Attachment 11 - Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan.pdf

QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN (QASP)

PNSY PRODUCTION SUPPORT TOUCH LABOR

INDEFINITE DELIVERY/INDEFINITY QUANTITY

Issued October 2023

1. Introduction

This quality assurance surveillance plan (QASP) is pursuant to the requirements listed in the Follow-on IDIQ PWS (Performance Work Statement). This plan establishes the procedures and guidelines followed by the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY) Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) and the Technical Point of Contact (TPOC), who will use in ensuring the required performance standards or services levels are achieved by the Contractor.

a) Purpose

i. The purpose of the QASP is to describe the systematic methods used to monitor performance and to identify the required documentation and the resources to be employed. The QASP provides a means for evaluating whether the Contractor is meeting the performance standards/quality levels identified in the PWS and the Contractor’s quality control plan (QCP), and to ensure that the government pays only for the level of services received.

ii. This QASP defines the roles and responsibilities of all members of the integrated project team (IPT), identifies the performance objectives, defines the methodologies used to monitor and evaluate the Contractor’s performance, describes quality assurance documentation requirements, and describes the analysis of quality assurance monitoring results.

b) Performance Management Approach

i. The PWS structures the acquisition around “what” service or quality level is required, as opposed to “how” the Contractor should perform the work (i.e., results, not compliance). This QASP will define the performance management approach taken by the PNSY COR & TPOC and assigned government personnel to monitor Contractor performance ensuring the outcomes and performance objectives expected by the PWS are achieved.

Performance management rests on developing a capability to review and analyze information generated through performance assessment. The ability to make decisions based on the analysis of performance data is the cornerstone of performance management; this analysis yields information that indicates whether expected outcomes for the project are being achieved by the Contractor.

ii. Performance management represents a significant shift from the more traditional quality assurance (QA) concepts in several ways. Performance management focuses on assessing whether outcomes are being achieved and to what extent. This approach migrates away from scrutiny of compliance with the processes and practices used to achieve the outcome. A performance-based approach enables the Contractor to play a large role in how metrics are accurately tracked and reported (i.e., hours worked, funds expended, metric projections, etc.), as long as the proposed processes are within the stated constraints. The only exceptions to process reviews are those required by law (federal, state, and local) and compelling business situations, such as safety and health. A “results” focus provides the Contractor flexibility to continuously improve and innovate over the course of the contract as long as the critical outcomes expected are being achieved and/or the desired performance levels are being met.

c) Performance Management Strategy

i. The Contractor is responsible for the quality of all work performed. The

Contractor measures that quality through the Contractor’s own Quality Control (QC) program (QCP). QC is work output, not workers, and therefore includes all work performed under this contract regardless of whether the work is performed by Contractor employees or by subcontractors. The Contractor’s QCP will set forth the staffing and procedures for self-inspecting the quality, timeliness, responsiveness, customer satisfaction, and other performance requirements in the PWS. The Contractor will develop and implement a performance management system with processes to assess and report its performance to the COR. The Contractor’s QCP will set forth the staffing and procedures for self-inspecting the quality, timeliness, responsiveness, customer satisfaction, and other performance requirements in the PWS. This QASP enables the government to take advantage of the Contractor’s QC program.

ii. The COR, TPOC, and Contracting Officer (KO) will monitor performance and review performance reports furnished by the Contractor to determine how the Contractor is performing against communicated performance objectives.

The government will make determination regarding incentives based on performance measurement metric data and notify the Contractor of those decisions. The Contractor will be responsible for making required changes in processes and practices to ensure performance is managed effectively.

2. Roles & Responsibilities

a) Contracting Officer:

The Contracting Officer (KO) is responsible for monitoring contract compliance, contract administration, and cost control and for resolving any differences between the observations documented by the PNSY COR and the Contractor. The KO designates CORs as the government authority for performance management.

The number of additional representatives serving as technical inspectors depends on the complexity of the services measured, as well as the Contractor’s performance, and must be identified and designated by the KO.

b) Contracting Officers Representative:

The Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) is designated in writing by the KO to act as his or her authorized representative to assist in administering a contract. COR limitations are contained in the written appointment letter. The COR is responsible for technical administration of the project and ensures proper government surveillance of the Contractor’s performance. The COR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments or to authorize any contractual changes on the government’s behalf. Any changes that the Contractor deems may affect contract price, terms, or conditions shall be referred to the KO for action.

The COR will have the responsibility for maintaining various QA forms of the inspection and evaluation of the Contractor’s work performance. Government surveillance may occur under the inspection of services clause for any service relating to the contract. The COR is the Contractor’s point of contact and should be included in all correspondence between the Contractor and the shipyard, unless otherwise noted by the KO. Additionally, the COR monitors all of the Contractor’s weekly metric reporting for completeness and accuracy.

c) Project Manager:

The Project Manager (PM) is designated to oversee and assist in management of the contract. The PM will also serve as the Technical Point of Contact.

Assistant/alternate Technical Point of Contacts (ATPOC) will reside within the Production departments. The PM has the decision authority for the customer pertaining to matters related to the contract. The PM plans, oversees, and documents all aspects of the specific project. The Project Manager works closely with the Contracting Officer and COR to make sure that the scope and direction of each project is on schedule and performing adequately. The Project Manager also works closely with the shops and other departments requiring or providing project support. The Project Manager will/may assist the COR in administration, oversight and performance assessments of the Contractor.

3. Identification of Required Performance Standards / Quality Levels

a) The required performance standards and/or quality levels are included in the PWS and in Attachment 1, “Performance Requirements Summary.”

4. Methodologies to Monitor Performance

a) Surveillance Techniques:

In an effort to minimize the performance management burden, simplified surveillance methods shall be used by the government to evaluate Contractor performance when appropriate. The primary methods of surveillance are:

i. Random monitoring, which shall be performed by various government representatives, including but not limited to, the COR, PM, ATPOCs.

ii. 100% Inspection – Each week, the COR shall review the generated documentation and enter summary results into the Surveillance Activity Checklist.

iii. Periodic Inspection – Various government representatives, including but not limited to, the COR, PM, ATPOCs perform the periodic inspections as necessary.

5. Customer Feedback

The Contractor is expected to establish and maintain professional communication between its employees and customers. The primary objective of this communication is customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is the most significant external indicator of the success and effectiveness of all services provided and can be measured through customer complaints.

Performance management drives the Contractor to be customer focused through initially and internally addressing customer complaints and investigating the issues and/or problems but the customer always has the option to communicate complaints to the COR, as opposed to the Contractor.

Customer complaints, to be considered valid, must set forth clearly and in writing the detailed nature of the complaint, must be signed, and must be forwarded to the COR.

The COR will accept those customer complaints and investigate using the Documentation of Poor Performance, identified in Attachment 3.

Customer feedback may also be obtained either from the results of formal customer satisfaction surveys or from random customer complaints.

6. Acceptable Quality Levels

a) The Performance Management Feedback Loop

i. The performance management feedback loop begins with the communication of expected outcomes. Performance standards are expressed in the PWS and is assessed using the performance monitoring techniques shown in Attachment 1.

b) Reporting

i. At the end of each month, the PNSY COR will prepare a written report summarizing the overall results of the quality assurance surveillance of the Contractor’s performance. This written report, which includes the Contractor’s submitted monthly report and the completed quality assurance monitoring forms (Attachment 2), will become part of the QA documentation.

It will enable the government to demonstrate whether the Contractor is meeting the stated objectives and/or performance standards, including cost / technical / scheduling objectives.