AG-024B-S-15-0003_Avionics_Upgrade_Response_to_Questions_Received.pdf

Solicitation AG‐024B‐S‐15‐0003 US Forest Service Avionics Upgrade SD3‐60 Sherpa National Office

RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS RECEIVED IN RESPONSE TO SOLICITATION AG-

024B-S-15-0003 AVIONICS UPGRADE - SD3-60 SHERPA

1. QUESTION: The Government has not provided a planned contract award date or required period of performance. For planning and pricing purposes would the Government please provide notional dates?

RESPONSE: Paragraph C.6 show the contract periods as date of award through March 31, 2016 for year one and then April 1 – March 31 of the following next four years.

Estimated date of award is now June 30, 2015, however that will depend on the offers received and the extent of negotiations, if conducted. The period of performance for development of the initial STC will depend on the offer submitted and the milestones requested in paragraph E.3(b)(5) under your capabilities statement. Periods of performance for specific upgrades will be identified in the task orders based on the timelines included in the successful Contractor’s offer.

2. QUESTION: Does the Forest Service have aircraft specific Ground Service Equipment (GSE) and will it be provided to Contractor's for use on the effort or should Contractor's assume they will need to either procure or build these items?

RESPONSE: The Forest Service does have GSE. Providing it would be on a case by case basis. Please be specific on the GSE you would need to accomplish this avionics upgrade.

3. QUESTION: Does the Forest Service have aircraft specific Aircraft Maintenance publications and Illustrated Parts Breakdowns and engineering data (structural drawing and wiring diagrams) for general aircraft maintenance and repair and will they be provided to Contractor's for use on the contract or should Contractor's assume they will need to procure these items separately?

RESPONSE: The Contractor shall provide aircraft maintenance publications, illustrated parts breakdown, structural repair manual and other standard technical publications.

4. QUESTION: Section B, Pricing Table, Pg. 6: For the Item 16.b Labor, the Government is requesting an Avionics Maintenance rate for an estimated 50 hours of work. Would the Government please provide a notional scope of work for this labor, so Industry can align it with the correct internal labor category most appropriate to that scope of work?

RESPONSE: This labor rate is included in case we provide you with an aircraft that has an inoperable piece of avionics equipment. However, should avionics equipment fail as a result of the Contractor’s installation or use of the aircraft (something other than normal wear and tear), then the Contractor would be responsible for repair of the equipment. Since we want to make sure we cover all possibilities, we have included a labor rate in the schedule.

5. QUESTION: Section B.5 (b), Pg. 8: SOW Paragraph B.5.(b) requires “all existing avionics, flight instruments and engine instruments shall be removed.” In Paragraph B.5.(e), there is no requirement for an emergency standby instrument system (ESIS). Is this an oversight, or should our response not include an ESIS?

RESPONSE: The following will was added to B.5(e)(25) Electronic Standby Instrumentation meeting the requirements of 14 CFR Part 25 and AC 25-11B.

6. QUESTION: Section B.8 (e), Pg 14: Are commercially available OEM / Vendor Maintenance Manuals and Illustrated Parts Breakdowns, etc. acceptable or is the Government requesting that we plan on development of program specific technical manuals, similar to those found on military programs?

RESPONSE: Commercially available OEM/Vendor Maintenance Manuals and illustrated Parts Breakdowns, etc. are acceptable.

7. QUESTION: Section B.9 (b), Pg. 15: Is the contractor required to provide qualified pilots to test fly the aircraft or are we only required to provide an FAA test pilot to certify the systems for the STC and the Forest Service will provide pilots for the other flights?

RESPONSE: The Forest Service will provide pilots for the Government’s acceptance flight(s) (functional test flight(s)) that are performed after the certification flights are performed. The Contractor shall provide all pilots to fly all flights required for the Certification of the STC.

8. QUESTION: Section B.11 (d) (2), Pg. 16: The SOW states that maintenance shall be performed in accordance with the applicable FAR's. The Government operates their aircraft in accordance with 14 CFR Part 91 and Forest Service Policy. Would the Government advise what is outlined in the Forest Service Policy that would not already be within the guidelines of 14 CFR Part 91.

RESPONSE: No. Bidders may review Forest Service Manual 5700 available at and Forest Service Handbook 5709.16 available at http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/aviation/av_library/

9. QUESTION: Section E, Page 48, Capabilities Statement item (5): In preparing our schedule plan, are there any constraints that we should put in our schedule (i.e. only one aircraft can be worked at a time or can we assume 2 or more aircraft in work;

aircraft will be inducted nose-to-tail; aircraft cannot be out of service at specific intervals, etc.)?

RESPONSE: Only one aircraft will be worked at a time. In addition, initially only one the first aircraft will be provided to the contractor for development of the STC. Upon completion and FAA approval STC installation on the first aircraft, aircraft 2-4 will be provided to the Contractor’s facility for modification one at a time after completion of the previous aircraft. See Amendment to Paragraph B.5.

10. QUESTION: What is the cabin seating configuration less the spotter, and mission coordinator positions?

RESPONSE: The cabin has multiple configurations approved by the OEM and may use any of those depending on the mission. The initial smokejumper seating configuration will have 10 of the OEM jumpseats along the left side of the cabin and one two place airline style seat on the forward right.

11. QUESTION: Paragraph B.5(e)(22)(iii): Paragraph states the mission commander position shall be located at the forward center cabin. Please clarify the position of the Mission Coordinator as left or right of center?

RESPONSE: B.5(e)(22)(iii) states “The mission coordinator position shall be located at the forward center cabin.” This is talking about the mounting of the audio controller. It will most likely be right of center but as stated in the SOW “Final locations must be approved by the government.”

12. QUESTION: Please clarify the aircraft’s operating applicable regulation. Are the aircraft operating under part 23 or part 25 pf the Code of Federal Regulation?

RESPONSE: The aircraft’s certification basis is 14 CFR Part 25.

13. QUESTION: Can the Government clarify if the solicitation requirement is that the Prime Contractor submitting the offer must have an ODA or if the Prime Contractor submitting the offer can have a Subcontractor on their team that has an ODA?

RESPONSE: It is acceptable to have a subcontractor with an ODA on the Contractor’s team.

14. QUESTION: To establish a common technical baseline for evaluation of offerors schedule performance, will the government clarify that the offeror shall develop evaluation schedules based on the requirements of delivering item X.a only, since the modification schedule can vary based on whether the government orders any of the optional items?

RESPONSE: The government will evaluate timeline for X.a only. The additional time required for each option will be considered in the Government’s determination to exercise the option.

15. QUESTION: To allow the US Forest Service to receive the benefit of reduced risk and the avoidance of insurance cost for the aircraft, would the Government consider incorporating DFARS 252.228-7001?

4.

RESPONSE: No. Based on the type of contract written (Commercial Item Fixed Price Contract), the Federal Acquisition Regulations requires the use of Alternate I, which shifts the risk of loss of Government Property to the contractor. To ensure that the damages or loss of the aircraft are recoverable, it was determined that requiring insurance was in our best interest.

16. QUESTION: Section B (f), gives a list of all the components that must be from the same manufacturer to constitute an integrated flight deck. We would like to propose a system that would give a clean, easy to use flight deck, all from the same manufacturer, but some of the LRU’s would be from a different company or two. We believe this arrangement will allow greater flexibility in future upgrades.

RESPONSE: The requirement remains as stated in the solicitation.

17. QUESTION: What is the availability date for each of the first 4 aircraft to be inducted into the contractor’s facility for modification?

RESPONSE: The first aircraft is anticipated to be ready for delivery on July 15, 2015.

See response to question 9 for additional information.

18. QUESTION: Will the Optional Items awarded be consistent for all aircraft, i.e. if the Synthetic Vision Option is exercised for aircraft 1, will it also be exercised for all subsequent aircraft?

RESPONSE: Yes.

19. QUESTION: Can the contractor propose alternate delivery dates for each aircraft based on exercising Optional Items, i.e. installation of the autopilot option may extend the modification schedule vs a non-autopilot installation.

RESPONSE: Yes, that would be acceptable.

20. QUESTION: Will the incoming aircraft all have a common baseline configuration?

RESPONSE: Yes.

21. QUESTION: What is the expected start date of the contract?

RESPONSE: Date of award is anticipated to be June 30, 2015 and delivery dates shall be identified from date of delivery of the aircraft – July 15, 2015 for the first aircraft.

22. QUESTION: Is the maintenance rates in Section B.1 for work performed at the contractors facility?

RESPONSE: Correct. The Contractor will be required to maintain the aircraft while in their possession.

23. QUESTION: Is the place of performance for the training in Section B.13 at the contractor’s facility?

RESPONSE: Yes.

24. QUESTION: Is it the Governments intent that the Automated Flight Following system be permanently installed or if it can be a portable system?

RESPONSE: This must be a permanently installed system.

25. QUESTION: What is the estimated timeline for the certification process…?

RESPONSE: The first US Forest Service SD3-60 Sherpa will be delivered on July 15, 2015.

26. QUESTION: Why is an ODA certification required for this program?

RESPONSE: The Forest Service requires that the installation be accomplished by FAA STC. The FAA has delegated an ability to issue STCs to businesses that have an Organization Designation Authorization (ODA). This allows the project’s schedule to be under the control of the successful bidder and not competing for FAA resources. The bidder is then able to create a realistic schedule which is not dependent on an entity external to their organization.

27. QUESTION: Does the forest service have conformity documents (Manufacturing Certs or 8130-3) for all items identified in Appendix 2?

RESPONSE: Yes.

28. QUESTION: Would the Government please explain how they envision the "Credit for Equipment removed from the Aircraft" and the "Credit for Surplus Equipment" process to work? Also, would contractors be able to sell any material and take credits through that means?

RESPONSE: The offeror will create an itemized list of the Government Property with unit prices for each item. If the prices as a whole are reasonable, the property will be transferred to the Contractor and the Contactor can sell the property, use it for other projects, or use it in the upgrade of the avionics package as it will become their property.

29. QUESTION: There are multiple references to the Government in the SOW. When using the term "Government," does this refer solely to the Forest Service or is it referring to all government entities?

RESPONSE: It refers to the agency the contract is with, in this case the US Forest Service or representatives of the US Forest Service.

30. QUESTION: Will the forest service require office space(s) for a full time on site representative, along with normal office accommodations?

RESPONSE: No.

31. QUESTION: B.3(b) States "The Contractor shall possess and maintain ISO 9001 Certification throughout the duration of the contract". We are ISO 9001 complaint, but not certified, is this acceptable? Whether we submit as an Prime contractor or a subcontractor for this RFP?

RESPONSE: No. The solicitation requires ISO 9001 certification.

32. QUESTION: Reference: B.5(a), B.5(d), B.5(e)(16 & 19), B.5(i), B.5(j), B.5(e)(22)(iii), B.5(e)(22)(xxiv), B.5(m), B.5(q), B.8(a), B.8(c), B.8(d) and B.11(b).

The above mention sections call out the need for prior government approval or shall be approved by the government. What is the time frame in which the government is required to provide feedback and approval to the mentioned activities in these sections?

RESPONSE: The Government will respond within 5 business days to accept the work.

Work not accepted within 5 business days will considered accepted unless the Contractor is notified and a later date is agreed upon. Should a later date be agreed upon, additional calendar days will be added to the delivery date.

33. QUESTION: B.5(c) Ref to electrical system evaluation - Government shall be advised of all discrepancies. Who pays to correct the discrepancies and at what rate would these be charged, since there is no CLIN listed? Is it covered under the GFP clause?

RESPONSE: The Government pays as this is part of the initial evaluation of the aircraft.

This is covered by B.11(b) and CLINs 16a through 20b.

34. QUESTION: B.8(e)(1) Item provided by the contractor - A copy of the STC and other FAA approved Documents. To clarify, The contractor shall provide the STC certificate with design & installation data, which does not include substantiation data held by the contractor as the owner of the STC per B.8(g)…Yes?

RESPONSE: No. Per 52.227-14 Rights in Data incorporated by reference at C.2 we have rights to all data produced under this contract. However, the Contractor will be the holder of the STC.

35. QUESTION: B.9(b) “The Contractor shall provide a qualified pilot to perform flights”.

Can the government provide the pilot qualification requirements?

RESPONSE: Yes

The captain needs:

The requirements listed in the 5700 manual that covers the Experience Standards covering Contract Fixed-Wing Pilots. Additionally, heavy multi-engine aircraft pilots (over 12,500 pounds gross weight) need the following additional requirements.

•SD3 Type Rating – this type covers C23A, C23B and B+

•Heavy multiengine (over 12,500 pounds gross weight) PIC – 250 hours

•25 hours PIC in aircraft type within the past 5 years and an unrestricted type rating.

36. QUESTION: B.10 Aircraft Inspections: Inspections may not always identify property defects/discrepancies at the time of inspection. Should the Government Property clause apply when defects/discrepancies are found during installation of the avionic upgrade? If so how would these be quoted? As an Over & Above?

RESPONSE: Correct. Defects/discrepancies found during the upgrade will be reported to the Government via the Contracting Officer’s Representative. If the defect/discrepancy was present at the time the aircraft was delivered to the Contractor we will negotiate a repair with the Contractor at the rates identified in the Schedule of Items. If the defect/discrepancy was not present at the time of the aircraft was delivered to the Contractor, the responsibility to repair or correct the defect/discrepancy will be the Contractor’s unless the defect/discrepancy was caused by normal wear and tear to the equipment.

37. QUESTION: B.11(a)

1) "The government will provide the contractor with the aircraft - a list of scheduled maintenance projected due while in possession". Can this list of possible maintenance items be issued for review now, in order for vendors to better understand what may come due? I would also request for a site survey to view and inspect these aircraft to better determine the possible time constraints associated with each possible maintenance item? As it could have a direct impact on the schedule of completion called out in section B.8a to be provided as part of the proposal.

2) “The time required to complete scheduled maintenance must be included in the delivery schedule for the aircraft” Some repairs found during the a/c inspections may take longer than the planned schedule for the avionics installation. Is the government willing to adjust the submitted schedule to accommodate these extensions due to repairs?

RESPONSE:

1) The aircraft will be delivered with all scheduled maintenance complied with and a current status sheet. This is a contract to upgrade the avionics on the aircraft.

2) Yes, repairs required as a result of scheduled maintenance of the aircraft will include an increase to the delivery date if the Contractor can show that the repair caused a delay in the delivery of the avionics upgrade.

38. QUESTION: B.11(d)(3) “The Contractor shall have current manuals, technical data, calibrated special tools, and appropriately trained personnel required to perform the services ordered.” Will the USAF or manufacture assist in providing current a/c manuals, technical data and identify any calibrated special tools required, since these a/c have been out of service for quite some time?

RESPONSE: No they will not.

39. QUESTION: B.13 Training. Where in the section B CLIN should the training requirements be priced?

How should the additional training for options the government might select be priced?

RESPONSE: Lumped in with each CLIN for the upgrades.

40. QUESTION: C.5 “This contract is a fixed price contract for a base year period of performance from Date of Award through March 31, 2016.” When reviewing section B schedule of item, it guarantees the first four aircraft, which we are assuming are to be completed within this FFP contract base year….yes?

If a new STC is to be developed the time line for the completion of the first aircraft could be up to one year (pending the FAA, which no contractor can control). To complete an additional three a/c within the time frame of the base contract would not be possible. Is the government willing to adjust this base year contract to accommodate this possible schedule flaw?

RESPONSE: The Contract guarantees the avionics upgrade to four aircraft. Because this is an IDIQ type contract, the Government will issue a Task Order for the modification (STC) of the first four aircraft with a delivery date based on the timeline submitted with your offer. All obligations and redelivery dates will be included on the issued task orders.

41. QUESTION: C.5. through C.9: Section B prices options as aircraft. C.5. identifies options as a period of time. C.6. identifies task orders during periods of time presumably for maintenance but that is unclear, it could include aircraft. C.7. identifies quantities of aircraft; theoretically up to 6 aircraft, based on C.8., could be ordered or some other number could be ordered. C.8. specifies the minimum order quantity as 1 aircraft but Section B specifies 4 aircraft during the Base period. C.8. further identifies the maximum order specifies 4 aircraft upgrades or no more than 6 aircraft upgrades in any 7 day period but does not specify which option period. Can the USFS provide clarification for the number of a/c they want completed during the base year? And clarify the option years and how many a/c you are wanting completed if ordered?

RESPONSE: See response to question 40 above. Additionally, the optional equipment will be awarded at the time of award. The Option identified in paragraph C.10 is an option to extend the term of the contract while the optional items identified in the Schedule of Items are items that we may or may not award based on the solution offered and the pricing associated with the solution and optional equipment. With respect to paragraph C.8, the Government agrees that we will not order more than six avionics upgrades in any seven day period and it is not tied to any optional contract period identified in Paragraph C.10. The goal would be not to over burden the Contractor to the point where they could not complete the work in the time period identified for delivery. The Contract does not prohibit ordering more than six avionics upgrades in a seven day period provided the Contractor accepts the order. Paragraphs C.8 and C.10 are not tied together.

42. QUESTION: C.12 & C.16. Which one takes precedence? Both are inspection and acceptance clauses.

RESPONSE: Neither. The two paragraphs are addendum to FAR 52.212-4(a) Inspection and they provide additional detail to the standard inspection clause for commercial items. Paragraph C.12 states that we reserve the right to inspect during the creation and installation of the STC to see how things are moving along and how we will inspect the final deliverable. Paragraph C.16 tells you that we will perform our inspection at your facility.

43. QUESTION: C.19. How will the Government pay travel expenses when there is no CLIN funding travel costs?

RESPONSE: If it is determined that there is a need to travel as a result of a task order issued under the contract, we have included the clause to cover those costs and they will be paid in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulations. We don’t believe there will be a need to travel under the contract at this time; however, it is included in case a need is determined during the five years this contract could run.

44. QUESTION: In the government’s internal estimates, how many aircraft (this program) does the government believe they have funding for by year, starting in 2015?

RESPONSE: At present out estimate is that we have funding for five to six aircraft.

45. QUESTION: In order to obtain best pricing would the government consider creating pricing groups for the purposes of bidding? In example: aircraft group 1-4, 5-8, 8-15?

RESPONSE: That is acceptable as long as the additional items 5-8 and/or 8-15 don’t require that four (for upgrades 5-8) or eight (for upgrades 8-15) upgrades have to be ordered at the same time and provided we don’t have to guarantee orders for all the aircraft in that particular group. For upgrades 1-4 it is not an issue as we guarantee all four upgrades at time of award.

46. QUESTION: Will the Government provide the anticipated contract award date to establish a level playing field?

RESPONSE: Date of award is anticipated to be June 30, 2015 and delivery dates shall be identified from date of delivery of the aircraft – anticipated to be July 15, 2015 for the first aircraft.

47. QUESTION: Will the Government provide a list of scheduled maintenance services for the first four aircraft for scheduling and staffing planning purposes?

RESPONSE: The aircraft will be delivered to the Contractor with all scheduled maintenance completed.

48. QUESTION: Does the mission profile require operating the TDF-9000 radio in secure mode? If yes, will you need a zeroize switch?

RESPONSE: No

49. QUESTION: What is the current status of the aircraft and can the bidder conduct a site survey on the first four aircraft?

RESPONSE: The aircraft will be delivered with all scheduled maintenance current. We will make one of the aircraft available for viewing and those dates will be posted on

FBO.

50. QUESTION: Would the Government edit 9(b) to read "The Contractor shall provide a qualified pilot to perform flights. The Contractor shall indemnify and hold the Government harmless from any and all losses, including reimburse the Government for any loss or damage to the Government aircraft furnished under this contract arising from Contractor’s negligence or willful misconduct while in the possession of the Contractor.

RESPONSE: Based on the Type of contract being awarded, Fixed Price Commercial Item, the Federal Acquisition Regulations require the use the FAR 52.245-1 Alternate I which places the risk of loss of Government Property with the Contractor. This issue has been discussed with our Office of General Council (OGC) and OGC confirmed the use of FAR 52.245-1 Alternate I. The Government has considered making the recommended change; however, the change will not be made.

51. QUESTION: Would the Government consider providing the current weight and balance forms for the first four aircraft as part of this proposal?

RESPONSE: No. All the aircraft avionics are configured the same. A representative W&B will be posted with the solicitation.

52. QUESTION: Would the Government consider providing the current electrical load analysis for the first four aircraft as part of this proposal?

RESPONSE: No.

53. QUESTION: Is it acceptable for the bidder to submit multiple offers in a single proposal or does the government want multiple proposals to cover each offer?

RESPONSE: It is acceptable to submit multiple offers in a single proposal provided alternate proposals are clearly labeled.

54. QUESTION: How are current records on the aircraft maintained: by digital or paper?

If digital what format is used?

RESPONSE: Paper.

55. QUESTION: At the completion of the aircraft integration and maintenance what will be the acceptable format for updating and returning the customers records?

RESPONSE: Paper.

56. QUESTION: Does the Government expect in the SD3-60 aircraft flight time as part of the training effort?

RESPONSE: No.

57. QUESTION: Would the government consider extending the base period to one year from date of award?

RESPONSE: No. However, the first task order issued will state the redelivery date of the aircraft and that period will be based on the timeline offered. See responses to questions 40 and 41.

58. QUESTION: What is the Forest Service's long term sustainment plan for the upgraded avionics?

RESPONSE: It depends on the suite installed but in general the US Forest Service will sustain them as long as practicable.

59. QUESTION: Will Forest Service technicians or another contractor perform on-aircraft maintenance, such as removal and replacement of the upgraded avionics LRUs?

RESPONSE: Please limit questions to the scope of the solicitation. This contract is not for the repair or continued maintenance of the aircraft once the upgrade is completed.

Any repair in relation to this solicitation should be under warranty.

60. QUESTION: How will the Forest Service manage the repair of the upgraded avionics LRUs?

RESPONSE: Please limit questions to the scope of the solicitation. This contract is not for the repair or continued maintenance of the aircraft once the upgrade is completed.

Any repair in relation to this solicitation should be under warranty.

61. QUESTION: Total Estimated Price – Maintenance – All 5 Years (page 6). What are you expecting bidders to quote here? Is it meant to include the repair of Avionics LRUs?

RESPONSE: Total extended price (offered rate times the estimated number of hours) for items 16.a – 20.b.

62. QUESTION: Will the Forest service require on-site field service engineering support for the avionics upgrade, once the aircraft are delivered?

RESPONSE: No.

63. QUESTION: What level of repair are the requirements for technical publications and training, Organizational, Intermediate or Depot level?

RESPONSE: The Forest Service expects the suite installed to be a civil aviation COTS product and to be repaired, maintained and trained for as other civil commercially available avionics equipment.

64. QUESTION: Is the period of performance to upgrade the avionics for all 15 aircraft 5 years? Or is that 5 year period only for subsequent purchase orders after contract award?

RESPONSE: The total time in which the Government may place orders under the contract is 5 years. Task orders issued to the contract will provide redelivery dates x number of days from the Government’s delivery of the aircraft to the Contractor’s facility based on the Contractor’s offer.

65. QUESTION: What is the determining factor in executing additional aircraft beyond the guaranteed 4.

RESPONSE: It would be a combination of the Government’s need to modify additional airframes based on anticipated employment of the aircraft, and funding.

66. QUESTION: Did you intentionally leave ADF out as a requirement.

RESPONSE: Yes

67. QUESTION: Would you consider a more capable FIS-B like weather reporting service and removing the UAT ADS-B In option. The current UAT ADS-B In service has limited coverage in the US and in particular areas where forest fires commonly happen.

RESPONSE: No

68. QUESTION: Is the aircraft currently at the Redmond Oregon airport available for inspection? If so how do we arrange to see it?

RESPONSE: Dates will be established for viewing of at least one aircraft.

69. QUESTION: Section B.3.(b). Why is there a requirement to be ISO 9001 certified?

It seems redundant, as an FAA certified part 145 repair station, we already meet the ISO requirements. The FAA monitors our repair station and inspection programs. I don’t see the need for the additional expense to be ISO 9001 certified.

RESPONSE: The ISO 9001 certification is different and independent from a FAA Certified Repair Station. The requirement remains as written.

70. QUESTION: Section B.3.(c) – Will the government accept a fully delegated FAA STC through the Seattle ACO in lieu of an ODA led effort?

RESPONSE: No.

71. QUESTION: Section B.8.(c) – I find this paragraph confusing. Please clarify the intent of what you are asking for. Other paragraphs already stipulate that the Government will have final approval of layouts, colors, drawings, etc.

RESPONSE: B.8 specifies Deliverables. Further (c) says “Prior to installation of any system on the aircraft, the contractor shall submit, for Government approval, examples of finish and labeling.” So the Government, in this case the US Forest Service wants the contractor to submit an example of the finishing and labeling of the avionics system for Forest Service approval. An avionic system means the avionics being replaced as majority of the scope of this contract.