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Questions and Answers for Solicitation #412287 “Support and Consulting Services for Microsoft Products”
| 1 |
| Will this contract allow for a commercial item direct contract and/or commercial item sub-contracts? |
| Offerors may choose to provide services directly to the FBI or propose a sub-contracting plan. |
| 1. 2 |
| 1. The hours associated with labor categories are different in the SOW as compared to the Pricing Worksheet. Can the FBI please synchronize these? |
| The hours in the pricing worksheet and SOW tables have been adjusted to mirror the 250,000 hour maximum placed on the IDIQ. |
| 1. 3 |
| 1. P. 23 states, “All proposed labor categories, regardless of their name, shall be described in the Offeror’s proposal with minimum qualifications.” Will the FBI provide any guidance on the labor category description and minimum qualifications for the labor categories? |
| At a minimum, the Enterprise Architect (EA) requires a broad knowledge of Microsoft product lines, and possesses an understanding of how to integrate Microsoft product roadmaps with FBI program initiatives. This role also plays more of a vision/strategy function than that of a hands-on engineer. The EA also provides insight into how other agencies/organizations are utilizing Microsoft products, and how they align with FBI goals in terms of interoperability. |
At a minimum, consultants are expected to provide design solutions for Microsoft products, specific to the FBI’s current and proposed enterprise architecture.
At a minimum, support resources are expected to optimize and troubleshoot issues with Microsoft product deployments.
| 1. 4 |
| 1. In responding to task orders, can contractors propose labor categories that are not included in the solicitation? |
| Offerors may propose labor categories not explicitly named in the solicitation, provided that the offeror explain how the proposed labor categories would meet or exceed the solicited labor category requirements. Individual task order proposals shall consist exclusively of labor categories proposed in the response to this IDIQ solicitation. |
| 1. 5 |
| 1. In responding to task orders, are contractors allowed to proposal any of the 9 labor categories in its response or is it limited to 5 labor categories for consulting task orders and 4 labor categories for support task orders? |
| Offerors may respond to task orders utilizing any of the labor categories proposed in response to this IDIQ solicitation. |
| 1. 6 |
| 1. Are contractors allowed to discount their rates when responding to task orders? |
| Yes, contractors may offer task order discounts off of rates proposed in response to this IDIQ solicitation. Offerors are strongly encouraged to propose competitive rates in response to this solicitation in order to be considered for award under the IDIQ. The proposed IDIQ labor rates will be the maximum rates allowed during the life of the contract. |
| 1. 7 |
| 1. What is the anticipated award date? |
| The anticipated award date is March 16th. Please note that this date is anticipated, but the actual award date may occur before or after this date. |
| 1. 8 |
| 1. In the SOW section 9.2.1 the FBI states “The FBI will award this contract to multiple vendors to realize the overall best value to the Government”. Is there a target number of awardees? |
| The government does not have a specific target number in mind since the optimal combination of contractors will depend highly on the submitted proposals and available hours across labor categories. |
| 1. 9 |
| 1. What are the size standards that would be used to evaluate a company’s ability to be considered a Small Business? |
| Small business designations will be in accordance with the Small Business Administration Size Standards Table. To be considered a small business under NAICS code 511210, a company must have less than $25.0 million in average annual receipts. |
| 1. 10 |
| 1. In the SOW section 9.2.1 the FBI states “At least one of the selected vendors will be a small business”. Is there is a limit on the number of small business awardees? |
| There is no limit to the number of small business awardees under this IDIQ. Large businesses will also be considered for award. |
| 1. 11 |
| 1. If all things are equal in the evaluation criteria between a large and small business proposal with small business be given preference in award? |
| If a large and a small business come in with equal proposals across all factors, a small business designation would be preferred as a tie-breaker. |
| 1. 12 |
| 1. Is there an incumbent(s), and if so can you please identify. |
| The incumbent prime contractor is TrueTandem. |
| 13 |
| What contract vehicle(s) are currently used to procure these Microsoft consulting services? |
| These services are currently obtained through a BPA established under GSA Schedule 70. |
| 14 |
| What is the current or recent expenditure level for these services within the FBI? |
| The current annual expenditure for these services is roughly $9 million. |
| 15 |
| Section 8, Factor 1: Will the government please provide detailed information regarding the existing work to allow bidders to provide the requested Transition Plan? |
| The Government cannot provide specific details on current work in this solicitation, however we are working on migrating multiple Microsoft products (ex: Performance Improvement, Lync 2010, Microsoft Quality Assurance, Identity Management, SharePoint, Directory Services). |
| 16 |
| Section 8, Factor 1: Will the government please provide detailed information regarding the projects, products, and partners referenced? |
| Please see response to Question #15. |
| 17 |
| Section 8, Factor 3: Will the past performance of subcontractors be allowed and, if so, will such past performances be given equal weight? |
| Past performance references for subcontractors may be submitted but may not be regarded in equal weight to the past performance of the prime. |
| 18 |
| Will the Government provide labor category descriptions to include years of experience? |
| At a minimum, the Enterprise Architect (EA) requires a broad knowledge of Microsoft product lines, and possesses an understanding of how to integrate Microsoft product roadmaps with FBI program initiatives. This role also plays more of a vision/strategy function than that of a hands-on engineer. The EA also provides insight into how other agencies/organizations are utilizing Microsoft products, and how they align with FBI goals in terms of interoperability. A minimum of 3 years experience is required. |
At a minimum, consultants are expected to provide design solutions for Microsoft products, specific to the FBI’s current and proposed enterprise architecture. A minimum of 3 years experience is required.
At a minimum, support resources are expected to Optimize and troubleshoot issues with Microsoft product deployments. A minimum of 3 years experience is required.
| 19 |
| Will the Government provide more specific instructions as to what is required in the Security Volume? |
| The Offeror must provide sufficient information to prove compliance with all security requirements in Section 7.6 of the SOW, including responses to all Acquisition Security Questions. |
| 20 |
| Section 7.6.16 Where should the answers to these risk questions appear in the proposal? |
| The answers to the Acquisition Risk Questions should be included in the Security Proposal. |
| 21 |
| Section 2.2.1 Is it up to the vendor to determine who is Key Personnel? |
| The offeror may determine proposed key personnel. Since no labor category is guaranteed to be awarded to any single contractor, the government will not mandate key personnel in any specific labor categories. |
| 22 |
| Section 2.2.1-Do all key personnel bid need to have T/S and SCI clearance by 4/13/2012, or just a T/S and the ability to get an SCI, as stated in 7.6 (2)? Can work be started while awaiting an SCI/? |
| All contractor personnel must have active Top Secret clearances on 4/13/12 with the ability to obtain SCI. |
| 23 |
| The objectives listed section 1.2.2 discuss the design and optimization of architectures (Server, Exchange, CM, etc.). Do these tasks include optimization of existing infrastructure or just creation of new environments? |
| These tasks include both optimization of existing infrastructure and the creation of new environments. |
| 24 |
| Does the FBI prescribe any specific system development process (Waterfall, Spiral, Agile) or will the contractor’s responsibilities include recommending the appropriate process? |
| The contractor will be responsible for recommending optimal system development processes to meet the FBI’s needs and environments. |
| 25 |
| Does the FBI require that the contractor follow standards defined in any particular process improvement model (CMMI, ISO 9000, etc.)? |
| The offeror shall propose standards in accordance with their proposed system development process and DOJ procedures. |
| 26 |
| Will there be any remote access capability to the FBI environment? |
| No remote access to the FBI environment will be available. |
| 27 |
| Will the contractor be responsible for the certification and accreditation of the environment and the solutions? |
| The contractor will be responsible to ensure that all C&A guidelines set by DOJ and the FBI are followed. |
| 28 |
| The knowledge transfer tasks identified state that it should be done on an informal basis. How will completion of this objective be measured? |
| Documentation will be required by the COR or Task Leads throughout the life of the contract to monitor knowledge transfer on tasks. |
| 29 |
| Microsoft Solutions – Will you provide the Microsoft products and versions that are currently being supported (Examples: SQL Server 2008, SharePoint 2010, etc.)? |
| Server Products: |
1. Windows 2003 / 2008
1. Exchange 2007 / 2010
1. SharePoint & FAST for SharePoint 2007 / 2010
1. Lync 2007R2 / 2010
1. SCCM / SCOM 2007R2
1. SQL 2000 / 2003 / 2005 / 2008
1. Project Server 2003 / 2007
1. ForeFront Security Suite – versions in line with server products above
1. Enterprise CAL (ECAL) – versions in line with server products above
Desktop Products:
1. Windows XP / Win7
1. Office Pro Plus 2007 / 2010
1. Project Pro / Standard 2003 / 2007
1. Visio Pro / Standard 2003 / 2007
1. MapPoint – various
1. Streets & Trips – various
Developers’ Tools:
1. Visual Studio Premium
| 30 |
| Under this IDIQ, do you plan to perform any migrations (Example: MOSS 2007 to SharePoint 2010 or SQL Server 2005 to SQL Server 2008 R2)? |
| Yes, migrations are planned to occur during the Period of Performance of this IDIQ. |
| 1. 31 |
| 1. Reading over the RFP, I cannot determine whether any Microsoft Office applications training and support is required or if the entire RFP is for Microsoft Server migration and networking. |
| The RFP is for support surrounding all Microsoft products in the FBI environment. This support may come in various forms including training, support, optimization or migration. |
| 32 |
| Can there be a HUBzone portion assigned to this ID/IQ? |
| The solicitation has a partial small business set-aside, ensuring that at least one small business will be included as a prime contractor in the award. However, in the spirit of competition and promotion of the interests of all small businesses, there will not be any special delegation for specific small business types such as HUBZone. |