70RDAD23Q00000050 (ROPL-23-00018) - Amend 4 - QA - 20230414.pdf

70RDAD23Q00000050, Amendment 0004: News Clipping Services (NCS) Questions and Responses

# Reference RFQ Section Paragraph No. Page No. (s) Question/Comment 1 General Question N/A N/A We are not a small business, and this does have a 100 percent small business set aside, I want to confirm if we submit our quote through a certified small business reseller would that be accepted by DHS OPA?

Government’s Response: Contractors that are not small business, and are interested in providing a quote, can be a sub-contractor to the authorized certified small business.

2 General Question N/A N/A Is there an incumbent? If yes, who is the incumbent? If yes, what is the contract number, contract value, Period of Performance?

Government’s Response: The incumbent providing similar services to this requirement is Technology – Management Innovative Solutions, LLC. The contract number is 70RDAD19C00000001; total value of award is $1,892,755.26; and the period of performance is November 28, 2022 to May 27, 2023.

3 General Question N/A N/A 1. How many employees will there be receiving emails?

2. What was the incumbent amount for the previous contract holder and how many years was that contract?

Government’s Response A:

1. Approximately 5,000, this number can go up or down at any given time.

2. Please see response to question #2.

4 General Question N/A N/A When does the government anticipate making the award?

Government’s Response: The government anticipates making an award by May 26, 2023.

5 General Question N/A N/A What is the estimated contract value?

Government’s Response: The estimated contract value is between $2,000,000.00 and $3,000,000.00.

6 General Question N/A N/A Amendment 1 issued on Friday, March 31 included an erroneous due date and time within the amended file.

Block 14 of the SF30 states “There is no change to the quote submission date,” however, the Instructions to Offerors states that 1200 EDT on April 6 is the quote submission deadline, with the News Summary and Alerts Sample day now scheduled on April 5.

Please confirm that Quotes are due by 1500 EDT on April 13, with the scheduled News Summary and Alerts Sample day being April 12, as is reflected on the SF1449 and SAM.gov.

Government’s Response: The RFQ is revised to extend the date for quotes due to April 20, 2023 which includes Factor 1: News Summary and alerts Sample; however, the Sample shall consist of news events that occur on April 19, 2023. Also please see response to #36.

7 General Question N/A N/A Is access to full-text of the news articles required?

Government’s Response (OPA): Yes, access to full-text of the news articles is required.

8 Section I – Specifications / SOW 2. Background, 1st paragraph

3 Social media is mentioned twice as part of the daily "complete and comprehensive review and summary of news stories." Which social media platforms are required to monitor (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc)? Do you expect social media content to be integrated into the traditional news summary or curated into its own section?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Trending social media content is to be included in the news regardless of social media platform. A list of platforms to be monitored will be provided to the awardee as part of contract kick-off activities. Please be aware the list is a living Government document, is updated frequently.

9 Section I – Specifications / SOW 2. Background, 2nd paragraph

3 Direction is such that "contractor shall provide real time news alerts from the news sources lists in section 3.1." We're not able to find this specific sources list.

Government’s Response

(OPA):

A list of news sources, social media platforms, topics, and keywords will be provided to the awardee as part of contract kick-off activities. Please be aware the list is a living Government document, is updated frequently.

10 Section I – Specifications / SOW 2. Background, 2nd paragraph

3 What does DHS consider "real time" to be in terms of the news alerts? Is it 5 minutes, 15 minutes, or longer after the point of publication?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Same day during the hours listed in the SOW, overnight news stories are to be provided in the alerts on the next business day.

11 Section I – Specifications / SOW 2. Background 3 Our understanding is that in addition to the daily human analyst produced News summary, DHS also requires access to a COTS media monitoring platform to provide real-time news alerts. Is that accurate?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Access to a COTS media monitoring platform is not part of this requirement.

12 Section I – Specifications / SOW 2. Background, 2nd paragraph

3 Can DHS share an example of a current real-time news alert?

Is the intention that these be human generated, or would DHS prefer these to be automated by technology/AI to ensure both a more real-time and more cost effective solution?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Please refer to the exhibits A (at the end of this document) and Exhibit B attached to the solicitation record in SAM.gov.

13 Section I – Specifications / SOW 2. Background 3 How many recipients need to receive the real-time alerts?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Please see response to question #3.

14 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3. Services Required

3 Can DHS share a sample of the current Daily written news summary?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Please refer to the exhibits A (at the end of this document) and Exhibit B attached to the solicitation record in SAM.gov.

15 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3. Services Required

3 How many DHS employees require access to an underlying media intelligence platform for instant alerting and ad-hoc+ongoing issue tracking?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

This is not a requirement.

16 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 How is news coverage from television, social media, and radio to be included in the summary?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Social media has been covered in the question 8 response, the Government defers to the offeror to propose methods for reporting television and radio stories. Please also refer to the exhibits.

17 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 Does Section 3.1 feature a deliverable or is that requirement intended to be in performing Section 3.2, the “written summary?”

Government’s Response

(OPA):

The deliverable should be produced in the performance of section 3.2.

18 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 To which extent is international news coverage expected to be translated? Are there any other languages expected to be covered, other than Spanish?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

If there is any international news coverage not in English it will need to be translated.

19 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 Please confirm that Government access to Spanish-language media sources/content translated to English meets the Spanish language requirements for SOW 3.1 and 3.2?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Yes, the vendor will have access to this not the government.

20 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 Regarding the inclusion of social media in the daily summary, are there any platforms that DHS requires?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Please see response to question #8.

21 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 & 4 3.3 says that DHS would like real-time alerts from the sources listed in 3.1 – 3.1 does not list specific sources, but platforms (Editorial, news, social media, etc.). Is there a refined editorial news source list or how does DHS plan to limit the number of “real-time” alerts?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Please see response to question #9.

22 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.1 3 The RFQ mentions “magazines and periodicals”, “trade journals”, and “specialty publications” among the myriad media sources in subsection 3.1. Will the government provide a specific list of acceptable or desirable media sources upon contract award?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Yes, and please see response to question #9.

23 Section I – Specifications / SOW

3.1 & 8.

Deliverables

3 & 5 Is there a preferred document format for the daily reports?

Microsoft Word (*.docx) and Adobe Acrobat (*.pdf) formats are mentioned in “8. Deliverables” but subsection 3.1 does not otherwise specify.

Government’s Response

Per the Statement of Work at Section 8., all deliverables “shall be submitted in electronic readable format as well as Microsoft Word (.docx) and Adobe Acrobat Reader (PDF files).”

24 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.2 3 Can the Government provide either an example of a recent written summary deliverable or estimate the average number of pages expected?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

The average number of pages depends on the news cycle. Please also refer to the Exhibits A and B.

25 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.2 3 Can the Government provide an estimate of the number of news articles included in the written summary on a daily basis?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

This is dependent on the news cycle and cannot be estimated at this time.

26 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.2 3 How many recipients need to receive the daily written news summary?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Approximately 5,000, this number can go up or down at any given time. A list will be provided to the awardee by the Government as part of contract kick-off.

27 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.2 3 In addition to the daily delivery of the news summary by email, does DHS require the hosting of an archive of the service on a secure site?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

This is not a requirement.

28 Section I – Specifications / SOW, 3.2 / Factor 1: News Summary and Alerts Sample

See “Reference RFQ Section” to this question.

/Page 47 of

“The contractor shall compile and distribute a written summary of news coverage to DHS…” Provide a summary of the articles, does that mean we summarize the full article, or just replicate the first paragraph or the hit sentence (an extract of the article where the keywords we are searching for appear), or can we use a short blurb?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

Please refer to the exhibits A (at the end of this document) and Exhibit B attached to the solicitation record in SAM.gov.

29 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.3

4 Does the Government intend for Government staff to be able to create, update, or change these news alerts regularly or are these news alerts to be actively managed by the contractor?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

The creation, updates, or changes to the news alerts are to be managed by the contractor, however DHS may ask for adjustments depending on the news of the day.

Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.3 4 What is the estimated quantity of real time news alerts that DHS requires each weekday? If an estimate is currently not available, please share the average number of real time news alerts currently delivered to DHS on a daily basis under the current contract.

Government’s Response

(OPA):

This is dependent on the news cycle.

31 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.3 4 Is there a particular cadence that the contractor should follow with regards to the delivery of the real time news alerts?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

This is dependent on the news cycle.

32 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.3 4 Does the DHS require a proprietary tool to be used to surface real-time alerts?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

This is not a requirement.

33 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.3 4 Should the contractor organize the content following a particular outline in the daily summary?

Government’s Response

Yes, that will be provided as part of the contract kick-off.

34 Section I – Specifications / SOW 3.3 4 What communication methods or channels (ex. text alerts, email alerts) are preferred when sharing real time news alerts as described in subsection 3.3?

Government’s Response

(OPA):

The real time news alerts must be provided via email.

35 Addendum to 52.212-1: instructions to Offerors

5.1 Overall

QUOTE Structure and Content

43 Are offerors required to submit each volume (I and II) in a single file, or are offerors permitted to submit Tabs and Factors separately (i.e., Factors 1, 2, and 3 submitted in three separate files), as long as content, formatting, and structure is otherwise compliant with the terms of the RFQ?

Government’s Response: As provided in the instructions, Volumes I and II are to be submitted in separate files. However, Volume I includes Quote Cover/Transmittal letter (limit to 3 pages); Factors 1, 2 and 3. There is no page limit for Factors 1 and 3; however, Factor 2-page limit is 10 pages. In addition, there is no page limit for Volume II, Price Quote. Also please see response to questions #37 and #38.

36 Addendum to 52.212-1 5.3 Tab B: Factor 1 45 Regarding Factor 1, should contractor provide a daily summary of events of April 12, 2023, as if it had been shared with DHS the morning of April 13, 2023?

Government’s Response: Yes, however, the RFQ is revised to request that Factor 1: Sample news summary, consists of news events that occur on April 19, 2023. Also please see response to question #6.

37 Addendum to 52.212-1 5.3 Tab B: Factor 1

45 Regarding Factor 1, should real-time news alerts be shared with DHS in real time or as attachments with the Technical Quote?

Government’s Response: Factor 1: Sample shall be included with volume I Technical Quote. Also please see response to questions #35 and #38.

38 Addendum to 52.212-1 5.3 Tab B: Factor 1

45 Can you please confirm that the “Factor 1: News Summary and Alerts Sample” documents (the samples) do not count towards the Volume I page count? These daily products far exceed 10 pages in length.

Government’s Response: There is no page limit for Factor 1. Also please see response to #35 and #37.

39 Addendum to 52.212-1: instructions to

Offerors

5.3 Tab B: Factor 2 45 If responses to Factor 2 shall only address the Services

Required in SOW Section 3 (3.1-3.6), please amend the 4,” as neither tasks nor functional areas are defined in the SOW.

Government’s Response: The instructions for Factor 2: Technical Capabilities, doesn’t specify or limit responses to apply only to Section 3 (3.1-3.6).

40 5.3 SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS FOR

VOLUME I - Technical Quote

Factor 3: Past Performance

45 Our company has deep and relevant experience working with large commercial entities. If we cite the same type of Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) information associated with private sector organizations, would you allow our past performance to be rated as a favorable or unfavorable evaluation, the same as if government past performance is submitted?

Government’s Response: The CPARS reference can include information associated with private sector organizations. Also see response to #43.

41 Addendum 52.212-2: Evaluation— Commercial Products and Commercial Services

2.0, Factor 2 47 Please confirm responses to Factor 2 shall only address SOW Sections 3.1 through 3.6 (Services Required).

Government’s Response: The Offeror shall demonstrate the knowledge, understanding, and technical ability to perform each of the requirements set forth in the SOW to include sections 3.1 through 3.6.

42 Schedule “B” Pricing, Attachment 2 N/A N/A Can cost of the clipping service be a separate CLIN than the labor to support the requirement?

Government’s Response: The CLINs on Schedule “B” Pricing, Attachment 2 identifies total annual cost; however, the Offeror can include a separate document that explains the breakdown of pricing for each CLIN.

43 Addendum to 52.212-1, Section 5.3 Factor 3: Past Performance

45 Is the PAST PERFORMANCE INFORMATION FORM limited to current government agency clients?

Government’s Response: No, past performance information is not limited to current government clients; it also includes past performance data for work performed within the last 3 years. Also please see response to #40.

Exhibit A: News Alert