Attachment_E-RFQ_Instructions_(Revised).pdf

RFQ #AG-3144-S-15-0066

Request For Quote (RFQ) Instructions:

Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS)

Maintenance and 24/7 Emergency Services

10 July 2015

REQUEST FOR QUOTES NO.

RFQ ISSUANCE DATE: July 13, 2015

To: NITC, UPS Preventive Maintenance and 24/7 Emergency Services Qualified Vendors

From: USDA/DM/OPPM/POD

Subject: Request for Quote – USDA/NITC

GENERAL

The USDA/NITC is issuing this competitive solicitation. The Agency shall conduct this acquisition using

Subpart 13.5 under the Federal Acquisition Regulation. This requirement is for the USDA NITC. If you are interested in this acquisition, you may participate by submitting your response in accordance with the following instructions.

Offerors are required to submit a quote, in accordance with the quote preparation instructions below to

Government officials for the purposes of assuring that the prospective Contractor is fully cognizant of the scope of this contract and has the capability to complete all requirements.

ADMINISTRATIVE

Points of Contact

The following points of contact are to be used to communicate with the Government during the task order duration:

Contracting Officer

William VanStockum

970-295-5344

William.VanStockum@ftc.usda.gov

2150 Centre Ave, Bldg A, Suite 145

Fort Collins, CO 80526

Administrative Contracting Officer

John Flores

970-295-5294 john.p.flores@ftc.usda.gov

2150 Centre Ave, Bldg. A, Suite 145

Fort Collins, CO 80526

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR)

Appointed in writing by the CO at time of award mailto:William.VanStockum@ftc.usda.gov mailto:john.p.flores@ftc.usda.gov

METHODOLOGY

This acquisition has been determined to be a Commercial Item/Service as defined in Federal Acquisition

Regulation (FAR) Part 2—Definitions, and will be procured in accordance FAR Subpart 13.5—Test

Program for Certain Commercial Items in conjunction with FAR Part 12 – Acquisition of Commercial

Items. The following plan is established for evaluating quotes to determine the best value to the

Government.

Each quote will first be evaluated to ensure it is acceptable, i.e., in compliance with the requirements of the solicitation. Those quotes not in compliance with the requirements of the solicitation (e.g., that did not submit information required by FAR 52.212-2), will not be evaluated further for award.

Quotes that are found to be acceptable will then be evaluated on the following criteria: Price, Past

Performance, and Technical.

QUOTE SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

The following is established as the specific information and format required for any quote submitted.

Incomplete quotes are not acceptable. Each offeror shall submit 2 written quotes as outlined below. To aid in the evaluation process, quotes shall be complete, comprehensive, and clearly presented. Please try and mirror the requirements document as much as possible so a stated fact or reference may be directly attributed to a requirement.

Quotes shall be submitted on or before the RFQ closing date of August 3, 2015 3pm MST.

Quote Submission

Quotes shall be delivered sealed to:

Administrative Contracting Officer

John Flores

2150 Centre Ave, Bldg. A, Suite 145

Fort Collins, CO 80526

All quotes shall be submitted on or prior to August 3, 2015 3pm MST. Vendors are to submit 1 original copy of the quote marked “Original” and 1 marked “Copy.” Each original and copy shall not be bound.

Please provide one electronic copy of all documents on a thumb drive media.

USDA shall not accept quotes delivered by e-mail.

USDA shall not accept quotes delivered by fax.

Quotes shall be submitted in the following 3 volumes.

Volume 1: Price

Volume 2: Past Performance

Volume 3: Technical

INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS

The following instructions will be provided in the solicitation as an addendum to FAR Provision 52.212-1

Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Items:

(a) Offeror’s quote and supplemental information shall be submitted in hard copy and a thumb drive media. Quote and supplemental information should not be bound (wire, thermal, coil, etc.).

Folders, 3-ring binders, staples, and/or binder clips are preferred. The appearance of the quote will not be rated; however, if the reviewers cannot locate information required by the solicitation, the quote may be determined not responsive and will be eliminated from further consideration.

(b) Offeror shall make pricing and terms valid for a minimum of 60 calendar days from the solicitation closing date appearing in Block 8 of the SF 1449.

(c) Offeror shall complete the quote in accordance with the solicitation provision FAR 52.212-1, INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS—COMMERCIAL ITEMS, and the following additional instructions.

(d) The information listed below shall be included in the quote, or the quote may be determined not responsive and eliminated from further consideration:

(e) One copy of each volume shall be identified and placed on one thumb drive media.

(f) The only portion of quote which will be submitted and accepted via e-mail will be the Past

Performance Questionnaire part of (Volume 1).

Pricing Quote (Volume 1)

The pricing is to be submitted as a Firm-Fixed Price Quote.

Your price quote shall be based on a Firm Fixed Price, utilizing any and all discounts. Vendor shall submit a detailed cost estimate for all hardware components, maintenance, software, licenses, professional services, and other services necessary to achieve full functionality.

Price Quote shall include the following categories at a minimum:

Price Categories & Descriptions

UPS: List, describe and record the cost of each piece of hardware that is required with your proposed solution.

UPS Maintenance: List, describe and record the implementation, maintenance and support associated with your proposed solution.

Installation and Integration: Describe any labor, equipment, supplies or other costs associated with installing and integrating your proposed solution.

Maintenance: Describe and cost out any other ongoing costs associated with the operation and maintenance of your proposed solution.

Additional Required Documents:

1. Completed CLIN work sheet.

Cost Summary

For all available deployment models/solutions, provide a total cost summary as outlined in the PWS.

Past Performance Questionnaire Quote (Volume 2)

The past performance section shall contain offeror’s most recent and relevant past performance references, not to exceed 5 pages.

Past performance shall provide adequate information describing the firm’s previous experience within the past three years (from issuance date of this RFQ) providing services related to those requested in the

PWS. Your firm should tailor the past performance summaries to specifically highlight applicable performance and outcomes so the government may evaluate each point in the PWS effectively.

The offeror may also list contracts performed in the past three years from issue date of this RFQ that are of the same magnitude and complexity of this project regardless of the subject matter. In addition, the

Government may solicit past performance on contracts not listed by the offeror. If the offeror claims there is no past performance, then that status must be identified to the Contracting Officer no later than 3 days before the RFQ Closing Date. Lack of any past performance will not automatically disqualify an offeror.*

The summary must include:

o Past performance summaries shall accurately and completely describe the effort performed for the listed customer.

o Each summary should be at least 1 page and no more than 4 pages and should include:

Customer Name (public or private sector)

Customer Point of Contact responsible for overseeing the project (we will contact them)

Contract Ceiling Awarded

Total dollar value obligated to date

Type of Contract (Firm Fixed Price)

Period of Performance (performance should be materially within the past 3 years)

Description of effort performed in sufficient detail for the evaluators to determine relevancy to the currently requested requirement.

Problems encountered during performance and how your firm successfully overcame these issues

Evidence of how the organization has employed best practices.

The end result of the effort, if applicable

Other factors to highlight are:

Successful service delivery of security, environmental, and other policy driven compliance criteria with similar government or commercial entities.

Planning and execution of projects

Quality Assurance Efforts

Service Level Agreement compliance

Management excellence

Cooperation with customers

(1) Provide a summary of the previous contracts described above. Include information on subcontractors whose effort on this acquisition is projected to be more than 25% of the effort.

(2) Provide statements, letters, reports, or evaluations from prior customers indicating the level and quality of past performance on the above contracts.

(3) E-Mail attached Past Performance Questionnaire to all past performance references listed above and instruct them to return completed questionnaire directly* to:

John.P.Flores@ftc.usda.gov

SUBJECT: Past Performance Questionnaire Return for Firm: ___________ Contract: ______________

*Any past performance questionnaires submitted through an offeror will be disregarded. If the USDA determines the vendor being evaluated was involved in drafting or supporting the drafting of a customer’s response in any manner, the past performance relating to the questionnaire will be excluded from consideration.

Technical Quote (Volume 3)

Technical Quotes shall not exceed 5 pages (not including the attachments). The technical approach should be clearly stated and easy to follow. The technical solution should highlight the design and strategy utilized to complete the project.

The technical quote Volume 3 shall include the following attachments:

Proposed Project Plan: The proposed project plan shall detail all major milestones to provide ongoing supplies and service to NITC. Five Page Limit.

Equipment List: The equipment table shall list all equipment to be utilized to meet proposed solution.

Additional Required Documents:

1. Completed Solicitation/Contract Award Document, SF1449

2. Acknowledgement of amendment receipt, SF30 (if applicable)

3. Provide with the quote a letter from all subcontractors that shall perform major or critical aspects of the requirement, consenting to the release of their past performance information to the prime contractor.

mailto:John.P.Flores@ftc.usda.gov

4. Signed non-disclosure agreement shall be submitted to obtain additional required information and does not need to be submitted as part of the final quote.

Formatting

Page size 8.5 by 11 inches, double sided pages with 1 inch margins. Paragraphs double spaced. Font size/style 10 or 12 Times New Roman font for Text, 9 point font in the Arial family for Tables, and 8 point font in the Arial family for Graphics. Tables and graphics may be landscape; all other text shall be portrait. Double sided print. These formatting instructions apply to all volumes of the quote.

If the offeror uses a different format (font size, margin, etc.), the government reserves the right to adjust the quote to fit the parameters of the format as stated in the RFQ, and if this results in the quote exceeding the page limitations in any one area, the government shall not consider those excess pages.

Amendment of Solicitation prior to RFQ Closing Time

The Government reserves the right to revise or amend the specifications or the RFQ prior to the RFQ closing time. Such revisions or amendments shall be communicated by amendments to this RFQ and issued via the Federal Business Opportunities website system. If such amendments require material changes in quantities or prices, the RFQ closing date may be postponed by enough days to enable offerors to revise their offers. In such cases, the amendment shall include an announcement of the new RFQ closing date and time.

Period of Performance: The resulting award shall have a Period of Performance beginning approximately September 1, 2015 – August 30, 2016. The award shall include four (4) – one (1) year option periods.

EVALUATION FACTORS FOR AWARD

Evaluation of all proposals will be made in accordance with the criteria outlined in this section. The quotes will be evaluated against the following three (3) factors:

Factor 1 – Price

Factor 2 – Past Performance

Factor 3 – Technical

Factors listed in descending order of importance, factor 1 is approximately equal to factors 2 and 3 when combined. In the event quotes are evaluated to be equal on price, past performance will become the determining factor in selecting the successful offeror.

Award will not be automatically determined by numerical calculation or formula relationship between price and technical merit. The Contracting Officer shall determine what trade-off between past performance, technical and price promises the greatest value to the Government.

The Government will make award to the Contractor whose quote is considered to be the best value to the

Government, price, past performance, and technical factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers:

Factor 1: Price

The government shall evaluate all offers by total price inclusive of contract fee and options.

Evaluation of options does not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s). As previously stated, price is equally important to past performance and technical combined when determining the best value for the Government. Selection of the offeror to perform this contract will be based on the Government’s assessment of the best overall value.

The Government will review the price quote for completeness and accuracy. A determination will be made as to whether the Offeror properly understands the price quote instructions.

Price quotes will not be point scored, but will be evaluated for reasonableness by comparing proposed prices received in response to the solicitation and to the Independent Government Cost

Estimate (IGCE). The Offerors are expected to establish a reasonable price relationship between all price elements. Reasonableness determinations will be made by determining if competition exists, by comparing proposed price with established commercial prices, other contract vehicles, and/or by comparing proposed price with the IGCE). The IGCE is not releasable to the public.

Factor 2: Past Performance

The Government will conduct a performance confidence assessment based on aspects of an offeror’s past performance, focusing on and targeting performance that is recent (within the last

3 years), relevant to the requirements described in the Performance Work Statement (PWS), and similar in complexity and magnitude compared to the requirements described in the PWS.

Performance that is not recent, relevant, or similar in complexity and magnitude will not be evaluated for purposes of the performance confidence assessment.

The Government will use the information submitted on the Past Performance Questionnaire

(solicitation attachment F) by the offeror’s references as well as any information derived from other sources, such as the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS), to evaluation past performance. The Government may, at its discretion, contact other known customers, consumer protection organizations, or other sources that may have useful and/or relevant past performance information. The Government reserves the right to give greater consideration to information on those contracts deemed most relevant to the effort described in the PWS.

The performance confidence assessment process will result in an overall performance confidence assessment rating. Lack of recent and relevant past performance that is similar in complexity and magnitude to this solicitation will not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably, but on a neutral basis. If adverse past performance is revealed, the offeror will be afforded an opportunity to address the adverse information unless the information was obtained through the Past

Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS), in which case the offeror has already had an opportunity to respond.

If the Government received, for a given Offeror, no past performance information, and can locate no other sources of relevant past performance information for the Offeror, the Offeror will receive a neutral (neither favorable nor unfavorable) past performance rating.

In the event quotes are evaluated to be equal on price, and past performance becomes the determining factor in selecting the successful offeror, past performance ratings will be considered in the following descending order of importance: substantial confidence > satisfactory confidence > limited confidence > no confidence > unknown confidence.

Factor 3: Technical

The purpose of the technical factor is to assess whether the offeror's quote will satisfy the

Government's minimum requirements. Some of the aspects affecting an offeror's ability to meet the solicitation requirements may include technical approach, key personnel and qualifications, facilities, and others.

The Government will evaluate offeror’s technical offering submissions and assign an evaluation rating based on the table listed below in this section. The Offeror’s quote will be evaluated by assessing the likelihood and the degree to which the proposed technical solution meets all requirements, constraints, and challenges of the requirement and demonstrates a clear understanding of the Performance Work Statement (PWS). The Contractor’s quote need not restate the requirements as defined in the PWS, instead, outline a clear path for accomplishing the minimum technical solution in an innovative, collaborative, and true partnership with the

Federal government. As stated in the RFQ instructions, a proposed project plan and equipment list should be included in the technical quote.

The Government’s evaluation of the Offeror’s quote will consider the strengths, weaknesses and risks of the Offeror’s technical solution in addressing all requirements and constraints mentioned in the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

Questions

If you have questions regarding this requirement, please submit your non-proprietary inquiries immediately via email to the John Flores at john.p.flores@ftc.usda.gov. Questions with the

Government’s responses shall be issued via an amendment to the Federal Business Opportunities for all offerors to see. Please be advised that the Government reserves the right to transmit those questions and answers of a common interest to all prospective Offerors.

mailto:john.p.flores@ftc.usda.gov