PSMO-I_RFQ_Questions_and_Answers_(amendment_0001).pdf

Question PWS Section Answer

1 Is this new work to the US Government? No.

2 Is this new work to the DSS? No.

3 Is the work being absorbed from another Agency/organization? No.

4 If derivative from ongoing work, is it performed by US Govt personnel? No.

5 Contractor personnel (and if so, who is the incumbent?)? Some combination? Yes, the Incumbent is GAP Solutions, Inc. N/A

6 If ongoing work, is there a current level of manning? This is a Firm Fixed Price requirement therefore, no level of manning is required.

7 Are the various functions grouped in some manner? Each function is a stand alone task.

8 What was the place of performance? Please see Section C.1.6.5.

9 What was the total value of the contract? The Government cannot release that information.

10 What was the burn rate? The Government cannot release that information.

11 What are the expected transition timelines? The current expectation for transition is 30 days.

12 Would you provide a deeper characterization of the ‘technically acceptable’? This information is already provided within the Solicitation, please see Sections L.5.4 and M.2.2.

13 Would you expand on what ‘NISP experience’ consists of? The Government cannot provide that information without leading you to a response to the RFQ.

14 How many “Team Leads” are expected to perform on this contract, in other words, how many resumes should we furnish (1 PM, 1 DPM, a Team Lead & a QA Lead) – a total of four resumes ?

1.6.11.1 (1) PM

1.6.11.2 (1) DPM

1.6.11.3 (1) TL

1.6.11.4 (1) QAL

Since this is a performance based contract, it is the Vendors responsibility to determine the number of Task Leads required to perform the tasks of this contract.

15 Instead of mailing CD’s, could we email our submission, as Adobe .pdf’s ? Please submit in accordance with Section L.4.6.

16 Would you provide a deeper characterization of the ‘technically acceptable’ in regards to Volume III, Technical Approach? See question 12 above.

17 Can we use a 12-point font Calibri, instead of Arial or Times New Roman ? Please submit in accordance with Section L.4.1.

18 When are the Past Performance Questionnaires due to the Contracting Specialist (date and time)? Is it the day the RFP is due? Please see Section L.5.3.1.5.

19 Double checking that the RFP NAICS code is 561611 (Investigative Services), as the NAICS listed on page 71 states 651611. K, page 71 Please see Amendment 0001.

If our SAM profile is up to date, do we need to submit any other Reps & Certs as contained in the RFP? (ex. Section K 52.212-3 states if we have an updated SAM profile we only need to complete Section (b), but what about 52.204-17 & 252.209-7991? These are already contained within our SAM profile already).

K Please provide the required information as stated in the RFQ.

21 RFQ states quote must be good for 60 days, but Section K Page 74, Section L.3 states 90 days from closing date of solicitation, which is correct? Cover Page, page 1 Please see Amendment 0001.

22 Are the DVDs / CDs supposed to be R- or R+ formats? A specific format is not specified. The DVD/CD's submitted with your quote should not have any writeable or burnable abilities.

23 Quote Volume 1: Do you want the entire solicitation included in this volume? Which award documents do you want (e.g.

Page 1 of RFP)? Do you want all the Section K Reps & Certs attached, or will a printout copy from SAM suffice? L.4.2, page 75, Table 1 Please submit in accordance with Section L.5.2.

24 Please confirm the correct email for Shawna Mitchell, as Section L (page 75) and Section J (page 42) contradict each other. L, page 75 Please see Amendment 0001.

The requirements for the Past Performance Questionnaires (PPQs) do not quantify how many PPQs are required for submission. Section J, Attachment 1 (page 42), gives the parameters for the Questionnaire, but not the quantity. How many PPQs do we need to submit? 3, 5 or as many as applicable.

J, page 42 There is no limit on submissions of Past Performance Questionnaires.

The first sentence states that we need to “provide a synopsis for all past and on-going work” (Gov’t or Non-Gov’t) for PSO Support Services. The next sentences state we need to list Gov’t contracts (Prime and Sub) that are in performance, or awarded, in the past 3 years. Nothing within the section states which, or how many PPQs from these Past Performances need to be sent/submitted to the DSS COR and COS. Which ones, and how many need to be included for our submission?

L.5.3 & L.5.3.1.5, page 77 See question 17 above.

What happens if we list a Past Performance (PP) on Volume 2, and submit a PPQ for the COR/ COS to fill out, yet they do not fill it out and submit it by the RFP due date? Since there is an emphasis on PP for this RFQ, will that PP not be allowed to be utilized for our submission?

L.5.3 & L.5.3.1.5, page 77 Any past performance that is submitted will be utilized for evaluation. Please also note that Section L states that the Government may elect to consider data from other sources.

Due to the fact that there are clarifications needed regarding Past Performance Questionnaires, and there is a Federal Government Holiday (Monday, July 4th), it would be prudent to move the due date for the proposal submissions to Friday, July 15th to allow time for the Gov’t COR/COS/Tech Rep to provide the “candid” responses for our submissions; as requested by this solicitation. A number of Gov’t personnel are already “on vacation”, or will be out of the office the entire week of July 4th. Will you consider moving the due date to Friday, July 15th?

What if we need to remove/ change a Key Personnel? At this time, the required delivery date for submissions is not changing.

29 What if we need to remove/change a Key Personnel? Resumes will need to be reviewed and approved by the Government anytime a new Key Personnel is being added to the contract (prior to their start date).

30 What if, after submission of our proposal, a Key Personnel with a Letter of Commitment changes their mind, or rescinds their commitment to our team for the submission? Does this make our submission “not technically acceptable?”

No but at time of award, a replacement candidate would have to be provided to and approved by the Government.

31 Does DSS require that core hours are staffed by vendor employees in their entirety from 6 am to 6 pm? i.e. at least one or more staff members that arrive at 6 am and at least one or more staff members that stay until 6 pm?

Page 12, PWS, 1.6.4. Hours of Operation. Yes, Yes.

32 Can the government please clarify the clearance level required for all contractor employees working on this contract? Page 13, PWS, 1.6.8.3.

Personnel Requirements Please see Section C.4.2.

33 Can the government please clarify the clearance level required for this position? Page 14, PWS, 1.6.11.4.

Quality Assurance Lead. See question 32 above.

34 Data Item 02, Section 10 includes item 2, Trend Analysis Report. This same text is included as the sole content in Section 10 of Data Item 03. Please confirm that it should be removed from Data Item 02.

Section J – List of Documents, Exhibits and Other Attachments, Data Item 02 and 03, pages 53 & 54

Please see Amendment 0001.

L.4.1 states, “All graphics shall be compatible with MS PowerPoint 2010.” It is unclear how to comply with this requirement. Graphics are typically created in a graphics program and imported into the Word document as a picture. The picture can be copied into a PowerPoint document. Is this an acceptable approach? If not, please clarify the Government’s intent.

L.4.1. Format, page 74 Please see Amendment 0001.

Past Performance provides specific instructions regarding the format and layout of Prime and subcontractor past performance. Section M.3 Factor 1 – Past Performance indicates “Past performance information on work for State and local governments, private sector clients, and subcontractors that is similar to the Government requirement will be evaluated equally with similar Federal contracts.” It appears there is an unchecked box or typographical error in Section M.2.3.1.

Section M.2.3.1 indicates “Past performance regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience, or subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement will/will not be rated as highly as past performance information for the principal quoter.” Please modify the RFP to reflect past performance of subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement will be rated as highly as past performance information for the principal quoter.

M.2.3.1 and M.3 Factor 1 – Past Performance, pages 81-

Please see Amendment 0001.

We believe there is a conflict in the evaluation criteria. At the end of Section M in - 52.212-2 EVALUATION-- COMMERCIAL ITEMS (OCT 2014) indicates “only offerors determined Acceptable for Technical Capability will be evaluated for the Past Performance and Price factors” and “the Past Performance factor is significantly more important than the Price factor. The Price factor will become significantly more important as the Past Performance factor approaches equality.” M.2.1 Price Evaluation indicates “Initially, quotes shall be ranked according to price, lowest to highest, including any option prices.” We interpret this to mean the offerors are first ranked lowest to highest on price before any evaluation of Technical Capability and Past Performance is performed. This approach is common on Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) procurements, but appears to conflict with the language included at the end of Section M. Please confirm that all proposals will be reviewed and evaluated for Technical Capability and Past Performance.

52.212-2 Evaluation—Commercial Items (OCT 2014) and M.2.1 Price Evaluation, pages 81 and 84

All quotes will be evaluated in accordance with Section M.

There appears to be a conflict in instructions for the DVD that is to be submitted. Section L.4.2, File Packaging, states that there should be two (2) DVDs submitted, one (1) containing Volumes 1,3, and 4 and another one containing Volume 2 (Past Performance) only. Table 1 shows one (1) DVD required across all four (4) volumes. Section L.4.6 states that one (1) DVD containing Volumes 1, 2, 3, and 4 only should be submitted. Please clarify the DVD submission requirements.

L.4.2, File Packaging and L.4.6, page 75 Please see Amendment 0001.

This section references “Past performance regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience, or subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement will/will not be rated as highly as past performance information…” There is no reference in Section L.5.3 that would allow offerors to submit past performance regarding predecessor companies or key personnel. Section L.5.3.1.4 does allow New Corporate Entities to “submit data on prior contracts involving its officers and employees.” Please clarify what, if any, past performance, other than actual contracts performed by the offeror and major subcontractors, is acceptable.

M.2.3.1, page 81 Please see Amendment 0001.

Contract clauses incorporating Service Contract Labor Standards and associated clauses have not been selected for incorporation. Please confirm these clauses and the Wage Determination 2005-2247 Revision 18 is not applicable to this procurement.

52.222-17 and 52.222-43, page 38 The Service Contract Act does not apply to this requirement.

It is stated, “The Quality Assurance Lead must possess three (3) or more years’ experience in NISP personnel security clearance process.” Is equivalent DOD personnel security clearance process experience acceptable as a substitution for NISP personnel security clearance process experience to meet this requirement?

1.6.11.4, page 14 Yes, DOD personnel security clearance process experience may be substituted