Amendment-02.docx

Mal N.F. 10 Yr Questions AMENDMENT 2 06/26/2013

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

2 AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NO.

3. EFFECTIVE DATE

6/27/2013

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NO

5. PROJECT NO.(IF APPLICABLE)

6. ISSUE BY CODE

7. ADMINISTERED BY (if other than item 6) CODE

Blue Mountain Acquisition Management 72510 Coyote Road Pendleton, OR 97801

AG-04KK-S-13-9000, Malheur N.F. 10 Year Stewardship Project

10A. Modification of Contract/Order #

10B. Dated

11. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION

[ X] The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in the item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers [ ] is extended [X ] is not extended. Offerors must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended, by one of the following methods: (a) By completing items 8 and 15 and returning 1 copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted, or (c) By separate letter or telegram which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by telegram or letter, provided each telegram or letter makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

12. Accounting and Appropriation Data (if required)

13. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO MODIFICATION OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS.

IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

A. This change order is issued pursuant to; (specify authority):

B. The above numbered Contract/Order is modified to reflect the administrative changes (such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.) set forth in item 14, pursuant to the authority of FAR 43.103(b)..

C. This supplemental agreement is entered into pursuant to authority of:

D Other: (Specify type of modification and authority):

E. IMPORTANT: Contractor [] is not [X] is required to sign this document and return 1 Original to the issuing office.:

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION (Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible DELTE: Appendix A from main solicitation.

REPLACE WITH: “Amendment 2 Appendix A” which cover requirements for thinning are clarified as well as removes treatment units under Sub-Item 1.2 and adds definitions for “Slash” as well as “Mountain Mahogany Protection”.

ADD: Questions and And Answers received as of 06/26/2013. (see below) By signature in Block 15B Contractor releases the Government from all claims relating to this modification. This settlement is complete accord and satisfaction. Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect.

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER (Type or print)

16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

Gavin Smith Contracting Officer

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

By (Signature of person authorized to sign)

By______________________________ (Signature of Contracting Officer)

16C. DATE SIGNED

Amendment 2 Standard Form 30 Prescribed by GSA FAR (48CFR) 53.243 Per Section L.10 of Solicitation AG-04KK-S-13-9000 Malheur Forest-Wide Stewardship the following questions have been summited as of the 06/26/2012 0800 am PST:

1. Q: Under Part 1 Section B.2 it states:

“Price Proposals MUST be provided on ALL Items in Schedules B-1, Base and Option Work Activities and B-2, Timber or other products Removal Price Schedule”. Part IV Section L.7 (c) also states: “Price Proposal - Complete Section B, Schedule of Items, for all items listed, both Mandatory and Optional items.” Does this mean that the Government is asking for the contractor to submit a price, not only for the items in Task Order 1, but for all of the items listed as options including the 14 items listed as Service Work and the 7 items listed as Road Construction? If so what are the specs of these option items, and where are they located? Is the offeror required to include, in the Technical proposal, ALL of the service work on the schedule of items Part 1 Section B.1 specifically those items not included in Task Order 1.

A: Yes, offerors shall submit a price for all the items in the Schedule of Items. This pricing is for determining price reasonableness for contract award. The pricing in the Schedule of Items should be your average commercial price for this type of work. Specifications for road construction can be found on the web at http://flh.fhwa.dot.gov/resources/pse/specs/ and Regional Supplements can be made available upon request. Locations are unknown at this time and will depend upon NEPA being completed. When a task order is issued, the contractor will receive the specifications and locations of the activities, just like task order # 1 which was issued with the solicitation. The contractor will then price the items in the task order. The Contracting Officer will negotiate the pricing with the contractor using current pricing for similar work, the offeror's price in the Schedule of Items, contractor's detailed cost breakdown, and market research. No task orders will be awarded if the price is determined to be unreasonable.

2. Q: Within L.7 (b) 1. (A) it states: “….Also, describe how you plan to organize, schedule, and staff woody biomass removal if included in the contract.” However, the within Appendix B.2 Task Order 1 only describes “Green Biomass” with no mention of “woody biomass”. Are these different or assumed to be the same product? Is there a definition of “Green Biomass” and of “Woody Biomass”?

A: Woody Biomass and Green Biomass are to be considered the same material for this contract. The specs for required biomass removal can be found in Appendix B division A of this contract. Additional biomass material may be available if agreed upon between the contractor and the Forest Service.

3. Q: Within L.7 (b) 1. Subsections C. D. and E. are the required items to be provided by the “Offerer” to be for completion of Task Order 1. Or for all of the option items in Section B.2 schedule B-1?

A: It shall be for both the Items identified in the schedule as well as for the work activities in the Task Order.

4. Q: Within L.7 (b) 3. it states “Describe the type and amount of involvement of any other local community groups that will be involved in this project. List the percentage of the overall project that will be accomplished by these entities.” Is this asking how a community group would complete a specific project listed on the Task Order? Or is there some other involvement which is referred to?

A: Reference section M.3 (a) 3 C: C. Involvement of other Local Community Groups - Local community organizations are important components of local community capacity. They often partner to do restoration work. An exceptional rating would be achieved if the offeror firmly commits to involving local community groups on this project and their participation is included as part of the offeror’s technical proposal. The rating of this factor is based on what the offeror is willing to do to engage the local Community Groups and how the offeror will define the level of involvement base on what the Local Community Groups are capable of supporting.

5. Q: Section L.10 (f) states that “The Government is planning a pre-bid/pre-proposal conference” and it is stated to be July 9, 2013. The “Region 6 Contracting Users Guide” updated February 2013 states in section III “Policy and Direction Applicable to Integrated Resource Service Contracts”; subsection U “Requirements for a Pre-Solicitation Meeting and Workshop” states “Each stewardship project is to have a meeting with prospective contractors and purchasers during the first week of the Day solicitation period for IRSCs.” Is this “pre-bid/pre-proposal conference” to take the place of the “pre-solicitation meeting and workshop”? If so we believe that holding the meeting 19 days after the solicitation is posted and only 22 days before the Technical Proposals and Price Proposals are to be turned in is not appropriate, not adequate nor within the guidelines spelled out in the “Policy and Direction Applicable to Integrated Resource Service Contracts”. We request the meeting be moved up to comply with regulations and provide the potential contractors an opportunity to ask questions to discuss the objectives of the project, the different work activities, and the desired end results, and to view the contract area and treatment units on the ground.

A: See amendment 1

6. Q: Section M.2 paragraph 2 states “Firms lacking a past performance record (e.g., new firms or those with no relevant experience within their organization) will be treated as an unknown performance risk, receiving a neutral score in this criteria. A neutral score will be established as the average of all other competing offerors, or the average of the total score available, whichever is less.” We are unclear as to the meaning of this statement. On the surface it would appear that if there are 4 firms providing offers and one does not have a past performance record this firm will be given the average of the other three firms and therefore will by definition have a more positive score than one of the firms and be tied for second position given the procedure provided above. Is this correct? If not what is the meaning of the procedure?

A: Relevant Past performance is only one of the technical factors that shall be evaluated. In the questions above the firm with no relevant past performance shall be ranked with the score that is the lesser of the two evaluation methods.

7. Q:Section M.3 states in paragraph 1 “The technical proposals will be evaluated and ranked on the basis of the following criteria which are of equal importance....” it then lists (a) “TECHNICAL CRITERIA” with several sub sections under it then (b) “COST/PRICE EVALUATION CRITERION” with a couple of sub sections. This is in apparent contradiction to L.7 (a) 1. which states that “The technical proposal must not contain reference to cost”. Which is correct? And If L.7 is the accurate one then how will the technical proposal be evaluated and ranked?

A: In section L it asks the offerors to submit a Technical Proposal which has three sections:

1. Technical Approach (with sub sections)

2. Relevant Past Performance

3. Benefit to Local Community ( with sub sections) Additionally, there are the Price Proposal Instructions that the offeror is to submit as a different document from the Technical Proposal. In section M the evaluation states “The technical proposals will be evaluated and ranked on the basis of the following criteria which are of equal importance. All sub-factors listed under one evaluation criteria are approximately equal in importance. All technical evaluation criteria when combined are significantly more important than cost or price.” Therefore, the three sections of the Technical Proposal, with their sub sections shall be evaluated as mentioned in this statement above without cost being included. The Cost/ Price shall be separate Paragragh (a) is describing the ‘technical’ proposal and paragraph (b) is describing the ‘price’ proposal.

8. Q: Appendix A, sub-item 1.3 states to “Leave one 60’X60” clump of un-thinned trees per acre.” Does this mean to leave a clump 60 feet by 60 inches (5 ft) or does it mean 60 feet by 60 feet?

A: This was a typographical error, should read “60 feet by 60 feet”.

9. Q: Appendix A, Definitions page 3 of 7 “Mountain Mahogany Protection:” states “Remove conifer trees less than 21” DBH and Juniper less than 18” DBH within 30’ of Mt. Mahogany clumps (clump is defined as 30’ in diameter and 4’ tall). If the trees cannot be removed without destroying 50% of the mahogany clump they shall be left uncut. For individual scattered Mt. Mahogany plants 4 feet in height, remove all trees under 14” DBH for 10 feet.” Within this definition the statement: “If the trees cannot be removed without destroying 50% of the mahogany clump they shall be left uncut.” is included. However, this statement as written means that if a contractor CAN NOT DESTROY 50% of the mahogany clump then the trees shall be left uncut. Is this what the statement is intended to read, or is the wording incorrect?

A: This statement, should read “If the trees cannot be removed without destroying 50% or more of the mahogany clump they shall be left uncut.”

10. Q: What is the difference between Appendix A Sub-Item 4.1 and 4.2?

A: Sub item 4.1 is mandatory work for the initial logging contractor that is going to perform the Designation By Prescription marking. Item 4.2 is optional work for each additional contractor after the first.

In the optional item 4.2, the intent is for each new contractor to mark 5 acres in the first 3 units under each prescription before cutting is initiated.

11. Q: Appendix A, General Specifications, page 3 of 7 Sub-Item 5 What is the definition of “Fuel Material”?

A: Add the term “Fuel Material” to the Slash Definition that is listed under definitions in Appendix A.

12. Q: Solicitation Section C.2 states in paragraph 2, “Future task orders will be negotiated with the contractor using the contractor’s detailed cost breakdown, their prices in the Schedule of Items, and market research from similar projects in the geographical area.” Does this mean that the prices presented by the offeror for the option items in Schedule B.1 of Section B.2 are the ones the USFS will utilize to negotiate future task orders? How will this work?

A: Yes, see the answer to question 1. The data provided in the main solicitation shall be used as a reference to conduct future negotiations. Reference C.2 of the Solicitation “Future task orders will be negotiated with the contractor using the contractor’s detailed cost breakdown, their prices in the Schedule of Items, and market research from similar projects in the geographical area”.

13. Q: What is meant in Section C.2 by “price reasonableness”? What is a reasonable price?

A: It means is the price reasonable, not too high and not too low and not unbalanced.

14. Q: What is meant in C.2 by “Level-of-effort”?

A: As work is defined in future Task Orders the level of work required will change based on elements such as time of year, topography, and stand conditions. Therefore the level of effort that the contractor will have to perform can vary as will the cost to complete the restoration activities.

15. Q: In looking over the Task Order on the Calamity item (1.2), unit #'s 3,7, and 27 do not appear on the map. Is this correct?

A: Remove units from mandatory specifications 1.2 in Appendix A. Acres are correct in the Task order and the Contract Area Map is correct.

16. Q: It looks like all the other units on the 3 items are included on the maps and all will include commercial thinning prior to the pre-commercial thinning, it also appears that all the PCT is to be grappled piled. I assume this means that the PCT will require bucking as part of the operation, but have not seen that requirement in the task order. Is bucking required for PCT treatments?

A: The forest is not requiring the units to be pre commercially thinned and piled before the commercial thinning; this is the contractor’s choice. However, the bucking requirement inadvertently got left out of mandatory specification 1.0 and should be added. It shall read “Trees 16 feet and longer shall be bucked in half or as many times as needed so that pieces are not longer than 16 feet.”

17. Q: Is there unlimited fire liability for this contract?

A: A waiver to limit the contractor’s liability for fire suppression costs is being pursued. If it were to be incorporated into this solicitation, an amendment would be posted containing the limitation. At this time, contractors are to prepare their proposals based on the current solicitation and amenedments.

18. Q: Are wages to be paid determined by the US government?

A: Yes, the most current Department of Labor Service Contract Act Wage Determination as well as any applicable David Bacon Wage Determinations shall be made part of every task order. Davis Bacon Wages would only be applicable to construction activities.

19. Q: Are there locations that you think surface rock replacement will take place?

A: Surface Rock Replacement is an amount that is collected for future maintenance of our aggregate surfaced roads. This is included in the Road Maintenance deposits show in Appendix B, K-F.3.2#. This number also includes deposits for asphalt maintenance.

Spot rocking during operations is done by the contractor and will be required as needed on the road system. The actual ‘how much and where’ will be determined by the conditions of the roads when the restoration activities are underway. This is true for all types of road maintenance, brushing, blading, spot rocking, etc. Contractors will need to review the roads on the ground and bid the actual work based on their estimation of needs in order to meet the included specifications.

20. Q: Do you have estimates of the amount of road seeding, fertilizing, and mulching that will be needed?

A: K-G.6.0# is the only reference to the seeding/mulching. There are no specific areas identified on the maps indicating the number or locations of skid trails or temp roads. That would be dictated by the contractors proposed operations.

21. Q: Does the sub-contractors have to have all the same certifications and representations as the Prime Contractor specifically for labor intensive activities such as pre commercial tree thinning?

A: The company performing the work (whether prime contractor or subcontractor) will need the necessary certifications and registrations as required by the contract for that specific work activity.