Amendment No. A0003.pdf

For the best experience, open this PDF portfolio in

Acrobat X or Adobe Reader X, or later.

Get Adobe Reader Now!

http://www.adobe.com/go/reader

RFP No. 6913G621R200003 Amendment No. A0003

Question 1:

Can you please confirm whether this solicitation (RFP No. 6913G621R200003) is or is not being issued as a Small Business Set Aside, and thus whether only small businesses under NAICS code 541715 are eligible to submit proposals?

Answer 1:

This solicitation is Full and Open.

Question 2:

Reference: L.5.A. Content, page 91

Question 1: Does the page limit for the Volume II Technical Proposal covered in section L.5.A refer to the total amount of pages for each section in the volume, or the page limit for each of the seven task areas that will be covered within each section?

Answer 2:

The page limit for the Volume II Technical Proposal covered in section L.5.A refers to the total amount of pages for each section in the volume, not for each of the seven task areas.

Question 3:

The RFP states that the period of performance begins on January 6, 2020. Can you please provide a correct start date?

Answer 3:

In accordance with Section F.2, the contract shall become effective on the date the CO signs the contract, the contract award date.

Question 4:

One of the required items for proposal covers is "e. Copy Number." Given that this is an email submission, should Copy Number be included?

Answer 4:

Please disregard the requirement for a copy number in Section L.3D., paragraph 4. All proposals shall be submitted by email in accordance with Section L.3.A.

Current L.3.D. Proposal Format, Paragraph 4:

Cover Page

The cover, which shall not count against the page limitation of the proposal of each volume, shall indicate the following:

a. Title of proposal

b. Volume number and title

c. RFP number

d. Name and address of the Offeror

e. Copy Number

Revised L.3.D. Proposal Format, Paragraph 4:

The cover, which shall not count against the page limitation of the proposal of each volume, shall indicate the following:

a. Title of proposal

b. Volume number and title

c. RFP number

d. Name and address of the Offeror

Question 5:

1) Page 88 of the RFP indicates a Small Business Subcontracting Plan is required. This requirement does not appear on Exhibit A: Checklist for Schedules. Could the Volpe Center please state if a Small Business Subcontracting Plan is required in the Cost and Business Proposal?

Answer 5:

In accordance with Section H.10 Small Business Subcontracting Plan, Offerors that are not small business concerns shall submit a Small Business Subcontracting Plan.

Question 6:

The RFP states "The technical understanding narrative may not exceed ten (12) pages." Is the page limit 10 or 12?

Answer 6:

The page limit for Technical Understanding in Section L.5.A. is twelve pages, not ten.

Current L.5.A. Content:

Technical Understanding: The technical understanding narrative may not exceed ten (12) pages.

Revised L.5.A. Content:

Technical Understanding: The technical understanding narrative may not exceed twelve (12) pages.

Question 7:

The RFP states "In addition, resumes submitted may not exceed five (5 ) pages per resume, subject to the same font size and margins as above noted." We were unable to find font, size, or margin requirements for resumes or other proposal sections in this RFP. Can you please provide the requirements?

Answer 7:

Please use Times New Roman for the Font and the 12 for the Font size. Please use normal margins; one inch for the top, bottom, left and right.

Current L.5.A. Content:

Management Approach/Staffing: Management Approach/Staffing narrative may not exceed five

(5) pages. In addition, resumes submitted may not exceed five (5 ) pages per resume, subject to the same font size and margins as above noted.

Revised L.5.A. Content:

Management Approach/Staffing: Management Approach/Staffing narrative may not exceed five

(5) pages. In addition, resumes submitted may not exceed five (5 ) pages per resume, subject to Times New Roman for the Font and the 12 for the Font size. Please use normal margins; one inch for the top, bottom, left and right.

Question 8:

The RFP states: "The Offeror must provide a list of relevant past performance evaluations of current or completed contracts within the past 3 years. The Offeror must also identify 3-5 current or completed contracts and the information below in 1-12." What is meant by "past performance evaluations" in this context?

Answer 8:

The 3-5 current or completed contracts, in Part C – Past Performance, in reference to items 1-12 do not require past performance evaluations.

Question 9:

Schedule 6 seems to indicate Offerors can propose multiple staff in the same labor category at different rates, but Schedule 5 seems to restrict this. Could the Volpe Center please clarify?

Answer 9:

In reference to Section L.2.C., the labor rates shown on Schedule 6 and used to price the labor cost must be consistent with the labor rates for persons whose resumes are submitted.

Schedule 5 is a comparison of the category rates from Schedule 6 to the hourly rates for persons whose resumes were submitted. In reference to Section I.3, an individual may be named more than once to satisfy the requirements.

Question 10:

Are Offerors permitted to include additional labor categories in excess of those defined in attachment J.13 and administrative staff?

Answer 10:

No.

Question 11:

Page 91 of the RFP states that “The technical understanding narrative may not exceed ten (12) pages”. Is the page limit for the technical understanding section 10 or 12 pages?

Answer 11:

Please see Answer 6.

Question 12:

Page 91 of the RFP states that the management approach/staffing narrative is “subject to the same font size and margins as noted above”. However, no font size or margin requirements are found in the RFP. What are the preferred font and margins for the technical proposal?

Answer 12:

Please see Answer 7.

Question 13:

Page 76 of the RFP states that “Offerors should resolve questions or issues about specifications as well as terms and conditions of the solicitation before the due date for proposals.” If we have exceptions to request, should we submit them before the proposal deadline? If so, to whom should the requested exceptions be sent?

Answer 13:

The correct reference is on page 78, Section L.B.2. Award Without Discussions. In accordance with Section L.B.2., “Offerors should resolve questions or issues about specifications as well as terms and conditions of the solicitation before the due date for proposals. An Offeror that takes exception to any term or condition of the solicitation in its proposal may be eliminated from consideration if award is made without discussions.

Exceptions to terms and conditions may be sent to: carl.chin@dot.gov. The Government reserves the right to refuse any exceptions to the terms and conditions of the RFP if it is not in the best interest of the Government.

Question 14:

For the cost proposal, do consultants have to complete the same level of detail as subcontractors?

Answer 14:

The required level of detail for consultants is dependent on how they are proposed by the Prime Offeror.

Question 15:

Do consultants need to have an accounting system that is reviewed by the Federal Government audit agency to participate in this IDIQ?

mailto:carl.chin@dot.gov

Answer 15:

Consultants are considered a subcontractor and must follow the procedures outlined in Section H.11 Subcontract Consent.

Question 16:

Page 43 of the RPF reads: “Contractor shall obtain from each employee engaged in any effort connected with this contract an agreement in writing that shall in substance provide that such employee will not during his/her employment by the Contractor, or thereafter, disclose to others or use for his/her own benefit or the future benefit of any individual any trade secrets, confidential information, or proprietary/restricted data (to include Government "For Official Use Only") received in connection with the work under this contract.” Can Contractors limit the agreement requirement in this clause to key personnel rather than each employee?

Answer 16:

No.

Question 17:

Page 43 of the RFP reads “Except as the CO specifically authorizes in writing, upon completion of all work under this contract, the Contractor shall return all such data and information obtained from the Government, including all copies, modifications, adaptations, or combinations thereof, to the CO.” Returning these data, depending on amount, could be a non-trivial task. By what method is the Government expecting a return, and which party is responsible for related costs (if additional hardware is required, for example)?

Answer 17:

The Contractor shall certify in writing to the CO that all copies, modifications, adaptations, or combinations of such data or information which cannot reasonably be returned to the CO (or to a company) be deleted from the Contractor's (and any subcontractor's) records and destroyed.

Question 18:

We will likely have difference subcontractors for different modal areas. For costing purposes, how do we determine the likely mix of task orders (e.g., 25% for each of the four modal areas or 20% for each of the four modal areas)?

Answer 18:

Please propose in accordance with your organizations policies and procedures.

Question 19:

Page 94 states “There is no page limit for the required list of other current contracts.” By current do you mean active contracts? One contract that ended yesterday might be deemed current but no longer active. Are you expecting a list of all human factors-related contracts? Or all federal

Government contracts? Or all contracts that our organization has with private companies, federal, state, and local governments?

Answer 19:

The correct reference is located in Section L.5.B. Parts of the Technical Proposal. Current contracts mean active contracts (Federal/private sector) related to the SOW in the RFP.

Question 20:

We have a subcontractor that is going through the process of get their accounting system DCAA certified. Must they be certified prior to proposal submission to participate in this IDIQ?

Answer 20:

Proposed cost-type subcontractors must include documentation from a cognizant Government audit agency approving the subcontractor’s accounting system. If the proposed cost-type subcontractor does not have an accounting system approved by a cognizant Government audit agency prior to proposal submission the Prime Offeror shall propose the subcontractor as either fixed-priced or time and materials until such time the subcontractor’s accounting system is approved by a cognizant Government audit agency.

Question 21:

For Past Performance projects for which we do not have an official CPARS report, can we ask the Contracting Officer’s Representative to complete an evaluation of our performance that would be similar to CPARS?

Answer 21:

The Government will not accept an Offeror’s own past performance evaluation completed by a Government official. All submitted past performance evaluations in response to this RFP shall be completed by the contracting activity’s responding official. If the contracting activity has not developed its own past performance evaluation report form, please refer that contracting activity to the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) website at https://www.cpars.gov/.

Question 22:

How many resumes need to be included for subcontractors?

Answer 22:

Please refer to Section L.4.D. Section II Information Other Than Cost or Pricing Data, Resume Checklist.

Question 23:

If awarded the IDIQ contract, will we be able to add staff to individual task orders beyond those listed in the IDIQ proposal?

https://www.cpars.gov/

Answer 23:

Yes.

Question 24:

If a task order contains a classified component, can the Contractor decline to respond to the task order RFP without penalty?

Answer 24:

If awarded an IDIQ contract a contractor is not obligated nor is there a penalty for not proposing on any Task Order Request for Proposal (TORFP).

Question 25:

If a task order involves a task with a classified component, can the Contractor propose to conduct the task order but omit the classified task?

Answer 25:

If awarded an IDIQ contract, the contractor is not obligated nor is there a penalty for not proposing on any TORFP.

Question 26:

Is it correct to assume that the vendor proposal for the IDIQ should not include a provision for travel because these will be included if appropriate in each Task Order?

Answer 26:

Reference Section L.4.D. Section II – Information Other Than Certified Cost and Pricing Data, Other Direct Costs; RFP-stipulated ODCs include Participants only. In accordance with the RFP, Offerors are allowed to propose Offeror-estimated ODCs, but are not required to do so.

Section L.4.D. Other Direct Costs shall be revised as follows:

Current RFP-stipulated ODCs:

Offerors should include the amounts shown in the following table. The travel and equipment amounts should be retained by the Prime. ODCs should not be reflected in any subcontractor proposal. Both costs should be burdened in accordance with established practice as shown on Schedules 2 and 3.

Revised RFP-stipulated ODCs:

Offerors should include the amounts shown in the following table. The participant amounts should be retained by the Prime. ODCs should not be reflected in any subcontractor proposal.

Both costs should be burdened in accordance with established practice as shown on Schedules 2 and 3.

Question 27:

Do you anticipate furnishing government laptops for remote access to the DOT network?

Answer 27:

The Government does not anticipate furnishing laptops for remote access to the DOT network.

Question 28:

We are a DoD contractor; will CMMC Level 3 satisfy DOT security accreditation requirements?

Answer 28:

Accreditation must be in accordance with DOT Order 1350.2.

Question 29:

Are the slides and a recording from the WebEx meeting available for review?

Answer 29:

The pre-proposal webinar slides are included in Amendment No. A0002. A recording of the webinar was not done.

Question 30:

What is the maximum permissible G&A percentage for this IDIQ?

Answer 30:

The maximum permissible G&A percentage is based on each Offerors’ cognizant Government audit agency’s provisionally approved rates.

Question 31:

Is this amount the unburdened hourly rate paid to the employee or the burdened labor rate to include G&A, Fringe, and Overhead?

Answer 31:

The Government is requesting actual, current labor rates from Offerors’ payroll records.

Offerors should comply with Schedules 1-6 of the RFP.

Question 32:

If the resumed person will be hired contingent upon contract award and is not currently on the company payroll, how shall this be provided?

Answer 32:

Please provide a copy of the offer letter and salary.

Question 33:

L.5.A. Content Item 1. Please clarify the page count as referenced “ten (12) pages”.

Answer 33:

Please see Answer 6.

Question 34

Section L.5.B Part A (pg 91) states that the offeror should describe research plans for two sample research projects in two different task areas. Are these research projects envisioned to be actual past or current projects or are they supposed to be hypothetical projects?

Answer 34

These are supposed to be hypothetical projects that you might undertake as part of the work for this IDIQ.

Question 35

The solicitation is broad and covers several modal transportation areas. Are offerors required to have expertise on their research team that covers all modal areas? If not, will proposals be scored lower if they do not include expertise in all modal areas?

Answer 35

Offerors are expected to have expertise on their research team that covers all modal areas

Question 36

Is it envisioned that task order requests for successful proposals will be for specific research projects in specific modal transportation areas, or will they be more general in which the research team can decide which modal area on which to focus the research question(s) and activities?

Answer 36

TORFPs will be for specific research projects in specific modal transportation areas.

Question 37

Reference: L.5.B Part A, page 91

Are the two sample past projects or hypothetical projects to address the focus area?

Answer 37

It is not quite clear what is meant by the “focus area” since there are multiple modes and multiple areas. The two hypothetical projects should address future work that the offeror believes might be undertaken as part of this RFP.

Question 38

The RFP states: “In addition, the Offeror should describe research plans (hypotheses, experimental design, independent and dependent variables, statistical analysis, etc.) for two sample research projects in two different task areas.” Can you elaborate on whether these should be current/past projects conducted by the contractor or hypothetical research plans?

Answer 38

These should be hypothetical research plans consistent with the task areas and modes described in the SOW.

OMB Approval 2700-0042

1. CONTRACT ID CODE PAGE OF PAGES

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT 1 11

2. AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NO. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE 4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NO. 5. PROJECT NO. (If applicable)

A0003 2/2/2021 N/A

6. ISSUED BY CODE 7. ADMINISTERED BY (If other than Item 6)

CODE

U.S. DOT/OST-R/Volpe Center 55 Broadway, RVP-31 Cambridge, MA 02142-1001

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR (No. Street, county, State and ZIP: Code) () 9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NO.

6913G621R200003

TO ALL POTENTIAL OFFERORS

X 9B. DATED (SEE ITEM 11)

12/23/2020

10A. MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NO.

10B. DATED (SEE ITEM 13)

CODE FACILITY CODE

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF SOLICITATIONS

X The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers is extended, X is not extended.

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

(a) By completing Items 8 and 15, and returning one (1) copy of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted; or

(c) By separate letter or telegram which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR ACKNOWLEDGMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATA SPECIFIED MAY RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by telegram or letter, provided each telegram or letter makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and data specified.

12. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA (If required)

N/A

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

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

() A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES (such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.) SET

FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

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

D. OTHER Specify type of modification and authority)

E. IMPORTANT: Contractor [ x ] is not, [ ] is required to sign this document and return ____ copies to the issuing office.

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION (Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

This amendment provides the Government’s responses to Offerors’ submitted clarifications.

Please acknowledge receipt of this Amendment with the submission of your proposal.

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

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER (Type or print) 16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER (Type or print)

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR 15C. DATE SIGNED 16B. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 16C. DATE SIGNED

(Signature of person authorized to sign)

BY _____________________________________________

(Signature of Contracting Officer)

NSN 7540-01-152-8070 30-105 STANDARD FORM 30 (REV.

10-83) PREVIOUS EDITION UNUSABLE Computer Generated Prescribed by GSA

FAR (48 CFR) 53.243