Combined Solicitation Synopsis - Gathright Dam Water Sampling.pdf

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—Norfolk District

Combined Synopsis – Solicitation Gathright Dam Water Sampling

This is a combined synopsis – solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 12.6 and subpart 13 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotations are being requested. Solicitation No.

W9123625Q1398 is issued as a Request for Quotations (RFQ). This solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2024-05 effective May 22, 2024.

NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION STANDARD CODE (NAICS):

The applicable NAICS Code is 541380. The small business size standard is $19,000,000.00. This solicitation is issued as Full and Open Competition. All responsible business sources may submit a quotation, which shall be considered by the agency.

It is anticipated that one (1) firm fixed price contract will be awarded as a result of this synopsis – solicitation.

SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS:

Attachment 1: Applicable Provisions and Clauses Attachment 2: Statement of Work Attachment 3: Contract Line Item Schedule Attachment 4: Wage Determination

REQUIRED SUBMITTALS:

1) Completed Contract Line Item Schedule (Attachment 3) with supporting price documentation.

2) Signed Solicitation Amendments (if applicable)

3) Technical information requested, outlined below.

POINTS OF CONTACT:

Amy Herrera Coody Contract Specialist 757-201-7883 amy.h.coody@usace.army.mil

Stormie Wicks Contracting Officer 757-201-7215 stormie.b.wicks@usace.army.mil mailto:amy.h.coody@usace.army.mil mailto:stormie.b.wicks@usace.army.mil

Solicitation No. W9123625Q1398

Anthony Lockridge Contracting Officer’s Representative 540-962-9261 anthony.l.lockridge@usace.army.mil

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE:

The term of this contract is for one (1) base year with four (4) option years, if exercised by the Government.

Contractors that have this capability are invited to submit quotations in accordance with the requirements stipulated in this solicitation.

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE:

The samples will be taken from the vicinity of Gathright Dam and Lake Moomaw Project by District personnel and picked up from Gathright Dam in Virginia by the contractor, to be transported to the laboratory for analysis.

LOCATION:

Gathright Dam 605 Coles Mountain Road Covington, Virginia 24426

QUESTIONS:

Submit all technical inquiries and questions relating to the solicitation via Bidder Inquiry to ProjNet at www.projnet.org/projnet.

To submit and review announcement inquiry items, prospective applicants will need to be a current registered user or self-register into the system.

To self-register, go to the ProjNet web page, click the “Managing Agency” drop down, then select “USACE” for the agency and enter your email. On the same page, enter the Key Access code (provided below), agree to the privacy policy, and click “Sign In” to continue. On the next screen, fill in all required information and click “Add User.” Last, verify the information is correct and click to continue.

Once logged in, you may view all prospective applicant inquiries or add an inquiry. Only one question will be allowed per inquiry. If multiple questions are included in a single inquiry, only the first question will be answered. All others will remain unanswered until entered in as single inquiries.

The Project ID is: W9123625Q1398 The Bidder Key Access Code is: 666BJ4-NJ4TXP

The Bidder Inquiry System will be closed to new inquiries on 10 calendar days prior to quotation due date in order to ensure adequate time is allotted to form an appropriate response and amend the solicitation, if necessary.

mailto:anthony.l.lockridge@usace.army.mil http://www.projnet.org/projnet

All submitted questions will be responded to via ProjNet and an amendment issued prior to the closing date.

Offerors are requested to review the specification in its entirety and review the Bidder Inquiry System for answers to questions prior to submission of a new inquiry.

See the ProjNet Help page at https://projnet.org/projnet/binKornHome/index.cfm?strKornCob=HelpDeskInfo for assistance through phone using the Call Center or email using the Online Help option if needed.

WAGE DETERMINATION:

Service Contract Act Wage Determination No. 2015-4337, Revision No. 28 (last revised 12/23/2024)

SCHEDULE OF WORK:

Please see Statement of Work for specifications.

SUBMISSION OF QUOTES:

E-mail quotations shall be sent to the Contract Specialist. Please indicate W9123625Q1398 in the subject line.

Contractor must affirm that the pricing provided from the quote shall be valid for 90 days from quote submission. Quotes are due by 2:00 p.m. EST 03 March 2025.

STATEMENT OF REQUIREMENT:

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers–Norfolk District requires a contract for Gathright Dam Water Sampling, as detailed in Attachment 2 – Statement of Work. Contractor shall provide all labor, materials, necessary to meet the requirements of the specification.

EVALUATION CRITERIA:

The Government anticipates selecting the best suited contractor from initial responses, without engaging in exchanges with contractors. Contractors are strongly encouraged to submit their best technical solutions and price in response to this RFQ.

Once the Government determines the contractor that is the best-suited (i.e., the apparent successful contractor), the Government reserves the right to communicate with only that contractor to address any remaining issues, if necessary, and finalize a contract with that contractor. These issues may include technical and price. If the parties cannot successfully address any remaining issues, as determined pertinent at the sole discretion of the Government, the Government reserves the right to communicate with the next best-suited contractor based on the original analysis and address any remaining issues.

The Government will select the quote that is most advantageous to the Government based on the following factors, in descending order of importance:

1. Technical Capability

2. Past Performance

3. Price

Technical and past performance, when combined, are significantly more important than price.

https://projnet.org/projnet/binKornHome/index.cfm?strKornCob=HelpDeskInfo

Technical Capability. To ensure that Offerors are technically capable of performing the required work, Offerors are required to submit the below:

Laboratory Accreditation. The analytical laboratory shall maintain accreditation under the National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Conference/Program (NELAC/P). A copy of the accreditation shall be included in the submission.

* If the prime contractor intends to meet this requirement through an intended subcontractor, the submittal shall include letters of unequivocal commitment on behalf of the intended subcontractor and a copy of the subcontractor’s accreditation. The letters shall state that if awarded the contract, the subcontractor agrees to perform the work as defined in the solicitation.

In the event that the successful contractor is required to seek a substitution of the subcontractor, the contractor must request prior approval from the Contracting Officer. The contractor must demonstrate that the substitute possesses equal capability as the predecessor.

Past Performance. Past performance will be evaluated in accordance with FAR 13.106-2(b)(3). No additional documentation required to be submitted.

Price. Offerors are required to provide pricing as requested in Attachment 3 – Contract Line Item Schedule. The contractor’s price should represent the best price in response to the request for quote. The price will be evaluated to determine fairness and reasonableness. Additional detailed information may be required to determine price reasonableness.

The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).

CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION

I. Invoice Payment Instructions A. WHEN TO SUBMIT. The contractor must first:

1. Receive a fully-executed purchase order

2. Provide the requirements, and

3. Have ACTIVE status in the System for Award Management (SAM) at https://www.sam.gov

B. INVOICE CONTENT. Each invoice must contain the following information:

1. Invoice Date

2. Invoice Number

3. Purchase Order Number or Contract Number or Contract and Delivery/Task Order Number

4. Contractor’s Name

5. Contractor’s Address

6. Contractor’s DUNS

7. Contracting Officer’s Name

8. Contracting Officer’s Representative’s (COR’s) Name (if applicable)

9. Period of Performance for Work Invoiced

10. Contract Line Item Number(s) (CLIN(s)) and Description (if applicable)

11. CLIN units for the period (if applicable), CLIN rate (if applicable), CLIN Total (if applicable)

12. For Travel: Components in accordance with FAR 31.205-46 (if applicable)

13. Invoice Total

14. Discount Offerings

15. Status as a Small Business (if applicable) for accelerated payment

16. The last invoice submitted for this award must be clearly labeled with “FINAL INVOICE.”

NOTE: A request for payment is proper if it includes the items required by the clause at FAR 52.232-25, Prompt Payment [(a)(3)(i) through (a)(3)(ix), with common items captured in the list above] and those items are accurate. If a request for payment does not include all the items required by the clause at FAR 52.232-25, Prompt Payment, or any information is inaccurate, then the request is not proper and will be returned to the contractor with a statement of the reason(s) it is not proper.

C. HOW TO SUBMIT.

1. Invoices shall be submitted and billing inquires shall be directed to

Anthony Lockridge Contracting Officer’s Representative 540-962-9261 anthony.l.lockridge@usace.army.mil

D. PROMPT PAYMENT INFORMATION. In accordance with the Prompt Payment Act, for the purposes of determining a payment due date and the date on which interest will begin to accrue if a payment is late, a proper invoice date is:

1. On the later of:

a. For invoices that are mailed, the date a proper invoice is actually received by the designated billing office and annotates the invoice with date of receipt at the time of receipt.

b. For invoices electronically transmitted by the contractor via web based submission, the date a transmission is received by the designated billing office, and receipt confirmation is provided to the designated recipient; or

c. The seventh day after the date on which the property is actually delivered or performance of the services is actually completed; unless—

i. The agency has actually accepted the property or services before the seventh day in which case the acceptance date must substitute for the seventh day after the delivery date; or

ii. A longer acceptance period is specified in the contract, in which case the date of actual acceptance or the date on which such longer acceptance period ends must substitute for the seventh day after the delivery date;

2. On the date placed on the invoice by the contractor, when the agency fails to annotate the invoice with date of receipt of the invoice at the time of receipt (such invoice must be a proper invoice);

or

3. On the date of delivery, when the contract specifies that the delivery ticket may serve as an invoice.

4. Web-based submission by the contractor and receipt confirmation does not reflect Government review or acceptance of the invoice.

E. Failure to follow any of these instructions will result in invoice rejection.

II. Contractor Performance Assessment Report (CPAR)

A. GENERAL. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will monitor and evaluate the successful contractors past performance of this contract and prepare a Contractor Performance Assessment Report (CPAR) in accordance with FAR Part 42.1502. All information contained in this assessment may be used, within the limitations of FAR 42.1502, by the Government for future source selections and in accordance with FAR 15.304, when past performance is an evaluation factor for award.

B. NOTIFICATION. Upon completion of the contract, the contractor will be notified of the assessment.

The contractor will be allowed 60 days to respond to the assessment of its performance entered into CPARS. The contractor’s response, if any, will be made part of the CPAR system.

C. INFORMATION. Information included in the CPAR may include, but is not limited to, the contractor’s record of conforming to contract requirements and to standards of good workmanship; the contractor’s record of forecasting and controlling costs; the contractor’s adherence to contract schedules, including the administrative aspects of performance; the contractor’s history of reasonable and cooperative behavior and commitment to customer satisfaction; the contractor’s record of integrity and business ethics, and generally, the contractor’s business-like concern for the interest of the customer.

D. RELEASE OF DATA. CPARS information is considered business sensitive and will not be released except:

(1) to other Federal procurement activities which request it; (2) when SFLC must release pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request; or (3) when prior written consent is requested and obtained from the contractor.

SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

FAR provision 52.229-11 and FAR clause 52.229-12

FAR provision 52.229-11 and FAR clause 52.229-12 are included in this solicitation. This provision and clause concern the imposition of a 2 percent Federal excise tax withholding on any resultant contract award or payment request. This rule applies to Federal Government contracts for goods or services that are awarded to foreign persons – such as foreign contractors. It implements the Department of the Treasury’s final regulations published in the Federal Register at 81 FR 55133 on August 18, 2016, under section 5000C of the Internal Revenue Code relating to the 2 percent tax on payments made by the U.S. Government to foreign persons pursuant to certain contracts.

Pursuant to the FAR 52.229-3 Federal, State, and Local Taxes, taxes imposed under 26 U.S.C. 5000 C may not be included in the contract price or reimbursed.

Exemptions from this excise tax must be claimed by an Offeror when it submits, with its offer, a U.S.

Department of Treasury Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form W-14, Certificate of Foreign Contracting Party Receiving Federal Procurement Payments, available via the internet at www.irs.gov/W14. If not submitted with the offer, exemptions will not be applied to any resulting contract and the Government will withhold a full 2 percent on each contract payment. Failure to submit an IRS Form W-14 with each payment request will also result in an automatic withholding of 2 percent from the payment request.

When filling out the IRS Form W-14 the following information may be used to complete Part I, Lines 6 and 7.

Line 6 Contract/reference number: W9123625Q1398

Line 7 “Name and address of the acquiring agency”: USACE–Norfolk District, 803 Front Street, Norfolk, Virginia 23510

Any exemption claimed and self-certified is subject to audit by the IRS. Any disputes concerning this tax are adjudicated by the IRS because the Section 5000C tax is a tax matter not a contract issue.

Offerors are encouraged to seek guidance from their own tax professionals for advice concerning the provision, clause, and exclusions exclusion/submission of IRS Form W-14. Additional information is also available at:

Notwithstanding the above, the USACE does not have a means of withholding this excise tax at this time. As a result, contractors are expected to comply with the instructions above and to properly complete and return the W-14 at proposal submission, and with each pay application. Whether the contractor sets the money aside for future payment to the IRS, or makes payment to the IRS, is the contractor’s discretion, based on its analysis of the regulations regarding the excise tax. In the event that USACE is able to withhold during contract performance, it will notify the contractor and make such a withholding (including any catch up withholdings);

no advance notice is required to the contractor prior to the withholding. Under no circumstances is USACE liable for any tax not paid by the contractor. The contractor is liable for the tax, to the extent required by law, regardless of whether USACE makes a withholding.

FAR 29.204 expressly states that “[a]gencies merely withhold the tax (section 5000C tax) for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). All substantive issues regarding the underlying section 5000C tax, e.g., the imposition of, and exemption from the tax, are matters under the jurisdiction of the IRS.” Therefore, we cannot help you determine how the tax law applies to you. We strongly recommend that you contact the IRS and/or a tax professional should you have any questions of this nature. To be clear, this information does not constitute tax advice or a representation of your tax liability. Furnishing this information does not create liability for the USACE for any Federal, state, or local taxes applicable to the above-referenced contract or any other contract.

For submission requirements and basis of evaluation:

Executed FAR Provision 52.229-11.

Completed IRS Form W-14, Certificate of Foreign Contracting Party Receiving Federal Procurement Payments, if applicable. If not submitted with the offer, exemptions will not be applied to any resulting contract and the Government will withhold a full 2 percent on each payment.