Amendment_000006_v1.docx

Summary of Changes to Solicitation HSHQDC-15-R-00050 through Amendment 000006

A. The purpose of this amendment to Department of Homeland Security solicitation HSHQDC-15-R-00050 is to make revisions to Sections L and M of the solicitation document. Accordingly, the amendment provides the following information:

1. The text for Item aa “Disposal of Unsuccessful Proposals” under Section L.4.1 entitled “General Guidance” found on page L-17 of Section L of the solicitation is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

After the award of the contract, one copy of each unsuccessful proposal will be retained in the official contract files.

The change is marked in Section L through the usage of bold green font on page L-17.

2. The fourth paragraph on page L-22 of Section L is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

All copies of the proposal volumes shall be electronically submitted to the Procuring Contracting Officer at the place and at or before the time specified in Block 9 of the SF 33.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the passage on page L-22.

3. The first paragraph on page L-23 has been deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

The narrative materials in Volumes I and II of the Offeror’s proposal, with the exception of the Key Personnel resumes, shall be typed or printed in a font with a type no smaller than size 12 Times New Roman font on standard 8 ½ by 11 inch paper. Text line spacing shall be 1.5 lines. One inch margins on each side, including top and bottom are required. Text within tables, diagrams, pictorial charts, or graphic material may use 8-point font. Fold out pages may be used for diagrams, charts, or graphic material only and shall not exceed 11 inches by 17 inches. Fold out pages will be counted as two pages. Fold out pages shall only include narrative sufficient to describe the diagram, chart, or graphic material. Every major section, figure, and table shall be numbered.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the paragraph on page L-23.

4. Paragraph (c) under Sub-factor C, Quality Control and Regulatory and Compliance Plans on page L-33 of the solicitation is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

The Government has provided a draft Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) for the Offeror’s review. The QASP should cover performance items of the contract in areas where the Offeror sees as appropriate for the Government’s insight into Contractor performance including quality assurance and regulatory compliance elements. The draft QASP will be formatted, modified as appropriate, and reissued as a final document (subject to revision) upon award of the contract.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the paragraph on page L-33.

5. In the list of bullet points in Paragraph (d) under Sub-factor C, Quality Control and Regulatory and Compliance Plans on page L-33 of the solicitation, the following item is added as follows:

· Radiological Safety

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the added bullet point in the listing on page L-33.

6. Paragraph (c) under Section L.4.3.4.1 entitled “General Rules and Assumptions” on page L-46 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

c. Cost information submitted shall be for the prime Contractor and each proposed principal and non-principal subcontractor/team member, unless otherwise indicated. Detailed subcontractor/team member cost information containing proprietary rates and factors for individual cost elements may be submitted directly to the Government.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the paragraph on page L-46.

7. Paragraph (e) under Section L.4.3.4.1 entitled “General Rules and Assumptions” on page L-46 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

e. The prime Offeror shall propose on a CPFF/CPAF basis respectively. Principal subcontractors and non-principal subcontractors may propose on other than a CPFF/CPAF basis; however, the type of contract that is proposed and the basis thereof shall be fully justified.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the paragraph on page L-46.

8. The first table under Section L.4.3.4.2.2 entitled “Cost/Price Volume Content” on page L-48 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following:

The updated table is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font on page L-48.

9. The last two sentences in the last paragraph on page L-59 have been deleted in their entirety and are replaced with the following text:

The proposed subcontractors have a choice in how they submit their DCAA information and payroll verification. The subcontractors may elect to either (1) provide the information to the Prime Contractor who can provide that information with its submission to the Government or (2) it can elect to submit that information directly to the Procuring Contracting Officer via separate email. The Government may compare the prospective Offeror’s proposed labor rate to the average labor rate from industry for cost realism and/or price reasonableness purposes.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the last paragraph on page L-59.

10. Under paragraph 5 entitled “Subcontractor Costs” on page L-62, the first sentence of the paragraph is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

IMPORTANT NOTE—as identified in Section L.4.1 (h) in Section L of this solicitation, a “Principal Subcontractor” is defined as a subcontractor who provides at least 10% of the proposed total estimated cost of the contract.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the paragraph on page L-62.

11. The second paragraph on page L-63 is hereby deleted and is replaced with the following text:

Subcontractor proposals are not required from non-principal subcontractors.

The change is marked in Section L through the use of bold green font for the passage on page L-63.

12. As a result of the revisions to the text identified Items 1 through 11 above, the page numbering and formatting has been refreshed and the updated Table of Contents on page L-1 has been updated accordingly. The updated Section L is attached to this amendment.

13. Subparagraph 1 entitled “Criterion 1—Quality Control Plan” under Section M.3.2.1.3 entitled Sub-factor C—Quality Control and Regulatory Compliance on page M-8 of Section M of the solicitation is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following:

1. Criterion 1—Quality Control Plan—the Government will evaluate the extent to which the Offeror’s Quality Control (QC) Plan provides discernable metrics for the operation of the NBACC’s FFRDC through all contract phases and addresses the authority of the Offeror’s QC Manager.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font for subparagraph 1 located on page M-8.

14. Subparagraph 2 entitled “Criterion 2—Quality Assurance (QA) Processes, Procedures, and Management under Section M.3.2.1.3 entitled Sub-factor C—Quality Control and Regulatory Compliance on page M-8 of Section M of the solicitation is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following:

2. Criterion 2—Quality Assurance (QA) Processes, Procedures, and Management—the Government will evaluate the Offeror’s QA processes and procedures and applicable work instructions that affect quality, including but not limited to: drawing control, accuracy control, and corrective actions. In addition, the Government will evaluate the Offeror’s Quality Management System to determine compliance with the requirements for quality documentation and quality deficiency correction.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font for subparagraph 2 located on page M-8.

15. On pages M-11 and M-12, the following text is hereby added after the bulleted list:

“Regarding the foregoing types of contract/work, some past performance may be deemed more relevant than other types. It is incumbent upon the Offeror to explain the relevance of the data provided. The Government shall make the determination as to the relevance of an Offeror’s past performance.

The second aspect of the past performance evaluation is the determination of how well the Offeror performed on those past contracts which make up its past performance record and history. The past performance evaluation process will gather information from customers on how well the Offeror performed on those past contracts. The Government will use the following sources of information for past performance evaluation purposes:

· Past Performance Information provided by the Offeror, as solicited

· Past Performance Information obtained by the Government from questionnaires tailored to meet the circumstances of the acquisition

· Past Performance Information obtained from any other sources available to the Government, to include, but not limited to, the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS), Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), Electronic Subcontract Reporting System (eSRS), or other databases

· Interviews with Program Managers, Contracting Officers, and Fee Determining Officials, and Defense Contract Management Agency personnel

The Government will review this past performance information and determine the quality and usefulness as it applies to performance confidence assessment.”

The additional text is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font on pages M-11 and M-12.

16. Paragraph 5 under Section M.3.2.3 entitled “Small Business Participation Factor” on page M-15 of Section M of the solicitation is hereby deleted and is replaced with the following:

5. The Offeror’s description of specific efforts and new, contract specific initiatives to ensure that the resulting contract meets or exceeds the proposed goals. These efforts shall include, but are not limited to: sponsoring program specific outreach events and industry conferences, establishing Mentor-Protégé relationships and market research activities to locate small business concerns.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font for paragraph 5 located on Page M-15.

17. The table under Section M.4.2.1 entitled “Technical and Management Approach Ratings” on pages M-17 and M-18 is hereby reformatted. The reformatted table is identified through the use of bold green font on pages M-17 and M-18.

18. The first paragraph under Section M.4.2.2.1 entitled “Relevancy” located on page M-18 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

The following relevancy ratings will be used to determine how relevant a recent effort accomplished by the Offeror and associated principal subcontractors is to the effort to be acquired through the source selection:

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font for the paragraph located on page M-18

19. In the table under Section M.4.2.2.2 entitled “Past Performance Evaluation Ratings” on pages M-19 and M-20 of the solicitation, the definition of the rating “Outstanding” is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following definition:

The Offeror’s performance of previously awarded relevant contract(s) that are similar in respect to the subject requirement met contractual requirements and exceeded many to the Government’s benefit. The prior performance being assessed was accomplished with very few or very minor problems for which corrective actions taken by or proposed to be taken by the Contractor were, or are expected to be highly effective. Performance over completed contracts was either consistently of the highest quality or exhibited a trend of becoming so. The Offeror’s past performance records lead to an extremely strong expectation of successful performance.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font in the table for the updated evaluation rating definition on page M-19.

20. In the table under Section M.4.2.2.2 entitled “Past Performance Evaluation Ratings” on pages M-19 and M-20 of the solicitation, the definition of the rating “Neutral” on page M-19 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following definition:

In the case of an Offeror without a record of relevant past performance or for whom information of past performance is not available, a Neutral rating will be assigned (between Satisfactory and Marginal) to the Past Performance Factor and the Offeror will be evaluated neither favorably nor unfavorably on past performance.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font in the table for the updated evaluation rating definition on page M-19.

21. In the table under Section M.4.2.2.2 entitled “Past Performance Evaluation Ratings” on pages M-19 and M-20 of the solicitation, the definition of the rating “Unsatisfactory” on page M-20 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following definition:

The Offeror’s performance of previously awarded relevant contracts that are similar in respect to the subject requirement did not meet most contractual requirements and recovery did not occur within the period of performance. The prior performance being assessed reflected serious problem(s) for which the Contractor either failed to identify or implement corrective actions or for which corrective actions implemented, or proposed to be implemented were or are expected to be mostly ineffective. Performance over completed contracts was consistently of extremely poor quality or exhibited a trend of becoming so. The Offeror’s past performance record leads to a strong expectation that successful performance will not be achieved or that it can only occur with greatly increased levels of Government management and oversight.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font in the table for the updated evaluation rating definition on page M-20.

22. The second sentence in Paragraph (a) under Section M.4.3.1 entitled “Evaluated Cost” on page M-21 is hereby deleted in its entirety and is replaced with the following text:

The evaluation will focus on the realism of each Offeror’s proposed costs, including that of the prime Offeror and proposed subcontractors/team members, for its ability to support contract requirements with sufficiently qualified personnel and the application of realistic costs.

The change is marked in Section M through the use of bold green font in the paragraph on page M-21.

23. As a result of the revisions to the text identified Items 14 through 23 above, the page numbering and formatting has been refreshed and the updated Table of Contents on pages M-1 and M-2 has been updated accordingly. The updated Section M is attached to this amendment.

B. Except as identified herein, all other terms and conditions of the solicitation remain in full force and effect.

Amendment 000006 to Solicitation HSHQDC-15-R-00050 Page 9