D_Attachment II_Answers To Vendor Questions.pdf

ANSWERS TO

CONTRACTOR QUESTIONS

(Answers are listed in order by page number)

Question

Page Section Para Questions

1 General

QUESTION: “DRAFT” is still embedded on the document – will it be removed and can we assume that this is the final solicitation.

ANSWER: This is the final solicitation.

2 General

QUESTION: Is there an incumbent, if so who is it and the awarded amount? If no incumbent who is currently performing this effort?

ANSWER: There is no incumbent. Work is currently being done by the military.

3 General

QUESTION: Does the awardee have to be licensed to conduct business in Japan?

ANSWER: No, Contractors do not have to be licensed to conduct business in Japan.

4 General

QUESTION: Please clarify if US citizens are employed they will be extended SOFA privileges?

ANSWER: SOFA is situation dependent. Please see USFJ 64-100 (attached with solicitation amendment) and DFARS clause 252.225-7976 (provided in full text in the solicitation).

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SF1449 Block 8

QUESTION: Please clarify the due date for offers; SF1449 lists 6 July 2020, while betaSAM.gov indicates 7 July 2020.

ANSWER: Date has been corrected on SF 1449. Due date is 7 July 2020 at 0800

JST.

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SF1449 Block 10

QUESTION: Size standard is listed at $8,000,000, but the acquisition is Unrestricted;

please clarify whether or not there is a small business requirement?

ANSWER: This acquisition is Unrestricted. The size standard is automatically generated on the SF 1449 for the applicable NAICS whether unrestricted or set aside.

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SF1449

CLIN

X001AA

CLIN

X001AB

CLIN

X002AA

CLIN

X002AB

QUESTION: Is the Government guaranteeing the quantities listed in each Preventive and Corrective Maintenance sub-CLIN? If the awardee staffs to this requirement, what concessions will be made in the event less than the quantities listed are delivered?

ANSWER: If the contractor does not complete minimum required actions due to

Government delays, Contractor will be authorized to invoice for the minimum stated completion quantities per month (PWS 3.1.1 Total of 200 PMs and PWS 3.1.2 for 40

CMs per month). If there were no Government delays, the Contractor will invoice for the actual number of PMs and CMs performed.

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PWS 1.1-1.2

QUESTION: Since we don’t know the magnitude of daily work, is it safe to start with

10 mechanics, 5 management support team and increase to 30 mechanics within six months after assessing the work? What do you advice? We know there are a lot of vehicles but we don’t know the quantities that will be turned in daily.

ANSWER: This requirement is defined with performance based metrics and thus the

Government cannot define Full Time Equivalents (FTE). The contractor will propose their approach to meet the deliverables as part of their offer submission. To clarify, this requirement is not for vehicles to be provided to the Contractor at a designated location, but rather for the Contractor to send maintainers to maintenance bays to conduct the maintenance there. The Contractor must be able to complete 200 PMs and

40 CMs a month upon starting contract performance.

PWS 1.2

QUESTION: PWS states “The CM process commences when equipment is reported as requiring CM.” If a CM requirement is identified during the performance of PM, will this be treated as two separate orders (1 PM and 1 CM)?

ANSWER: If the CM is identified during PM, then they will be treated as separate orders if the Contractor works both. The identification of a CM during PM must be communicated with the ACOR.

and

Appe ndix

B

Appendix

B

1.2 and

Appendix B

QUESTION: Appendix B lists 2,256 maintenance actions (818 PM and 1,438 CM) as a historical reference. IOT provide the most accurate and fair price, can the following items be clarified:

● What timeframe does the service requests in Appendix B cover?

● Can the Government provide man-hours for each service request?

● Can the Government provide service request numbers for each item?

ANSWER:

Appendix B covers a period of 12 months.

No, the Government is not able to provide man-hours for each action listed in

Appendix B based on the data available.

No. The Government will not be providing service request numbers for items listed in

Appendix B.

PWS 1.2.1

QUESTION: “All Contractor provided personnel must be able to read, write, and speak English”. Can we assume that we can employ LNs or only US citizens?

ANSWER: Interested Contractors can hire any mix of US and/or LN personnel.

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PWS 1.2.1

QUESTION: Is less experience, one year, acceptable for some of our technicians?

ANSWER: Due to the heavy demands for maintenance and the complexity associated with Corrective Maintenance, the Government will not consider technicians with less than 4-6 years of experience.

PWS 1.3.1

QUESTION: Federal Holidays. “The contractor shall not be required to provide services on federal holidays unless the holiday is particularly specified otherwise in this PWS.” If we allowed to employ LNs will we have to observe Japan holidays IAW

Japanese law?

ANSWER: This is a US contract and only US holidays will be observed in the performance of the contract. Contractor can choose to observe Japanese holidays, but will still be required to meet deliverables.

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PWS 1.3.2

QUESTION: Typhoon Conditions. “Japan-based military installations close when

Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness 1C (TCCOR 1C or TC-1C) is declared by

Military Weather Station authorities.” Please clarify if personnel unable to work due typhoon are compensated?

ANSWER: There is no compensation. Please refer to Clause FAR 52.212-4(f), Excusable Delays. Provided by reference in the solicitation. Available in full text at:

https://www.acquisition.gov/content/52212-4-contract-terms-and-conditions-commercial-items

General 1.3.2

QUESTION: How will the Government make concessions for lost work days due to typhoon conditions?

ANSWER: Please refer to Clause FAR 52.212-4(f), Excusable Delays. The contractor may request the work location to remain open past normal operating hours for the contractor to make up for lost time.

PWS 2.0

Q23UESTION: Does the Government anticipate using a single Northern Site and a single Southern Site? How often (if ever) is it anticipated that these sites would change?

ANSWER: The sites are not actual locations. Per paragraph 2.0, the term site is used to refer to the general area/vicinity of where the bases are located on Okinawa. The

Northern Site includes all maintenance bays within Camp Courtney, Camp Hansen, and Camp Schwab. The Southern Site includes all maintenance bays within Camp

Foster and Camp Kinser. This requirement is for the Contractor to send maintainers to the maintenance bays to conduct maintenance there, not for the vehicles to be brought to the Contractor’s location. The Government will provide the Contractor the bay building numbers for all maintenance bays associated to these sites at award. Once provided, the list of maintenance bays is not anticipated to change.

PWS 3.1

QUESTION: Start time within two months very short. Can you extend the kick off time to 90 days to allow us to hire more staff? It states that Government will issue

Government vehicle operator license. Does this license allow the mechanic to test drive any type of vehicle trucks and so on?

ANSWER: Government will issue “Shop Use Only” licenses which normally take 3-4 days to obtain. Government believes 60 days is sufficient for the contractor to meet necessary requirements to begin contract performance. “Shop Use Only” license will allow those licensed to test drive and move all assets contained within Appendix A except for the Logistics Vehicle System Replacement (LVSR). The Government will provide a licensed operator for LVSR road testing.

https://www.acquisition.gov/content/52212-4-contract-terms-and-conditions-commercial-items https://www.acquisition.gov/content/52212-4-contract-terms-and-conditions-commercial-items

PWS 3.1

QUESTION: Maintenance Support “The contractor will ensure all maintenance personnel are equipped with General Mechanics Tool Kits (GMTKs).” Can the

Government define what constitutes a “GMTK” due multiple variations in the commercial market?

ANSWER: Appendix C is provided with a listing of the minimum tools required within the GMTK set. Sample GMTK is also provided within Appendix C. Tools do not have to be the same as listed in the attachment, but must be same fit, form, and/or function.

PWS 3.1

QUESTION: Maintenance Support. “The Government expects that both the Northern and the Southern Sites and their associated assigned camps will each require equal amounts of maintenance work, approximately 2000 hours of labor, per month. The contractor is responsible for overseeing and managing all associated workloads (4000 hours of labor total per month)” Please clarify the basis of the number of labor hours estimated? Is it based on a 40-hr. week or some other method?

ANSWER: Yes, the estimate was based on a 40 hour work week.

PWS 3.1

QUESTION: How did the Government come to the estimate of 4,000 labor hours per month? Does this include all 200 PM and 40 CM actions?

ANSWER: The 4,000 hours are for both sites which includes 200 PMs and 40 CMs total per month. Per the PWS the Government estimates that each site will receive approximately 2,000 labor hours of work a month which includes 100 PMs and 20

CMs per site. The Government estimate was based on a 40 hour work week.

PWS 3.1

QUESTION: PWS states “Contractor shall plan, coordinate, execute and/or assist in execution…” What is meant by “assist?” Will the Contractor be performing maintenance actions alongside military personnel on the same assets? Will the

Contractor be permitted to invoice for maintenance actions where they are assisting?

How will the Government identify responsibilities for defective work on items where there is a split labor force?

ANSWER: PWS 3.1 citation reworded to “the contractor shall plan, coordinate, and execute field level maintenance in support of the III MEF assets listed in Appendix A.”

The contractor is not expected to assist or work on a specific task simultaneously with uniformed military maintenance personnel.

PWS 3.1

QUESTION: What are the requirements for obtaining a “Shop Use Only” license

(e.g., classroom instruction, road time, etc.)? If Contractor employees recently separated from the Marine Corps and had a valid OF-346 for relevant vehicle platforms, will they be authorized to renew this or change to a Shop Use Only permit?

ANSWER: Contractor employees will be authorized to renew licenses. Licensing courses are available on Okinawa if Contractor would like an employee to renew a license. Minimum requirement for all Contractor maintenance personnel is “Shop Use

Only”. See PWS paragraph 3.4 for requirements to get “Shop Use Only” license.

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PWS 3.1.1

QUESTION: Same as previous concern on “assist.” Preventive Maintenance paragraph states “The contractor shall assist with PMCS…” What is meant by

“assist?” Will the Contractor be performing maintenance actions alongside military personnel on the same assets? Will the Contractor be permitted to invoice for maintenance actions where they are assisting? How will the Government identify responsibilities for defective work on items where there is a split labor force?

ANSWER: See Answer to Question 21.

PWS 3.1.1

QUESTION: PWS states “Contractor will be expected to conduct 200 PMCS actions on equipment per month.” Will the Contractor be permitted to invoice for 200 PMCS actions if less than this amount is delivered by the Government?

ANSWER: Yes, only if the Contractor is unable to complete 200 PMCS in a month as a result of Government delays (i.e. lack of parts, Gov’t does not induct enough equipment).

PWS 3.1.1

QUESTION: Is it a correct assumption that “PMCS action” and “PMCS repair” are synonyms?

ANSWER: Yes. PMCS is defined as the completion of all steps on a system in accordance with the technical manual.

PWS 3.1.1

QUESTION: How will assets be scheduled and delivered for PMCS to meet the monthly production requirement of 200? How far in advance will the contractor be notified of a month’s PMCS orders? Will all 200 items be delivered to the Contractor by the first working day of the month?

ANSWER: This requirement is for the Contractor to send maintainers to the maintenance bays, not for vehicles to be delivered to the Contractor for maintenance.

Contractor will have the month’s PM workload a week before the beginning of each month. This information will be provided by the COR/ACOR.

PWS 3.1.1

QUESTION: Is the Government considering the level of effort for each PMCS being scheduled? What concessions will be made in the event the Government orders 200

PMCS actions that are known in advance to exceed the estimated 4,000 labor hours per month?

ANSWER: The Government will be considering the level of effort for each PMCS being scheduled based on the time specified in the Technical Manuals (TMs) to ensure fairness with information provided to Contractors for planning considerations.

However, aside from shifting scheduled items, there will be no other concessions because the requirement has been defined as each, not by labor hours. The labor hours estimate was provided to allow for a planning factor, absent the availability of expected man hours per task. Estimate was based on input from various subject matter experts’ evaluations of Technical Manuals and historic workloads.

PWS 3.1.1

QUESTION: Will all required parts, POLs etc. required for an ordered PMCS be delivered with the asset?

ANSWER: Reminder, this requirement is for the Contractor to send maintainers to the

However, required parts and POLs will be available to the Contractor at the maintenance bay associated with the assigned PMCS.

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: PWS states “Contractor will be expected to conduct no less than…”

Please clarify if this statement is correct; it currently reads as if the Government can order additional CM actions WITHOUT executing Overflow Corrective Maintenance

Options (CLIN X004).

ANSWER: CLINs have been structured as to allow the Contractor to choose to complete more maintenance actions than the minimum stated a month. Government provided an estimate of monthly workload in labor hours and a minimum of monthly maintenance actions. However, if the Contractor can exceed the minimum a month, they can invoice for total actions completed per PWS paragraph 7.16 since the CLINs themselves are “Each”, not “Monthly” and the CLIN totals are for the entire period of performance. The Overflow CLINs are available so that the Government can request additional maintenance actions in the event the contractor will meet the quota for the period of performance in less than 12 months.

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: PWS states “…40 CM repair tasks per month…” Will the Contractor be permitted to invoice for 40 CM repairs if less than this amount is delivered by the

Government?

ANSWER: Yes, only if the Contractor is unable to complete 40 CM in a month as a result of Government delays (i.e. lack of parts, Gov’t does not induct enough equipment).

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: How will assets be scheduled and delivered for CM to meet the monthly production requirement of 40? How far in advance will the contractor be notified of a month’s CM orders? Will all 40 items be delivered to the Contractor by the first working day of the month?

ANSWER: This requirement is for the Contractor to send maintainers to the

CM workload will be provided a week in advance. This information will be provided by the COR/ACOR.

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: PWS states “…40 repair tasks per month depending on the

Government’s ability to source parts.” Will required parts be delivered with the asset?

What concessions will the Government make in the event parts are not received in time to complete a scheduled action?

ANSWER: See answer to question #24. Additionally, CMs for which the Government has completed troubleshooting will have parts already sourced. For those items which the Contractor troubleshoots, parts will be sourced by the Government and the CM itself will be added to the contractor’s workload, for completion credit, once parts have been sourced.

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: PWS states “These tasks include additional repairs discovered during

Quality Control final inspections.” Please clarify this statement; it reads as though the

Contractor will not be able to invoice for completed work in the event a vehicle is delivered with additional deficiencies other than the ones it was scheduled for.

ANSWER: If additional CM is identified during QC, the Contractor must communicate this to the COR for assignment of newly identified CM to the Contractor once parts are sourced. This work will have to be validated and approved by the

Contracting Officer Representative before the contractor can pursue it.

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: Is the Government planning to order CMs that require troubleshooting or just to hang parts to correct a known deficiency?

ANSWER: It is the Government’s intent to order CMs for both troubleshooting and hanging parts. For those items which the Contractor troubleshoots, parts will be sourced by the Government and the CM itself will be added to the contractor’s workload, for completion credit, once parts have been sourced.

PWS 3.1.2

QUESTION: If the Contractor is required to troubleshoot and identify required parts when performing CM, will it be considered a Government delay if parts are not immediately available to complete the repairs as scheduled? Will the Government make concessions if the CM cannot be completed during the scheduled period due to parts availability?

ANSWER: See answer to question #32.

PWS 3.1.3

QUESTION: How much advance notice will be provided when the Government exercises options for overflow maintenance requirements?

ANSWER: The Contractor will be notified at least 30 days in advance of the

Government’s intent to exercise the Overflow CLINs.

PWS 3.1.3

QUESTION: Overflow Maintenance. “The Government reserves the right to request additional PMCS and CM repairs beyond the total amount stated for the period of performance”. Please clarify how this invoiced?

ANSWER: Overflow maintenance is tied to two option CLINs which the Government may choose to exercise if the Contractor meets the defined deliverables before the end of the period of performance in order to receive additional maintenance actions from the contractor. If the option CLINs are exercised, the Contractor can invoice at their overflow rate per paragraph 7.16 of the PWS.

PWS 3.1.4

QUESTION: When performing final inspection, if the Contractor identifies defects that are unrelated to the original reason the vehicle was brought in, will the

Government authorize a separate CM order to complete repairs?

ANSWER: Yes, a separate CM order will be authorized upon validation and approval from the Government representative at the maintenance bay.

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PWS 3.2

QUESTION: Will the Contractor be required to perform transactions in GCSS-MC or any other MAIS?

ANSWER: The Government will retain the responsibility to order parts and enter maintenance action information into GCSS-MC and any other system of record. The

Contractor will provide the information the Government requires to conduct these actions via the Equipment Work Log and Parts Requirement Form (both of which will be provided at award).

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PWS 7.1

QUESTION: Non-Personal Services. “This is a non-personal service, performance-based contract. No provisions are implied nor provided in this contract for any benefits such as medical care, retirement, or worker’s compensation, other than those incorporated through enumerated clauses.” Is it the Government’s intent to only hire a

Japanese firm?

ANSWER: No, this solicitation is open to any Contractor registered to conduct business with the U.S. Government. Clauses related to this subject are 52.228-3

Worker's Compensation Insurance (Defense Base Act) and 252.225-7976 Contractor

Personnel Performing In Japan

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PWS 7.6

QUESTION: Since Contractor personnel are not considered mission essential, what concessions will the Government make in the event personnel cannot work during a crisis or emergency operations?

ANSWER: See answer to question #15.

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PWS 7.10.1.3

QUESTION: Insurance. “Additionally, for SOFA status personnel and U.S. corporate vehicles, the Contractor or SOFA status individual is required to procure and maintain, during the entire period of performance under this contract, the following minimum insurance on each vehicle used by the Contactor at the work site.” Does this infer that contractor employees can be US citizens?

ANSWER: Interested Contractors can hire any mix of US and/or LN personnel.

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PWS 7.12

QUESTION: Is it expected that any classified work products will be generated from this contract? Will a DD254 be required on this contract?

ANSWER: There are no classified work products associated to this contract.

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PWS 7.18

QUESTION: Performance Requirements Summary requires the Contractor to complete PMCS within 5 working days of scheduled date, and CM within 10 working days. How will the Government determine the scheduled date?

ANSWER: Scheduled date is the date the contractor in initiated maintenance.

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Proposal

Format Volume II

QUESTION: Will the Government require a redacted version of Volume II for review by the TEB?

ANSWER: Necessary redaction action will be conducted by the Government.