Attachment 8 - TEDSS List of Questions and Answers.doc

Rate Schedule– Attachment 8

Responses to Contractual Questions:

Question #1, Section E.13, paragraph 4. "Text size states no smaller than 10-pitch and in the following paragraph it states the proposal response must be submitted in Times New Roman 12 point font. What is the desired point size for the proposal submission?"

Answer: See Amendment 21. RFP Section E.13, paragraph 4 is correct. Each binder shall be written in text no smaller than 10-pitch type size and no larger than 12 pitch type size." This provides the Contractor a range in which responses may be provided. The government requests that the submissions be consistent throughout. Paragraph 5 addresses the format submission for CDs.

Question #2, Section E.15, paragraph 1. "The RFP states that the time of submission on the due date is 2PM but on the FBO site it states that the time of submission is 3PM on 2/14/2011. What is the correct time for submission?"

Answer: The due date is revised to read 2PM, February 28, 2011.

Question #3, Section E.16, paragraph 1. "The last sentence of the first paragraph states to submit proposals in one volume whereas Section E.13 states 2 binders shall be submitted. What is the desired format for document submissions?"

Answer: See Amendment 21. This paragraph is being amended to reflect separate volumes.

Question #4, Section E.16, paragraph 4. "In the Volume III instructions it states what is to be included. Attachment 2 is six pages and is larger than the page limitation for the Volume set at 5. Of the items listed (Attachment 2, Section B and E) what is to be counted towards the page limitation for this Volume?"

Answer: RFP documents are not included in the page count.

Question #5, Attachment 2. "Although Attachment 3 contains a Labor Category Description for a Systems Engineer, there are no hours assigned on Attachment 2. Is this an oversight?"

Answer: See Amendment 21. Attachment 2 has been corrected to include the Labor Category Systems Engineer and estimated hours for the labor category for each calendar year.

Question #6, Paragraph E.18.3, Factor 2. "This section requires the contractor to provide examples of artifacts a., through q., from actual successful efforts. Is it the Government's intention that these example artifacts be included in the Volume 1 page count?"

Answer: Yes. The total page count for Volume I shall not exceed 200 pages to include examples/attachments. The RFP has been updated to reflect this change. See Amendment 21.

Question #7. "Is a compliance matrix desired and if so, does it count against the page count?"

Answer: Submission of a compliance matrix is optional and will not count against the page count.

Question #8, Paragraph E.10, Prime Contractor Responsibilities. "What is meant by a "Teaming Arrangement? Are these the formal agreements where we are using a Mentor, or a teaming arrangement where we team with another 8(a)? This doesn't include normal Teaming Agreements, does it? As long as we are still doing over 50% of the work, why would SBA need to approve a normal Teaming Agreement?"

Answer: FAR 9.601, Contractor Team Arrangement, means an arrangement in which—

(1) Two or more companies form a partnership or joint venture to act as a potential prime contractor; or

(2) A potential prime contractor agrees with one or more other companies to have them act as its subcontractors under a specified Government contract or acquisition program.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) identifies Teaming Arrangements as "partnerships" between two (2) small businesses. In this case, two 8(a) contractors.

SBA does not require approval of Teaming Arrangements but recommends your Business Development Specialist (BDS) review your agreement for compliance with the terms and conditions of the RFP requirements. SBA does require approval of Mentor Protégé and Joint Venture agreements.

Question #9, Section E, Paragraph #11, Exceptions and Deviations. "Which volume of the proposal should contain the Exceptions and Deviations and will they count towards that section's page count?"

Answer: Exceptions and Deviations are considered administrative in nature. As such, they should be contained in Volume III, Administrative and Price Proposal. They will count towards the page count.

Question #10. Section E, Paragraph #13, Packaging of proposal. "Original binder +1 binder containing all copies for particular volume?"

Answer: See Amendment 21 which adds clarifying verbiage.

Question #11. Section E, Paragraph #13, Paragraph 5. "Historically, the CD submission must be an exact duplicate of the hardcopy/paper submission. If the hardcopy/paper submission happens to be in 10-pitch font, per Paragraph 5, then to copy on the CD would also be 10-pitch. Is the Government expecting offers to reformat the version for the CD submission? Please clarify."

Answer: Each binder shall be written in text no smaller than 10-pitch type size and no larger than 12 pitch type size. CD submission must be an exact duplicate of the hardcopy/paper submission.

Question #12. Section E, Paragraph #16, Volume III and number of copies. Will Sections B and E, Representations and Certifications for the Prime Contractor, Teaming Partner(s) and subcontractor(s) as applicable; be considered attachment in the 5 page max. page count?"

Answer: Yes.

Question #13. Section E, Paragraph E.18.2.1. "For the narrative required in the functional areas, item j., System Performance Data Analysis, it states the offeror must provide supporting documentation. Does the supporting documentation count as part Volume I page count?"

Answer: Yes, Narratives count toward the page limit. See question 6 and Amendment 21.

Question #14. Section E, Paragraph E.18.4. "The first paragraph in E.18.4 states that the offeror must submit resumes that outline relevant skills and experience. With the lack of sample task the only key position identified is the Program Manager. Can the government clarify the intent of this paragraph and resume requirements?"

Answer: The intent of paragraph E.18.4 is to emphasize the importance of the Project Manager's duties and responsibilities as it pertains to monitoring key and non-key personnel in accomplishing the overall tasks awarded under the IDIQ Contract. Resume(s) are requested to reflect the individual(s) relevant skills, experience and background in management controls used to achieve tasks as well as to monitor personnel that resulted in satisfactory performance. We anticipate one Program Manager per contract issued to be a senior level employee overseeing the overall individual Project Task managers as well as all tasks awarded under their IDIQ Contract.

Question #15, Section E.18.6, Factor 5, Past Performance. "What is the Government's definition of '...within the past three (3) years?' Is it within 3 years of the release of the original RFP (June 25, 2010)? Please clarify."

Answer: Within three (3) years of the release of the amended RFP (i.e., January 14, 2011).

Question #16, Section E.18.7, Factor 6, Price. "What is meant by discounted rates? Does this mean that these rates will not become the max rate in our contract, yet they can be used for price comparison? If so, how can the Government ensure that these rates are actually viable, since they won't be based on any actual requirement?"

Answer: a) The government requires vendors to consider the government as the vendor’s most favored customer. Contractors are encouraged to submit discounts from the Contractor’s labor rates which are equal to or greater than given the Contractor’s most favored customer. B) The discounted (or not discounted) rates will be used for price analysis and award. The rates will be utilized for the life of the contract.

Question #17. Attachment 1, TEDSS PWS, Paragraph 1.3.1.2/1.4.1. "The hours of availability and response time for the Program manager are in conflict. Can the government clarify which is correct?"

Answer: The Program Manager’s required hours and response time is correctly cited in Paragraph 1.3.1.2 of the PWS. Reference to the Program manager’s availability in Paragraph 1.4.1 has been deleted. See Amendment 21.

Question #18. "The final/superseding RFP (Amendment 2) does not require a Compliance Metrix as part of the offerors proposal. If the offeror wants to include a Compliance Matrix, will it count against the page count?"

Answer: See response to Question No. 7.

Question #19. Attachment 2, Pricing. "The estimate number of hours provided for the Program Manager every year is 15,600. It appears each contractor will have one Program manager and an alternate which don't match with the number of hours given. It the intent of the government to use multiple program managers? If not, can the government provide a correction to the number of estimate hours to be used?"

Answer: The estimated number of hours for the Program Manager has been corrected See Amendment No. 21 and Attachment 2.

Question #20. "What is the anticipated start date?"

Answer: The anticipated start date is 10 days after award of contract which is anticipated to be 14 March 2011.

Question #21. Para C.7.1, the last sentence 2. "The last sentence states 'The price for each task order shall be determined based on the estimated level of effort required to perform the work and either the rates set forth in the Pricing Schedule or the estimated costs.' It is our understanding that task orders will be Fixed Price or T&M utilizing the rates in the pricing schedule. Please explain when estimated costs would be applicable when pricing task orders."

Answer: T&M is no longer a part of this requirement. Task orders will be competed on either a FFP or issued on a sole source basis. Estimated costs only apply to the travel and material line items.

Question # 22. Attachment 2 – Pricing Spreadsheet. "There is a circular error reference in Attachment 2. Will the Government reissue a corrected file?"

Answer: See Amendment 21. The circular error in Attachment 2, Pricing Spreadsheet has been deleted.

Question #23. Attachment 3. “Are offerors to complete Attachment 3 based on the price calculated in Attachment 2? If that is correct, how are Offerors to address the overtime labor CLINS as it does not appear that overtime is taken into consideration in Attachment 2?"

Answer: Yes. Offers are required to complete Attachment 2 and carry over the totals to Attachment 3. The overtime reference has been removed from the revised Attachment 3. See Amendment 21.

Question #24. Attachment 3. "Paragraph 3.4 lists Systems Engineer; however, Attachment 2 does not reflect the Systems Engineer category. Please clarify."

Answer: See Question No. 5.

Question #25. Attachment 2 – Pricing Spreadsheet. "Please explain the purpose of the discounted fully burdened labor rates. Our experience has been that fully burdened labor rates are proposed as ceilings for an IDIQ contract with discounting applied at the task order level whenever possible and applicable and may vary given task order requirements in order to provide the Government the best possible value."

Answer: See question 16.

Question #26. Attachment 2 – Pricing Spreadsheet. "Which rates are applicable at the task order level; the proposed fully burdened labor rates or the discounted fully burdened labor rates? Please clarify."

Answer: See question 16.

Question #27. Section B.7. "B.7 states that when performing at Government site, the Government will provide office space, etc. For Off-site rates, the government will not provide equipment, supplies, etc. Is the Government expecting offerors to propose two sets of rates - one set for Government site and one for Contractor Site? Attachment 2 does not differentiate where performance will take place and only reflects one set of rates. Please clarify."

Answer: No. B.7. is deleted. See amendment 21.

Question #28. Section E.16. "Are representations and certifications required for the prime offeror only or for all teaming partners as well? Please clarify."

Answer: Representations and certifications are required for the Prime and teaming partners and 1st tier subcontractors.

Question #29. Attachment B, Statement of Work, Paragraph 4.1. Attachment B, Statement of Work, Paragraph 4.1, Page 5, states, “The vast majority of.

Question: Is it anticipated that the tasking will also be subject to DHS suitability determination? Please clarify.”

Answer: See Amendment 21 and revised DD254 Question #30. Section E.13 (Instructions for Proposal Preparation, Delivery, and Packaging). “Each binder shall be written in text no smaller than 10-pitch type size and no larger than 12 pitch type size” and the following paragraph states “All text (including tables) contained in the proposal response must be submitted in Times New Roman 12 point font.” Please clarify the required proposal font size."

Answer: See Question No. 11.

Question #31. Section E.16 (Proposal Preparation - SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN PROPOSALS AND PAST PERFORMANCE INFORMATION-COMPETITIVE). The RFP states, “If appropriate, cross-referencing the proposal for traceability is recommended.” Would a cross reference matrix be excluded from the page count?

Answer: Yes.

Question #32. Section E.16 (Proposal Preparation). Volume II - Past Performance Information. "All information requested under "REQUIREMENTS FOR PROPOSAL CONTENT" for Volume II includes past performance information and resumes.” In RFP Section, E 18.4 (Factor 3 - Management Approach), Page 50, the RFP states that resumes should be included with the Management Approach which is part of Volume I. Please clarify whether resumes will be part of Volume I or Volume II or both."

Answer: See Amendment 21. Resumes are to be provided in Volume I.

Question #33. RFP Section E.18.4.1 (a) (Factor 1: Management organization and business model). The RFP states the “autonomy of the on-site Program Manager with respect to management of all personnel, Prime/Teaming Partner(s)/Subcontractor(s), and overall execution of tasking under the IDIQ contract.” Request confirmation that the Coast Guard is expecting the Program Manager to be on-site or was it intended that this be the Project Manager (vs. Program Manager) or was on-site supposed to be Contract (i.e. autonomy of the Contract Program Manager vs. autonomy of the on-site Program Manager)?"

Answer: See Question 14.

Question #34. Attachment 3 (CLIN Structure/Labor Category Descriptions) includes a System Engineer labor category (3.4). However, this labor category is not included as a pricing line in ATTACHMENT 2 (PRICING SPREADSHEET). Should this labor category be included and if so how many hours will be used in the evaluation model?

Answer: See Question No. 5.

Question #35. RFP Section E.18.4.1 (b) (2) (Factor 1: Management organization and Business Model) “the proposed organization and business model shall demonstrate relevant aspects including, but not limited to:”… “The proposed on-site management team for the Prime/Teaming Partner(s)/Subcontractor(s).” Since this is an IDIQ contract and there is no specific sample task order to address, recommend removing this requirement concerning an on-site management team from the RFP.

Answer: See Question No. 14.

Question #36. RFP Section E.18.3, Factor 2 Technical Capability. "Are examples A-Q be included in the management plan or as attachments to this section"?

Answer: Examples A-Q are to be provided under Factor 2 – Technical Capability as part of Volume I. See question 6.

Question #37. Section E.13, submission guidelines. "For the hard copy submission, are all of the copies to be placed in the same binders along with the originals? Should one binder have six copies of volumes I and II and the other all six copies of volume III? Usually separate binders are used for each copy."

Answer: See Question No. 10.

Question #38. Section E.18.3 Technical Capability. "In the list of items that the contractor shall provide in the proposal the list skips from “h” to “j”. Is this a typo or was there intended to be another item to be included under an “i” bullet point?"

Answer: Typically, the Government does not utilize the lower case "i. or o" This is done to reduce any confusion from the number "1 and 0". This was intentional and not an oversight.

Question #39. Section E.18.7. "Given the nature that this is a commercial request, how do you determine the baseline on which to discount the rates? Would the government consider establishing labor rates for the IDIQ then consider discounts from those rates when competing task orders."

Answer: The contractor is responsible to determine the baseline for their rates and to apply a discount to those rates if offered. See question No. 16.

Question #40. Section B.4.A, Contract Type. " The Government has modified the contract type to exclude T&M type task orders. The resulting contract will only allow FFP Task Orders. Attachment 3 still references T&M type orders. Will the Government confirm this solicitation will result in a multiple award contract in which only FFP task orders will be issued?"

Answer: This solicitation will result in up to four (4) multiple award contracts in which only FFP task orders will be awarded. See Amendment 21.

Question #41. RFP, Section C.21, FAR 27.409, Statements of Limited Rights. "Is the Offeror to complete this provision as part of its proposal submission or is completion of said provision required at time of task orders response when deliverable requirements are more clearly identified?"

Answer: The offeror should complete this provision and submit it with its Representations and Certifications at the time of proposal submission.

Question #42. RFP, Section E.10, Prime Contractor Responsibilities. “Please clarify what is required by this provision. As SBA does not “certify traditional 8(a) prime subcontractor Teaming Arrangements can this be satisfied by the Offeror demonstrating (by evidence of teaming agreements) that the 8(a) prime will perform a substantial amount of the cumulative direct labor."

Answer: See Amendment 21. If the Contractor proposes an 8(a) Prime Contractor Mentor Protégé or Joint Venture teaming arrangement, it shall obtain SBA certification of the teaming arrangement by the Small Business Administration. As required by SBA, 8(a) Mentor Protégé or Joint Venture teaming arrangements must be submitted to the 8(a) Company's Regional SBA's Business Development Specialist (BDS) for approval at time of contract proposal prior to the closing of the RFP.

If the Contractor proposes an 8(a) Subcontractor teaming agreement/arrangement, SBA certification of the teaming arrangement is not required but recommended by the 8(a) Company's Regional SBA's Business Development Specialist (BDS). However, the Government does not require SBA approval of 8(a) Prime/Subcontractor arrangements.

Regardless of the teaming arrangement chosen, the 8(a) Company shall perform 51% of the cumulative direct labor.as approved by the Small Business Administration (SBA). A copy of this agreement must be submitted with the proposal. The agreement shall be submitted with Proposal Volume III. This will not count against the page count.

Question #43. RFP Section E-13, Instructions for Proposal Preparation, Delivery & Packaging. " Please confirm the following for Volumes I, II, and III: (1) Narrative text shall be not be smaller than 10 pitch type font size and not larger than 12 pitch type font size, single space. (2) Margins of (1) inch shall be used on all page borders, and excluding any Headers & Footers within the 1 inch margin, and (3) Please consider removing the conflicting statement in the 5th paragraph “All text (including tables contained in the proposal response must be submitted in Times New Roman 12 point font."

Answer: See Question No. 11.

Question #44. RFP, Section E13. “The Government requests that hard copy offers are submitted in two volumes and electronic copies be delivered on three CDs. Will the Government confirm the following organization of the final proposal submission:

Volume I – Technical

Volume II - Management and Past Performance

Volume III – Administrative and Pricing/Cost Information

CD1 - Technical

CD2 – Management and Past Performance

CD3 - Administrative and Pricing/Cost Information."

Answer: See Amendment 21 and Questions No. 10 and 11.

Question #45. Requirements for Proposal Content. " Please confirm that covers, section dividers, table of content, compliance cross-reference table of contents, resumes, attachments, appendices (including support documentation), and acronym glossaries are excluded from Volume I & II page count limitation."

Answer: Confirmed.

Question #46. Section E.18.4.2. Section L, Para b. "Please confirm that it is the discretion of the Offeror to identify which proposed personnel are Key Personnel; but at a minimum the Contract Program Manager is considered Key Personnel at the contract level."

Answer: The offeror is free to propose additional personnel as key. However, the government is only requiring the Program Manager to be “key.”

Question #47. RFP, Factor 5 Past Performance. “It appears that there are redundant criteria and conflicts in the evaluation criteria for past performance. Please confirm/clarify the following:

i.

RFP, Section E.18.6 “Offeror is to submit a minimum of 3 past performance references and completed questionnaires." Plus 3rd Para, "A list of similar contracts, delivery orders, purchase orders or subcontracts completed or currently in progress past three years for Prime, Teaming partners, and 1st tier subs."

Answer: The government is concerned about not only currency of efforts submitted for evaluation but also the relevancy of those efforts. See Amendment 21.

ii.

"Past Performance References will be evaluated for similar project complexity, scope, type and schedule within the Command Control & Communications environment, or (6th Para of Section E.18.6 on page 52) Quality of Technical Services and Approach, Quality of Contract Management and Management Approach and Customer Satisfaction"

Answer: Both will be evaluated.

iii.

"Questionnaires will be evaluated on the quality, timeliness and cost control and business relationships (3rd Para) Evaluation criteria for past performance references – or by Attachment 5, Section E 15 Evaluation Areas and F through H responses."

Answer: E.18.6.1 Past Performance Questionnaire, states "In addition to the required Past Performance Information, the contractor shall include Past Performance Questionnaires (Attachment 5) for each of the references cited." The Government retains the right to utilize the information provided in Attachment 5 in evaluating the quality, timeliness and cost control and business relations the Contractor held with prior Government and/or Commercial entities over the past three (3) years. This paragraph allows Offerors to provide information on both problems encountered and corrective actions taken to resolve those problems on the contracts, delivery orders, purchase orders and/or subcontracts identified.

iv.

"3rd Para of Section E.18.6 on page 51, 4th sentence. Please clarify how the “List of similar contracts…” will be evaluated."

Answer: Contracts will be evaluated on whether or not the efforts submitted are relevant (i.e., similar in size, scope, etc., to the current effort) and whether or not they are current (within the past 3 years).

v.

"Attachment 5 Past Performance Questionnaire, Section E─ please clarify how an N/A response to questions will be evaluated. Please clarify how the appropriateness of Section E Questions 1 & 2 for evaluating past performance for overall corporate past performance relative to the Section E.18.6 3rd or 6th Para."

Answer: "N/A" will receive a Neutral rating which is neither a favorable nor an unfavorable rating.

vi.

"Since the list of similar contracts may be several pages long for companies that perform this type of work regularly, please confirm that the list and summary of similar contracts is to be submitted as an appendix and is therefore excluded from page count."

Answer: Yes. See Amendment 21.

Question #48. RFP, Attachment 2, Pricing Spreadsheet. “The Government has required that the Offeror price overtime as a separate CLIN in Attachment 3. However, the Government has not provided any estimated hours or place within Attachment 2 – Pricing Sheet to do so. Will the Government provide an updated Attachment 2 to include overtime pricing or provide additional instructions so that Offerors may respond to this requirement in a manner consistent with the Governments intent?"

Answer: See Amendment 21. There is no overtime pricing required at the contract level.

Question #49. Attachment 2, Pricing Spreadsheet, and Attachment 3 CLIN Structure. “Attachment 3 contains the Labor Category Description for a Systems Engineer. However, Attachment 2 does not contain this labor category in the pricing sheet. Will the Government please clarify if the Systems Engineer labor category is to be priced in this procurement?"

Answer: See Amendment 21.

Question #50. RFP, Attachment 2 Pricing Spreadsheet. "The attachment includes a column for discounts of offered rates. Will the Government confirm that the discounted column is intended to represent the effect of performance at a customer site on our proposed rates? That is, the discount column rates are discounted by the facility cost savings achieved by providing services at a customer’s facility."

Answer: No. Discounts provided to the government are equal to or lower than offered to the vendor’s most favored customer. See question 16 and Amendment 21.

Question #51. RFP, Attachment 5. “Due to recent policy changes, many DoD activities will no longer respond to Past Performance Questionnaires due to the administrative burden of multiple requests. (See below an example of how SPAWAR has recently responded to Past Performance Questionnaires.) Will Past Performance citations that receive a CPARS only response from the cognizant contracting office be considered adequate with respect to meeting the requirements for the TEDSS Past Performance Questionnaires? If not how will such a response be evaluated, as the contractor has no control over this type of response?

Subject: PAST PERFORMANCE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR XXXXXXXXXXXX SOLICITATION

SPAWAR Atlantic has a mandatory approval process which ensures every CPAR submitted in CPARS AIS is of good quality and adequately justifies the assigned score. Completing CPARS under this process in addition to completing questionnaires has created an administrative burden on our command, therefore we respectfully request you access the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS) at the website below and retrieve our CPAR for the contractor you are considering. In the event you have specific questions that are not addressed in our CPAR evaluation, please feel free to send those questions and we will gladly provide an answer. I believe you will find all the pertinent information in PPIRS you will need to conduct a Source Selection.

PPIRS URL: http://www.ppirs.gov

PPIRS Help Desk: 207-438-1690

Please don't hesitate to call if you have any problems or questions."

Answer: CPARS only responses may be utilized to fulfill the submission requirement. Section E.18.6.1 Past Performance Questionnaire, requires the contractor to include Past Performance Questionnaires (Attachment 5) for each reference cited. The Government reserves the right to contact and use additional information to validate references as well as other sources (i.e., CPARS and/or PPIRS).

Question #52. Section C FAR CLAUSES. “We respectfully request that the Government consider the inclusion of the following Clause as part of the basic contract: 52.226-1 -- Utilization of Indian Organizations and Indian-Owned Economic Enterprises.

Answer: We have evaluated the request with the information currently available to us. At this time, we were unable to determine that contracting possibilities exist or that funds will be available for the increased costs.

Question #53. Attachment 7. "Statement of Equivalent Rates are generally used under FAR 22.1016 for the Government to set forth those wage rates and fringe benefits that would be paid by the contracting activity to the various classes of service employees expected to be utilized under the contract. By completion of this Attachment 7 in the manner provided, is the Government taking the position that all solicitation labor categories are wage determined (non-professional) with the exception of the Program Manager, the Project Task Manager and the Subject Matter Expert?"

Answer: No. The Statement of Equivalent Rates was incorporated to reflect the basic hourly rate the government would pay blue and white collar employees if they were government employees. Contractors must pay at least this amount for the categories listed.

Question #54. "RFP Section C.34, FAR 52.222-42 Statement of Equivalent Rates for Federal Hires (MAY 1989) and RFP Attachment 7 – Statement of Equivalent Rates for Federal Hires.

a. Please provide additional information on the purpose of the information provided in Attachment (7) and the government’s intent for how offerors are to use the information."

Answer: See Question #53.

Question #55. "The CLINs listed on Attachment (7) do not align with the CLINs in the Attachment (3) Pricing Schedule. For example, CLIN 0001AA is the CLIN for all labor costs in Attachment (3), but only the CLIN for the Program manager labor category in Attachment (7). Please clarify."

Answer: Attachment 2 is the Pricing Spreadsheet for Offerors to complete, Attachment 3 is the CLIN Structure for Offerors to provide total labor, total NTE Material and NTE Travel from Attachment 2 per year and a total proposed contract price as well as Labor Category Descriptions, Attachment 7 is the DoL Wage Determination – See question 53.

Question #56. “The Labor Categories listed in Attachment (7) do not match the Labor Categories in Attachment (3). For example:

Attachment (7)

Attachment (3)

0001AB Associate Manager

3.2 Project Task Manager

0001AD Integrated Systems Engineer

3.4 Systems Engineer

Missing?

3.6Technical Writer

0001AH Systems Engineer

Missing, or is this also 3.4 Systems Engineer

001AAA Electronics Tech, Maintenance Missing

Please clarify the correlation of the labor categories between Attachments (3) and (7)."

Answer: See response to Question #55, above.

Question #57. "The Government Titles assigned to many of the categories seem in conflict with the Attachment (3) labor Categories and the Attachment (4) Wage Determination. For example, the education, experience and duties required of an Integrated Systems Engineer (or Systems Engineer as documented in Attachment (3) paragraph 3.4) do not correlate at all to the duties of a computer programmer. The same is true of the Network System Administrator, whose duties are very different from those of a Computer Programmer II. Please clarify these apparent discrepancies."

Answer: The government definitions, titles and duties of each individual labor category provided (see Attachment (3)) as well educational requirements were obtained from a myriad of various DoD Standard Labor Categories (as coordinated with Industry), Department of Labor (DOL) Wage Definitions, and DOL Bureau of Labor Statistics. This information represents the labor categories and average educational requirements needed for the TEDSS requirement. In contrast, Attachment 4, the Wage Determination, represents the minimum wage the company is required to pay its workers under a federal contract.

NOTE: As cited in the Introduction to Amendment 12 of the RFP, should your labor categories have differing titles, provide a Crosswalk of titles for review and consideration.

Question #58. “Please clarify the basis for the Government Equivalent salaries shown in Attachment (7). They do not align with the wage determination, the GS pay scales or any other source we can identify. Is this the government’s estimate of what they are currently paying for these labor categories? If so, do these rates include fringe benefits and government overhead costs?"

Answer: See response to #54 through #57, above.

Question #59. “If these are government equivalent “rates” how can the same rate be used for Engineering Technician I through IV and Electronics Maintenance Tech I through III given the significant differences in education, skills and experience in the different levels? Please clarify."

Answer: See response to #57, above.

Question #60. “Is it the government’s intent to use this Attachment (7) to conform the RFP Labor Categories to the Wage Determination? If so, please explain the rationale for so many highly skilled positions being wage-determined. Is this “rate’ information going to form the government’s independent cost estimate by which offerors’ price proposals will be compared?"

Answer: No. Refer to responses provided in #57 through #59, above. Best Value Determination Methodology is available on page 54 of the RFP.

Question #61. "With so many wage determined positions, how will the government prevent an unrealistically low offer that bids the Wage determination salaries and statutory fringe benefits only from being acceptable? No company can attract and retain the skilled professionals required by this solicitation at the $3.50 per hour fringe benefit rate."

Answer: See response to Question #60, above.

Question #62. RFP, Paragraph E.13, Instructions for Proposal Preparation, delivery and Packaging. "Is it the government’s intent that offeror provide an original plus five copies of Volumes I and II in one binder, or use separate binders for the original and each copy?"

Answer: See Question #11, above.

Question #63. “If six separate CDs are required for each volume, why is Volume II not asked for in its’ own binder?”

Answer: See Amendment 21 and Question No. 11.

Question #64. “Please clarify type size. The fourth paragraph cites “…text no smaller than 10 pitch type size and no large than 12 pitch….” The fifth paragraph requests all text in Times New Roman 12 point font. Request that the government modify this requirement to require all text in Times New Roman 12 point, and further allow for all tables and charts to include Arial 10 point font. Using Times New Roman 12 point font in organization charts and process flow diagrams makes them very difficult to prepare, especially given the page constraints on the proposal volumes.”

Answer: See Question #11, above.

Question #65. RFP, Paragraph E.16, Proposal preparation. Under “No. of Copies: Original plus 5. These instructions seem to contradict the earlier instructions. Please clarify. Is Volume II contained in the same binder as Volume I, or is it to be provided in its’ own binder?”

Answer: See Amendment 21, Question No. 22 and 44.

Question #66. RFP, Paragraph C.28 identifies the Program Manager as the only key personnel position. However; on Page 45, RFP Paragraph E.16, Proposal preparation, under REQUIREMENTS FOR PROPOSAL CONTENT: The fourth bullet mentions “Resumes” On Page 48, RFP Paragraph E.18.4 Factor 3 – Management Approach, first paragraph, first sentence states in part that the government will evaluate the offeror “…by providing resumes that outline relevant skills, experience and by describing….”

The second paragraph indicates that “…clearly defined Key Personnel with inclusion of resumes…” is part of the management approach evaluation

On page 49, second paragraph requires offerors to “…identify current information technology certifications held by key technical positions included in the proposal.” It goes on to require offerors to identify key personnel commitments to the effort.

On Page 50, RFP Paragraph E.18.4.2, sub items (a) and (b) have multiple references and evaluation factors related to multiple key personnel.

Please confirm the key personnel and resume requirements for the solicitation to include key positions and number of resumes required."

Answer: Paragraph E.18.4.2, Sub-Factor 2, proposed organizational structure and staffing, subparagraph b. (1) defines resumes for key personnel. Each binder shall contain one (1) resume of each proposed key personnel resume; each CD submission shall contain one (1) copy (i.e., PDF) of each proposed key personnel resume.

Question #67. Paragraph E.18.4.2, Sub factor 2, item (b) (1). This seems to indicate that letters of commitment are required from Subcontractors. Typically, teaming agreements are used to demonstrate subcontractor commitment to a program. Please confirm that no letters of commitment are required for subcontractor team members. If teaming agreements or letters of commitment are required, please indicate where they should be placed in the proposal, and confirm that they do not count against the page count."

Answer: Proposed personnel, who are not currently employed (with either the Prime or any of its subcontracting/partner firms) at the time of RFP submission requires a Letter of Commitment, per employee. Letters of Commitment would be placed in Volume III, Administrative and Price Proposal. Letters of Intent will not count against the page count.

Question #68. Paragraph E.18.6 Factor 5 – Past Performance. “In the list of items (A) through (K) at the top of the page, Item (D) asks for “…equivalent labor categories and fully burdened labor rates utilized.” This requirement presents two significant problems: First, the scope of this information, were it to be provided, would quickly exceed the page count for the volume. Second, it would require the offeror to include pricing information in a volume other than the cost volume. Recommend that this requirement be deleted. If this information is required, recommend it be provided as an addendum to the Cost Volume.”

Answer: ‘D’ is being amended to read total contract value. See Amendment 21.

Question #69. Attachment (3), CLIN Structure/Labor Category descriptions. “CLINs 0001AB, 0002AB, 0003AB, 0004AB and 0005AB request pricing for overtime labor. Given that this is an IDIQ contract, and that offerors are not pricing a sample task order, what is the basis to be used for estimating overtime? We can certainly envision the need for overtime, particularly in PWS 5.2.6 Field Engineering Support, however there in no information provided to the offeror that would enable a realistic estimate for overtime to be developed. Please clarify and/or provide additional information."

Answer: See Amendment 21. The requirement for overtime has been deleted.

Question #70. Paragraph E.10 Prime Contractor Responsibilities. “Does this clause refer to 8(a) Joint Venture Arrangements only or is the prime contractor required to obtain an SBA certified 8(a) Teaming Arrangement for all teaming arrangements (including non-8(a) joint venture arrangements) and subcontractor agreements?"

Answer: See Question No. 8.

Question #71. "RFP Paragraph E.16: Volume III – Administrative Price Proposal indicates the need to complete Section B of the RFP, which does not contain any fill-ins, but it does not reference the need to complete Attachment 3, CLIN Structure.

RFP Paragraph E.18.7 Factor 5 – Price indicates the offerors are required to complete Attachment 3, CLIN Structure for all ordering periods. Should Volume III include Attachment 3, CLIN Structure, and if so, does it count towards the 5 page limit for Volume III set forth in page 45 of the solicitation?"

Answer: Yes, Offerors are required to complete and include Attachment 3, CLIN Structure in Volume III. No, it does not count towards the 5 page limit for Volume III. In addition, Offerors are required to complete Attachment II – Pricing Spreadsheet. Attachments and ORCA Reps and Certs do not count against Volume III page count.

Question #72. “RFP Paragraph E.16, REQUIREMENTS FOR PROPOSAL FORMAT: indicates the Administrative and Price Volume is limited to 5 pages. Attachment 2 when printed is 6 pages, Attachment 3 (if required in Volume III) is 3 pages when printed, and the Paragraph E.27 Representations and Certifications for the Prime Contractor are 14 pages when printed. Please confirm that Attachment 2, Attachment 3, and RFP Paragraph E.27 do not count towards the 5 page limit for Volume III."

Answer: No they do not count.

Question #73. RFP Volume III – Administrative Price Proposal. Requires teaming partners and subcontractors to complete Clause E.27, Representations and Certifications. Does this apply to 8(a) Joint Venture Agreements or to any proposed teaming partner or subcontractor? If all teaming partners and subcontractors are required to complete Clause E.27, Representations and Certifications, will the submissions be excluded from the Volume III page count?"

Answer: Yes, Clause E.27, Reps and Certs applies to 8(a) Joint Venture Agreements or to any proposed teaming partner or 1st tier subcontractor. Yes, the Reps and Certs completed by all teaming partners and 1st tier subcontractors will be excluded from the Volume III page count.

Question #74. "RFP, Section B, Paragraphs B.4.A and B.3.B specify Firm Fixed Price Task Orders under the IDIQ contract. PWS Paragraph 5.4.1 requires Time & Material Burn Rate Reports. The requested reports are not applicable to FFP orders. Recommend deleting this PWS requirement or replacing it with a requirement aligned with FFP orders."

Answer: See Amendment 21. The requirement for Time & Material Burn Rate Reports has been deleted from the PWS, Paragraph 5.4.1.

Question #75. RFP, Attachment 2, Pricing Spreadsheet. “Contains a hidden column with hours inserted for 17 of the first 18 labor categories. Please clarify the intent of these hours in terms of completing the price proposal."

Answer: The hidden column reflected data relative to the prior RFP’s Options. This requirement is based on calendar years vice Option years. Please disregard this information.

Question #76. RFP, Attachment 2 (Pricing Spreadsheet). "The same amount of hours is listed on each year’s tab in the spreadsheet. Please clarify if the estimated hours listed per labor category are for the specified year or for the life of the contract. For example, the estimated hours for the Program Manager are listed as 15,600 hours for each year. Is this 7.5 Program Managers at 2,080 hours per year OR is this 1 Program Manager for 3,120 hours per year for a total of 15,600 hours over 5 years? Please clarify the correct number of hours for the labor categories per year."

Answer: See Amendment 21. The correct number of per year (i.e., man-hours) for each labor category is reflected in Attachment 2. See Question No. 19.

Question #77. RFP, Section E.16 Proposal Preparation. "Volume III states that Attachment 2 – Pricing Spreadsheet is included in Volume III, however in Section E.18.7 Factor 5 – Price it states that Attachment 3 shall be submitted as well as Attachment 2. Please confirm that both Attachment 2 and Attachment 3 shall be submitted with the Proposal."

Answer: Both Attachment 2 and Attachment 3 shall be submitted with the proposal.

Question #78. "Has the Sample Task been eliminated? If no, our question is about the Sample Task Option Years: The Sample Task has a period of performance of base one year with 4 one-year options.

If work is completed in the base year, what is the expectation of services to be performed in option years 1 – 4?"

Answer: The Sample Task has been eliminated.

Question #79. "Should our proposal only focus on the updated Performance Work Statement (Attachment 1)? Or, should the proposal also include the information from the Sample Task?"

Answer: Proposals should be based on the Revised PWS only. The Sample Task Order PWS has been eliminated.

Question #80. "If our clients already submitted the Past Performance Questionnaire during the previous period when the solicitation was opened, are we expected to request them to resubmit the questionnaire for this time period or were the submitted questionnaires passed along to the new contracting officer(s)?"

Answer: The most recent amendment completely superseded all previous amendments. As cited in E.18.6.1, Past Performance Questionnaires, it is the Contractor's responsibility to ensure that completed Past Performance Questionnaires are mailed from the Evaluating Organization and arrive to the Contract Specialist no later than the proposal due date.

Question #81. "The Amendment of Solicitation/Modification of Contract form for Amendment 12 was not included with the other posted documents. Will the Amendment 12 form be provided to acknowledge receipt of the amendment? Are the previous amendment forms required to be included with the proposal submission and in which volume?"

Answer: No, the Amendment Forms are not required with the proposals since all documents were superseded.

Question #82. RFP, Page limit for Volume III. "It states that Volume III has a page limit of 5 pages, however Attachment 2 is 6 pages and Attachment 3 is about 3 pages and the Representations and Certifications are included in this volume which has multiple pages. Will the page limit be increased to accommodate the number of pages in the attachments and the Representations and Certifications or are Attachments 2 and 3 not included in the page limit?

Answer: Attachment 2, 3 and Representations and Certifications are not included in page limits.

Question #83. "Concerning the TEDSS Solicitation, HSCG44-10-R-TEDSSA, could you define which labor categories will require resume submission?"

Answer: Only Key Personnel (Program Manager and Alternate) require resume submission.

Question #84. "Is there a teaming agreement limitations (for example our current team consists of one 8(a) Prime Contractor, one medium to large company as mentor (not a joint venture) and one large company) is this acceptable?"

Answer: This agreement appears acceptable providing you have obtained approval from your Regional Business Development Specialist (BDS) to team with your Mentor Protégé and other large company (if either a Mentor Protégé or Joint Venture).

Question #85. "Is there a limit on the number of companies that can make up a team?"

Answer: No.

Question #86. "Will the previously submitted Past Performances and Questionnaires be acceptable?"

Answer: See response provided in #80, above.

Question #87. "RFP Page 44, E.16, Volume III – Administrative and Price Proposal, refers to the contractor submitting both Section B and the Representations and Certifications for the prime and subcontractors, as applicable.

a.

Does the Government require Representations and Certifications for subcontractors? If so, will there additional page count allowed?"

Answer: Only the 1st tier.

Question #88. "Page 53, E.18.7, Factor 5, Price is in conflict with the above reference by stating that “The Contractor shall submit a blended or composite rate for each/all labor categories.” Is it the Government’s intent that offerors submit the blended rate only?"

Answer: Yes, unless the prime has not teamed. See E.18.7 Factor 6 - Price, which requires “the Contractor shall submit a blended or composite rate for each/all labor categories…” Question #89. RFP, E.13, "says the print is to be no smaller than 10 or larger than 12 point font. The following paragraph says all text (including tables) is to be TNR 12 point font. Will the Government allow 10 point to accommodate the all the required information and presentation of charts/table?"

Answer: See Question No. 11 and 44.

Question #90. RFP, E.18.3. "Given the page count and the number of examples required, please confirm that the examples are to be provided as attachments to the proposal and, therefore, not counted within the page limitations."

Answer: See Question No. 6.

Question #91. RFP, E.18.6. "Provide 'Total Contract Value to include equivalent labor categories and fully burdened labor rates utilized' for each past performance reference. Does the Government require a listing of all labor positions on the contract and the fully burdened rates for each position? Given that this list would be long, and there is a strict page limitation for the Past Performance Volume, is it sufficient to state the total contract value only?"

Answer: See Question No. 68.

Question #92. Section E.16 Proposal Preparation, states “the page limitation for Volume III is 5 pages. Will the Government allow offerors incorporate the Representation & Certifications by reference to ORCA?"

Answer: If the Contractor’s ORCA contains the identical Representation and Certification compliance requirements as cited in the RFP and is dated within the past six (6) months, ORCA Representation and Certifications will be accepted.

Question #93. E.16 Proposal Preparation states “the past performance volume is limited to 10 pages and RFP paragraph E.18.6 on page 51 states an offeror must submit a minimum of 3 past performance references. RFP paragraph E.18.4.1 on page 49 requires a list of contracts completed over the past 3 years. The combined requirements severely restrict the information an offeror can provide for past performance. Will the Government consider increasing the Past Performance page limit to 20 pages?"

Answer: No. See Amendment 21.

Question #94. RFP, page 49, E.18.4.1. "…A list of similar contracts, delivery orders, purchase orders and/or subcontracts completed during the past 3 years, a list of similar contracts, delivery orders, purchase orders and/or subcontracts currently in progress, or a combination of similar contracts, delivery orders, purchase orders and/or subcontracts that have either been completed in the past 3 years or are currently in progress. Similar contracts, delivery orders, purchase orders, and/or subcontracts listed may include any contract, delivery order, purchase order and/or subcontract larger than $2,500 entered into by the Federal Government, agencies of state and local governments and commercial customers."

Answer: Your citation is correct but see Amendment 21 as the verbiage has changed.

Question #95. "Does the Government want a list of all similar contracts performed in the last 3 years?"

Answer: No. Please see revised 18.4.1 and Amendment 21.

Question #96. E.18.6 Factor 5 - Past Performance and E.18.6.1. "Each offeror shall provide a minimum of three (3) references to include specific points of contact, e-mail addresses for those contacts, contract…