B.04.21 Consolidation Determination $9.5 SB A-E VE SATOC Final (Redacted).pdf

Consolidation Determination

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

CONSOLIDATION OF CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS DETERMINATION

FOR SMALL BUSINESS ARCHITECT-ENGINEERING (A-E),

VALUE ENGINEERING (VE) SERVICES

SINGLE AWARD TASK ORDER CONTRACT (SATOC)

FOR KANSAS CITY DISTRICT

(As prescribed by FAR 7.107-2 and AFARS 5107.107-2)

RATIONAL

1. Consolidation may provide substantial benefits to the Government. However, because of the potential impact on small business participation, before conducting an acquisition that is a consolidation of requirements with an estimated total dollar value exceeding $2 million, a written determination shall be made that the consolidation is necessary and justified in accordance with 15 U.S.C. 657q, after ensuring that—

(a) Market Research has been conducted;

(b) Any alternative contracting approaches that would involve a lesser degree of consolidation have been identified;

(c) The determination is coordinated with the agency’s Office of Small Disadvantaged Business Utilization or the Office of Small Business Programs;

(d) Any negative impact by the acquisition strategy on contracting with small business concerns has been identified; and

(e) Steps are taken to include small business concerns in the acquisition strategy.

2. Introduction: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Kansas City District (NWK) plans to solicit offers for an Indefinite Delivery Contract (IDC) for Architect- Engineer (A-E), Value Engineering (VE) Services for a Small Business (SB) Single Award Task Order Contract (SATOC) and has conducted market research that demonstrates consolidation of this procurement to be both necessary and justified. FAR

2.102 defines ‘consolidation or consolidated requirement’ as –

(1) a solicitation for a single contract, a single-award contract, a task order, or a delivery order to satisfy –

(i) Two or more requirements of the Federal agency for supplies or services that have been provided to or performed for the Federal agency under two or more separate contracts, each of which was lower in cost than the total cost of the contract for which offers are solicited; or

(ii) Requirements of the Federal agency for construction projects to be performed at two or more discrete sites.

(2) “Separate contract” as used in this definition, means a contract that has been performed by any business, including small and other than small business concerns.

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

3. Description of Procurement Action: The SB A-E VE SATOC will be used for an array of value engineering services to execute projects within NWK, other districts within the Northwestern Division (NWD), and USACE.

a. Requirement defined (including proposed contract type, estimated total value of the requirement, proposed competition, and period of performance).

The proposed A-E VE SATOC will be solicited as a total small business set-aside with award to a single A-E firm with a total ordering capacity of $9.5M. The SATOC will have a five-year ordering period used to award negotiated firm-fixed-price (FFP) task orders (TOs) for VE services to support various Military, Environmental Restoration, and Civil Works projects for USACE. The services performed under this contract and individual task orders may be formal VE studies and/or VE studies/reviews, including presentations. Each proposal must include a plan that demonstrates the capability to start task orders/studies within two (2) weeks of the notice to proceed (NTP) issuance and perform simultaneous workshops in two (2) different locations and consecutively for a sustained period.

Tasks may include using the following: Performing Value Engineering studies for design/bid/build and/or design/build projects that include study of project features and design systems to arrive at recommended alternatives following the Six Phase Job Plan as recognized by the Society of American Value Engineers (SAVE) International; Performing value-based program/project design and planning charrettes;

Leading value-based review of requests for proposals and/or plans and specifications;

and preparing risk determinations and mitigation plans for program and/or projects.

Members of the team must be knowledgeable in VE methodology, and the team facilitators must be Certified Value Specialists (CVS) certified by SAVE International.

Cost Estimating services may be performed under this contract as designated in the task orders. Firms must be able to provide cost advice and complete cost estimates utilizing the latest version of the Micro-Computer Aided Cost Estimating System Second Generation (MII) estimating program in accordance with set design schedules identified in individual scopes of work for each task order. Typical services would include preliminary, pre-final, and final cost estimates for USACE projects.

Projects and programs may include military facilities and campuses, complex navigation and flood protection projects, environmental restoration projects, headquarters-level program assessment projects and evaluations of agency-wide engineering business procedures. Team members must have knowledge and experience in metric design units because projects may be designed using metric units.

Each individual TO will implement a Quality Assurance Plan (QAP) and have an appointed Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) that will be responsible to ensure each TO QAP is followed. QAPs will have milestones for each deliverable in the TO and will identify the performance standard the firm must comply with and how it will be evaluated.

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

Requirements will be funded at the TO level using the appropriate funds for the requirement. The type of funds expected to be provided are Operation & Maintenance (O&M) and Planning & Design (P&D). In anticipation of requirements from other customers in NWD area of responsibility, NWK will comply with USACE Policy Alert 23- HQ-021 and the CERM-F memo dated 26 June 2019 regarding pre-award costs.

Funding is not presently available for future TOs. The funding will be TO specific based on the type and location of work being performed. All ordering capacity will be managed by NWK.

The use of an IDC is appropriate IAW FAR 16.501-2(a), when exact times and/or exact quantities of future deliveries are not known at the time of award. FAR 16.504(b) indicates that the Contracting Officer may use an indefinite-quantity contract when the Government cannot predetermine, above a specified minimum quantity of supplies and services that the Government will require during the contract period, and it is inadvisable for the Government to commit itself for more than a minimum quantity. The Contracting Officer should use an indefinite-quantity only when a recurring need is anticipated. Currently, it is estimated that $9.5 Million in A-E services will be executed using this SATOC.

The A-E synopsis will be publicly announced on SAM.gov through the Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE) application. Prospective offerors will present their demonstrated competence and technical qualifications via a Standard Form 330 (Architect-Engineer; Qualifications, Parts I and II). Prospective contractors will be selected based on demonstrated competence and qualifications. NWK will use the Selection of Architects and Engineers selection procedures (formerly known as Brooks Act), FAR Part 36.6 selection procedures and DFARS Subpart 236.6, to award a contract to the most highly qualified firm providing services at fair and reasonable prices. The A-E Selection Plan for the synopsis establishes that a pre-selection board and a selection board will be convened for evaluation. Evaluation criteria per FAR 36.602-1 established in the A-E Selection Plan will be the basis for the selection process. The final selection decision will be made by the designated selection authority.

For NWK, the selection authority is the Engineering Division Chief, as delegated by the District Commander.

b. Consolidated Requirements (including all relevant supporting documentation explaining which contracts are being consolidated with included total value, options and extensions, awardee(s), and size standard (small or other than small) of each of the consolidated requirements).

The proposed contract action will result in the consolidation of A-E requirements within NWK and, potentially, other districts within the Northwestern Division (NWD) and USACE for various military projects for up to a five-year period. Projects required are expected to increase throughout the ordering period as needs are identified, especially as customers submit year-end work requirements. This SATOC is needed to complete A-E value engineering studies and presentations for construction projects. This

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

Currently NWK has no VE services contracts that Military Construction can utilize.

There are four A-E SATOCs, but they are designated for specific services within NWK.

W912DQ19D4007 is in support of the Next Gen program and existing LCAAP production lines; W912DQ19D4010 (Unrestricted) and W912DQ19D4011 (Small Business) are both in support of the AFCS Design Revision requirements and W912DQ20D4000 is for the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) St. Louis Health Care System John Cochran (JC) Division Medical Center.

Table 2 - Active A-E SATOCs NWK Military

c. Discussion of how this consolidation aids the Government in meeting mission objectives. Explain any regional or national contract implications: This strategy was developed to help eliminate redundancies, enhance sharing of best practices, reduce the overall cost of doing business for USACE, and allow for a coordinated effort. See Section 5.a. for further explanation of these benefits. There are no negative implications for the Government and, since the contract tool will be a total small business set-aside, it will be used by USACE to provide optimum opportunities for the selected contractor.

d. Effect on Small Business or set-aside concerns: The consolidation of these requirements will have a positive impact on the small business community since it will be a set aside for small business. Awarding the consolidated SATOC to a small business will assist the District in successfully meeting its small business goals. Firms performing the work throughout NWK typically subcontract with other local small businesses to help minimize their costs and obtain expertise needed for projects with specialized features or requirements. As such, many small businesses benefit even when requirements are consolidated. Based on the findings of the market research and coordination with the NWK’s Deputy of Small Business Programs, this acquisition is set-aside exclusively for small business concerns. The DD2579 is in progress and will be submitted for SBA concurrence following the approval of this consolidation determination.

e. Proposed Requirement North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and size standard: The primary NAICS code for this procurement is 541330 – Engineering Services. The small business standard is $25.5 Million. If the respondent's average revenue for the last three fiscal years is over small business standards, the respondent is not considered a Small Business. The Product Service Code is C219 for Architect and Engineering- General: Other.

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

Consolidation is necessary to meet NWK’s mission objectives to increase efficiency, streamline processes, decrease costs, and provide faster response times while delivering quality performance because it provides a contracting vehicle that minimizes duplicative acquisition planning and reduces contract execution costs, shortens contracting lead-time and increases assurance of continuity. Consolidation under this A- E VE SATOC will reduce procurement lead times and eliminate the need to formally advertise and solicit a new contractor for each individual requirement. Improved performance, reliability, dependability, and quality are anticipated outcomes that will provide optimal results when working with budget and time constraints for military projects. Therefore, the consolidation of the $9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC for Military Program activities is both necessary and justified.

7. Bundling: This acquisition does not meet the definition of bundling because the requirements of this SATOC are suitable for small business concerns as discussed and are set-aside for small business participation. FAR 2.101 defines “bundling” as consolidating two or more requirements for supplies or services, previously provided or performed under separate smaller contracts, into a solicitation for a single contract that is likely to be unsuitable for award to a small business concern due to:

(i) The diversity, size, or specialized nature of the elements of the performance specified;

(ii) The aggregate dollar value of the anticipated award;

(iii)The geographical dispersion of the contract performance sites: or

(iv) Any combination of the factors described in paragraphs (i) through (iii) of this definition.

Since bundling is not applicable, additional documentation consistent with bundling as required by FAR 7.107 is not required; therefore, no additional justification is necessary.

8. Considerations, Facts, and Reasoning Supporting the Determination: All facts, considerations and rationale have been covered herein. The consolidation approach for this action has been coordinated with the Office of Small Business Programs and the DD Form 2579 Small Business Coordination Record is currently in progress and the final approved copy will be loaded in the official contract file. Consolidation is necessary to meet NWK’s mission objectives to increase efficiency, streamline processes, decrease costs, and provide faster response times while delivering quality performance because it provides for a contracting vehicle that minimizes acquisition planning and contract execution costs, shortens contracting lead times and assures continuity.

NWK cannot reasonably anticipate all future requirements, particularly when the vast majority of the TO funding is unknown; and therefore, future work plan projections are less predictable than MILCON programs that plan and reserve funds several years in advance. As a result, the establishment of the A-E SATOC has been determined to be the best contracting vehicle to accommodate the demand associated with a continually changing workload and customer priority list. Because of the uncertainty of requirements, it is necessary to have a contractual vehicle in place to provide the capacity and flexibility

$9.5M SB A-E VE SATOC

to rapidly respond to changing workloads, priorities, and funding timelines. NWK’s Design Branch does not have the in-house resources required to support all the priority projects slated for the coming decade. It is mission critical that this SB A-E VE SATOC gets awarded to support the Military Programs design needs due to expiration of the SATOC previously used.

For this SATOC, while the quantifiable benefits exceed the threshold set forth in

FAR 7.107-2(d), this SATOC approach also will yield benefits in the form of quality improvements and reduction in acquisition cycle times, which FAR 7.107-2(c) establishes as reasons for finding a consolidated approach necessary and justified.

These benefits are critical to the agency’s mission success, as the SATOC will be used to execute mission essential projects such as:

9. Summary: The consolidation approach outlined herein is anticipated to provide the greatest benefit to the Government by lowering overall performance risk and ensuring timely mission execution while utilizing USACE’s updated procedures for the selection of task orders on A-E IDCs. The market research and rationale outlined herein supports consolidation based on current acquisition regulations and guidance. The A-E SATOC acquisition approach will provide a means to support NWK’s mission and to meet its requirements. It will enhance the contracting methods available for program execution and allow greater flexibility to meet changing requirements, expectations, and priorities. The A-E VE SATOC in crucial to successfully execute mission essential projects enabling NWK to minimize acquisition lead time, minimize ordering costs and timely complete projects that require compressed delivery schedules.