Amendment_001_RFP_Ques_and_Resp_0001.pdf

Amendment 001

RFP 75N91023R00002

Protocol Information Office (PIO) Support Services Questions/Responses

Question Number

Solicitation Reference (Section Number, Heading, and Page Number)

NCI Response

Attachment 1, Page 2 (II.

Formatting and Page Limitations)

In Attachment 1 - Packaging and Delivery of Proposals for Use with the NIH electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) Website, the requirements state "Pages exceeding limitations will be removed from the proposal and will not be considered", and the following table entitled “NUMBER OF COPIES AND APPLICABLE PAGE LIMITATIONS” defines page limits for both proposals as "Please reference Technical Proposal Instructions" and "Please reference Business Proposal Instructions."

Can the government please provide the page limitations for the Technical and Business Proposals as there is no mention of a specific page limitation in either the RFP, Attachment 7, or Attachment 10?

There is no page limit for Business and Technical proposal.

RFP L.2.a.11, Page 59 (Past

Performance Information)

AND

RFP L.2.c.7.d, Page

81 (Pertinent Contracts)

In Section L, there are two (2) separate requirements related to prior experience for inclusion in the Business Proposal (Past Performance Information at L.2.a.11 & Pertinent Contracts at L.2.c.7.d)

Are these requirements two (2) separate sections that must be completed, or are both sections meant to encompass one section titled "Pertinent Contracts" in the Business Proposal? If they do refer to a singular section, do the “Pertinent Contracts” recency and contract detail requirements take precedence, as they conflict with the “Past Performance Information” requirements"?

Singular section with both pertinent contracts which demonstrates past relevance performance/experience.

Attachment 2, Page 5 (Project Area 4: Manage

People and

In Project Area 4: Manage People and Organizations Data in DESK-PIMS of the Statement of Work, the requirements state "The Contractor shall manage and perform quality control of data relating to people, such as investigators, The Project Area 4 title should reference PIO-CTS.

Solicitation Reference (Section Number, Heading, Organizations Data in DESK-PIMS) coordinators, reviewers, organizations, and the relationships of people to organizations in PIO-CTS."

Should the title of this Project Area also reference PIO-CTS, or is DESK-PIMS still relevant?

Attachment 1.I.

Proposal

Submission, Page 1 of 2

This section reads “Proposals must be submitted via the electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) website at https://ecps.nih.gov.”

Would the government please clarify if a subcontractor Business Proposal should be submitted within in the eCPS system through the Subcontractor’s eCPS account or should the subcontractor submit its Business Proposal directly to the Contracting Officer via email?

Subcontractors Business Proposal should be submitted within in the eCPS system through the Subcontractor’s eCPS account. Please make sure the eCPS account is created well before the proposal due date to avoid any system glitches.

Attachment 1 - Packaging and

Delivery of Proposals for Use with the NIH electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) Website, Page 1 of

B.2. states "Create one PDF file of your Business Proposal, including all attachments. The Technical Proposal should be created in a PDF format that enables word searches to the maximum extent practicable. Forms and/or documents requiring signature(s) may be scanned but must be merged into the Technical Proposal PDF file."

Can the Government please revise B. 2. to update the correct instructions for the Business Proposal?

Create one PDF file of your Business Proposal, including all attachments. The Business Proposal should be created in a PDF format that enables word searches to the maximum extent practicable. Forms and/or documents requiring signature(s) may be scanned but must be merged into the Business Proposal PDF file.

Attachment 1 - Packaging and

Delivery of Proposals for Use with the NIH electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS)

B.4. reads "File naming convention: It is requested that the filenames for your Technical Proposal, Business Proposal, and Excel Workbook include the name of the offeror, the solicitation number and the type of proposal (i.e., Technical, Business, or Excel Workbook)."

Is there an Excel Workbook submission requirement, and if so, could the Government please provide the Excel

An Excel Workbook submission is not required but useful.

See question #9.

Solicitation Reference (Section Number, Heading, Website, Page 1 of

Workbook and instructions for its completion and which Volume the Excel workbook supports?

Attachment 10, Additional Business

Proposal Instructions, Page

1 of 1, Section L (e) Level of Effort, Section C reads "Consultants – The offeror shall budget for in-house expertise or consultant services for approximately 40 hours per year for OMB or other contract support.

Example: 40 hours to prepare documentation for OMB clearance of PIO forms." Is the 40 hours approximation included in the 9,400 hours per year stated in Section L (e) Level of Effort, page 54, or should offerors add the 40 hours to the 9,400 hours for a total of 9,440 hours per year?

Consultants is listed under other direct costs. The total hour is 9,400.

Section L.2.12 HHS Security and

Privacy Language for Information and Information

Technology Procurements, Section L.2.12, HHS Security and Privacy Language for Information and Information Technology Procurements, requires a separate section of the business proposal to be entitled "Information Security."

Does this requirement apply only to the Prime offeror, or does it also apply to subcontractors submitting their separate Business Proposal?

This requirement applies to the Prime.

Business Proposal Attachments, page

Business Proposal Attachments include Attachment 9:

Proposal Summary and Data Record, Attachment 10:

Additional Business Proposal Instructions, Attachment 11:

Offeror's Points of Contact, and Attachment 12: Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.

Does NIH require costs proposed to be submitted in Microsoft Excel format, and if so, is there a preferred format that can be included within the Business Proposal Attachments section of the RFP?

Excel Workbook is not required; however, if preferred to use Microsoft Excel format, Vendor can use link “Breakdown of Proposed Estimated Costs (plus Fee) with Excel Spreadsheet” at:

https://oamp.od.nih.gov/content/breakdown-proposed-estimated-cost-plus-fee-and-labor-hours https://oamp.od.nih.gov/content/breakdown-proposed-estimated-cost-plus-fee-and-labor-hours https://oamp.od.nih.gov/content/breakdown-proposed-estimated-cost-plus-fee-and-labor-hours

Solicitation Reference (Section Number, Heading, RFP Attachments

17a and 17b

Does the small business have to operate at a specific location?

The contract is onsite. The awardee would have to come in (Rockville, MD location) accordance with NCI policy.