FA9101-20-R-0005 Combined Synopsis Solicitation.pdf

FA9101-20-R-0005, Arc Heater IDIQ

This is a Request for Proposal (RFP) and the solicitation number for this requirement is FA9101-20-

R-0005.

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation in accordance with FAR Part 12, FAR Part 13, and FAR

Subpart 16.5 for the manufacturing of commercial material to produce the desired arc heater segments/supplies. This document is prepared in accordance with the format in FAR 12.6, as supplemented, and with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.

The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through

Federal Acquisition Circular 2020-06 effective 06 May 2020, Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation

Supplement DPN 20190628 effective 28 Jun 2019, and Air Force Federal Acquisition Regulation

Supplement AFAC 2019-1001 effective 1 October 2019.

The North American Industry Classification System code (NAICS) is 332710, Machine Shops, with a Small Business Size Standard of 500 employees.

DESCRIPTION: The items to be furnished are water-cooled segments 8 to 10 inches in diameter and 0.5 inch thick, fabricated of oxygen-free high conductivity (OFHC) copper. These items may be requested individually or in the form of module assemblies that are ready for inspection and installation when shipped. The segments are specifically designed and fabricated to withstand the extreme environment imposed by the arc heating process. The segments are designed to survive heating rates of 4500 Btu/ft2-sec at gas pressures of 170 atm. The segments must also withstand

1,000 psi internal cooling water pressure without deformation.

- Reference the attached drawings/specifications, Attachment 1- H1 Pricing Sheet, and

Attachment 2- H2/H3 Pricing Sheet.

- The Government plans to award one (1) firm-fixed-priced (FFP) indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract resulting from this request.

a. The period of performance for this contract shall be five (5) years. One (1) base year with four (4) option years.

b. The contract minimum and maximum quantity forecasts noted in Attachments 1 and 2 are only estimates and are subject to change.

c. The dollar minimum for orders placed by the Government shall not be below $20,000.00.

d. The overall contract minimum shall be $165,761.96.

e. The maximum value for this contract shall be NTE $6,944,703.00.

SET-ASIDE: N/A

- The provision at 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial, applies to this acquisition.

- The offeror shall include a completed copy of the provision at 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items, with its offer.

- Clause FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition.

- Clause FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or

Executive Orders-Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition.

FAR 52.212-2- Evaluation of Commercial Items (Oct 2014)

- The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers:

BASIS FOR AWARD:

- Neodora, LLC shall agree to and provide the following criteria:

1. Neodora, LLC shall certify that they adhear to the statement of work/specifications.

2. Neodora, LLC shall provide their pricing information, shipping shall be included in each part’s total evaluated price, and projected period of performance for 0001- H1 Arc Heater Parts and

0002- H2/H3 Arc Heater Parts for the five (5) year period in the attached documents labeled:

a. Attachment 1- H1 Pricing Sheet

b. Attachment 2- H2/H3 Pricing Sheet

3. Neodora, LLC shall provide the Government with the following documentation to support pricing for CLINS: 0001- H1 Arc Heater Parts and 0002- H2/H3 Arc Heater Parts for the five

(5) year period:

a. Projected material details and costs (provide bill of sale)

b. Labor overhead rate

c. Direct labor details and costs

d. Sub-contractor details and costs

e. G&A details and costs

f. Profit margins

4. The award will be made to the perspective and responsible vendor, whose quote conforms to the solicitation, while being most advantageous to the Government, along with negotiated price and other factors considered. Reference the attached drawings/specifications.

Neodora, LLC shall fill out the information in Table 1:

Table 1

ITEM

NUMBER

DESCRIPTION

FORCASTED QTY UNIT

MANDATORY

DELIVERY

DATE

TOTAL

EVALUATED

PRICE

0001 H1 Arc Heater

Parts

See Attachment 1-H1

Pricing Sheet for minimum and maximum forecasted quantity.

EACH 6 MARO $

0002 H2/H3 Arc

Heater Parts

See Attachment 2-

H2/H3 Pricing Sheet for minimum and maximum forecasted quantity.

EACH 6 MARO $

Total Contract Price: $______________

BASIS FOR ORDERING:

1. Procedures the Government will use in issuing orders: FAR 16.504(a)(4):

a. This will be a five (5) year IDIQ contract (one (1) base year with four (4) option years)

b. The minimum and maximum forecasted quantities are noted in attachment 1- H1

Pricing Sheet and attachment 2- H2/H3 Pricing Sheet

c. The drawings are attached to provide specifications for each part.

d. Neodora, LLC will be notified via the point of contact’s email address on file when placing/issuing an order. Neodora shall inform the government if there is a change to the point of contact’s email address.

e. Orders shall be authorized by the Government once the need for parts has been identified. Orders shall be issued once certified funds have been received.

f. For this contract, oral orders shall not be issued or accepted.

2. All orders placed under this contract shall contain the following: FAR 16.505(a)(7):

a. Date of order

b. Contract number and order number

c. For supplies and services, line item number, subline item number (if applicable), description, quantity, and unit price or estimated cost and fee (as applicable). The corresponding line item number and subline item number from the base contract shall also be included

d. Delivery or performance schedule

e. Place of delivery or performance (including consignee)

f. Any packaging, packing, and shipping instructions

g. Accounting and appropriation data

h. Method of payment and payment office, if not specified in the contract

i. North American Industry Classification System code

DELIVERY LOCATION: Items will be FOB Destination to Arnold Engineering Development

Complex, USAF Warehouse Receiving #1, 1476 N. Hap Arnold Dr., Arnold AFB, TN 37389-8000

DEADLINES:

Questions and Answers: All questions are due, in writing, no later than 10 June 2020 at

12:00 PM CST. They shall be sent via email to the email address below. The Government will not respond to questions received after this date and time.

Receipt of Quote: Neodora, LLC’s quote and supporting documentation is due 19 June 2020 at 12:00Pm CST. The quote shall be emailed to Greggory C. Jones, Contract Specialist, at greggory.jones.4@us.af.mil .

mailto:greggory.jones.4@us.af.mil

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INFORMATION: The proposal shall be emailed to the address identified above. The vendor shall fill out the information below with the company’s most recent information.

Vendor’s Information

Company

Address

CAGE

DUNS

Federal Tax ID

POC

Phone / Fax

E-mail

PAYMENT TERMS:

The Government shall consider your “DISCOUNT TERMS” to be NET 30 unless following block is marked and filled-in completely: % Days

SAM/DUNS/WAWF: All offers must list the DUNS number, CAGE code, and Federal TIN with

Company name, POC, and phone number. If you need to obtain or renew a DUNS number or CAGE code, please visit https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/. Lack of registration in the SAM database will make an offeror ineligible for award. Vendor must also be registered in Wide Area

Workflow to receive payment through electronic funds transfer. If you are not currently registered, please visit the following website https://wawf.eb.mil/ to complete your registration.

By submission of an offer, the offeror acknowledges the requirement that a prospective awardee shall be registered in the SAM database prior to award, during performance, and through final payment of any contract, basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchasing agreement resulting from this solicitation in accordance with FAR 52.204-7 – System for Award

Management. If the Offeror does not become registered in the SAM database in the time prescribed by the Contracting Officer, the Contracting Officer will proceed to award to the next otherwise successful registered Offeror. Processing time, which can take up to 14 business days, should be taken into consideration when registering. Offerors who are not registered should consider applying for registration immediately upon receipt of this solicitation.

https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/ https://wawf.eb.mil/

RERESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS: Offerors are advised to include a completed copy of the FAR provision 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications, with the proposal or confirmation that they are current and complete via the SAM website.

By submitting this quote, the vendor acknowledges receipt of all attachments, amendments, and changes for this RFP.

The following Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation

Supplement (DFARS) and Air Force Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (AFFARS) provisions and clauses apply to this solicitation and are incorporated by reference:

- FAR 52.202-1, Definitions (Nov 2013)

- FAR 52.203-3, Gratuities (Apr 1984)

- FAR 52.203-12, Limitations on Payments to Influence Certain Federal Transactions (Oct 2010)

- FAR 52.203-13, Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct (Oct 2015)

- FAR 52.203-17, Contractor Employee Whistleblower Rights and Requirement to Inform Employees of Whistleblower Rights (Apr 2014)

- FAR 52.204-4, Printed or Copied Double-Sided on Postconsumer Fiber Content Paper (May 2011)

- FAR 52.204-7, System for Award Management (Oct 2018)

- FAR 52.204-13, System for Award Management Maintenance (Oct 2018)

- FAR 52.204-16, Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (Jul 2016)

- FAR 52.204-18, Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance (Jul 2016)

- FAR 52.209-9, Updates of Publicly Available Information Regarding Responsibility Matters (Oct

2018)

- FAR 52.211-15, Defense Priority and Allocation Requirements (Apr 2008)

- FAR 52.211-17, Delivery of Excess Quantities (Sep 1989)

- FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items (Mar 2020)

- FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation- Commercial Items (Oct 2014)

- FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (Mar 2020)

- FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions—Commercial Items (Oct 2018)

- FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes or Executive

Orders—Commercial Items (Mar 2020)

Under FAR 52.212-5(b)

- FAR 52.203-6, Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government (Sep 2006), with

Alternate 1 (Oct 1995)

- FAR 52.203-13, Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct (Oct 2015)

- FAR 52.204-10, Reporting Executive Compensation and First-tier Subcontract Awards (Oct

2018)

- FAR 52.209-6, Protecting the Government’s Interest When Subcontracting with Contractors

Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment (Oct 2015)

- FAR 52.219-8, Utilization of Small Business Concerns (Oct 2018)

- FAR 52.219-28, Post-Award Small Business Program Representation (May 2020)

- FAR 52.222-3, Convict Labor (Jun 2003)

- FAR 52.222-19, Child Labor—Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies (Jan 2020)

- FAR 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (Apr 2015)

- FAR 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity (Sep 2016) (E.O. 11246)

- FAR 52.222-35, Equal Opportunity for Veterans (Oct 2015) (38 U.S.C. 4212)

- FAR 52.222-36, Equal Opportunity for Workers with Disabilities (Jul 2014) (29 U.S.C. 793)

- FAR 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Veterans (Feb 2016) (38 U.S.C. 4212)

- FAR 52.222-40, Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act

(Dec 2010)

- FAR 52.222-50, Combating Trafficking in Persons (Jan 2019)

- FAR 52.223-18, Encouraging Contractor Policies to Ban Text Messaging while Driving

(Aug 2011)

- FAR 52.225-1, Buy American- Supplies (May 2014)

- FAR 52.225-13, Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases (Jun 2008)

- FAR 52.232-33, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer—System for Award Management

(Oct 2018)

- FAR 52.232-39, Unenforceability of Unauthorized Obligations (Jun 2013)

- FAR 52.232-40, Providing Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors (Dec 2013)

- FAR 52.247-34, FOB—Destination (Nov 1991)

- DFARS 252.203-7000, Requirements Relating to Compensation of Former DoD Officials (Sep

2011)

- DFARS 252.203-7001, Prohibition on Persons Convicted of Fraud or Other Defense-Contract-

Related Felonies (Dec 2008)

- DFARS 252.203-7002, Requirement to Inform Employees of Whistleblower Rights (Sep 2013)

- DFARS 252.203-7003, Agency Office of the Inspector General (Aug 2019)

- DFARS 252.203-7005, Representation Relating to Compensation of Former DoD Officials (Nov

2011)

- DFARS 252.204-7003, Control of Government Personnel Work Product (Apr 1992)

- DFARS 252.204-7006, Billing Instructions (Oct 2005)

- DFARS 252.204-7015, Notice of Authorized Disclosure of Information by Litigation (May 2016)

- DFARS 252.205-7000, Provision of Information to Cooperative Agreement Holders (Dec 1991)

- DFARS 252.209-7004, Subcontracting with Firms That Are Owned or Controlled by the

Government of a Country that is a State Sponsor of Terrorism (May 2019)

- DFARS 252.225-7002, Qualifying Country Sources as Subcontractors (Dec 2017)

- DFARS 252.225-7012, Preference for Certain Domestic Commodities (Dec 2017)

- DFARS 252.225-7048, Export Controlled Items (Jun 2013)

- DFARS 252.226-7001, Utilization of Indian Organizations, Indian-Owned Economic Enterprises, and Native Hawaiian Small Business Concerns (Apr 2019)

- DFARS 252.232-7003, Electronic Submission of Payment Requests (Dec 2018)

- DFARS 252.232-7010, Levies on Contract Payments (Dec 2006)

- DFARS 252.243-7001, Pricing of Contract Modifications (Dec 1991)

- DFARS 252.243-7002, Requests for Equitable Adjustment (Dec 2012)

- DFARS 252.244-7000, Subcontracts for Commercial Items (Jun 2013)

- DFARS 252.247-7023, Transportation of Supplies by Sea—Basic (Feb 2019)

- AFFARS 5352.223-9000, Elimination of Use of Class I Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) Oct

2019)

The following FAR provisions and clauses apply to this solicitation and are incorporated in full text:

52.216-19, Order Limitations (Oct 1995)

(a) Once the Government has placed order(s) in excess of $165,761.96 or more, the overall contract minimum has been satisfied and the Government shall not be required or obligated to place additional orders through the contract.

(b) Minimum order per delivery order. When the Government requires supplies or services covered by this contract in an amount of less than $20,000.00, the Government is not obligated to purchase, nor is the Contractor obligated to furnish, those supplies or services under the contract.

(c) Maximum order. The Contractor is not obligated to honor --

(1) Any order for a single item in excess of $1,000,000.00;

(2) Any order for a combination of items in excess of $3,000,000.00; or

(3) A series of orders from the same ordering office within five (5) calendar days that together call for quantities exceeding the limitation in subparagraph (b)(1) or (2) of this section.

(c) If this is a requirements contract (i.e., includes the Requirements clause at subsection 52.216-21 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)), the Government is not required to order a part of any one requirement from the Contractor if that requirement exceeds the maximum-order limitations in paragraph (b) of this section.

(d) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, the Contractor shall honor any order exceeding the maximum order limitations in paragraph (b), unless that order (or orders) is returned to the ordering office within five (5) days after issuance, with written notice stating the Contractor’s intent not to ship the item (or items) called for and the reasons. Upon receiving this notice, the

Government may acquire the supplies or services from another source.

52.216.22- Indefinite Quantity (Oct 1995)

(a) This is an indefinite-quantity contract for the supplies or services specified, and effective for the period stated, in the Schedule. The quantities of supplies and services specified in the Schedule are estimates only and are not purchased by this contract.

(b) Delivery or performance shall be made only as authorized by orders issued in accordance with the Ordering clause. The Contractor shall furnish to the Government, when and if ordered, the supplies or services specified in the Schedule up to and including the quantity designated in the

Schedule as the “maximum.” The Government shall order at least the quantity of supplies or services designated in the Schedule as the “minimum.”

(c) Except for any limitations on quantities in the Order Limitations clause or in the Schedule, there is no limit on the number of orders that may be issued. The Government may issue orders requiring delivery to multiple destinations or performance at multiple locations.

(d) Any order issued during the effective period of this contract and not completed within that period shall be completed by the Contractor within the time specified in the order. The contract shall govern the Contractor’s and Government’s rights and obligations with respect to that order to the same extent as if the order were completed during the contract’s effective period; provided, that the

Contractor shall not be required to make any deliveries under this contract after the period of performance has expired.

52.217-9 -- Option to Extend the Term of the Contract (Mar 2000)

(a) The Government may extend the term of this contract by written notice to the Contractor within 30 days of the end of the basic or option period; provided that the Government gives the Contractor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 60 days before the contract expires. The preliminary notice does not commit the Government to an extension.

(b) If the Government exercises this option, the extended contract shall be considered to include this option clause.

(c) The total duration of this contract, including the exercise of any options under this clause, shall not exceed five (5) years from the date of award of the basic contract.

52.252-2, Clauses Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998)

This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es):

http://farsite.hill.af.mil/ and https://www.acquisition.gov.

52.252-6, Authorized Deviations in Clauses (Apr 1984)

(a) The use in this solicitation or contract of any Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR

Chapter 1) clause with an authorized deviation is indicated by the addition of "(DEVIATION)" after the date of the clause.

(b) The use in this solicitation or contract of any Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation

Supplement (48 CFR Chapter 2) clause with an authorized deviation is indicated by the addition of

"(DEVIATION)" after the name of the regulation.

The following DFARS clauses apply and are incorporated in full text:

252.216-7006 – Ordering (Sep 2019)

a) Any supplies and services to be furnished under this contract shall be ordered by issuance of delivery orders or task orders by the individuals or activities designated in the contract schedule. Such orders may be issued from the date of award of the basic contract through the end of the last exercised option period, if an option is exercised.

(b) All delivery orders or task orders are subject to the terms and conditions of this contract. In the event of conflict between a delivery order or task order and this contract, the contract shall control.

(c)(1) If issued electronically, the order is considered “issued” when a copy has been posted to the

Electronic Document Access system, and notice has been sent to the Contractor.

(2) If mailed or transmitted by facsimile, a delivery order or task order is considered “issued” when the Government deposits the order in the mail or transmits by facsimile. Mailing includes transmittal by U.S. mail or private delivery services.

(3) Orders may be issued orally only if authorized in the schedule.

Wide Area Work Flow Payment Instructions (DEC 2018)

(a) Definitions. As used in this clause—

“Department of Defense Activity Address Code (DoDAAC)” is a six position code that uniquely identifies a unit, activity, or organization.

“Document type” means the type of payment request or receiving report available for creation in Wide Area

WorkFlow (WAWF).

“Local processing office (LPO)” is the office responsible for payment certification when payment certification is done external to the entitlement system.

“Payment request” and “receiving report” are defined in the clause at252.232-7003, Electronic Submission of Payment Requests and Receiving Reports.

(b) Electronic invoicing. The WAWF system provides the method to electronically process vendor payment requests and receiving reports, as authorized by Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement

(DFARS)252.232-7003, Electronic Submission of Payment Requests and Receiving Reports.

(c) WAWF access. To access WAWF, the Contractor shall—

(1) Have a designated electronic business point of contact in the System for Award Management athttps://www.sam.gov; and

(2) Be registered to use WAWF at https://wawf.eb.mil/following the step-by-step procedures for self-registration available at this web site.

(d) WAWF training. The Contractor should follow the training instructions of the WAWF Web-Based

Training Course and use the Practice Training Site before submitting payment requests through WAWF. Both can be accessed by selecting the “Web Based Training” link on the WAWF home page at https://wawf.eb.mil/

(e) WAWF methods of document submission. Document submissions may be via web entry, Electronic Data

Interchange, or File Transfer Protocol.

(f) WAWF payment instructions. The Contractor shall use the following information when submitting payment requests and receiving reports in WAWF for this contract or task or delivery order:

https://www.acquisition.gov/dfars/252/dfars/part-232-contract-financing#252.232-7003 https://www.acquisition.gov/dfars/252/dfars/part-232-contract-financing#252.232-7003 https://www.sam.gov/

(1) Document type. The Contractor shall submit payment requests using the following document type(s):

(i) For cost-type line items, including labor-hour or time-and-materials, submit a cost voucher.

(ii) For fixed price line items—

(A) That require shipment of a deliverable, submit the invoice and receiving report specified by the

Contracting Officer.

(Contracting Officer: Insert applicable invoice and receiving report document type(s) for fixed price line items that require shipment of a deliverable.)

(B) For services that do not require shipment of a deliverable, submit either the Invoice 2in1, which meets the requirements for the invoice and receiving report, or the applicable invoice and receiving report, as specified by the Contracting Officer.

(Contracting Officer: Insert either “Invoice 2in1” or the applicable invoice and receiving report document type(s) for fixed price line items for services.)

(iii) For customary progress payments based on costs incurred, submit a progress payment request.

(iv) For performance based payments, submit a performance based payment request.

(v) For commercial item financing, submit a commercial item financing request.

(2) ) Fast Pay requests are only permitted when Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.213-1 is included in the contract.

(f) [Note: The Contractor may use a WAWF “combo” document type to create some combinations of invoice and receiving report in one step.]

(3) Document routing. The Contractor shall use the information in the Routing Data Table below only to fill in applicable fields in WAWF when creating payment requests and receiving reports in the system.

Routing Data Table*

Field Name in WAWF Data to be entered in WAWF

Pay Official DoDAAC F03000

Issue By DoDAAC FA9101

Admin DoDAAC FA9101

Inspect By DoDAAC F1EEMA

Ship To Code FY1476

Ship From Code N/A

Mark For Code F1EEMA

Service Approver (DoDAAC) F1EEMA

Service Acceptor (DoDAAC) F1EEMA

Accept at Other DoDAAC N/A

LPO DoDAAC N/A

DCAA Auditor DoDAAC N/A

Other DoDAAC(s) N/A

(*Contracting Officer: Insert applicable DoDAAC information. If multiple ship to/acceptance locations apply, insert “See Schedule” or “Not applicable.”)

(**Contracting Officer: If the contract provides for progress payments or performance-based payments, insert the DoDAAC for the contract administration office assigned the functions under FAR 42.302(a)(13).)

(4) Payment request. The Contractor shall ensure a payment request includes documentation appropriate to the type of payment request in accordance with the payment clause, contract financing clause, or

Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.216-7, Allowable Cost and Payment, as applicable.

(5) Receiving report. The Contractor shall ensure a receiving report meets the requirements of DFARS

Appendix F.

(g) WAWF point of contact.

(1) The Contractor may obtain clarification regarding invoicing in WAWF from the following contracting activity’s WAWF point of contact.

nancy.holt.4@us.af.mil

(Contracting Officer: Insert applicable information or “Not applicable.”)

(2) Contact the WAWF helpdesk at 866-618-5988, if assistance is needed.

mailto:nancy.holt.4@us.af.mil

WAWF email notifications. The Contractor shall enter the e-mail address identified below in the “Send

Additional Email Notifications” field of WAWF once a document is submitted in the system.

james.cashion@us.af.mil – Invoice Approver greggory.jones.4@us.af.mil – Contract Specialist aleshia.brooks@us.af.mil – Contracting Officer (End of clause)

DFARS Payment Instructions (May 2019)

The table at section (b)(2) at the following link includes payment instruction for paying agencies:

https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/pgi_htm/current/PGI204_71.htm#payment_instructions

The following AFFARS clauses apply and are incorporated in full text:

AFFARS 5352.201-9101, Ombudsman (OCT 2019)

(a) An ombudsman has been appointed to hear and facilitate the resolution of concerns from offerors, potential offerors, and others for this acquisition. When requested, the ombudsman will maintain strict confidentiality as to the source of the concern. The existence of the ombudsman does not affect the authority of the program manager, contracting officer, or source selection official.

Further, the ombudsman does not participate in the evaluation of proposals, the source selection process, or the adjudication of protests or formal contract disputes. The ombudsman may refer the interested party to another official who can resolve the concern.

(b) Before consulting with an ombudsman, interested parties must first address their concerns, issues, disagreements, and/or recommendations to the contracting officer for resolution. Consulting an ombudsman does not alter or postpone the timelines for any other processes (e.g., agency level bid protests, GAO bid protests, requests for debriefings, employee-employer actions, contests of OMB

Circular A-76 competition performance decisions).

(c) If resolution cannot be made by the contracting officer, the interested party may contact the ombudsman, [Insert names, addresses, telephone numbers, facsimile numbers, and e-mail addresses of

Center/MAJCOM/DRU/AFRCO/SMC ombudsman/ombudsmen]. Concerns, issues, disagreements, and recommendations that cannot be resolved at the Center/MAJCOM/DRU/SMC ombudsman level, may be brought by the interested party for further consideration to the Air Force ombudsman, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary (ADAS) (Contracting), SAF/AQC, 1060 Air Force Pentagon, Washington DC 20330-1060, phone number (571) 256-2395, facsimile number (571) 256-2431.

(d) The ombudsman has no authority to render a decision that binds the agency.

(e) Do not contact the ombudsman to request copies of the solicitation, verify offer due date, or clarify technical requirements. Such inquiries shall be directed to the contracting officer.

(End of clause) mailto:james.cashion@us.af.mil mailto:greggory.jones.4@us.af.mil mailto:aleshia.brooks@us.af.mil