Enclosure 4_Request for Proposal Instructions.doc

RFP No. 4-B160-P-00193-00

ENCLOSURE NO. 4

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL NO. 4-B160-P-00193-00

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PREPARATION OF PROPOSALS

AND

NOTICES TO OFFERORS

Date: May 13, 2024 I.

Proposal Submission Format:

The proposal shall be in three (3) parts: Part I - Technical Proposal, Part II – Business/Management Proposal, and Part III - Cost/Price Proposal. Each of the parts shall be separate and complete so that evaluation of one may be accomplished independently of and concurrently with evaluation of the other. In no instance shall Part I, Part II, and Part III be bound together or presented in such manner as to make them not severable. The Technical Proposal and Business Management Proposal shall not contain any reference to cost. The Technical Proposal must disclose your project approach in as much detail as possible including, but not limited to, the requirements of the Technical Proposal instructions.

Unnecessarily elaborate brochures or other presentations beyond that sufficient to present a complete and effective proposal are not desired and may be construed as an indication of the offeror's lack of cost consciousness. Elaborate artwork, expensive paper and bindings, and expensive visual and other presentation aids are neither necessary nor wanted. Proposals should be prepared with maximum economy, consistent with this procurement, to ensure that the resources of both offerors and Laboratory evaluators are efficiently utilized. The signed proposal shall be submitted electronically to krojas@anl.gov for evaluation. The email shall contain separate attachments for the Technical Proposal, Business/Management Proposal, and the Cost/Price Proposal. Submissions not conforming to all the requirements of this solicitation may result in rejection of your offer.

Offerors should indicate on the fore page and on each subsequent page of their proposal those pages, sections, paragraphs, or areas which they consider to be proprietary. Offerors should refer to the enclosure entitled “Pre-Award Information and Booklet of Representations and Certifications,” second page “Notice,” and pages 14-16 for more information regarding proprietary markings. Argonne National Laboratory assumes no liability for disclosure or use of unmarked data and may use or disclose such data for any purpose.

A.

Part I - Technical Proposal:

Enclosure No. 3 identifies the criteria that will be used to evaluate the merit of the proposals in response to the statement of work. While the Cost Proposal may not be the controlling factor for award, it will be a significant part of the Laboratory’s selection decision. The proposal costs will be evaluated for reasonableness in light of the statement of work requirements and instructions, including completeness/conciseness and clarity of the material presented.

At a minimum, provide the following information:

Criterion 1: Field performance of the magnet(s)

Criterion 2: How well the preliminary design is developed to support the magnet(s) performance of criteria No. 1.

Criterion 3: Power and cooling requirements of the magnet(s)

Criterion 4: Quality assurance and control

Criterion 5: Delivery lead-time

B.

Part II - Business Management Proposal:

a.

Financial Capability. Provide audited or reviewed financial statement (if available) for the prior full year including balance sheet and income statement with supporting documentation indicating the financial capability of your organization for the previous three (3) years.

b.

Acceptance Period of Proposal: Provide a statement that the proposal will remain valid for acceptance for a minimum period of ninety (90) after the closing date set for receipt of proposals.

c.

Authorized Representatives: Provide the names, titles, and telephone numbers of the persons authorized to negotiate on behalf of the offeror with the Laboratory.

d.

Pre-Award Information. Include a fully completed and signed “Pre-Award Information and Booklet of Representations and Certifications” with your proposal. A copy of the Booklet is included as Enclosure No. 2 to this Request for Proposal (RFP).

e.

Exceptions and Deviations.

Provide comments describing whether or not you accept proposed contract, its schedule articles, statement of work and general/specific terms and conditions. The exceptions, deviations, or conditional assumptions taken must contain sufficient amplification and justification to permit evaluation(s). Such exceptions, deviations or conditional assumptions will not of themselves automatically cause a proposal to be deemed unacceptable to the Laboratory. However, a large number of exceptions or one or more significant exceptions not providing benefit to the Laboratory may result in rejection of your proposal(s) as unacceptable.

II.

Notices to Offerors:

A.

Explanation to Prospective Offerors

Any prospective offeror desiring an explanation or interpretation of the solicitation, statement of work, etc. must request it in writing by close of business, June 7, 2024, to allow a reply to be provided to all prospective offerors. Any information given to a prospective offeror concerning a solicitation will be furnished promptly to all prospective offerors as written amendments to the solicitation if such information is necessary for submission of an offer, or if the lack of the information would be prejudicial against any other prospective offeror. Oral explanations or instructions given before the award of a contract will not be binding.

B.

Submission of Offers

1. Offers and amendments thereof shall be submitted to the email specified below and shall display the date and time set for closing for receipt of proposals, the solicitation number, and the name and address of the offeror.

A signed proposal shall be submitted via e-mail to krojas@anl.gov.

Attention:

Kim Rojas

Reference:

RFP No. 4-B160-P-00193-00

· Telegraphic offers will not be accepted.

· Facsimile offers will not be accepted.

C.

Selection and Award 1.

Proposal may be eliminated from consideration if the proposal is so grossly and obviously deficient as to be totally unacceptable. For example, if it does not represent a reasonable initial effort to address itself to the essential requirements of the RFP, or clearly demonstrates that the offeror does not understand the requirements of the RFP.

2.

Offerors should be prepared to respond to requests by the Laboratory Procurement Official for oral presentations or written discussions, or both, facility surveys, and other information as may be necessary to assist in the detailed evaluation process. The Laboratory reserves the right, however, to 1) make a selection without discussion with any of the offerors; 2) reject any and all offers; and 3) waive informalities and minor irregularities in offers received. It is, therefore, emphasized that each initial offer should be submitted on the most favorable terms to the Laboratory that the offeror can submit.

3.

The Laboratory may solicit, from available sources, experience data concerning an offeror’s past performance and will consider such information in its evaluation.

4.

The Laboratory intends to award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose proposal conforms to this RFP and represents the best value after evaluation in accordance with the evaluation criteria stated in Enclosure No. 5.

5.

If the Laboratory Procurement Official determines that the number of proposals that would otherwise be in the competitive range exceeds the number at which an efficient competition can be conducted, the Laboratory Procurement Official may limit the number of proposals in the competitive range to the greatest number that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly rated proposals.

D.

Definitions: As used below:

“Discussions” are negotiations that occur after establishment of the competitive range that may, at the Laboratory Procurement Official’s discretion, result in the offeror being allowed to revise its proposal.

“In writing” or “written” means any worded or numbered expression which can be read, reproduced, and later communicated, and includes electronically transmitted and stored information.

“Proposal modification” is a change to a proposal made after the solicitation closing date, at the request of or as allowed by a Laboratory Procurement Official as the result of negotiations.

“Time,” if stated as a number of days, is calculated using calendar days, unless otherwise specified, and will include Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. However, if the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, then the period shall include the next working day.

E.

Amendments To Solicitation:

If this solicitation is amended, all terms and conditions that are not amended remain unchanged. Offerors shall acknowledge receipt of any amendment to this solicitation by the date and time specified in the amendment(s).

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