Amendment No. 1 - RFQ MESC III 05.23.2024.pdf

U.S. Agency for International Development American Embassy P.O. Box 354 Amman 11118, Jordan

Tel: +962 (6) 5906000 Fax +962 (6) 5907300 www.usaid.gov/jordan

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

6050 AMMAN PLACE

WASHINGTON DC 20521-6050

Acquisition and Assistance Office

May 23, 2024

SUBJECT: Request for Architect-Engineer Qualifications (RFQ) 72027824R00001

USAID/Jordan Management and Engineering Service Contract (MESC III) Amendment No.1

The Purpose of this amendment is to:

Disseminate responses to questions received from potential offerors in Attachment 1 to this amendment.

All other terms and conditions of the subject RFQ remain unchanged and in full force and effect.

Sincerely, Justin Gunnoe Contracting Officer USAID/Jordan http://www.usaid.gov/jordan

Request for Proposal (RFQ) 72027824R00001-Amendment No.I USAID/Jordan Management and Engineering Service Contract-MESC III

Attachment I: Questions and Answers

The following are the questions and answers in response to the subject RFQ:

General Questions

1 Question:

Please advise if this RFQ is a technical proposal or a technical and financial proposal?

Answer:

This Request for Qualifications (RFQ) provides instructions for the submission of technical proposals. As per section L.6 “Instructions on Preparation of the cost proposal” of this RFQ price negotiations will be conducted beginning with the most highly rated offeror in the final selection, which will include a request for a cost proposal.

2. Question:

Is there a page limit to Section D of the SF-330 “Organizational Chart of Proposed Team”?

Answer:

There is no page limitation on the Organizational Chart of the Proposed Team. It is submitted as an attachment to the SF-330 form.

3. Question:

Can the Offeror use a larger paper size specifically for Section D of the SF-330 “Organizational Chart of Proposed Team”?

Answer:

Yes, the offeror can use an A3 paper size specifically for the Organizational Chart in order to demonstrate clear lines of communication and responsibility.

4. Question:

Page 4-5, Table L-1 Submission Requirements. Can USAID confirm that Offerors will not be disqualified but rather be scored unfavorably if they submit less than five (5) relevant projects required under SF 330 section F?

Answer:

Confirmed. The projects under section F of the SF330 are used as example projects which best illustrate proposed team's qualifications for this contract. Offerors will not be disqualified if they submit less than five (5) projects.

5. Question:

Proposals Deadline: June 22, 2024 at 04:00 pm Jordan Time. To ensure the thorough preparation of a high- quality Proposal, particularly considering the shortened time frame due to the Eid Holiday, we kindly request an extension of the deadline by at least two weeks.

Answer: Extension request is denied.

6. Question:

RFP L.4 Technical Proposal Submission Instructions “Acceptable file formats are Adobe Acrobat PDF with Optical Character Recognition and Word (2003 version or newer). For all Narrative Responses, Offerors must submit at the same time a .PDF version of the Microsoft Word documents. For the SF 330, Offerors must submit in .PDF“ Please confirm the following understanding: For all required documents in the technical proposal other than SF 330 (including the full part I and II), the consultant is required to submit two versions of each section, one as PDF file and the second version as Microsoft Word Document.

Answer: Confirmed.

7. Question:

RFP L.5 Instructions for Preparation of The Technical Proposal “In accordance with FAR 36.702(b), Offerors must fully complete the Standard Form (SF) 330. The SF 330 required for this RFQ is available as Attachment 1 to this solicitation and/or from the following website:

https://www.gsa.gov/system/files/SF330-21.pdf. Instructions for filling out the SF 330 are provided in the form itself. Offerors must follow the instructions to complete the respective sections of the SF- 330 form. Offerors shall not alter the SF- 330 format. A complete SF 330 includes signature by an authorized representative on page five (5) of the form (SF 330-Part 1, Section I). Section H of the SF-330-Part I constitutes the body of the technical proposal and is limited to a total of 24 pages.”

It is noted that Form SF 330 must remain unaltered. However, certain sections, such as E and F, may not provide adequate space to include all essential information, such as the names and descriptions of previous projects. Therefore, could you please confirm whether it is permissible to create a Word document that replicates the content, format, and layout of the standard SF 330 for all sections? Furthermore, Section H of SF 330 requires a signature from the Contractor’s representative. It is stated that this section can span up to 24 pages. Kindly confirm if the signature is only required on the final page of Section H in cases where it extends across multiple pages.

Additionally, could you please specify the maximum allowable number of pages for Section E and Section F?

Answer:

● Offerors must follow the instructions provided in the RFQ and in the SF330 for the preparation of the technical proposal.

● The contractor’s representative signature is only required on the last page of section H.

● As stated in Table L-1 Submission Requirements: The Offeror must follow the instructions provided in the SF 330 for Sections E and F.

https://www.gsa.gov/system/files/SF330-

8. Question:

RFP, P.17, C. Requirement and Qualifications: “Chief of Party (COP): The COP is responsible for the overall management and implementation of the Activity. The COP must be an employee of the prime Contractor rather than a subcontractor” Please confirm if this statement “employee of the prime Contractor” means: Either: The nominated COP is a current employee of the prime contractor. Or: The nominated COP should be an employee of the prime Contractor and is not necessarily a current employee of the prime Contractor.

Answer:

The nominated COP is not necessarily a current employee of the prime contractor.

9. Question:

RFP, P.41, L.7 Additional Instructions to the Selected Offeror

1. Evidence Of Responsibility

2. Branding Implementation Plan and Marking Plan

3. Security Plan

Please confirm that all these parts shall be submitted by the selected offeror that will be awarded the contract and not by all bidders at this bidding stage.

Answer:

Yes, the instructions listed under section L.7 of this RFQ are provided for the awareness of all offerors as they will only be required from the selected offerors.

10. Question:

RFP, Page 40, point (c), Describe any quality awards or certifications that indicate exceptional capacity to provide the service or product described in the Statement of Work.

Please confirm if this information shall be included in Annex No.4 after the past performance matrix.

Answer:

No, Annex 4 is the Proof of Firm’s classification. Please include the referenced information under Annex 3 along with the past performance matrix which will not be included in the page limitation.

11. Question:

RFP, Page 36, Instructions for Preparation of The Technical Proposal, “Any pages beyond this limitation will not be evaluated. Technical proposals shall be written in English and typed on standard 8 ½” x 11” paper size, single spaced, one-inch margins, Calibri 12- point font, with each page numbered consecutively”

As this is not the commonly used size in Jordan, please confirm that an A4 (21 x 29 cm) paper size is accepted.

Answer: Confirmed.

12. Question:

Please confirm if USAID will evaluate a subcontractor’s past performance if they do not reach the threshold of a major subcontractor and their PPRs are not included in sections H and F?

Answer:

Past performance information for subcontractors other than major subcontractors is not required.

13. Question:

Please confirm that the past performance information from major subcontractors may be included both in section H and section F and that they will be evaluated?

Answer: Offerors must follow the instructions under bullet “3. Past Performance” of section L.5 of this RFQ.

Technical Questions

14. Question:

C.3 Activity Components, Outcomes and services required, Component 1. Technical Assistance for System Upgrades and NRW Infrastructure Works: Please confirm the availability of data or metrics regarding energy usage and GHG emissions from the five utilities targeted under MESC III.

Answer:

As part of the contractor's scope, the available data must be retrieved from the water entities/utilities.

15. Question:

Is it acceptable that the consultants meet the eligibility requirement Class 1A in the field of water and wastewater as a joint venture (one of the partners has a Class 1A in the field of water and wastewater)?

Answer: The lead Offeror must be a local professional architect-engineer (A-E) firm currently registered as Class 1A in the field of water and wastewater.

16. Question:

Page 4-5, Table L-1 Submission Requirements. SF 330 section F. Can USAID confirm that the project reference is considered if the A&E firm managed a project with a minimum construction value of $3M, regardless of design and construction management contract value.

For example, a donor funded a $20M construction project where the Consultancy firm (firm A) was responsible for design and construction management and had an A&E contract value at $2M and The Contractor (firm B) was responsible for the construction. Can firm A list this experience as a $20M construction value under SF 330 section F project examples? If not, the $3M minimum stated in the RFQ will preclude a competitive procurement process by USAID, as it would significantly limit the participation of eligible First Grade Class A Jordanian firms.

Answer:

Confirmed. The Offeror shall list projects managed with a minimum construction value of $3,000,000 regardless of the design and construction management contract value.

17. Question:

With reference to the RFP, P.6, C.1.2 United States Government NRW Interventions, it is mentioned that “The NRW Phase I concluded in December 2021, while NRW Phase II and Phase III are ongoing and will conclude in December 2025 and December 2027, respectively”. “NRW Phase IV was signed in May 2023 with a total estimated cost of $250 million”. In addition, in page no.4, C.1 Background, it is mentioned that “MESC II will conclude in January 2025”.

Could you confirm that any FARA agreements falling under Phase II and Phase III, which were previously managed by MESC II and are expected to continue beyond January 2025, will automatically transition to MESC III?

Additionally, please confirm that all FARAs associated with Phase IV will fall under the management of MESC III.

Answer:

FARA Agreements under Non-Revenue Water (NRW) Phase II will be completed by or before December 31, 2025, and FARA agreements under NRW Phase III will be completed by or before December 31, 2027. However, in the event that any of the Associate FARAs are extended beyond those dates through an agreement modification, these Associate FARAs will fall under the management and oversight of MESC III. Additionally, Associate FARAs signed under Phase IV will fall under the management and oversight of MESC III.

It is to be noted that the selected Contractor will be providing management and oversight of the entire NRW Project upon award of the prospective MESC III contract.

18. Question:

Can the Offeror add CVs of staff members other than key personnel as an Annex to the proposal?

Answer:

Although it is not required in the RFQ, Offerors may provide CV’s for non-key personnel if they deem it necessary.

End of Amendment No.1