Attachment 0015 - Section L - Instruction to Offerors dated 19 March 2024.pdf

SECTION L - PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND NOTICES TO

OFFERORS

L.1 GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

L.1.1 This section contains general proposal submission instructions. Specific proposal instructions are addressed at L.2.

a. The U.S. Government intends to award without discussions (see Federal Acquisition

Regulation (FAR) 52.215-1), but reserves the right to contact Offerors for clarification, or conduct discussions if the Contracting Officer later determines them to be necessary in accordance with FAR 15.306(a)(3). In the event the U.S.

Government determines discussions are necessary, the Contracting Officer shall establish a competitive range comprised of the most highly rated proposals. Only those Offerors within the competitive range will be included in discussions and considered for award.

b. Each Offeror shall provide the information as required by this solicitation (including all attachments and exhibits) in the proper format as described at Paragraph L.3.

Proposals that do not contain all the information requested in the solicitation risk being determined unacceptable by the U.S. Government. The U.S. Government will not assume the Offeror possesses any capability, understanding, or commitment not specified in the proposal.

c. Proposals shall be specific, complete and address each of the designated requirements listed below. The proposal must not merely repeat the solicitation requirements, but rather must provide documentary evidence explaining how contract requirements will be met by the Offeror.

a. Proposals shall be evaluated only on their content. Assumptions, preconceived ideas and personal knowledge or opinions for these factors not supported by material provided in the proposal will not be considered or used as a basis for evaluation.

However, relevant personal knowledge may be used for the Past Performance factor.

d. Offerors are responsible for confirming with the Contracting Officer and/or Contract

Specialist to ensure that the proposal submitted has, in fact, been received by the Contracting Officer and/or Contract Specialist. This must be done by the date/time set forth in the solicitation for receipt of offers.

L.1.2 All questions concerning this procurement, either technical or contractual must be submitted in writing to the Contracting Officer and/or Contract Specialist. No direct discussion between the technical representative and a prospective Offeror will be conducted. Questions shall be sent to the following point of contacts:

E-mail: bethany.n.carbajal.civ@army.mil E-mail: carly.c.frye.civ@army.mil

L.1.3 The complete proposal shall be electronically submitted to the Contracting Officer, or their representative no later than the due date and time specified in the solicitation, to include any subsequent amendments. Proposals submitted by mail or hand-carried will not be evaluated. Proposals shall be submitted electronically to bethany.n.carbajal.civ@army.mil and carly.c.frye.civ@army.mil. Electronic mail proposal submissions shall not exceed a size limit of 10MB (multiple emails may be utilized to complete the proposal submission). It is highly recommended that the Offeror request a “Return Receipt” or other form of acknowledgement to verify that the proposal submission was received. Due to file size restrictions, proposals may also be submitted through DoD SAFE, http://safe.apps.mil. A link will need to be requested from the Point of Contacts (POCs) listed above to upload to the DoD SAFE site. Cloud services and third party drop boxes are not acceptable for proposal submission.

L.2 PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

L.2.1 The proposal shall be submitted in the English language and include all the following:

a. One completed signed electronic copy of the complete solicitation, Standard Form

33 (SF33) and continuation sheets (Section A through M) and acknowledgement of all amendments. The solicitation and amendment must be signed by an individual authorized to bind the Offeror.

b. Offeror must submit a completed Price Matrix (Attachment 0001) as stated in

Section L 4.3.

c. Offerors are directed to thoroughly read the solicitation and fill in information on all appropriate clauses as stated in the solicitation. Specifically, the following clauses / attachments, which require fill-in information, but are not limited to:

• Attachment 0001 – Price Matix

• Attachment 0002 – Past Performance Questionnaire

• Section I, Clause 52.219-28

• Section K, Clause 52.204-24

• Section K, Clause 52.209-7

• Section K, Clause 52.225-18

• Section K, Clause 252.204-7017

d. For any fill-ins that are not applicable, the Offeror must acknowledge by indicating mailto:carly.c.frye.civ@army.mil mailto:bethany.n.carbajal.civ@army.mil mailto:carly.c.frye.civ@army.mil http://safe.apps.mil/

N/A.

e. The proposal volumes, as reflected in L.3.1, shall be compiled using the Portable Document Format (.pdf).

f. As a requirement under this solicitation, all Offerors must submit

Representations/Certifications data into the System for Award Management (SAM) Database at https://www.sam.gov/. The purpose of electronic Representations and Certifications is to provide all Offerors with a portal in which to submit Representations/Certifications in a publicly accessible format, nullifying the requirement to submit identical information in response to every Federal contract solicitation. Any Offeror that has previously submitted Representations/Certified data into SAM are reminded to update the data prior to submitting its proposal and shall ensure its records are not expired.

g. The Offeror’s proposal shall be made valid for 240 days after the close of the

RFP.

L.3 PROPOSAL SUBMISSION FORMAT:

L.3.1 Each proposal shall be submitted in separate volumes as set forth below. Each volume shall be numbered sequentially beginning at page one.

a. Volume I – Technical Factor: Page Limit – 100 pages

The Technical factor has three subfactors:

Subfactor 1 – Production Capability Subfactor 2 – Quality System Subfactor 3 – Program Management System

The U.S. Government will count pages in Volume I and remove any pages that exceed the maximum page limit. Any pages over the maximum page limit for Volume I will not be considered in the evaluation. The title page, tables of contents, acronym lists, or index will not be counted against the maximum page limit.

Volume II – Past Performance Factor

Cover: Solicitation Number, Offeror Name, CAGE, and DUNS – one page limit

Section 1: Contract References – up to three contract references, using Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) Form – Section IIA and IIB completed only

Section 2: Relevant Delivery and Quality Performance Narratives – Limited to two pages maximum for each reference http://www.sam.gov/ http://www.sam.gov/

Section 3: Adverse Contract Performance – No page limitations

Volume III – Price Factor

The Price factor shall be contained in a separate file from the non-price factors. The Price Matrix (Attachment 0001) shall be submitted electronically in Microsoft Excel format. Unit prices shall be limited to two decimal places. No additional information shall be submitted in the Price Factor other than the Price Matrix (Attachment 0001).

Only exception to this is if the Offeror is using Government Furnished Equipment.

Volume IV – Acknowledgements and signatures

This volume shall contain one completed signed electronic copy of the complete solicitation, SF33 and continuation sheets (Section A through M) and acknowledgement of all amendments (See Section L.5).

L.3.2 Each volume shall be clearly identified and shall begin at the top of a page. All pages of each volume shall be appropriately numbered and identified by the complete company name, date, and solicitation number in the header and/or footer.

Each volume shall be as brief as possible. Pages should not exceed 8-1/2 inches in width by 11 inches in length; flow diagrams and tables may exceed 8- 1/2 inches in width by 11 inches in length. The font used shall not be less than 12 point. Font smaller than 12 point is ONLY acceptable in graphics, sketches, tables, charts, price matrix, etc. but must be at least 8 point.

L.4 SPECIFIC PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS

Offerors are responsible for including sufficient details (i.e., drawings, test data) to permit a complete and accurate evaluation. Volume I, Technical factor proposal, shall have a separate index, which contains narrative titles, which are cross-referenced to the applicable RFP Requirement. This index shall not count against the page limitation for the technical factor proposal. All information and data provided shall be specific to the metal parts for the M8 Smoke Pot. In the response to the RFP, the Offeror must address the following factors and subfactors:

L.4.1 VOLUME I – TECHNICAL FACTOR

The Technical factor has the following three subfactors:

Subfactor 1: Production Capability

Subfactor 2: Quality System

Subfactor 3: Program Management System

L.4.1.1 Subfactor 1: Production Capability

The Offeror’s Manufacturing Capability subfactor proposal shall include, but is not limited to, the details below:

a. The Offeror shall provide a detailed manufacturing plan describing the method by which the Offeror intends to produce, inspect, package, and deliver the M8 Smoke Pot metal components. This should include information as to whether the Offeror will manufacture the end item and materials/components in-house, or a subcontractor will supply them in accordance with the Technical Data Package (TDP) and solicitation requirements. The manufacturing plan shall provide an operational flow chart and a description of each operation and procedure that details how the components and assemblies will be produced. This will also entail clarification on human resources available to support production while specifying conditions for scalability in case of increased demand. The offeror shall include the cycle times, expected downtime, changeover times and net rates for each operation. Process prints may also be submitted if they assist in clarifying the proposed manufacturing processes in meeting TDP requirements. All subcontracted work (if any) shall be discussed in the same level of detail as the in-house production.

b. The Offeror shall identify the key process parameters and any potential problem areas or risks of the manufacturing process operations shown in the proposal (i.e., metal forming, machining, and surface coating and paint applications) as well as any other adverse manufacturing events, resource shortages, and unscheduled process interruptions. The Offeror shall also describe, in detail, how it proposes to mitigate these risks and prepare for contingencies. All sub-contracted work (if any) shall be discussed in the same detail as in-house production.

L.4.1.2 Subfactor 2: Quality System

a. The Offeror shall submit its General Quality Manual, which shall include a description of the Offeror’s quality program. The General Quality Manual must provide objective evidence that the Offeror’s quality program complies with the requirements of the solicitation listed in FAR 52.264-11, Higher Level Contract Quality Requirement.

Quality Manual submission will NOT count towards the maximum page limit. This will also include plans for audits and traceability of components.

b. The Offeror shall discuss specifically the quality plan proposed to control and verify the requirements and tolerances contained in this solicitation to include but not limited to methods to ensure successful salt spray testing and methods to control damage from shipping. The proposal should fully identify the inspections to be performed and their frequency. In addition, a complete description of all relevant inspection equipment including expected cycle times and downtime for each operation for major inspection equipment should be included. The Offeror shall identify plans and concepts for process control including inspection equipment, methods, inspection points and frequency for dimensional inspections.

c. The Offeror shall submit a plan that details how to identify and prevent the occurrence of critical defects and how the Offeror can identify, notify, and recover from an occurrence of a critical defect during production.

d. Describe the process by which the Offeror’s Quality Management System’s requirements will be flowed down to subcontractors and how the Offeror shall verify subcontractor compliance to the contractual quality requirements.

L.4.1.3 Subfactor 3: Program Management Plan

a. The Offeror shall submit a detailed Program Management Plan in form of Gantt chart or other timeline visualization that clearly illustrates the tasks, durations, dependencies, and sequencing of all actions and or events the Offeror will have to undertake to comply with contract requirements. The plan should begin at contract award and continue through the final scheduled deliveries of the base and option quantities.

b. The Offeror shall identify and discuss all significant program risks and include appropriate risk mitigation efforts / contingency plans. Specify necessary qualifications/experience about key personnel expected to execute the project. The Offeror shall describe how key events, such as First Article Testing, fit into this risk mitigation plan.

L.4.2 Volume II – Past Performance Factor

L.4.2.1 The Past Performance Factor volume shall be submitted in accordance with the following format:

Cover Page: Solicitation Number, Offeror Name, CAGE, and DUNS – one page limit

Section 1: Contract References – up to three contract references, using PPQ Form – Section IIA and IIB completed only

Section 2: Relevant Delivery and Quality Performance Narratives – Limited to two pages maximum for each reference.

Section 3: Adverse Contract Performance – No page limitations

Past performance information is evaluated as a predictor of future contract performance.

The U.S. Government will assess the degree of confidence it has that the Offeror will successfully complete the requirements in accordance with the TDP and solicitation requirements based on the Offeror’s demonstrated record of recent and relevant performance.

L.4.2.2 – Section 1 – Contract References

Contract references shall represent recent and relevant performance, ideally in support of the Department of Defense (Air Force, Army, Navy, Foreign Military Sales (FMS) etc.), though commercial contracts demonstrating comparable scope and complexity are also acceptable. The Offeror shall submit no more than three contract references.

L.4.2.3 – Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ):

The Offeror must complete the PPQ, Attachment 0002, Sections IIA and IIB for each contract reference and send copies of the PPQ to the respondent(s) POC as identified in IIA. The Offeror shall include these documents in Volume II, Section 1 of the proposal. If the Offeror fails to provide proof of submission of the PPQ in Volume II, Section 1 of the proposal, then the Offeror(s) proposal shall be deemed non-compliant. The PPQ respondent(s) shall send the completed questionnaire directly to the U.S. Government POC as shown in Section III of the PPQ by the closing date of the solicitation. Therefore, it is up to the Offeror to provide the PPQ to the respondent within sufficient time for them to complete and return to the U.S. Government POC by the closing date of the solicitation.

To ensure inclusion of all references in the evaluation process, the Offeror is encouraged to provide the U.S. Government with the most current contract data and POC information on each PPQ.

The U.S. Government is not required to interview any POCs identified by Offerors. The U.S.

Government reserves the right to use data provided in the Offeror’s proposal and data obtained from other sources.

L.4.2.4 – Relevant Delivery and Quality Performance Narratives:

The Offeror shall provide a descriptive relevant delivery and quality performance narrative of each submitted contract reference submitted in Section 1 that describes the objectives of the contracted work effort detailing how the requirements are relevant to the requirements of this solicitation. Product Part Numbers and applicable National Stock Numbers (NSNs) shall be listed. The narrative shall include the average monthly and yearly contracted delivery quantities. The narrative shall also include how the Offeror managed their quality system, and how the quality plan controlled and verified the requirements. The narrative description shall not exceed the two-page maximum for each contract reference.

L.4.2.5 – Adverse Contract Performance:

The U.S. Government hereby advises Offerors that adverse past performance information to which the Offeror has not yet had an opportunity to respond (reference FAR 15.306) does not include information obtained from formal rating systems, such as Contract Performance Rating System (CPAR).

In addition to the contract references, the Offeror shall identify every recent and relevant contract it was awarded that encountered any performance problems. For any contract meeting this description, provide the following information:

a) Contract number and Order number, if applicable

b) NSN

c) Part Number

d) POC / Contracting Officer to include email addresses and telephone number.

e) Provide a copy of any Corrective Action Report (CAR) or Product Quality Deficiency

Report (PQDR)

f) State any corrective actions taken to avoid reoccurrence.

g) Describe the extent to which the corrective action has been successful, identifying a

U.S. Government POC who can confirm the success of the corrective measures.

h) The Offeror shall identify any violations related to Occupational Safety & Health

Administration (OSHA)

i) Federal Legal Settlements or Fines – The Offeror shall identify any DoD, Federal, or state settlements resulting from a legal action or legal decision (example OSHA, EPA, state, other)

j) CAGE code / DUNS

k) U.S. Government Contracting Activity, address, and telephone number.

l) Contracting Officer’s name and telephone number

m) Contracting Officer’s Representative name and telephone number, if applicable

n) Contract type (i.e., FP with EPA, CPFF, etc.)

o) Award Price

p) Final or projected final price.

q) Major/key subcontractors who performed >25% of the award.

The Offeror shall also identify every recent and relevant contract that was terminated for default or cause, in whole or in part, within the past three years of issuance of this solicitation. For any contract falling under these descriptions, provide the following information:

a) Contract number and Order number

b) Date of Termination or Partial Termination

c) POC / Contracting Officer to include email addresses and telephone number.

d) Identify reason for any terminations for default or cause.

L.4.2.5.1 The number of contracts and page counts provided in response to L.4.2.5 is unlimited. If there are no contracts meeting the descriptions of L.4.2.5 the Offeror must state as such. Failure to include this information or a statement may be a cause for rejection of an Offeror’s proposal as incomplete.

L.4.3 Volume III – Price Factor

L.4.3.1- The proposed FAT total prices and production unit prices will be used by the U.S.

Government to calculate the Total Evaluated Price (TEP). The Offeror shall provide proposed prices as follows:

a. Offerors shall provide a completed Price Matrix, Attachment 0001, in Microsoft Excel.

The proposed prices shall be used by the U.S. Government to calculate the TEP and for issuance of future delivery orders. Offerors must propose unit prices for all quantity ranges for each ordering period for the metal parts for the M8 Smoke Pot as identified in the Price Matrix. Offerors must also propose a FAT price for each ordering period for the metal parts for the M8 Smoke Pot. Failure to do so may result in the offer being rejected.

b. The following instructions are for completion of the Price Matrix:

i. The Offeror shall fill in all information highlighted in blue on the attached

Price Matrix (Attachment 0001).

ii. The Offeror shall enter its full name and Cage Code in the space provided.

iii. Offerors are required to propose binding prices for FAT, for all ordering periods. Offerors are required to propose binding unit prices for all quantity ranges in each ordering period for the metal parts for the M8 Smoke Pot, in the spaces provided for contractor fill-in. Failure to do so may result in rejection of the offer.

iv. Proposed FAT and all metal parts M8 Smoke Pot unit prices are limited to two decimals.

v. Offerors shall not make any changes or add any other information to the

Price Matrix.

vi. All proposed prices shall be stated in current U.S. dollars.

L.4.3.2 The U.S. Government reserves the right to require the submission of any data (i.e., certified cost or pricing data; other than certified cost or pricing data) from the Offeror that is adequate to determine the reasonableness of an offer (See FAR 15.403).

L.1 NOTICES TO OFFERORS:

L.5.1. Use of Acquisition Source Selection Interactive Support Tool (ASSIST)

All exchanges (clarifications, communications, and discussions) with Offerors are accomplished through the release of Evaluation Notices (ENs). The U.S. Government will issue written ENs as part of all exchanges. ENs may be issued via Acquisition Source Selection Interactive Support Tool (ASSIST). However, the U.S. Government reserves the right to obtain clarifications; have communications; and/or hold discussions with Offerors outside of ASSIST if it is determined to be in the best interest of the U.S. Government.

ASSIST will be used during the Source Selection evaluation process. If discussions are conducted with Offeror(s) in the competitive range, the U.S. Government intends to use ASSIST to conduct discussions. ASSIST will allow Offeror(s) to receive and respond to ENs securely on-line. ENs may be in the form of weaknesses, uncertainties, or deficiencies.

L.5.1.1 ASSIST2Industry

A separate tool, the ASSIST2Industry, will be used in conjunction with ASSIST to accomplish all exchanges with Offerors after receipt of proposals pursuant to FAR 15.306.

ASSIST2Industry provides the ability for the U.S. Government to issue, and the Offerors to receive and respond to, all ENs in a secure online environment. See Attachment 0010, ASSIST Instructions for further details on using ASSIST2Industry.

L.5.1.2 The intent of this section is to advise Offeror(s) that they may be receiving EN questions on-line if they remain in the competitive range and the U.S. Government decides to conduct discussions.

Proposal Revisions. All proposal revisions shall be submitted as instructed at the time revisions may be required. Offerors are reminded that proposal revision submissions are subject to FAR 52.215-1, Instructions to Offerors - Competitive Acquisition.

Electronic submissions shall conform to the guidance provided therein.

EN Response. Responses to ENs and any resulting proposal revisions must be provided in accordance with the following instructions:

a. A complete response must be provided within the EN response, including an explanation of any revisions to Offeror’s proposal. Please do not simply provide a reference to revisions in the Offeror’s proposal.

b. If a response to an EN requires a revision to Offeror’s proposal, identify a reference in your response(s) to the location (e.g., Volume #, Section #, paragraph #, etc.) of the revision in the Offeror’s proposal.

NOTE: To be considered as part of Offeror’s proposal evaluation, the changes shall be made in the Offeror’s proposal submission and Offeror shall conform to the page format/limitation requirements.

c. Attach the complete resubmission file containing the proposal revisions for each volume as Attached Files with Offerors reply in the last EN for the respective volume (i.e., one attached file per volume, same file structure as initially submitted). Do not submit change pages or multiple copies of Offerors revised proposal. Offerors are requested to limit changes to items identified in the EN. For clarity purposes, Offerors are required to clearly identify the corresponding changes in Offeror’s proposal (e.g., use track changes to show date, vertical line in margin, bold, and/or underline). Also, add a footer to indicate revision, as of DD/MM/YY (i.e., date of submission of the revision) for each file affected.

d. Each revision on each page shall be identified by date and by revision number.

Offerors shall also place its company name within the header or footer of each page along with the section number. New/changed information shall be identified by a vertical line in the margin next to the change or addition and by using redline and strikeout features.

e. After all ENs have been issued and responses submitted, and, when instructed by the Contracting Officer, Offerors shall submit Final Proposal Revisions (FPRs) as specified in the Final Proposal Revision letter.