DSCPS General Instructions_v2.docx

General Instructions for the DARPA Standard Cost Proposal Spreadsheet (DCPS)

Labor Rates This spreadsheet heavily relies on the Labor Rates tab. This tab is where offerors list all labor categories to be used in all areas of the proposal, be it the Base/Option tabs, Task tabs, or Technical Area tabs.

Before Labor Rate information can be entered, some general information must be entered on other tabs. On the Offeror Constants tab in cell A4, select the organization type that best describes your organization. This selection drives the list of DARPA Labor Categories and Labor Rates that appear on the Labor Rates tab. Also on the Offeror Constants tab, enter the begin and end dates for your organization’s accounting periods, which are the periods between which labor rates change. Also enter a short label or description of each accounting period. This information will automatically flow into the Base/Option tabs, Task tabs, and Technical Area tabs.

On the Labor Rates tab, each Offeror Labor Category is preceeded by two selections, the DARPA Labor Group and Category. First select a Group, and this will shorten the list of Categories. Pick the DARPA Labor Category that best fits your specific labor category. The descriptions for the Labor Categories are on the Labor Rates tab. These descriptions do not have strict objective boundaries.

Names or Labels for Rows in the Base and Options (and TA) Tabs The names or labels that appear in column B of the Base, Option and Total Amount tabs all come from column B of the Base (Phase I) tab. Enter all names/labels on the Base tab, even if that particular row is not used for the Base phase. All costing tabs should have the exact same rows. For example, if you have a particular consultant that will only be involved in Option II, enter that consultant’s name on the Base tab but only enter that consultant’s costs on the Option II tab.

Adding Rows:

This spreadsheet is designed to handle the addition of rows. It cannot handle the addition or removal of columns. As you use the spreadsheet, feel free to use the Excel Hide function to hide rows or columns that seem excessive. When you add rows to the spreadsheet, it must be done consistently for all related worksheets. The instructions below describe how to add rows for Labor Categories and for other cost areas.

To Add Additional Labor Category Rows:

Whenever an additional labor category row is needed (in addition to the 24 provided rows), a row should be added to all related worksheets. The worksheets involved are: Labor Rates, Total Amount, Base, O-I, O-II, O-III, O-IV, O-V, and all Task or Technical Area worksheets.

1. First, select any one of the involved worksheets.

2. Holding down the Ctrl key, select all of the other worksheets tabs.

3. Highlight one or more rows in the Direct Labor section of the active worksheet. Right click on a highlighted row number and select the Insert function. This will insert one or more rows in all selected worksheets.

4. Select the populated row above the newly inserted blank rows. Using your mouse, grab the dark square in the lower left corner of the column A cell. Drag this down to cover all of the new blank rows. This will copy all relevant formulas and formats down into the new rows.

5. DE-SELECT the involved worksheets by clicking any other worksheet tab.

6. Go to the Labor Rates worksheet and enter data for the newly inserted labor category rows.

To Add Additional non-Labor Rows:

Whenever an additional row is needed in a non-Labor Category section, a row should be added to all related worksheets. The worksheets involved are: Labor Rates, Total Amount, Base, O-I, O-II, O-III, O-IV, O-V, and all Task or Technical Area worksheets.

1. First, select any one of the involved worksheets.

2. Holding down the Ctrl key, select all of the other worksheets tabs.

3. Highlight one or more data rows in the relevant section of the active worksheet. Do not highlight a Title row or a Total row. Right click on a highlighted row number and select the Insert function. This will insert one or more rows in all selected worksheets.

4. Select the populated row above the newly inserted blank rows. Using your mouse, grab the dark square in the lower left corner of the column A cell. Drag this down to cover all of the new blank rows. This will copy all relevant formulas and formats down into the new rows.

5. DE-SELECT the involved worksheets by clicking any other worksheet tab.

6. Go to the Base worksheet and change the description (column B) for the newly inserted line(s). Changing the description on the Base worksheet also updates the description on the other worksheets.

Other Instructions All common row labels, such as Subcontractor names, Consultant names, and Indirect Rates, are pulled from the labels of the Base worksheet. This means that when you want to add a row for one Option or Task, you need to add rows to all related worksheets. For example, if you want a particular subcontractor to be involved only with Option 1, you need to name that subcontractor on the Base worksheet and leave all dollar amounts as zero for the Base period.

This spreadsheet allows for a maximum of six Offeror accounting periods and six periods of performance (a base period and five options). If your proposal requires more than these limits, contact the contracting officer.

Dollar amounts in the spreadsheet are formatted using Excel’s Accounting number format. Detailed costs include two decimal places (cents) but Totals are displayed rounded to the nearest whole dollar. This means that the real total value down to the penny is held in the cell. This may cause some bizarre looking math, such as 8+3=10, but it is really calculating something like 7.51+2.62=10.13.

For the spreadsheet that includes Technical Area sub-worksheets, pay attention to the Option/Phase cost summary worksheets for Consultants (rows 46-49) and their Hourly Rates (columns E, M, U, etc.). The summary worksheets pull the Hourly Rate from the first Technical Area worksheet under them, and if the Hourly Rate is blank on the first TA worksheet, then hours from the second or third TA worksheet will not properly calculate dollar costs. The underlying assumption is that consultant’s hourly rates will be the same within a Phase, regardless of the Technical Area.

03/11/20 3