Questions and Answers Round 1.pdf

Post-Solicitation Industry Questions

1. Where will offerors apply NRE costs within the proposal, for example tooling and fixtures?

a. NRE = labor and material.

b. See Section B, page 2.

Answer: Any material needed for NRE shall be priced on SLIN 0001AB in accordance with Section L 4.4.6. Any labor for NRE shall be priced on SLIN 0001AA.

2. Material Clause

a. Can an offeror submit a different price other than the $7.5M/unit; i.e. an alternate pricing strategy, in ?

i. To allow bids’ technical solution differentiation reflected in cost, request to drop the $7.5M bid-to price and retain the raw material tonnage spot pricing already specified in the RFP. This helps retain the government’s desire for the technical solution and implications of the technical solution to be fairly reflected in both evaluation factors through the tonnage pricing.

Answer: As specified in Section L 4.4.6, “The Government provided numbers in Section B utilized nickel and copper prices in the amount of $31,000 per ton (Nickel) and $9,515 per ton (Copper) but does not include tools and hardware required for this effort. The Offeror shall not deviate from the nickel and copper prices listed above or decrease the Government provided numbers. The Offeror shall burden the Government provided material amount with its indirect rates, as appropriate. The Offeror may propose additional tooling or hardware.”

ii. If the Government is unwilling to remove the $7.5M/unit target cost, how much tonnage of material does the Govt expect the offeror to provide for $7.5M/unit?

With this approach, the Govt is dictating how much material each contractor should buy, in other words the Govt is assuming each contractor’s manufacturing approach would be the same.

Answer: See answer above. Deviations are not allowed.

iii. If the price of Nickel changes outside of the 5% window, is the revised price based on the Government calculated tonnage?

Answer: See Section B Material SLINs. Any pricing changes of more than 5%, up or down from the Government provided numbers as a result of nickel and copper price changes, shall be captured as the revised price.

b. Escalation – the Govt did not include escalation in ordering periods 2-5. With record inflation in the past year, the offeror cannot hold $7.5M cost in the out years. Will the Government consider revising to consider the out years?

Answer: As stated in Section 4.4.6, the Offeror shall burden the Government provided material amount with its indirect rates, which includes escalation, as appropriate.

c. As the revised price changes, does the 5% only account for the price of Nickel and Copper? Has the Government considered other substantial increases to other material costs such as Natural Gas (forging process cost), Labor, inflation, etc? What if there is a price change greater than 5% that is not a result of the price of Nickel and Copper?

Answer: See answer to Question 2iii.

d. EPA Clause – Does the EPA clause apply to the total burdened actual costs incurred?

i. What if our cost increases due to labor or other costs, is this covered under the

EPA clause (anything not related to Copper and Nickel costs)?

Answer: As indicated in Material SLINs in Section B, “Any pricing changes of more than 5%, up or down from the Government provided numbers as a result of nickel and copper price changes, shall be captured as the revised price. The FFP-EPA clause shall be activated after the review of each order’s material price and shall allow for a price increase of 25% for material on each order.” The price changes will only apply to the burdened material costs incurred.

3. Recommend: 30 day extension on submitting the proposal.

Answer: The Government is providing a 15 day extension to the proposal submission deadline.

4. Recommend: 20 day extension on submitting questions.

Answer: Offerors can ask questions as needed.

5. Request: additional six months on first article as a result of the strike with Special Metals for a total of 36 months ARO. All lead times have been extended proportionally to the time away from production during the strike due to backlog.

Answer: As indicated by Section L 4.1.2, the delivery date is 30 months for each Bearing Support Structure and the Government is not open to changing it.

6. Clarification: CLIN 0006 – the CDRLs are list as NSP, however it appears there is an amount that needs to be filled out (unit price and amount).

Answer: As detailed in the narrative of CLIN 0006 – CDRLs are Not Separately Priced.

7. Clarification: Solicitation states that Travel Costs will be reimbursed, however, there is not a CLIN for Travel. How will these costs be reimbursed? Recommend adding Travel CLINS.

Answer: Travel shall be priced into the non-material SLINs for each Year.

8. Request: Please publish all-inclusive list of major tooling assemblies and major or equipment setups that are to be GFE. This will impact bid price through NRE. Weld station rollers? Weld assembly fixtures? Etc.

Answer: The Government will not be providing any GFP on this contract.

9. Administrative Question: File: "N0016722R0015+Final"; Section L; 2.3 Proposal Format (Page 60): The Cost Summary Format has not been provided, nor is it listed as an attachment in Section J. Reference: "Prime /Subcontractor Cost Summaries shall be submitted using Microsoft Excel (2010 or compatible) in the Cost Summary Format provided as an attachment in Section J."

Answer: The solicitation has been amended to remove the verbiage of Cost Summary Format in Section J from Section L 2.3. However as indicated in Section L 4.4.1, “The Offeror shall submit proposed pricing for Section B using the Prime Offeror’s Cost Summary Format.”

10. Administrative question: File: "N0016722R0015+Final"; Section L; 2.2 Electronic Submission (Page 59): There is discrepancy between the emails provided in the solicitation and the email provided on SAM.gov. Please clarify which emails are the correct emails to submit the electronic proposal."

Answer: The solicitation has been amended to reflect the emails in SAM.gov

11. Administrative Question: File: "N0016722R0015+Final"; Section L; 3.1 Cover Letter; “j.” (Page 63): Referencing the following statement, Volume IV should be revised to Volume V to match the Cross-Reference Table illustrated on page 61: “Per HQ L-2-0005 (L-209-H009), NOTIFICATION OF POTENTIAL ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICT(S) OF INTEREST (NAVSEA), if no conflicts of interest exist, then the Offeror shall clearly state this in its cover letter. If any conflicts exist, the Offeror shall submit a mitigation plan in accordance with the clause as part of Volume IV, Contract Fill- Ins.”

Answer: The solicitation has been amended to reflect Volume V for the Contract Fill-Ins.

12. Question: Payment Terms: Is it the Government’s intent to maintain progress payments throughout as prescribed in 52.232-16?

Answer: No. The Government will not be providing progress payments.

13. Section B, Pages 3-10, With regard to SLIN FPI 0001AB, 0002AB, 0003AB, 0004AB, and 0005AB Holding SLIN for Base Year Material, please clarify if this $7,500,000 CLIN amount is used exclusively for nickel and copper materials and whether the contractor is meant to price additional tools and hardware on the Holding SLIN for the Base Year Materials.

Answer: As specified in Section L 4.4.6, “The Government provided numbers in Section B utilized nickel and copper prices in the amount of $31,000 per ton (Nickel) and $9,515 per ton (Copper) but does not include tools and hardware required for this effort. The Offeror shall not deviate from the nickel and copper prices listed above or decrease the Government provided numbers. The Offeror shall burden the Government provided material amount with its indirect rates, as appropriate. The Offeror may propose additional tooling or hardware. The Offeror may propose additional tooling or hardware. If additional tooling or hardware is proposed, the Offeror shall provide n for the need of the additional items and shall provide supporting documentation to include quotes, invoices, or historical information for at least 80% of the increased material price.”

14. Section B, pages 3-10, SLIN 0001AA, 0002AA, 0003AA, 0004AA, and 0005AA references Base Year Labor and ODCs; is this SLIN the sole avenue for pricing Direct Labor and Other Direct Costs? According to FAR 15-2, ODCs might be defined as other than a direct cost to the CLIN; for example, direct materials are proposed and priced on SLIN 0001AB, 0002AB, 0003AB, 0004AB, and 0005AB. Please clarify.

Answer: For SLINs 0001AA, 0002AA, 0003AA, 0004AA, and 0005AA, the Offerors shall price labor, ODCs, travel, and all other costs except for material.

15. Section C, SOW 3.2 and 4.2, With regard to CDRL A012 Project Planning Chart, CDRL A003 MER, and CDRL A002 Monthly Status Report, no cost reporting should be required on Firm Fixed Price CLINs.

Contractor requests removal of the cost reporting requirements in FFP CLINs.

Answer: The Government has amended the solicitation to require CDRLs A002 only for Fixed Price Incentive CLINs. The Government has also amended the solicitation to not require Section 3.2.3 of the Data Item Description for CDRL A003 and Sections 3.18 and 3.19 of the Data Item Description for CDRL A012 for Firm-Fixed-Price CLINs.

16. Section C, SOW 3.3.1.2, CDRL A012 includes cost reporting information. No cost reporting should be required on Firm Fixed Price CLINs. Contractor requests removal of the cost reporting requirements in FFP CLINs.

Answer: See answer above.

17. Section C, SOW 6, Will the contractor be required to propose a Government-approved SharePoint site upon acceptance of the award for transmission of contract deliverables?

Answer: The Government has a system that can be used for submission of deliverables.

18. Section C, C-233-H001, Special clause C-233-H001 and SOW Paragraph 4.3 Contract Change Proposal are contradictory. Contractor requests clarification of what process will be followed for Cost Change Proposals.

Answer: The clause C-233-H001 has been removed in the amended solicitation.

19. Section E, 52.246-11, Will any higher level contract quality clauses be provided for preparation and submission of this proposal?

Answer: No other higher level contract clauses will be provided.

20. Section E, E-246-H016, Where the CLIN states inspection at origin and acceptance at destination, E- 246-H016 states inspection and acceptance at destination and E-246-H017 states inspection and acceptance at origin. Please clarify.

Answer: Both clauses have been removed in the amended solicitation.

21. Section L, Proposal format 2.2, Where Section L states, "This submission is in addition to the Offeror loading their Section B pricing into the portal via the web form," please clarify what is meant by the web form so that contractors may fully comply with the requirement.

Answer: The solicitation has been amended to remove the web form language.

22. Section L 4.3 Factor 3 Small Business Commitment Document (Volume III) and Attachment 1 Subcontracting Plan Cover Sheet, Section L 4.3, Small Business Commitment Document, does not make reference to Attachment 1, Subcontracting Plan Cover Sheet. Please clarify the correct volume for the Subcontracting Plan Cover Sheet.

Answer: The Subcontracting Plan Cover Sheet is required, in accordance with Section L 1.0, when a small business subcontracting plan is being provided. A Small Business Commitment Document is separate from the small business subcontracting plan.

23. Section L 4.4.1, Please clarify the intended procedure: is the contractor meant to extract Section B pages 3-10 and input the proposed pricing in a pdf format for inclusion in Volume IV ?

Answer: The Offerors shall insert the proposed pricing by SLIN level in Section B as a PDF for Volume IV.

24. Section L 4.4.6, Is the Section B Holding CLIN for Material ($7,500,000 for nickel and copper) meant to be a direct material CLIN at $31,000 per ton (nickel) and $9,515 per ton (copper) without the contractor's indirect burdens and fee? Please clarify.

Answer: See answer to question 13.

25. Section L 4.4.6, Nickel and copper prices are set figures for the proposal; does the 80% substantiation of materials therefore apply only to additional hardware and tooling? Please advise.

Answer: In accordance with Section L 4.4.6, 80% support is only needed for additional materials (hardware and tooling) proposed.

26. Section L 4.5, Is the contractor meant to include the SF 33, amendments, and applicable fill-ins, and omit Section B within Volume IV, Pricing? Please clarify.

Answer: The information requested in Section L 4.5 shall be provided as part of Volume V.

27. Section L, 3.1, The DUNS number no longer exists; please update with UIE reference.

Answer: The solicitation has been amended to remove DUNS number and change to Unique Entity Identifier (UEI).

28. Section B, CLIN and SLIN, With regard to the Section B CLIN Base Year Bearing Support Structure and corresponding Holding SLIN FPI for Base Year Labor & ODCs and SLIN Holding SLIN for Base Year Material F-EPA, is the contractor meant to provide pricing at only the SLIN FPI and SLIN F-EPA level rather than provide a cumulative price at the CLIN level for total FPI? Please clarify.

Answer: The Offeror shall provide pricing at the SLIN level.

29. Section M, 3.1.7.3, Section M 3.1.7.3 states Ceiling Price = Target Price + Target Profit. FAR 52.216-16 states Target Price = Target Cost + Target Profit. Contractor believes that the ceiling price should be higher than the target price and that the ceiling price should be negotiated between Contractor and Government. Should Contractor propose a ceiling price?

Answer: The Government amended the solicitation to say “(Target Cost x 120%) + Target Profit = Price Ceiling”.

30. Section I, 52.230-2, Section I includes FAR 52.230-2, Cost Accounting Standards (Jun 2020). Because this is a competitive contract, and the solicitation is exempt from CAS coverage based on a competitor's CAS exemption, will the Government remove the CAS FAR clause?

Answer: The Government amended the solicitation to remove the clause.

31. Section L, 4.4.6, Will all tooling discussed in the A&M Plan be provided to the successful bidder for Rent Free use?

Answer: Please see answer to question 8.

32. Section B, Under which CLIN should non-recurring and recurring tooling be proposed?

Answer: See answer to question 1.

33. Sections B and I, We are looking for clarification on the Material SLINs as the EPA clause seems to be tied solely to a change in nickel or copper changes and not any other inflationary or market conditions. If there are factors outside of the considerations that result in an increase or decrease in raw materials, would this not activate the FFP-EPA Clause?

Answer: As indicated in Material SLINs in Section B, “Any pricing changes of more than 5%, up or down from the Government provided numbers as a result of nickel and copper price changes, shall be captured as the revised price. The FFP-EPA clause shall be activated after the review of each order’s material price and shall allow for a price increase of 25% for material on each order.” The price change of nickel and copper of 5% will trigger the initial price revision for material SLINs. After the revised priced is agreed to, the FFP-EPA clause will be activated and will apply to the burdened material costs incurred resulting in other factors being considered for price changes.

34. Reference: Section L/Page 66 states in section 4.3 Factor 3: “Requirement for Total Small Business (all categories of small business) 65%.”

Question: Is this a typo? Unless we misunderstand, this seems to be an unrealistic percentage for small business participation. Please clarify.

Answer: The small business goal is based on the current historicals and is not a typo.

35. Reference: Section B/Pages 3, 5, 6, 8 & 9; Holding SLIN values for nickel / copper and 25% increase cap.

Question: The 25% is a potentially limiting cap with what is going on in the markets recently. If the EPA drives to higher than 25% increase, why does the seller need to absorb this unallowable cost delta on a FP CLIN? Please clarify.

Answer: Please see answer to question 33.

36. Please confirm that “Any pricing changes of more than 5%, up or down from the Government provided numbers as a result of nickel and copper price changes, shall be captured as the revised price.”

– does not mean that a price change of less than 5% cannot be negotiated. A 5% increase in the material price is a significant portion of the potential fee.

Answer: Any up or down changes of 5% of nickel and copper will not lead to price revision.

37. Do you have models that can be sent?

Answer: The amended solicitation provides drawing 30548S0032, which contain the CAD models.

38. When is the delivery date for the product?

Answer: As indicated by Section L 4.1.2, the delivery date for each Bearing Support Structure is 30 months.