36E77620R0048.docx

36E77620R0048

1. SOLICITATION NUMBER

2. TYPE OF SOLICITATION

3. DATE ISSUED

PAGE OF PAGES

4. CONTRACT NUMBER

5. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQUEST NUMBER

6. PROJECT NUMBER

7. ISSUED BY

CODE

8. ADDRESS OFFER TO

a. NAME

b. TELEPHONE NUMBER (Include area code) (NO COLLECT CALLS)

10. THE GOVERNMENT REQUIRES PERFORMANCE OF THE WORK DESCRIBED IN THESE DOCUMENTS (Title, identifying number, date) 12a. THE CONTRACTOR MUST FURNISH ANY REQUIRED PERFORMANCE AND PAYMENT BONDS?

(If "YES," indicate within how many calendar days after award in Item 12B.)

12b. CALENDAR DAYS

13. ADDITIONAL SOLICITATION REQUIREMENTS:

STANDARD FORM 1442 (REV. 8/2014)

STANDARD FORM 1442

Prescribed by GSA-FAR (48 CFR) 52.236-1(d)

SOLICITATION, OFFER,

AND AWARD

(Construction, Alteration, or Repair)

SOLICITATION

SOLICITATION

IMPORTANT - The "offer" section on the reverse must be fully completed by offeror.

9. FOR INFORMATION

CALL:

NOTE: In sealed bid solicitations "offer" and "offeror" mean "bid" and "bidder".

SEALED BID (IFB)

NEGOTIATED (RFP)

11. The Contractor shall begin performance within ____________ calendar days and complete it within calendar days after receiving award, notice to proceed. This performance period is mandatory negotiable. (See _____________________________).

YES

NO

a.

Sealed offers in original and ___________________copies to perform the work required are due at the place specified in Item 8 by _____________ (hour) local time _____________________ (date). If this is a sealed bid solicitation, offers must be publicly opened at that time. Sealed envelopes containing offers shall be marked to show the offeror's name and address, the solicitation number, the date and time offers are due.

b.

An offer guarantee is, is not required.

c.

All offers are subject to the (1) work requirements, and (2) other provisions and clauses incorporated in the solicitation in full text or by reference.

d.

Offers providing less than _______________________ calendar days for Government acceptance after the date offers are due will not be considered and will be rejected.

of 58 36E77620R0048 X

526-CSI-122

PCAC

Department of Veterans Affairs Program Contracting Activity Central 6150 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 300 Independence OH 44131 Department of Veterans Affairs Program Contracting Activity Central 6150 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 300 Independence OH 44131 Samantha Mihaila 216-447-8300 x49606

IN ACCORDANCE WITH 38 U.S.C 8127 (PUBLIC LAW 109-461), THIS PROJECT IS A COMPETITIVE SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN-OWNED

SMALL BUSINESS SET-ASIDE.

THE PURPOSE OF THIS CONTRACT IS TO PROVIDE THE DESIGN AND RENOVATION SERVICES FOR A CHEST X-RAY SYSTEM

AT THE BRONX VA MEDICAL CENTER. THE LOCATION OF THE PROJECT IS:

JAMES J. PETERS VA MEDICAL CENTER

130 WEST KINGSBRIDGE ROAD

BRONX, NY 10468

NAICS CODE: 236220 (39.5M)

THE FAR MAGNITUDE OF CONSTRUCTION IS BETWEEN $500,000.00 and $1,000,000.00

X X 52.211-10 X 14:00 10-07-2020 X

14. NAME AND ADDRESS OF OFFEROR

15. TELEPHONE NUMBER

16. REMITTANCE ADDRESS

CODE

FACILITY CODE

17. The offeror agrees to perform the work required at the prices specified below in strict accordance with the terms of the solicitation, if this offer is accepted by the Government in writing within __________ calendar days after the date offers are due.

AMOUNTS

18. The offeror agrees to furnish any required performance and payment bonds.

19. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF AMENDMENTS

AMENDMENT

NUMBER

DATE.

20a. NAME AND TITLE OF PERSON AUTHORIZED TO SIGN OFFER 20b. SIGNATURE 20c. OFFER DATE

21. ITEMS ACCEPTED:

22. AMOUNT

23. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

24. SUBMIT INVOICES TO ADDRESS SHOWN IN

ITEM

25. OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION PURSUANT TO

10 U.S.C. 2304(c)( 41 U.S.C. 3304(a) (

26. ADMINISTERED BY

27. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE BY

PHONE:

FAX:

28. NEGOTIATED AGREEMENT

29. AWARD

Your Contractor agrees offer on this solicitation is hereby accepted as to the items listed. This to furnish and deliver all items or perform all work requirements identified award consummates the contract, which consists of (a) the Government on this form and any continuation sheets for the consideration stated in solicitation and your offer, and (b) this contract award. No further cont-this contract. The rights and obligations of the parties to this contract ractual document is necessary.

shall be governed by (a) this contract award, (b) the solicitation, and (c) the clauses, representations, certifications, and specifications incorporated by reference in or attached to this contract.

30a. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTOR OR PERSON AUTHORIZED 31a. NAME OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

TO SIGN

30b. SIGNATURE 30c. DATE 31b. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 31c. AWARD DATE

BY

OFFER

AWARD

STANDARD FORM 1442 (REV. 8/2014) BACK

(Include ZIP Code) (Include area code) (Include only if different than Item 14.)

(Insert any number equal to or greater than the minimum requirement stated in Item 13d. Failure to insert any number means the offeror accepts the minimum in Item 13d.)

(The offeror acknowledges receipt of amendments to the solicitation -- give number and date of each) (Type or print) (4 copies unless otherwise specified) (Type or print) (Type or print) (Contractor is required to sign this document and return _______ copies to issuing office.)

(Contractor is not required to sign this document.)

(Must be fully completed by offeror) (To be completed by Government)

CONTRACTING OFFICER WILL COMPLETE ITEM 28 OR 29 AS APPLICABLE

PCAC

Department of Veterans Affairs Program Contracting Activity Central 6150 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 300 Independence OH 44131

VAFSC

Department of Veterans Affairs Financial Services Center Invoices to be Submitted Electronically www.ob10.com/us/en/veterans-affairs/ e-Invoice Setup Info Phone 877-489-6135 877-353-9791 512-460-5429 Yolanda Ray Contracting Officer

Table of Contents

A.3 Price Schedule *PLEASE NOTE: Pricing will only be required for Phase II of the Design-Build process. NO Pricing is to be submitted as part of Phase I.

The contractor shall complete the entire project not later than 240 calendar days after the contractor receives the NOTICE TO PROCEED.

Lump Sum Amount, CLIN 0001: $__________________________________

TOTAL (CLINs 0001 and 0002): $__________________________________

NOTICE

1. The Offeror must submit a proposal based on a 240 Calendar day Schedule. This duration includes, but is not limited to design services, construction, clean-up, acceptance, and submitting final project record drawings.

2. The Offeror shall furnish all plant, labor, material, equipment, etc., necessary to perform all work in strict accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in the contract to include all attachments thereto.

3. Contractor is required to fill in DUNS NUMBER in Block No. 14 on Standard Form (SF) 1442.

4. During Phase Two of the Two-Phase Design Build Process, the Contractor is required to fill in their pricing on the above pricing schedule and in Block No. 17 of the SF 1442. Pricing is not to be submitted in Phase One.

5. PLEASE NOTE: The Contractor agrees to attend any Post Award conference convened by the contracting activity or contract administration in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation subpart 42.5.

6. The Offeror’s total price shall be rounded up to the nearest dollar.

Page 1 of Page 1 of

36E77620R0048

INFORMATION REGARDING BIDDING MATERIAL, BID GUARANTEE AND BOND

Page 1 of

Page 1 of

1.1 PROPOSAL MATERIAL:

Proposal materials consisting of drawings, specifications, and/or contract forms are included and/or attached as part of this Request for Proposal. The VA will not provide printed copies of drawings or specifications. It is the responsibility of the offeror to obtain the proposal materials in a time and manner sufficient to respond to this solicitation by the specified due date.

1.2 BID GUARANTEE:

A Bid Guarantee, SF 24, is required in an amount not less than 20 percent of the proposal price but shall not exceed $3,000,000. Failure to furnish the required bid (proposal) guarantee in the proper form and amount, by the time set for receipt of proposals, may result in the rejection of the proposal. Copies of the SF 24 may be obtained from http://www.gsa.gov/portal/forms/type/TOP.

1.3 PAYMENT & PERFORMANCE BONDS:

The offeror to whom award is made will be required to furnish two bonds, a Payment Bond, SF 25A, and a Performance Bond, SF 25, each in the penal sum as noted in the General Conditions of the Solicitation. Copies of SFs 25 and 25A may be obtained from http://www.gsa.gov/portal/forms/type/TOP.

INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS AND OTHER STATEMENTS TO BIDDERS/OFFERORS

2.1 AVAILABILITY OF SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS:

All solicitation related documents will be published to http://www.beta.sam.gov.

2.2 SELECTION PROCEDURES:

This solicitation is issued as a Request for Proposal (RFP) utilizing the two-phase design-build selection procedures in accordance with FAR 36.301. Phase II of the solicitation shall be prepared in accordance with FAR Part 15, with evaluation criteria developed in accordance with FAR 15.304. The Government intends to award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Offeror whose proposal represents the best value to the Government. It is the intent of the Government to award without discussions; however, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions if necessary.

All Phase I and Phase II proposals shall be subject to evaluation by a team of Government personnel. The proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the content provided in the solicitation. In Phase I of the Two-Phase Design-Build process, Offerors will submit a proposal in accordance with the four (4) evaluation factors listed below. Upon receipt of Phase I proposals, the VA team will evaluate and determine the highest qualified Offerors based on their Phase I submissions. A maximum of four (4) Offerors will be selected to provide a proposal for Phase II. Offerors not selected to provide a Phase II proposal will be notified that they are no longer being considered for this project. Phase II proposals will be evaluated in accordance with FAR Part 15 and the three (3) evaluation factors listed below for Phase II. In accordance with FAR part 15 the Government intends to award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Offeror on a lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA) basis after evaluation in accordance with the factors in the Two-Phase Design-Build solicitation. Offerors must receive a minimum rating of acceptable for Technical Solution and Draft Project Schedule in order to be eligible for award. Technical solution is more important than draft project schedule. Technical Solution and Draft Project Schedule when combined, are approximately equal to price.

Evaluations will be based on the following evaluation factors:

Phase I

1. Past Performance

2. Technical Approach

3. Key Personnel Experience

4. Capability to Perform

Phase II

1. Technical Solution

2. Draft Project Schedule

3. Price

2.3 SDVOSB SET-ASIDE:

This procurement is 100% set-aside for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business concerns. Offers received from other than Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business concerns will not be considered. All Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses must be listed as verified by the VA’s Center for Veterans Enterprises (CVE) (http://www.vetbiz.gov). Offerors must be verified by CVE and visible in the Vendor Information Portal (VIP) database at TIME OF SUBMISSION OF OFFERS AND TIME OF AWARD. Failure to be BOTH visible and verified at the time of proposal submission and time of award will result in the offeror’s proposal being deemed unacceptable and ineligible for award.

2.4 TECHNICAL QUESTIONS:

Questions of a technical nature must be provided in writing and shall be submitted by the prospective offerors to Samantha Mihaila. Questions shall be submitted only via e-mail to: Samantha.Mihaila@va.gov. The subject line must read: Chest X-Ray DB Bronx– Technical Questions. Oral questions of a technical nature are not acceptable. THE CUT-OFF DATE AND TIME FOR RECEIPT OF QUESTIONS IS September 22, 2020 at 2:00 PM (ET).

2.5 AMENDMENTS:

Amendments to this solicitation will be posted at http://www.beta.sam.gov. Paper copies of the amendments will NOT be individually mailed. No other notification of amendments will be provided. Potential Offerors are advised that they are responsible for obtaining and acknowledging any amendments to the solicitation. Failure to acknowledge an amendment shall result in your proposal being considered unacceptable and will not be considered any further.

2.6 PREPARATION OF PROPOSALS:

PCAC will not pay for any costs incurred in preparation and submission of proposals.

2.7 PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS:

A. General:

1. Proposals shall be based on solicitation document issued for RFP number 36E77620R0048. Proposals will be in the format stipulated in this document.

2. Proposals shall be received on or before the date and time specified in Block 13 of the SF 1442. There will be no public opening of the proposals.

3. Submit proposals via email to:

i. samantha.mihaila@va.gov

ii. Emails are limited to five (5) MB.

iii. Only e-mail proposals will be accepted. Hard-copy proposals will not be accepted.

4. Submit the original of the Bid Bond (PHASE II Only) by mail to:

i. US Postal Service Deliveries:

Samantha Mihaila Veterans Health Administration Program Contracting Activity Central (VHA-PCAC) 6150 tree Blvd., Suite 300 Independence, OH 44131

ii. Commercial Delivery Services / Hand Carry (Monday- Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM (EDT)) Samantha Mihaila Veterans Health Administration Program Contracting Activity Central (VHA-PCAC) 6150 Oaktree Blvd., Suite 300 Independence, OH 44131

iii. Failure to furnish the required bid guarantee in the proper form (i.e. SF 24) and amount, by the time specified in Block 13 of SF 1442, may result in rejection of the proposal. SEE FAR Provision 52.228-1, Bid Guarantee, of this Solicitation.

5. Page size for all proposal documents will be 8.5 x 11 inches, with 1-inch margins around the page perimeter. Pages will be single spaced. Each page shall count as one (1) page. Proposals shall be submitted using Times New Roman, with font no smaller than 11 point with normal proportional spacing.

6. Page formatting restrictions do not apply to drawings, but each page does apply to the page count. Submission of the draft project schedule can be submitted utilizing larger paper of 11 x17 inches. Pages submitted in excess of the page count will not be evaluated.

B. Phase I Proposal Format and Evaluation:

1. PHASE I, VOLUME I: offerors shall format Volume I as listed below. Including title page, detailed table of contents, preface, for Volume I Evaluation Factors shall not exceed a total of FIFTY (50) pages in Microsoft Times New Roman with font no smaller than 11 point. This page limit does not apply for any Past Performance Questionnaires that are submitted directly to the contract specialist. The SF 1442, Representations and Certifications, and acknowledged amendments shall all be part of the offer and will not count against the page limitations. A page is defined as each face of an 8.5 X 11inch sheet of paper containing information. All information (except for document numbers, page numbers, etc.) shall be provided in an image area of 8.5 X 11 inches. The background color of each page of the submission shall be white or ivory stock only. Excess pages will not be evaluated. Text lines will be single-spaced. A smaller font size for any graphics presented in a proposal is permitted as long as the information is legible to the human eye. Fonts other than Times New Roman are permissible in the presentation of graphic material only. The Offeror’s responses shall clearly address each evaluation factor listed in this solicitation. Failure to submit in the format required and clearly address those factors may result in this offer being rated unacceptable.

2. Volume I – Evaluation Factors

i. Factor 1, Past Performance:

Provide a minimum of one (1) and a maximum of five (5) projects completed within the last five years (5) years similar in size, complexity and scope to this project. Projects must demonstrate an offeror’s experience as a prime contractor managing multiple subcontractors to include A-E firms if applicable. If the offeror does not possess Design-Build (D-B) experience, provide a minimum of (1) and a maximum of five (5) projects completed by the A-E firm similar in size, complexity, and scope to this project in addition to the one (1) to five (5) projects submitted for the prime contractor. For purposes of this evaluation, a relevant project is further defined as “design and/or construction completed in a clinical, hospital or other medical facility space similar in size and scope to this project. Similar size would include new construction or renovation project with a minimum value of $1,000,000.00. Projects shall have a minimum value of $50,000.00 for design completed by the A-E firm in support of D-B or D-B-B projects. Similar scope would include a past experience with projects that include radiation equipment ” Project(s) shall be 100% completed for Design-Bid-Build (D-B-B) or D-B. Projects shall be 100% completed for designs completed by the A-E firm in support of D-B or D-B-B. Offerors may submit projects that are not 100% complete, and shall indicate the completion percentage of any such current project. However, a project that is not 100% complete will not be rated as favorably as a project that is 100% complete, assuming the size, scope and complexity are similar. Offerors without relevant past performance or for whom past performance information is not available, will be rated neither favorably nor unfavorably on past performance For multiple award and indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity type contracts, the contract as a whole shall not be submitted as a project; rather Offerors shall submit the work performed under a task order as a project. If the Offeror is a Joint Venture (JV), relevant past performance should be submitted for projects completed by each Joint venture partner and the joint venture entity if applicable. Joint venture partners and joint venture entities without relevant past performance or for whom past performance information is not available, will be rated neither favorably nor unfavorably on past performance. However, if the offeror does not have past performance, it shall be indicated that the joint venture partner(s) or joint venture entity does not have past performance.

The Offeror’s submission shall include at a minimum:

· Project Title, Project Location (Physical Address); Contract Type (Example: Design-Build, Design-Bid-Build)

· Project owner name and contact information

· A brief description of the scope of work

· Project prime contractor and major subcontractors

· Project statistics including start and completion dates (original vs actual) and project cost (original vs actual). If original vs actual completion dates and project cost differ, please provide an explanation as to why they differ.

· Problems encountered on identified contracts, if applicable, and the offeror’s corrective actions.

If a completed past performance evaluation for a relevant project is available in the CPARS, it shall be submitted with the proposal for each project referenced for Past Performance. If there is not a completed past performance evaluation available in CPARS, then the Offeror shall submit a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) (reference Attachment 9) for each project referenced for Past Performance. The Offeror shall notify their client that the PPQ shall be submitted via email to the Government’s point of contact, samantha.mihaila@va.gov. If the Offeror is unable to obtain a completed PPQ from a client for a project before proposal closing date, the Offeror shall complete and submit with the proposal the first page of the PPQ, which will provide contract and client information for the respective project. The Government may make reasonable attempts to contact the client noted for that project(s) to obtain the PPQ information. Although the Government may make attempts, it is not responsible for ensuring that complete PPQ information is provided and that the Government will evaluate past performance even if complete information isn’t provided. Offerors should follow-up with clients/references to help ensure timely submittal of questionnaires. The page limit does not apply for the CPARS and PPQs.

The Offeror shall provide a resume for each of the following key personnel members to include: Overall Project Manager, Design Project Manager, Construction Project Manager, Project Site Superintendent, A-E Field Representative and all of the identified Major Subcontractors. It is recognized that not all subcontractors may be identified at the time of proposal submission. For each resume, include name of company, name of individual, relevant listing of experience, qualifications for each person such as specialized training, education, experience and current workload.

iv. Factor 4, Capability to Perform The Offeror shall provide a letter from their surety demonstrating the offeror’s total bonding capacity and current available bonding capacity. Total bonding capacity and current available bonding capacity must be outlined in a letter dated no earlier than the solicitation release date.

3. Evaluation of Offerors:

i. Factor 1, Past Performance:

Will be evaluated on recent and relevant experience as well as the quality rendered of the projects provided. If D-B experience is not applicable, the construction contractor and the A-E firm will be evaluated on relevant and recent projects to the applicable portion of the project, construction or design respectively. Past performance will be evaluated on the quality of the Offeror’s past performance with respect to the projects provided. When evaluating quality aspects that may be considered are timeliness of contract completion, adherence to contract schedules and timely submission of data deliverables, the contractor’s ability to comply with the terms and conditions of the contract, the overall quality of the work performed on the contract, the Offeror’s managerial performance, and if the reference would enter into a contract with the contractor again. Contractors without relevant past performance or for whom past performance information is not available, will be rated neither favorably nor unfavorably on past performance. In accordance with Procurement Policy Memorandum 2013-03, past performance evaluations may also be conducted using information obtained from CPARS and any other sources deemed appropriate by the CO. Other sources may include, but are not limited to, inquiries of owner representatives, Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), Electronic Subcontract Reporting System (eSRS), and any other known sources not provided by the Offeror.

ii. Factor 2: Technical Approach:

Will be evaluated based on the Offeror’s proposed technical approach for this design-build project as defined in the solicitation submittal requirements. The assessment of the offeror’s method to manage the project shall be used as a means of evaluating the offeror’s ability to successfully meet the requirements of the solicitation.

iii. Factor 3: Key Personnel Experience:

Will be evaluated based on the resumes provided by the Offeror. The VA will evaluate the personnel requested and subcontractors based on capabilities and qualifications to provide the required planning, implementation and completion of the project. The team will consider experience and qualifications such as specialized training, education, certifications, and experience in an operational healthcare facility.

iv. Factor 4: Capability to Perform:

Will be evaluated as acceptable or unacceptable based on whether the Offeror has adequate total bonding capacity and available bonding capacity to accommodate the design and construction of the project.

C. Phase 2 Proposal Format and Evaluation:

1. PHASE II, VOLUME I AND II: Phase II proposals shall be based on solicitation documents and the instructions provided by the Contracting Officer in the Phase II Notice of Offerors notifying Offerors that they were selected as one of the most qualified Offerors in Phase I. Non-Price and Price sections of the Offerors proposals will be evaluated independently; therefore, the Offeror shall submit the proposal in three (3) Volumes (Volume I: Non-Price, Volume II: Price, and Volume III: Safety and Environmental Record). The contractor shall include NO price information in Volume I. All volumes must be labeled with the Offeror's organization, business address, and VA Solicitation Number. Volume I: including all non-price factors shall not exceed a total of THIRTY (30) pages, following the formatting requirements stated in general proposal requirements. Volume II including price only has no page limit. Volume III has no page limit. If the page limits are exceeded, the pages in excess of the limit will not be read or considered. Offeror shall include and acknowledge receiving amendments by filling out section 19 of the SF 1442 and returning a signed copy of the amendment(s) with the offer. The acknowledged Amendments shall be included in Volume III of the proposal. The offeror shall submit Volumes I, II, and III in electric format as searchable PDF documents. The proposal in its entirety shall not exceed two emails of 5MB each. Include page numbers and the company name in the header and footer of each page.

2. Evaluation Factors - Technical solution and design concept are more important than draft project schedule. Technical Solution, Draft Project Schedule, and Design Concept, when combined, are approximately equal to price:

i. Volume I Factor 1, Technical Solution: Based on the solicitation documents, site visit, and the Offeror’s Phase I Technical Approach, the Offeror shall provide a detailed narrative describing the Offeror’s technical solution to the project to achieve design and construction objectives as described in the solicitation. The Offeror’s narratives shall include, at a minimum, the following technical areas:

• Infection Control

The Offeror shall address areas of concern and describe how they will minimize risk in conjunction with the identified areas of concern. The narrative shall indicate that the Design-Build team understands the complexities of this project and address how their approach offers constructability advantages in an operational hospital setting.

ii. Volume I Factor 2, Draft Project Schedule: The Offeror shall demonstrate their understanding of the requirement and timeline by submitting a draft project schedule for design and construction that adheres to the period of performance of this project. The Offeror shall prepare and submit a practicable design and construction schedule showing all necessary work elements to complete the project identified under this solicitation. The schedule must be in the form of a progress chart of suitable scale to indicate appropriately the percentage of work scheduled for completion by any given date during the performance period. The submitted schedule must be developed using project scheduling software such as MS Project, Primavera, or any other comparable form.

Each Offeror's construction schedule shall address the following:

The proposed schedule must include the activities which are consistent with those described within the project drawings and bridging documents and must not exceed the Government's maximum allowable performance period, as noted in Block 11 of the SF 1442. The project’s Period of Performance will start at the issuance of the Notice to Proceed. For scheduling purposes, assume an estimated award date of December 14, 2020, and that the Notice to Proceed will be issued ten (10) calendar days after the award date. (Note that there is no guarantee the award will be made or the Notice to Proceed will be issued within this timeframe.)

iii. Volume II Factor 3 Price: Carefully follow “Instructions, Conditions, and Notices to Offerors”. Standard form (SF) 1442 Solicitation, Offer and Award (Construction, Alteration, or Repair) and the pricing schedule when submitting price offers. The prices shall be Firm Fixed Price. Submit a bid guarantee as stipulated in the Section “Instructions, Conditions, and Notices to Offerors”. The offeror’s total price shall be rounded up to the nearest dollar.

3. Evaluation of Offerors - Technical solution and design concept are more important than draft project schedule. Technical Solution, Draft Project Schedule, and Design Concept, when combined, are approximately equal to price:

i. Factor 1, Technical Solution: Will be evaluated and used as an aid to help determine that the Offeror understands the complexity and risks performing the required elements. The technical solution will be evaluated for inclusion of the technical areas listed in the criteria. The VA will evaluate Offeror’s specific detail in each of the technical areas regarding design and constructability of design. The Offeror’s narrative should provide enough detail to demonstrate that the scope (see Attachment 1 – SOW) and complexity of the project requirements are understood and will be successfully completed.

ii. Factor 2, Draft Project Schedule: Will be evaluated and used as an aid to help determine that the Offeror understands and can perform all required elements of the project in the timeframe specified with limited impact, to the greatest extent possible, to the Medical Center. (The draft schedule submitted with the offer should not be construed as the agreed upon schedule as per FAR 52.236-15, the contractor shall, within twenty-one (21) Calendar days after receiving the Notice to Proceed, submit an interim project schedule which will supersede the draft project schedule. The interim project schedule will be subject to VA approval and must show the project being accomplished within the time frame specified on the SF 1442).

iii. Factor 3, Price: Will be evaluated in accordance with the process identified in the Price Schedule. The total evaluated price will be determined by the Offeror’s price for all the CLINs listed. The VA will award to the lowest price technically acceptable offeror.

4. Phase II, Volume III Safety and Environmental Record:

i. Offeror shall provide their Representations and Certifications or their response to FAR 52.204-8 (2) (i) or (ii) Annual Representations and Certifications.

ii. Offeror shall provide their response to FAR 52.209-7 (b) Information Regarding Responsibility Matters.

iii. Offeror shall provide their response to FAR 52.209-13 (b) (1) or (2) Violation of Arms Controls Treaties or Agreements.

iv. Offeror shall provide their response to FAR 52.219-28 (g) Post-Award Small Business Program Representations.

v. Offeror shall include the Safety or Environmental Violations and Experience Modification Rating Information, including filling out ATTACHMENT 10.

vi. All Offerors shall submit information pertaining to their past Safety and Environmental record. The information must contain a certification that the Offeror has no more than three (3) serious, or one (1) repeat or one (1) willful OSHA or any EPA violation(s) in the past three years. If such certification cannot be made, an Offeror shall explain why and submit as much information as possible regarding the circumstances of its past safety and environmental record, including the number of EPA violations and/or the number of serious, repeat, and/or willful OSHA violations, along with a detailed description of those violations.

vii. All Offerors shall submit information regarding their current Experience Modification Rate (EMR). This information shall be obtained from the Offeror’s insurance carrier and be furnished on the insurance carrier’s letterhead. If an Offeror’s EMR is above 1.0, Offeror must submit a written explanation of the EMR from its insurance carrier furnished on the insurance carrier’s letterhead, describing the reasons for the elevated EMR and the anticipated date the EMR may be reduced to 1.0 or below.

viii. Self-insured contractors or other contractors that cannot provide their EMR rating on insurance letterhead must obtain a rating from the National Council on Compensation Insurance, Inc. (NCCI) by completing/submitting form ERM-6 and providing the rating on letterhead from NCCI. Note: Self-insured contractors or other contractors that cannot provide EMR rating on insurance letterhead from the states or territories of CA, DE, MI, NJ, ND, OH, PA, WA, WY, and PR shall obtain their EMR rating from their state run worker’s compensation insurance rating bureau.

ix. If the NCCI cannot issue an EMR because the Offeror lacks insurance history, Offeror shall submit a letter indicating so from its insurance carrier furnished on the insurance carrier’s letterhead and include a letter from the NCCI indicating that is has assigned Offeror a Unity Rating of 1.0.

x. The above information, along with other information obtained from Government systems, such as the OSHA and EPA online inspection history databases, will be used to make an initial Determination of Responsibility.

xi. This requirement is applicable to all subcontracting tiers, and prospective prime contractors are responsible for determining the responsibility of their prospective subcontractors.* If the EMR rating for the subcontracting tiers cannot be provided at time of proposal submission, the prime contractor shall acknowledge this and provide as a submittal with the insurance and bonding requirements.

xii. Failure to provide the ATTACHMENT 10 containing the above information, may result in a determination that an Offeror is not responsible and therefore ineligible for award.

xiii. Offeror shall include and acknowledge receiving amendments by filling out section 19 of the SF 1442 and returning a signed copy of the amendment(s) with the offer.

D. Discussions

1. If determined to be necessary, proposal revisions will be requested from the proposals received. The CO will identify those Offerors, whose proposals are within the competitive range, considering the selection criteria identified in this section. Discussions may be conducted with those Offerors falling within the competitive range, after which proposal revisions will be requested. Proposal revisions will be submitted as per Section 2.7(A), above, and will be due at a time and place to be determined.

2. Proposal revisions shall include a completed SF 1442 that acknowledges receiving all amendments, by number. A new bid bond shall be submitted only if the final proposal revisions Offeror’s price proposal is greater than its initial price proposal.

2.8 USE OF ADVISORS:

Contractors are advised that VA contractor personnel may assist the Government during the Government’s evaluation of Proposals. The persons shall be authorized access to only those portions of the proposal and discussions that are necessary to enable them to provide specific technical advice on specialized matters or on particular problems. These individuals will be required to protect the confidentiality of any specifically identified trade secrets and/or privileged or confidential commercial or financial information obtained as a result of their participation in this evaluation. They shall be expressly prohibited from scoring, ranking or recommending the selection of an Offeror.

2.9 DETERMINATION OF RESPONSIBILITY:

A responsibility determination will be made in accordance with FAR 9.1 “Responsible Prospective Contractors.” The required information from the proposal, along with other information obtained from Government systems, such as, but not limited to the OSHA and EPA online inspection history databases, as well as any other information the Contracting Officer has determined to be valid, will be used to make the Determination of Responsibility. Failure to affirm being within the guidelines (see Phase II, Volume III Safety and Environmental Record) in the proposal may result in a determination of “Non-Responsible” for the Offeror. NOTE: Any information received by the Government that would cause for a negative Determination of Responsibility may make the Offeror ineligible for award.

2.10 VETS 4212:

Title 38, USC Section 4212(d), codified at 41 CFR Section 61-300, requires that federal contractors report, at least annually, the number and category of veterans who are within their workforce. Submission of the VETS-4212 reporting information can be done electronically at: http://www.dol.gov/vets/vets4212.htm. Award cannot be made unless the awardee has filed their VETS-4212 report. Therefore, all offerors are encouraged to file every year. The Contracting Officer may request a copy of the email confirmation of receipt notification, prior to awarding the project.

2.11 SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT (SAM):

Federal Acquisition Regulations require that federal contractors register in the System for Award Management (SAM) database at http://www.sam.gov and enter all mandatory information into the system. Award cannot be made until the contractor has registered. Offerors are encouraged to ensure that they are registered in SAM prior to submitting their proposal.

2.12 REVIEW REQUIRED REGISTRATION WITH CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT SYSTEM (CPARS):

As prescribed in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 42.1502(e), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) evaluates contractor past performance on all construction contracts that exceed $700,000, and shares those evaluations with other Federal Government contract specialists and procurement officials. The FAR requires that the contractor be provided an opportunity to comment on past performance evaluations prior to each report closing. To fulfill this requirement VA uses an online database, CPARS, which is maintained by the Naval Seal Logistics Center in Portsmouth, Virginia. CPARS has connectivity with the Contract Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) database, which is available to all Federal agencies. CPARS is the system used to collect and retrieve performance assessment reports used in source selection determinations and completed CPARS report cards transferred to CPARS.

Each contractor whose contract award is estimated to exceed $700,000 is required to register with CPARS database at the following web address: http://www.cpars.gov/. Help in registering can be obtained by contacting Customer Support Desk @ DSN: 684-1690 or COMM: 207- 438-1690. Registration should occur no later than thirty days after contract award, and must be kept current should there be any change to the contractor’s registered representative.

For contracts with a period of one year or less, the contracting officer will perform a single evaluation when the contract is complete. For contracts exceeding one year, the contracting officer will evaluate the contractor’s performance annually. Interim reports will be filed each year until the last year of the contract, when the final report will be completed. The report shall be assigned in CPARS to the contractor’s designated representative for comment. The contractor representative will have thirty days to submit any comments and re-assign the report to the VA contracting officer.

Failure to have a current registration in the CPARS database, or to re-assign the report to the VA contracting officer within those thirty days, will result in the Government’s evaluation being placed on file in the database with a statement that the contractor failed to respond.

2.13 BACKGROUND INVESTIGATIONS AND SPECIAL AGREEMENT CHECKS:

All contractor employees are subject to the same level of investigation as VA employees who have access to VA Sensitive Information. The level of background investigation commensurate with the level of access needed to perform the statement of work is: Low Risk. This requirement is applicable to all subcontractor personnel requiring the same access. As per VA Directive 0710, costs of background investigations will be borne by the contractor.

2.14 REFERENCES TO VA ENGINEER, RESIDENT ENGINEER OR PROJECT MANAGER:

Any reference contained within the solicitation/contract specifications and/or drawings to the “VA Engineer,” “Resident Engineer,” or “Project Manager” or their abbreviations shall be replaced with “Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR).”

2.15 52.216-1 TYPE OF CONTRACT (APR 1984)

The Government contemplates award of a Firm-Fixed-Price contract resulting from this solicitation.

(End of Provision)

2.16 52.222-5 CONSTRUCTION WAGE RATE REQUIREMENTS—SECONDARY SITE OF THE WORK (MAY 2014) (a)(1) The offeror shall notify the Government if the offeror intends to perform work at any secondary site of the work, as defined in paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of the FAR clause at 52.222-6, Construction Wage Rate Requirements, of this solicitation.

(2) If the offeror is unsure if a planned work site satisfies the criteria for a secondary site of the work, the offeror shall request a determination from the Contracting Officer.

(b)(1) If the wage determination provided by the Government for work at the primary site of the work is not applicable to the secondary site of the work, the offeror shall request a wage determination from the Contracting Officer.

(2) The due date for receipt of offers will not be extended as a result of an offeror's request for a wage determination for a secondary site of the work.

(End of Provision)

2.17 52.222-23 NOTICE OF REQUIREMENT FOR AFFIRMATIVE ACTION TO ENSURE EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY FOR CONSTRUCTION (FEB 1999)

(a) The offeror's attention is called to the Equal Opportunity clause and the Affirmative Action Compliance Requirements for Construction clause of this solicitation.

(b) The goals for minority and female participation, expressed in percentage terms for the Contractor's aggregate workforce in each trade on all construction work in the covered area, are as follows:

These goals are applicable to all the Contractor's construction work performed in the covered area. If the Contractor performs construction work in a geographical area located outside of the covered area, the Contractor shall apply the goals established for the geographical area where the work is actually performed. Goals are published periodically in the Federal Register in notice form, and these notices may be obtained from any Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs office.

(c) The Contractor's compliance with Executive Order 11246, as amended, and the regulations in 41 CFR 60-4 shall be based on (1) its implementation of the Equal Opportunity clause, (2) specific affirmative action obligations required by the clause entitled "Affirmative Action Compliance Requirements for Construction," and (3) its efforts to meet the goals. The hours of minority and female employment and training must be substantially uniform throughout the length of the contract, and in each trade. The Contractor shall make a good faith effort to employ minorities and women evenly on each of its projects.