TMQ-53 RFP - Questions and Answers.pdf

Document Paragraph / Section /

Page Number Question Received Government Response

"PWS, 6.3.5 Post Award Conference, The Contractor shall schedule and host a post award conference at its facility no later than 15 business days following contract award. Holding the Post-Award Conference during the 45-day transition period at contractor site does not provide the non-incumbent awardee the opportunity to execute and complete the transition activities relating to standing up a facility."

"a. Does the Government intend to conduct the Post-Award Conference during or after the 45-day Transition Period?"

The Post-Award Conference is scheduled to take place within 15 business days following the contract award, which may be before the 45-day transition period. This conference is a key step to review the Performance Work Statement (PWS), set clear expectations, and resolve any questions.

PWS, 6.3.5 Post Award Conference, The Contractor shall schedule and host a post award conference at its facility no later than 15 business days following contract award. Holding the Post-Award Conference during the 45-day transition period at contractor site does not provide the non-incumbent awardee the opportunity to execute and complete the transition activities relating to standing up a facility.

"Given the FAR 7.102(a)(1) – Acquisition planning should promote competition and avoid unnecessary barriers to participation, can the Government confirm that this requirement is not intended to require the awardee to possess facilities, personnel, or infrastructure at the time of proposal submission, contract award or within 15 days of award, and that such capabilities may be established during the transition period?"

FAR 7.102(a)(1) no longer exisits, RFO 7.102(a)(1) states that "Information is available for making informed decisions at each step in the acquisition process." This is in relation to the acquisition planning which has been done and has followed the correct procedures.

The Government confirms that an awardee is not required to possess all facilities, personnel, and infrastructure at the time of contract award. However, the successful bidder must provide a comprehensive Transition Plan detailing how all required capabilities will be established and fully operational according to the specified timelines.

The contractor must be able to perform the contract by the start of the period of performance, which is not an unnecessary barrier to participate.

"PWS, 7.4 states “Helpdesk access shall be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without cost or toll to the user…. The Contractor shall staff the helpdesk for live, on demand technical support during normal CONUS working hours (as a minimum, Monday through Friday, eight (8) hours per day within the hours of 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. local time at the Contractor's facility). These hours will define the regular business hours. Helpdesk personnel shall be available after working hours, including weekends and holidays."

"a. Can you please clarify what is meant by “helpdesk access”? Our interpretation is that a combination of a voicemail inbox, an email inbox, and ability to schedule support outside of business meets the required 24/7 helpdesk access and that 24/7 staffing or 24/7 on-call services are NOT required."

Your interpretation is correct. The requirement for "helpdesk access" to be available 24/7 refers to the capability for users to submit support requests at any time via an email inbox and a voicemail system. This ensures that all requests are captured. Live, on-demand technical support from helpdesk personnel is only required during normal CONUS business hours as defined in the PWS. There is no requirement for 24/7 live staffing or on-call services.

"b. Does the Government want a 24x7x365 helpdesk support where “helpdesk access shall be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week” and “helpdesk personnel shall be available after working hours, including weekends and holidays?" This contradicts the Government’s requirement to provide “live, on demand technical support during normal CONUS working hours. Please clarify the Government’s requirement for helpdesk support."

- Contractor is to provide live technical support during regular business hours:

defined as 8 hours, Monday through Friday, between 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

local time at the Contractor's facility.

- Outside the regular business hours and weekends and holidays, contractor makes available a single phone number and a single email address for users to leave requests for technical support.

To clarify, the Government's requirement is for two tiers of support. Live, on-demand technical support must be provided by helpdesk staff during normal business hours

(Monday through Friday, within the hours of 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.). Outside of these hours, including weekends and holidays, the requirement is to have automated systems in place, such as a designated email address and phone number with voicemail, to receive and log user requests. These after-hours requests are to be addressed on the next business day. There is no requirement for a standby person to actively monitor these channels outside of the defined business hours.

(CUI) ATTCH 3 -

TMQ-53 PWS

7.6.2.1 Triage and

Disposition Process, Pg.

"Pg 26 – Section 7.6.2.1 Triage and Disposition Process second bullet #2 statesThe C ontractor shall recommend replacement if the estimated cost of repair exceeds [Insert Percentage, e.g., 65% of the current government acquisition cost for a new or serviceable replacement.] Is the 65% the

“inserted” percentage?"

The reference to 'e.g., 65%' was intended as an example. To ensure clarity for all offerors, the Government confirms that the official requirement is 75%. The solicitation will be formally amended to remove the placeholder language and solidify this percentage. All offerors shall use 75% as the threshold for recommending replacement under this section.

(CUI) ATTCH 3 -

TMQ-53 PWS

7.6.2.4 Systems

Database, Pg. 27

"Page 27 Section 7.6.2.4 Systems Data Base under the calibration section. Will the government clarify this portion of the PWS. Currently it reads as though the support equipment used to verify the operation of the TMQ-53 is calibrated, however, it also states “before being shipped” and support equipment is not shipped to users. Does the government want the sensors calibrated or the equipment used to repair and validate the sensors calibrated?"

Under PWS Section 7.6.2.4, the Contractor is responsible for two distinct calibration requirements. First, all support equipment used by the Contractor to repair and validate TMQ-53 Line Replaceable Units (LRUs) must be calibrated to the more stringent of either the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) or Technical Requirements Document (TRD) standards to ensure testing and validation systems are accurate. Second, the TMQ-53 LRUs themselves must be calibrated and verified as fully operational prior to shipment to the Government.

"PWS 8.4.1 DMSMS Responsibilities, “The Contractor is responsible for all costs associated with obtaining a replacement if and when any parts and/or materiel become obsolete. The costs for which the Contractor is responsible include, but are not limited to, the costs of investigating part availability, interchangeability and substitutability, locating part replacement, vendor interface, engineering efforts, testing requirements, internal drawing changes, etc. The Contractor shall prevent any additional costs from being incurred by the Government due to obsolescence.”

"a. Please provide expected frequency/size of TO updates, ECPs, and obsolescence actions."

The Government cannot provide a definitive forecast for the frequency or size of Technical Order (TO) updates, Engineering Change Proposals (ECPs), or obsolescence actions. It is the responsibility of the offeror to analyze the provided system and parts information, and to use their own experience and expertise to determine the potential frequency and associated costs for such events as part of their overall bid under the Contractor Logistics

Support (CLS) agreement.

(CUI) ATTCH 3 -

TMQ-53 PWS

6.3.5 Post-Award

Conference, Pg. 16

(CUI) ATTCH 3 -

TMQ-53 PWS

7.4 HELPDESK

SUPPORT, Pg. 20

(CUI) ATTCH 3 -

TMQ-53 PWS

8.4.1 DMSMS

Responsibilities, Pg. 36

"b. The solicitation appears to assign unlimited responsibility for obsolescence events that are largely outside the contractor's control and may require substantial, unpredictable expenditures. Has the Government evaluated whether this risk allocation is consistent with FAR 16.103(c) and whether it may adversely impact competition, particularly among small business and non-incumbent offerors?"

As the RFO has revised the FAR, there is no reference RFO 16.103(c). There is no concern that competition is being limited, restricted, or adversely impacted by any of the requirements listed in this proposal.

The requirement is not intended to assign unlimited or unpredictable financial responsibility that would restrict competition. The process is structured such that the contractor is responsible for identifying an obsolescence issue and proposing a solution, including the specific part change, through an Engineering Change Proposal (ECP). This ECP is then submitted to the Program Management Office (PMO) for evaluation. Upon approval, the Government can then authorize and fund the necessary Non-Recurring

Engineering (NRE) and test articles to complete the ECP, mitigating the risk of substantial, unpredicted expenditures for the contractor.

"c. Would the Government consider revising the requirement to provide for equitable adjustment or Government approval/funding of significant, unforeseen obsolescence mitigation efforts?"

An equitable adjustment for unforeseen obsolescence mitigation efforts is addressed through the Engineering Change Proposal (ECP) process. The Government is not asking offerors to bear the full replacement cost upfront. Rather, the contractor is expected to identify the solution when obsolescence occurs and propose it via an ECP. This proposal should include the documentation for the required change and the associated pricing for any parts, labor, and Non-Recurring Engineering (NRE). The funding for an approved ECP would then be handled accordingly, separate from the initial contract pricing. There will not be a revision to provide equitable adjustments.

Pg 39 - Section 9.1 Computer Resource Support – This section seems to mix requirements from Computer resources and cybersecurity as well as software and firmware. Is this section written correctly?

The Government confirms that Section 9.1 is written as intended. The term 'Computer Resource Support' is comprehensive and correctly includes all requirements related to computer resources, cybersecurity, and firmware as a unified effort.

"PWS, Paragraph 9, “The Contractor shall … negotiate a teaming agreement with the OEM.” Is the intent of this sentence to require the contractor to negotiate a teaming agreement with XXXXXX?

The requirement in PWS Section 9.1, Paragraph 9, is for the Contractor to negotiate a teaming agreement with the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) of the TMQ-53 system. Offerors are responsible for identifying and engaging with the appropriate OEM to meet this requirement.

"Section L, paragraph L2.7 limits the Technical Proposal page count to 25 pages. Based on our experience with this program and the scope of the required technical solution, we believe that even an experienced contractor would require more than 25 pages to provide a complete and fully compliant response."

After consideration, the Government agrees to increase the page limit for the Technical Proposal from 25 to 50 pages. The solicitation will be amended to reflect the new page count. Offerors are reminded that they are responsible for providing a complete and comprehensive proposal that addresses all requirements as they see fit within the updated constraints.

"Section L4.1 states that offerors are not expected to respond to every “shall” statement. However, in a prior procurement, we observed an offeror being found noncompliant for not addressing a seemingly minor “shall” requirement.

This creates ambiguity between the page limitation, the instruction that not every “shall” requires a response, and the Government’s evaluation expectations for compliance."

Would the Government consider increasing the Technical Proposal page limit or providing additional guidance identifying which PWS “shall” requirements must be specifically addressed in the proposal to avoid a finding of noncompliance?

All "shall" statements should be addressed in the Offerors proposal. The sentence, "It is not necessary or desirable for you to tell the Government so in your proposal." Is in direct relation to the sentence prior, "By your proposal submission, you are representing that your company will perform all the requirements specified in the solicitation/PWS."

This means, that each offeror should explain how they will perform the Technical Capability in a clear, specific, complete, and sufficient detail. It is assumed that each offeror can complete the work they are proposing, so there is no need for the offeror to then reiterate they can complete the work which would result in using valuable space in the page count.

(CUI) ATTCH 5

TMOS CLS

Section L -

Instructions to Offerors

L4.3.5 Staffing Plan, Para 2, Pg. 12

"Section L, 4.3.5 (2), offerors shall “Provide resumes for all key personnel as a separate attachment to the Technical Volume to substantiate the experience.”

This resume attachment is not currently excluded from the page limit in L2.7.1 “Each page shall be counted except the following: cover/title pages, tables of contents, tabbeed dividers, acronym lists, RFP Cross Reference Matrix (RCRM), and glossaries.”

"a. Will the Government consider excluding the resume attachment from the page count?"

The Government confirms that the resume attachment for key personnel will be excluded from the page count. Please submit only the resumes of key personnel that are listed in the solicitation documents as a separate attachment as instructed, all others will not be evaluated or looked at.

(CUI) ATTCH 5

TMOS CLS

Section L -

Instructions to Offerors

L6.4 Non-Disclosure Agreements, Pg. 15

"Please clarify whether our proposal needs to include executed NDAs per L6.4?"

The NDA's that need to be provided are the specific personel that have a relationship with any of the listed companies. If any of the listed companies are proposing they will need to list the members who are involved by an NDA. The language in Section L are revised to identify Organizational Conflicts of Interests, and early mitigation of any potential issues.

"Section L, Pricing Workbook references CY1 Month 1 as the beginning of contract performance rather than a specific date (e.g., January 2027) and uses this CY format for pricing for the duration of the contract. It isn’t clear when performance would actually begin, which may impact pricing."

"a. Does “Month 1” refer to the first month of performance, regardless of the actual date? (the alternative being that Month 1 is always January)"

"Month 1" in the Section L Pricing Workbook refers to the first month of contract performance.

"b. Does the Government have an anticipated start date or range of dates for this effort?"

For planning purposes, offerors may use an estimated start date of October 2026. The actual start date will be formally established at the time of contract award.

"Section L, Pricing Workbook, CLIN 0004 CLS"

"a. Please provide total number of AN/TMQ 53 systems and sites (list by site or region). These are critical to size labor."

In response to the request for data on system quantities, sites, and historical performance metrics, the current number of fielded AN/TMQ-53 systems is 236. Please be advised that this number may change. The Government will provide the successful awardee with final, updated data, including available historical ticket volumes and other relevant metrics from the Program Management Office (PMO), to allow for any necessary adjustments to the final pricing.

9.1 COMPUTER

RESOURCE SUPPORT,

Pg. 39

(CUI) ATTCH 3 -

TMQ-53 PWS

(CUI) ATTCH 5

TMOS CLS

Section L -

Instructions to Offerors

L2.7 Organization/Number of Copies/Page Limits, Pg.

(CUI) ATTCH 5L3

Section L

Attachment L3 Pricing Workbook

CLINS 0001, 0002, &

0004, Tab 2

(CUI) ATTCH 5L3

Section L

Attachment L3 Pricing Workbook

CLINS 0001, 0002, &

"b. Please provide historic monthly ticket volumes, categories, average handle time, backlog and resolution times for the last 12–36 months. These are critical to size labor and spares."

In response to the request for data on system quantities, sites, and historical performance metrics, the current number of fielded AN/TMQ-53 systems is 236. Please be advised that this number may change. The Government will provide the successful awardee with final, updated data, including available historical ticket volumes and other relevant metrics from the Program Management Office (PMO), to allow for any necessary adjustments to the final pricing.

"c. Provide historical metrics (past 12–36 months) by site: AO, downtime/cause codes, MTBF/MTTR, ticket logs (open/close dates), PQDRs, warranty work details (part #, qty, failure date), and open ticket aging. These are critical to size labor and spares."

In response to the request for data on system quantities, sites, and historical performance metrics, the current number of fielded AN/TMQ-53 systems is 236. Please be advised that this number may change. The Government will provide the successful awardee with final, updated data, including available historical ticket volumes and other relevant metrics from the Program Management Office (PMO), to allow for any necessary adjustments to the final pricing.

"d. Please provide the RMF / ATO status and expected RMF workload (ATO renewal dates, current POA&Ms)."

Specific details on current ATO status, renewal dates, and any outstanding POA&Ms will be provided as part of the program's technical data package.

"e. Will the Government accept a separate direct CLIN for contractor furnished facility/warehouse costs (setup, lease, equipment, inventory handling, recurring operational costs) or must those be included in the CLS unit price?

Requiring small businesses to absorb and recover substantial facility investments through indirect pools exposes them to a real risk of unrecovered costs—due to limited capital, variable indirect allocation bases—which can reduce competition and jeopardize contract performance."

The Government will not accept a separate CLIN for contractor-furnished facility or warehouse costs. All costs associated with setup, leasing, equipment, inventory handling, and recurring operations must be included within the CLS unit price.

Attachment L3 Pricing Workbook – Clin 5 Spares tab line 56 SA20M. New pricing is not available as the part is no longer offered, should we leave this line blank in our response?

The Government confirms that the SA20M Lightning Detector is obsolete. Offerors shall leave this line item blank or enter "N/A" in the corresponding pricing fields for those items within the Attachment L3 Pricing Workbook.

"Section L, Pricing Workbook, CLIN 0005 Spares Repairs"

"a. Please confirm that offerors are to provide costs for repairing the GFP listed."

The Government confirms that offerors are required to provide costs for the repair of the Government Furnished Property (GFP) as specified under CLIN 0005 in the Section L

Pricing Workbook. Please refer to the appropriate tab in the workbook for the list of items

"b. Provide historical spares consumption/usage and re order lead times by NSN and site; indicate minimum authorized stock levels."

The Government will not be providing historical data regarding spares consumption, usage rates, reorder lead times, or minimum authorized stock levels. Offerors are expected to use the provided technical information and their own experience to forecast these requirements and propose their spares plan accordingly.

"c. Please provide the Government’s repair model: contractor depot vs OEM repair vs on site repair split (percent or historical data)."

The Government does not mandate a specific repair model or provide a historical percentage split between contractor depot, OEM, or on-site repairs. The proposed model should be based on a "repair and replace" strategy, where the contractor is responsible for sending repaired equipment to the field for swap-out. The decision of whether to perform repairs in-house at a contractor depot or to utilize the Original Equipment Manufacturer

(OEM) is at the contractor's discretion and should be based on their analysis of repair rates, technical capabilities, and any associated data rights for the part in question.

"M2.a. Evaluation Factors: The following evaluation factors will be used to evaluate each proposal. The Government will evaluate proposals for acceptability but will not rank the proposals by the non-price factors: Factor 1:

Technical Capability • Transition Plan"

"a. Because Transition is the first evaluated element under Factor 1 – Technical Capability, and the Post-Award Conference is a required transition activity, conducting the conference at the contractor's facility within 15 business days of award effectively requires the awardee to have an operational facility established during the early stages of the transition period."

The Government acknowledges the concern that conducting the conference at the contractor's facility within 15 business days of award seems to require a fully operational facility at the very start of the transition period. To clarify, the government's primary focus is on the content and feasibility of the Transition Plan. The plan must clearly state how and when the organization will become fully operational, as per the requirements outlined in the PWS and Sections L/M of the solicitation. While an in-person meeting at the facility is the stated requirement, the emphasis is on demonstrating a credible path to full capability, and updates on progress, potentially including virtual meetings, can be part of that initial transition process.

"b. Given that the incumbent contractor is likely the only offeror with facilities already in place, this requirement appears to create an inherent incumbent advantage and may unnecessarily restrict competition. To promote compliance with:

FAR 11.002(a)(1) - Agencies shall state requirements in terms that promote full and open competition and shall not include restrictive provisions unless necessary, and FAR 15.304(c)(3)(iii) – Evaluation factors should not unduly favor incumbents unless justified by the Government's needs., which discourage requirements and evaluation criteria that unduly favor incumbents absent a demonstrated Government need, would the Government consider conducting the Post-Award Conference at a Government facility (or virtually) during the transition period, or otherwise delaying the requirement until completion of transition activities?"

FAR 11.002(a)(1) and FAR 15.304(c)(3)(iii) are no longer correct references in the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul and have since been updated.

The Government confirms that the Post-Award Conference may be conducted virtually or at a Government facility to ensure a fair and competitive process for all offerors, regardless of their immediate local infrastructure at the time of award.

Evaluation will focus on the feasibility of the submitted Transition Plan, which must detail how all required personnel, facilities, and capabilities will be established over the 45-day transition period. The awardee is not required to have all physical facilities fully operational at the exact moment of contract award, provided the Transition Plan outlines a realistic path to compliance.

(CUI) ATTCH 1 -

Model Contract

Supplies or Services & Prices or Costs, Pg. 5

"Model Contract Pg. 5, CLIN 0008, Our understanding is that all shipping will be on a cost-reimbursement basis under CLIN 0008. Can you confirm that understanding? Should this CLIN be cost-reimbursement type instead of Firm Fixed Price?"

In accordance with the Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) overhaul (RFO) 16.201(b), the use of cost-reimbursement contracts is prohibited by statute for the acquisition of commercial services. Consequently, a cost-reimbursement contract type is not permissible for this requirement, and all shipping must be proposed and executed on a Firm-Fixed-Price basis.

(CUI) ATTCH 6

TMOS CLS

Section M - Evaluation Factors For

Award

M2.a. Evaluation Factors, Pg. 5

(CUI) ATTCH 5L3

Section L

Attachment L3 Pricing Workbook

CLIN 0005 Spares Repairs, Tab 3

(CUI) ATTCH 4 -

TMQ53 CLS

Exhibit A CDRL

CDRL A022 - Finance Report, Pg. 43

Attachment - Status Report-Finance.xlsx, Pg.

"There are issues opening the embedded “Finance Status Report” on the last page of Attachment 4 CDRL doc. The spreadsheet appears to be an image and not a file that I can open/access."

The Government acknowledges the technical issue with the embedded 'Finance Status Report' in Attachment 4, Exhibit A CDRL. The correct and functional 'Status Report-

Finance.xlsx' file will be provided as a separate attachment in a forthcoming amendment to the solicitation. All offerors should refer to this new attachment.

Sheet1