DRAFT QASP PMX 24 CPX.docx

United States Army South (ARSOUTH) Panamax 2024 (PMX 24) Command Post Exercise (CPX) Lodging, Catered meals, Ball Room/Conference Room, Laundry Services and Audio/visual 4-16 Aug 2024

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan

Cabinet # PAN410-24-P-0000-000530

NOTE: THIS QASP IS PROVIDED AS AN ATTACHMENT TO THE SOLICITATION FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. IT WILL NOT BECOME PART OF THIS CONTRACT.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Subject

1. Overview

2. Description of Services

3. Roles and Responsibilities

4. Contract Quality Requirements

5. Government Surveillance

6. Non-Conforming Performance

7. Data Analysis

8. Acceptance of Services

9. COR Status Report

10. Service Contract Reporting

11. Quality Assurance Surveillance File

12. Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS)

13. Record Retention

14. Combating Trafficking in Persons (CTIP)

15. SPOT

16. QASP Changes

410th CSB QASP V 1 Rev 2023-10

1. OVERVIEW

1.1 Purpose. The purpose of this plan is to identify the methods and procedures the Government will use to ensure it receives the services/products under this contract as identified in the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

1.2 Intent. The intent of this plan is to hold the Contractor accountable for quality control and to encourage the contractor to take appropriate steps to control and improve quality. Contractor is responsible to develop an efficient methodology to ensure they meet and/or exceed the required thresholds of service as outlined in this acquisition. The Government intends to perform surveillance on this contract in accordance with this Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP), but reserves the right to monitor the contract in any manner necessary, at any times necessary, and at all places necessary to ensure that the rendered services conform to contract requirements. The Government reserves the right to perform quality assurance at the subcontract level and perform quality assurance at the contractor's place of business, if applicable. Non-conforming services discovered with subcontractors will be addressed with the prime contractor for resolution.

2. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES

2.1 Scope of Work. The Contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, supplies, facilities, transportation, tools, materials, supervision, and other items and non-personal services necessary to provide contract lodging, catered meals, ballroom/event space, laundry services, and audio-visual services as defined in this PWS except for those items specified as government furnished property (GFP) and government furnished services (GFS). The contractor shall perform to the standards in this contract.

2.2 Contract The government anticipates the award of a firm-fixed price contract.

3. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.

Contracting Officer (KO) - A person duly appointed with the authority to enter into, administer and terminate contracts on behalf of the Government. The KO is the only person who can legally commit the Government and only the KO, as the Government’s agent, can modify the contract/order. The KO is the final authority for determining the adequacy of the Contractor’s performance. KO decisions arising under or relating to the contact are final.

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) – An individual designated in writing by the KO to perform specific technical and administrative functions within the scope and limitations of their written appointment (e.g., surveillance of Contractor’s performance, accept services). The COR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments or authorize any changes to the order/contract or in any way obligate additional funds by the Government; such authority rests solely with the KO.

Contract Administrator – Reserved.

Property Administrator – Reserved.

Alternate Contracting Officer Representative – Reserved.

4. CONTRACT QUALITY REQUIREMENTS

4.1. Quality Control Program. This Contract is being established using FAR Part 12 Acquisition of Commercial Items and FAR Part 13 Simplified Acquisition Procedures; therefore, no Quality Control Plan (QCP) is required.

4.2. Government Quality Assurance. The Government will perform Quality Assurance oversight of the Contractor and Contractor’s QCP IAW with this QASP to ensure acceptable levels of contract performance are achieved and that the contractor is performing acceptable levels of Quality Control to ensure fully acceptable services are provided.

5. GOVERNMENT SURVEILLANCE

5.1. Methods of Surveillance include but are not limited to:

· 100% Inspection - Reserved for the highest risk areas where consequence of failure is high (i.e. life or limb are threatened) or there is likelihood of mission failure.

· Random Sampling - When a service is performed relatively frequently and a statistically valid sample can be selected for audit. The most appropriate method for frequently recurring tasks.

· Periodic Sampling - Planned sampling of a service at specific predetermined dates and times. May be appropriate for tasks that occur infrequently.

· Customer Feedback – Not necessarily a valid method of surveillance but a good indicator for areas surveillance should be conducted or intensified. Negative feedback must be validate/verified by the COR.

5.2. Surveillance Schedule. The COR will develop a schedule of surveillance based on the frequency of surveillance outlined by the KO in the designation letter and in Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE)-Surveillance and Performance Monitoring (SPM). The surveillance activities will be based on the Performance Standards as outlined in the Performance Requirements Summary (PRS)(PRS will be an attachment to this QASP) as well as any other critical contractual requirements determined to be higher risk requiring oversight. The surveillance outlined in the schedule will be as detailed and in-depth as necessary to provide the Government with the objective quality evidence required to support acceptance of the services provided by the Contractor. The schedule will provide planned periodic surveillance during all required hours of the Contractor’s operation. The schedule is “FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY” and is not releasable to anyone other than authorized Government personnel. The schedule will identify the method of surveillance, the date of inspection, place of inspection, activity to be monitored, and who will conduct the surveillance (dates and times can be altered without a formal change to the schedule as long as all inspections are performed). The 410th CSB surveillance schedule shall be used to plan and scheduled surveillance. The schedule will be completed and uploaded into the SPM module prior to the surveillance period and as changes occur.

5.3. Inspection instructions/checklists. The COR will develop inspection instructions/checklists for all planned inspections which may require special instructions on how to perform the inspection, what observations should be made with specific details of what to look for acceptable performance. The 410th Surveillance Checklist shall be used for the above purpose.

5.4. Documentation of Inspections. All inspections/observations will be documented and will include as a minimum date and time, who performed the inspection, what was inspected, tested, witnessed, or verified to what standard and the results. Successful or exceptional performance will be documented as well as deficiencies in Contractor performance. Documentation will be maintained for future reference, audit, proof of inspection, and past performance documentation. The 410th Surveillance Checklist shall be used for the above purpose.

6. Non-Conforming Performance. The COR will notify the Contractor, in person, each time an unacceptable observation has been recorded and ask the Contractor to correct the problem or re-accomplish the service. All valid non-conformances observed by the Government will be documented! The COR will record the contract requirement, the specific deficiency to the requirement, the date and time it was discovered, and have the Contractor initial the entry. The Contractor will be given a time line after notification to correct the deficiency in accordance with requirements of the contract. Deficiencies that cannot be corrected within the identified time line will be reported to the KO. The approved 410th CSB nonconformance report (NCR) form shall be used to document all contractual nonconformance’ to include issues. All NCRs shall be logged into the NCR Log. Only KOs shall issue NCRs to the contractor.

6.1. Customer Feedback. Customer feedback can be in any form, verbal or written but no matter the format, the COR will maintain a record of the feedback positive or negative.

a. If immediate response to a complaint is required, the COR will provide the response to the requester as soon as practical.

b. The COR will conduct an investigation to determine the validity of any negative comments received.

c. If the negative comment is determined not to be valid, if possible, the COR will inform customer of the reason(s) as soon as practical.

d. For validated negative comments that are true contractual non-conformances see paragraph 6. If this non-conformance is a more serious (systemic in nature) deficiency or recurring deficiency that could indicate a trend the COR should see paragraph 6.2.

e. The COR will follow up with the customer of the corrective action taken by the contractor, if applicable.

6.2. Non-Conformance Reports (NCR). The COR will report more serious (systemic in nature) deficiencies or recurring deficiencies that could indicate a trend by using the 410th CSB non-conformance report. The Non-Conformance Report will state the Contract Requirement, the specific contract reference and the specific violation (s) to the requirement. The COR will forward copies of Non-Conformance Report to the QAS, within 24 hours of the Non-Conformance finding for validation and verification against the terms and conditions of the Contract, once this has been done the QAS will assign a 410th CSB NCR tracking number and forward it the KO for action. The KO will notify the Contractor and request corrective action to the specific non-conformance, identification of the root cause and corrective action for the root cause with a required suspense date. The KO may require the Contractor to re-perform any services that do not meet contract requirements at no additional cost to the Government. The Contractor will return a copy of the completed and signed Non-Conformance Report along with their Corrective Action Plan (CAP) to the KO for review, approval and inclusion in the contract/order file. The KO should include the COR in the review of the CAP and re-inspection of services that were found deficient to ensure the CAP included adequate root cause analysis, corrective action for the root cause and that it was accomplished in the timeframe agreed upon. The KO and COR will not consider the NCR closed until all deficiencies have been corrected and all agreed upon actions of the CAP have been completed. Contractor’s failure to follow through and complete corrective actions will be reported immediately to the KO for further action. (Note: if the COR has to repeatedly perform re-inspection there could be a Government re-inspection cost which could be recovered from the Contractor). The COR will also follow-up after the Contractor has completed the corrective action to ensure that the Contractor’s corrective action was sufficient to preclude recurrence.

7. Data Analysis. COR shall perform and document analysis of available data and make adjustments to surveillance schedule as required based on results of analysis. Analysis shall be used to look for and document trends in performance which may indicate shifts in performance risk that could result in increased or reduced surveillance. Data can be based on Government observations or Contractor observations. Negative trends noted using Government observations could result in the KO issuing the Contractor a Cure Notice. Trends noted using Contractor data should never result in a Cure Notice unless the Contractor is not addressing the negative trend. Documentation of data analysis will be in the COR Status Report.

8. Acceptance of Services. When all services have been deemed acceptable and there is documented objective quality evidence to support acceptable performance the COR will accept the services provided and authorize payment upon satisfactory completion of the work. This is done by approving the Contractor’s invoice in PIEE-Wide Area Workflow https://piee.eb.mil/ or DD250 (if applicable).

9. COR Status Report. By the last working day of the month, the COR will complete the PIEE-SPM Online COR Status Report Smart Form for KO review and acceptance or rejection. The COR will use the criteria listed below when rating the Contactor’s Quality of Work. In the Contactor’s Quality of Work comment box the COR will include a summary of inspections performed, summary of customer complaints, summary of contract discrepancies, recommended adjustments to surveillance and any other pertinent contract activities. In the individual question comments box, the COR will include a detailed summary of observations as it pertains to the individual question.

Contractors Quality Of Work Contractor quality of work ratings and criteria are described below:

Performance Rating Criteria

10. Service Contract Reporting. If required by the contract, the COR shall verify the Contactor has complied with the required Service Contract Reporting and document any observations.

11. COR Surveillance File: The official COR Surveillance File will be maintained in the on-line PIEE-SPM module via https://piee.eb.mil/ per DFARS 201.602-2. The COR Surveillance file shall contain the following as applicable:

a. Copy of the COR designation letter from the KO (Smart Form in SPM), any changes to that letter, and any termination letters (Smart Form in SPM).

b. Training Certifications for COR and refresher training.

c. Copy of the applicable Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP).

d. Copy of the contractor’s Quality Control Plan (QCP)

e. All correspondence initiated by authorized representatives (Contractor or Government) concerning performance of the contract.

f. Names, position titles and contact information of all key personnel assigned to this contract both Government and Contractor.

g. Surveillance schedules.

h. Surveillance checklists.

i. Records of all inspections performed and the results.

j. Customer Feedback.

k. Memoranda for record of minutes of any meeting, telephone conversations and discussions with the contractor or others pertaining to the contract or contract performance.

l. Documentation pertaining to acceptance of services, reports or data.

12. Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS). (If applicable) Documented surveillance data IAW this QASP will be used as objective data to support CPARS ratings. The inclusion of detailed documented inspection results provides objectivity to CPARS reporting. CPARS will be accomplished annually or at the end of a Task Order whichever occurs first.

13. Record Retention. All records will be retained for the life of this contract. The COR shall ensure all record are uploaded into PIEE-SPM and all hard copies shall be forward to the KO upon completion of the contract/order.

14. Combating Trafficking in Persons (CTIP). See US Department of State website, http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2012/192363.htm Tier 1 Locations, Contracting Officer Representative (COR) shall ensure contractors are in compliance with FAR 52.222-50.

For Tiers 2, 2 watch list (WL), and 3 locations, CORs shall ensure contractors are following tier 1 requirements but also will perform spot checks, reviews, assess, and speak with government representatives, contractor, and subcontractor employees to assess if there are indicators of CTIP. If indicators are identified, notify the contracting officer immediately. The 410th CSB CTIP checklist shall be used when conducting CTIP checks and surveillance.

{CTIP surveillance reporting are completed biannual, so checklists shall be submitted to your contracting officer NLT the last working day of June and NLT the last working day in November}. The contractor service requirements are summarized into performance objectives that relate directly to mission essential items. The performance threshold briefly describes the minimum acceptable levels of service required for each requirement. These thresholds are critical to mission success.

15. Synchronized Pre-deployment and Operational Tracker (SPOT) – Reserved.

16. QASP Changes. The QASP is a living document and, as such, may be changed as needed. However, the KO must approve changes. The COR will submit recommended changes to the KO for approval. Once approved, the COR will upload the newest version into PIEE-SPM.

THIS SECTION INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

Requirements Table The contractor service requirements are summarized into performance objectives that relate directly to mission essential items. The performance threshold briefly describes the minimum acceptable levels of service required for each requirement. These thresholds are critical to mission success.

Performance Objective

Corrective measures and action for Non-Conformance

1. Combating Trafficking in Persons FAR 52.222-50 c The Contractor shall Notify its employees of:

a. The United States Government's zero tolerance policy described in paragraph (b) of this clause.

b. The actions that will be taken against employees for violations of this policy. Such actions may include, but are not limited to, removal from the contract, reduction in benefits, or termination of employment.

2. Contracting Manpower Reporting CLIN XXXX

PRS # 1

The Contractor shall provide non-personal services and deliver to the Government, Lodging, Event rooms spaces, catered meals, laundry services and audio/visual equipment, as specified in Tables 1 & 2, Attachment 1-4, and Technical Exhibit 1 in coordination with the Contracting Officer (KO) and COR. The COR will be on site for coordinating activities and monitors all technical aspects of the contract and assists in contract administration.

PWS Para. 1.4 The contractor provided correct number of rooms, meals, conference room spaces as specified in Tables 1 & 2, Attachments 1-4, and Technical Exhibit 1 in coordination with the KO or COR.

PRS # 2

Meal preparations: The meals provided under this contract are only for the One-hundred Forty Four (144) Partner Nation Personnel that are covered under the contract.

The contractor shall provide daily meals in the quantities and according to the schedule as determined in table 2 below. Food shall be served in a way that adheres to safety protocols and provided in a safe manner.

PWS para. 5.9, 5.9.1, 5.9.2, 5.9.3, and 5.9.4 Contractor provided the correct number of meals according to the predetermined menus, required quantities and at the predetermined scheduled times, IAW Table 2.

Contractor accounts for all meals provided, by collecting the designated meal vouchers (attachment 4) provided by the COR and provides the COR with a daily report of meals served with validated vouchers.

PRS # 3 The Contractor shall provide Event rooms for Closing Ceremony and Farewell reception events, Event rooms shall be large enough to accommodate personnel, in accordance with attachments 2 & 3. Event rooms shall be set up according to diagrams provided as attachments 2 & 3.

PWS Para 5.10, 5.10.1 & 5.10.2

Contractor provides correct number of event room spaces at predetermined dates and times.

Contractor shall set up all event room spaces according to diagrams provided as attachments 2 & 3.

PRS # 4

The Contractor shall provide Automation, Audio/Visual (AV) services on the specified dates for the Closing Ceremony and Farewell Reception Event during the contracted period, according to diagrams provided as attachments 2 & 3. The Contractor shall provide all AV, and sound equipment, with all required power, connection cables such as HDMI, USB-C, Etc. and any other necessary peripherals to provide the services.

PWS Para 5.11, 5.11.1 & 5.11.2 Contractor provides correct type and number of AV equipment at predetermined event rooms, on the dates and times required.

Contractor shall set up all A/V equipment in the event rooms according to diagrams provided as attachments 2 & 3.

PRS # 5

Contractor shall provide laundry services only for Non US personnel only that are registered as guest under a contracted room. Laundry services shall be provided during the period of 5-15 AUG 24. The Government will only pay for actual count of bundles turned in for laundry services. Total charges for laundry services not to exceed (NTE) a total of 288 bundles (2 bundles per guest) throughout the contract period. An average size laundry bundle can be classified as ten to fifteen (10-15) pieces of laundry. Contractor shall accept any type of the following items for laundry services but is not limited to; military uniform items, civilian clothing items, to include, under garments, socks, t-shirts, shorts, and handkerchiefs.

PWS Para 5.12 Contractor shall provide wash and fold laundry services.

Contractor shall ensure laundry is returned NLT 48 hours of turn-in.

Contractor shall provide and bill for laundry services not to exceed (NTE) a total of 288 bundles (2 bundles per guest) throughout the contract period.