Attachment 0003_QASP Sample.pdf

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) < enter date or version # >

For Landscape and Grounds Maintenance Services

Contract Number: < upon award, enter contract number> Contract Description: Landscape and grounds maintenance services that span a wide range of responsibilities, including Project Management (PM) support

Contractor’s Name: < upon award, enter name of contractor > (hereafter referred to as the contractor)

1. INTRODUCTION

This QASP is pursuant to the requirements listed in the Performance Work Statement (PWS) entitled Grounds Maintenance and Landscaping Services. This plan sets forth the procedures and guidelines that Western Federal Lands Highway Division (WFLHD) will use in ensuring the required performance standards or services levels are achieved by the contractor.

1.1 Purpose

1.1.1 The purpose of the QASP is to describe the systematic methods used to monitor performance and to identify the required documentation and the resources to be employed. The QASP provides a means for evaluating whether the contractor is meeting the performance standards/quality levels identified in the PWS and the contractor’s Quality Control Plan (QCP), and to ensure that the government pays only for the level of services received.

1.1.2 This QASP defines the roles and responsibilities of all members of the integrated project team, identifies the performance objectives, defines the methodologies used to monitor and evaluate the contractor’s performance, describes quality assurance documentation requirements, and describes the analysis of quality assurance monitoring results.

This QASP is a government-developed document used to determine if the contractor’s performance meets the performance standards contained in the contract. The QASP establishes procedures on how this assessment/inspection process will be conducted. It provides the detailed process for a continuous oversight process:

• What will be monitored?

• How monitoring will take place?

• Who will conduct the monitoring?

• How monitoring efforts and results will be documented?

The contractor is responsible for implementing and delivering performance that meets contract standards using its Quality Control Plan. The QASP provides the structure for the government’s surveillance of the contractor’s performance and their Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) actions to assure they meet contract standards. It is the government’s responsibility to be objective, fair, and consistent in evaluating contractor performance.

The QASP is not part of the contract, nor is it intended to duplicate the contractor’s quality control plan. This QASP is a living document and flexibility in the QASP is required to allow for an increase or decrease in the level of surveillance necessary based on contractor performance.

The government may provide a copy of the QASP to the contractor to facilitate open communication. In addition, the QASP should recognize that unforeseen or uncontrollable circumstances might occur that are outside the control of the contractor.

Bottom line, the QASP should ensure early identification and resolution of performance issues to minimize the impact on mission performance.

2. AUTHORITY

Authority for issuance of this QASP is provided under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 46.4, Government Contract Quality Assurance, which provides for inspection, acceptance, and documentation of the service called for in the contract. This acceptance is to be executed by the contracting officer or a duly authorized representative.

3. DEFINITIONS

3.1 Quality Assurance (QA). QA is the responsibility of the buyer (the government) to take steps to ensure that the QC procedures performed by the contractor are followed and the outcome of the effort will meet the requirements of the contract.

3.2 Quality Control (QC). QC is the process conducted by the contractor to ensure that the result meets the requirements of the contract.

3.3 Quality Management (QM). The combination of QC and QA is QM. It includes all the actions both the contractor and the government take to achieve the necessary quality required. In the broadest sense, QM includes not only steps to ensure that the contractor develops and implements a QC plan, but also the many actions the government takes within its organization to achieve quality results. This includes everything from the preparation of clear, complete, and precise requirements documents through the selection of qualified firms to perform the work and the validation of that work.

4. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The following Government personnel shall oversee and coordinate surveillance activities:

4.1 Government Representatives

4.1.1 Program/Project Manager (PM) or Functional Services Manager (FSM).

The PM/FSM provides primary program oversight, nominates the COR, ensures the COR is trained before performing any COR duties, and supports the COR’s performance assessment activities. While the PM/FSM may serve as a direct conduit to provide Government guidance and feedback to the Contractor on technical matters, they are not empowered to make any contractual commitments or any contract changes on the government’s behalf.

Assigned PM/FSM: <enter name> Organization or Agency: <enter organization or Agency name> Telephone: <enter number> Email: <enter address>

4.1.2 Contracting Officer (CO). The CO shall ensure the performance of all necessary actions for effective contracting, ensure compliance with the contract terms, and shall safeguard the interests of the United States in the contractual relationship. The CO shall also ensure that the contractor receives impartial, fair, and equitable treatment under this contract. Determine the final assessment of the contractor’s performance.

Assigned CO: <enter name>

4.1.3 Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR). The COR is responsible for providing continuous technical oversight of the contractor’s performance. The COR uses the QASP to conduct the oversight/surveillance process. The COR shall keep a Quality Assurance file that accurately documents the contractor’s actual performance. The purpose is to ensure that the contractor meets the performance standards contained in the contract. The COR is responsible for reporting early identification of performance problems to the CO. The COR is required to provide an annual performance assessment to the CO which will be used in documenting past performance. The QASP is the primary tool for surveillance of the contractor’s quality program and helps the COR to document contractor performance. The COR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments or to authorize any contractual change on the Government’s behalf.

Assigned COR: <enter name>

4.2 Contractor Representatives

The following employees of the contractor serve as the contractor’s Program Manager and Task Manager for this contract: <Complete this section after the contract award>

4.2.1 Contractor Program Manager. <upon award, enter name>, Telephone:

<enter number>, Email: <enter address>

4.2.2 Contractor Task Manager. <upon award, enter name>, Telephone:

<enter number>, Email: <enter address>

4.2.3 Contractor Quality Control (QC) Manager. <upon award, enter name>, Telephone: <enter number>, Email: <enter address>.

4.2.4 Other Key Contractor Personnel. <upon award, enter name or delete these lines if not applicable>, Title: <enter title>, Telephone: <enter number>, Email: <enter address>

5. PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS AND METHOD OF SURVEILLANCE

5.1 Contract Surveillance. The goal of the QASP is to ensure that contractor performance is effectively monitored and documented. The COR’s contribution is their professional, non-adversarial relationships with the CO, PM, and the contractor, which enables positive, open, and timely communications. The foundation of this relationship is built upon objective, fair, and consistent COR evaluations of contractor performance against contract requirements. The COR uses the methods contained in this QASP to ensure the contractor complies with contract requirements. The COR function is responsible for a wide range of surveillance requirements that effectively measure and evaluate the contractor’s performance. Additionally, this QASP is based on the premise that the contractor, not the government, is responsible for management and QC/QA actions to successfully meet the terms of the contract.

5.2 Surveillance Matrix. The Surveillance Matrix, also known as Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) can be found in Appendix A of the PWS and is the list of performance objectives and standards that must be performed by the contractor. This matrix details the method of surveillance and frequency the COR will use to validate and inspect these performance elements. Inspection of each element will be documented in the COR file.

Performance objectives define the desired outcomes. Performance Standards define the level of service required under the contract to successfully meet the performance objective. The inspection methodology defines how, when, and what will be assessed in measuring performance. The Government performs surveillance, using this QASP, to determine the quality of the contractor’s performance as it relates to the performance element standards. The Performance Requirement Summary (PRS) should be used to form the foundation of the COR’s inspection checklist.

5.3 Performance Rating Definitions. The performance ratings below reflect definitions at FAR 42.1503 Table 42-1. The COR will use these ratings to evaluate the quality of the contractor’s performance.

Performance Rating

Definition

Exceptional (E) Performance meets contractual requirements and exceeds many to the government’s benefit. The contractual performance of the element or sub-element being evaluated was accomplished with few minor problems for which corrective actions taken by the contractor were highly effective.

Very Good (VG) Performance meets contractual requirements and exceeds some to the Government’s benefit. The contractual performance of the element or sub-element being evaluated was accomplished with some minor problems for which corrective actions taken by the contractor were effective.

Satisfactory (S) Performance meets contractual requirements. The contractual performance of the element or sub-element contains some minor problems for which corrective actions taken by the contractor appear or were satisfactory.

Marginal (M) Performance does not meet some contractual requirements.

The contractual performance of the element or sub-element being evaluated reflects a serious problem for which the contractor has not yet identified corrective actions. The contractor’s proposed actions appear only marginally effective or were not fully implemented.

Unsatisfactory (U) Performance does not meet most contractual requirements and recovery is not likely, in a timely manner. The contractual performance of the element or sub-element contains a serious problem(s) for which the contractor’s corrective actions appear or were ineffective.

Note 1: Plus or minus signs may be used to indicate an improving (+) or worsening (-) trend insufficient to change the evaluation status.

Note 2: N/A (not applicable) should be used if the ratings are not going to be applied to a particular area for evaluation.

5.4 Methods of Surveillance. The methods of surveillance include but are not limited to:

5.4.1 100% Inspection. This is an inspection method whereby all outputs are monitored. This method provides the best indication of contractor performance and the most documented basis for determining contract payment actions. However, it requires extensive COR resources, and therefore, is not practical for most service requirements. 100 percent inspection is preferred when the PWS requirement is so critical that nonperformance would pose a direct risk to the safety of personnel or property, or when the work occurs infrequently, and the output population is small.

5.4.2 Random Sampling. When a service is performed relatively frequently, and a statistically valid sample can be selected for audit. The most appropriate method for frequently recurring tasks. Random Sampling is a means of evaluation by observing or inspecting some part (a sample), but not all, of a population or lot of the contract requirements to assist the government with determining whether standards set forth in the contract have been met. This tool is not the Contracting Officer’s only option nor is the tool usage mandatory.

5.4.3 Periodic Sampling. This method, sometimes called "planned inspection", consists of the evaluation of tasks selected on other than a 100 percent or random basis. It may be appropriate for tasks that occur infrequently, and where 100 percent inspection is neither required nor practical. A predetermined plan for inspecting part of the work is established using subjective judgment and analysis of agency resources to decide what work to inspect and how frequently to inspect it.

5.4.4 Customer Feedback. Not necessarily a valid method of surveillance, but customer satisfaction is the most significant external indicator of the success and effectiveness of all services provided and can be measured through customer feedback and used to determine any areas where surveillance should be conducted or intensified. The COR may design a customer survey questionnaire to be used as an essential part of a well-publicized customer complaint program.

In time of resource constraints, the use of customer surveys provides an effective and efficient means of monitoring contractor performance. Customer surveys should only supplement other surveillance efforts and be analyzed by surveillance personnel trained in validating customer complaints. Customers should be made aware of minimal contractor performance requirements to be sure that customer responses to surveys are valid indicators of actual contractor performance.

6. Performance Reporting

6.1 Customer Complaint Peport (CCR) – Customer complaints may originate from communications during QA inspections, a phone call to Facility Maintenance staff, or a customer survey. To be considered valid, the COR must investigate each customer complaint and validate the accuracy before any action is taken.

See sample CCR below.

6.2 Corrective Action Report (CAR) – Describes how discrepancies are reported and resolved (see sample CAR below).

6.3 Performance Assessment Report (PAR) – See sample PAR below.

CUSTOMER COMPLAINT REPORT

DATE/TIME OF COMPLAINT

SOURCE OF COMPLAINT

ORGANIZATION

BUILDING NUMBER

INDIVIDUAL

PHONE NUMBER

NATURE OF COMPLAINT

CONTRACT REFERENCE

VALIDATION

DATE/TIME CONTRACTOR INFORMED OF COMPLAINT

ACTION TAKEN BY CONTRACTOR

RECEIVED/VALIDATED BY

CORRECTIVE ACTION REPORT (CAR)

(If more space is needed, use reverse, and identify by number)

1. CONTRACTOR

2. CONTRACT NUMBER

3. TYPE OF SERVICES

4. FUNCTIONAL AREA

5. SUSPENSE DATE

6. CONTROL NUMBER

7. DEFICIENCY MAJOR MINOR

FINDING:

FINDING IMPACT:

Please respond with a written corrective action plan that details the corrective action of the cited deficiency, the cause of the deficiency, and actions taken to prevent recurrence by Suspense Date in Block 5. If the date was not entered in Block 5, the contractor is not required to respond.

8. QUALITY ASSURANCE PERSONNEL (COR)

TYPED NAME AND GRADE

SIGNATURE AND DATE

9. ISSUING AUTHORITY

TYPED NAME AND GRADE

SIGNATURE AND DATE

10. COR RESPONSE TO CONTRACTOR CORRECTIVE ACTION AND ACTION TAKEN TO PREVENT RECURRENCE

11. COR DETERMINATION

ACCEPTED REJECTED

12. CLOSE DATE

PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT REPORT (PAR)

(If more space is needed, use reverse, and identify by number)

1. CONTRACT/TASK ORDER NUMBER 2. CONTRACTOR 3. TYPE OF SERVICES

4. QUALITY ASSURANCE PERSONNEL (COR) SIGNATURE AND DATE

5. COR PHONE 6. SUSPENSE DATE

I. PERFORMANCE

7. (CHECK ALL BOXES THAT APPLY)

DEFICIENCY

NEW

REPEAT

NO DEFICIENCY NOTED

8. SERVICES SUMMARY or PWS PARAGRAPH ITEM REVIEWED

9. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DEFICIENCY (IF DEFICIENCY BOX WAS

CHECKED)

10. DETAILED PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT

II. CONTRACTOR VALIDATION

11. CONTRACTOR REPRESENTATIVE CONCUR NON-CONCUR

12. CORRECTIVE ACTION ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE

13. CONTRACTOR REPRESENTATIVE CORRECTIVE ACTION AND PREVENTION OF RECURRENCE OR REASON FOR NON-

CONCURRENCE OF COR CITED DEFICIENCY

III. ACTION CORRECTED

14. CONCUR NON-CONCUR COR SIGNATURE AND DATE

15. COR REMARKS (REQUIRED)

6. CONTRACTOR REPRESENTATIVE REMARKS