B08_Synopsis-Solicitation_140A1623R0018_1.pdf

Division of Water and Power Architect-Engineer Multiple Award Contract (DWP-AE-MAC) Synopsis/Solicitation: 140A1623R0018

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. NO SOLICITATION

PACKAGE WILL BE ISSUED VIA WWW.SAM.GOV.

1. Contract Information:

a. Indian Affairs (IA) has a requirement to acquire a full range of architectural & engineering services related to the following mission areas: (1) Safety of Dams Branch (SOD), and (2) Irrigation and Power (I&P) Branch.

i. The principal mission of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Safety of Dams (SOD) Branch is to ensure that dams under the jurisdiction of the BIA do not present unacceptable risks to public safety and property loss. To achieve this goal, dams that pose unacceptable risks should be identified and actions taken to reduce those risks in an economically, technically, environmentally, and culturally sound manner. As part of the BIA Division of Water and Power (DWP), the SOD Branch promotes the self-determination, economic opportunities, and public safety of tribes through the sound management of dam facilities owned or operated by the BIA. The SOD Branch performs a wide variety of technical services for the tribes, including assistance with dam safety engineering, emergency management, dam security, and dam operations, management, and maintenance.

ii. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), through the Division of Water and Power (DWP)

- Branch of Irrigation and Power (I&P), provides technical assistance, oversight, and project management to 16 congressionally authorized irrigation projects. The BIA irrigation projects are located in 10 western states and provide service to over 780,000 acres of irrigated land through over 58,000 structures and 6,200 miles of canals and drains. Most of the irrigation projects are over 80 years old, some are over 100 years old, and have a significant amount of deferred maintenance. The BIA is in an on-going effort to reduce the differed maintenance, modernize, and improve the safety features of the irrigation projects. The DWP also provides limited support to over 100 irrigation systems that were constructed in the early 1900s, most of which are operated and maintained by tribes and/or irrigators. Additionally, DWP provides oversight and limited technical assistance to three congressionally authorized power projects. The three power projects provide transmission and distribution of electrical services to approximately 38,000 customers within their project service areas. Combined peak load for the power projects is approximately 175 megawatts. One power utility (Colorado River) generates power through a hydroelectric facility. All three power projects are associated with BIA irrigation projects and are located in and around the accompanying irrigation projects.

b. This A-E acquisition will be conducted in accordance with the Selection of Architects and Engineers statute (40 USC Chapter 11), and Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 36.6. Under the Selection of Architects and Engineers statute, price competition is not allowed for A-E contracts.

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c. In support of this effort, IA anticipates a target of approximately eighteen (18) IDIQ contracts will be awarded as a result of the potential synopsis-solicitation, broken down as follows:

i. SOD MAC -- nine (9) total IDIQ contracts with a target of four (4) IDIQs to be reserved for Indian Small Business Economic Enterprises (ISBEEs) and five (5) IDIQs to be reserved for non-ISBEE small and large firms. However, if at least three (3) IDIQs cannot be awarded to ISBEEs in accordance with this synopsis-solicitation, the ISBEE reservation will be “dissolved” and any socioeconomic small business and large business is eligible for award of this program’s nine (9) targeted IDIQ contracts.

ii. I&P MAC -- nine (9) total IDIQ contracts with a target of four (4) IDIQs to be reserved for ISBEEs and five (5) IDIQs to be reserved for non-ISBEE small and large firms. However, if at least three (3) IDIQs cannot be awarded to ISBEEs in accordance with this synopsis-solicitation, the ISBEE reservation will be “dissolved” and any socioeconomic small business and large business is eligible for award of this program’s nine (9) targeted IDIQ contracts.

iii. The total price for all contracts combined will not exceed $100,000,000.00 for the five-year life of the contracts. This announcement is open to all responsible offerors, both large and small businesses. It is anticipated that the contract will be awarded no earlier than April 2023.

d. Task orders will be issued as the need arises during the contract ordering period. These task orders will be firm-fixed-price (FFP) type orders with an estimated range from $10,000.00 to $10,000,000.00. If IA is able to award at least three (3) of the targeted four (4) IDIQs reserved for ISBEEs, then task orders with an estimated value of $500K and less will be reserved for the pool of ISBEE firms, while task orders with an estimated value that exceeds $500K will be open for both pools (ISBEE and unrestricted pools) of firms to be eligible. However, if there isn’t a separate pool of ISBEE firms, the only pool (unrestricted) of firms would be eligible for any and all task orders issued under the respective MAC(s).

e. The minimum guarantee is $10,000.00 for each DWP-AE-MAC IDIQ holder that is not awarded a task order for the full term of the DWP-AE-MAC ordering period. Please note that this minimum guarantee will not apply to DWP-AE-MAC pool members that are off-ramped in accordance with paragraph f.

f. Off-Ramping:

i. The Government reserves the unilateral right to Off-Ramp firms from the DWP-AE- MAC pool. Off-Ramping is a mechanism by which the Government can remove firms who are not competitive in the DWP-AE-MAC pool. If an DWP-AE-MAC pool member is off-ramped while it is performing active task orders, those task orders may be terminated, or the IDIQ may be put in a hiatus status with no new task orders awarded until the active task orders are complete.

ii. Below are example conditions that may lead DWP-AE-MAC firms to be removed from the DWP-AE-MAC pool:

(1) The pool member does not submit any proposals despite having received two (2) or more requests for proposal within one (1) year that are within the ordering limitations established in this synopsis/solicitation under FAR 52.216-19 Order Limitations.

(2) The pool member receives an adverse past performance rating on a DWP-AE- MAC CPARS. After the pool member uses its opportunity to address the adverse past performance, the Government is still unsatisfied with performance.

iii. Pool members who have been Off-Ramped are not entitled to receive the minimum guarantee established at the time of IDIQ award.

g. On-Ramping:

i. The Government reserves the right to utilize an On-Ramping concept to maintain sufficient pool of DWP-AE-MAC firms by adding pool members after the original selection is made. This will be done by requesting and evaluating proposals in a manner consistent with the original synopsis/solicitation. The Government may determine at any time that it would be in the Government’s best interest to initiate an open season to add additional firms to the DWP-AE-MAC pool.

ii. If the Government initiates an open season, a notice will be published in www.sam.gov in accordance with FAR Part 5, Publicizing Contract Action. Any open season synopsis/solicitation issued will adhere to all Federal procurement laws current at the time of synopsis/solicitation, and the award decision under the open season synopsis/solicitation will be based upon substantially the same selection criteria as the original synopsis/solicitation. The On-Ramp synopsis/solicitation will identify the target number of new contracts intended to be awarded in response to the On-Ramp synopsis/solicitation notice. The terms and conditions of any resulting awards will be materially the same as the existing awards to the original DWP-AE-MAC awardees. Any new awards will end at the same time as the existing term for all other DWP-AE-MAC contracts. Immediately upon on-ramping, the new DWP-AE-MAC pool member will be eligible to receive task order awards with the same rights and obligations as any other pool member.

h. The attached Statements of Work (SOWs) establish the general work requirements for both the SOD and I&P MACs. Each task order will include a more specific SOW. A Request for Price Proposal (RFPP) will be issued to the selected firm for each task order.

i. The NAICS Code for this procurement is 541330 -- Engineering Services, with a small business size standard of $25.5M.

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j. Prospective contractors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database to be eligible for contract award. In order to register in SAM, contractors may obtain information on registration and annual confirmation requirements via the Internet at http://www.sam.gov.

2. Selection Criteria: Selection of the firm will be based on the following criteria, listed in descending order of importance. Criteria i through vi will be evaluated for all offerors.

a. SOD MAC:

i. Professional qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of required services. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s professional qualifications and education, including Professional Engineer registrations with documented dam safety engineering and professional emergency management certifications. The SF 330 should document the entire team’s qualifications in this area including members of Joint ventures, Partners, subcontractor’s, etc. Qualifications in the SF 330 should also indicate the States where licenses are held.

ii. Specialized experience and technical competence in the type of work required, including, where appropriate, experience in energy conservation, pollution prevention, waste reduction, and the use of recovered materials. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s specialized experience and technical expertise conducting work in the following areas of expertise: dam safety engineering including dam rehabilitation design and/or construction management; dam safety inspections or risk analysis studies; geotechnical, hydrologic, and hydraulic studies; GIS, value engineering, and risk reduction analyses;

environmental permitting; hazard classification studies; dam security; emergency action planning; and/or emergency exercise conduct and evaluation. The specialized experience and technical expertise should reflect work on small and mid-size earthen dams which are the majority of the dams serviced by BIA.

iii. Participation of ISBEEs and IEEs as Prime Contractors; and in Partnerships; Joint Ventures and other Teaming arrangements and in previously established Subcontracts.

The Government shall evaluate the participation of ISBEEs and IEEs as Prime Contractors; and in Partnerships; Joint Ventures and other Teaming arrangements and in previously established Subcontractors.

iv. Capacity to accomplish the work in the required time. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s experience developing and executing design schedules within the available time frame are desired. Projects completed within the past five years should be included.

The SF 330 should include all projects worked on within the past five years and include the scope of the work; the value of the project; the schedule of the project (starting date, proposed completion date and actual completion date.); and the status of the project. This listing should also contain any projects that were terminated for any reason and projects that are still in progress.

v. Past performance on contracts with Government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, and compliance with performance schedule. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s past performance on dam safety and/or emergency management contracts with government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, compliance with performance schedules, and compliance with project specific subcontracting goals. The BIA may utilize all sources to evaluate past performance, including past performance evaluations of previous dam safety and emergency management projects.

vi. Experience working in the geographical areas of the project and knowledge of the locality of the project; and experience working in the cultural context of the BIA DSSEM program dams. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s experience working with Indian tribes and on Indian lands and experience working on dam safety and emergency management projects in states where BIA program dams are located (Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin). Additional dams are periodically added to the program as needs are identified. Dams may be added in Alaska.

b. I&P MAC:

i. Professional qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of required services. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s professional qualifications and education, including Professional Engineer registrations; multi-discipline Professional Engineer Registrations; training specific to disciplines within civil and agricultural engineering relating to irrigation facilities and water distribution; and, training specific to disciplines within electrical engineering relating to electrical power utilities and power transmission and distribution. Firms are not required to have an office in each state where a BIA irrigation and/or power facility is located (Washington, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado). However, having Engineer’s licensed in each state by either reciprocity arrangements or direct licensing is a requirement. The SF 330 should document the entire team’s qualifications in this area including members of Joint ventures, Partners, subcontractor’s, etc. Qualifications in the SF 330 should also indicate the States where licenses are held.

ii. Specialized experience and technical competence in the areas of civil and agricultural engineering as they relate to irrigation and water distribution projects; and in the area of electrical engineering as it relates to electrical power utilities. The Government will evaluate the Firm’s specialized experience and technical competence in the areas of civil and agricultural engineering as they relate to irrigation and water distribution projects;

and in the area of electrical engineering as it relates to electrical power utilities.

Specifically the Government will evaluate the Firm’s experience in the design of irrigation facilities; experience in the design of electrical power utilities; experience in asset evaluation of irrigation and power facilities, including engineering condition assessments and modernization studies; experience in cost estimating, life cycle cost analysis and value engineering as it relates to irrigation and power facilities; experience in safety evaluation and safety management as it relates to irrigation and power facilities;

experience in construction management and oversight services; experience in water rights and water resources engineering; and, experience in economic analysis of irrigation projects, irrigated agriculture, and power utilities. The SF 330 should show projects completed within the past five years that demonstrate experience in the factors listed above. Projects completed more than five years previously will be considered, but will not receive the same weight as projects within the previous five years.

iii. Participation of ISBEEs and IEEs as Prime Contractors; and in Partnerships; Joint Ventures and other Teaming arrangements and in previously established Subcontracts.

The Government shall evaluate the participation of ISBEEs and IEEs as Prime Contractors; and in Partnerships; Joint Ventures and other Teaming arrangements and in previously established Subcontractors.

iv. Capacity to accomplish the work in the required time. The Government will evaluate the Firm’s capacity to accomplish the work within the required time. Specifically, the Government will evaluate the number of staff; the staffing mix including distribution of staff both within the Firm and within pre-arranged joint ventures, partnering and subcontract arrangements; the number, experience and duties of management personnel;

size and scope of completed projects for the past five (5) years; ability to respond to emergency situations; and, ability to expand operations if necessary to respond to increased program activity and/or emergency situations. The SF 330 should include all projects worked on within the past five years and include the scope of the work; the value of the project; the schedule of the project (starting date, proposed completion date and actual completion date.); and the status of the project. This listing should also contain any projects that were terminated for any reason and projects that are still in progress.

v. Past performance on irrigation and electric utility related contracts with government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, compliance with performance schedules, and compliance with project specific subcontracting goals. The Government will evaluate the Firm’s past performance on irrigation and electric utility related contracts with government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, compliance with performance schedules, and compliance with project specific subcontracting goals. The SF 330 should show completed projects in the relative size and scope of comparable projects within the BIA irrigation and power program. BIA irrigation projects range in size from approximately 2,000 acres to 150,000 acres with annual O&M budgets up to $10M. BIA power facilities range in size from 25MW to 113MW peak loads with annual operating budgets up to $40M. Projects completed more than five years previously will be considered, but will not receive the same weight as projects within the previous five years.

vi. Experience working with BIA, Indian tribes, and on Indian reservations that have BIA owned irrigation and/or power facilities. The Government shall evaluate the Firm’s experience working with BIA and Indian tribes on projects in the geographical area where BIA owns and/or operates irrigation and/or power facilities.

3. Submittal Requirements:

a. Interested firms having the capabilities to perform this work may propose on either or both SOD and I&P MACs; if firms are interested in both MACs, they must submit a separate SF 330 for each MAC. Submissions must include one (1) electronic copy with searchable Adobe PDF files of an SF 330 for the Prime firm that includes all team consultants. Include the firm's UEI number in the SF 330, Part I, Sections Band C. A maximum of five (5) projects for the proposed team, including JV and teaming partners, shall be shown in Section F. For the five (5) projects submitted in Section F of the SF 330, a "project" is defined as a single contract or task order for work performed at one site/installation or multiple sites/installations. An IDIQ contract is not a project. A project may contain multiple task orders or contracts if they are for multiple phases of a project at the site(s)/installation(s).

Each project in Section F of the SF 330 shall include the contract number, task order number, cost of work performed by firm, and owner's contact information. Project descriptions shall clearly state extent of work performed by the team, percent of work completed, dates when work was performed, and date of contract completion. Project A/E work must be 100% complete for consideration.

b. The SF 330 shall have a total page limitation of 40 printed pages with Section H limited to eight (8) pages, and Part II is excluded from the 40-page limit. For all SF 330 sections, use no smaller than 11 pt. font. Solicitation packages are not provided. This is not a request for proposal. No pricing information is to be included. Any pages that exceed the page limitations noted will not be evaluated, nor considered.

4. Interviews and Negotiations:

a. Interviews: As required by acquisition regulations, interviews for the purpose of discussing prospective firms’ qualifications will be conducted. Interviews will be held with those offerors deemed qualified for award. Interviews will be conducted by telephone or Microsoft Teams meeting.

b. Negotiations: Following interviews, all firms selected for negotiation will receive a Request for Proposal (RFP)/solicitation with FAR and Supplemental clauses and provisions, requesting firms’ labor rates/proposals that will establish the labor rates, with annual escalation, for use throughout the IDIQ period. No pricing information shall be submitted with the SF 330.

5. QUESTIONS: All questions regarding this synopsis must be submitted in writing no later than Friday, October 20, 2023, at 4:00 PM (EST).

6. RESPONSES DUE: SF 330 responses are due to the following POC by Friday, October 27, 2023, 4:00 PM (EST).

Primary POC email: William McLaughlin, Contracting Officer, william.mclaughlin@bia.gov mailto:william.mclaughlin@bia.gov

The following documents are considered Attachments to this Synopsis/Solicitation:

Attachment 1 – SOD SOW Attachment 2 – I&P SOW Attachment 3 – SF-330