ESBD_364457_1719859909121_Addendum_RFP 5-112-001 Questions_7.1.24 Submission.pdf

Texas School for the Deaf

1102 S. Congress Avenue Austin, TX 78704

ADDENDUM

Addendum Number: _______1___________ Date: ____July 2, 2024___________

Solicitation Number: ____5-112-001_________________________________________

Solicitation Title: ___Closed Captioning and Transcription Services_________________

Due Date/Deadline: ___July 5, 2024_________________________________________

Purchaser: ___David Rivera, CTCD, CTCM___________________________________

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced herein, remain unchanged.

The following are specifications to this solicitation. This Addendum should be attached to and shall form a part of the referenced solicitation document and any resulting awarded contract(s) and may be considered in your bid.

PURPOSE OF ADDENDUM: QUESTION AND ANSWERS

Question: Will you consider proposals for remote services only?

Answer: Yes.

Question: What was the number of hours of remote services provided last semester?

Answer: Estimated 60 hours.

Question: Who is the current vendor and what rate(s) are they charging?

Answer: Any information related to current and/or prior contracts must be requested in accordance with Texas' Open Records Act. Budget or estimated contract values are not available during open solicitations.

Question: Would you confirm that NCRA certification of providers servicing the account is required? Are any substitute certifications allowed?

Answer: A NCRA certification is required for any service provider and at this time, no substitutes will be allowed.

Question: Can you define “live transcription”? Is this C-print or TypeWell?

Answer: Verbatim, information to be exactly word-for-word.

Question: How often is in person CART needed for this contract? Is it solely for special events or is in person CART needed for day to day classes?

Answer: CART is needed for board meetings which happen every other month while school is in session.

Some months there are 2-day meetings (August, December, February) and some there are 1-day meetings (October, April).

Question: How many hours of closed captioning and transcription were required by TSD in 2023?

Answer: Estimated 60 CART hours and 60 Transcription hours.

Question: Will TSD accept a solution for remote services only?

Answer: Remote services are fine if they are able to connect to zoom.

Question: A two (2) full business day cancellation policy is the industry standard, would TSD consider changing the 24-hour cancellation policy to Two (2) full business days to align with industry standards? (SOW 6.3)?

Answer: No. All submitted proposals should be based on the scope of work and related information outlined in the solicitation, failure to meet posted requirements will result in a non-responsive proposal.

Question: What are the anticipated number of hours that will be needed, in person? Remote?

Answer: None needed in person, all can be remote; roughly 60 hours, depending on length and severity of the meeting.

Question: Can bidders submit a proposal for only remote services? Or must both in person and remote services be included in the proposal?

Answer: Yes.

Question: A 48-hour request requirement will make it very difficult to fill requests, especially for in person services. Would TSD consider changing this requirement? (SOW 6.3)?

Answer: No. All submitted proposals should be based on the scope of work and related information outlined in the solicitation, failure to meet posted requirements will result in a non-responsive proposal.

Question: Who is your current provider(s) of CART services?

Answer: Any information related to current and/or prior contracts must be requested in accordance with Texas' Open Records Act.

Question: What are the current CART rates?

Answer: Budget or estimated contract values are not available during open solicitations.

Question: How many CART hours and transcription hours were contracted for in the last year?

Answer: Estimated 60 CART hours and 60 Transcription hours.

Question: What % of the CART assignments are virtual?

Answer: 50%, where we have a board member on zoom and the captioners on zoom. If it's solely for the captioners, then it's been 100% of the time that they are virtual.

Question: What percentage of your CART assignments are for last minute needs (less than 2 full business days’ notice)?

Answer: 0% are last minute for board meetings.

Question: What is the average length of a CART assignment?

Answer: 5-7 hours on average.

Question: Section I - 3.5 states that the contract may be amended by the mutual consent of both parties, but section 3.5.1 allows TSD to amend the contract without mutual consent. Can you clarify this?

Answer: 3.5.1 applies to “administrative” amendments only.

Question: Section II 4.6 states that email proposals are not acceptable, but section 5.1 allows email submissions. Are email proposal submissions acceptable?

Answer: Emails are acceptable submissions; phone and fax submissions are not. The word email should not have been in 4.6.

Question: Can you provide more specific information about the type of Live Transcription and Audio to Transcription services that you require?

Answer: It is verbatim for board meetings. We will send the board book a week in advance so they know who will be speaking and what topics will be covered.

Question: Due to the holiday week, we request that bid response time be extended to July 9?

Answer: No, TSD has to maintain its workload schedule as posted and has allotted 2 weeks for such preparation from date of submission.

Question: Hello, we were wondering if you would consider an extension on the Due date for this RFP? With the Q&A being answered July 2 and then the proposals are due the 5th, this is a short window for adjustments of proposals?

Answer: No, TSD has to maintain its workload schedule as posted and has allotted 2 weeks for such preparation from date of submission.

Question: What is the estimated amount of annual meetings/events that require live captioning/CART (hours per year?

Answer: Estimated 60 hours.

Question: What proportion of the meetings/events can be done remotely (rather than on-site)?

Answer: 50%, where we have a board member on zoom and the captioners on zoom. If it's solely for the captioners, then it's been 100% of the time that they are virtual.

Question: Are you interested in bidders that only provide remote CART (rather than on-site)?

Answer: We are fine with either.

Question: What is the estimated amount of pre-recorded transcription (hours per year)?

Answer: None.

Question: What live meeting platforms do you use?

Answer: Zoom.

Question: Do you use any accommodation tracking tools, such as AIM or Symplicity?

Answer: No.

Question: Our remote live captioners are certified on internal standards that meet or exceed NCRA. They are not necessarily certified with NCRA or any other official certification body. Is that acceptable?

Answer: A NCRA certification is required for any service provider and at this time no substitutes will be allowed.

Question: Is it a mandatory requirement to provide captioner personnel references on Exhibit D?

Answer: Failure to provide any required documentation will result in a non-response proposal which will not be reviewed for consideration.

Question: Who are the incumbent vendors?

Answer: Any information related to current and/or prior contracts must be requested in accordance with Texas' Open Records Act.

Question: What hourly rates do you currently pay?

Answer: Budget or estimated contract values are not available during open solicitations.

Question: Do you have any pain points with existing vendors?

Answer: None.

Question: Will TSD accept bids on only the remote portion of the work?

Answer: Yes, but a completed package is required to be considered.

Question: Can TSD provide service volume data from previous contract years?

Answer: Estimated 60 CART hours and 60 Transcription hours.

Question: What rate is TSD currently paying for the services described in this RFP?

Answer: Budget or estimated contract values are not available during open solicitations.

Question: Is TSD open to receiving proposals for Automatic Speech Recognition services?

Answer: No.

Question: RFP section 3.4.2. states “TSD in its sole discretion reserves the right to terminate any resulting contract for convenience with a thirty (30) written notice to the Contractor.” Can TSD clarify the timeframe for notice of termination?

Answer: Thirty (30) day written notice.

Question: RFP section 5.1.4.1. states “Contractor(s) scheduled to report to TSD shall be a Certified CART provider.” Will TSD accept internal standards of equivalent quality rather than certifications?

Answer: No. A NCRA certification is required for any service provider and at this time, no substitutes will be allowed.

Question: RFP section 3.2 describes specifications for electronic submissions, but section 4.6 states that email submissions are not acceptable. Can TSD clarify acceptable methods for electronic proposal submissions?

Answer: Emails are acceptable submissions; phone and fax submissions are not. The word email should not have been in 4.6 and an overlook on our part.

Bidders are to acknowledge receipt of this Addendum. Return a signed copy of this notice with your bid submission.

I acknowledge receipt of this Addendum.

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