36C26325Q0873 0001_1.docx

Amendment to a Previous Combined Solicitation

Amendment to a Previous Combined Solicitation

GENERAL INFORMATION

NETWORK 23 CONTRACTING OFFICE

1303 5th St Suite 300 Coralville IA 52241

POINT OF CONTACT*

Contract Specialist Erica Miller erica.miller5@va.gov 319-688-3703

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

ADDRESS

POSTAL CODE

COUNTRY

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

DESCRIPTION

RFQ 36C26325Q0873

Amendment 0001

The purpose of this amendment is to answer questions received for solicitation 36C26325Q0873. Attached are the questions and answers, VHA Directive 1061 (4), Guidance Document GD-1061-3.0.

5. PROJECT NUMBER (if applicable)

CODE

7. ADMINISTERED BY

2.

AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NUMBER

CODE

6. ISSUED BY

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NUMBER

3. EFFECTIVE DATE

9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NUMBER

9B. DATED

PAGE OF PAGES

10A.

MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NUMBER

10B. DATED

BPA NO.

1. CONTRACT ID CODE

FACILITY CODE

CODE

Offers must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended, by one of the following methods:

The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers

E. IMPORTANT:

is extended,

(a) By completing Items 8 and 15, and returning __________ copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted; or (c) By separate letter or electronic communication which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR ACKNOWLEDGMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY is not extended.

12. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

(REV. 11/2016)

is required to sign this document and return ___________ copies to the issuing office.

is not, A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

15C. DATE SIGNED

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by letter or electronic communication, provided each letter or electronic communication makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

C. THIS SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS ENTERED INTO PURSUANT TO AUTHORITY OF:

D. OTHER

Contractor

16C. DATE SIGNED

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION

16B. UNITED STATES OF

AMERICA

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect.

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER

16A. NAME AND TITLE OF

CONTRACTING OFFICER

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

STANDARD FORM 30

PREVIOUS EDITION NOT USABLE

Prescribed by GSA - FAR (48 CFR) 53.243 (Type or print) (Type or print) (Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

(Number, street, county, State and ZIP Code) (If other than Item 6) (Specify type of modification and authority) (such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.)

(If required)

(SEE ITEM 11)

(SEE ITEM 13)

(X)

CHECK

ONE

13. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS,

IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF

SOLICITATIONS

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

(Signature of person authorized to sign) (Signature of Contracting Officer) 07-11-2025 None 36C263 Department of Veterans Affairs

NETWORK 23 CONTRACTING OFFICE

1303 5th St Suite 300 Coralville IA 52241 36C263 Department of Veterans Affairs

NETWORK 23 CONTRACTING OFFICE

1303 5th St, Suite 300 Coralville IA 52241 To all Offerors/Bidders

36C26325Q0873

X X X This is amendment 0001 to solicitation 36C26325Q0873.

The purpose of this amendment is to answers questions received for solicitation 36C26325Q0873.

Attached are the questions and answers, VHA Directive 1061(4), Guidance Document GD-1061-3.0

Jesse Sweesy Contracting Officer Questions regarding solicitation 36C26325Q0873 Q1: Can the government clarify if the VA staff or the contractor will collect samples at each location for both dental and Legionella testing?

The VA will be collecting samples for all locations and tests.

Q2: Page 7, SOW IV.C.3 (the second 3) regarding cooling tower Legionella/HPC it says Additional samples may be required as determined by the COR for an additional per sample charge. Submit the additional per-sample charge in the bid proposal. Can the government indicate where in the bid proposal this pricing should occur?

Any format will suffice. Bids should include a per unit/test price for each CLIN.

Q3:

a) Will the government be collecting ice from ice machines such that a larger, 500 mL, bottle will be needed to guarantee enough melted sample to be tested?

b) If ice is collected, can the government indicate the number that will be tested each quarter?

A larger container will not be necessary.

Q4: Page 12, CLIN 0005 For Omaha HPC-Dental, a total of 60 samples will be tested quarterly. Will these be collected all at the same time or broken up throughout the quarter?

They will be collected by the VA at the same time.

Q5: Page 12, CLIN 0006 For Grand Island HPC-Dental, a total of 25 samples will be tested quarterly. Will these be collected all at the same time or broken up throughout the quarter?

They will be collected by the VA at the same time.

Q6: Page 12, CLIN 0007 For Lincoln HPC-Dental, a total of 35 samples will be tested quarterly. Will these be collected all at the same time or broken up throughout the quarter?

They will be collected by the VA at the same time.

Q7: Page 7 C. Will the cooling tower samples to be tested for Legionella and HPC be collected at the same time as routine building sample collections?

They will be collected by the VA at the same time.

Q8: What is the current schedule of collections at each location? Are all samples collected at once or over a few days?

The VA will be collecting all samples. The samples will be collected on different days at different locations, but each location will collect and send samples to the winning bidder on the same day for their location.

Q9: If a routine sample tests positive for NON-pneumophila Legionella, and the retest is also again positive for NON-pneumophila Legionella, will the water safety committee require the same source continue to be tested until no Legionella is detected?

Additional testing beyond 1 re-test is possible, however this is likely location dependent and will be determined by the VA Water Safety Committee at that time.

Q10: RFQ page 47-48 Addendum to FAR 52.212-1 (b) Submission of Offers, Offer Submittal Instructions states “Offer shall also include the following, submitted as one single document, not to exceed 30 pages in minimum 11-point Arial, Calibri, Courier, or Times New Roman font.” There are no instructions for submitting “C.9 VAAR 852.219-75 VA NOTICE OF LIMITATIONS ON SUBCONTRACTING—CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE FOR SERVICES AND CONSTRUCTION (JAN 2023) (DEVIATION) – Can the government clarify if this should be submitted as a separate document or confirm it is excluded from the 30 Pages allowed for the offer submittal?

The Certificate needs to be signed and returned and does not count toward the 30 page limit.

Solicitation Section: SF 1449, Section 20. Schedule of Supplies/Services / Page 1 of 73 - "Anticipated Period of Performance: 08/01/2025 to 07/31/2030" Question: "Section B.2 Specifications / SOW" on page 5 says "The contract is for a base period plus four years."

Is this contract for a 5-year base period, or for a 1-year base period and four 1-year option periods?

The contract is for a 5 year ordering period.

Solicitation Section: DESCRIPTION (in 36C26325Q0873_1.docx) / Page 3 of 73 - "The VA anticipates one firm fixed price contract award to provide services to VA Nebraska..."

Question: "Section I. Introduction" of the Statement of Work in the same document (page 3 of 9) says, "The contract is for a base period plus four years."

Is this contract for a 5-year base period, or for a 1-year base period and four 1-year option periods?

The contract is for a 5 year ordering period.

Question: Is this a firm fixed price contract or a fixed unit price IDIQ?

This contract will be a firm fixed priced. The quantities ordered will vary depending on need for the task order.

The period of performance is 08-01-2025 to 07-31-2030 for a 5 year contract.

Question: Is this a 5-year contract or a contract with 1-year base period and four 1-year option periods?

The contract is for a 5 year ordering period.

Solicitation Section: IV. Statement of Work / Page 6, 7 of 73 - The requirements for each test type in the SOW state that, "The contractor will provide all materials to collect quarterly legionella samples."

Question: Will the Government please clarify whether the contractor or Government personnel will collect samples?

The VA will be collecting samples for all locations and tests.

Solicitation Section: B.3 Price/Cost Schedule / Page 11 of 73 - "Contract Period: Base POP Begin: 08-01-2025 POP End: 07-31-2030" Question: Each CLIN in the Price/Cost Schedule indicates that the contract period is the "base" and that the beginning and end of that base period are 5 years apart, suggesting a firm-fixed price contract with a fixed term of 5 years, as opposed to what is states on page 5, which is that this contract is for a base period plus four years. Is this contract for a 5-year base period, or a 1-year base period plus four 1-year option periods?

The contract is for a 5 year ordering period.

Question: If there are option periods, would the Government consider revising the Schedule to account for exercising option periods?

The contract is for a 5 year ordering period.

Solicitation Section: C.4 52.216-22 Indefinite Quality (Oct 1995) / Page 21 of 73 - "Delivery or performance shall be made only as authorized by orders issues in accordance with the Ordering clause. The Contractor shall furnish to the Government, when and if ordered, the supplies or services specified in the Schedule up to and including the quantity designated in the Schedule as the "maximum." The Government shall order at least the quantity of supplies or services in the Schedule as the "minimum."

Question: The Schedule does not indicate either a minimum or a maximum. Will the Government provide a minimum quantity of supplies/services in order to allow offerors to quote a favorable volume discount on the unit price without losing money if orders are less than the estimated quantities included in the Schedule?

CLINs # 1-9 in Appendix A are minimums that will be used quarterly.

CLINs #10,11,12 – May or may not be ordered depending on VA needs.

Solicitation Section: OFFER SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS /Page 47 of 73 - "Offeror shall include the following, submitted as one single document, not to exceed 30 pages in minimum 11-point Arial, Calibri, Courier, or Times New Roman font" Question: Will the Government make any exclusions from this page limit, such as cover page, table of contents, cover letter, etc.?

The 30 page limit is counted for the technical proposal and does not include a signed copy of the solicitation and clauses.

Solicitation Section: OFFER SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS, Subsection e) Pricing /Page 48 of 73 - "Pricing may be submitted in PDF or Microsoft Excel format similar to B.3 (Price Schedule)" Question: Page 47 indicates that proposals shall be submitted as one single document, but this instruction suggests that Pricing may be submitted separately in Excel. Is the Pricing Schedule included in the 30-page limit?

The 30 page limit is counted for the technical proposal and does not include a signed copy of the solicitation and clauses.

Solicitation Section: E.4 52.216-1 Type of Contract (Apr 1984) / Page 52 of 73 - "The Government contemplates award of a Firm-Fixed-Price, Indefinite Quantity contract resulting from this solicitation."

Question: Does this statement mean that this is a Fixed Unit Price contract with Indefinite Quantity, or a Fixed Price contract?

Fixed Unit Price Contract with Indefinite Quantity

Question: If this is a fixed unit price, indefinite quantity contract, will the Government expect to issue purchase orders for quantities less than the estimated quantities in the Pricing Schedule?

CLINs # 1-9 in Appendix A are minimums that will be used quarterly.

CLINs #10,11,12 – May or may not be ordered depending on VA needs.

Question: If this is a Fixed Price contract, are the quantities in the Price Schedule guaranteed?

Fixed Unit Price Contract with Indefinite Quantity

Question: If this is an IDIQ, will the Government issue task orders that require pricing to address the TO-specific quantities of each CLIN?

The VA will issue task orders according to the CLIN schedule. The contractor will provide a per unit/test price for each CLIN.

Will the contractor be responsible for on-site sample collection, or will samples be provided by VA staff?

The VA will be collecting samples for all locations and tests.

The RFQ specifies use of ISO 11731 for Legionella testing. Would the VA accept any compliant method (e.g., M343 or M345) that meets the required species/serogroup identification and detection limits?

we couldn’t find a definitive answer in the documents regarding the required sample volume for Legionella testing (100 mL vs. 250 mL). Could you please confirm?

The VA adheres to VHA D 1061 for laboratory requirements. Please see pages 37 and 38 of VHA D 1061 for laboratory requirements. Any method of testing may be used if it is in accordance with VHA D 1061. In the proposal, include the contractor’s intentions on testing methods, volume of samples, and qualifications. Please see VHA D 1061 and GD-1061- 3.0.

See attached document: VHA Directive 10614_D_2021-02-16.

See attached document: Guidance Document_Routine Legionella Testing for Buildings_April 2021.

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Amendment to a Previous Combined Solicitation