NGAME RFIs 8_19.docx

Next Generation Ammunition Munition Equipment (NGAME)

RFP FA853226RB002

RFIs

1. I would appreciate some additional information and clarification regarding the recent update posted to SAM.gov for the referenced pre-solicitation. I noted the following statement was added to the listing: "NGAME will not accept any foreign participation. Direct awards will be restricted to entities with a valid U.S. CAE code. The Buy American Act requires that all end items be manufactured in the United States." Could you please clarify the intended scope of the phrase "will not accept any foreign participation"? Specifically, we would like to understand whether this restriction applies solely to the prime contractor and place of manufacture of the end items, or whether it also extends to engineering, design, development, manufacturing, or other performance activities conducted by affiliated entities located outside the United States. Our company maintains engineering and manufacturing capabilities in Austria, and we are seeking to determine whether those resources could be utilized in support of contract performance, provided that all applicable solicitation requirements, domestic sourcing requirements, and U.S. export control regulations are satisfied. Additionally, could you clarify whether this acquisition is subject to any restrictions that would preclude products, components, or services originating from Trade Agreements Act (TAA) designated countries, or whether the government intends to apply sourcing requirements beyond the standard Buy American Act and TAA framework?

A foreign company may participate, but they need to have a registered CAGE code for the US. The Buy American Act requires manufactured end products to be produced in the US as long as 55% of the cost is associated with work done in the US. Additionally, the Buy American Act only applies to the Prime contractors and subcontractors. To be TAA compliant as well as Buy American compliant, the foreign country just has to be on the designated country list. Components are allowed to be produced OCONUS, as long as the company resides in a country listed in the Buy American Act IAW the TAA. The end product must be assembled in the US. The RFP posted on sam.gov has been updated. The statement of no foreign participation was inaccurate and has been removed.

2. Section J lists three attachments: Combined Sections L and M, the Statement of Objectives, and the Ordering Guide. Combined Sections L and M also references “RFP Attachment I,” which appears to contain the NGAME Self-Scoring Matrix, Work Sample Cover Sheet, Price Submission, List of Fill-In Clauses and Provisions to Complete, and PIEE submission instructions. These materials were not included in the solicitation package available to the offeror. Will the Government provide RFP Attachment I and all required forms and instructions?

The NGAME self-score matrix and Price submission list has been uploaded to sam.gov. I am working on an amendment now to update some of the wording in Section L&M which includes removing the PIEE submission wording and Work Sample Cover Sheet. You may have your own coversheet for each work sample, we don’t have anything specific for that. I will have the other attachments completed and uploaded by EOB Monday 5 August and will upload them to sam.gov.

3. Combined Sections L and M requires a current CMMC Level 2 status in the SPRS as of the proposal due date. Please confirm whether a Level 2 assessment conducted by a Certified Third-Party Assessment Organization (C3PAO) must be completed by the proposal due date, or whether a current CMMC Level 2 self-assessment satisfies the proposal eligibility requirement.

Self Assessment is sufficient- if the score is below 110- you must submit a Plan of Action for obtain the required score.

4. For Categories 1 and 2, when qualifying work was performed by an integrated team that included the offeror, original equipment manufacturers, subcontractors, and other contributors, what documentation does the Government consider sufficient to demonstrate the offeror’s specific role, responsibilities, and contribution toward successful contract performance and the resulting deliverables?

You can provide the government contract number under which the work was completed and a snip of the SOW/PWS etc showing what work was completed and invoices etc submitted for that work. The amounts can be redacted.

5. Section L requires evidence of prior work to be submitted “in the original format as it was originally delivered.” It also requires Volume II to be submitted as one combined PDF file and requests an electronic Microsoft Word copy of the technical proposal. Please confirm whether both a combined PDF and separate Word document are required for the technical proposal volume.

A combined PDF is sufficient.

6. [Redacted] submitted a proposal as a Prime contractor with a number of subcontractors. We are currently creating a proposal for the solicitation, as a Prime; one of subcontractors wants to also submit a proposal as a Prime, while keeping his status with us as a subcontractor. Is this allowed under the contracting mechanism you have in place?

A subcontractor under one teaming agreement may propose as a Prime contractor. If there’s not an “official” teaming agreement, same rules apply. The subcontractor is able to submit their own independent proposal. The Prime proposing must have an approved DD2345 with their company name. They cannot use one for another company.

7. Question: Each Work example is a cover page (1), plus content Pages (2), no limit on artifacts. Is it safe to assume that the artifacts are limited so that that total page count does not exceed 30 pages?

Volume II page limit is 30 pages. The Work Sample Cover Sheet, Self Scoring Matrix, and anything like a table of contents or acronyms page are not included in the page count. There’s no limit on artifacts. We don’t need a bunch of “fluff”, just send us proof via artifacts that you are capable of performing what you are giving yourself credit for on the self-score matrix.

8. The work was not for the US government, but for very regulated and safety critical industries e.g., oil and Gas. Can we use these examples of Industrial Materials Handling Equipment as suitably qualified Work Examples, or will they just get thrown out? (we fully understand that the relevancy and substantiation is our responsibility) Work samples are required to be from work performed as a Prime or subcontractor on another US Government contract. Any examples submitted outside of that will not be reviewed for the NGAME requirement.

9. Work Examples: Qualified expertise. Is it acceptable for an company employee to have relevant experience from a previous company where he was responsible and accountable for the costing, design, prototyping, manufacture, and testing of Industrial Material Handling Equipment?

No, the experience and qualifications must follow the company, not an employee.

10. The solicitation PDF is locked against editing, but Section L requires submission of a completed and signed solicitation. Because the applicable fill-ins are already completed, may offerors submit the locked solicitation with separately signed signature pages, or will the Government provide an unlocked version?

The offeror may submit a separately signed signature page for the RFP and any amendments issued. A wet signature is also allowable. To date, there are 2 amendments that have been issued and uploaded to sam.gov, so please submit those signed also. As listed in the combined L&M, if the Volume I submission is not fully compliant, the remainder of the proposal will NOT be evaluated, and will be determined not eligible for award. The fill-ins were completed in error by the contract writing system, so if there is a different response for the fill-ins than what is showing, please note that.

11. Section L, Volume IV, paragraph D.2.c, references a Pre-Award Survey as RFP Attachment I, but the attachment was not provided. Will the government clarify and provide the pre-award survey attachment?

Yes, the SF1408 has been added as an attachment on sam.gov, and will be incorporated into amendment 03.

12. If the Pre-Award Survey referenced in Section L is Standard Form 1408, may an offeror that previously submitted this form, but who has not yet received a determination submit the same form, or must a new form be completed?

The same form may be used as long as it was submitted in the past 90 days from the NGAME RFP release date. We will need the signed SF1408 form.

13. Thank you for providing the Pre-Award Survey attachment. Upon review, the posted SF 1408 does not appear to contain fields for completion by the offeror.

The contractor-completed document we previously submitted was the DCAA Pre-Award Survey of Prospective Contractor Accounting System Checklist, which contains contractor response fields and supporting narrative requirements addressing the SF 1408 criteria.

Please confirm whether the contractor-completed checklist is the Pre-Award Survey intended for submission under Section L, or if there is a different document.

As long as the checklist you have addresses the information we are requesting, I do not have a problem with it.

14. Do we need to submit Section D.3 Introductory Documents with our RFP response?

It’s not clear if we must submit all the documents in D.3 with this RFP response, or just with any following proposals once selected as a team member in the IDIQ. Based on D.2 Format, I would say yes, it’s required. But these documents are not included in the evaluation criteria for Section M. It also says Price will be Evaluated but not rated. D.3.f Ground Rules and Assumptions is a part of the Completed Price Submission (D.2.b.) which is confusing.

D. Volume IV, Price

1. General: To be eligible for award for the first Delivery Order, offerors shall provide the following reports/statements:

a. Price: The offeror shall submit their proposed price for the Virtual Post-Award Conference in RFP Attachment Price Submission. The Virtual Post-Award Conference will be used to satisfy the minimum requirement of the IDIQ contract which is $100.00.

b. In accordance with DFARS 215.371-3, cost and pricing data may be required in the event only one offer is received. If no exception in FAR 15.403-1(b) applies, the cost and pricing data shall be certified. In accordance with FAR 15.403-1(b) and 15.403-3(a), data other than certified cost or pricing may be required to support a determination of price reasonableness. Data shall be provided in accordance with FAR 15.403-5. If, after receipt of proposals, the Contracting Officer determines that there is insufficient data available to determine price reasonableness and none of the exceptions in FAR 15.403-1 apply, the offeror shall be required to submit additional cost or pricing data.

2. Format:

The Price proposal shall contain the information specified below:

a. Introductory documents IAW D.3.

b. Completed Price Submission

3. Introductory Documents:

a. Estimating System: The offeror will indicate whether the offeror’s system has Government Approval. The offeror will provide evidence of such approval.

b. Purchasing System: Offerors will provide a description of their purchasing system or methods (e.g., how material requirements are determined, how sources are selected, when firm quotes are obtained, what provisions …..

c. Accounting System…

d. Disclosure statements….

e. Financial Capability Review…

f. Ground rules and assumptions… Yes, the below (now above) needs to be submitted with the Volume IV for the RFP. Ground rules and assumptions speak to what you are proposing in your price. Ex: We will have 2 members for a 2-hour post award conference.

15. For NGAME solicitation FA8532-26-R-B002, are we allowed to use a PROS V contract as one of our work samples? Just would like some clarity on if this US contract vehicle is an acceptable contract for submission in our proposal.

It may be used as long as the artifacts submitted show the work completed/or in process as it relates to the experience necessary to meet the requirements of the RFP and it’s attachments. The work must also be recent-within the past 5 years.

16. Is there a TDP for this opportunity?

There’s no TDP.

1. Volume I asks for a Small Business Subcontracting Plan. As this current NGAME proposal is not bidding any particular product or service but simply showing examples of prior work and why our company is suited for bidding in this space, what is the expected content in this plan? Can we send a prior example of a Small Business Subcontracting Plan with some of the information redacted (customers, suppliers, actual cost goals, etc.)? For the nature of this proposal, the Volume III Small Business Participation Proposal seems more relevant on HOW we intend to target small businesses, so I’m trying to understand the expectation for the inclusion of a Small Business Subcontracting Plan.

The small business subcontracting plan required by RFO clause 52.219-9, as supplemented by the R-DFARS, shall be submitted by large business offerors. The plan shall set forth the offeror’s plan for subcontracting with small businesses to the maximum extent practicable and shall include all elements in accordance with RFO clause 52.219-9, as supplemented by the R-DFARS. The small business subcontracting plan shall include the information required by RFO 19.206-2 and all associated clauses within this RFP.

Both the Small Business Subcontracting Plan and Small Business Participation Plan are relevant for all Large Business. Based on the contract ceiling amount, figure out how much of that you expect to bid on and based on the work that will be done under this IDIQ, figure out what percentage of the work you expect to be done by each small business category listed based on your knowledge of the market and what type of supplies/services you provide. Make sure to include each item listed in the above clauses and provisions. If a company does not meet the current SB subcontracting goals, tell us what you will do to try to meet or exceed those goals.

2. Earlier when our team was reviewing the proposal solicitation, we distinctly remember the documents stating that the maximum price for a submitter’s post award conference participation was $100. I believe this was stated in Attachment I Price Submission and in the NGAME Combined LM_Final_ attachments, however now that language is no longer there. What is the guidance for pricing our participation in a post award conference for the Volume IV Price Proposal?

That’s correct. That language was inaccurate, and was updated in one of the solicitation amendments which have been posted on sam.gov. You will state your ground rules and assumptions and propose a price for your team to participate in the post award conference for a maximum of 2 attendees for up to 4 hours.

19. Regarding the document NGAME Combined LM_Final_8_6 Page 5, Category 2:

1. May we include previous and ongoing technical manuals and provisioning experience for non-MMHE items to support Category 2 exhibits?

For Category 2 exhibits/artifacts/substantiation documentation- you may include ongoing technical manuals and provisioning experience for non-MMHE. We want you to show us that you can provide what is requested and show proof that you can do it.

20. The NGAME+Combined+LM_Final Document (II Volume Organization, A General) indicates that Volume II is restricted to 30 pages, and the contents include the Self Scoring Matrix, Work Sample Cover Sheet, Work Sample Contract Front Page, and Artifacts. However, the answer to Question 7 in the NGAME_RFIs_8_10 document indicates “Volume II page limit is 30 pages. The Work Sample Cover Sheet, Self Scoring Matrix, and anything like a table of contents or acronyms page are not included in the page count. There’s no limit on artifacts.” Because this contradicts the original instructions, will the government please clarify what will be counted within the 30-page limit for Volume II?

Section L of the combined L&M:

3. The page limitation for Volume II, Written Technical Proposal, is 30 pages. The page limitation for Volume III, Small Business Concern Participation, is 5 pages. The page limitations exclude any cover page(s), table of contents, list of acronyms (if utilized), or attachments as specifically identified in this provision; all other content is included in the page limitations. Offerors are cautioned that any pages that exceed the page limitations shall not be read but shall be removed and retained in the contract file without being considered in the evaluation.

I misspoke on addressing the Self-Scoring Matrix and artifacts, per the Section L&M, there is a maximum of 2 work samples for Volume II, and the Self Scoring Matix IS included in the page count.

21. The NGAME+Combined+LM_Final Document (II Volume Organization, A General, (2)) indicates "No paper shall be larger than 11x17. Will 11x17 pages be counted as one page or two pages for purposes of page count?

1- 11x17 page= 1 page