Questions Answers_COMET_RFP Vol 3.pdf

Industry Questions & Government Answers Vol III

COMET (FA8604-21-R-B024)

23 September 2021

51. Questions Attached:

a. Section L – Attachment 1 – Past Performance Information Tool, Page 1. The instructions state that the PPI Tool can be downloaded from the sam.gov solicitation posting. However, no PPI Tool link has been provided yet. Will the Government please provide this link so that offerors can complete the requirement in a timely manner?

ANSWER: The PPI tool and directions have been updated on the solicitation website.

b. COMET Model Contract – Section B, Page 4-6. The Schedule B Table has OPTION CLINS that indicate pricing for five years. Can the Government please remove CLINs 1001 – 1005 from the Schedule B Table or confirm that offerors are only required to complete CLINs 0001 - 0005?

ANSWER: The pricing currently required for this RFP is for CLINs 0001-0005. CLINs 1001-1005 will be required at a later time towards the end of the first five-year option period.

52. Need your assistance to download the PPI tool. We are not able to find it out as per the instructions given on the Section L - Attachment 1 file after login in on SAM.gov.

ANSWER: The PPI tool and directions have been updated on the solicitation website.

53. Questions Attached:

a. Section L – Page 7, para 4.2.4.3.1 a. Please confirm that TO 2 paragraphs 3.8 and 3.9 are the only task areas that need to be covered to address this instruction and the remaining paragraphs not explicitly referenced in paragraph 4.2.4.3.1 a. are not required in order to be compliant and that it will not negatively affect the evaluation, if other TO 2 task areas are not addressed.

ANSWER: Yes, please follow the information listed in the paragraph of the Section L document

b. TO2 PWS, Infrastructure Engineering and Installation. Please define/clarify NASIC's networks versus domains.

ANSWER: A domain is a group of resources. The networks are referring to the different secure and unsecure networks at NASIC.

c. TO2 PWS, Infrastructure Engineering and Installation. Which accreditation boundaries can be carried across the same bundle of fiber?

ANSWER: NASIC has specific networks based on accreditation requirements

d. TO2 PWS, Infrastructure Engineering and Installation. What are the separation requirements for any individual network and/or domain? (i.e., Is everything in the facility fiber? Is that restricted to SCIFs?)

ANSWER: Separation requirements are a requirement documented in specific regulations that can’t easily be expressed in this answer.

e. TO2 PWS, Infrastructure Engineering and Installation. Does the requirement include building out and maintaining completely separate domains/infrastructure?

ANSWER: The TO describes in several places, domains that will be maintained.

f. TO2 PWS, Infrastructure Engineering and Installation. Please provide the scope of the remote support and occasional on-site support that may be required by NASIC/GSP for MCIA's facility in VA.

ANSWER: Scope depends on an unknown need based on required support.

g. Multiple Task Orders, Certifications and other personnel requirements. Will the government reimburse contractors for the cost of certifications and continuing education requirements for the certifications required by this contract?

ANSWER: The contract is a firm fixed price contract. There is no reimbursement for certifications or education.

h. TO5 PWS, 2.0 (Scope). Per TO 5, "Both systems will be running simultaneously for a period of time during installation and through migration." Is the COMET contractor responsible for O&M of both systems during that time?

ANSWER: The contractor will provide monitoring for both systems until full control has been transitioned to Lenel system.

i. TO5 PWS, Facility Security System. Please advise if TO 5 includes providing Guard services to cover the 24/7 monitoring of the ACS, IDC to include responding to system errors, alarms, clearing intrusion events, and monitoring the CCTV systems?

ANSWER: There are no guard services on the PWS.

j. TO5 PWS, Facility Security System. Can the Government provide an estimate of which major milestones for the technical implementation of the new system will be complete upon the award of the COMET contract? This estimate will affect the ability for contractors to provide realistic pricing.

ANSWER: Milestone that will be completed have not been confirmed.

54. Questions Attached:

a. General. Can NASIC provide a rendering of the current ESS physical and logical topology?

ANSWER: This cannot be provided at this time.

b. General. Can NASIC provide a rendering of the future ESS physical and logical topology?

ANSWER: This cannot be provided at this time.

c. General. Who will provide the IP Schema and IP addresses required for new IP security devices under this contract?

ANSWER: The contractor will not be required to provide this information. The government will be responsible for this.

d. 2.0 Scope. Will your upgraded CCTV system be connected to the enterprise network?

ANSWER: No it is not connected to enterprise network.

e. 2.0 Scope. Will all CCTV video be recorded locally, but available to remote viewing stations via the enterprise network?

ANSWER: Recording guidelines are set by the NASIC security office.

f. 3.1.1 Scope. What is the current alarm monitoring method(s) for ACS, IDS and CCTV for systems covered under the Task Order 5 existing systems?

ANSWER: Contractor provide staffing to support 24/7 monitoring of the electronic security system. NASIC government personnel manage routine operations with badging, visitor management and enrollment.

g. 3.1.1 Scope. How many corrective maintenance calls during normal business hours were received by NAICS during the prior 12-month period?

ANSWER: That information is not available at this time.

h. 3.1.1 Scope. For the corrective maintenance calls received by NASIC during the prior 12-month period, how many involved the DAQ Access Control System? The IDS System? The CCTV system?

ANSWER: That information is not available at this time.

i. 3.1.1 Scope. Is your current CCTV system networked?

ANSWER: Yes it is networked.

j. 3.1.1 Scope. During the transition period where the new ACS head end is stood up and connected to the enterprise network and with the existing ACS headend and DAQ still in control of existing DAQ panels, what is the plan to provide updates to cardholders added, deleted, schedule changes, etc. from DAQ to Lenel?

ANSWER: This is to be determined as the new system is integrated.

k. 3.1.1 Scope. Will the separate contract for upgrade of the head end also include supplying Lenel SUSP agreements or is the security contractor responsible for those?

ANSWER: A different contract will acquire new systems.

l. 9. Applicable Standards. Does NASIC follow the standards as directed by ICD 705 for SCIFs?

ANSWER: The contractor requirements are detailed in the TO5. The government security office has the requirement of maintaining standards of operations.

m. Section L – Attachment 7. Where should the Offeror price replacement parts for either preventative or corrective maintenance actions?

ANSWER: The offeror does not have to price replacement parts, they are part of a separate CLIN.

n. General. For Past performances, is there a difference between IDIQ and contract vehicles? Can we provide PP that belong to a contract vehicle like Alliant, Stars II etc.

ANSWER: Yes, follow guidelines set in Section L and Section M documents.

o. General. Can we submit CPARs instead of PPQs. Specially if we are submitting a PP which consists of multiple TO within IDIQ, it will be tough to reach out to each point of contact(POC), as each TO has its own POC.

ANSWER: CPAR is not being accepted in lieu of PPQ. If the offeror works with agencies that will not provide PPQ support, other forms of past performance such as CPAR will be used for the evaluation as described in the Section M document.

p. General. Please clarify if all the requirements are going to be on the High-Side (Classified Environment) for on-prem work..

ANSWER: Not all the requirements will be on the High Side (Classified Environment).

q. 3.1.1 - Scope. Is offeror expected to provide 24x7 onsite personnel monitoring for the CCTV and ACS systems?

ANSWER: No, contractors are not required to be present 24/7.

r. 3.1.1 - Scope. Is offeror expected to provide 24x7 Central Station monitoring for the IDS?

ANSWER: The contractor will provide 24/7 maintenance support composed of on-site during core duty hours and on-call for non-standard business hours.

s. General. Can the Government provide a breakout of devices by facility and location at WPAFB and the Springfield ANG?

ANSWER: It is unclear what devices are referred to in the above question. The five TOs discuss the system and hardware, listing every device the contract works would be an extremely large list.

t. General. Will contractor office space, utilities, and network access be provided by the Government?

ANSWER: Yes, NASIC will provide all of these to the contractor.

u. Attachment 7. Are all parts, materiel, software support agreements, and miscellaneous materials covered under the Materials / Equipment part of the Summary TEP on Attachment 7.

ANSWER: Yes, those CLINs will be reimbursement and the Labor CLIN is a FFP.

v. 3.1.1 - Scope. Is the current ESS environment up to date with regards to Software Support Agreements?

ANSWER: This information is not available at time of RFP release.

55. Questions Attached:

a. In consideration of the late timeline for the answers to questions to be released, will the government consider a two week extension to the due date?

ANSWER: The volume of questions has been addressed. The RFP due date has been updated, see RFP on SAM.gov.

b. L-4.2.4.1.2, Management Plan (Personnel). Due to restrictions on incumbent personnel from the incumbent vendor and the limited pool of candidates for a multi-award contract near the place of performance, will the government accept representative resumes for the key personnel requirements in lieu of key personnel resumes?

ANSWER: Requirements have changed to PM only.

c. TO2 PWS. TO2 Datacenter, Network, and Platform Hosting Task Order PWS has references to some approximate number of help desk tickets per month in the following sections:

• 3.1 SC Network Administration

• 3.2 SC Cyber Transport Support Tasks

• 3.4 GSP Network Administration

• 3.8 SC Infrastructure Engineering and Installation

• 3.9 GSM Infrastructure Engineering and Installation Support Tasks

• 3.11 SC Windows System Administration

• 3.15 GXS NSANet Windows System Administration

• 3.16 GXS NSANet RHEL/CentOS Linux/Solaris - System Administration

• 3.22 GSM System Administration and Workstation Support Tasks?

Can the government confirm that the referenced tickets are received by the Communications Focal Point (Help Desk) as a part of their duties under TO1 End User Workspace Task Order PWS before being escalated to the different teams operating under TO2? Can the government provide a breakdown of the nature, scope, and priority of the help desk tickets in order to help better determine level of effort required to resolve them?

ANSWER: CFP help desk does not receive help desk tickets for all offices. Scope of ticket breakdown is not available for all tickets.

d. TO2 PWS. TO2 Datacenter, Network, and Platform Hosting Task Order PWS has references to some approximate number of desktop moves and another approximate number of help desk tickets per month in the following sections:

• 3.1 SC Network Administration

• 3.4 GSP Network Administration

• 3.8 SC Infrastructure Engineering and Installation

• 3.9 GSM Infrastructure Engineering and Installation Support Tasks?

1. The number of desktop moves and help desk tickets do not match up. Are the desktop moves tracked separately from the help desk tickets?

2. If the desktop moves are tracked outside of the help desk system, can the government identify the system for tracking the desktop moves?

3. If there is a separate system for tracking desktop moves, who is responsible for following the desktop moves to completion?

ANSWER: Desktop moves are not only competed for help desk tickets. Some desktop moves are part of a project and not tracked as part of this contract.

e. TO2 Datacenter, Network, and Platform Hosting Task Order PWS has multiple references to monitoring systems and software.

Would the government please provide a list of monitoring systems and software that is currently in use in order to ensure the appropriate talent is delivered under the task order?

ANSWER: TO 2 requirements cross several different offices. A total enterprise list is not available at time of this RFP release.

f. TO 3 PWS Section 3.12.1 states: “Maintain and support IT Service Management systems”

Can the government provide the number of ITSM systems that will be supported under this task order?

ANSWER: Two planned but potentially three.

g. TO 3 PWS Section 3.12.1 states “Work with Service Owners and Service Process Managers to implement Service Catalogs, Service Offerings, Service Management workflows, Configuration Item databases, Configuration Management processes, and other related Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) management practices and processes using IT Service Management systems”

Can the government provide the following to help estimate the level of effort to support this requirement?

• Number of service owners o Three service owners

• Number of service process managers o PTAs –11 total plus Program Managers – 3

• Number of service catalogs o One service catalog as of now

• Number of CI databases o Approximately 10

ANSWER: Answers are under the above sub-bullets in bold.

h. TO 3 PWS Section 3.12.1 through 3.12.3 makes several references to IT services being provided to customers and branches that appear to be based on incidents or service requests.

Can the government confirm that the support provided in Section 3.12 is based on documented service requests and incidents received through one or more ITSM systems? Can the government provide the average number of monthly tickets for each (incidents and service requests) routed to the team providing SC ITSM support as described in Section 3.12?

ANSWER: 3.12 Description para describes some sources of IT requests which may not be from an ITSM system. Historical ticket count is not available at time of RFP release.

56. Respectfully requests a two-week extension to the submission deadline of Oct 28th?

ANSWER: The RFP due date has been updated, see RFP on SAM.gov.

57. Unable to access the PPI Tool referenced in RFP #FA8604-21-R-B024 COMET. As per the instructions in the RFP, I am contacting you for clarification on when the offerors may expect access to the PPI Tool. I respectfully request a two week extension to the proposal due date to ensure we have ample time to work with the PPI Tool to ensure we present the best proposal possible?

ANSWER: The PPI tool has been updated and the RFP due date has been updated, see RFP on SAM.gov.

58. Questions Attached:

a. RFP Section L.4.2.4.1.2 (Management Plan [Personnel]) requires that offerors submit resumes for key personnel, including the PM and team leads identified in Section 11 for all 5 Task Order Performance Work Statements. Given that the IDIQ will not be awarded for a year or more due to funding and other variables, will NASIC still require offerors to identify and propose “named” key personnel for all six of these positions? Would NASIC consider sample resumes as an alternative?

ANSWER: Requirement changed to PM only.

b. Will the government allow clarification questions on the responses anticipated from initial questions submitted including those received by 15 October 2021?

ANSWER: The government does not anticipate another round of questions at this time.

c. Can the government provide the target award date estimate at this point?

ANSWER: Estimated target award date is FY2022 4th Quarter.

59. DoD SAFE account information so that we may be able to submit our proposal volumes electronically in accordance with the instructions in RFP Section L, Para. 3.7 Electronic Offers.

ANSWER: Follow the RFP Sections L&M for directions for DoD SAFE.

60. Questions Attached:

a. Will the Government accept CPARS for each Task Order under a multi-award IDIQ instead of Past Performance Questionnaires to reduce the administrative burden on Government customers who have already completed CPARS?

ANSWER: CPAR is not being accepted in lieu of PPQ. If the offeror works with agencies that will not provide PPQ support, other forms of past performance such as CPAR will be used for the evaluation as described in the Section M document.

b. Will the government please provide a copy of the GSP PCIDS SOP?

ANSWER: Document will be uploaded to SAM.gov

c. How many personnel are current required to maintain the work performed under the TO4 Cloud services PWS?

ANSWER: TO4 is a new requirements. There are not any contractors filling these roles on the current contract.

d. Section L Volume III – Past Performance, Can the government please confirm whether can references multiple task orders contracts under multiple award IDIQ or multiple award BPA and will be considered one (1) contract for the purpose of evaluation?

ANSWER: References to multiple task orders under a single IDIQ shall be considered one (1) contract for the purpose of this evaluation.

61. Questions Attached:

a. COMET IDIQ PWS, Page 30 - 5.15.3 Requirements, Page 39 - 11 Services Summary. Quality Control Plan is mentioned in IDIQ PWS. Is this required with the proposal submittal?

ANSWER: Quality control plan is not required for the proposal. It will be required for any offeror that is awarded one or more of the TOs.

b. COMET Sect L, Page 9 – 4.3.2 Consent/Authorization Letters. Solicitation states, "Along with the information required in this section, the Offeror shall submit a consent letter executed by each subcontractor, teaming partner, and/or joint venture partner, authorizing release of adverse past performance information to the Offeror so the Offeror can respond to such information. For each identified effort for a commercial customer, the Offeror shall also submit a client authorization letter, authorizing release to the Government of requested information on the Offerors performance. See Attachments 4 and 5 for sample consent and client authorization letters." Does the government want these letters from all subs on the team, or just those that are providing past performance??

ANSWER: All subcontractors should provide consent/authorization letters.

c. COMET Sect L, Page 13 – 4.6.3.2 Government Offices. Can the Government please clarify the Government Paying Office information request in 4.6.3.2. The Government Paying Office information is client driven and different for every contract.

ANSWER: This has to do with the funding source and which location with DFAS the paying office is located. This has no bearing on Offeror’s proposals.

d. Section L - Attachment 7 - Total Evaluated Price Workbook (unlocked) FINAL rev 5, Tabs "Proposal Labor Price: Task Order 2," "Proposal Labor Price: Task Order 3," and "Proposal Labor Price: Task Order 4". The templates for these Toss are identical. Will the government be providing templates specific to the individual TOs?

ANSWER: This appendix has been corrected

e. TO4 Cloud Services Task Order PWS, Page 22 – 11 Transition. Bullet regarding last 30 days transition period says it is listing 3 incumbent staff, but then only lists 2 with an empty bullet in lieu of the 3rd incumbent. Can you tell us what the 3rd incumbent position is?

ANSWER: It should only be two and is correct in future TOs

62. Questions Attached:

a. IDIQ PWS Page 12 Multimedia Hardware Support. On page 12 of the IDIQ PWS under the Multimedia Hardware Support section, one of the bullets states “Integrate audiovisual systems and recommend technology solutions through the CSRD process.” Can the Government clarify what the CSRD process is?

Recommendation/Remedy: Describe the CSRD process or provide a copy for review by offerors.

ANSWER: Communications Systems Requirements Document is an online tool managed by government employees for processing all IT requirements. It is an online system so there are no copies to review.

b. IDIQ PWS Page 15 Configuration Management Support. On page 15 of the IDIQ PWS, the section called “Configuration Management Support” details the maintenance and publishing of the CM Concept of Operations (CONOPS). Can the Government please provide the current version of the

CM CONOPS?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide the current version of the CM CONOPS.

ANSWER: CONOPS documentation is not available at time of RFP release.

c. Task Order 2 PWS Sections 3.8 and 3.9. Both 3.8 and 3.9 of the PWS for Task Order 2 cover Infrastructure Engineering and Installation. For both SC and GSM Organizations, can the government please specify:

• Whether the network/system is a separate enclave?

• Where is each located and whether within a single or distributed across multiple buildings?

• Classification level(s)?

• The salient differences between the 2 systems/networks?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide additional information, clarifications, and specifications on the differences between the two sections by answering these specific questions so that the offeror can properly staff and price Task Order 2.

ANSWER: Positions may work on different networks. Both offices are located in the same building. Requirements classification level vary depending on requirements.

d. Task Order 2 PWS Sections 3.8 and 3.9. Both 3.8 and 3.9 of Task Order 2 provide estimates of ~100 tickets per month.

• Does this mean there are ~200 tickets (i.e., 100 for each of the 2 organizations SC and GSM)?

• Of the total volume:

- What percentage are incidents?

- What percentage are service requests?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide additional information, clarifications, and specifications on the differences between the two sections by answering these specific questions so that the offeror can properly staff and price Task Order 2.

ANSWER: The tickets are submitted to two different offices, so the estimate would be 200 tickets as a whole. The details of the percentages from different offices are not available.

e. Section M, General. For the purposes of evaluation, is the weighting within each sub-section in a given subfactor the same (e.g., 4.2.4.3.1 has the same weight as 4.2.4.3.2); or, do each of the sub-sub-sections have the same weight (e.g., 4.2.3.1.(a), 4.2.3.1.(b), and 4.2.3.2 all have equal weight)?

Recommendation/Remedy: Please clarify the weighting within each sub-sections for subfactor evaluation.

ANSWER: Each sub-section in the subfactors are given the same weight.

f. Task Order 2, PWS Section 3.10.1. In section 3.10.1 Scope, under SC Datacenter Support, one of the bullets states “Install, move, and/or remove racks, servers, switches, tape libraries, power, network/SAN cabling…” we have the following two questions regarding this statement:

• Are tape libraries currently maintained onsite or offsite?

• If offsite, who is the offsite storage vendor and does the government provide the transportation of tapes to the off-site storage location?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide clarification regarding the tape libraries and their location and maintenance.

ANSWER: The contractor will not be responsible for onsite requirements

g. Section L, Section 4.2.4.3.1(a) Page 7. Section 4.2.4.3.1(a) of Section L states leading a “team of five or more fiber technicians” as relates to TO2 PWS Sections 3.8 and 3.9.”

• Is the team of fiber technicians identified contractor positions under this TO/Sub-Factor?

• Is the staff level of five to cover both areas or is the government estimating a total of 10 fiber technicians (i.e., five technicians each for SC Infrastructure and Engineering and Installation and GSM Infrastructure and Engineering and Installation)??

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide clarification on the staffing levels for of the fiber technicians team(s)

ANSWER: The fiber team is made up of contractors identified in Task Order 2.

h. Task Order 2, PWS Section 3.10. Regarding section 3.10 SC Datacenter Support, what is the current inventory of the SC Datacenter (physical servers, virtual servers, switches, racks, storage, firewalls, routers, etc.)?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide the current inventory levels for of the SC Datacenter so that we may accurately develop staffing for this task order.

ANSWER: Over 1,265 virtual and physical servers of various operating systems and brands; 12.1 PB of disk storage; over 111 petabytes of tape storage; printers, scanners, copiers, fax machines and multi-function devices of various brands.

i. Industry Day Presentation, NASIC Architecture Technology Stack. Can the government please provide a current and target technology stack for each environment/enclave??

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide a current and target technology stack.

ANSWER: The target stack information was gathered for industry day and does not have any updated information.

j. Industry Day Presentation, Infrastructure Engineering & Installation Support. The Industry Day Presentation states “5-10 design requests per month” Can the Government provide the typical ‘size’ for each cable plant design?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide a size for each cable plant design.

ANSWER: Cable plant information is not available at time of RFP release.

k. Task Order 2 PWS Sections 3.8 and 3.9. Both 3.8 and 3.9 of Task Order 2 PWS states to “Provide facility network cabling design in coordination with requests from the Network Operations PTA, the Network Team Lead, the Facility Project Manager, or as requested by a NASIC CSRD”.

• How many cable plant design request are there per month?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide the number of cable plant design requests the offeror will receive per month.

ANSWER: Cable plant information is not available at time of RFP release.

l. Section L, 4.6.3.3, Page 13. In the section detailing what’s required in the Volume V. Contract Documentation, the Government asks for “all locations where work is to be performed and indicate whether such facility is a division, affiliate, or subcontractor, and the percentage of work to be performed at each location”.

As the contemplated contract is staff augmentation on Government sites, does the Government anticipate work to be performed on Contractor or other sites?

• Can the Government please provide a list of all locations where work is to be performed that is not a government site, and whether it is a permanent work location or serviced by the offeror via authorized and funded travel??

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide a list of all locations of work for the contract.

ANSWER: All contracted work will be performed at NASIC, and will not require travel.

m. Section L.4.3.3 Recent and Relevant Contracts, Page10. A significant subcontractor is defined as one “completing 25% or more of the proposed effort based on the total price. . .” Please confirm that the “proposed effort” refers to each individual task order since past performance is evaluated on the subfactor (task order) level.

Recommendation/Remedy: Include definition of “proposed effort” as task order. Confirm that past performance information may be presented for each subfactor as an individually evaluated component and the significant and critical function subcontractors may vary by task order.

ANSWER: The proposed effort will be the complete effort of the proposal. Each offereor’s proposal will include all 5 TOs.

n. Section L, Paragraphs 4.2.4, 4.3.4, and 4.5.4. We see consistency in the use of “functional area” throughout the solicitation documents. Do functional areas correspond with the five task orders which are equivalent to Subfactors 2 through 6?

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify the meaning of “functional area” in Section L. and what is required in the functional area Column A in Attachment 8.

Attachment 8, Column A. In Attachment 8, column A, there is a heading “Functional Area.” Are the five task orders presented there the “functional areas?” Are the lower-level subtasks to be considered “functional areas” as well? e.g., 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, etc.

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify the heading to indicate whether everything in column A is a functional area or if column A includes five functional areas and subordinate sub-functional areas.

ANSWER: The Attachment 8 defines what the functional areas are. They are the paragraphs listed under section 3 of each TO.

o. Section M.2.2.4, Assigning Rating, Page 10-11. This second sentence of this section states, “Although the past performance evaluation focuses on performance that is relevant to the Technical subfactors, the resulting performance confidence assessment rating is made at the factor level and represents an overall evaluation of contractor performance.”

We understand that the Subfactors are Program Management (Subfactor 1) and the five task orders (Subfactors 2-6) but we are unclear on what the Government means by “factor level”. The only factors identified in this solicitation are Technical, Past Performance, Technical, and Price. How will the Government evaluate contractor performance based on these three factors? Are all the factors weighted equally?

Recommendation/Remedy: Include list and definition of “factors” for the purposes of the evaluation of past performance on the factor level. Describe the evaluation process.

ANSWER: The factors are defined in the Section M document along with the past performance evaluation criteria.

p. Section M. 2.2.3.4. How will the Relevancy Assessment be performed, and will Attachment 8 be used in the process? If Attachment 8 is to be used in this Assessment, how will it be used? What must Attachment 8 present to earn a Very Relevant score?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide information on how relevancy is to be determined so that offerors can construct teams with relevant past performance.

ANSWER: Relevancy Assessment is defined in the section M document.

q. Section M. 2.2.3.3 Recency Assessment, Page 9. This paragraph states that, “To be recent, the effort must be ongoing with at least 6 months of performance or must have been performed during the past three (3) years from the date of issuance of this solicitation. If the effort began more than 3 years before the date of issuance of this solicitation, only the effort which occurred during the past 3 years will be considered recent. Past performance information that fails this condition will not be evaluated.”

If the period of performance began more than three years before the issuance of this solicitation, should the offeror also include the contract value and description of services provided for only the three years prior to the date of the solicitation?

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify how the offeror is to document past performance that began more than three years prior to the issuance of the solicitation yet performance continued on the past performance example into the three-year period of eligibility.

ANSWER: Only include the services performed ongoing with at least 6 months of performance or must have been performed during the past three (3) years. If the performance started prior to the three year period, extract the information for the services performed during the past three (3) years.

r. Section M. 2.2.3.4 Recency Assessment, Page 9. The penultimate sentence in this section states, “In determining the relevancy of effort performed under individual past performance contracts, the Government will only consider the specific effort or portion consistent with that proposed by the prime, subcontractor or teaming partner.”

We do not understand how the Government is determining relevancy. What does the Government mean by “specific effort or portion consistent with that proposed . . .”

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify language regarding relevancy and “specific effort or portion consistent. . . “

ANSWER: Relevancy will be evaluated based on the criteria listed in the Section M document with the ratings defined in Table 5.

s. Task Order 5 PWS, Section 3.1.1, Page 2. The TO requires:

“Maintenance support includes electronics and mechanical support such as turnstiles and electronic control unit (ECU) repair also provide a 24x7 technical support.”

Is the support required on-site 24/7, or can it be on-call response? If on-call, is there an established response time for the maintainer to report to the NASIC facility?

Recommendation/Remedy: Please clarify the type of 24/7 support that NASIC requires. What are the response requirements in terms of mean time to respond and mean time to repair, if any? Will the government have all hardware and software system components under maintenance from the product vendors who supplied same to the Government?

ANSWER: Provide 24/7 maintenance support composed of on-site during core duty hours and on-call for non-standard business hours. Repairs are required to be initiated within four hours of notification. Contractor will be required to provide spares for maintenance purposes.

t. Task Order 1 PWS , Sections 3.1, 3.2. What is the level of effort for GSP in comparison to SC? For instance, under the SC Service Desk historical hours per week are listed for core hours, non-core hours/weekends, and touch maintenance

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide the level of effort for GSP in comparison to SC, such that the offeror can understand the levels of effort for both and properly develop staffing and price.

ANSWER: Historically SC contracted approximately 19200 hours of effort and GSP contracted approx. 3800. Requirements are not the same as the current contract so there is expectations that the hours to perform the effort will not be the same.

u. Task Order 1, PWS 3.2. How many hours per week are required for Account Management

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide the hours per week required for Account Management, or provide the average number of adds, deletions, and modifications.

ANSWER: The time spent on account management for PWS 3.2 depends on the need at the time and is not tracked separately.

v. Section L 4.2.4.3.1.a, TO 2 PWS, Sections 3.8, 3.9. States “Designing an enterprise-size, premises fiber-optic network infrastructure and leading a team of five or more fiber technicians to install and maintain an enterprise size premises fiber-optic network infrastructure in accordance with PWS sections 3.8 and 3.9 for Task Order 2.

“There is a seeming conflict between the description in Section L and the scope and requirements in the referenced Sections 3.8 and 3.9 of the TO2 PWS. Section L indicates the scope is to design an “enterprise size, premises fiber optic network infrastructure …in accordance with sections 3.8 and

3.9 for Task Order 2” and the scope and requirements in the referenced Sections 3.8 and 3.9 appear to be narrower in scope (i.e., OSI Layer 1, 2).

Recommendation/Remedy: Revise contract language so that Section L and Task Order 2 PWS requirements match.

ANSWER: RFP should reflect requirements of Section L. TO define the contract requirements. The government is looking for industry input in the proposal submission to evaluate their ability to meet the requirements listed in Section L.

w. TO 2 PWS Section 3.8, 3.9. Is the offeror expected to address all items in Section L 4.2.4.3.1 as well as all elements for TO 2 PWS Sections 3.8 and 3.9?

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify task order response requirements.

ANSWER: Follow the instruction in Section L 4.2.4.3.1.

x. TO 2 PWS Sections 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, 3.28, 3.29. Each of the referenced sections details a list of Certifications and other personnel requirements

For example, 3.8 states

• Possess industry recognized fiber-optic certification to include

• Fiber Optic Association (FOA) Certified Premises Cabling Technician (CPCT) certification (preferred),

• FOA Certified Fiber Optic Technician (CFOT),

• Electronic Technicians Association (ETA) Fiber Optics Designer (FOD),

• ETA Fiber Optics Installer (FOI), ETA Fiber Optics Technician (FOT), or

• Building Industry Consulting Service International (BICSI) Installer2, Fiber-Optic.

We are asking the that the Government please clarify what are the actual requirements for each Task Area 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, 3.28 and 3.29

a. Are each of the listed certifications required?

b. Are each of the listed certifications required by all members of the team providing services for the specific task area?

c. Is the OR prior to the last item in the last apply to just the last 2 items or does it extend to the overall list?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide specific certification requirements for task order personnel.

ANSWER: Certifications are required for contractors performing the work that is specific to each certification. The Or statement applies to the whole list.

y. RFP. Is there currently a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for any area in the PWS? If so, which PWS areas are currently performed under a CBA?

Recommendation/Remedy: Supply information on CBAs.

ANSWER: There are no CBAs.

z. TO 2 PWS Section 3.10; Section L.4.2.4.3.1. b., Page 4. The PWS describes datacenter operations (server installation, moves, inventory, environment monitoring) but the instructions in Section L.4.2.4.3.1. b. states “Developing, designing, innovating, and implementing complex computing solutions while contributing to development of next-generation cluster-processing systems and components”. The L instructions appear to be in conflict with the PWS tasks. Is the contractor responsible for operating the datacenter and designing, developing, and implementing new or modified data center infrastructure and solutions?

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify contractor responsibilities for data center operations and design, development, and implementation of new or modified data center infrastructure and solutions referenced in the task order PWS and Section L.

ANSWER: The PWS lists the scope and description of the requirements that contractors will be responsible for in an augmented environment with military and government employees. The Section L document is requesting the offeror provide a detailed description of their approach to the tasks in section b as is described in the PWS.

aa. TO 2 PWS Section 3.10. To properly develop staffing and pricing for services required in 3.10, the offeror requires data on data center inventory. Will the Government provide physical server count, virtual server count, storage capacity, number of racks, device count, and hosted application count?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide inventory data to allow for accurate staffing and pricing.

ANSWER: Over 1,265 virtual and physical servers of various operating systems and brands; 12.1 PB of disk storage; over 111 petabytes of tape storage; printers, scanners, copiers, fax machines and multi-function devices of various brands.

bb. IDIQ PWS and TO PWSs. Given that this is a staff augmentation contract, is the offeror required to propose TO management to oversee all the personnel and functions within a given TO?

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify TO management requirements.

ANSWER: TO management is defined in section 5.8 of each TO. The offeror will be responsible for management of all company personnel and functions within the TO(s) they are awarded.

cc. IDIQ PWS and TO PWSs. Will the Government provide enterprise architecture documentation and/or other document(s) that provide insight into the future state of the enterprise to allow the offeror to properly staff and price the requirements?

Recommendation/Remedy: Supply architecture documentation to enable offeror to properly price task orders.

ANSWER: Some of the requirements of the COMET contract are new and do not have enterprise architecture documents.

dd. TO 5 Facility Security System. If there is a current contract for this work, please provide contract number and identify the contractor performing this work?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide information on incumbent contactor.

ANSWER: Contract number FA8604-17-D-1000, Incumbent: Intrepid Solutions

ee. TO 5 PWS, Section 3.1.1, Page 2. This section describes the requirement to “Operate, maintain, secure, and repair multiple physical security systems across multiple NASIC facilities.” Is there a single control facility for this function? If not, how many control facilities are there and what are the responsibilities of each?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide data on the number of control facilities.

ANSWER: General control locations function and quantities:

Security Command Center – (2) Geographically separated Security Command Center – (1) System Administration – (1) Physical Security – (1) Visitor Control Center – (4) Visitor Control Badging – (3) Area Access Managers with Browser Based Client Stations – (15)

Current ESS configuration:

IDS has multiple control locations – (3) internal to the NASIC main complex, (1) in a NASIC owned geographically separated facility on Wright Patterson AFB, and (2) consoles located with Installation Security Forces Squadron on Wright Patterson AFB.

Physical Access Control System – (4) primary locations – (3) locations within the NASIC main complex and (1) location at a geographically separated facility on Wright Patterson AFB.

Additionally, there are partitioned security areas having area access managers who manage access rights specific to their area.

CCTV – (4) locations composed of (3) within NASIC main complex and (1) at a geographically separated facility on Wright Patterson AFB.

Lenel ESS Configuration:

Primary control will be centralized in one location, Security Command Center. There will be an equivalent level of control for a geographically separated facility on Wright Patterson AFB which during normal operations will manage facility specific security operations and during an emergency, provide redundant control.

ff. TO 5 PWS, Section 3.1.1, Page 2. Does this requirement apply to the Springfield Air National Guard Base, and if so where is there monitoring location?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide data on Springfield Air National Guard Base.

ANSWER: Negative – NASIC ESS is central to Wright Patterson AFB, main complex and geographically separated facilities on the installation.

gg. TO 5 PWS, Section 2. Scope Page 1. Please identify the number of entrance/exit points by building with number and type of portal/turnstile?

Recommendation/Remedy: Supply data on building entrance/exit points.

ANSWER: Optical turnstiles with sliding glass barriers or swing arms – (10) turnstiles.

hh. TO 5 PWS, Section 2. Scope Page 1. To accurately staff and price the requirement the offeror requires identification of which entry/exits have in-person access control staff.

Recommendation/Remedy: Supply data on access control staff.

ANSWER: Currently (1) installation security forces member staffs a post within NASIC 24/7. Under the new Lenel system, these duties will be replicated by the dually staffed monitoring personnel in the Security Command Center operating 24/7 – 365 days.

ii. TO 5 PWS, Section 3.1.3, Page 4. What software is being used to maintain this inventory?

Recommendation/Remedy: Identify inventory management system.

ANSWER: Microsoft Excel.

jj. TO 5 PWS, Section 3.1.3, Page 4. What software is being used for trouble tickets to track facility security issues?

Recommendation/Remedy: Identify trouble ticket system use to track security issues.

ANSWER: NASIC managed facility remedy ticket system. ESS related issues are also informally submitted directly to maintenance personnel via voice, email from Government Physical Security Office.

kk. TO 5 PWS, Section 6, Page 12. What software is being used to maintain this schedule?

Recommendation/Remedy: Identify software system used to maintain schedule.

ANSWER: Section 6 is concerned with the QASP, could not verify what “schedule” is being referenced

ll. TO 5 PWS, Section 5.9, Page 7. What software is being used to maintain this integrated data management system?

Recommendation/Remedy: Identify software used for integrated data management system.

ANSWER: This information is not available at time of RFP release.

mm. Section L.4.5.4 c), Page 12. The instructions request labor categories by functional area for each TO. However, the functional areas listed do not coincide with the Task Order functional areas.

For example, TO3 PWS 3.1 is SC Vulnerability Testing, while Attachment 7 workbook TO3 3.1 is GSP Helpdesk Support. This inconsistency between the TO PWS requirements and the pricing workbook functional areas exists across all of the TOs.

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify how the functional areas are to be mapped from a labor category perspective.

ANSWER: Spreadsheet has been corrected.

nn. Attachment 7 and L4.5.4 a). Attachment 7 and L4.5.4 a) use the term "fully burdened rates" for each labor category. Do fully burdened in this context includes the fee?

Recommendation/Remedy: Please confirm that "fully burdened rates" include the fee.

ANSWER: Yes, fully burdened rate includes fees.

oo. SAM.GOV record. The SAM.GOV record for this solicitation states that responses are due 10/28/21. However, no responses have been received to questions for a more than a month since the solicitation was released. Numerous uncertainties and areas of clarification required are preventing offerors from preparing a viable technical response and price proposal for this solicitation.

Recommendation/Remedy: We request an extension of the due date for submission of all elements of offeror responses, including past performance questionnaires, of four weeks after final Q&A release.

ANSWER: The RFP due date has been updated, see RFP on SAM.gov.

pp. SAM.GOV record. The SAM.GOV record for this solicitation states that there are “controlled attachments.” How can offerors be certain they have access to them all, including the PPI tool, which continues to remain missing?

Recommendation/Remedy: Clarify what attachments are available and provide access to the PPI tool.

ANSWER: The RFP due date has been updated, see RFP on SAM.gov.

qq. Model Contract. The due date listed in the model contract is August 25. Can the Government update the model contract to reflect the correct due date so that we may sign it and add it to our submission?

Recommendation/Remedy: Correct the due date listed on the cover page of the model contract to accurately reflect the proposal due date..

ANSWER: The RFP due date has been updated, see RFP on SAM.gov.

rr. Section L 4.6.1, Page 13. Section 4.6.1 of Section L states to “Complete all required representations and certifications or indicate if information is contained in sam.gov” However, it appears that the only listed representation and certification section of the solicitation is in Section K of the Model Contract. This section only lists one reference. Is this the only representation/certification that is required to be shown in our sam.gov account?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide a comprehensive list of all required representations and certifications the Government expects to find on our SAM.gov record.

ANSWER: This question is still being reviewed. At this time, no other Reps and Certs are required for Section K.

ss. IDIQ PWS / TO 4 PWS 3.1.1. COMET IDIQ indicates the work is intended as “staff augmentation” yet PWS for Cloud Services Task Order 4, Section 3.1.1. describes the scope as, “Implement, operate, maintain and enhance an on-premises Infrastructure as a Service Offering meeting according to NIST SP 800-145.” If this TO work is intended to be a staff augmentation effort, what is the Government’s workload estimate for the tasks described in TO 4 and what is the current government staffing for these tasks to enable Industry effectively staff and price if we are augmenting existing government personnel?

Recommendation/Remedy: Provide government staffing levels and projected workload for TO 4 tasks described in 3.1.1.

ANSWER: TO 4 includes new requirements. There are no current staffing requirements being filled.

63. Questions Attached:

a. Subfactor 1 - Program Management. The Operations and Maintenance plan requires offerors to detail "resource allocation within each functional area and task assignments". Since there are 5 Task Orders and 55 Functional Areas, with many of the Functional Areas containing multiple "task assignments" and labor categories, we anticipate that this table will require a large number of pages to address the government's instruction. Similar to the Skills-to-Technology Matrix, will the Government allow the Operations and Maintenance Plan to be excluded from page count?

ANSWER: We do not estimate this to take up a large number of pages.

b. TO1-5. Please provide a list of all incumbent contractor companies used for service in each Task Order and their associated contract numbers.

ANSWER: Contract number FA8604-17-D-1000, Incumbent: Intrepid Solutions, however some requirements within COMET are new.

c. TO1-5. Is the scope of the COMET Task Orders similar to the current requirements or have new requirements been added that could significantly increase staffing levels?

ANSWER: New requirements have been added to the COMET solicitation.

d. TO1-5. While the government has provided enterprise-wide numbers for networks, help desk calls, servers, and other background information in each Task Order PWS, there is not enough information regarding the breakout of work across the Task Orders and the support provided by the government and military personnel, in addition to contractors, to create an accurate basis of estimate. Please provide the government-estimated staffing levels, specifically for contractor personnel (not including government and military) for each Task Order.

ANSWER: The requirements have changed between the current contract and the COMET solicitation. We do not expect the current staffing to represent the new requirements.

e. TO1-5. The government currently uses a mix of Federal, Military, and contractor personnel to provide the services within each Task Order PWS. Based on the current organization, we estimated roughly 200 government/military personnel and 100 contractor personnel. Please confirm these estimates are accurate.

ANSWER: The requirements have changed between the current contract and the COMET solicitation.