Amend_No_2_Questions_20181009.pdf

Solicitation: HQ003418R0121 Subject: Industrial Hygiene Support Services

Amendment No. 2

General Questions

Number Interested Party Question Government Response

1 Reference: Solicitation Attachment 4 - Pricing Submission Worksheet: The Government requests that offerors provide a monthly unit price for Calibration & Maintenance of Govt IH Equipment for the Pentagon and NCR (CLIN 0002, CLIN 1002, etc.)

and the Raven Rock Mountain Facility (RRMC) (CLIN 0006, CLIN 1006, etc.). Could the government clarify how non-routine or unexpected repair of Govt IH Equipment that are above and beyond annual calibration and/or maintenance will be handled?

The Government does not anticipated non-routine maintenance or repair as the government equipment is fairly new. If equipment needs repair beyond retained value, it will be replaced by the government.

2 Reference: Solicitation Attachment 4 - Pricing Submission Worksheet: The Government requests that offerors provide a monthly unit price for laboratory analysis for the Pentagon and NCR (CLIN 0003, CLIN 1003, etc.) and for the RRMC (CLIN 0005, CLIN 1005, etc.). However, we did not find instruction on how offerors are to determine the laboratory analysis unit price and amount that will ensure offerors are bidding on the same parameters. Should offerors price each individual Parameter using the "Ave/Year 2013-2016" number provided in Technical Exhibit 6 (Historic Laboratory Analysis Requirements) of the PWS to develop a total yearly cost estimate and a subsequent monthly cost? If using the "Ave/Year 2013-2016", how should offerors account for Parameters with a historical Ave/Year of zero (0) per year? Please clarify.

All offerors are given the same parameters as the Government provided historical data of laboratory analysis (Technical Exhibit 6), and estimated workload data (Technical Exhibit 3). It is the responsibility of the offeror to determine their proposed price adhered to the price volume instructions. For historical Ave/Year of Zero (0) were not considered in the Government IGCE.

3 Reference: Solicitation Attachment 4 - Pricing Submission Worksheet: How are offerors to develop a unit price and amount for the Unforeseen Events/Project (Option CLINs)? If offerors are to use Solicitation Attachment 5 - Laboratory Analysis Pricing Schedule, should offerors total the: 1) Unit Cost; 2) Regular Shipping; and 3) Expediate Shipping to come up with a single number for Attachment 5 - Laboratory Analysis Pricing Schedule?

Please clarify.

CLIN 0007 Unforeseen Events/Project will not have unit cost as the Government will issue a request for proposal for any unforeseen events/projects IH and Safety services. There are no totals for Attachment 5-Laboratory Analysis Pricing Schedule; it’s used for the Unforeseen Events/Project price schedule. See revised PWS section 1.4.2.1.

4 Question 4: Reference: Technical Exhibit 7 - Performance Requirements Summary, Historic Training Requirements: Technical Exhibit 7 of the PWS lists several training courses to be provided under this requirement. Concerning the "Training for Specialty/VPP Topics", Technical Exhibit 7 reports that "In the past this effort has been covered by the three VPP Safety Professionals and their Manager." However, this labor category (VPP Safety Professional) is not listed in Technical Exhibit 3 - Estimated Workload Data of the PWS. Could the Government clarify if this training workload has been captured in Exhibit 3 under a different labor category name, or if the workload for three VPP Safety Professionals is in addition to the estimated quantities identified in Technical Exhibit 3.

There is no separate category for VPP Safety Professionals. The workload and topics are typical safety topics and covered by IHS Specialists. The information presented in Exhibit 7 was just stating a current situation for information only. In no way is there a requirement for a ‘VPP Safety Professional. The verbiage used was meant to be more descriptive and not a formal title. It has now been removed from the PWS.

5 Reference: RFP HQ003418R0121 Solicitation: Proposal delivery instructions in Block 15 of the SF1449 differ from the delivery instructions in 1) (C) page 73 of 85 in the RFP. Please advise which is the correct address for delivery of the proposal. Block 15 directs proposals to the Pentagon while Page 73 directs them to the Mark Center.

SF1449 Block 15 is the Program Office’s address to which all the contract deliverables will be received after award. All proposals are to be delivered to the Mark Center address in accordance with FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Items (JAN 2017) Addendum under section PROPOSAL SUBMISSION DUE

DATE.

6 Under the Evaluation Factors in page 81 of the solicitation, the Government state, " All companies aligning as a Joint Venture (JV) candidate must have an active secret clearance individually by proposal due date."

Could the government clarify if an 8(a) joint-venture bidding on this opportunity, where all joint-venture partners have active secret facility clearances (FCL), however, the specific joint-venture is not cleared will be eligible for award?

The JV is not required to have a secret facility clearance at time of proposal submission; however, each company participating in the JV must have an active facility clearance at proposal submission.

7 Do all proposed subcontractors for this opportunity require an active secret level facility clearance? Some of our subcontractors are laboratories and equipment vendors, who are typically not required to carry clearances.

The secret clearance only applies to the Prime contractor in a traditional prime-subcontractor structure which is comprised of a single prime contractor and multiple subcontractors. However, any contractor, prime or subcontractor, working at Raven Rock Mountain Complex must have a secret clearance. See also response to Q6 above.

The prime contractor is responsible for ensuring security procedures are met to perform the duties at all contract locations.

Otherwise, the prime contractor must perform these duties with cleared personnel.

8 SF1449, Pages 3-23- Please note the PWS date referenced within each CLIN needs to be updated to 11 SEP 2018.

SF1449, Pages 3-23 was corrected to reflect 11 September 2018 on the extend description of each CLINs.

9 SF1449, Attachment 4- Within the SF1449 there are max quantities defined for each Unforeseen Events/Project CLIN. These quantities do not appear in the Attachment 4 pricing template. Are offerors to plug the quantities from the SF1449 into Attachment 4 or disregard them?

The Unforeseen Events/Project CLIN is a line item created for the issuances of indefinite delivery-indefinite quantity (IDIQ) task orders for unforeseen or new projects. Quantities for CLIN 7 should NOT be inserted, as there has not been an established basis for unforeseen/new projects.

See revised PWS section 1.4.2 Unforeseen/Unique IH Services.

10 d) Volume V – Factor III: Past Performance, Page 77 Factor III Past Performance (b), Page 83- Within the instructions on page 77, offerors are directed to supply past performance for projects completed within five (5) years from the date of the solicitation.

This conflicts with the evaluation criteria on page 83 which states projects cited must be completed within three (3) years from the date of solicitation. Could the Government please de conflict these sections?

Page 83 was corrected to reflect five (5) years from the date of solicitation.

11 PWS Technical Exhibit 4 , page 31- In the PWS (Technical Exhibit 4), page 31 it is stated that Calibration frequency of Biannually.

Shouldn’t this be Biennially? Since it is stated that the contractor is responsible for calibration (cost) of all equipment this is an important question that needs resolved and considered for pricing.

In Technical Exhibit 4, Bi-annual has now been changed to Biennially in Technical Exhibit.

12 Attachment (4) Pricing- In regards to the unforeseen events/project (option CLINs), are we as a contractor to use the government estimate in our proposal and attachment 4?

See response to question 9.

13 Attachment (4) Pricing- Is the quantity listed for each of the unforeseen events/project CLINs in dollars? For example, CLIN 0007 lists the quantity as 298,000.

See response to question 9.

14 PWS PG. 18 & 19 Section 5.19- It appears that all labor categories are considered key personnel according to page 18-19 for the PWS. Is this correct?

Yes, all labor categories are considered key personnel. See also response to Q 15.

15 Sol. PG. 76 Vol. III- Page 76 of the solicitation says in volume III to submit a resume for all key personnel. Does this mean one for each labor category or one for each of the 16 members outlined on PWS pages 5-6?

Resumes must be submitted for all key personnel (members) proposed by the offeror for each labor category intended to work on the contract. Thus, resumes are required for all 16 members of the referenced labor category. See also response to Q 14.

16 Sol. PG 76 Vol. III- Page 76 of the solicitation says in volume III to submit a Key personnel qualifications sheet for each proposed key personnel. Does that mean one per labor category as outlined in Attachment 8 or does that mean one for each of the 16 members outlined on PWS pages 5-6?

Submit the qualification sheets for all key personnel proposed by the offeror for each of the 16 members intended to work on the contract. See also responses to Qs 14 and 15.

17 Sol. PG. 77 Para. D- Page 77 of the solicitation paragraph D subparagraph ii states that the past performance must be completed in the last 5 years, however page 83 of the solicitation paragraph b states completed in the last 3 years. Which is correct?

See response for question 10.

18 Sol. Page 78 Para. E- Page 78 of the solicitation paragraph (e) subparagraph (i) states to include the proposed labor categories and rates for each category. Do you mean fully burden rate or the base labor rate?

Fully burden rate.

19 Attachment (1) PG. 6- Page 6 of Attachment 1 the (PWS) paragraph 1.6.13 states the contractor will be required to travel. Is there a list of expected travel or government estimate for travel?

I.6.5 Place of Performance lists the locations for which travel may be required. RRMC is an imbedded full time position. The Mark Center is one of two work locations to which shuttle services via Government Common Access Card (CAC) can be utilized for transportation between the Mark Center and the Pentagon at no charge to the contractor with proper ID.

20 Attachment (1) PG. 6- Page 6 of Attachment 1 (PWS) paragraph

1.6.13 states the contractor will be required to travel. Does the government plan to list a specific CLIN for travel?

No, a travel CLIN will not be added. Please see revised PWS for more details. See also response to Q 19.

21 VOLUME III – FACTOR I: KEY PERSONNEL/ORGANIZATION (STAFFING) PLAN-RELATED QUESTIONS

21a Please confirm our understanding that the “Organization Plan” (used in Instructions, page 76) is interchangeable/synonymous with “Staffing Plan” (used in Evaluation Factors, page 81).

Page 76 of RFP Volume III-Factor I: Key Personnel/Organization Plan was changed to Volume III-Factor I: Key Personnel/Staffing Plan.

21b Key Personnel Qualification Sheet (Attachment 8) – please confirm that this form – to be submitted in Volume IV – will not be counted against the 5-page limit in this volume.

The Key Personnel Qualification Sheet will not count against the 5-page limit. The Key Personnel Qualification Sheet is required for all proposed key personnel.

Submit within Volume III-Factor I Key Personnel/Staffing Plan.

21c Performance Work Statement (PWS), Section 1.6.11, Key Personnel: The qualifications listed here are not consistent with those called for in Attachment 8, Key Personnel Qualifications Sheets. For instance, under 1.6.11.1, 1.6.11.2, and 1.6.11.3 of the PWS, the applicable board certifications appear optional if someone has a longer term of experience (i.e., 15 vs 10 years).

See revised PWS at 1.6.11.1, 1.6.11.2, 1.6.11.3 1.6.11.5 and

1.6.11.8 and revised Attachment #8 Key Pesonnel Qualifiations Sheet.

However, in Attachment 8, these licensure/certification appear mandatory. Please clarify.

21d Attachment 8, Key Personnel Qualifications Sheets. For the Senior Level IHS Manager/Contract Manager, the chart in this attachment calls for this position to have Asbestos Inspector certifications for VA, MD, PA, and DC. This requirement is not noted in the Key Personnel description found in Section 1.6.11.1 of the PWS. This requirement also is not consistent with the Contract Manager duties noted in Section 5.19.1 of the PWS. Please confirm that the asbestos certification is required of the Contract Manager qualifications? If it is required, is it possible that the offeror be given six months to get that certification, as for several other personnel on this contract.

The PWS section 1.6.11.1 and 5.19.1 are correct. The Senior Level IHS Manager/Contract Manager is not required to have an Asbestos Inspector certification.

22 VOLUME V – FACTOR III: PAST PERFORMANCE-RELATED QUESTION

22a In the solicitation instructions, it states that VOLUME V, PAST PERFORMANCE has, “no page limit;” however, on the Past Performance Data Sheet, it states, “Provide a summary description of contract work, not to exceed two pages in length. Describe the nature and scope of work, its relevancy to this contract, and a description of any problems encountered and your corrective actions. Attach the explanation to this form.” Please clarify if this means that each past performance reference is limited to the Past Performance Data Sheet (1 page), plus two additional “summary” pages, for a total of three pages; or, is this volume not page limited?

The information required by the Past Performance Data sheet is limited in length as instructed on the sheet. There is no page limit on Factor III Past Performance. Thus, offerors may supplement or refer to the information on the Past Performance Data Sheet when completing the Past Performance volume in response to Factor III.

22b In the solicitation instructions (page 77), it states: “The projects referenced by the contractor must have been completed within five (5) years from the date of this solicitation is issued or currently ongoing and have completed at least six (6) months of performance.” and “The Contractor shall submit information for relevant contracts or subcontracts currently in process at least six months before the due date for responses to this solicitation or completed within the past five (5) years from the date of this RFP.”

However, in RFP Page 83, Factor III Past Performance, (b), it states that “references must have been completed within three (3) years.” Will you please confirm that the past performance provided could be within a period of five (5) years, from the date of release of this RFP.

See response to question 10.

23 PWS Section 5.6 Government IH Equipment Calibration and Maintenance: The PWS states that “the contractor shall conduct at a minimum, annual manufacturer calibration on IH equipment located at the Pentagon, Mark Center, RRMC, PBMO and HRP.”

Technical Exhibit 4 lists equipment at Pentagon and RRMC. Please confirm if Technical Exhibit 4 represents a comprehensive list for all the facilities provided in the solicitation (Pentagon, Mark Center, RRMC, PBMO, and HRP).

Yes, the acronyms represent facility location: PBMO represents the Pentagon, Mark Center Complex (located in Alexandria, VA), HRP- Heating & Refrigeration Plant (adjacent to Pentagon) and RRMC- Raven Rock Mountain Complex (80 miles from Pentagon Reservation).

24 VOLUME VI – FACTOR IV: PRICE-RELATED QUESTIONS

24a Please clarify how Max Amount should be quoted by offeror for CLINs x007 (Unforeseen Events/Projects Option). Also, any clarification on ‘max quantity’ and ‘unit price’ would be appreciated.

See response to question 9.

24b Ref. RFP Page 79 Subsection iv) Please confirm whether in case of JV or prime-sub offer, all partners must each provide separate PECP for all eight labor categories listed in section 1.6.11 of PWS, or should each partner must provide PECP only for the respective labor categories in which personnel are provided by that partner?

In accordance with FAR 22.1103—“The offerors must submit for evaluation a total compensation plan setting forth proposed salaries and fringe benefits for professional employees working on the contract.”

All professional employees working on the contract must be included in the PECP whether employed by the prime contractor, subcontractor, joint venture or a joint venture member. If it is the intent to submit as a Joint Venture, the assumption will be made that responses are for the joint vendor.

25 REQUESTED CORRECTIONS TO THE SOLICITATION

25a RFP Page 56 of 85, FAR 52.216-22, Indefinite Quantity, (d). The date of 01 November 2018 appears to be an error.

SF1449, page 56 was corrected to reflect 30 November 2023.

25b RFP Page 56 of 85, FAR 52.216-24, Limitation of Government Liability, (a) and (b). Is $259,392.00 correct in both of these clauses?

Yes, it is correct.

25c RFP Page 74 of 85, Proposal Content Chart, Volume VI – Factor VI.

This should read as Volume VI – Factor IV.

SF1449, page 74 was corrected to reflect Volume VI – Factor IV.

25d RFP Page 78 of 85, d) Volume V – Factor III: Past Performance, iii).

The names of Attachments 2 and 3 are reversed compared to how they are labeled on fbo.gov – Attachment 2 should be the Past Performance Data Sheet and Attachment 3 should be Past Performance Questionnaire.

SF1449, page 78 was corrected to reflect Attachment 2 Past Performance Data Sheet and Attachment 3 Past Performance Questionnaire.

25e RFP Page 81 of 85, Factor I Key Personnel/Staffing Plan. The Volume content called out on pages 74 and 76 of 85 notes the need for a Key Personnel Qualifications Sheet but it is not mentioned here. Is a Qualifications Sheet required in Volume III?

Yes, all key personnel proposed by the offeror for each labor category requires Key Personnel Qualifications Sheet in Volume III.

25f RFP Page 82 of 85, Rating Methods, 2nd paragraph. The first sentence of this paragraph should read as, “Volume III and IV…”

SF1449, page 72 was corrected to reflect the first sentence of this paragraph reads, “Volume III and IV…”.