Combined Synopsis Solicitation No. 951700-21-R-0013 HVAC REPLACEMENT AT USAGM TRANSMITTING STATION IN KUWAIT.pdf

Construction Services – USAGM Kuwait Transmitting Station

April 27, 2021

TO: Prospective Offerors

SUBJECT: Combined Synopsis/Solicitation No. 951700-21-R-0013

ACQUISITION AUTHORITY

This acquisition is for a commercial item or service and is conducted under the authority of the Federal

Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13-Simplified Acquisition Procedures; FAR Subpart 13.5 - Simplified

Procedures for Certain Commercial Items; and FAR Part 12 - Acquisition of Commercial Items. The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition

Circular 2021-05, dated March 10, 2021.

Enclosed is a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a High Voltage Air Conditioning (HVAC) Replacement System at the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) Transmitting Station located in Kuwait, Transmitter Hall 5-

6. If you would like to submit a proposal, follow the instructions in Section 3 of the attached Request for

Proposal; complete the required portions of the attached documents, and submit your proposal via email to

Contract Specialist, Jacqueline Gray, at jgray@usagm.gov, with a copy to Contracting Officer, Tisa Harvin at tharvin@usagm.gov.

The U.S. Government intends to award a firm-fixed price (FFP) contract to the responsible offeror submitting a proposal in accordance with FAR 13.106-3(a)(1), which has been determined to be the best value to the

Government. USAGM intends to award a contract based on initial proposals received without holding discussions, although USAGM reserves the right to conduct discussions with the offeror or offerors.

Proposals are due by May 17, 2021, Not Later Than 4:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), in accordance with Section 3 of the attached Request for Proposal. Thank you for your continued support of

USAGM procurements.

Tisa Harvin, Contracting Officer

Office of Management Services/Contracts

U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM)

330 Independence Avenue, SW

Washington, DC 20237

THarvin@usagm.gov mailto:jgray@usagm.gov mailto:tharvin@usagm.gov.

mailto:THarvin@usagm.gov

USAGM Solicitation # 951700-21-R-0013

HVAC Replacement System in Kuwait

UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR GLOBAL MEDIA

HVAC REPLACEMENT SYSTEM IN KUWAIT

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

April 27, 2021

SECTION 1. SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICE/COST

Solicitation No.: 951700-21-R-0013

Title: HVAC Replacement at USAGM Transmitting Station in Kuwait

Location of Work: Kuwait Transmitting Station, Transmitter Hall 5-6

Description of Work: This is a design and build construction project for the replacement of the High

Voltage Air Conditioning (HVAC) System at the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM)

Transmitting Station, Transmitter Hall 5-6 in Kuwait.

All work shall be performed in accordance with the requirements and specifications described in the following attachments to this solicitation.

1. Attachment B – Statement of Work

2. Attachment C – Concept Drawings – Shortwave Building HVAC Replacement System

3. Attachment D – Preliminary HVAC Equipment Selections

Estimated Price Range: In accordance with FAR 36.204, Disclosure of the Magnitude of Construction

Projects, the estimated price range for this project is between $250,000 and $500,000.

NAICS Code: 238220 – Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors

Period of Performance: In accordance with FAR 52.211-10 Commencement, Prosecution, and

Completion of Work, the Government requires completion of construction within three hundred and sixty-five (365) calendar days after Notice to Proceed (NTP).

Utilities: In accordance with FAR 52.236-14 Availability and Use of Utility Services (Apr 1984), when available, the Government will provide reasonable amounts of Electricity, Lighting, Heat, Ventilation, telephone service, water, and sanitary facilities for the work to be performed under this contract at no cost to the contractor.

Record Drawings: In accordance with FAR 52.236-21 Specifications and Drawings for Construction, record shop drawings are required. Reproducible copies of these record drawings are also required.

Basis for Award: This contract will be awarded on a firm-fixed price basis pursuant to FAR 16.2, and prices will not be adjusted due to fluctuations in currency exchange rates. The proposed contract will be awarded to the responsible offeror whose proposal represents the best overall value to the

U.S. Government, after evaluation in accordance with the following factors;

1. Compliance Review

2. Technical Knowledge and Capabilities

3. Past Performance

4. Price

Bond Requirements: Pursuant to FAR 52.228-15 Performance and Payment Bonds-Construction, performance and payment bonds are required from the awardee within fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the notice of award.

Proposal Due Date: Proposals are due no later than May 17, 2021 at 4:30 PM Eastern Daylight

Time (EDT). ***LATE PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.***

Proposals shall be submitted via e-mail to the address and Point of Contact below:

U.S. Agency for Global Media, Office of Contracts

Attn: Jacqueline Gray, Contract Specialist

Subj: RFP No. 951700-21-R-0013

E-mail: jgray@usagm.gov, with copy to Tisa Harvin, Contracting Officer at tharvin@usagm.gov.

***Facsimile copies will NOT be accepted.***

Please allow sufficient time for your proposal to be received prior to the proposal due date. All e-mail submissions shall be sent with a subject line of “RFP No. 951700-21-R-0013.”

Site Visit: A site visit may be conducted by appointment only for all interested offerors on May 5th and

May 6th, 2021. Due to local pandemic restrictions, no more than two (2) people from each company are allowed to attend the site visit.

Facility Access Requests: To access the station, offerors will need to provide the following credentials prior to arrival:

1. Copies of Civil ID

2. Copies of Vehicle Registration

All requests for site visit shall be submitted via email to Gunter Schwabe, Jr., gschwabe@usagm.gov, with copy to Sharmila Fernandes at SFernandes@usagm.gov, at least one (1) day prior to your requested site visit appointment.

Request for Information (RFIs): Offerors who determine that the requirements of this RFP require clarification(s) in order to permit submittal of a responsive proposal shall submit all questions in writing.

All inquiries must be made in writing and shall be submitted via email to Jacqueline Gray, with copy to

Tisa Harvin, no later than 4:30 PM EDT on Monday, May 10, 2021 with inquiries attached as a Word document. Inquiries made after May 10th will not be answered. Do not submit the same inquiry more than once. Please verify that inquiries submitted by you on behalf of your subcontractors are not duplicates. All Government responses will be published via an amendment to the solicitation.

SECTION 2. CONTRACT CLAUSES

See Section I of Standard Form 1442 (Attachment A)

SECTION 3. SOLICITATION PROVISIONS (INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS)

See Section L of Standard Form 1442.

mailto:jgray@usagm.gov mailto:gschwabe@usagm.gov, mailto:gschwabe@usagm.gov, mailto:SFernandes@usagm.gov

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS

Submission of Offers:

To ensure timely and equitable evaluation of proposals, offerors must follow all instructions contained in

Section L - Solicitation Provisions, and this subpart. The offeror’s quote must be complete, sufficient and respond directly to the requirements of this solicitation and the specifications therein. It will be the sole responsibility of the offeror to ensure that its proposal is received by the Government at the stated deadline date and time. The offeror’s proposed price must be quoted in U.S. Dollars.

Specific Instructions:

Each offer must consist of the following:

A completed solicitation, SF1442 (Attachment A). Pages 2 and 4 of the SF 1442 must be completed.

Volume 1 – Technical Volume.

o The Technical Volume shall reflect that the offeror fully understands the specific and unique requirements of the solicitation and by discussing how it proposes to satisfy the Statement of Work. Offeror’s proposal should demonstrate sound technical competency in support of the key requirements of the Statement of Work.

The offeror must also describe its technical knowledge and experience as it pertains to the Statement of Work.

The Technical Volume must also contain the following:

o Name and qualifications of the Project Manager who understands written and spoken English;

o Evidence that the offeror operates an established business with a permanent address and telephone listing;

o List of three (3) clients over the past five (5) years, demonstrating prior experience with similar projects of the same size & complexity (provide dates of contracts, places of performance, value of contracts, contact names, telephone and email addresses). If the offeror has not performed comparable services in Kuwait then the offeror shall provide its international experience. Offerors are advised that the past performance information requested above may be discussed with the client’s contact person. In addition, the client’s contact person may be asked to comment on the offeror’s:

Quality of work provided under the contract;

Compliance with contract terms and conditions;

Effectiveness of management;

Willingness to cooperate with and assist the customer in routine matters, and when confronted by unexpected difficulties; and

Business integrity / business conduct.

The Government will use past performance information primarily to assess an offeror’s capability to meet the contract performance requirements, including the relevance and successful performance of the offeror’s work experience. The Government may also use this data to evaluate the credibility of the offeror’s proposal.

o Evidence that the offeror can provide the necessary personnel, equipment, supplies, materials, and financial resources needed to perform the work;

o The Offeror shall address its plan to obtain all licenses, permits and registrations, required by local law. If the Offeror already possesses the locally required licenses and permits, a copy shall also be provided.

The Offeror’s proposal may only be submitted by email in response to this solicitation. The contents therein must be properly tabbed, organized and legible. The electronic proposal must be submitted in two separate files as follows:

File No. 1, Volume 1- Technical Proposal

File No. 2, Volume 2 - Completed Attachment E - Offeror Price Sheet (Excel Format).

Offeror’s proposal including both Volumes 1 and 2, shall not exceed 35 pages, font size 12. Failure to follow this instruction will render Offeror’s proposal non-compliant.

Proposals that fail to include required information or reject the terms and conditions of the solicitation will be considered non-compliant; and may be excluded from consideration.

Offerors agree to hold firm the prices in its offer for one hundred twenty (120) calendar days from the deadline date specified in the solicitation for receipt of offers. This will be a firm-fixed-price contract, and will not be adjusted.

An authorized representative of your company must complete the SF1442 as instructed and sign block

30b of the SF 1442, and all supporting documents or the proposal may be considered non-compliant, and may be excluded from consideration.

SECTION 4. EVALUATION FACTORS

The Government intends to award a firm-fixed price construction contract to the responsible Offeror whose proposal represents the best overall value after evaluation, in accordance with the factors listed below.

The Government will select for award the most advantageous proposal representing the best overall value to the Government, based upon an assessment of non-price factors (e.g., Compliance, Technical

Knowledge and Capabilities, Past Performance) and Price. All evaluation factors other than price, when combined, are considered significantly more important than price.

The Government intends to evaluate proposals and may award a contract without discussions, however, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions if determined by the Contracting Officer to be necessary. Therefore, each initial offer should contain the contractor’s best proposal from both a price and a technical standpoint.

Proposals received in response to this solicitation will be evaluated by the Government in accordance with the evaluation criteria set forth herein.

The relative importance of the evaluation factors is as follows:

Non-price factors shown are in descending order of importance.

All evaluation factors other than price when combined are significantly more important than price.

Price has not been assigned a numerical weight. Offerors are reminded that the Government is not obligated to award a contract on the basis of lowest proposed price, or to the contractor with the highest technical evaluation score. Although for this procurement, technical proposal merits are considered substantially more important than price when deciding which contractor might best perform the work, pricing factors, and USAGM’s budget may also be considered.

a) Factor 1: Compliance Review. The Government will perform an initial review of proposals/offers received to determine compliance with the Terms and Conditions of the solicitation. The Government may reject as non-responsive any proposal, which does not conform to the solicitation requirements/instructions.

b) Factor 2: Technical Knowledge and Capabilities. Evaluation of offeror’s technical knowledge and capabilities will be based on how well the offeror proposes to satisfy the

Statement of Work. Evaluation of Offeror’s technical knowledge and capabilities will also include a review of the proposed Project Manager; Past Performance/Experience

(and references); personnel, tools/equipment, supplies/materials and; licenses, permits and registration; etc. , , as defined in Section 3, along with any technical information provided by the Offeror with its proposal.

The Government will evaluate the Technical Knowledge and Capabilities Factor by using the following adjectival ratings.

Adjectival Description

Exceptional Greatly exceeds all minimum requirements of the criteria; has a high probability of success; contains no weaknesses or deficiencies.

Good Exceeds all the minimum requirements of the criteria; has an above average probability of success; contains no significant weaknesses and only minor, correctable weaknesses exist.

Acceptable Meets all the minimum requirements of the criteria; has an average probability of success; no significant weaknesses and any deficiencies can be readily corrected.

Marginal Fails to meet one or more of the minimum requirements of the criteria; low probability of success; major weaknesses and/or significant number of deficiencies exist.

Poor Fails to meet any of the minimum requirements of the criteria; proposal needs major revisions; very low probability of success.

c) Factor 3: Past Performance. The Past Performance Factor evaluation will assess the relevance and breadth of the offeror’s experience and the quality of the offeror’s past performance. The Government is seeking to determine whether the offeror has experience that will enhance its technical capability to perform and whether the offeror consistently delivers quality services in a timely and cost-effective manner. In evaluating past performance, the Government will only take into consideration the relevant experience and past performance assessments from the offeror's customers. However, the Government reserves the right to use other relevant past performance information it obtains through other sources including other agency databases and information contained in trade literature.

Relevance of Experience: The offeror’s experience will be evaluated on the degree of relevance to the requirement on the basis of similarity in size, scope, complexity, technical difficulty, contract type, and period of performance. Only recent experience within the last five (5) years will be evaluated. Evaluations may include interviews with previous clients of the contractor and may include interviews with previous clients of proposed personnel.

Past Performance Assessments: The offeror’s past performance will be evaluated on the basis of information contained in the offeror's proposal and the information that the

Government obtains through other means. The past performance evaluation will assess the offeror’s record of providing high quality services of a similar nature in a manner that ensures maximum efficiency, timeliness, cost effectiveness and overall client satisfaction.

If some of the offeror’s experience is relevant and the rest is not, only the relevant experience will be evaluated for purposes of past performance. If no experience is relevant or the experience that is relevant cannot be evaluated due to a reference’s failure to respond, a rating of neutral will be assigned for past performance.

The Government will evaluate the Past Performance Factor using the following adjectival ratings.

Rating Symbol Definition

Neutral N No past performance available for evaluation. Offeror has asserted it has no equal or similar relevant past performance experience.

Proposal receives no merit or demerit for this factor.

Outstanding O The Offeror’s past performance demonstrates no issues, concerns, or risks associated with delivering timely services and performance. Past performance surveys and the Offeror’s experiences indicate that the

Offeror is capable of exceeding requirements of the contract. The

Contractor has significant experience with equal requirements.

Good G The Offeror’s record of past performance indicates there is very little risk associated with receiving quality products, timely services and full contract performance. Past performance surveys and the Offeror’s experience indicate the Offeror will meet or exceed requirements of the contract. The Contractor has experience with equal requirements.

Acceptable A The Offer’s record of past performance indicates that there is some potential risk associated with receiving quality products, timely services, and contract performance. Past performance surveys and the

Offeror’s experience indicate the Offeror may have some problems during performance of the contract. The Contractor has limited experience with equal requirements.

Unsatisfactory U The Offeror’s record of past performance indicates it will be unable to perform successfully on the contract.

d) Price. The Government will evaluate the offeror’s total price to determine price reasonableness. For a price to be reasonable, it must represent a price to the Government that a prudent person would pay when consideration is given to prices in the market.

Normally, price reasonableness is established through adequate price competition, but may also be determined through cost and price analysis techniques as described in FAR

Part 13. The offeror shall submit its total firm-fixed pricing for all items it proposes to complete this requirement on the Offeror Price Sheet included with this solicitation as Attachment E.

e) Best Value Determination. The best value will be determined by evaluating the offeror’s compliance with the terms and conditions contained in the solicitation;

Technical Knowledge and Capabilities; Past Performance/Experience, and Price. The

Government will also make a responsibility determination (see FAR 9.1) as well.

f) Selection for Award. Offerors should be aware that the Government shall perform a

“best value analysis” and the selection for award shall be made to the offeror whose proposal is found most advantageous to the Government, taking into consideration the technical factors listed above and the total proposed price.

SECTION 5. REPRESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS

52.204-7 System for Award Management (Oct 2018)

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision—

“Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) indicator means a four-character suffix to the unique entity identifier. The suffix is assigned at the discretion of the commercial, nonprofit, or Government entity to establish additional System for Award Management records for identifying alternative EFT accounts (see subpart 32.11) for the same entity.

Registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) means that–

(1) The Offeror has entered all mandatory information, including the unique entity identifier and the EFT indicator, if applicable, the Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, as well as data required by the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency

Act of 2006 (see subpart 4.14) into SAM;

(2) The offeror has completed the Core, Assertions, and Representations and Certifications, and Points of Contact sections of the registration in SAM;

(3) The Government has validated all mandatory data fields, to include validation of the

Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The offeror will be required to provide consent for TIN validation to the Government as a part of the SAM registration process; and

(4) The Government has marked the record “Active”.

Unique entity identifier means a number or other identifier used to identify a specific commercial, nonprofit, or Government entity. See www.sam.gov for the designated entity for establishing unique entity identifiers.

(b) (1) An Offeror is required to be registered in SAM when submitting an offer or quotation, and shall continue to be registered until time of award, during performance, and through final payment of any contract, basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchasing agreement resulting from this solicitation.

(2) The Offeror shall enter, in the block with its name and address on the cover page of its offer, the annotation “Unique Entity Identifier” followed by the unique entity identifier that identifies the Offeror's name and address exactly as stated in the offer. The Offeror also shall enter its EFT indicator, if applicable. The unique entity identifier will be used by the Contracting Officer to verify that the offeror is registered in the SAM.

(c) If the offeror does not have a unique entity identifier, it should contact the entity designated at www.sam.gov for establishment of the unique entity identifier directly to obtain one. The offeror should be prepared to provide the following information:

(1) Company legal business name.

(2) Tradestyle, doing business, or other name by which your entity is commonly recognized.

(3) Company physical street address, city, state, and Zip Code.

(4) Company mailing address, city, state and Zip Code (if separate from physical).

(5) Company telephone number.

(6) Date the company was started.

(7) Number of employees at your location.

(8) Chief executive officer/key manager.

(9) Line of business (industry).

(10) Company headquarters name and address (reporting relationship within your entity).

(d) Processing time should be taken into consideration when registering. Offerors who are not registered in SAM should consider applying for registration immediately upon receipt of this solicitation.

See https://www.sam.gov for information on registration.

https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-32-contract-financing#i1080713 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-4-administrative-and-information-matters#i1121746 http://www.sam.gov/ http://www.sam.gov/ https://www.sam.gov/

(End of provision)

52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance. (Oct 2018)

(a) Definitions. As used in this clause—

Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) indicator means a four-character suffix to the unique entity identifier. The suffix is assigned at the discretion of the commercial, nonprofit, or Government entity to establish additional System for Award Management (SAM) records for identifying alternative EFT accounts (see subpart 32.11) for the same entity.

Registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) means that–

(1) The Contractor has entered all mandatory information, including the unique entity identifier and the EFT indicator (if applicable), the Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, as well as data required by the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006

(see subpart 4.14), into SAM;

(2) The Contractor has completed the Core, Assertions, Representations and Certifications, and

Points of Contact sections of the registration in SAM;

(3) The Government has validated all mandatory data fields, to include validation of the Taxpayer

Identification Number (TIN) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The Contractor will be required to provide consent for TIN validation to the Government as a part of the SAM registration process; and

(4) The Government has marked the record “Active”.

System for Award Management (SAM) means the primary Government repository for prospective

Federal awardee and Federal awardee information and the centralized Government system for certain contracting, grants, and other assistance-related processes. It includes–

(1) Data collected from prospective Federal awardees required for the conduct of business with the

Government;

(2) Prospective contractor-submitted annual representations and certifications in accordance with

FAR subpart 4.12; and

(3) Identification of those parties excluded from receiving Federal contracts, certain subcontracts, and certain types of Federal financial and non-financial assistance and benefits.

Unique entity identifier means a number or other identifier used to identify a specific commercial, nonprofit, or Government entity. See www.sam.gov for the designated entity for establishing unique entity identifiers.

(b) If the solicitation for this contract contained the provision 52.204-7 with its Alternate I, and the

Contractor was unable to register prior to award, the Contractor shall be registered in SAM within 30 days after award or before three days prior to submission of the first invoice, whichever occurs first.

(c) The Contractor shall maintain registration in SAM during contract performance and through final payment of any contract, basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchasing agreement.

The Contractor is responsible for the currency, accuracy and completeness of the data within SAM, and for any liability resulting from the Government's reliance on inaccurate or incomplete data. To remain registered in SAM after the initial registration, the Contractor is required to review and update on an annual basis, from the date of initial registration or subsequent updates, its information in SAM to ensure it is current, accurate and complete. Updating information in SAM does not alter the terms and conditions of this contract and is not a substitute for a properly executed contractual document.

(d) (1) (i) If a Contractor has legally changed its business name or “doing business as” name

(whichever is shown on the contract), or has transferred the assets used in performing the contract, but has https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-32-contract-financing#i1080713 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-4-administrative-and-information-matters#i1121746 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-4-administrative-and-information-matters#i1121869 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#i1063838 not completed the necessary requirements regarding novation and change-of-name agreements in subpart

42.12, the Contractor shall provide the responsible Contracting Officer a minimum of one business day's written notification of its intention to—

(A) Change the name in SAM;

(B) Comply with the requirements of subpart 42.12 of the FAR; and

(C) Agree in writing to the timeline and procedures specified by the responsible Contracting

Officer. The Contractor shall provide with the notification sufficient documentation to support the legally changed name.

(ii) If the Contractor fails to comply with the requirements of paragraph (d)(1)(i) of this clause, or fails to perform the agreement at paragraph (d)(1)(i)(C) of this clause, and, in the absence of a properly executed novation or change-of-name agreement, the SAM information that shows the Contractor to be other than the Contractor indicated in the contract will be considered to be incorrect information within the meaning of the “Suspension of Payment” paragraph of the electronic funds transfer (EFT) clause of this contract.

(2) The Contractor shall not change the name or address for EFT payments or manual payments, as appropriate, in SAM record to reflect an assignee for the purpose of assignment of claims (see FAR subpart 32.8, Assignment of Claims). Assignees shall be separately registered in the SAM. Information provided to the Contractor’s SAM record that indicates payments, including those made by EFT, to an ultimate recipient other than that Contractor will be considered to be incorrect information within the meaning of the “Suspension of Payment” paragraph of the EFT clause of this contract.

(3) The Contractor shall ensure that the unique entity identifier is maintained with the entity designated at www.sam.gov for establishment of the unique entity identifier throughout the life of the contract. The Contractor shall communicate any change to the unique entity identifier to the Contracting

Officer within 30 days after the change, so an appropriate modification can be issued to update the data on the contract. A change in the unique entity identifier does not necessarily require a novation be accomplished.

(e) Contractors may obtain additional information on registration and annual confirmation requirements at https://www.sam.gov. (End of clause)

52.204-19 Incorporation by Reference of Representations and Certifications (Dec 2014)

The Contractor’s representations and certifications, including those completed electronically via the

System for Award Management (SAM) are, incorporated by reference into the contract. (End of clause)

SECTION 6. ATTACHMENTS

ATTACHMENT A – Standard Form 1442 (Solicitation No. 951700-21-R-0013)

ATTACHMENT B – Statement of Work (SOW)

ATTACHMENT C – Concept Drawings – Shortwave Building HVAC Replacement System

ATTACHMENT D – Preliminary HVAC Equipment Selections

ATTACHMENT E – Offeror Price Sheet https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-42-contract-administration-and-audit-services#i1074581 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-42-contract-administration-and-audit-services#i1074581 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-32-contract-financing#i1081453 https://www.sam.gov/