Amendment1_23R00011.pdf

AMENDMENT #1, RFP No. 75N93024R00011

Amendment No. 1

RFP No. 75N93023R00011

“NIAID Evaluation Services”

Solicitation Number:

Amendment Number:

Amendment Issue Date:

75N93023R00011

One (1)

May 8, 2024

Response Date:

May 21, 2024 at 3:00 PM, Local Time (Unchanged)

Issued By: Matt Lear Contracting Officer

OA/NIAID/NIH/DHHS

5601 Fishers Lane, Room 3C37, MSC 9821 Bethesda, Maryland 20892-9821

Points of Contact: PRIMARY:

Matt.lear@nih.gov Matt Lear, Contracting Officer Phone: 240-669-5109

SECONDARY:

Kim.brookens@nih.gov Kim Brookens, Contracting Officer Phone: 240-669-2980

The purpose of this amendment is to: provide responses to questions from potential offerors regarding the solicitation.

Offerors must acknowledge receipt of this amendment by identifying this amendment number and date of the amendment on each copy of the proposal submitted. Failure to receive your acknowledgement may result in the rejection of your proposal. Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the solicitation remain unchanged and in full force and effect.

Responses to Questions from Potential Offerors:

Question 1:

In the RFP (page 47), can the Government confirm that 52.242-4 Certification of Final Indirect Costs is only required as part of final close out of cost type task orders and not to be part of the proposal?

Response to Question 1:

No, per the FAR, a certificate is required at the time of proposal. Please see FAR 52.242-4(c)(1) for more information.

Question 2:

In the RFP (page 57), can the Government confirm that the technical proposal should not include rates and costs, in order to comply with separation of technical and business volumes, and that rates and costs information is instead to be placed in the business proposal along with all of the other pricing data?

Response to Question 2:

Rates and cost information is to be placed in the Business Proposal along with all the other pricing data.

Question 3:

In the RFP (page 57), the “Technical Proposal Cost Summary” is referenced but it is not listed in Section J nor as an attachment to the solicitation. Would the Government please remove this reference and replace it with reference to Breakdown of Proposed Costs, which is provided?

Response to Question 3:

The “Technical Proposal Cost Summary” is to be replaced with the “Breakdown of Proposed Costs” spreadsheet attachment.

Question 4:

In the RFP (page 57), please confirm that the page limit for the technical proposal is 35 pages as listed in Attachment 1, rather than the 30 pages as listed in the RFP on page 57.

Response to Question 4:

The page limit for proposals is 30 pages.

Question 5:

In the RFP (page 57), the RFP indicates that the following items are to be outside of the technical proposal page limits, should these items be included in the appendix (limited to 50 pages in total):

personnel, facilities, equipment and resources, other considerations, schedule, other support, cost information, literature cited.

Response to Question 5:

Yes, please include the aforementioned in the appendix.

Question 6:

In the RFP (page 57), Please confirm that the following sections are excluded from all page limits of the technical proposal and/or appendix: cover page, cover sheet, Table of contents, proposal title page.

Response to Question 6:

Yes, the cover page, cover sheet, Table of Contents and the proposal title page are excluded from the page limit.

Question 7:

In the RFP (page 58), please confirm that appendices (with up to 50 pages) may be allowed as part of our response, since it is not referenced in Attachment 1, but is referenced in the RFP (page 58)

Response to Question 7:

Yes, appendices are allowed as part of the proposal.

Question 8:

In the RFP (page 60), will the government please clarify what is included in "etc." of the business proposal evaluation within this phrase: "subjected to a cost and price analysis, management analysis, etc.”? Should this phrase be stricken from the RFP and instead referenced to Section M for evaluation of Cost/Price?

Response to Question 8:

Please read the revised phrase on page 60 of the RFP as “subjected to price analysis, management analysis, and the criteria listed in Section M”.

Question 9:

In the RFP (page 62), Is it up to the Offeror to identify the 3 most relevant contracts to be included with detailed information (#1-#8 on page 62)?

Response to Question 9:

Yes, it is up to the offeror to identify the 3 most relevant contracts.

Question 10:

In the RFP (page 62), as a small business set-aside where a majority of the work must be performed by the small business prime contractor, should therefore a majority of the past performance references be provided by the prime?

Response to Question 10:

Yes, the majority of the past performance references should be provided and conducted by the Prime.

Question 11:

In the RFP (page 68), May the offeror put the following items that are specified to be included in the Business Proposal within part "c. Data Other than Certified Cost or Pricing Data": Offeror's Points of Contact, Summary of Related Activities, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities, and Section K Reps & Certs? If not, what information is the government expecting to see in this section C (which is blank in the RFP)?

Response to Question 11:

In Section L, page 68, part c, please see below for the following guidance.

Data submitted shall be sufficient to permit the Contracting Officer and authorized representatives to determine price reasonableness or cost realism, e.g., data to support an analysis of material costs (when sufficient data on labor and overhead rates is already available), or data on prices and quantities at which the offeror has previously sold the same or similar items.

Data submitted must support the price proposed. The offeror shall include sufficient detail or cross references to clearly establish the relationship of the data provided to the price proposed.

The offeror shall support any data provided with explanations or supporting rationale, as needed, to permit the Contracting Officer and authorized representative to evaluate the documentation.

Question 12:

In the RFP (page 74), would the Government please confirm that the cost/price proposal will be evaluated for both reasonableness and realism, as referenced in part c. of Section M Evaluation Factors?

Response to Question 12:

In the RFP, page 74, the following is removed from the solicitation.

Cost Realism: The specific elements of each offeror(s) proposed costs are realistic when the proposed cost elements are evaluated and found to: 1) be realistic for the work to be performed;

2) reflect a clear understanding of the requirements; and 3) be consistent with the unique methods of performance and materials described in the offeror(s) technical proposal.

Cost Realism will be evaluated only on the offeror(s) inputs which the Government will use to determine the most probable cost to perform the contract in a manner consistent with the offeror's proposal. Cost realism analysis will be conducted in accordance with FAR 15.404-1(d). T e result of the cost realism analysis will be considered in the making the best value tradeoff decision.

Question 13:

In the RFP (page 74), would it be acceptable to propose GSA rates for our pricing proposal?

Response to Question 13:

The offeror should submit their best offer/proposal.

Question 14:

In the RFP (page 76), would the Government please confirm that the past performance information will be evaluated prior to establishment of the competitive range (neither of the two options on page 76 are selected)?

Response to Question 14:

The text on page 76 of the RFP is correct. The Government is able to use both methods available for evaluation.

Question 15:

In the RFP (page 76), since all evaluation factors are significantly more important than cost/price, please confirm that the evaluation factors in order of importance should be revised to be technical, past performance, and cost?

Response to Question 15:

In Section M, part a, this is standard Government language and will stay as written.

Question 16:

Given that there is no definition from NIAID of the labor categories in the solicitation (e.g., education, experience, or responsibilities), how will the Government evaluate the labor category rates between contractors with different interpretations of those roles?

Response to Question 16:

The Government will evaluate the proposals as listed in Section M of the RFP.

Question 17:

In Attachment 7-Additional Technical Instructions (page 2), would the Government please remove the statement "to include animal facility management and vacancy coverage" from the Statement of Work, which appears to be a typo from another RFP?

Response to Question 17:

The Government removes the statement “to include animal facility management and vacancy coverage” from Attachment 7- Additional Technical Instructions.

Question 18:

In Attachment 7-Additional Technical Instructions (page 3), please confirm that the reference to "Program Manager, Deputy Program Mangers, Trainers, and the Facility and Assistant Facility Managers" is an error, and the correct listing of Key Personnel is provided in the Attachment 11 Additional Business Instructions (eg., Project Manager, Associate Researcher/Training Associate, Assistant Researcher, Training Assistant/Support Staff, and Senior Evaluator).

Response to Question 18:

The correct listing of Key Personnel is provided in Attachment 11 – Additional Business Instructions.

Question 19:

In Attachment 7-Additional Technical Instructions (page 3), Please remove the reference to AALAS certification level from paragraph 7 (resumes) of the Additional Technical Proposal Instructions, since AALAS references to Animal Laboratory Sciences which is not relevant for this RFP.

Response to Question 19:

The Government removes the reference to AALAS certification from Attachment 7 – Additional Technical Instructions.

Question 20:

In Attachment 7-Additional Technical Instructions (page 3), please confirm that resumes are to be provided outside of the page limited portion of the Technical Proposal.

Response to Question 20:

Resumes are excluded from the page limits of the Technical Proposal.

Question 21:

In Attachment 7-Additional Technical Instructions (pages 1-2), please strike the following statement from the Program Manager section of Attachment 7 since the Program Manager is provided with less than FT hours and does not oversee facilities. "It is expected that Program Managers will be fully dedicated to this contract, his/her proposed duties, and the areas or phases for which he/she will be responsible. Discuss methods of oversight to facilities."

Response to Question 21:

Please remove statement from the Program Manager section of Attachment 7.

Question 22:

In Attachment 7-Additional Technical Instructions (page 2), would the Government please strike the expectation that all personnel will be fully dedicated to this contract, since the hours indicated for each position/labor category are not equivalent to full time hours (e.g., 750 hours per year for Project Manager)?

Response to Question 22:

The Government removes the statement “fully dedicated to this contract” from the RFP.

Question 23:

Do potential offerors send Attachment 2-Proposal Intent Response form directly to Government or upload it in eCPS?

Response to Question 23:

Potential offerors may submit Attachment 2 – Proposal Intent Response sheet directly to the Government.

Question 24:

Is there any position that is required to be “in person”.

Response to Question 24:

No, there is not any position that is required to be “in person”.

Question 25:

Are resumes and additional supporting documents part of the overall page count?

Response to Question 25:

Resumes are not part of the overall page count, however, any addition supporting documentation would be included in the appendices which is not to exceed 50 single-sided pages.

Question 26:

In the RFP, it refers to a “PI” instead of a “Project Manager”. Is a leadership plan still required if a company decides to add an Assistant Project Manager?

Response to Question 26:

Yes, please address the Leadership Plan for Project Manager/s.

Question 27:

Are the costs provided in the Other Direct Costs table in the “Additional Business Proposal Instructions” suggestions or examples?

Response to Question 27:

Per Attachment 11, Section 3, a, please provide an estimated cost using the assumptions listed in the table.

Question 28:

In the RFP (page 57 and Attachment 7), Please confirm if the personnel section is excluded from the page count? Are resumes also excluded from the page count limitation?

Response to Question 28:

The personnel section is included in the overall page count, as described in Attachment 7. The resumes are subjected to the appendices page limitations.

Question 29:

What is the page limit for Key Personnel resumes/CVs?

Response to Question 29:

The resumes/CVs are subjected to the appendices page limitations.

Question 30:

Is there a required format for Key Personnel resumes/CVs? Is an NIH Biosketch format preferred or required?

Response to Question 30:

There is not a required format.

Question 31:

Please confirm sections for other considerations, schedule, other support, cost information, and literature cited are not included in page count limitation?

Response to Question 31:

Please follow the page limitations for the Technical Proposal and the appendices. The Business Proposal has separate requirements.

Question 32:

Please clarify if the Sample Task Order responses are to be integrated into the Technical Plan and are counted as part of the page limitation?

Response to Question 32:

The sample task order business responses should be included in the Business Proposal; however, the offeror should demonstrate technical capabilities in the Technical Plan and adhere to the page limitations as stated.

Question 33:

Are proposed personnel intended to be designated as full-time or greater than 50% effort on this potential contract? If not, what is the Government’s expected effort and dedication of Key Personnel to this potential contract beyond the Technical Cost Assumptions? The Business Proposal Instructions assume a lesser role for Key Personnel positions.

Response to Question 33:

The offeror should put together their best offer to fulfill the requirement. Please note, this is not an SBIR.

Question 34:

Should resumes for additional personnel be included? Can consultant resumes also be provided?

Responses to Question 34:

Yes, if the page limitations allow.

Question 35:

Is the staffing inferred by Attachment 7 required? What is the role of Facility and Assistant Facility Managers in this RFP? Why is AALAS (American Association of Laboratory Animal Science) certification required?

Response to Question 35:

Please remove both from the Attachment.

END OF AMENDMENT No. 1 Task Order RFP No. 75N93024R00011