Attachment 1 RFI List 20200826.docx

36C26020Q0177; 692-20-115 VA Reuse CT Trailer Enhance Native RFI Responses

1. There was a section that states employees dealing with personally identifying documents must take a Privacy Training course and referenced the Office of Management and Budget Circular A-130. Could you give me some direction where I can find a course that is suitable to meet that standard?

This will not be required for this project for this project.

2. Does every subcontracting company need to have at lease one person who has passed the 30 hr OSHA course? Do all other construction workers need to have the 10 hour OSHA course? This is a relatively small job and it is likely that some of the subs won't be on campus more than 10 or so hours. It would be great to get clarification as to who needs the OSHA course.

The Superintendent needs a 30 hour OSHA certificate. The subs all need OSHA 10s. Additionally the competent person for each trade needs to have a 30 hour OSHA.

See RFI #’s 7 & 8.

3. One requirement is to have a EMR of no more than 1.0. I spoke with our insurance broker and she contacted SAIF. Apparently, since our premium amount doesn't meet the minimum threshold, ************* doesn't meet the criteria to have an experience rating.

SAIF sent a letter stating such, as well as a document that states our company hasn't had any worker's comp claims in the past two years. I have attached the documents that SAIF has provided. Are the documents provided by SAIF sufficient to meet the Special Standard 3 – Experience Modification Rating?

An offeror may submit an offer, and if they are considered the apparent lowest offeror, their EMR rating will be evaluated. If an EMR is not available, they may provide evidence of a positive safety record such as a letterhead from their surety as to the reasons they do not have an EMR and the number/severity of workman’s compensation claims over the last year with their offer.

4. In the Statement of Work (page 6 of the Solicitation .pdf)- there is mention of renovating the trailer. I have included a snip of the paragraph. The scope of work doesn't mention interior remodel. Could you clarify whether interior modifications are part of this project?

Interior modifications are not part of the project, you will not be required to renovate.

5. I met with Marta from GCAP this afternoon regarding the our bid. She stated that the SF 1442 form (line 20a and 30a) was sufficient to cover the requirement of the Delegation of Authorized Representatives stated in page 5 of the Solicitation documents. Could you confirm this?

Please reference the solicitation document section “4.4 REQUIRED QUOTATION DOCUMENTS”:

1. Letter designating authorized representatives. Include a separate letter signed by an officer of the company, on company letterhead, that states the authorized representative(s) who can sign the quotation and bind the company in accordance with FAR 4.102. Include any limitations placed on the individual if applicable during the performance period.

This requirement is in addition to the SF1442, lines 20a and 30a.

6. She also stated that the SF 30 (found in Amendment 1 docs) wasn't required, but that acknowledgement of each of the amendments on line 19 on page 2 of the SF 1442 was sufficient. Is that correct?

Please reference the solicitation document section “4.4 REQUIRED QUOTATION DOCUMENTS”:

3. Acknowledgement of all Amendments issued since the original solicitation issue date. Acknowledgement of Amendments can be done by filling block # 19 of the SF 1442 or by submitting a signed Standard Form (SF) 30.

You may either complete line 19 of the SF 1442 OR sign and submit a copy of each SF 30 with the offer to be considered responsive.

7. Does every employee of a subcontracting company that steps foot on the VA job need to have the 10 hour certification? Here is our concern, there are going to be companies that have 3-4 guys who come out for one 8 hour day. It doesn't pencil out if each of those guys have to take the 10 hour course just to work 8 hours. We are talking about these small business owners having to pay 30-40 man hours for their crew to take the class, as well as pay for the OSHA class costs. If that is the case, our subcontracting companies are going to have to roll the man hours and cost of the class into their bid - which will eliminate any competitive edge. Worst case scenario - the sub contractors we have built relationships will walk from this opportunity because the barrier to entry is too great.

All workers are required to have at a minimum the 10 hour OSHA certificate; every competent person for each trade needs to have a 30 hour OSHA. Training must be complete prior to construction but can occur after award.

8. Does the "Person in Charge"/"Competent Person" of each trade need the 10 hour or the 30 hour class?

The Competent Person for each trade is required to have a 30 hour OSHA certificate.

9. When the trailer was originally placed in its current location, were the pick points cut off or were they removed and stored (somewhere at the VA and are available) so that the membrane roof patches could cover up the locations? Will the VA remove the roof patches to expose the current state of the pick point locations before the bid date?

The lifting lugs for the trailer were removed after it’s initial placement. The VA is in contact with the manufacturer to get a detail on what size lugs are needed or procure them from the manufacturer ourselves. The bidders shall put an extra $4000 in their bids as an allowance for hiring a structural engineer to design and fabricate the lugs in case the manufacturer no longer has the details. Any part of the allowance not used shall be returned to the VA as a credit. In either circumstance the contractor is responsible for installing the lugs which involve removing the roof patches, using the existing holes in the steel to install the lug bolts, and cutting into the interior walls to secure the lug bolts. After the trailer is moved the contractor must uninstall the lifting lugs and repair the roof patches. The VA has already removed one of the patches to inspect the lifting lug location and this area must be patched by the contractor as well. Assume the VA removed the patches in a professional manner.

10. Can you speak to whether or not I'm communicating accurately about the OSHA requirements? You Dont need to comment on pricing here. Do I finally understand the requirements for this VA Yurt Project?

The VA has pushed back the bid date another week. We don't need the OSHA certs to bid the job. If you don't currently have the OSHA certs, roll the cost of training your employees into the bid. We can get those certs in place IF we get the job. The cost of 1 employee to get the 10-hour cert is $79.00. The cost of the 30-hour cert is about $160.00. So if you have 3 people on the Job they all need to have 10-hour cards. That's $240.00 for those 3 employees. Someone in your company needs a 30-hour cert though. The 30-hour cert does not have to work on the job but is responsible for all the subs working on the job. This is MATOC across the board. Almost everyone in government work has OSHA certs. If you have 3 people that you have to pay for training hours for OSHA certs, I would add those 30 man-hours(not prevailing wage of course) into your bid . So another $1,000.00 in the bid should cover up to 3 employees on the job. I just told my people whoever wants prevailing wages in the future needs OSHA 10 hour and they jumped at it. I'll pay for their courses though. It's their own personal certification, the company doesn't own it. If there are any questions please give me a call.

You may propose this in your bid. However, we must be able to determine fair and reasonable pricing per the FAR in your proposal. Please remember that there are subcontractors that have been doing business with federal entities in the area who should have personnel in the area that have obtained the required safety certifications, the merits of which subcontractors chosen are to be weighed by the offeror.

While not required at the time of placing an offer, the OSHA certification will be required before any physical work may begin. These will need to be in place prior to NTP Phase 2, please consider this in your planning along with the Period of Performance.

The Competent Person for their trade with the 30 hour certification will be required to be on site to provide appropriate supervision for that trade.

It is correct that the OSHA certification is a requirement for the MATOC, as it is a general requirement that cannot be waived and applies outside of the MATOC as well.

11. I have looked through the solicitation and see that a certificate of insurance must be included, but we need to know what wording you will require to be send to the carrier to make sure the carrier can provide the property documentation and wording to accompany the certificate. Please provide the document that outlines the insurance requirements to work on this project.

The insurance provided must meet the minimum requirements for all local, state and federal requirement for this type of construction project. This is not required to submit an offer. It will be a requirement after offers from all perspective vendors have been considered and the award is made, this is a requirement prior to starting active construction for a project. In accordance with FAR 28.307-2 and FAR 52.228-5, the following minimum coverage shall apply to this contract:

(a) Workers' compensation and employer's liability: Contractors are required to comply with applicable Federal and State workers' compensation and occupational disease statutes. If occupational diseases are not compensable under those statutes, they shall be covered under the employer's liability section of the insurance policy, except when contract operations are so commingled with a Contractor's commercial operations that it would not be practical to require this coverage. Employer's liability coverage of at least $100,000 is required, except in States with exclusive or monopolistic funds that do not permit workers' compensation to be written by private carriers.

(b) General Liability: $500,000.00 per occurrences.

(c) Automobile liability: $200,000.00 per person; $500,000.00 per occurrence and $20,000.00 property damage