PES Questions and Answers.pdf

Q# Document Reference Question Government Response

1 PWS §4.1.3, Page 7-8

(Key Personnel - Inspector Qualifications)

The PWS requires Technical Inspection inspectors to possess "at least a

Technician or Incorporated Engineer membership of either ICE, IStructE or other equivalent body" and Professional Appraisal inspectors to hold "at least

Chartered or Corporate membership of either ICE, IStructE, or other equivalent body."

Will the Government accept US-based professional certifications and qualifications as meeting the "other equivalent body" requirement? Specifically, would the following US credentials be considered equivalent:

- Department of Defense Explosives Safety Board (DDESB) certification

- US Navy Level 300 Professional Inspector certification

Yes we will accept US-based professional certifications. The following are deemed equivalent:

- Professional Engineer (PE) license from a US state licensing board

- American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) membership

2 PWS §4.1.3, Page 8

(Documentation Requirements for

Equivalency)

The PWS states "Documentation will be required to demonstrate knowledge with the explosives storage and processing principles set out in DSA 03.OME Pt2."

If US-based qualifications are acceptable as "equivalent," what specific documentation would the Government require to demonstrate equivalency?

Would the following be sufficient:

- Copies of professional certifications and licenses

- Curriculum vitae demonstrating PES/explosives facility inspection experience

- Training certificates in DoD explosives safety standards

- Letters of certification from previous government clients

- Evidence of successful completion of similar inspection contracts

We would expect the inspectors to have read the UK documents as well as having suitable US based skills, experience and qualifications. Your suggestions are deemed suitable.

3 PWS §1.3.5.1, Page 4

(ESTC Forms and Standards Access) The most up to date ESTC Standard 6 for B&CE are avaliable online. No restrictions on non-UK entities for these forms.

The most up to date ESTC Standard 6 for B&CE are avaliable online. No restrictions on non-UK entities for these forms.

4 PWS §1.3.1.1 & §1.3.2.1, Page 3

(Compliance with ESTC Standards)

The PWS requires inspections to be "performed according to ESTC standards" and "All reports will follow the instructions and guidelines within ESTC Std. No. 6

Part 2 - B&CE Inspections."

Will the Government provide training, familiarization, or transition support to contractors who are thoroughly familiar with DoD explosives safety inspection standards (DoD 6055.09-STD, DDESB Technical Papers) but may require orientation to UK-specific ESTC Standard 6 reporting formats and terminology?

Or is the contractor expected to achieve full ESTC Standard 6 compliance independently prior to contract start?

The contractor is expected to achieve compilance independently. The UK currently cannot provide training for

Part 2.

5 PWS §4.7.2, Page 9

(Host Agency Check Vetting Timeline)

The PWS states "This process may take up to eight (8) weeks" for Host Agency

Check (HAC) vetting, and §4.7.1 notes "unescorted base passes take an estimated

90 calendar days to process."

a) Given the Base Period start date of 20 March 2026 and the requirement that inspections be completed "at least 30 days prior to the required date" (PWS

§1.3.1.1), will contract award occur early enough to allow sufficient time for:

- HAC vetting (up to 8 weeks)

- Unescorted base pass processing (up to 90 days)

- Phase-in period (30 days per PWS §4.1.4)

- Completion of first inspections before their due dates

The Government understands that both the HAC vetting and unescorted base passes can take a significant amount of time to finalize. As the Government is responsible for this process, if the contractor is unable to gain this unescorted access within a reasonable amount of time, the Government will have to accomodate the contractor by escorting on-site for needed inspections.

6 PWS §4.1.3, Pages 7-8 & §4.7.2, Page 9

(Inspector Citizenship Requirements)

The PWS discusses requirements for both "local national Contractor employees" and "U.S. citizens" in §4.7.2.

a) Are contractor personnel required to be UK nationals, US citizens, or are other nationalities acceptable?

b) If US citizens are acceptable, do they require the same MODLO Proforma

Packet processing as foreign nationals, or only the documents listed for US citizens (excluding MODLO Proforma)?

c) Can inspectors be a mix of US and UK personnel, or must the entire team be

Either local national or US citizens are acceptable including a mix.

7 PWS §1.3.6.1, Page 5 & Appendix C

(Inspection Schedule Interpretation)

The PWS states "The current PES facilities are inspected on an odd and even year schedule" and references Appendix C for the current schedule.

Based on our review of Appendix C, we observe inspection dates scheduled for

2026 (even year). For the Base Period (20 March 2026 - 19 March 2027):

a) Which specific facilities and how many total inspections (Technical Inspections

vs. Professional Appraisals) are required to be completed during the Base Period?

b) Should offerors price based on the specific facilities listed with 2026 due dates in Appendix C, or is there a separate list of facilities to be inspected in each contract year?

c) How many Schedule 2 Site Infrastructure & Utilities Inspection Reports are required annually vs. the 6-year cycle for the three MUNS Storage Areas?

Yes, the PES facitilities are inspection on an odd and even year basis.

a)The base period of performance provided is structured for contractual pricing and may include inspections that are due both in an even year and an odd year. The price schedule projects how many facilities are due for inspection during a given period of performance (both Technical, Professional, and Schedule 2)

b) Again, the quantities listed in the pricing schedule for each period of performance include all those faciltiies due

(Technical, Professional, etc.) during that time period.

8 Combined Synopsis/Solicitation, Page 5

(Past Experience - Subfactor 2)

The evaluation criteria requires "at least one (1) but no more than three (3) contracts for the same/similar scope of effort described in the PWS" with "Total

Contract value at or exceeding £25,000 (or US Dollar equivalent)."

For contracts performed under US DoD standards rather than UK DSA 03.OME

Part 2/ESTC Standard 6, will the Government consider the following as

"same/similar scope":

- PES/explosives facility inspections conducted to DoD 6055.09-STD (DoD

Ammunition and Explosives Safety Standards)

- Inspections following DDESB Technical Papers and guidance

- Magazine and igloo inspections at US military installations

- Ordnance storage facility safety inspections for US or NATO forces

We would require ESTC standards as the minimum.

9 Combined Synopsis/Solicitation, Page 2

(Price Schedule - CLIN Structure)

The solicitation references "Attachment 2: Pricing Schedule" but this attachment was not included in the documents available for download.

a) Can the Government please provide Attachment 2 (Pricing Schedule) showing the required CLIN structure, units of measure, and quantities for each inspection type?

b) Should pricing be structured per inspection (unit price per Technical

Inspection, per Professional Appraisal, per Schedule 2 Report) or as annual fixed prices for all required inspections?

a) The Government did all the required information in

Attachment 2 - Pricing Schedule.

b) The pricing should be structured per inspection and the price schedule is set up to be priced as such. This will not be an annual fixed price.

10 Combined Synopsis/Solicitation, Page 2

(Question Submission & Response Timeline)

The solicitation states "Questions are encouraged to be submitted at your earliest convenience but will not be accepted past Friday, 13 February 2026 at

12:00 PM BST."

Given that the solicitation was issued on 30 January 2026 and questions are due

13 February 2026 (14 calendar days), with responses due 2 March 2026 (17 days later), will the Government provide written responses to questions submitted before the deadline with sufficient time for offerors to incorporate answers into their proposals?

The Government intends to provide responses as they are received. The intention is to provide responses back to the offerors as quick as possible and well before the required quotation submission deadline.

11 PWS §4.5.3.2, Page 9

(UK Bank Holidays - Schedule Impact)

The PWS lists UK bank holidays when "The Contractor is not required to work."

However, the requirement states inspections must be completed "at least 30 days prior to the required date."

If inspection due dates fall shortly after extended holiday periods, will the

Government grant schedule relief, or is the contractor expected to plan around holidays to meet all deadlines?

The Government will grant schedule relief as long as it does not cause a lapse in facility certification.

12 PWS §4.1.3, Page 8

(HERO Approval Timeline & Process)

The PWS requires "All equipment with transmitters (i.e. phones, tablets, Bluetooth, etc.) must be approved for Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to

Ordnance (HERO). HERO requests are to be sent to COR a minimum of 21 days in advance of inspections..."

a) Can contractors submit HERO requests for commonly used inspection equipment (tablets, digital cameras, laser measurement devices) immediately upon contract award for blanket approval, or must each piece of equipment be submitted 21 days before each inspection?

b) What is the typical approval timeline after the 21-day advance submission?

HERO Approval requests can be submitted at anytime and once approved the equipment can be used without additional authorizations.

The process of approval can take some time as it requires actions by the Installation Spectrum Manager as well as

Weapons Safety, but interim approvals can be gained when required.

We are only looking at equipment that emits RF radiation.

LASER do not require authorization, most Bluetooth and mobile devices are already approved.

13 PWS §2, Services Summary, Pages 5-6

(Performance Remedies - CLIN Definition)

The Services Summary specifies remedies including "10% price reduction for the specific inspection's line item" for various performance failures.

For a contract priced with multiple CLINs (different inspection types, different facilities, different years), how will "the specific inspection's line item" be calculated? Will each individual facility inspection have its own CLIN, or will inspections be grouped (e.g., all Technical Inspections in a given year as one

CLIN)?

This remedy will be assessed on a case by case basis. This is also seen as a last resort for performance issues. How this will be assessed would depend upon the situation. Was it only one report late? Was one inspection not scheduled in time?

14 Is this is a brand new contract OR if there is (was) an incumbent performing these services. This is a reacquisition

15 If not brand new, could you please provide the current / previous contract number? FA558721P0010

What is the type and amount of insurance cover required for this work?

The US Government does not have specific insurance requirements/values applicable to this requirement.

Our understanding is that any contract awarded would be governed by the FAR, DFARS, and AFFARS in that order, please confirm this is correct.

Yes, that is correct, however, as a note, it is no longer the

AFFARS but the DAFFARS for the name of the regulation.

18 If the above is correct, please provide a copy or link to the FAR https://www.acquisition.gov/

19 Our corporate governance requires that any contracts we undertake include proportionate caps on liability, please confirm a.if FAR includes a liability cap, or b.if it does not include a liability cap that we can agree a cap prior to award.

A. The FAR does not require insurance requirement for this requirement. There is no requirement under the FAR for fixed price type contracts. B.

i.Yes, we can agree to a liability cap prior to award. It is my understanding that UK law does require Employer’s Liability

(EL) insurance of at least £5M to help pay compensation if an employee is injured or becomes ill because of the work they do for you.

20 Please clarify the specific insurance requirements / values applicable to this appointment

The US Government does not have specific insurance requirements/values applicable to this requirement.

21 Please advise if the FAR imposes a fitness for purpose obligation in relation to the performance of the services. The reason for asking is that we are not insured for the strict liability that a fitness for purpose obligation attaches.

Fitness for purpose obligation typically applies to technical design/build and construction type contracts. FAR does not impose a “fitness for purpose” obligation as you describe. As we consider the type of structural inspection work to be commercial in nature the rights and remedies for both the

Government and the contractor will fall under FAR 52.212-4

Contract Terms and Conditions – Commercial Products and

Commercial Services.