Draft_Solicitation_CPI.pdf

DRAFT SOLICITATION

FOR

Request for Proposal (RFP)

47QSCC19R0429

Commercial Platforms Initiative

August 2, 2019

Table of Contents

(A) STANDARD FORM (SF) 1449

(B) SF 1449 CONTINUATION

(C) CONTRACT CLAUSES

(D) CONTRACT DOCUMENTS, EXHIBITS, OR ATTACHMENTS

(E) SOLICITATION PROVISIONS

E.1 Provisions Incorporated by Reference

E.2 Provisions Incorporated by Full Text

E.3 Addendum to FAR 52.212-1 Additional Instructions to Offerors

E.3.1 Period for Acceptance of Offers

E.3.2 Disposition of Offers

E.3.3 Non-Government / Government Consultant/Advisors

E.3.4 Evaluation Notice

E.3.5 General Instructions for Submission of Technical Proposals

E.3.5.1 General Instructions

E.3.5.2 Instructions for Volume 1 – Contract Data

E.3.5.3 Instructions for Volume 2 – (Evaluated in Phase I)

E.3.5.4 Instructions for Volume 3 - Phase II Live Test Demonstration

E.3.6 Evaluation Factors for Award

E.3.6.1 Phase 1 Evaluation Ratings

E.3.6.2 Phase II Evaluation Ratings

E.3.7 Evaluation Summary

E.3.8 Communications/Discussions with offerors

DRAFT

SOLICITATION/CONTRACT/ORDER FOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS

OFFEROR TO COMPLETE BLOCKS 12, 17, 23, 24, & 30

1. REQUISITION NUMBER PAGE 1 OF

2. CONTRACT NO. 3. AWARD/EFFECTIVE

DATE

4. ORDER NUMBER 5. SOLICITATION NUMBER 6. SOLICITATION ISSUE

DATE

7. FOR SOLICITATION

INFORMATION CALL:

a. NAME b. TELEPHONE NUMBER (No collect calls)

8. OFFER DUE DATE/

LOCAL TIME

9. ISSUED BY

13b. RATING

14. METHOD OF SOLICITATION

CODE

15. DELIVER TO 16. ADMINISTERED BY CODE

18a. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE BY CODE17a. CONTRACTOR/

OFFEROR

CODE

FACILITY

CODE

CODE

TELEPHONE NO.

17b. CHECK IF REMITTANCE IS DIFFERENT AND PUT SUCH ADDRESS IN

OFFER

18b. SUBMIT INVOICES TO ADDRESS SHOWN IN BLOCK 18a UNLESS BLOCK

BELOW IS CHECKED

RFQ IFB RFP

SEE ADDENDUM

19.

ITEM NO.

20.

SCHEDULE OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES

21.

QUANTITY

22.

UNIT

23.

UNIT PRICE

24.

AMOUNT

(Use Reverse and/or Attach Additional Sheets as Necessary)

25. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA 26. TOTAL AWARD AMOUNT (For Govt. Use Only)

28. CONTRACTOR IS REQUIRED TO SIGN THIS DOCUMENT AND RETURN

COPIES TO ISSUING OFFICE. CONTRACTOR AGREES TO FURNISH AND

DELIVER ALL ITEMS SET FORTH OR OTHERWISE IDENTIFIED ABOVE AND ON ANY

ADDITIONAL SHEETS SUBJECT TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SPECIFIED

29. AWARD OF CONTRACT: REF. OFFER

DATED . . YOUR OFFER ON SOLICITATION

(BLOCK 5), INCLUDING ANY ADDITIONS OR CHANGES WHICH ARE

SET FORTH HEREIN, IS ACCEPTED AS TO ITEMS:

30a. SIGNATURE OF OFFEROR/CONTRACTOR

30b. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER (Type or print) 30c. DATE SIGNED

31a. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (SIGNATURE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER)

31b. NAME OF CONTRACTING OFFICER (Type or print) 31c. DATE SIGNED

AUTHORIZED FOR LOCAL REPRODUCTION

PREVIOUS EDITION IS NOT USABLE

STANDARD FORM 1449 (REV. 2/2012)

Prescribed by GSA - FAR (48 CFR) 53.212

10. THIS ACQUISITION IS UNRESTRICTED OR

NAICS:

SIZE STANDARD:

13a. THIS CONTRACT IS A

RATED ORDER UNDER

DPAS (15 CFR 700)

SET ASIDE: % FOR:

11. DELIVERY FOR FOB DESTINA-

TION UNLESS BLOCK IS

MARKED

SEE SCHEDULE

12. DISCOUNT TERMS

ARE ARE NOT ATTACHED

ARE ARE NOT ATTACHED

27a. SOLICITATION INCORPORATES BY REFERENCE FAR 52.212-1, 52.212-4. FAR 52.212-3 AND 52.212-5 ARE ATTACHED. ADDENDA

27b. CONTRACT/PURCHASE ORDER INCORPORATES BY REFERENCE FAR 52.212-4. FAR 52.212-5 IS ATTACHED. ADDENDA

8 (A)

EDWOSB

WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS

(WOSB) ELIGIBLE UNDER THE WOMEN-OWNED

SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM

SERVICE-DISABLED

VETERAN-OWNED

SMALL BUSINESS

HUBZONE SMALL

BUSINESS

SMALL BUSINESS

47QSCC19R0429

Dominic Lackey 202-412-6672

N/A

See continuation pages See Block 9

See continuation pages

E-marketplace contract awarded by the U.S. General

Services Administration

Dominic Lackey

See Block 31c 08/09/2019

09/13/2019

5:00 PM

GSA/FAS/Office of General Supplies and Services

Office of Acquisition Management

Internal and Emergency Acquisition Division

1800 F Street NW

Washington, DC 20405-0001

(B) SF 1449 CONTINUATION

B.1 SCHEDULE OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES - CONTINUED

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has a requirement for contractors to provide a commercial e-marketplace platforms that can provide business-to-business (B2B) delivery and process orders made by various Federal entities’ via the Government Purchase Card (GPC) for commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) items. This acquisition is based upon the authority in Section 846 of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, Pub L. 115-91, and is intended to result in two or more no-cost contracts, each with a period of performance of one year with four option years. GSA reserves the right to award as many contracts as determined appropriate by the Contracting Officer.

(C) CONTRACT CLAUSES

United States law will govern and apply to resolve any claim of breach under this contract.

C.1 FAR CLAUSES APPLICABLE TO THE CONTRACT

● 52.203-6 Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government (Alternate I)

● 52.203-13 Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct

● 52.203-19 Prohibition on Requiring Certain Internal Confidentiality Agreements or Statements (Jan 2017)

● 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance

● 52.204-21 Basic Safeguarding of Covered Contractor Information Systems

● 52.204-23 Prohibition on Contracting for Hardware, Software, and Service Developed or Provided by Kaspersky Lab and Other Covered Entities (Jul 2018)

● 52.209-10 Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations (Nov 2015)

● 52.209-6 Protecting the Government's Interest When Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment

● FAR 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions–Commercial Items

○ (d) Disputes

○ (e) Definitions

○ (f) Excusable Delays

○ (h) Patent Indemnity

○ (i) Payment

▪ Prompt payment

▪ Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)

▪ Discount

▪ Overpayments

▪ Interest

○ (l) Termination for Government's convenience

○ (m) Termination for cause

○ (p) Limitation of liability

○ (r) Compliance with laws unique to Government contracts, except for

Whistleblower

○ (s) Order of precedence

○ (u) Unauthorized Obligations

○ (v) Incorporation by reference

○ (w) Commercial supplier agreements–unenforceable clauses

● 52.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns

● 52.219-28 Post Award Small Business Program Rerepresentation (Jul 2013) (15 U.S.C.

632(a)(2))

● 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (Apr 2015)

● 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity (Sept 2016) (E.O. 11246)

● 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons (Mar 2015) (22 U.S.C. chapter 78 and E.O. 13627)

○ (ii) Alternate I (Mar 2015) of 52.222-50 (22 U.S.C. chapter 78 and E.O. 13627).

• Alternate I is applicable for contracts performed outside of the

U.S

● 52.222-56 Certification Regarding Trafficking in Persons Compliance Plan

● 52.224-3 Privacy Training

● 52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases (June 2008) (E.O.’s, proclamations, and statutes administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury)

● 52.233–3 Protest After Award

● 52.233-4 Applicable Law for Breach of Contract Claim

● 52.239-1 Privacy or Security Safeguards

C.2 GSAR CLAUSES APPLICABLE TO THE CONTRACT

● GSAR 552.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items. (FAR DEVIATION) (Feb 2018)

● 552.203-71 Restriction on Advertising

● 552.215-70 Examination of Records by GSA

C.3 TERMS APPLICABLE TO PLATFORM PURCHASES BY GOVERNMENT

USERS

To prevent purchasing agencies from being subject to certain standard commercial terms and conditions deemed to conflict with Federal law or Government policies or needs, the contractor will ensure that the text of Appendix A is included in the platform screen immediately preceding the conclusion of a purchase through a “click-accept” or “pop-up” or another appropriate mechanism requiring an affirmative response, and that such text is included in the audit trail for each purchase.

Additionally, GSA has also determined the following clauses will apply to orders under the micro-purchase threshold placed by the Government through the platforms. In its agreements with each platform vendor, supplier, subcontractor, or any other entity conducting business associated with the portal, the contractor will obtain the platform vendor’s, supplier’s, subcontractor’s, or other entity’s agreement to abide by the clauses:

● 52.223-13, Acquisition of EPEAT®-Registered Imaging Equipment

● 52.223-14, Acquisition of EPEAT®-Registered Televisions

● 52.223-15, Energy Efficiency in Energy-Consuming Products

● 52.223-16, Acquisition of EPEAT®-Registered Personal Computer Products

C.4 PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND VIDEO

SURVEILLANCE SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT

In accordance with section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232, August 13, 2018), an executive agency will be prohibited one year after enactment of the Act from procuring, obtaining, extending or renewing a contract to procure or obtain any equipment, system or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system; and two years after enactment of the Act from entering into, renewing or extending a contract with an entity that uses covered telecommunications equipment or service in that entity s equipment, system or service, as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system. Section 889 defines covered telecommunications equipment or services as any of the following:

(A) Telecommunications equipment produced by Huawei Technologies Company or ZTE Corporation (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).

(B) For the purpose of public safety, security of Government facilities, physical security surveillance of critical infrastructure, and other national security purposes, video surveillance and telecommunications equipment produced by Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company, or Dahua Technology Company (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).

(C) Telecommunications or video surveillance services provided by such entities or using such equipment.

(D) Telecommunications or video surveillance equipment or services produced or provided by an entity that the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Director of the National Intelligence or the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, reasonably believes to be an entity owned or controlled by, or otherwise connected to, the Government of a covered foreign country (i.e. the People’s Republic of China). (Pub. L. 115-232, section 889(f)(3), italicized parenthetical added).

C.5 NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM

A contract will be established with contractors holding one of the below North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) in the System for Award Management (SAM):

NAICS 425110: B2B Electronic Markets NAICS 454110: Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses

**To be considered eligible for award, the contractor’s SAM account shall reflect the above NAICS prior to submitting a proposal in response to this RFP.

C.6 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

As stated above, the Period of Performance (PoP) of the contract will be for a one-year base period from date of award, with four (4) one-year option periods. The Contracting Officer (CO) may exercise an option period only after conducting an annual evaluation in accordance with FAR subpart 17.207-Exercise of Options. Option exercise is not guaranteed.

The anticipated PoP is as follows:

Base Period: Date of Award (DoA) through - one year Option Period 1: One year from expiration of the Base Period through - one year Option Period 2: One year from expiration of Option Period 1 through - one year Option Period 3: One year from expiration of Option period 2 through - one year Option Period 4: One year from expiration of Option Period 3 through - one year

C.7 “OPEN SEASON”

The Government intends to award multiple contracts from this solicitation. In order to maintain and ensure an adequate number of contractors, in accordance with 2018 NDAA Section 846, GSA intends to periodically review the total number of contractors holding a contract and determine whether it would be in the Government’s best interest to initiate an open season to add new contractors to the program. An open season is not guaranteed.

If GSA determines that it would be in the Government’s best interest to issue an “open season” solicitation to add new contractors, the GSA CO may do so at any time. Contractors may submit a proposal in response to the “open season” solicitation, which would be issued on FBO.gov. The terms of the solicitation and the resulting awards, if any, will be materially the same as the existing contracts. Contractors may not hold multiple contracts under this program.

C.8 “OFF-RAMP”

If a contract holder does not meet the expectations of the program, or pricing of items sold via the platform is determined to be unreasonable during ongoing contract administration, it is the Government’s intent to “Off-Ramp” the contractor by:

(a) Permitting the contract to expire instead of exercising the option; or

(b) Exercising the Termination for Convenience clause per FAR 52.212-4 and 552.212-4;

or

(c) Exercising the Termination for Cause, per FAR 52.212-4 and 552.212-4; or

(d) Any other action permitted by law.

C.9 QUALITY ASSURANCE AND INSPECTIONS

In accordance with FAR 46.202-1 and as discussed in the Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) (Attachment 2 to this solicitation), the Government will rely on contractors’ existing quality assurance systems as a substitute for Government inspection and testing of the e-marketplace platform or as otherwise stated in the QASP.

(D) CONTRACT DOCUMENTS, EXHIBITS, OR

ATTACHMENTS

Solicitation Exhibits incorporated into Final Contract

Attachment 1 – Statement of Objectives (SOO)

Attachment 2 – Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP)

Solicitation Exhibits Not incorporated into Final Contract

Attachment 3 – Live Test Demonstration (LTD) Guidance

(E) SOLICITATION PROVISIONS

E.1 Provisions Incorporated by Reference

● FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items, by reference (see SF 1449, Block 27a) o (a) NAICS/ business size o (b) Submission of offers o (c) Period for acceptance of offers o (f) Late submissions, modifications, revisions, and withdrawals of offers o (g) Contract award o (j) Unique entity identifier (52.204-13)

● FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications -- Commercial Items

Note: The Offeror shall complete only paragraph (b) of this provision if the Offeror has completed the annual representations and certification electronically in the System for Award Management (SAM) accessed through https://www.sam.gov. If the Offeror has not completed the annual representations and certifications electronically, the Offeror shall complete paragraphs (c) , (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) part 4 only, (i), (q) (s), (t), (u) of this provision.

E.2 Provisions Incorporated by Full Text

● FAR 52.204-7 System for Award Management (Oct 2018)

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision—

● “Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) indicator means a four-character suffix to the unique entity identifier. The suffix is assigned at the discretion of the commercial, nonprofit, or Government entity to establish additional System for Award Management records for identifying alternative EFT accounts (see subpart 32.11) for the same entity.

● “Registered in the System for Award Management (SAM)” means that–

(1) The offeror has entered all mandatory information, including the unique entity identifier and the EFT indicator, if applicable, the Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, as well as data required by the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (see subpart 4.14) into SAM

(2) The offeror has completed the Core, Assertions, and Representations and Certifications, and Points of Contact sections of the registration in SAM;

(3) The Government has validated all mandatory data fields, to include validation of the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

The offeror will be required to provide consent for TIN validation to the Government as a part of the SAM registration process; and

(4) The Government has marked the record “Active”.

● “Unique entity identifier” means a number or other identifier used to identify a specific commercial, nonprofit, or Government entity. See www.sam.gov for the designated entity for establishing unique entity identifiers.

(b) SAM Registration/Unique Entity Identifier

(1) An offeror is required to be registered in SAM when submitting an offer or proposal, and shall continue to be registered until time of award, during performance, and through final payment of any contract, basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchasing agreement resulting from this solicitation.

(2) The offeror shall enter, in the block with its name and address on the cover page of its offer, the annotation “Unique Entity Identifier” followed by the unique entity identifier that identifies the Offeror's name and address exactly as stated in the offer. The offeror also shall enter its EFT indicator, if applicable. The unique entity identifier will be used by the Contracting Officer to verify that the offeror is registered in the SAM.

(c) If the offeror does not have a unique entity identifier, it should contact the entity designated at www.sam.gov for establishment of the unique entity identifier directly to obtain one. The offeror should be prepared to provide the following information:

(1) Company legal business name.

(2) Trade style, doing business, or other name by which your entity is commonly recognized.

(3) Company physical street address, city, state, and Zip Code.

(4) Company mailing address, city, state and Zip Code (if separate from physical).

(5) Company telephone number.

(6) Date the company was started.

(7) Number of employees at your location.

(8) Chief executive officer/key manager.

(9) Line of business (industry).

(10) Company headquarters name and address (reporting relationship within your entity).

(d) Processing time should be taken into consideration when registering. Offerors who are not registered in SAM should consider applying for registration immediately upon receipt of this solicitation. See https://www.sam.gov for information on registration.

● FAR 52.214-34 Submission of Offers in the English Language (Apr 1991)

Offers submitted in response to this solicitation shall be in the English language. Offers received in other than English shall be rejected.

● FAR 52.216-1 Type of Contract (Apr 1984)

The Government intends to award two or more No-Cost contracts.

● GSAM 552.217-71 Notice Regarding Option(s) (Nov 1992)

GSA has included an option to extend the term of this contract in order to demonstrate the value it places on quality performance by providing a mechanism for continuing a contractual relationship with a successful offeror that performs at a level which meets or exceeds GSA's quality performance expectations as communicated to the contractor, in writing, by the CO or designated representative. When deciding whether to exercise the option, the CO will consider the quality of the Contractor's past performance under this contract in accordance with 48 CFR 517.207.

● FAR 52.233-3 Protest After Award (Aug 1996)

(a) Upon receipt of a notice of protest (as defined in FAR 33.101) or a determination that a protest is likely (see FAR 33.102(d)), the Contracting Officer may, by written order to the Contractor, direct the Contractor to stop performance of the work called for by this contract. The order shall be specifically identified as a stop-work order issued under this clause. Upon receipt of the order, the Contractor shall immediately comply with its terms and take all reasonable steps to minimize the incurrence of costs allocable to the work covered by the order during the period of work stop-page. Upon receipt of the final decision in the protest, the Contracting Officer shall either-

(1) Cancel the stop-work order; or

(2) Terminate the work covered by the order as provided in the Default, or the Termination for Convenience of the Government, clause of this contract.

(b) If a stop-work order issued under this clause is canceled either before or after a final decision in the protest, the Contractor shall resume work. The Contracting Officer shall make an equitable adjustment in the delivery schedule or contract price, or both, and the contract shall be modified, in writing, accordingly, if-

(1) The stop-work order results in an increase in the time required for, or in the Contractor’s cost properly allocable to, the performance of any part of this contract; and

(2) The Contractor asserts its right to an adjustment within 30 days after the end of the period of work stoppage; provided, that if the Contracting Officer decides the facts justify the action, the Contracting Officer may receive and act upon a proposal at any time before final payment under this contract.

(c) If a stop-work order is not canceled and the work covered by the order is terminated for the convenience of the Government, the Contracting Officer shall allow reasonable costs resulting from the stop-work order in arriving at the termination settlement.

(d) If a stop-work order is not canceled and the work covered by the order is terminated for default, the Contracting Officer shall allow, by equitable adjustment or otherwise, reasonable costs resulting from the stop-work order.

(e) The Government’s rights to terminate this contract at any time are not affected by action taken under this clause.

(f) If, as the result of the Contractor’s intentional or negligent misstatement, misrepresentation, or miscertification, a protest related to this contract is sustained, and the Government pays costs, as provided in FAR 33.102(b)(2) or 33.104(h)(1), the Government may require the Contractor to reimburse the Government the amount of such costs. In addition to any other remedy available, and pursuant to the requirements of subpart 32.6, the Government may collect this debt by offsetting the amount against any payment due the Contractor under any contract between the Contractor and the Government.

● Socio-Economic Objective

To the maximum extent practicable contractor’s shall utilize small, HUBZone small, small disadvantaged, women-owned, veteran-owned, and service-disabled veteran owned small business concerns as subcontractors is a matter of national interest with both social and economic benefits.

E.3 ADDENDUM TO FAR 52.212-1: ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS

TO OFFERORS

E.3.1 Period for Acceptance of Offers

The offeror agrees to hold its offer (both technical and price) firm for 90 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of offers, within which the offer may be accepted.

E.3.2 Disposition of Offers

GSA will retain an electronic copy of each proposal (both successful and unsuccessful) for the official contract file. Proposals will not be returned to offerors.

E.3.3 Non-Government / Government Consultant/Advisors

The Government may employ individual technical consultant(s)/advisor(s) from firms under contract with GSA to read and advise on portions of the written proposals (technical or price), as well as any Live Test Demonstration (LTD).

These technical consultant(s)/advisor(s) and their firms will sign, or have already signed, Non- Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) for the protection of source selection information and proprietary data. In addition, these technical consultant(s)/advisor(s) are subject to Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) notification requirements and are restricted from being a contractor, subcontractor, or teaming partner in this solicitation in any capacity. These representatives shall not, under any circumstances, be used as voting evaluators. However, the Government may consider the advice provided in its evaluation process. Recommend making the documents a combined NDA/COI form.

E.3.4 Evaluation Notice

The Government may need to conduct exchanges with offerors after receipt of proposals which will be in the form of a written Evaluation Notice (EN). Page format and limitations may be placed on responses to ENs in the event an EN is issued. Responses to ENs shall comply with all instructions outlined in the EN and be sent electronically (i.e., via e-mail) to Dominic.Lackey@gsa.gov and Sarah.Duncan@gsa.gov.

E.3.5 General Instructions for Submission of Technical Proposals

E.3.5.1 General Instructions

a) Volumes 1 and 2 shall be submitted electronically via email to Dominic.Lackey@gsa.gov and Sarah.Duncan@gsa.gov by 5:00 PM, Eastern Standard Time on September 13, 2019. Both volumes must be received by the date and time specified above or the proposal as a whole may be considered late.

b) Volume 3 (Live Test Demonstration) shall be submitted via email to Dominic.Lackey@gsa.gov and Sarah.Duncan@gsa.gov within fourteen days after notice from the CO that the offer has moved to Phase II of the evaluation.

c) All Phase I and II proposal documents shall be submitted electronically. All documents shall be in Microsoft Office 2007 or Adobe Acrobat 9.4 or later, in a searchable format. Electronic proposal documents shall be consolidated by volume.

If documents cannot be grouped within one .zip file and/or one email, offerors may use multiple emails. Each email shall be labeled “Email X of X” (e.g., “Email 1 of 3”).

d) The size limitation is 25MB (megabytes) per email (including message plus attachments). GSA’s email service cannot accept inbound messages exceeding 25MB. Offerors should retain a copy of their email transmission(s) and proposal documents for their reference. All proposal documents for each volume shall be submitted on the same date; do not submit proposal documents individually as they are completed or on different/varying dates.

e) GSA accepts no responsibility and shall not be held liable for incomplete and/or late proposal submissions due to technical difficulties in transmission of messages and/or documents exceeding the 25MB per email limit. It is recommended that offerors not wait until the last day/hour proposals are due to attempt their proposal submission.

f) Communications and questions concerning the contents of this RFP shall be accepted by email only to Dominic.Lackey@gsa.gov and Sarah.Duncan@gsa.gov no later than close of business on August 26, 2019. Questions received and GSA’s responses to those questions will be posted to www.fbo.gov at regular intervals during the proposal period. Identities of prospective offerors asking questions will not be disclosed and any proprietary information contained within questions will be redacted. Questions shall cite the applicable section, paragraph number and page number in question within the RFP. Statements expressing opinions, sentiments, or conjectures are not considered valid inquires or communications and will not receive a response from GSA. Furthermore, offerors are reminded that GSA will not address hypothetical or scenario-based questions or questions aimed toward receiving potential “evaluation decisions” from GSA.

g) All volumes are to be prepared as separate files. Information provided shall be concise, complete, and shall demonstrate a thorough understanding of the requirements as described in the Statement of Objectives (SOO) included at Attachment 1 of this solicitation. It is imperative that offerors thoroughly read and understand the SOO when preparing and submitting proposals. Proposals that merely restate the Government’s requirements or offer to conduct a program in accordance with the Government’s requirements without going into further detail will not be considered acceptable and will not receive further consideration.

Similarly, over-generalizations and phrases such as “standard procedures will be employed” or “well-known techniques will be used” are also not desired.

h) The technical proposal is the primary determining factor of an offeror’s ability to perform. Offerors are cautioned that the use of any format other than the one described in this section could result in rejection of the offeror’s proposal or the evaluation board’s inability to give maximum ratings.

i) When evaluating an offeror’s capability to perform the prospective contract, the Government may consider how well the offeror complied with proposal submission instructions. Offers should contain the contractor’s best terms from a technical standpoint.

j) Should the offer include any company specific terms and conditions that conflict with the terms and conditions of the solicitation, the solicitation terms and conditions will control. Any questions related to the solicitation terms and conditions should be resolved prior to submission of an offer.

k) The Government will not be liable for any costs associated with the development, preparation, transmittal, or presentation of any proposal or material submitted in response to this RFP. The proposal and all materials submitted by the offeror in response to this RFP shall become the property of the Government.

E.3.5.2 Instructions for Volume 1 – Contract Data

NOTE: Volume 1 must be submitted at the time/date set forth under paragraph E.3.5.1.

Offerors shall submit an electronic copy of Volume 1 in the format indicated under E.3.5.1.

Offerors shall submit only one Volume 1 – Contract Data.

Page Limitation: There is no page limitation for Volume 1.

Content: Volume 1 shall include all information listed below, identified by appropriate Tab.

Volume 1 – Contract Data

Tab 1 Cover Page to Proposal and Proposal Checklist Tab 2 Table of Contents for Volume 1 Tab 3 Standard Form (SF) 1449, Completed and Signed (not including blocks 19-

24), Amendments to SF 1449

Tab 4 Completion of all Representations and Certifications

Tab 5 Copy of SAM.gov registration

Tab 6 Complete and executed copy of any Joint Venture (JV) Agreement (as applicable)

Tab 7 Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) Disclosure

● There are no specific notes for Tabs 1 – 4.

● Tab 5: SAM.gov registration--SAM.gov registration is required to be current/active as of the date/time set of proposal submission. Registration and completion of required representations and certifications should be accomplished at https://www.sam.gov.

● Tab 6: Joint Venture Agreement--Joint Ventures must be registered as a single entity within SAM.gov and be current/active as of the date/time set forth when Volume I of the proposal is submitted.

● Tab 7: Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) Disclosure--The CO has determined that this procurement carries the potential for conflicts of interest, as described in FAR 9.505. Offerors, and any joint venture/subcontractor/team member/consultant, must disclose any known or potential OCI which presently exists or may exist at the time of award. If OCI(s) exist, offerors must provide a copy of their firm’s policy and procedures for tracking, reporting, mitigating, neutralizing, and evaluating OCIs. The Government will evaluate known and/or potential OCIs in accordance with the principles established under FAR Subpart 9.5

- Organizational and Consultant Conflicts of Interest. Failure to disclose a known or potential OCI may be cause for rejection of the proposal. If the information provided or otherwise obtained by the Government reveals the presence of an OCI which prevents the offeror from being able to perform this contract, the offeror may be eliminated from further consideration for contract award.

E.3.5.3 Instructions for Volume 2 – (Evaluated in Phase I)

Note: Volume 2 must be submitted at the time/date set forth under paragraph E.3.5.1. Offerors shall submit an electronic copy of Volume 2 in the format indicated under E.3.5.1. Offerors shall submit only one Volume 2 submission.

Page Limitation: Volume 2 is limited to 15 numbered pages. The Government will only evaluate the first 15 numbered pages. Any pages exceeding the limitation will not be evaluated.

Quantity: Volume 2 shall include only the technical information described below. Volume 2 must include a table of contents and must fully address each of the three technical factors listed below. Failure to address any factor within a proposal may result in a determination by the CO that the proposal is non-responsive and the proposal may be removed from further consideration. The factors directly correlate to the evaluation criteria outlined in the solicitation.

Offeror Responses Required for Proposal Submission Option as part of Volume 2 – Phase I Technical Proposal

Tab 1 Table of Contents Tab 2 Factor 1 Technical Excellence Tab 3 Factor 2 Experience Tab 4 Factor 3 Past Performance

Factor 1 - Technical Excellence

In response to this factor, offerors shall provide a clear, concise, and complete narrative that demonstrates the offeror’s operational processes, technical expertise, and electronic capability to meet the Government’s requirements. Offerors must demonstrate their understanding of and ability to successfully accomplish the Government’s requirements as stated in Attachment 1 to the solicitation. The offeror must provide evidence of its abilities to provide e-marketplace capabilities, data capabilities, suppliers, catalog breadth, supply chain risk management, and user experience expectations. The offeror must demonstrate that it and its subcontractors have authority and ability to provide the items it intends to sell on the platform including applicable AbilityOne and UNICOR items.

Quality control information must also be submitted in accordance with the QASP at

Attachment 2. The information must include a description of the practices and processes in place to assure highest quality of the user experience and resulting transactional data as stipulated in the SOO, as well as to assure of quality for the products being offered through the platform. The offeror must also describe quality assurance processes in place that are related to IT and cybersecurity concerns and supply chain risk management.

Offerors shall submit an explanation of the process the offeror will utilize to verify whether a GPC is being used for the purchase. The offeror must also demonstrate how GSA’s cost recovery fee will be remitted to GSA in accordance with Section D of the

SOO.

Factor 2 - Experience

In response to this factor, the offeror shall provide a narrative description of its experience in the e-marketplace realm and its experience serving B2B customers.

Factor 3 – Past Performance

The offeror shall provide the name, address, telephone number, fax number, and email address of the associated Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) or other appropriate Point of Contact (POC) for up to three (3) contracts or projects with commercial entities, Federal, local, or state governments that are similar in size, scope, and complexity to this requirement. Each project or contract must be ongoing or have been completed within the three (3) calendar years preceding the closing date of the RFP.

The proposal must list any contract under which it received a cure notice, show-cause letter, and/or was terminated for cause or convenience within the three (3) calendar years prior to the closing date of the RFP. The proposal must also identify any actions for suspension or debarment (regardless of the outcome) that either began or concluded within the past three (3) calendar years. The proposal must explain the facts and circumstances in each such instance. Note: The Government reserves the right to obtain and use past performance information from sources other than those provided in the proposals.

E.3.5.4 Instructions for Volume 3 - Phase II Live Test Demonstration

NOTE: Volume 3 - Phase II Live Test Demonstration will only be requested from those offerors that receive notification by GSA that their Phase I Overall Adjectival Rating was “Acceptable” or higher. The GSA Contracting Officer will provide a due date and time for Volume 3 to eligible offerors when they are notified of their adjectival rating on the Phase I evaluation.

Page Limitation: Volume 3 consists of an oral presentation and a written outline of the demonstration. The outline is limited to three (3) pages. Any pages exceeding that number will not be reviewed.

Content: Offerors shall submit an electronic copy of the outline in Microsoft Office 2007 or Adobe Acrobat 9.4 or later, in a searchable format.

Offeror Responses Required for each Proposal Submission Option as part of Volume 3 – Phase II Live Test Demonstration (LTD)

Tab 1 Outline of LTD

Factor 4 – Live Test Demonstration (LTD)

The Live Test Demonstration (LTD) shall demonstrate the offeror’s e-marketplace capabilities and its B2B system as it relates to the requirements in Section D.4. The presentation will be video taped/recorded and no copies of the recording will be provided to the offeror or any other offeror.

NOTE: SEE ATTACHMENT 3 – LIVE TEST DEMONSTRATION (LTD)

GUIDANCE FOR POTENTIAL QUESTIONS ASKED BY THE GOVERNMENT

DURING LTD SESSIONS.

E.3.6 Evaluation Factors for Award The Government will award no-cost contracts to the responsible offeror(s) whose proposal(s) conform to the solicitation and are determined to provide the greatest overall benefit in response to the requirement.

There are four evaluation factors, listed below in descending order of importance:

Factor 1 – Technical Excellence (evaluated in Phase I) Factor 2 – Experience (evaluated in Phase I) Factor 3 – Past Performance (evaluated in Phase I) Factor 4 – Live Test Demonstration (evaluated in Phase II)

Technical Excellence is the most important factor. Technical Excellence is more important than Experience. Experience is more important than Past Performance, and Past Performance is more important than the Live Test Demonstration. The first three factors, when combined, are significantly more important than Factor 4.

In Phase I, offerors will only be evaluated on the first three factors. An adjectival rating of “Unacceptable” for any technical factor in the Phase I evaluation will result in an overall finding of technical unacceptability and the proposal will be eliminated from further evaluation.

E.3.6.1 Phase 1 Evaluation Ratings

Note: Volume 1 (Contract Data) will not be evaluated against specific factors and will not receive an adjectival rating, but will be evaluated to determine the offeror’s responsiveness to the solicitation requirements. Volume 1 will also be reviewed for completeness and accuracy.

Information included in, or excluded from, Volume I may be used by the CO to make a determination of contractor responsibility prior to contract award, in accordance with FAR

9.103 and 9.104.

Evaluation Ratings for Factors 1 (Technical Excellence) and 2 (Experience)

The adjectival ratings below will be used to evaluate Factors 1 (Technical Excellence) and 2 (Experience). Offerors will be assigned the adjectival rating that most closely reflects the assessment of the technical factors in each proposal. The standards that will be used in evaluating proposals for the Phase I Factors 1 and 2 are as follows:

Rating Definition

Outstanding The proposal demonstrates the vendor’s capability to provide a B2B e-marketplace platform in a manner that is exceptional and far exceeds the minimum requirements outlined in the SOO. There are no weaknesses associated with the proposal and there are several strengths. The risk of failure to perform is low.

Very Good The proposal demonstrates the vendor’s capability to provide a B2B e-marketplace platform in a manner that exceeds some of the minimum requirements and otherwise meets all requirements outlined in the SOO. Minor weaknesses may exist, but are outweighed by the noted strengths. The risk of failure to perform is no worse than moderate.

Acceptable The proposal demonstrates the vendor’s capability to provide a B2B e-marketplace platform and meet the minimum requirements in the SOO. Several weaknesses exist or a major weakness is noted;

however, overall, the positive merits of the proposal offset any noted weakness(es). Risk of failure to perform is no worse than moderate.

Unacceptable The proposal fails to meet the preponderance of requirements defined in the SOO. The proposal contains numerous weaknesses and/or deficiencies. The proposal does not adequately acknowledge or address risk, mitigate risk, or may actually introduce risk; therefore, the risk of failure to perform is high.

Definitions for Evaluation Factors 1 and 2

The following definitions may be used in the evaluation of proposals:

● Deficiency: A material failure of a proposal to meet a Government requirement or a combination of significant weaknesses in a proposal that increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance which makes an award unlikely.

● Strength: An aspect of a proposal that has merit or exceeds specified performance or capability requirements in a way that will be advantageous to the Government during contract performance

● Major Weakness: An aspect of a proposal that does not meet specified performance or capability requirements such that it will be disadvantageous to the Government and may severely impact performance.

● Weakness: An aspect of a proposal that does not meet specified performance or capability requirements such that it will be disadvantageous to the Government but is easily addressable and does not substantially impact performance.

● High Risk: Likely to cause significant disruption of schedule, increased cost or degradation of performance. Risk may be unacceptable even with special emphasis and close Government monitoring.

● Moderate Risk: Can potentially cause disruption of schedule, increased cost, or degradation of performance. Special emphasis and close Government monitoring will likely be able to overcome difficulties.

● Low Risk: Has little potential to cause disruption of schedule, increased cost or degradation of performance. Normal Government monitoring will likely be able to overcome any difficulties.

Evaluation Ratings for Factor 3 – Past Performance

For Factor 3 (Past Performance), the Government’s evaluation will include an analysis of the offeror’s past performance on contracts with commercial entities, Federal, local, or state governments that are ongoing or have been completed within the three calendar years preceding the closing date of the RFP.

The Government will evaluate the offeror’s past performance based upon information provided by the offeror and information received from the references identified in the proposal. The Government reserves the right to consider past performance information not included in the proposal.

The evaluation of past performance will involve a two-step rating process:

1) The Government will evaluate the past performance record to determine the relevancy of the performance; and,

2) The Government will assign a confidence level to the offeror’s ability to perform the requirements in this solicitation based upon the relevant past performance record.

The Government will use the following relevancy ratings in its evaluation of recent ongoing and recently completed contracts that make up the offeror’s past performance record:

Rating Description Relevant Past performance record reflects performance that involved similar scope and magnitude of effort and complexity as required in this solicitation.

Not Relevant Past performance record reflects performance that involved little or none of the scope and magnitude of effort and complexity as required in this solicitation.

Second, the Government will assign a single performance confidence rating for each proposal.

The performance confidence rating represents the evaluation of an offeror’s recent on-going and recently completed past performance that was found to be Somewhat Relevant to Very Relevant.

This performance confidence evaluation will result in a rating indicating the Government’s confidence in the offeror’s probability of successfully performing as proposed. If a proposal received a rating of Not Relevant, the proposal may be determined to be unawardable and removed from further consideration and evaluation. If no past performance information is included in the proposal the proposal will receive a “Neutral” rating per 41 U.S.C. 1126. If a proposal receives a “Neutral” rating the proposal will not be evaluated for “Confidence” under the second step of this Factor’s evaluation process and will receive an “Unknown Confidence” rating. Confidence ratings are as follows:

Confident

Based on the past performance record, the Government has a high expectation that the offeror will successfully perform the required effort. The offeror’s previously awarded contract(s) are relevant.

The offeror’s performance on previously awarded relevant contracts met contractual requirements and exceeded many to the Government’s benefit. The past performance record was either consistently of the highest quality or exhibited a trend of becoming so.

Somewhat Confident

Based on the past performance record, the Government has a reasonable expectation that the offeror will successfully perform the required effort. The offeror’s previously awarded contract(s) are relevant. The offeror’s performance on previously awarded relevant contracts was accomplished with a few noted problems for which corrective actions taken by, or proposed to be taken by, the offeror were or are expected to be effective. The past performance record was either consistently of adequate or better quality or exhibited a trend of becoming so.

No Confidence

Based on the past performance record, the Government has no expectation that the offeror will be able to successfully perform the required effort. The offeror’s previously awarded contract(s) are relevant, but the offeror’s performance on them often failed to meet contractual requirements. The past performance record reflected serious problem(s) for which the offeror either failed to identify or implement corrective actions, or for which proposed or implemented corrective actions were, or are expected to be, mostly ineffective. The past performance record reflected consistently poor quality.

Unknown Confidence

(Neutral)

No past performance record is available, or the offeror’s past performance record is not relevant or so sparse that no meaningful confidence rating can be reasonably assigned.

E.3.6.2 Phase II Evaluation Ratings

Only proposals that receive a Phase I Adjective Rating of “Acceptable” or higher will advance to the Phase II evaluation.

Offerors advancing to Phase II will participate in the Live Test Demonstration (Factor 4).

Volume 3 - Phase II Live Test Demonstration (Factor 4) Evaluations

The Live Test Demonstration (LTD) evaluation will consist of a review of the contractor’s capabilities and a comparison of the e-marketplace portal platform to the stated requirements in the solicitation.

In the LTD, the Government will analyze the offeror’s system access/compatibility, account set-up, account maintenance, system help, search, user options, access, verification, usability, reconciliation, reports, disputes, returns, security, limits/authorizations, notifications, and approvals. The Government will also consider whether the requisite functionality is provided in an intuitive manner.

The following adjectival ratings will be used to evaluate the LTD:

1) Outstanding: The offeror’s system is fully functional, fulfills all Government requirements, and offers enhanced features/benefits to the Government.

2) Acceptable: The offeror’s system is fully functional and fulfills the Government’s requirements.

3) Unacceptable: The offeror’s system does not demonstrate that the system can meet the

Government’s requirements and/or is not fully functional.

Outstanding The offeror’s system is fully functional, fulfills all Government requirements, and offers enhanced features/benefits to the Government.

Acceptable The offeror’s system is fully functional and fulfills the Government’s requirements.

Unacceptable The offeror’s system does not demonstrate that the system can meet the Government’s requirements and/or is not fully functional.

E.3.7 Evaluation Summary

GSA will evaluate proposals and award no cost contracts to the responsible offeror(s) whose proposal(s) conforms to the solicitation and are determined to provide the greatest overall benefit in response to the requirement.

The Contracting Officer reserves the right to submit the proposals to the Federal Acquisition Security Council (Council) for review and approval prior to an award. The Contracting Officer will not make an award to any Offeror whose proposal was disapproved by the Council.

E.3.8 Communications/Discussions with offerors

1) Until a formal notice of award is issued, any communication by the Government, whether written or oral, shall not be interpreted as a promise that an award will be made.

2) The Government may make an award without holding discussions and based upon initial proposals; however, the Government reserves the right to hold discussions, if the Government determines it is appropriate to do so.