Task_Orders.pdf

Task Orders

Q: Will task orders come out in draft first, and if so, how far in advance of RFP due date?

A: Draft PWS are usually sent two to three week prior to RFP release. We seek to provide 30 days for proposals.

Q: What do you expect the average TO tech proposal page count to be?

A: The standard technical page count for USAMS II is 20 pages, but the number is adjusted based on the complexity of the requirement.

Q: Would you consider a small, one-hour industry day for TO’s?

A: Yes, we hold industry day type events as needed based on the complexity of the requirement.

Q: How many task orders are anticipated?

A: Based on USAMS II and budget outlook, we project between 150-200 task orders over the life of the contract.

Q: Will the Government provide a standardized process for task order RFP response requirements? By standardizing this process and the requirements for Task Order proposals, the Government will increase the rate of competition for each task order RFP.

We recommend that the 55 th

CONS utilize the RFP process utilized by ACC/AMIC on the

CAAS IV IDIQ. Their process and requirements for RFP’s has resulted in approximately 7 proposal submissions for each TO RFP out of a possible 18 small business prime contractors. Without the use of a standardized process for TO RFP response and only 8 small business prime contractors could lead to very low competition rates and less than 3 proposal submissions per TO RFP during USAMS III.

A: 55 th

CONS has a standard task order proposal request process that has proven successful.

Q: On other IDIQ contracts, the Government has routinely used 1 on 1’s at the task order level to ensure bidders understand the task order and to provide the Government the best competition. Will the 55

CONS use 1 on 1’s at the Task Order Level?

A: 55

CONS has a standard task order proposal request process that has proven successful.

Currently 1 on 1’s are not part of that process. It is not anticipated that 1 on 1 meetings will be utilized at the task order level.

Q: Will resumes be required to be submitted for each Task Order or will the Government be looking for a staffing Qualification matrix showing labor category, education, clearance, and Job Summary/Primary Duties, and Relevant experience to ensure the appearance of non-personal services is maintained?

A: Qualification statements will be used for task order evaluation.

Q: On USAMS II there have been many task orders which have only a couple FTEs but the page count has been in the 20+ range. Will the Government consider reducing the page count limit lower for task orders that have fewer subtask/subfactors to respond to?

A: Yes, the Government will seek to tailor the page count based on the complexity of the requirement.

Q: Is there anything with dealing with contracting here at 55 that will be different than dealing with Tinker on a TO basis?

A: The 55

Contracting Squadron’s process will comply with the existing laws, regulations and policies. Differences may occur but the RFP will follow the DOD Source Selection Procedures and the task order solicitation will follow FAR 16.505 and its supplements.

Q: Do you the contracting force provide any kind of training for your customer, in terms of articulating the technical requirements of the PWS? Some are better than others at truly being able to articulate their requirements, etc.

A: The USAMS program has a program office that collects the technical requirements and works with the customer by providing templates and assisting with the content. At that point the contracting office is involved to help shape the solicitations documents to include the PWS. It is common for a draft PWS to be sent out to the prime contractors to solicit feedback before a formal Task Order Proposal Request (TOPR) is released. The program office is in daily contact with the contracting office. All of the USAMS customers are invited to certain training events throughout the year to improve their understanding of awarding and managing service contracts.

Q: I open this up for your task order process: how do you intend to issue task orders and what type of responses you are wanting? After award, a lot of front loaded task order issues.

A: The program office sends a draft PWS to the primes to get comments/questions. If over

150K, post RFP for at least 30 days. The standard response package is 20 page technical response, qualification summaries and price. Past Performance not a significant factor usually at the TO level since we have cleared that at the IDIQ level. Either LPTA or Tradeoff will be identified in the RFP.

Q: Do you anticipate a significant number of Cyber task orders?

A: USCYBERCOM is an authorized customer and the USAMS program does support existing

USCYBERCOM requirements. The USAMS vehicle is not a requirements contract and

USCYBERCOM can pursue other contracting vehicles. The definition of “significant” can vary. The USAMS team is currently support USCYBERCOM and plans to continue supporting

USCYBERCOM under the USAMS III contract.

Q: Has the gov’t considered a two-tiered award system? Largest tier going to the bigger smalls and the smaller tier going to the smaller smalls.

A: There will be only one tier of prime contractors and each prime contractor will be provided a fair opportunity to propose on the task orders solicited under the USAMS III contract.

Q: Do you have an estimated size of USAMS 3 task orders in terms of dollar values?

A: $1.5 million annually is the average that we have on USAMS 2. Some task orders will be more and some will be less than this average. At the beginning of USAMS 2, task orders were allowed to go longer than the current 3 year max that is in place

Q: At task order level you will still want bill rates, etc?

A: At the task order level the pricing volume will include rates bid by the offeror. The pricing volume allows for verification that prices are in accordance with the maximum rates allowed and to determine unbalanced pricing exists.

Q: Task Order Level - qualifications of our labor force. I’ve seen a lot of ways to do that.

How are you looking for us to present that information at the task order level?

A: Qualification Summaries

Q: USAMS II varying in size, is there going to be some consideration with the page count limitation for a 2 person FTE vs. a large 47 FTE task order. Less for 2 FTE’s more for a large, complex acquisition – task order level.

A: It will be task order dependent.

Q: Feedback on how you like to see a technical proposal provided to you on task orders.

Some people go through it the first time and look at the pictures and figures first. Then go back and possibly read it once through and then a second time through. Is there a certain way that you would like to see the technical proposal presented to you at the task order level?

A: As clear as possible.

Q: Recommend USSTRATCOM award TO’s for 6 months base plus option periods spanning three years; incorporate IPR 6-months after TO award; In case of poor initial performance, award to 2 nd place. This lowers USSTRATCOM risk and incentivizes contractors for price realism and initial staffing.

A: We will consider the recommendation.

Q: Will there be any TOs that will require offsite work at the contractor site? If so, which

TOs?

A: There is potential, but we do not have many now. The majority of the offsite work we have now software development supporting ISPAN.

Q: What will be the minimum time standard between the due date to submit no-bids on

TOs and TO proposal due dates?

A: Each situation is unique.

Q: Will the Government set a minimum 2 week time standard between TO award and POP start?

A: Not in all cases.

Q: How many task orders are anticipated on USAMS 3?

A: Over the life of USAMS 2 there have been around 150, which includes re-competes. Right now we have around 70 active. The plan is to take the list of task orders posted on FBO and give a 2nd listing of which ones have been in-sourced vs. which are still active.

Q: Noticed that this solicitation is very similar to CAAS IV. One thing we found to be very successful for the first year has been their use of low price technically acceptable with the elimination of past performance at the task order level. Heads up memo’s, draft rfp’s, qualification summaries, no past performance references, and less than 8 pages were other things we thought made it successful at the task order level.

A: The USAMS Task Order process is similar.

Q: Are you going to require everybody to submit for all task orders?

A: The Government is considering a mandatory proposal rate but is not considering a rate at

100%.

Q: Task orders awarded as LPTA or best value?

A: The term best value includes both trade-off and Lowest Price Technically Acceptable

(LPTA). USAMS is an ordering vehicle used to procure technical skill sets to support the

USAMS PWS. Each requirement needs to identify what the minimum skill set requirement is.

If a customer desires a trade-off that customer also has to define what skill sets would be of value to the Government to trade for. Trade-off decisions are based on the specific requirement details and the available budget.

Q: When you do TO’s under USAMS III, do you envision a certain time frame to respond to them?

A: We can change it based on size/complexity; however, minimum of 30 days proposal response is standard. Generally a heads up draft of the PWS is issued prior to a task order RFP.

Q: Task Orders: Do you have a standard lag time between draft and when actual solicitation hits the street?

A: Customer dependent, but usually two to three weeks. With the better buying guidance we solicit for 30 days if over $150K.

Q: Do you expect to have a standard page count at the task order level?

A: Our technical page count standard is 20 now and we adjust that accordingly.

Q: Task Order RFPs: Do you do sanitized/unsanitized copies or will it just be the standard unsanitized.

A: Today it has just been unsanitized submitted electronically and 55

CONS sanitize as needed.

Q: We have found as a best practice for the more technical task orders there be Industry

Days. Generally used on 5 fte’s or larger. What we found it did was really get the questions out on the table. You were able to sit in front of the contracting officer and the technical team and it really cut down the questions and responses.

A: That could be something that we consider. To date under the USAMS program there haven’t been a quantity of technical questions that support task order industry days.

Q: Will task orders under USAMS III be awarded based on best value? Will low price technically acceptable be the majority of awarded task orders?

A: Both Trade-off and LPTA will be used, based on the requirement.

Q: In a year we had to respond to 80+ to…and there were two different ways to respond.

For the smaller tasks, it was just a basis of estimate and a price on something that is very general in nature. Do you do LPTA?

A: You will very seldom have anything that is based on only price with USAMS. We do LPTA;

however, you will always have a20-25 page technical proposal as well. LPTA includes a technical component. You will have to demonstrate that capability to perform and/or provide the skill sets required.

Q: Is there a planned spending maximum per task order for this contract?

A: No.