Amendment 1- Solicitation Questions and Answers.pdf

1. In Section H, the notice suggests dies will be transferred from the incumbent to the contractor. Is that a correct interpretation?

A: The dies will be supplied to the contractor by the government to make the badges once the contract is awarded, however, not for the sample. If needed, the government may provide additional dies to the vendor and those dies/tools will be property of the government under strict procedures reflected in the SOW under section titled Additional Special Requirements 3.6.11.

2. The sample badge requirement as written limits open competition for this project. An alternative is to allow quoters to submit similar badges and art that show design and construction, lettering and numerals, enamel, plating, finish and metal color, badge back data and security features it will allow you to determine the suitability of the contractor to meet your needs while not favoring the incumbent.

A: The government respects the alternative recommendation, however, we remain the course of what the SOW requires for a sample submission. Please refer to the SOW under 3.6.10.

3. Plating and finish are highlighted above because the SOW specifically states the badges are not to be plated. Can you confirm if plating is or is not required?

A: The badges should not be plated. Please refer to the SOW under Section III specifically paragraphs referencing Plating, Finish, & Metal Color.

4. Does the coating on the badge have to be acrylic? Acrylic is a plastic and we abandoned it as obsolete long ago. We use a ceramic nano-coating that is superior to acrylic in terms of weight, chemical resistance and scratch resistance.

A: The government considers industry leaders as subject matter experts in their respected fields. Under this consideration, if the vendor has innovative technology that meets the consistency listed in the SOW that is acrylic like and specifically meets the requirements of “shall not change color with age, shall be chemical resistant, abrasive resistant, and have durable qualities to protect the badge from environmental elements.” Additionally, the hardness of the surface must be at least six (6) on the hardness scale. The SOW has been updated accordingly.

5. For the refurbishment of old badges. Will they need to be modified to accept our security features?

A: No, the badges that are refurbished have security features previously recorded thus not requiring additional modification for that capability.

6. The current requirement is for the first article to be delivered 15 days after the IDIQ contract award. This limits open competition for this project. 30 days is the industry standard for first run badges and a shorter requirement disadvantages everyone but the incumbent.

A: The government acknowledges this and the first article test units are due within 15 days after the award to ensure consistency with the current inventory, please refer to SOW under 3.6.5. SOW 3.6.5 has been updated to reflect that first article test units are required for the TSO and FAMS Tactical badges.

7. Will the badge orders always come from one centralized office or will there be multiple offices/regions submitting orders?

A: The badge orders will only come from one centralized location which is the BCU located at the TSA HQ. Refer to SOW under 3.6.8 for the address.

8. Will badges orders follow an uninterrupted, consecutive numbering sequence when submitted? Will following orders resume where previous sequencing ended?

A: The badge ordering sequence will be indicated on each task order. Please refer to the SOW under Sections III & IV specifically paragraphs referencing Badge Numbering.