Questions and Answers RFQ 693JK322RA0001.pdf

ATTACHEMENT

REQUEST FOR QUOTATION (RFQ) #693JK322RA0001

FY22 - Research Announcement# 8

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Question Government Response 1 Can you please confirm that resource sharing/cost share is required for the General Knowledge research topics? I understand why technology development topics would have such a requirement, but the general knowledge ones do not generate any IP or follow-on work for the contractor. Thus, there does not appear to be an incentive for a research organization to subsidize the cost of the project.

Please refer to Section 1 of RA 693JK322RA0001 which identifies the cost sharing requirements and Attachment #7 identifies the cost sharing level for each solicited topic.

2 PHMSA states an amount of $1 Million to provide for a 36-month term, and that they may accept more than 1 technology company. If PHMSA accepts 2 technology companies for RA 693JK322RA0001 does that mean each company will receive $500,000 and so forth splitting the $1 Million for each additional technology company that is accepted, or does this mean each company will receive $1 Million each?

You are welcome to incorporate and include any and as many partners to assist in addressing the cost sharing requirement on a given solicited topic. For example, if the cost sharing requirement is 50/50 and if the total project costs are $1,000,000 then PHMSA would fund the project at $500,000 and the cost sharing must then be $500,000 comprised with as many companies/entities (with letters of commitment) you need to fulfill that cost sharing total.

3 Are there any instructions you can provide me for completing the online registration at https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/matrix/RfpInfo.rdm?rfp=90, or is it straight forward?

You can now (4/18/2022) register for access to our system to upload your proposal(s) by the stated RA deadline)

4 Do we submit our electronic proposal on the website I pasted above as well, if not where do we submit our proposal?

You can now (4/18/2022) register for access to our system via https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/matrix/RfpInfo.rdm?rfp=90 to upload your proposal(s) by the stated RA deadline)

5 My question is about mandatory minimum cost share which I view as prohibitive for small companies like ours. We believe we have proprietary technologies that are relevant to your program and as such I wanted to enquire about whether there are scenarios where these cost sharing requirements may be waived.

The stated minimum cost sharing is mandatory for qualifying for the technical review of proposals. PHMSA seeks committed partners commensurate with the type of developmental solutions of research that is categorized as demonstration and deployment and indicative of higher Technology Readiness Levels.

6 Would the development cost of the improved pressure testing equipment be applicable to the research, making it subject to cost sharing with PHMSA? Or, would only research items strictly related to the development of a fast curing Cured-In-Place Liner be considered for shared cost?

Cost sharing must be strictly tied to the proposed scope within the current proposal. A proposal can indicate what costs are for the government per Section K of the RA Notice and that for cost sharing.

https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/matrix/RfpInfo.rdm?rfp=90 https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/matrix/RfpInfo.rdm?rfp=90 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_readiness_level

FY22 - Research Announcement# 8 7 Each research idea offers an approximate “project cost”. Can you confirm that this is approximate total cost and not cost share?

If for example, the cost sharing requirement is 50/50 and if the total project costs are $1,000,000 then PHMSA would fund the project at $500,000 and the cost sharing must then be $500,000 comprised with as many companies/entities (with letters of commitment) you need to fulfill that cost sharing total.

8 With academia now being required to be a part of the TAP, is there any concern for academia potentially requesting payment for their inclusion in the TAP and becoming a conflict of interest?

Any costs associated with this requirement may be specified as cost sharing and included in your proposal. To include such costs, they must be identified before submittal of your proposal to be included toward the costs sharing.

9 Who can qualify as a an Academic?

1. Can it be someone that works for an operator, that has the education background needed?

a. If it can be someone that works for an operator, can that operator be a participant in the same R&D funded project?

2. Does it have to be someone in a University?

3. Can it be someone that works for say DNV

(formally DNV-GL)?

An academic, whomever chosen, must still meet a conflict of interest requirement. An example of a non-compliance scenario is an individual employed by a university or college and is also employed by contract by any of the same entities identified in the submitted proposal. It is recommended at a minimum to approach your local university or college and identify an SME by educational discipline such as engineering or science relevant to the scope of the work completed within the project.

10 Who is considered the Principal Investigator? Is this someone from the company awarded the R&D funds or someone else?

The Principal Investigator (PI) is part of the project team identified in the proposal but is the lead representative of the team. The PI will be granted access to the awarded project page within our database for submission of deliverables and will be primary point of contact for the PHMSA Agreement Official’s Representative and Technical Task Inceptor after project award.

111 Using the information from the RA, is PHMSA helping pay for test bed set up for demonstrations, (Example: a site needs to meet certain criteria and the Operator wants to hard wire power to the LDS system), or are y’all saying y’all will allow the LDS company and the Operator to split this cost through some type of agreement made between each other?

Acceptable equipment costs are considered consumables to the project scope and essentially not usable for future research. Hard assets via construction activity would not be permitted as acceptable cost sharing. Further information on allowable costs can be found at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200

FY22 - Research Announcement# 8

RA #693JK322RA0001 Attachment #7 provides approximate project costs for the proposed research topics. Please clarify if these approximate project costs include cost share or should be considered as the federal share only.

The identified costs per topic are estimated project costs. A proposal can identify a project cost above and below this amount. The technical review conducted on a proposal will consider the appropriateness of the deviation.

13 May we submit more than one proposal under the same topic area, understanding each submission is uniquely different from each other?

You are welcome to submit more than one proposal under the same topic. It should be note that this opportunity if not well described may create an environment of confusion which may impact the review of submitted proposals.

Are the cost share allocations required to be incurred during the period of performance of the contracted project?

Yes, cost share allocations must be incurred during the period of performance of the contracted project.

15 Is it possible for PHMSA DOT to reconsider their initial due date of June 1st?

All proposals must be uploaded by 5:00 P.M. EDT, Monday, May 16, 2022.