J-X Section L, Instructions to Offerors

INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROPOSAL PREPARATION (IFPP)

SECTION L

FOR

GUARD – GLOBAL UNIFIED AIRBASE READINESS AND DEFENSE

21 Sept 2026

REVISION HISTORY

Revision Number

Date Description Sections

Affected

Initial DD MON

YY

Initial Publication

L-1.0 PROGRAM STRUCTURE AND OBJECTIVES

The Global Unified Airbase Readiness and Defense (GUARD) contract is a two (2) base-year Ordering Period Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract, with options to extend the Ordering Period up to, but not exceeding, ten (10) years (with a maximum performance period for Task and Delivery Orders extending an additional five years beyond the end of the Ordering Period). The Orders placed under this contract may utilize Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP), Fixed-Price-Incentive-Fee (FPIF), Cost- Plus-Fixed-Fee (CPFF), Cost-Plus-Incentive-Fee (CPIF), Cost Reimbursement (CR), and Time & Material (T&M) contract types. Contract type(s) will be determined at the Order level.

In accordance with the Department of the Air Force Contracting Compass (DAF) Part 16, Obligations, an Order will be made at the time of award of an IDIQ contract. The initial Order will be a Post-Award Conference with a Government-established Firm-Fixed-Price amount of $1,000. This Post- Award Conference is anticipated to be held in-person at Hanscom AFB, MA, though the Government reserves the right to hold the conference remotely.

The GUARD IDIQ provides for the acquisition and sustainment of Integrated Base Defense (IBD) physical security and force protection electronic security systems, items/equipment, and system integration capabilities. These activities include installation and sustainment services tailored to the Air Force Security Forces community; specifically, electronic security intrusion detection systems, which provide for a means to deter, anticipate, deny, detect, report, delay, assess, and track hostile forces and targets for the protection of resources, work environments, and personnel. The scope of this work has historically consisted of, at a minimum: the design; development; procurement; system installation and integration; system test; system certification and accreditation; and performance-based logistical support of IBD systems and equipment at Department of War (DoW) locations in both Continental United States (CONUS) and Outside of the Continental United States (OCONUS) locations, as well as the ability to qualify candidate Commercial off-the-Shelf (COTS) equipment for use in Security Forces Government off-the-Shelf (GOTS) in scenarios approved by the Government, Defender Multi-Domain Command, Control, and Communications (DMDC3) system architecture; and support to DoW security system architecture development.

These systems provide electronic capabilities to support and enhance site security and assist security forces in protecting assets and personnel at nuclear and non-nuclear fixed and/or tactical sites around the world. The ultimate goal of the GUARD contract is to provide security forces with the capability to “See First, Understand First, and Act First.” In short, through this contract, users will be provided with integrated systems and equipment, tailored to specific user needs, which provide an electronic means to assist security forces in protecting personnel, assets, and facilities worldwide. Systems capabilities include area intrusion detection; access control; alarm reporting and display; remote alarm assessment; and alerting security response forces to intrusions. Additionally, systems provide an integrated command and control capability, permitting situational awareness reporting and warning information to be rapidly and accurately passed among security and force protection communities. Associated capabilities such as fencing, lighting, power, ground communications systems, and other infrastructure improvements may also be required. The contract also provides for remote command and automated activation of delay/denial devices.

The contract provides associated project support including, but not limited to, program management, systems engineering, repair of Contractor-furnished equipment and Government Furnished Property (GFP), testing, training, interim Contractor support, and/or Contractor logistics support. The contract also provides special studies and analyses, and qualification and acceptance testing of COTS equipment when ordered or proposed. It includes provisions for the acquisition of security systems to support, including but not limited to, the Department of Energy (DOE), Department of State (DOS), other DoW customers, and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers.

IBD Systems acquired under this contract will consist of either:

1. Already proven COTS equipment from the Configuration Management Database, published by the Force Protection Division (ESS) (hereafter referred to as the "CMD"); or

2. Non-CMD COTS equipment proposed by the Offerors (or otherwise specifically required by the Government as part of an Order solicitation).

All non-CMD equipment proposed for use at the Order Level must be qualified (tested) to meet specified performance requirements and proven to be “certifiable” for use prior to installation. These testing efforts shall be at no cost to the Government unless otherwise specified. Although new Integrated Defense System (IDS) technologies may be proposed by the GUARD IDIQ Contractors throughout the life of this contract, Offeror adherence to previously proven and approved technologies to the maximum extent possible will be encouraged. At any point during the lifecycle of the acquisition, it may be in the Government’s best interest to further standardize and manage configurations and equipment. At such time, the ability to propose non-CMD COTS equipment may be rescinded, and adherence to the CMD may be more strictly directed.

L-1.2 General Information

This is a competitive source selection to establish a multiple-award IDIQ vehicle. The Government intends to award ten (10) contracts under this solicitation to the highest technically rated Offerors with a fair and reasonable price. The Government reserves the right to make more, fewer, or no awards. The source selection will not involve tradeoffs. The source selection will be made based solely on the highest technically rated Offerors with fair and reasonable prices, with no comparison of an Offeror’s price relative to the benefits of the proposal.

The maximum quantity of this IDIQ is established at $1.98B. The Ordering Period is a two (2) year base period with one-year options to extend the Ordering Period up to, but not exceeding, ten (10) years.

L-1.3 Notices to Offerors

a. On-Ramping: Consistent with the Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation Overhaul (RFO) 16.504-4, the Procuring Contracting Officer (PCO) has determined that it is in the Government’s best interest that, at all times during the Ordering Period of the Master IDIQ Contract, there remains an adequate number of Contractors eligible to compete for Orders. Over time, the total number of Contractors may fluctuate due to various reasons including industry consolidation, significant changes in the marketplace or advances in technology, general economic conditions, the Government's exercise of the off-ramp process, or other reasons. Recognizing this, the Government reserves the right to periodically review the total number of Contractors participating in the Ordering Process and determine whether it would be in the Government’s best interest to initiate on-ramping procedures to add new Contractors to the Master IDIQ Contract. It is the Government’s discretionary unilateral authority to initiate on-ramping procedures. On-ramping does not change the Ordering Period. Any new IDIQ contract awarded under the on-ramp procedures will be coterminous with the Ordering Period of the existing IDIQ award(s). Any IDIQ contracts awarded under the on-ramp procedures will not change the total maximum quantity that may be ordered under this IDIQ. The Government intends to conduct any on-ramping event as a separate and distinct procurement. Accordingly, any pre-award or post-award protest(s) resulting from an on-ramp solicitation or award will apply solely to the on-ramp procurement. The Government reserves the right to continue reviewing, competing, and issuing Orders to the existing IDIQ awardee pool during any active on-ramp pre-award or post-award protest period(s).

b. Off-Ramping: In accordance with (IAW) RFO 16.504-4, the Government reserves the unilateral right to off-ramp Contractors to maintain a current, competitive, and innovative pool of vendors on the multiple-award contract. Contractors may be off-ramped from new work even while continuing current work under existing Task or Delivery Orders. Off-ramping methods may result from, but are not limited to, any of the following conditions:

1. The Government’s unilateral decision to not exercise a contract option to extend the Ordering Period of a contractor’s IDIQ contract.

2. The Government no longer has a requirement appropriate to the Contractor’s skills, talents, size, or socio-economic status

3. Debarment, Suspension, or Ineligibility as defined in RFO Subpart 9.4

4. Termination as defined in RFO Part 49

5. Failure to meet performance standards, deliverable requirements, or compliance thresholds

6. Taking any other action which may be permitted under the Master IDIQ Contract’s terms and conditions

c. Discrepancies: If an Offeror believes that the requirements in these instructions or the RFP contain an error, omission, or are otherwise unsound, the Offeror shall immediately notify the PCOs, identified in Section L-2.1 Point of Contact, in writing with supporting rationale. The Offeror is reminded that the Government reserves the right to award this effort based on the initial proposal, as received, and without discussion.

d. Electronic Reference Documents: Documents for this solicitation are available on the SAM.gov website. Potential Offerors are encouraged to subscribe for real-time email notifications when information has been posted to the website for this solicitation.

In addition to documentation housed on SAM.gov, there will be a "virtual" GUARD Bidder’s Library containing pertinent reference and technical data, supporting documents, announcements, and information for the Offeror, to include both Restricted Access Documentation and Official Use Only (FOUO) documents. This virtual Bidder’s Library can be accessed through the secure designated document repository linked on SAM.gov. Offerors must have a signed Military Critical Technical Data Agreement, DD2345, as a condition to access the Bidder’s Library and receive Controlled Unclassified Information. To receive access to the Bidder’s Library, Offerors shall complete and follow the instructions stated within Attachment J-8, Bidder’s Library Request Form.

e. Classified Information: Proposals must not include classified information.

f. Debriefings: The PCO will notify unsuccessful Offerors of their non-selection or exclusion from the competition IAW RFO 15.206-1 and RFO 15.207-2. Upon notification, unsuccessful Offerors may request and receive a debriefing in accordance with RFO 15.301. Pursuant to RFO 15.206-2, offerors excluded from the competition before award may timely request a pre-award debriefing or timely request that the debriefing be delayed until after award. However, unsuccessful Offerors are entitled to no more than one debriefing for each proposal.

L-2.0 GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

a. This section provides general guidance for preparing proposals as well as specific instructions regarding the format and content of the proposal. The Offeror’s proposal must include all data and information requested and must be submitted in accordance with these instructions. The offer shall be compliant with the requirements as stated in the Statement of Work (SOW) and Performance Work Statement (PWS), Model Contract, including all Exhibits and Attachments thereto, and all attachments to this IFPP including supplemental instructions contained herein. Non-conformance with these IFPP instructions and/or submittal of an incomplete package may result in an offer being considered non-responsive and ineligible for award.

b. The proposal shall be clear, concise, and shall include sufficient detail for effective evaluation and for substantiating the validity of stated claims. The proposal should not simply rephrase or restate the Government's requirements, but rather shall provide convincing rationale to address how the Offeror intends to meet these requirements. The Offeror shall assume that the Government has no prior knowledge of the Offeror’s facilities and experience, and will base its evaluation on the information presented in the Offeror’s proposal.

c. The proposal acceptance period is specified in Section A of the model contract/solicitation. The Offeror shall make a clear statement in Section A of the proposal documentation volume that the proposal is valid for one hundred eighty (180) calendar days after the date of proposal receipt.

d. In accordance with RFO Subpart 4.8 (Government Contract Files), the Government will retain one complete copy of all unsuccessful proposals.

e. Delinquent proposals will not be accepted. Proposals submitted after TIME DD MONTH YYYY will not be reviewed or considered.

f. In-depth drawings required for Sample Problem completion have been provided with the RFP posting on SAM.gov. All drawings have been provided in Adobe Acrobat and Visio formats. A complete list of provided drawings are included in Attachment J-1 of this document.

g. Joint Venture: The Offeror can be a Prime Contractor consisting of parties jointly owned and managed either by a partnership or a corporation established for the expressed purpose of entering into a contract with the Government. Neither party alone will have direct privity of contract with the Government; only the Joint Venture itself will have direct privity.

h. Participation by Foreign Firms: In accordance with the National Industrial Security Program

Operating Manual (NISPOM), foreign firms or United Stated (U.S.) companies determined to be under Foreign Ownership, Control, or Influence (FOCI) will not be permitted to participate.

i. Offerors shall apply all appropriate markings including those prescribed in accordance with RFO 52.215-1(e), Restriction on Disclosure and Use of Data, and RFO 3.104-4, Disclosure, Protection, and Marking of Contractor Bid or Proposal Information and Source Selection Information.

Classified information will not be permitted.

L-2.1 Point of Contact

The Contracting Specialist, McKenna Clippert, and the Contracting Officer, Jason Rapaglia, are the sole points of contact for this acquisition. Written requests for clarification, questions, and concerns shall be sent only through email and shall be addressed to mckenna.clippert@us.af.mil and jason.rapaglia@us.af.mil.

L-2.2 Notification to Offerors/Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI)

The following companies have been used to develop the acquisition strategy and requirements documents, and may be used to support the evaluation of the submitted proposal. If your proposal in any way involves any of the below companies, notify the PCO immediately and please submit an Organizational Conflict of Interest Mitigation Plan.

Odyssey Systems Consulting Group, Ltd.

201 Edgewater Drive, Suite 270 Wakefield, MA 01880

CAGE: 09DF6

Astrion

1100 Redstone Gateway Ste 230 & 300 Huntsville, AL

Torch Technologies 4090 Memorial Parkway SW Building 1 Huntsville, AL 35802

L-3.0 ORGANIZATION

The Offeror shall prepare the proposal as set forth in the Proposal Organization Table below. All volumes identified in the table shall be submitted. A cover sheet shall be used to clearly mark the volume number, title, solicitation identification, and the Offeror’s name. Each volume shall contain a detailed table of contents to delineate the subparagraphs within that volume. Tab indexing shall be used to identify sections. Pages in each volume shall be numbered sequentially and consecutively. The contents of each proposal volume are described in the table below:

Volume / Section Title Page

Limit

Volume I Executive Proposal

Offeror’s Proposal Cover Sheet 1 Master Table of Contents No limit Organization Chart 2 Narrative Summary 2 Contract Documentation No limit Exceptions to Solicitation Requirements No limit Administrative Submissions No limit Security Requirement/DD254 No limit Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) Plan No limit Reps & Certs No limit Identification and Assertions No limit

Teaming, Partner, Mentor-Protégé, Joint Venture

Documentation (as appropriate) No limit

Small Business Subcontracting Plan No limit

Volume II Evaluated Proposal

Factor 1 Evaluated Small Business Participation

Small Business Participation Commitment Document No limit

Glossary No limit

Factor II Cost/Price No limit

Phase I Relevant Experience and Artifacts – Self Scoring

Matrix No limit

Phase II Technical Evaluation

Sample Problem #1 Written solution: Note 1

Presentation: 1 hour

Sample Problem #2 Written solution: Note 1

Presentation: 1 hour

Note: The Total page Limitation for Factor II, Phase II is 40 pages. The Offeror may decide how many pages are used for each Sample Problem so long as the total number of counted pages does not exceed 40 pages.

L-3.1 Page Limitations

Page limitations shall be treated as maximums. If exceeded, excess pages will not be read or considered in the evaluation of the proposal. For all Volumes and Attachments thereto, each page shall be counted except the following:

1. Cover pages

2. Table of Contents

3. Tabs

4. Lists of tables and drawings

5. Glossaries

6. Acronym lists

7. Cross Reference Matrix

8. Organization charts

9. Contractor Work Breakdown Structure (CWBS)

10. Cost documentation

11. Contract documentation

L-3.1.1 Page Size and Format

a. A page is defined as each face of a sheet of paper containing information. When both sides of a sheet display printed material, it shall be counted as two pages. Page size shall be 8.5 x 11 inches.

b. Pages shall be single-spaced. Except for the reproduced sections of the solicitation document, the text font shall be Times New Roman and the font size shall be no less than 12-point.

c. Tracking, kerning, and leading values shall not be changed from the default values of the word processing or page layout software. Margins on all four (4) edges of each page shall be at least one

(1) inch.

d. In the header on the upper right corner of all pages, include: RFP number, part and/or subdirectory title, and page number. Company name and proprietary information notices shall be placed in both top and bottom margins.

L-3.2 Proposal Validity

The Offeror shall make a clear statement in the Offeror’s Proposal Cover Sheet that the response is valid for one hundred eighty (180) calendar days from the submission deadline date.

L-3.3 Proposal Submission

a. Offerors are required to submit their proposals through the Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE) Solicitation Module. PIEE is located at https://piee.eb.mil/ and Offerors who do not already have access to the module will need to request access.

Offerors should familiarize themselves with the process of uploading proposals into the Solicitation module to ensure proposals are processed through the system correctly.

Training on the use of the module, file restrictions, file size limitations, and requesting access is available through the Department of Defense (DoD) Procurement Toolbox at https://dodprocurementtoolbox.com/site-pages/solicitation-module. Offerors are also encouraged to notify the PCO when a submission is made through the Solicitation module.

Offerors are ultimately responsible for ensuring their proposal is complete and received by the PCO according to the date and time proposals are due.

Responses received after the time and date listed for receipt of proposals will not be considered or evaluated for receipt of award; nor will they be used for any future evaluations within the one hundred eighty (180) calendar day validity period, per Section L-3.2 – Proposal Validity. The Government will not be responsible for any failure of receipt of the proposals or any failure of the Offeror to verify receipt of the proposals.

b. Offerors shall provide all volumes with their proposal.

L-4.0 VOLUME I – EXECUTIVE PROPOSAL

In the Executive Summary volume, the Offeror shall provide the following:

1. Offeror’s Proposal Cover Sheet:

2. Master Table of Contents: Include a Master Table of Contents of the entire proposal.

3. Organization Chart:

a. Authorized Offeror Personnel: Provide the name, title, and phone number of the company/division point of contact regarding decisions made with respect to your proposal and who can obligate your company contractually. Also, identify those individuals authorized to negotiate with the Government.

b. Government Offices: Provide the name, mailing address, phone number, and facility codes for the cognizant Contract Administration Office, the U.S. Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), the U.S. Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) Administrative Contracting Officer, and Government Paying Office.

c. Company/Division Address, Identifying Codes, and Applicable Designations: Provide company/division’s street address, county, and facility code; Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code; Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number (or Unique Entity ID); Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN); size of business (large or small); and labor surplus area designation.

4. Narrative Summary:

a. Offeror’s executive summary shall include a concise narrative summary of the entire proposal. The salient features should tie in with Section M evaluation factors. Any summary material presented in this volume shall not be considered as meeting the requirements for any portions of other volumes of the proposal.

b. The Offeror shall include a statement acknowledging any and all amendments to the solicitation and whether your company does or does not take exception to any of the requirements of the PWS, the SOW, or the terms/conditions of this RFP. Offerors must clearly identify any exception to RFP terms and conditions and must provide complete supporting rationale. The Government reserves the right to determine if any such exceptions are unacceptable. Any exception determined unacceptable by the Government may result in the Offeror’s proposal being determined unacceptable and ineligible for award.

5. Contract Documentation:

a. The Offeror’s proposal shall include a signed copy of the Standard Form (SF) 33 (to include clause fill-ins), Sections A through K. The Offeror shall complete Blocks 12 through 16 and sign and date Blocks 17 and 18 in Section A of the SF 33. Signature by the Offeror on the SF 33 constitutes an offer, which the Government may accept. In doing so, the Offeror accedes to the contract terms and conditions as written in the RFP Sections A through K.

b. This contract is an IDIQ contract with baseline clauses and conditions. The specific prices, contract type(s), delivery requirements, and Period of Performance will be determined at the Order Level.

6. Exceptions to Solicitation Requirements: Offerors shall meet all solicitation requirements, such as terms and conditions, representations and certifications, and technical requirements, in addition to those identified as evaluation factors or subfactors. Offerors shall clearly identify any exception to the solicitation terms and conditions. Each exception shall be specifically related to a specific paragraph and/or specific part of the solicitation to which the exception is taken. The Government reserves the right to determine if any such exceptions are unacceptable. Any exception determined unacceptable by the Government may result in the Offeror’s proposal being determined unacceptable and ineligible for award.

L-4.1 Administrative Submissions

c. Joint Certification Program (JCP)/DD2345: Technical Requirements Documents (TRD) are made exclusively available to DoW Contractors who are certified under the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) JCP. Certification under the JCP establishes the eligibility of a U.S. or Canadian Contractor to technical data governed, in the U.S., by DoD Directive

5230.25 and, in Canada, by the Technical Data Control Regulations (TDCR). A certification is required by U.S. or Canadian Contractors that wish to obtain access to unclassified technical data disclosing militarily critical technology with military or space application that is under the control of, or in the possession of the U.S. DoW or the Canadian Department of National Defense (DND). Contractors must submit a copy of the DD Form 2345 to the U.S./Canada Joint Certification Office, along with a copy of the company’s State/Provincial License, Incorporation Certificate, Sales Tax Identification Form, or other documentation which verifies the legitimacy of the company.

d. Security Requirements/DD254: All Contractors are required to hold at a minimum a facility clearance level of SECRET with safeguarding at SECRET. Offerors shall complete the DD254 (Blocks 6 and 8). See attached DD254 (Attachment 3) for details. To be eligible for award, an Offeror must have the required clearance at the time of proposal submission. Sponsorship will not be granted. For Joint Ventures, if the Offeror is using the Facility Clearance of one of their Joint Venture Partners, the Offeror shall indicate so in their “Teaming, Partner, Mentor-Protégé, Joint Venture Documentation” submission required under Volume I. The Joint Venture Partner’s CAGE code must be included in this documentation.

e. Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) Plan: OCIs are a concern requiring specific attention. Offerors shall identify any existing or potential conflicts and provide a legible, clear, and coherent OCI Mitigation Plan IAW the template provided in Attachment J-2.

The Offeror’s proposal may be deemed unawardable if the Offeror is unable to mitigate an actual or apparent OCI or fails to present a compliant OCI Mitigation Plan. The approved Mitigation Plan will be incorporated into the resultant contract and supplemented with each Order.

The Offeror’s OCI mitigation plan will not be evaluated as part of the technical evaluation; rather, the PCO will determine whether any apparent successful Offeror is awardable in light of OCI concerns, akin to a responsibility determination. This determination focuses primarily on OCI concerns relating to the Prime Contractor. OCI concerns relating to Subcontractors will primarily be addressed as part of the consent to subcontracting process, which is a matter of contract administration. The only time OCI concerns relating to Subcontractors will be included in the responsibility-like determination is if the Prime Offeror’s proposed use of Subcontractors demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding of the agency’s OCI concerns. This determination is concerned both with ensuring objectivity and with avoiding any unfair competitive advantage that could result from unequal access to nonpublic information. It is a significant objective of this acquisition to promote customer confidence that Government activities are unencumbered by potential OCI in the use of customers’ competition-sensitive or proprietary information. That confidence among industry customers is vital to ESSS Contractors’ access to sensitive and proprietary customer information which in turn is vital to the effective fulfillment of ESSS program requirements. The contract likewise requires the Contractor to exercise judgment to assist the Government in matters (such as drafting specifications or assessing another Contractor’s proposal or performance) where the Contractor’s objectivity is vital. For instance, the successful Offeror shall not be in a position to evaluate its own products or services, those of an affiliate, or those of a competitor of either the Offeror or one of its affiliates without proper safeguards to ensure objectivity to protect the Government’s interests. In some cases, however, safeguards are not sufficient to mitigate an OCI. The Offeror shall ensure its submission contains sufficient information to enable the Government to make the determination in these regards.

The following information will be used both in determining whether any Prime Contractor is awardable and as the starting point to assessing the OCI aspect of the consent to subcontracting process. After surveying Subcontractors’ and the Offeror’s own business units, and applying the principles of RFO Subpart 9.5, the Offeror shall assess whether there is an actual or potential OCI associated with the offer it plans to submit, including any potential Subcontractor. The Offeror shall disclose business activities of itself, its affiliates, its teammates, and affiliates of its teammates. The Offeror shall specifically identify those which may create at least the appearance that (a) any participant on the

Offeror’s team might therefore be motivated to use the Government customer’s information improperly, or (b) the judgment of any participant on the Offeror’s team might be impaired in its fulfillment of requirements of the ESSS Orders. An affiliate includes any person or organization with which the Contractor is associated through an ownership, control, or direct financial interest. It includes any parent organization (to include the parent organization reflected at www.usaspending.gov), and any organization majority-owned or controlled by such parent. The Offeror shall:

Identify any teammate for whom there is any doubt whether it qualifies as a “Covered

Government Support Contractor” (see R-DFARS 252.227-7013 and 252.227-7014) for programs supported either directly or indirectly under this acquisition, and identify the business activity (or activities) that might prevent the team member from qualifying;

Identify whether any teammate or any affiliate of a teammate has, within the past three years, participated as a Prime or major Subcontractor in furnishing end items or services of the type developed or produced on any program or effort for which Electronic Systems Division (ES) requiring activities may furnish testing support (Reference R-DFARS 252.209-7009). “Business activities” shall be described with specificity as to customers served, products and services provided, and dollar volume of sales including contracts/sales by date and amount which are representative of each such activity;

Provide evidence of facts and circumstances which it believes ameliorate concerns related to the appearance and/or presence of business activities which may create at least the appearance of a potential or actual OCI; and

To the extent the Offeror identifies any potential or actual OCI, explain the actions it intends to use to address concerns about potential or actual conflicts. The Offeror shall submit proposed approaches to mitigating the effects of any potential or actual OCI arising out of the business activities disclosed.

The Draft OCI Mitigation Plan will be reviewed by the PCO upon submittal by the Offeror with their proposal. The Draft Mitigation Plan will not be evaluated. The PCO will review for any potential issues with respect to OCI. Clarifications may be requested from Offerors and do not constitute discussions. The Final Mitigation Plan will be an administrative action—specifically, the awardees will submit their Final Mitigation Plan(s) and the Government will review the plan(s) for approval. Once approved, the Mitigation Plan will be incorporated into the contracts.

f. Representations and Certifications: Offerors shall ensure all required representations and certifications have been filled in, completed, and are provided in their proposal.

g. Identification and Assertions: Offerors shall identify and assert any data rights at the IDIQ contract level. Specific data rights will be addressed at the Order Level, when applicable.

h. Small Business Subcontracting Plan: Unless otherwise exempt due to being a Small

Business Concern, the Offeror is required to submit a Subcontracting Plan IAW RFO

19.109 for the GUARD effort. If applicable, please submit a copy of your approved Master Plan along with an Individual Plan that includes the goals for this acquisition. The

Subcontracting plan must be specific to the GUARD Program unless the proposed Subcontracting Plan is part of a DoW Comprehensive Subcontracting Plan Test Program.

If the Offeror is other than a Small Business, the Offeror’s Small Business Subcontracting Plan shall be submitted in accordance with RFO 52.219-9. The Small Business Subcontracting Plan will be evaluated on an Acceptable/Unacceptable basis to determine the extent to which the Offeror complies with RFO 52.219-9. The approved Small Business Subcontracting plan will be incorporated into the contract as an exhibit.

i. Teaming, Partner, Mentor-Protégé, Joint Venture Documentation: Offerors with any

Teaming Arrangement, Mentor-Protégé, or Joint Venture partnership shall provide a copy of the executed agreement.

j. Glossary: Offerors shall ensure all abbreviations and acronyms used are defined in a glossary. The glossary shall be used only to spell out abbreviations and acronyms, not to provide an expanded definition of terms.

L-5.0 VOLUME II – EVALUATED PROPOSAL

Factor I – Small Business Participation

a. Small Business Participation Commitment Document: IAW R-DFARS 215.104-70(a) and R- DFARS 215.104-70(a)(2), all Offerors, to include Small Businesses, are required to submit a Small Business Participation Document (SBPCD) by completing the form found in Attachment J-

3. This document and supporting documentation will be used to evaluate the extent of your proposed participation/commitment to use U.S. Small Businesses in the performance of this acquisition (as Small Business Prime Offerors or Small Business Subcontractors), relative to Section M, Factor II, Small Business Participation. This is a separate requirement from the Small Business Subcontracting Plan. These SBPCD requirements will be incorporated into any resulting Order(s). SBPCD enforceable, contractual requirements shall require periodic progress reporting to facilitate Government monitoring in the event of an award. Offerors are to propose quarterly reporting to meet the requirements specified in Attachment J-3.

Use Table 1 the SBPCD Template to identify the Small Business Concerns (SBCs) (Prime Offerors and Small Business Subcontractors) proposed quantitative participation in terms of the value of the total acquisition (total contract value).

Offerors shall provide detailed explanations/documentation to support quantitative Small Business participation. Binding commitments shall become enforceable, contractual requirements.

Use Table 2 within the SBPCD Template to identify the SBCs as defined in RFO Part 19 that are to be used in your proposed approach to satisfying the requirements of this solicitation for the entire performance period. Include the company name, business category(ies), description of products or services to be provided by each SBC and the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and nature of the commitment with the SBC (i.e., Small Business Teaming Arrangements, letter of commitment, Joint Ventures, Mentor-Protégé agreements, others). The SBPCD shall become enforceable, contractual requirements.

All Offerors shall provide past performance information to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of RFO 52.219-8, Utilization of Small Business Concerns, including the extent to which Small Business performance objectives/requirements were met for the contracts that required submission of a Small Business Participation Plan or other Small Business participation/utilization document. Copies of contractual reports may be submitted to demonstrate compliance with requirements of RFO

52.219-8. Explanation of efforts where minimum quantitative requirements or goals were not met shall be provided. Supporting documentation shall be relevant to the requirements of this solicitation and shall be within the past five years.

Offerors shall provide relevant supporting documentation demonstrating a substantive commitment of a variety of complex work allocated to Small Businesses.

Performance shall be based on the Contractor’s actual attainment toward the objectives contained within the SBPCD, and the GUARD’S thirty percent (30%) SB participation goal or Minimum Quantitative Requirement (MQR). The GUARD’s thirty percent (30%) MQR shall be calculated based on total Small Business participation, Prime or subcontracted, as a percentage of the IDIQ maximum quantity value.

In addition to the thirty percent (30%) commitment to SB participation, the Offeror shall include a commitment to achieve at least the following percentages of the value of the IDIQ to the following Small Business categories:

Five percent (5%) to Small Disadvantaged Businesses Five percent (5%) to Woman-Owned Small Businesses Five percent (5%) to Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses Three percent (3%) to Historically Underutilized Zone (HUBZone) Small Businesses

Lastly, the SBPCD shall include at least five (5) Small Business members. The Offeror may count themselves as one of the members and for one or more of the categories as applicable, but must provide at least one member for each of the following Small Business categories (a member may count for multiple categories):

At least one Small Disadvantaged Business active in the 8(a) Business Development Program At least one other Small Disadvantaged Business At least one Woman-Owned Small Business At least one Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business; and At least one HUBZone Small Business

In the Government’s evaluation of Small Business Participation in Section M, second and third tier SB Subcontractors will not be considered towards the total SB participation percentage.

The work to be performed directly by a Small Business Prime Offeror will also be evaluated as Small Business Participation.

L-6.0 FACTOR II

L-6.1 Cost/Price

L-6.1.1 Cost/Price Methodology and Instructions

a. For Cost/Price proposals, Offerors shall use the Cost/Price Template in Attachment J-4, which consists of fifteen (15) years of pricing of T&M labor rates. These fifteen (15) years constitute the two (2)-year basic Ordering Period and the options to extend the Ordering Period up to, but not exceeding, ten (10) total years of ordering activity, plus an additional five (5) years to cover the performance period of any Order beyond the end of the Ordering Period.

b. The Offeror shall propose ceiling (maximum) rates for T&M Orders by completing the

Cost/Price template as instructed in L-6.1.3. These ceiling rates are to be based upon the highest-qualified employee within a given labor category, working in the highest-paid area within CONUS, on a highly complex requirement excluding Top Secret/SCI or higher.

“Maximum Rate” is a term that applies at the IDIQ-level, which represents and establishes maximum allowable labor rates in the form of fully-burdened T&M rates for all Labor Categories (LCATs) indicated in Attachment J-4. The fully-burdened labor rate includes the direct labor cost, General & Administrative (G&A), overhead, fringe benefits, and profit. These rates accommodate the U.S. Government security classification to the Secret level. These maximum rates apply exclusively to all T&M contract type Orders and proposals, and are not applicable to fixed-price or cost-reimbursement contract types.

c. Offerors shall provide only the ceiling rates for Year 1 of the contract with an estimated Start

Date of 1 April 2027. Ceiling rates for years two (2) through fifteen (15) will automatically be calculated for each labor category by an escalation factor embedded in the spreadsheet.

Offerors shall not change the escalation factor in the spreadsheet. This escalation factor is determined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Employment Cost Index (ECI) and is based on the average annual BLS ECI for the previous five (5) years from the date the solicitation is issued. The current BLS ECI five (5)-year average at the time of solicitation release is 4.08%.

In Ordering Year Five (5) of the IDIQ, in the event that the average annual ECI for the previous five (5) years is higher than at the time of IDIQ award, the PCO may adjust the maximum rates by the difference of percentage increase. If the BLS ECI index in Year Five (5) of the IDIQ is equal to or below the BLS ECI index at the time of award, the maximum rates will remain unchanged.

The Maximum Rates in effect at the time of award of a Task or Delivery Order shall remain consistent during the entire term of the Order, including Option Periods. Therefore, any price increases in LCATS triggered by the IDIQ’s escalation factor during the term of any active Order shall not apply. Only newly awarded Orders subsequent to an escalation factor’s execution may be considered at the discretion of the Contracting Officer.

The PCO may deem it necessary to exceed the established maximum rates in circumstances including, but not limited to, work completed OCONUS or requiring increased security clearance requirements. Any such instances shall be negotiated at the Order Level.

d. The LCATs to which maximum rates apply are representative of the GUARD scope of work but are not exhaustive. The PCO, at the Order Level, may consider inclusion of additional LCATs in proposals for T&M contract types, at which point a fair and reasonable price determination will be made.

L-6.1.2 Direct/Indirect Rates and Profit

a. Direct Labor Rates are labor rates that are not burdened with indirect rates such as Fringe Benefits, Overhead, General and Administrative expenses, and/or Profit.

The Offeror shall provide clear and convincing rationale to support the basis of the direct labor rate provided for a determination of fairness and reasonability.

b. Indirect Rates: The Offeror shall propose indirect rates according to their most current DCAA/DCMA approved billing rates and/or forward pricing rate recommendations and/or agreements, if available. If an Offeror does not have DCAA/DCMA approved billing rates and/or forward pricing rate recommendations and/or agreements, Offerors should provide indirect rates generated from their acceptable accounting system.

If the Offeror does not possess an acceptable accounting system, the Offeror must provide clear and convincing rationale to support the fairness and reasonability of the proposed indirect rates.

c. Profit: The Offeror shall consider the risk under a T&M type Order.

L-6.1.3 Cost/Price Template Instructions

The following instructions apply to the completion of the Cost/Price Template provided in Attachment J-4.

Enter the Offeror Name in Row 3. For each LCAT, the Offeror shall provide a cost element breakdown of Direct Labor, Fringe Benefits, Overhead, General and Administrative (G&A), and Profit that provides a single fully-burdened hourly labor maximum rate. All percentages and rates shall be rounded to two decimal places.

Column A This column is restricted. Offerors shall not make entries in this column. This column contains the Labor ID# for Government- Site work and for Contractor-Site work.

Column B This column is restricted. Offerors shall not make entries in this column.

Column C Enter direct labor rates for each labor category listed in Column B.

Column D Enter the Fringe Benefits percentage under Column D, Row 6.

Column E Enter the Overhead percentage under Column E, Row 6.

Column F Enter the G&A percentage under Column F, Row 6.

Column G Enter the Profit percentage under Column G, Row 6.

Columns H through V These columns are restricted. Offeror’s shall not make entries in these columns.

L-6.2 Phase I: Relevant Experience and Artifacts

Prior relevant experience will be used to determine whether the Offeror has experience performing similar efforts, as submitted Relevant Experience Self-Scoring Matrix found in Attachment J-5. The Offeror shall complete the Prior Experience Scorecard summary and provide the necessary validation information for their References, and include them in their proposal. The allowable number of references for each Element are specified in Attachment J-5. All specified artifacts must be submitted for the Offeror to be scored. If the artifacts submitted are deemed insufficient, the Offeror’s proposal will be considered incomplete and non-responsive. The Government does not intend to hold clarifications to allow for amendments, adjustments, or resubmissions of the requested artifacts, but reserves the right to do so, if it is determined to be in the Government’s best interest.

The Offeror should Relevant Experience Elements Attachment J-5.

Experience by the Offeror, Attributable Partner, and Attributable Subcontractor will be considered equivalent for each instance of this evaluation.

Used in this Factor, performance of a Task by the “Offeror” means that it was performed by the Offeror directly, or it was performed by a Subcontractor under the Offeror’s direction for the reference in a Prime Contractor-Subcontractor relationship. In this case, the Subcontractor does not need to be one of the Offeror’s prospective Subcontractors for this acquisition.

Used in this Factor, performance of a Task by an “Attributable Partner” means that it was performed by a member of a Joint Venture where all members of the Joint Venture are Small Businesses, OR by a Mentor or a Protégé, where the Mentor is a Small Business for a Protégé that is also a Small Business under an approved DoW Mentor-Protégé agreement; OR by a Mentor or a Protégé, where the Mentor is an other-than-Small Business for a Protégé that is a Small Business under an approved SBA Mentor-Protégé arrangement. The Offeror must include the appropriate supporting documentation in their proposal to demonstrate such an agreement or arrangement, to include which Prior Experience tasks will be utilizing each of those Attributable Partners. This includes work performed by the Attributable Partner or performed by a Subcontractor under the Attributable Partner’s direction for the reference in a Prime Contractor-Subcontractor relationship.

Used in this Factor, performance of a task by an “Attributable Subcontractor” means that it was performed by a prospective Subcontractor where the Offeror has included in its proposal the supporting documentation demonstrating an agreement between the Offeror and each prospective Subcontractor, signed by both parties, to indicate a commitment of both parties to support GUARD should an award be made. This documentation can include Small Business Teaming Arrangements, agreements to subcontract, or other agreements, and must indicate which Prior Experience tasks will be utilizing each of those Attributable Subcontractors.

The Relevant Experience factors, and artifacts for submission, are detailed below:

1. The Offeror performed on a DoW contract requiring successful approval of a New System

Authorization to Operate (ATO) OR successful validation of security requirements against an existing ATO security baseline within the last five years.

a. Artifacts to submit: Contract to include SOW/PWS for said work under contract. Identify section number and page within the contract as needed to identify work performed to satisfy Element 1.

b. If performed as a Subcontractor or Joint Venture Partner, identify what work was required of your company specifically to support acquisition and/or maintenance of the ATO.

c. Two (2) Government Points of Contact (POC)s with direct knowledge of contract work sample for said contract.

2. The Offeror performed on a DoW, or equivalent Federal, contract requiring sustainment of base defense security system(s) within the last five (5) years.

a. Artifacts to submit: Contract(s) to include SOW/PWS for said work under contract.

Identify section number and page within the contract as needed to identify work performed to satisfy Element 2. If SOW/PWS does not state Base size as defined, additional documentation will be accepted.

b. If performed as a Subcontractor or Joint Venture Partner, identify what work was required of your company specifically in accomplishing this work.

c. Two (2) Government POCs with direct knowledge of contract work sample for said contract(s).

3. The Offeror performed on a DoW, equivalent Federal, or equivalent Commercial contract requiring the Contractor to install Electronic Security System (ESS) components for resource protection, delivering any of the following capabilities: Intrusion Detection System (IDS); Access Control System (ACS); Video Management System (VMS) with Immediate Visual Assessment (IVA).

a. Artifacts to submit: Contract to include SOW/PWS for said work under contract. Identify section number and page within the contract as needed to identify work performed to satisfy Element 3.

b. If performed as a Subcontractor or Joint Venture Partner, identify what work was required of your company specifically in accomplishing this work.

contract.

4. The Offeror performed on a DoW, equivalent Federal, or equivalent Commercial contract requiring the Contractor to install perimeter boundary protection within the last five (5) years.

a. Artifacts to submit: Contract to include SOW/PWS for said work under contract. Identify section number and page within the contract as needed to identify work performed to satisfy Element 4.

b. If performed as a Subcontractor or Joint Venture Partner, identify what work was required of your company specifically in accomplishing this work.

5. The Offeror performed on a DoW, equivalent Federal, or equivalent Commercial contract requiring the Contractor to acquire, hold, and maintain applicable host nation business license(s) and Visas within the last five (5) years.

a. Artifacts to submit: Contract to include SOW/PWS for said work under contract. Identify section number and page within the contract as needed to identify work…