AVIAN FLU MILK TESTING RFP w. edits (8.27.26).pdf

TECHNICAL SUBMITTAL

I-1. Statement of the Project.

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture is soliciting proposals from entities with the capacity to test for Avian Influenza in domestic lactating bovine (milk), with the goal of enhancing the Department’s ability to surveil disease and protect the health of our citizens, food supply, and animal agriculture industry.

The purpose of the solicitation is to pilot onsite testing to occur at milk processing facilities and milk transfer stations. The potential offeror must demonstrate the criteria below and provide a work plan and budget to the Department.

Offeror Response

I-2. Qualifications.

A. Company Overview. The potential offeror should have experience performing milk testing in lactating dairy herds. The potential offeror must demonstrate their ability to perform testing for Influenza A in lactating dairy cattle using the polymerase chain reaction, which is accepted by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NSVL).

B. Prior Experience. Experience should include testing for Influenza A in lactating dairy cattle using the polymerase chain reaction, which is accepted by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NSVL). Qualifying experience includes work that has been performed by individuals who will be assigned to this project and the potential offeror’s company. Offerors must identify studies or projects in which they have been involved, including the name of the customer, company, or agency, including the name, address, and telephone number of the official representative, for whom the study or project was performed.

C. Personnel. Describe in narrative form the number of executive and professional personnel who will be engaged in the work and indicate where these personnel will be located physically during the time they are engaged in the Project. Include the names of key personnel and, through a resume or similar document, provide the education and experience of the Project personnel as it relates to performing Influenza A testing in lactating dairy cattle using the polymerase chain reaction, which is accepted by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NSVL).

Indicate the responsibilities each individual will have in this Project and how long each has worked for your company.

D. Subcontractors. Provide a subcontracting plan for all subcontractors, including small diverse business and small business subcontractors, who will be assigned to the Project. The selected Offeror is prohibited from subcontracting or outsourcing any part of this Project without the express written approval of the Commonwealth. Upon award of the contract resulting from this RFP, subcontractors included in the proposal submission are deemed approved. For each position included in your subcontracting plan, provide the following:

1. Name of subcontractor;

2. Primary contact name and email;

3. Address of subcontractor;

4. Description of services to be performed;

5. Number of employees by job category assigned to this project; and

6. Resumes (if appropriate and available).

I-3. Training. If appropriate, indicate the recommended training for agency personnel.

Include the names of agency personnel to be trained, the number of personnel to receive training, the duration of the training program, and the place of training, along with the curricula, instructional materials, number and frequency of sessions, and number and level of instructors for trainings.

I-4. Financial Capability. Describe your company’s financial stability and economic capability to fulfil the contract requirements. The Commonwealth reserves the right to request additional information to evaluate an Offeror’s financial capability.

I-5. Requirements. Surveillance of Pennsylvania’s lactating dairy herds for influenza A through milk testing is necessary due to the risk this virus poses to other lactating dairy herds and poultry flocks, as well as public health.

The pilot will consist of traveling to approximately 30 dairy processors within the southeastern region of Pennsylvania to test milk samples. Testing will occur at no more than 15 locations per month, with processors visited on a bi-monthly basis. Alternatively, a proposal could include capability to collect samples from dairy processors and complete testing at a physical location rather than on-site at each processor.

A. Emergency Preparedness. To support continuity of operations during an emergency, including a pandemic, the Commonwealth needs a strategy for maintaining operations for an extended period of time. One part of this strategy is to ensure that essential contracts that provide critical business services to the Commonwealth have planned for such an emergency and put contingencies in place to provide needed goods and services.

1. Describe how you anticipate such a crisis will impact your operations.

2. Describe your emergency response continuity of operations plan. Please attach a copy of your plan, or at a minimum, summarize how your plan addresses the following aspects of pandemic preparedness:

a. Employee training (describe your organization’s training plan, and how frequently your plan will be shared with employees);

b. Identified essential business functions and key employees (within your organization) necessary to carry them out;

c. Contingency plans for:

i. How your organization will handle staffing issues when a portion of key employees are incapacitated due to illness; and.

ii. How employees in your organization will carry out the essential functions if contagion control measures prevent them from coming to the primary workplace.

3. How your organization will communicate with staff and suppliers when primary communications systems are overloaded or otherwise fail, including key contacts, chain of communications (including suppliers), etc. and;

4. How and when your emergency plan will be tested, and if the plan will be tested by a third-party.

I-6. Tasks. Describe in narrative form your technical plan for accomplishing the work using the task descriptions set forth below as your reference point. Modifications of the task descriptions are permitted; however, reasons for changes should be fully explained.

Indicate the number of person hours allocated to each task. Include a Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) or similar type display, time related, showing each event. If more than one approach is apparent, comment on why you chose this approach.

Testing parameters:

Currently, polymerase chain reaction is the accepted methodology for diagnosing avian influenza. This method, as described by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL), is considered the gold standard of avian influenza testing.

Use of the NVSL methodology (as described in NVSL-SOP-0068, NAHLN Real-time RT-PCR Detection of Influenza A and Avian Paramyxovirus Type-1) requires approval by the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) and biennial proficiency testing.

The proposed testing methodology must match or decrease turnaround time from sample collection to reporting of results compared to existing methodology used by the Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System (PADLS, a NAHLN approved laboratory). The diagnostic method used must be able to detect all influenza A infections of poultry and cattle and must be approved by the Center of Veterinary Biologics for intended use or by the USDA Veterinary Services for intended use in laboratory conditions as approved and guided by NAHLN laboratory testing.

Testing offered must comply with and meet ISO17025 and NAHLN standards.

Proposals must include the following: A description of the methods used to provide appropriate lab containment as required by the disease agents of interest.

I-7. Reports and Project Control.

All confirmatory testing must be conducted as per approved National Animal Health Laboratory Network policies, protocol, and guidance or through National Veterinary Services Laboratories. The results of such testing must be reported to PDA directly.

The potential offeror must have the ability to send actual tested samples to NVSL for confirmatory testing in a manner that complies with postal requirements for shipping infectious materials

A. Status Report. The potential offeror must be able to provide to PDA on a monthly basis the number of samples tested and the number of dairy farms represented by those samples.

Non-negative results must be reported to PDA immediately by phone at 717-772-2852, option 1, and information about the source farm of the non-negative test must be provided.

B. Problem Identification Report. An “as required” report, identifying problem areas. The report should describe the problem and its impact on the overall project and on each affected task. It should list possible courses of action with advantages and disadvantages of each, and include Offeror recommendations with supporting rationale;

and

B. Final Report.

1. Abstract or summarize the result of the study or service in terminology that will be meaningful to management and others generally familiar with the subject areas.

2. Describe data collection and analytical and other techniques used during the study.

3. Summarize findings, conclusions and recommendations developed in each task.

4. Include all supporting documentation; e.g., flow-charts, forms, questionnaires, etc.

5. Recommend a time-phased work plan for implementing the recommendations.]

Offeror Response

I-8. Objections and Additions to Standard Contract Terms and Conditions. The Offeror will identify which, if any, of the terms and conditions contained in the Buyer Attachments section that it would like to negotiate and what additional terms and conditions the Offeror would like to add to the standard contract terms and conditions. The Offeror’s failure to make a submission under this paragraph will result in its waiving its right to do so later, but the Issuing Office may consider late objections and requests for additions if to do so, in the Issuing Office’s sole discretion, would be in the best interest of the Commonwealth. The Issuing Office may, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any requested changes to the standard contract terms and conditions. The Offeror shall not request changes to the other provisions of the RFP, nor shall the Offeror request to completely substitute its own terms and conditions for this RFP. All terms and conditions must appear in one integrated contract.

The Issuing Office will not accept references to the Offeror’s, or any other, online guides or online terms and conditions contained in any proposal.

Regardless of any objections set out in its proposal, the Offeror must submit its proposal, including the cost proposal, on the basis of the terms and conditions set out in the Terms and Conditions contained in the Buyer Attachment section. The Issuing Office will reject any proposal that is conditioned on the negotiation of the terms and conditions set out in the Terms and Conditions contained in the Buyer Attachment section or to other provisions of the RFP.