75N95023R00004_QandA.pdf

SOLICITATION QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES

QUESTION 1: Is it a requirement to be able to supply services for every aspect of the RFP or is a “No Bid” sec�on permited?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: It is not necessary to bid on all three technical areas. It is en�rely acceptable to propose on only one technical area, and that does not put an offeror at a disadvantage. Our expecta�on is that some vendors may specialize in only one or two areas. Each technical area proposed upon is evaluated on its own merits. We expect to make mul�ple awards within each technical area so that the Government has a roster of qualified vendors to serve the needs of each technical area. See Atachment 7-Addi�onal Technical Proposal Instruc�ons, and Atachment 13-Addi�onal Business Proposal Instruc�ons for addi�onal guidance.

QUESTION 2: Would an offeror be allowed to subcontract an ac�vity to external vendors rather than execute the ac�vity internally when internal capabili�es are limited?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The intent of this RFP is to receive proposals from Offerors that fulfill the comprehensive range of requirements detailed within each Technical Area proposed upon. In cases where an Offeror may not be able to fulfill all requirements using purely internal resources, it is acceptable to propose partnering / subcontrac�ng arrangements that would enable the Offeror to complement their own internal exper�se and capabili�es to provide that comprehensive support. Per Atachment 7-Addi�onal Technical Proposal Instruc�ons, “Offerors proposing Subcontracts to perform por�ons of the Statement of Work should clearly iden�fy the specific tasks for which they plan to u�lize subcontractors, as well as the method and level of integra�on/coordina�on between the prime Contractor and all proposed Subcontractors, and the expected advantages of such an approach.”

QUESTION 3: Ar�cle B.2.b includes the following text: The minimum guarantee will be sa�sfied by the issuance of a task order to each IDIQ awardee. The task order will be issued concurrently with the IDIQ contract and will require a kick-off mee�ng. Subsequent task orders will be issued in accordance with Ar�cle G.3. TASK ORDER PROCEDURE. Ques�on: The RFP does not include a task order for the kick-off or other management ac�vi�es. Is this something the government would like offerors to propose?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Government will issue a Task Order to each awardee in the amount of the minimum guarantee for the kick-off mee�ng. Offerors do not need to, and should not, propose on this.

QUESTION 4: Given the specifics provided in the Sample Task Orders, they appear to be an�cipated future procurements rather than “sample” TOs primarily provided for evalua�on of the offeror’s proposal. Can the Government confirm if these TOs will be awarded a�er award of the master IDIQ contracts?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: These are sample Task Order Requests for Proposals (TORFPs) only and WILL NOT result in actual task order awards. The responses to the sample TORFPs are used to assess the

RFP No. 75N95023R00004 Solicitation Q&A

Offeror’s understanding of the types of requirements that the Government might have in future task orders, and the overall soundness, feasibility and completeness of the proposed approach to achieve the stated requirements.

QUESTION 5: Atachment 7 states "Subsec�ons 3.A., 3.B., and 3.C. must be complete on their own and include all requested informa�on for that subsec�on. Subsec�ons may not refer to other subsec�ons for informa�on." Please confirm that the subsec�ons should be complete, but remain within the same Volume document, and not standalone documents.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Confirmed. Each subsec�on should be completely addressed within its own sec�on, but remain within the same Volume document, and not as a standalone document.

QUESTION 6: Ar�cle G.2 of the RFP states that Key Personnel are “To be determined at the task order level”. Does this mean that we do not have to designate key personnel at the IDIQ level?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Correct. Offerors do not need to designate Key Personnel at the IDIQ level, pursuant to Ar�cle G.2. Key Personnel. However, the Addi�onal Technical Proposal Instruc�ons (Atachment 7), specify the requirements for iden�fying relevant personnel and describing their experience and qualifica�ons within the Technical Discussions at the level of the Technical Area. Per the Technical Evalua�on Factors (Sec�on M), these proposed personnel will be evaluated with respect to their appropriateness to carry out the overall technical approach and accomplish the work described.

A�er award of the IDIQ contract, successful Offerors would be required to iden�fy the specific Key Personnel proposed to carry out any issued Task Orders.

QUESTION 7: Are CVs included in the 50 pages per technical area or should they be part of the atachments?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Per Atachment 7-Addi�onal Technical Proposal Instruc�ons, resumes must be no longer than two pages each and should be provided in Sec�on 4: Atachments. The total atachments shall not exceed 50 pages per technical area, or 150 pages total if all three technical areas are proposed on.

QUESTION 8. May we submit our Small Business Subcontrac�ng Plan in our Business Proposal rather than in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Small Business Customer Experience (SBCX) system?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: No. In accordance with ARTICLE H.13. SUBCONTRACTING PROVISIONS of the RFP, the Small Business Subcontrac�ng Plan must be submited electronically using the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Small Business Customer Experience (SBCX) system by the proposal submission deadline. The link to submit plans into SBCX is provided in ARTICLE H.16.

General instruc�ons for submi�ng the plan can be found in the SBCX Industry Guide at:

htps://oamp.od.nih.gov/sites/default/files/DGS/SBCX%20Industry%20Subcontrac�ng%20Guide.pdf

RFP No. 75N95023R00004 Solicitation Q&A https://oamp.od.nih.gov/sites/default/files/DGS/SBCX%20Industry%20Subcontracting%20Guide.pdf

QUESTION 9: Are Offerors to also include an addi�onal copy of the same Small Business Subcontrac�ng Plan with the Business Proposal in pdf format via the Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) website?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: No.

QUESTION 10: On Atachment 15, “HHS Subcontrac�ng Plan Template”, the version is iden�fied in the footer as “Subcontrac�ng Plan Template (Rev. March 2022).” Please confirm this is the version of the form, along with the correct/current goal percentages, to be u�lized for the Small Business Subcontrac�ng Plan.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The subcontrac�ng goal percentages for reference in preparing your proposal are the following HHS Fiscal Year 2023 goals, which can be found at:

htps://www.sba.gov/sites/sbagov/files/2023-01/FY23_Final_Goals_508_0.pdf

Small Business: 32.00%

SDB: 5.00%

WOSB: 5.00%

SDVOSB: 3.00%

HUBZone: 3.00%

RFP Atachment 15-HHS Subcontrac�ng Plan Template is included only as a preparatory aid. The Small Business Subcontrac�ng Plan is only to be submited electronically through the HHS SBCX system and is not to be included in the technical or business proposals submited through eCPS.

QUESTION 11: Sec�on L.2.c.1. states “The breakdown of proposed es�mate costs must be included in an Excel spreadsheet and submited along with the Business Proposal.” Is this Excel spreadsheet required?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Yes, this Excel spreadsheet must be submited. Offerors must complete and submit Atachment 16-Breakdown of Proposed Es�mated Costs (plus fee) w/Excel Spreadsheet with the Business Proposal. See Atachment 13-Addi�onal Business Proposal Instruc�ons, for addi�onal instruc�ons on preparing the Excel spreadsheet.

QUESTION 12: Do the Technical Proposal and Business Proposal need to be text-searchable?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Atachment 1- Packaging and Delivery of Proposals for Use with the NIH electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) Website, states the Technical and Business Proposals “should be created in a PDF format that enables word searches to the maximum extent prac�cable.”

Some forms may need to be scanned in, but these forms should be merged with the rest of the PDF document so that the rest of the PDF document may be text-searchable.

RFP No. 75N95023R00004 Solicitation Q&A https://www.sba.gov/sites/sbagov/files/2023-01/FY23_Final_Goals_508_0.pdf