Instructions_to_Offerors_-_Historical_Research_Services_02182015_(1).docx

RFP No. D15PS00176 – Historical Research Services March 13, 2015 Contents

1. General Information The attached solicitation is for a single award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity Contract for Historical Research Services. Throughout the life of this contract, the Department of the Interior (DOI) anticipates awarding Firm Fixed Price or Time and Materials/Labor Hour Task Orders depending upon the nature of the requirements in the individual Task Order. The Period of Performance will be a 12 month base period and four (4) 12 month option periods.

1.1. Schedule of Events

The following Schedule of Events is included for your guidance. Although every effort will be made to strictly adhere to this schedule, the DOI reserves the right to change these dates as necessary.

Table 1 – Schedule of Events

1.2. Costs Incurred by Responding to the Solicitation

The government shall not reimburse any costs incurred by recipients of this solicitation documentation resulting from the formulation a proposal or response to this solicitation.

1.3. Commitment

The Contracting Officer is the only individual who can legally commit the Government to the expenditure of public funds in connection with the proposed procurement. Any other commitment, either explicit or implied, is invalid.

1.4. Contracting Approach

The contract will be procured under the FAR Part 13 competitive acquisition procedures. The contract will have a 1-year base period and 4 1-year options. The procurement will result in a single IDIQ contract.

1.5. Source Selection Approach

The Government intends to award a single contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Offeror whose conforming proposal is evaluated to be most advantageous and determined to be the best value to the Government, price/cost and other factors considered, and in accordance with the evaluation criteria. “Best Value” means the expected outcome of an acquisition that, in the Government’s estimation, provides the greatest overall benefit in response to the requirements. The Government may award the contract without discussion unless the Contracting Officer determines that discussions are necessary. In addition, the Government reserves the right to award no contract at all, depending on the quality of the proposals, the availability of funding, and the continued existence of the requirement.

The Government intends to award Task Orders 1 and 2 (Attachments 4 and 5, respectively) concurrently with the IDIQ contract, but reserves the right to make no task order awards depending on the quality of the proposals, the availability of funding, and the continued existence of the requirement. Instructions to Offerors below provides additional details regarding specific proposal content for both the IDIQ and Task Orders.

1.6. Questions Regarding the RFP

All questions concerning this RFP must be sent via email to the Contracting Office by 5:00pm MST on 20 March 2015. Offerors should not expect the DOI to answer any questions received after this date and time. The Offeror or source of the question will not be posted.

All questions shall be emailed to:

Cynthia Chick, Contracting Officer E-mail: cynthia_s_chick@ibc.doi.gov Phone: 303-969-7198

The Contracting Officer (CO) is the sole points of contact for this acquisition. Address any questions or concerns you may have to the CO.

1.7. Prospective Subcontractors

All prospective subcontractors contacted by your firm in any manner should be expressly advised in writing that no solicitation on your behalf shall be construed in any manner to be an obligation on your part to enter into a subcontract with said subcontractor or to result in any claim whatsoever against the United States Government for reimbursement of costs for any efforts expended by said subcontractor regardless of whether or not your firm is successful in receiving a contract as a result of this proposal.

1.8. Discrepancies

If an offeror believes that the requirements in these instructions contain an error, omission, or are otherwise unsound, the offeror should notify the CO in writing with supporting rationale. The offeror is reminded that the Government reserves the right to award this effort based on the initial proposal, as received, without discussions.

1.9. Omissions

Failure to submit any of the information requested by this solicitation may be cause for unfavorable consideration.

1.10. Proposal Delivery

Prior to the preparation of your proposal submission, please read all instructions contained herein. Your response shall be clearly stated, complete and provide a straightforward, concise, delineation of the services being offered to satisfy this solicitation. All proposal information shall be submitted not later than 5:00PM MST April 3, 2015 to the Contracting Officer. Offerors who do not meet the delivery deadlines defined in Table 1 may be excluded from the competition and their proposals may not be accepted. Proposals submitted after the date and time specified will be considered LATE in accordance with FAR 52.215-1(3), Submission, Modification, Revision, and Withdrawal of Proposals, and may be rejected by the Government.

The proposals shall be emailed to:

Cynthia Chick, Contracting Officer E-mail: cynthia_s_chick@ibc.doi.gov Phone: 303-969-7198

2. Issuance of Task Orders Individual Task Orders will be solicited and awarded as requirements arise. Task Orders will specify the work to be performed and the negotiated cost/price for that specific task order. The Contractor shall perform all services in accordance with the task order Statement of Work. The terms and conditions set forth in the IDIQ contract will always apply. The contract type will be specified in the Task Order Proposal Request (TOPR). Period of performance of a Task Order may extend past the IDIQ contract’s end date for a period not to exceed one (1) year. The TOPR process is described in further detail in Section 3.

3. Ordering Procedures Any services to be furnished under this Contract shall be ordered through the CS or CO by issuance of a Task Order (TO). Such orders may be issued at any time during the effective period of the Contract. The Government reserves the right to determine which pricing type to utilize for each TO. This will be determined on a task-by-task basis.

Each TO for services will be initiated through a Task Order Proposal Request (TOPR) or Task Order Quote Request (TOQR) requesting a technical and price proposal from the Contractor for the services described in the task SOW.

All orders under this contract shall be performed in accordance with the SOW for the contract and contractual terms and conditions. The Government does not anticipate large volumes of documentation in response to a TOPR or TOQR and will identify page limitations in each solicitation. Each TOPR or TOQR will identify a schedule of events to include a period for questions and answers, proposal submission date, a period for Government evaluation, and negotiation between the Contractor and Government, if necessary. Funding for the task will be provided at time of task award.

All Task Orders are subject to the terms and conditions of this contract. In the event of conflict between a TO and this Master Contract, the Master Contract shall take precedence.

4. Proposal Content and Format The following instructions establish the acceptable minimum requirements for the format and content of proposals.

4.1. Authorized Official and Submission of Proposals

The proposal must be signed by an official authorized to bind the organization and should stipulate that it is predicated upon all of the terms and conditions of this RFP.

4.2. Proposal Preparation Instructions

This section is provided to assist Offerors in the preparation of a proposal in response to this solicitation. These instructions are not intended to restrict the Offeror’s proposal effort.

Any company proprietary data included in proposals must be clearly identified as such. Each page that contains proprietary data shall be marked at the top and bottom of the page. The front and back covers of each proposal volume that contains proprietary data shall also be marked.

4.2.1. Proposal Contents and Organization

The proposal volumes, titles, maximum pages, hardcopies required, and other related information are listed below. Each volume shall be written on a stand-alone basis, so that its contents may be evaluated with a minimum of cross-reference to other volumes. Information required for proposal evaluation that is not found in its designated volume will result in an unfavorable proposal evaluation. Offerors shall comply with the submission requirements below.

Table 2: Proposal Content and Organization

IDIQ Contract

Task Order 1

*BOE excluded from page count on Task Order response.

For each volume listed above, Offerors shall submit one (1) electronic softcopy.

The format of proposal volumes shall correlate directly and sequentially with the instructions contained herein. The Government's intent is to obtain, brief, specific information upon which to evaluate the Offeror.

4.2.2. Proposal Format

To aid in the evaluation, all proposals shall follow the same general format. Page limitations on the proposal are described in Table 2. All pages submitted by Offerors in excess of the limitations contained in these instructions will be removed and returned to the contractor by the Contracting Officer. Excess pages will not be considered during evaluation of the proposal.

4.2.3. Page Format

A page is defined as each face of an 8-1/2 x 11-inch sheet containing information. Use 1 inch margins on the top and bottom and 1 inch left and right margins. Two pages may be printed on one sheet of paper (front and back will be counted as two pages). All material must be contained within the page limit identified for each volume or appendix, unless otherwise specified. Partial pages count as a full page for page limitation purposes. All pages within a page-limited volume shall be consecutively numbered, starting at page one, and not exceeding the page limitation. The CO will remove and return pages submitted by Offerors in excess of the limitations contained in these instructions without evaluation.

4.2.4. Text

Type size shall be 12 point Arial or Times New Roman standard font. Text lines shall be single-spaced. Line spacing before and after a heading shall be "double spaced". Typesetting, font compression, or other techniques to· reduce character size or spacing are not permitted and are considered a deliberate attempt to circumvent the page limitations. This includes setting the paragraph line spacing, a feature of MS Word, "exactly at 12 point". No pen and ink changes are allowed. Two column presentation and use of bold face type for paragraph headings is acceptable. 8-point font is permissible in the header and footer.

4.2.5. Cost/Price Information

Cost/Price information data shall be included in Volume III and V only. Any pages outside of Volume III and V with price information will be removed and destroyed by the Contracting Officer without being evaluated.

4.2.6. Page Count Exceptions

Each page of the written volumes shall be counted, including appendices and annexes, except: blank pages, title pages, tables of content, tables of illustrations, and appendices that include a list of acronyms, glossary of terms, measurement units, and cross-reference matrices. Pages not in the page count shall be numbered with Roman numerals (e.g. iv). Excepted pages shall not contain additional or inappropriate information, and if such is found, these pages will be removed by the CO and returned to the Offeror without evaluation.

4.3. Specific Proposal Volume Instructions

As indicated in Section 1.5, the Government intends to evaluate and award Task Order 1 concurrently with the IDIQ contract. Offerors shall submit a separate technical and cost proposal for the IDIQ and Task Order (i.e. One IDIQ and one task order would result in a total of 2 technical proposals and 2 price proposals).

4.3.1. IDIQ Contract Proposal Instructions

4.3.1.1. Volume I – Executive Summary

The Executive Summary shall present an overview of the Offeror's proposal. An effective Executive Summary will function as a proposal "roadmap" and will help the Government evaluator understand the Offeror's overall approach to satisfying the requirements of the RFP. The Executive Summary shall highlight the Offeror's proposal strengths and capabilities that make them uniquely qualified to perform the work.

4.3.1.2. Volume I – Technical

The offerors must describe its capability to perform the following: conduct historical research; identify, search and collection of documents relating to individual Indians and Indian tribes; interact with BIA, BLM, SOL, DOJ, certified public accountants, and other experts on research projects involving Indian trust accounting; compile, organize, and summarize historical documentation for multiple audiences and through different mediums; write comprehensive and thoroughly documented historical studies that adhere to scholarly standards, including citation standards; compile and organize geographic information services (GIS) data, create new GIS datasets, applying existing geoprocessing models to produce summary statistics, and completing quality assurance processing of GIS results.

4.3.1.3. Volume II – Past Performance

In this volume the offeror shall provide evidence of successful past performance on contracts of similar technical scope, size, and complexity. Offerors shall submit Volume II, past performance information, no later than the date and time specified in Section 1.1. If no relevant past or present performance exists send an email to the CO stating that no relevant past or present performance exists to the following email address: Cynthia_S_Chick@ibc.doi.gov no later than the date and time specified for receipt of the Past Performance Volume.

The offeror is responsible for ensuring all information provided in the Past Performance Volume is current, accurate, and complete. Current data regarding points of contact for the proposed relevant contracts is particularly important.

Offerors must address instances of problems/challenges in referenced contracts and explain how these problems/challenges were resolved. Failure by an offeror to satisfactorily explain past performance problems may have an adverse effect on the evaluation of past performance. Offerors are encouraged to submit information on any awards or commendations received regarding their past performance since these could have a positive effect on the past performance evaluation.

Specific submission instructions are provided below:

Relevant Contracts

The offeror shall submit information on 3 relevant, recent contracts completed or ongoing by the offeror during the past 3 years and with at least 12 months of performance/execution time within those three years. The offeror shall include past performance that reflects relevance to requirements of the solicitation on the basis of similarity in size, scope, complexity, technical difficulty, contract type, dollar value and period of performance. In the event a sub-Contractor(s) is proposed, past performance information must be provided for sub-Contractor(s) performing more than 25% of the proposed price. Additionally, performance of less than six months from the date of this solicitation will not be considered due to limited performance history of those efforts. Prime contract performance information is preferred; however, subcontract performance information by an offeror or its subcontractors may be submitted, provided the work performed is relevant. Any predecessor companies or company names that were being used during the performance of the contracts shall be included.

The contracts listing (both completed and current) shall be provided in descending order of relevancy (i.e., the most relevant contract is #1, second most relevant is #2, etc.). If the offeror chooses to team, no more than six (6) contracts for the team will be provided. The prime contractor shall provide an estimated percentage of performance break down of the team by team member, if applicable, on a separate page of the Past performance Volume. This page will be an exception to the page count limit.

For all contracts listed, offerors shall provide the following information, not to exceed two pages for each contract. A template is provided as Attachment 2 for completion by the offeror and any subcontractors that meet the criteria above.

· Company/Division name, DUNS Number, and Cage Code

· Program title

· Contract number, Delivery Order, Task Order number

· Type of contract (e.g., firm-fixed-price, cost-reimbursable)

· Contracting Agency/Customer

· Original contract value and current value and reason for difference

· Fee Structure: Amount awarded vs. amount available for award, and provide an explanation for any differences in the amounts

· Date of Award, Period of Performance, original completion date and current completion date

· Name, address, and telephone number of the current Government Program Manager, COTR/COR, Contracting Officer (include both Administrative and Procuring CO, if applicable) for Government contracts or Name, address, and telephone number or Customer Program Manager and Business Administrator for non-Government contracts.

· Program Details to include the role of the company (Prime, Sub, JV, etc.), the nature of the work and how the work is relevant to this requirement.

· Summarize major achievements, successes, innovations and awards that were accomplished during contract performance, as well as any major problems/challenges encountered and corrective actions taken to resolve them during the period of performance of the contract

· Percentage and nature of the work to be performed by the entity on the present acquisition and their role

Past/Present Performance Questionnaire Responsibilities

The offeror shall forward the past/present performance questionnaires, Attachment 3, to each of the individuals listed as requested in the past performance information. The questionnaires are due to the Contracting Officer at the same time as the rest of the past performance volume. The offeror shall email a list of the names and telephone numbers to the Contracting Officer at the time the questionnaires are sent to those references. The email subject should read: “Past Performance references for RFP No. D15PS00176”.

The offeror shall track the completion of the questionnaires. The offeror shall exert its best efforts to ensure at least two points of contact (POC) per contract submit completed questionnaires by the time of past performance volume submission. It is not the Government's responsibility to contact POCs for questionnaires not returned and received by the cutoff date.

4.3.1.4. Volume III – Cost/Price

Information beyond that required by this instruction shall not be submitted unless you consider it essential to support your cost/price position. All information relating to the proposed price including all required supporting documentation must be included in the section of the proposal designated as the Cost/Price volume. Under no circumstances shall this information and documentation be included elsewhere in the proposal.

Offerors shall submit Time and Materials (T&M) and Firm Fixed Price (FFP) Labor Rate Tables (see sample tables below). The offeror shall provide loaded hourly rates (rates inclusive of all indirect costs, i.e. overhead, G&A, profit, as well as all direct labor costs), for all labor categories necessary to support the requirements identified in the IDIQ Statement of Work throughout the life of this contract. The offeror shall also submit a Pricing Matrix to map offeror labor categories and labor rates to the Government labor categories as identified in the Statement of Work.

Sample Format – Please see sample format for labor prices below. The offeror shall provide pricing for each proposed labor category. Should rates vary per option year of the contract, the offeror shall identify the option year for these rates.

Table 3 – T&M and FFP Loaded Hourly Rates Pricing – T&M/FFP

Engineering Services Title*

Engineering Services Title*

* To be determined/Completed by offeror

4.3.2. Task Order Proposals

4.3.2.1. Technical – Task Order 1

The Government intends to award a Time-Material/Labor-Hour task order. The period of performance for the task order is anticipated to be 180 days from date of award. The offeror shall provide a complete and feasible approach for Task Order 1. The offeror’s approach shall address, at a minimum, the following:

· Description of the tasks to be performed

· The type of labor category or skill mix to be used for the task

· Rationale and data supporting realism of the estimated hours.

All labor hour tabulations shall include totals and subtotals as appropriate.

A single consolidated Basis of Estimate (BOE) shall be submitted addressing prime and subcontract labor, material, and other Other Direct Costs (ODC) for each year of the period of performance as appropriate. Although the BOE will be consolidated, prime, subcontract, and interdivisional effort shall be separately identified and separable. The basis of estimate SHALL NOT include actual rates or detailed cost data. Rates and cost data shall be contained in the cost volume only.

The BOEs shall include detailed information showing how proposed estimates were developed for each year of the period of performance including explanations of judgmental factors and specific ratios or percentages of actual amounts from other contracts. It shall also include support for realism of proposed amounts, such as a description of the procedure by which the estimated amounts were developed, similarity to previous or current contracts, results of independent parametric analyses, and other types of reasonableness checks. The BOE shall be excluded from the page count for the Sample Task responses.

Do not combine labor categories into a composite category. The Government requires visibility into the labor/skills mix inherent in the proposal in order to evaluate completely.

4.3.2.2. Price

The Contractor shall use the Government-provided Pricing Table to develop the Task Order Price proposal. The Contractor shall use 1920 hours as a full time man-year. The Contractor shall propose labor categories necessary to meet the objectives of the project. Each labor category proposed shall contain a description of the duties and skills required for the category. The Contractor shall map proposed labor categories to Government labor categories.

4.3.2.2.1. Explanation of Estimating Methods Used

Explain the methodology used to estimate each cost/price element. As a minimum, provide the following information for each cost/price element as shown in the paragraphs below. If a portion of the required information is not applicable for a particular cost/price element, so state.

4.3.2.2.2. Experience-Based Estimates

Where estimates are based upon past experience identify the past experience; explain how the past experience relates to the current effort, including similarities and differences; and explain how cost/price data available from the past experiences was adapted to the current effort.

4.3.2.2.3. Labor Hour Skill Mix

Explain how the proposed labor hour skill mix has been derived.

4.3.2.2.4. Labor Hours

If labor hours have been estimated based upon other than past experience and/or learning curve application, provide detailed rationale on how they have been estimated. If standards have been used, identify and explain how they were derived and state whether or not they have been used on other programs. If other than normal procedures were used to estimate hours, explain.

4.3.2.2.5. Estimated Start Date

For pricing purposes, the contract start date is estimated to be 1 May 2015.

4.3.2.2.6. Price Volume Format

Each cost/price proposal shall include a Table of Contents and page numbers. Provide the following information on the first page(s) of your cost/price volume:

· Solicitation number

· Name and address of offeror

· Name and telephone number of point of contact

· Type of contract

· Proposed cost/price, profit or fee, and total

· Whether you will require the use of Government property in the performance of the contract, and, if so, what property

· Date of submission

· Name, title and signature of authorized representative

· A statement that the proposal is valid for a period of not less than one hundred and twenty (120) days from the proposal submission date

Summary Per Task Order The Price Volume shall contain a summary of labor hours and other summary information supporting the proposed price for each task. Offerors shall submit each task price summary in accordance with the template below and include the following information in total and for each year of the period of performance.

Table 4 – Price Summary

Total Hours by Labor Category

FTE by labor category

Direct Labor Dollars by Labor category

Labor related indirect costs by indirect pool

Subcontract s Dollars

Interdivisional Dollars

Travel

Material/Other Direct Costs

G&A

Cost Basis for Fee

Cost of Money

Total Costs

Proposed Profit

Price

Direct Labor This section of the cost proposal shall summarize proposed labor hours, FTEs, rates, and dollar amounts by labor category in total. The offeror shall include a table of all direct labor rates proposed by contractor fiscal year and identify the source of the rate and provide the date of the source.

It is incumbent on the contractor/subcontractor to provide some reasonable and verifiable means of determining rate realism. If other than standard bidding rates are used (e.g.. composite or actual rates), include a detailed explanation of why, and an appropriate means for verification of the proposed rate(s), including how the rate(s) were calculated and a mapping of the proposed labor rates to the offeror 's forward pricing rates.

Direct labor escalation factors and their basis shall be disclosed and a sample calculation provided demonstrating application of the factor to direct labor.

The offeror, subcontractor, and interdivisional entities shall disclose the hours per year for one FTE used in their proposals. Offerors shall disclose whether any portion of the direct labor rates are attributable to uncompensated overtime. Shift differentials and overtime premiums, if applicable, shall be identified separately and justified.

Indirect Rates & Factors This section of the cost proposal shall identify proposed indirect rates and factors by contractor fiscal year and fully explain the base to which each rate is applied. It is incumbent on the contractor/subcontractor to provide some means of determining rate realism. If other than standard bidding rates are used, the offeror shall include a detailed explanation why, and provide mapping of the proposed rates to its standard bidding rates. The offeror shall include a table of all indirect rates and factors proposed by contractor fiscal year and identify the source of the rates and provide the date of the source.

Subcontracting Any interdivisional, subcontractor, or team member proposals shall adhere to the provisions of this volume. Subcontractors or team members may submit their proposals directly to the Government to avoid providing proprietary pricing information to the prime contractor. The cost proposal shall include a summary of the proposed probable subcontracts and interdivisional transfers and option(s) showing:

· The contractor/supplier

· Description of the item

· Description of services

· Type of contract and date of definitization (if applicable)

· Value

· Hours by associated task

· Engineering estimates

· Copy of the subcontractor's cost proposal or interdivisional transfer (if applicable)

· Summary of performance, schedule and/or cost incentives contemplated/or the subcontractors

· Summary of offeror's cost or price adjustment to amounts in the subcontractor's proposal

Travel Contractor travel and allowable expenses shall be proposed in accordance with Federal Travel Regulations (FTR). The Government will not reimburse travel expenses or travel time for travel to and from the contractors' assigned locations. The Government will reimburse all reasonable travel-related expenses and client directed travel on a cost-reimbursable basis.

Material/Other Direct Costs (ODC) This section of the cost/price proposal shall include a summary of the proposed probable material and ODC 's :

· Description of the item

· Description of item or services and identification of who is supplying the item or service

· Quantity

· Unit price

· Total Price The summary shall include subtotals by proposed cost element (e.g., material and ODC) and identify indirect cost rates applied to the cost element. No profit shall be added to material costs.

4.3.2.3. Instructions for Time and Materials / Labor Hour Task Order The Offeror shall provide a time and materials price for all work, including travel and materials based on the Federal fiscal year. Estimated costs for materials and travel shall be listed separately. Travel expenses will be reimbursed as incurred based upon Federal Joint Travel Regulations.

Offeror shall break out price* in sufficient detail to analyze the elements of price. Price reasonableness and price/cost realism will also be examined.

*Sample Format – Please see sample format for labor prices below. The offeror shall provide pricing for each proposed labor category. Should rates vary per option year of the contract, the offeror shall identify the option year for these rates.

Table 5 –T&M/Labor Hour Loaded Hourly Rates

Pricing – T&M/Labor Hour

The offeror shall also provide a rate build-up for each labor category expected to perform work on T&M/Labor Hour tasks in a table similar to the one provided below.

Table 6 – T&M/Labor Hour Rate Build-up Table by Labor Category

Direct Labor ($)

Labor Related Indirect Costs (By Indirect Pool)

Subtotal ($)

G&A ($)

Cost Basis for Fee ($)

Total Cost ($)

Proposed Fee/Profit %

Total Cost/Price ($)

NOTE 1: Additional cost elements shall be included in the summaries if necessary to reflect the contractor’s rate build-up structure.

4.3.2.4. Instructions for Firm Fixed Price Task Order

Offeror shall provide a firm fixed price for all work, including travel and materials based on the Federal Fiscal Year. A separate estimate should be provided for travel expenses, which shall be reimbursed as incurred based upon Federal Joint Travel Regulations. Offeror shall provide a cost breakdown structure* in sufficient detail to analyze the elements of price. Price reasonableness will also be examined. Estimated costs for materials and travel shall be listed separately. The Offeror shall identify a payment schedule linked to delivery and acceptance of deliverables. Payment will be made to the Contractor only as segments of the project are delivered and accepted by the Government. If no payment schedule is proposed, the Contractor will be paid in one lump sum after all services have been provided and accepted. The evaluation will be based on the total price, including the travel estimate.

*Sample Format – Please see sample format for labor prices below. The offeror shall provide pricing for each proposed labor category. Should rates vary per option year of the contract, the offeror shall identify the option year for these rates.

Table 7 –FFP Loaded Hourly Rates

Pricing – FFP

The offeror shall also provide a rate build-up for each labor category expected to perform work on FFP tasks in a table similar to the one provided below.

Table 8 – FFP Rate Build-up Table by Labor Category

Direct Labor ($)

Labor Related Indirect Costs (By Indirect Pool)

Subtotal ($)

G&A ($)

Cost Basis for Fee ($)

Total Cost ($)

Proposed Fee/Profit %

Total Cost/Price ($)

NOTE 1: Additional cost elements shall be included in the summaries if necessary to reflect the contractor’s rate build-up structure.