Draft SOO for Pouch and Mail Services 2 Nov 2022.docx

SAQMMA14R0145

SAQMMA14R0145

STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES FOR CLASSIFIED AND UNCLASSIFIED POUCH AND MAIL SERVICES

(DRAFT)

Table of Content

Prohibited Items …………………………………………………………………. 8

Purpose The purpose of this contract is to obtain classified and unclassified diplomatic pouch and mail services for the U.S. Department of State using a performance-based arrangement.

Background The U.S. Department of State (DoS), Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management’s (A/LM) mission is to support U.S. diplomacy by providing efficient, economical, high-quality services to customers worldwide, so they, in turn, can create a more secure, prosperous, and democratic world for the benefit of the American people. Though A/LM is in a supporting role, its importance is paramount. The overall mission of DoS could not be accomplished without the material and services support provided by A/LM.

A/LM exists to support its customers worldwide. The customers are primarily from DoS, such as embassies, consulates, and domestic offices, but also include members of other U.S. Government Agencies involved in foreign affairs and operations Diplomatic Pouch and Mail (DPM) is a division within A/LM, whose mission it is to manage and execute the operation of mail and pouch distribution in support of DoS. The DPM operation is the largest single federal mail operation outside of the USPS (more than 10 million pounds per year) and its volume is growing. The DPM operation services approximately 260 overseas customer locations and is partially funded through an inter-agency council. It is A/LM’s goal to provide the highest quality service to its 20,000 plus individual customers, such that when given the choice, customers will choose A/LM as the premier service provider for all of their logistics support requirements.

Services provided under this contract also support the ICASS (International Cooperative Administrative Support Services program) which is a program through which the U.S. Government provides and shares the cost of common administrative support at posts overseas. ICASS is managed by DoS and supports a number of other agencies.

Requirements Organizational Support Services The Diplomatic Pouch and Mail Services acquisition provides support to three current lines of business within A/LM/PMP/DPM:

1) Unclassified Pouch and Mail operations facility near Dulles airport in Sterling, VA (SA32),

2) Classified Pouch and Mail operations facility in Springfield, VA (SA8), and

3) Internal Mail and Messenger Service (IMMS) operations to and from the Harry S. Truman

Minimum core hours for each location are 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday.

The State Department Logistics Management Division coordinates the Department’s worldwide supply chain activities, which include transportation, travel management, distribution and diplomatic pouch and mail on a worldwide basis, as outlined in the Foreign Affairs Manual under 1FAM215. Diplomatic Pouch and Mail (DPM) is a division within the Logistics and Management Division, (A/LM), whose mission is to manage and execute the operation of mail and pouch distribution in support of DoS and the Foreign Affairs Community. The DPM operation is the largest single federal mail operation outside of the USPS. DPM operations service approximately 260 overseas customer locations with additional DPO service to Iraq. Per guidance from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (attached), DPM employees are considered critical essential personnel.

Due to the critical nature of the DPM mission, during this COVID-19 pandemic, employees are expected to exercise “social distancing” to the maximum extent possible. As such, personnel are temporarily being divided and spread amongst two shifts to ensure the continuity of operations and safe distancing. There are no additional operational changes at this time.

The scope of this contract does not directly cover IMMS (Ability One Contractor) operations described as the third business line above. However, the contractor is expected to interface and coordinate with IMMS, as required to ensure overall effective, seamless transparent and responsive mail services to all State Department customers.

Objectives DoS seeks a performance-based professional services contractor to provide diplomatic pouch and mail services in support of DoS customers. These services are performed in close coordination with DoS internal staff and customers. DoS encourages innovative solutions to meet these objectives.

The objectives of this effort are to:

· Form a cooperative relationship with a contractor to provide proactive solutions, encourage cross-functional operational support and staff training, and value continuous process improvement.

· Provide insight into mail operations and process engineering including a deep understanding of addressing schemes, bar-code technology, mail metering, zip codes and sorting techniques.

· Provide accurate receiving, sorting, pouching and handling resources for processing packages and mail to the correct customer in a timely, consistent, secure, undamaged and accountable way at a reasonable cost.

· Effectively operate Government-developed safety and security screening procedures.

· Provide dispatch to Government-provided freight forwarders and in the case of classified diplomatic pouch operations, the Diplomatic Courier Service.

· Provide efficient integration and utilization of Government provided automated sorting technology over the term of the contract period including letter, flat mail and package sorters and the DoS logistics tracking IT system of record.

· Align workforce to seasonal volume fluctuations, changes due to sorter automation and automated system developments, and ensure sufficient (cleared as needed) personnel are available in times of need.

· Adjust quickly to emerging terrorist threats, natural disasters, or civil unrest that may affect diplomatic pouch and mail activities or facilities, both domestically and overseas.

· Ensure compliance with workplace safety and environmental regulations and standards as defined by organizations including but not limited to: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

· Ensure compliance with governing regulations and standards for the transportation of goods CONUS and OCONUS defined by organizations including but not limited to: Department of Transportation (DOT), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Constraints Security -- The workforce deployed to process classified diplomatic pouches will require Top Secret - Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS-SCI) security clearances for the classified pouch and mail processing operations.

The unclassified pouch will require background check; no security clearance is required. Supervisors at the unclassified operations in SA32 must possess TS clearances so they can deal with situations that arise (e.g., Registered Mail can contain up to Secret).

Vehicles --The contractor shall be authorized to utilize a government owned vehicle (GOV). The contract shall report all damages occurred in operation of the GOV to the supervisor, who will notify the COR. The service provider (SP) shall be responsible for all damages occurred during the operation of the GOV that was caused by the contractor. The contractor shall have a valid Driver's License. Minimum three (3) years' prior experience driving. Have a driving record with no more than ONE safety violation or at-fault accident in the past twelve (12) months, no more than TWO (2) in the past-THREE (3)-years, and no more than THREE (3) pointcurrently. Drivers shall have NO DUI(s) or DWI(s) in the past five (5) years or have a negative result on pre-employment and periodic screenings.

Safety Shoes-- The contractor is required to provide safety shoes to its employees at the following locations Washington DC, Springfield VA, and Sterling VA. The safety shoes must comply with The federal government's standard, 29 CFR 1910.136(a), issued by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), which states: "The employer shall ensure that each affected employee uses protective footwear when working in areas where there is a danger of foot injuries due to falling or rolling objects, or objects piercing the sole, or when the use of protective footwear will protect the affected employee from an electrical hazard, such as a static discharge or electric-shock hazard, that remains after the employer takes other necessary protective measures."

OSHA suggests protective footwear be worn in situations involving the following:

- corrosive or poisonous materials

- electrical hazards

- static electricity that could cause an explosion

- heavy objects that could roll onto feet

- sharp objects that could puncture the foot

- molten metal that could splash onto feet

- hot or slippery surfaces

Mail room locations where the contractors must provide safety shoes to its employees are;

2) SA-32 44132 Mercure Circle, Sterling VA, 20166

3) SA-8 7000 Loisdale RD, Springfield VA, 22150

Ordering Instructions:

The contractor will solicit at least three quotes and recommend for award the lowest price technically acceptable offer meeting the minimum Government requirement. Along with the three quotes, the contractor will submit in writing to the COR for acceptance and approval of the recommended choice prior to purchasing.

The approval documents/invoice shall include the contracted employee associated with the purchase. Also, if the contracted acquired property (safety boots) is destroyed, lost or rendered unusable within 1 (one) year from time of purchase or expiration of the contract, whichever comes first, the vendor is responsible for replacement at no additional cost to the government.

Current Environment Unclassified Pouch and Mail Processing Mail volumes vary by year and by season within the year. The following attachments provide data representing the last three full years of volume:

Inbound Mail includes mail and commercial courier shipments coming from a number of sources including local DoS annexes, other local ICASS Agencies, USPS and commercial carriers like UPS, FedEx, etc. Inbound mail is processed from the transporting trucks, unloaded, scanned into the automated system of record, and prepared for further handling. Bulk mail is separated from letters, flat mail, and parcels.

Hazard Testing is accomplished in specially designed containment rooms. This process is applied to multiple rolling bins and bulk items loaded into limited room space. The hazard testing is done in recurring batches until completed. There is a constant vigilance for suspected prohibited items. Parcels suspected of containing prohibited items are placed in rolling bins which are loaded in preparation for further Hazard Testing. The exact details of this process are classified.

Mail Processing continues after the mail is cleared from the hazard testing. The mail is moved to the respective floor areas dedicated to each type of mail processing to effectively sort it by DoS destinations. Each mail type has its own process of handling, sorting, automated system logging, and staging.

Letter and Flat Mail Processing –. Tubs of mail are processed with the automatic letter sorter which batches the mail for each destination. There is a manual exception handling procedure for unreadable addresses which are then viewed individually and delivered to its proper destination. The sorted letter mail is then wrapped in bundles and the bundle for each Post is then placed in tubs to be place on the automated parcel sorter Large bins of flat mail ((magazines, periodicals, marketing, etc.) are hand sorted into separate tubs by destination then also placed on the automated parcel sorter.

Parcel Processing – The parcels are sorted in two separate manners for each of the 260 DoS worldwide destinations. Those parcels that fit on the automated parcel sorter are inducted at two different encoding stations where the four-digit post specific numeric code is input into a computer for a sortation label to be added to the parcel. The automated parcel sorter will then sort the parcel based on the sortation label and direct that parcel to the machines appropriate staging lane. The parcels that do not fit on the automated parcel sorter are manually hand sorted to the staging destination location. In the staging area, pouches are loaded, scanning each item as it is entered. The inventory is printed and inserted into the pouch, then sealed, tagged, scanned and logged in ILMS. Diplomatic pouches are prepared in accordance with the dispatch schedule for freight forwarder pickup. Some high traffic destinations may be prepared every other day. Some low traffic destinations may be prepared once a week. The completed pouches are staged near the loading docks for freight forwarder pickup.

Bulk Shipments Processing – The processing of bulk shipments, or a parcel(s) in excess of six cubic feet addressed to one agency/office/person whether official or personal, includes consideration of each parcel’s payment status. Official bulk shipment with standing fiscal strips indicate prepayment and can be processed immediately with the appropriate freight forwarding company assigned to move this shipment. Those without prepayment must await payment confirmation before further processing. Those that remain unpaid after a predetermined wait time are returned to sender. Personal bulk shipment requires funding to be provided by the customer to the appropriated freight forwarding company assigned to move their shipment. Once payment is confirmed, bulk shipments are sorted for each DoS destination and packed for special pouching. These special pouches are uniquely created for each item or grouping of items. Each item is logged in the automated system of record as the pouches are assembled. The pouches are then sealed, tagged, scanned, and logged in the automated system of record. The special pouches are prepared in accordance with the dispatch schedule for freight forwarder pickup. Completed pouches are staged near the loading dock.

Retrograde Pouch Processing – refers to pouches coming back from any of the 260 worldwide DoS locations.. Once delivered to SA-32, these pouches are handled as Inbound Mail, and further sorted by the destination Agency (DoS, DHS, DIA, FBI, etc.), outbound carrier (USPS, UPS, Fedex, etc.) or overseas destination. USPS destined mail from DoS must be metered or shipped by commercial courier (UPS).

Accountable mail - must be signed for and expedited for further delivery.

Pouch Returns – includes handling of empty pouches returned from the 260 worldwide DoS locations.

Safety – there is a constant vigilance required to maintain safe warehouse operations. Contractors provide their own safety training and are expected to participate in any DoS provided training. All safety procedures and requirements defined by DoS for each location will be mandatory.

Prohibited Items – there is a constant vigilance for prohibited items. A list of prohibited items is maintained and updated by the unclassified pouch and mail organization.

Hazardous Material – there is a constant vigilance for a variety of hazardous material. All operational personnel must be aware that hazardous material cannot be shipped in in pouches. Once discovered the items must be rejected and returned to the sender.

Classified Pouch and Mail Processing Incoming mail arrives at the Springfield facility from a variety of participant agencies and via the DoS mail transportation trucks provided under this contract. Deliveries occur anytime between the hours of 7:00-3:30pm, unless special arrangements are made in advance for a later or earlier delivery.

The classified deliveries are accounted for in a chain of custody process, receipted, and logged in the automated system database tracking application. Accuracy and security are paramount. They are then sorted in the facility specially designed for this purpose. The mail is sorted by destination – a total of over 260 overseas posts.

The individual pieces are then aggregated into appropriately sized pouches. An invoice is generated in the automated system for each pouch and placed inside the pouch. The pouches are sealed and tagged and made ready for dispatch to the Diplomatic Courier Service.

Inbound pouches are also received from the Courier Service, pouches opened as necessary and individual items sorted for local DoS or ICASS Agency destinations. The records of each pouch’s inventory are checked and logged in the automated system. An invoice is then printed for each customer’s material and a signature is acquired at pick-up.

Government Furnished Property The Department of State intends to provide the following as Government Furnished Property (GFP) to be used by the contractor in the performance of this contract:

Letter/Flats Sorter (or) Tritek Multi-Level Mail Sorter: This is an existing letter and flats sorting machine capable of processing 10,000 pieces of mail per hour. The sorting machine is configured with 124 sortation bins, automated/manual induction feeder, and dual camera imaging synced to sortation plan software to accomplish the final sort.

Letter/Flats Biological Screening Machine (or) Tritek Bio Check Sorter: There are two existing letter and flats biological screening machines with one machine located in Containment Room A and one located in Containment Room B. This machine is configured with three collection pockets, an automated/manual induction feeder, and a sampling head that collects air samples through an associated dry filter unit to be later used with other technologies to test for biological contaminations.

Automated Parcel Sorter: This is an existing automated parcel sorter that includes two intakes with two encoding stations to enable bar-coding of mail to scanned and sorted to 12 discharge areas where mail is pouched. Sorter also includes 11 storage conveyors to stage mail for future sortation.

Government Issue Equipment includes Forklifts, pallets, and material handling equipment Training: Contractor will provide regular training to all staff on the use and proper maintenance and use of items needed to complete the work.

X-Ray Machine- contractor will only load and retrieve packages. Will not operate the machine.

Performance Requirements See Attachment X for Performance Requirements.

Deliverables Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) - Final plan to be negotiated and approved between DPM and Contractor at the kickoff meeting. A draft QASP must be submitted with the proposal.

QASP will be reviewed and updated by DPM and the Contractor each new period of performance and is due to the Contracting Officer within 15 days of Option being exercised.

The Performance Requirements Pouch and Mail Services attachment contains 24 metrics on which the successful contractors must report. These metrics should be part of the QASP requested above. Additional metrics proposed by the contractors to measure the successfully implementation of the award is welcome.

Monthly report that will discuss accomplishment of prior month, any issues that impact performance of the contractor, personnel issues, new hires and planned activities for the following month must be presented on a agree format among the Contractor and the COR.

Proof of Automobile Liability Insurance due to the Contracting Officer and Contracting Officer Representative within 10 days of award/

MARKING OF REPORTS

All reports delivered by the Contractor to the Government under this contract shall prominently show on the cover of the report:

(a) Name and business address of the Contractor.

(b) Contract number and delivery order number, if applicable;

(c) Date of report; and

(d) Program office(s).

(e) All reports become the property of the Department. Reports shall not contain any markings or legends which restrict the Department's use of such reports in any way.

DATA PACKAGING REQUIREMENTS

(a) All unclassified data shall be prepared for shipment in accordance with best commercial practices. (b) Classified reports, data, and documentation shall be prepared for shipment in accordance with the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual (DOD 5220.22-M).

PACKING OF SUPPLIES FOR DOMESTIC SHIPMENT

Supplies shall be packed for shipment in a manner that will ensure acceptance by common carriers and safe delivery at destination.

PACKING LIST(S)

A packing list or other suitable shipping document shall accompany each shipment and shall include the following information:

(a) Name and address of consignor.

(b) Name and address of consignee.

(c) Government contract number (and delivery order number, if used);

(d) Government bill of lading number covering the shipment, if any; and

(e) Description of the items shipped, including item number, quantity, number of containers, and package number, if any.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

Base Year: April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024 Option Year 1: April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025 Option Year 2: April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026 Option Year 3: April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027 Option Year 4: April 1, 2027, to March 31, 2028

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

The principal place of performance for this contract shall be:

State Annex 32, 44132 Mercure Circle, Sterling, VA State Annex 8, 7000 Loisdale Road, Springfield, VA

TIME OF PERFORMANCE

The Contractor shall perform the stated services for eight hours per day between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and a second shift that operates from 4:30PM to 1:30 Am Monday through Friday excluding Government holidays. Some Contractor personnel may be required to work alternate eight hour shifts as specified elsewhere in this contract.

Performance Incentive

(a) A performance incentive applies to the following contract items: All labor line items The performance incentive will measure the performance of those items against the standard performance level [Performance Requirements identified in Attachment X Performance Requirements Summary]. It includes a Acceptable Quality Level, a positive incentive, and disincentive, which are described in the Performance Requirements Summary.

(b) Acceptable Quality Level. At the standard performance level, the Contractor has met the contract requirement for the unit of measurement. Neither positive nor disincentives apply when this level is achieved but not exceeded. The AQL is established as shown on the Performance Requirements Summary.

(c) Positive incentive. The Contractor earns a separate positive incentive amount when the AQL for that item is exceeded. The amount earned for each item varies with the units of measurement achieved. The units of measurement and the incentive amounts associated with achieving each unit are shown in the Performance Requirements Summary.

(d) Disincentive. The Contractor will pay to the Government a negative incentive amount when performance fails to achieve the standard performance level. The amount to be paid for each item varies with the units of measurement achieved. The units of measurement and the incentive amounts associated with achieving each unit are in the Performance Requirements Summary.

(e) A final monthly calculation of positive or negative performance incentive amounts shall be done to compute the net incentive due the contractor.

When the Contracting Officer determines that the performance level achieved fell below the standard performance level, the Contractor will either pay the amount due the Government or credit the next payment voucher for the amount due, as directed by the Contracting Officer.

When the performance level exceeds the standard level, the Contractor may request payment of the incentive amount associated with a given level of performance, provided that such payments shall not be more frequent than monthly. When performance ceases or the maximum positive incentive is reached, the Government shall calculate the final performance incentive earned and unpaid and promptly remit it to the contractor.

The decisions made as to the amount(s) of positive or negative incentives are subject to the Disputes clause.

KEY PERSONNEL

Project Manager Site Manager (Springfield) Site Manager (Sterling) Analyst, Statistician, and Contract Supervisor for Bulk Shipments (Sterling)

KEY PERSONNEL QUALIFICATIONS

1. Project Manager/Site Manager

a. Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university

b. Ten (10) years specialized experience with a minimum of five (5) years’ experience managing projects similar to and directly relevant with DPM. This includes management applicable to the designated DPM contract objectives including the special aspects associated with DPM.

Vacant Support Positions The contractor shall diligently fill vacant contract positions with qualified personnel within 45 calendar days unless a longer period is approved by the COR or Contracting Officer. When invoicing, the Contractor shall take in consideration vacant on-site position for equal to or greater than 45 consecutive calendar days by not including the vacant position in its monthly invoice until the position is filled. Positions are considered filled upon completion of security requirements, and an agreed-upon start date in concurrence with the COR.

Note- Contractors must maintain a 90% of proposed positions staff at all times, including covering vacations, leave or any other absences that will keep staff away.

Discussions Confirmation of Intent to Submit a Contract Proposal Upon release of the contract Request for Proposal (RFP), each contractor intending to submit a proposal as a prime will confirm its participation in the contract selection via an e-mail to the Contracting Officer, JoAnn Carroll at carrolljb@state.gov (No later than 10 days after RFP is release.)

The confirmation shall include the following information to enable the Government to effectively coordinate facilities tour (site visit) activities:

The contractor’s point of contact (name, telephone number, and e-mail address) for the pre-proposal activities, A list of attendees (no more than 2 from each vendor) Key areas of interest, if any, and any additional information the Contractor deems relevant and/or necessary (e.g., handicap access requirements).

Facilities Tour (Site visit) Confirming contracting teams will be given the opportunity to tour key field operations facilities. The tour will be led by Government personnel knowledgeable of the Department’s requirements. The Government will schedule and conduct the facilities tour(s) at a time determined after the number of confirming contractors is known. Due to space considerations, the Government reserves the right to limit the number of representatives from each confirming contracting team.

Government intends to evaluate quote/responses and award without discussions however, the government reserves the right to hold discussions. Discussions, if held, may take the form of written questions or teleconference to which the Offerors shall be required to respond as requested. Therefore, the initial quote/response should contain the Offeror's best terms from a technical and price standpoint. However, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions if later determined by the Contracting Officer to be necessary. The Government may reject any or all quote/responses if such action is in the public interest, accept other than the lowest priced quote/response, and waive informalities and minor irregularities in quote/responses received.

Oral Presentations The purpose of the oral presentations is to allow the Government to better understand the proposed technical/ management solution as well as other aspects of the proposal; therefore, information not detailed in the proposal should not be presented. Government participants may ask questions throughout the presentation. In addition, the Government intends to conduct a “question and answer” session after the Offeror’s presentation. The Government may require the Offeror submit, in writing, oral statements made during the presentation.

A lottery will be held to determine the order of the presentations. Offerors will be notified of the date and time scheduled for the oral presentation. Each Offeror’s formal presentation is limited to one hour. The Offeror may invite up to eight (8) people. It is required that those individuals presenting be responsible for the performance of the contract, if awarded. The Offeror shall provide a list of attendees as well as the oral presentation slides electronically to the Contracting Officer one business day prior to the scheduled oral presentation. Ten copies of the final oral presentation slides shall be presented to the Government team on the day of the presentation. The Offerors shall submit the hardcopies on 8 ½ by 11-inch paper. Offerors shall provide all necessary audio-visual equipment for the presentation.

It is required that individuals presenting be those identified as key personnel and/or senior management. It is important to the Government that the individuals responsible for performance under the resulting contract, if awarded, are the individuals present at the oral presentations.

The Government has not established a formal structure (e.g., slide limitations, format, agenda, etc.) for the oral presentation. The Offeror may use the time period as they deem most advantageous to detail their proposal.

The Offeror should limit the slides submitted to only those they intend to use during the presentation. The Government will not evaluate the slides as standalone documents. The slides are intended to be visual aids for the presentation.

The Government reserves the right to videotape and/or audiotape the oral presentation. Oral presentations may continue beyond the estimated time to allow Government participants to gain a thorough understanding of the Offeror’s proposal

Attachments:

A) Performance requirements Pouch and Mail Services (Not Included in Presolicitation) B) List of Labor Categories (Not Included in Presolicitation)

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED