Draft_RFP_Question_Response_10-18-2013.docx

DRAFT RFP FA8517-13-R-30810 Response to a Question from an Interested Party 18 Oct 2013

Question - In accordance with the draft solicitation, Joint Ventures are allowed and defined as a contractual agreement joining together two or more parties to undertake a particular business transaction or project and is intended to exist for a limited time period. Please confirm that Joint Ventures between a small business concern (SBC) and a large business concern, by definition, disqualify the joint venture from competing for small business set-asides with size standards below the average annual receipts of the specified NAICS (541330, Engineering Services, Exception 18, Size Standard $35.5M) of the large concern because the SBC and large concerns will be viewed as affiliates, thereby causing the joint venture to exceed the size standard of the small business set-aside. The general rule is that firms submitting offers on a particular procurement as joint venturers are affiliates with regard to that contract, and they will be aggregated for the purpose of determining size for that procurement. 13 C.F.R. § 121.103

Answer – A joint venture can submit an offer as a small business if each concern in the joint venture is a small business under the size standard corresponding to the NAICS code assigned to the contract, and the total overall dollar value of the procurement, including options, exceeds half the size standard corresponding to the NAICS code assigned to the contract.

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