use. TRM status must be documented in the contractor’s proposal.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.6:

System Management (Attachment B).

Q19

So that offerors can demonstrate preservation of existing workflows as required, please describe the existing emergency alerting workflows and activation methods that must be preserved without redesign, replacement, or reprogramming, including the systems on which those workflows operate today.

Existing workflows include VoIP activation, panic button activation through fire alarm systems, Lynx desktop alerting, and EAAS messaging. The contractor must preserve these without redesign or reprogramming.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 1: Purpose

Q20

What background investigation/credentialing level will be required for contractor installation personnel, what is the current processing timeline, and can credentialing paperwork begin immediately at award given the August 17, 2026 performance start?

Contractor personnel must complete VA background checks, VA Police registration, TMS training, and credentialing. Processing typically takes six weeks after award.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 8:

Contractor Roles and Responsibilities

Q21

For the emailed quote submission, is there a file-size limit per email or a preferred method for segmenting files (e.g., multiple emails, numbered attachments)?

All quote materials shall be submitted as one single PDF file in a single email. This ensures proper control, receipt, and handling of submissions.

Q22

The CLIN description includes warranty, spare parts, and preventive maintenance, and SOW §8 requires support 'consistent with the VA's current alerting system lifecycle practices.' Please confirm the support and preventive-maintenance period offerors should include within the firm-fixed price (e.g., through the period of performance, or a defined warranty year), so quotes are priced on a common basis.

Contractors must provide warranty and support consistent with VA lifecycle practices for alerting systems. All components and software must be fully supported during the contract period.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 9:

Warranty and Support (Attachment B)

Q23

For the desktop notification client, will VA OIT package and deploy the software to workstations using the VA's standard software-distribution process, with the contractor providing the installation package and configuration support — or is the contractor expected to touch each endpoint?

Yes. Contractor supplies the package and configuration details, and VA OIT performs enterprise deployment through standard VA software distribution channels.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 4.3: Indoor Alerting (Attachment B).

Q24

Please confirm the Government will furnish network connectivity (switch ports, PoE where applicable, and VLAN/firewall provisioning) at device and head-end locations, consistent with SOW §7's assignment of 'network and utility availability' to the Government.

Yes. Government will supply network ports, PoE, VLAN assignments, firewall openings, and any required switch provisioning.

Contractor coordinates all network needs with VA OIT.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 7:

Government Roles and Responsibilities

Q25

Requirement 5 requires licenses, certifications, and 'electrical or communication permits required by jurisdiction' with the quote. For work performed on federal property in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri, please clarify which specific licenses or permits, if any, must be evidenced with the quote versus obtained prior to performance.

Contractors must demonstrate compliance with NFPA, NEC, FCC, BICSI, TIA/EIA, OSHA, ADA, and applicable federal/VA standards.

Refer to Updated SOW Section 14:

Standards, Codes, and Safety Requirements (Attachment B).

Q26

The price proposal instructions reference 'the base period and any option years included in the solicitation'; Section B.2 contains only the base CLIN 0001. Please confirm no separately priced option periods exist and that FAR 52.217-8 is evaluated at contract rates without separate pricing, per the Instructions.

The Government confirms that no separately priced option periods exist in this solicitation.

Section B.2 includes only CLIN 0001 for the base period and no additional CLINs for option years.

As specified in the Instructions to Offerors, FAR 52.217‑8 will be evaluated at the contract rates in effect at the time the option is exercised, and no separate pricing for FAR 52.217‑8 is required. This evaluation method is detailed in the solicitation’s price evaluation section, which explains that FAR 52.217‑8 pricing is assumed to be at the same rates as the contract at the time of exercise and does not require separate CLINs.

(End of Attachment A)