Questions and Answers-NHHC.pdf

Questions and answers to Solicitation N0018926QL188 Museum Curator Services

Question# Question Answer Responsibility 1 Option-period dates. The PWS identifies the option period as September 7, 2027, through September 6, 2028. The CLIN 0002 delivery schedule on page 6 instead repeats September 7, 2026, through September 6, 2027. Please confirm that the correct period of performance for Option CLIN 0002 is September 7, 2027, through September 6, 2028

Option Period is 7 September 2027 through 6 September 2028; will correct on Solicitation

CS (NAVSUP)

2 Leave and backup coverage. Is the contractor required to provide uninterrupted coverage during employee vacation, sick leave, training, recruiting gaps, or other absences?

No, backup coverage is not required during vacations, sick leave, etc.

Customer (NHHC)

3 On-site versus remote performance.

Must all work, including management, reporting, quality review, metadata review, and administrative activities, be performed at the museum, or may limited non-artifact administrative work be performed remotely?

All work must be performed onsite. Customer (NHHC)

4 Program Manager requirement. The PWS states that the Government may provide instructions to the contractor’s Program Manager, although the requirement identifies only one curator support person. Please clarify whether:

• a separate Program Manager is required;

• the curator may also serve as the Program Manager;

• an off-site corporate Program Manager is acceptable; and

• any minimum Program Manager availability, qualifications, reporting, or on-site presence is required.

No separate program manager is required but they are guided by onsite government curatorial staff.

Offsite program management is acceptable.

Customer (NHHC)

5 Start date and transition. Is September 7, 2026, a firm required start date?

Please identify any required transition, orientation, badging, system-access, collection-handling, or database-training period and whether it must be completed before the first day of

They can start at any time. They will not be required to obtain a CAC or need transition or orientation, etc before starting. All work will be performed on Legacy computers with artifacts and donor files as well as digital content

Customer (NHHC) performance. Please also advise whether Government procedures, predecessor records, inventories, photo files, or other transition materials will be available.

cataloging. Photographing, cleaning, and preparing artifacts for permanent preservation will be required onsite.

6 Please provide any available historical monthly production data or predecessor staffing and coverage information that may assist offerors in developing realistic staffing and pricing assumptions.

Cataloging, inventorying or updating content for 50 artifacts per week is normal.

7 Minimum qualifications. The PWS requires “expert-level” knowledge but does not identify objective education or experience thresholds. Please confirm:

whether a degree in museum studies, history, public history, anthropology, archives, conservation, or a related field is required;

• the minimum years of museum or collection-management experience;

• whether direct artifact inventory and cataloging experience is mandatory;

• whether direct federal or military museum experience is required or preferred;

• whether experience with a particular collection-management system is required; and

• whether equivalent combinations of education and experience will be accepted.

They should be able to use Access, Word, Excel, know how to catalog artifacts or archival materials.

A degree or working on a degree in history, museum studies, archival management, or a related field is required. They need direct artifact cataloging or archival processing experience. They do not need federal or military museum experience. Any museum curatorial experience or archival experience is acceptable.

Any experience with a collection management system is acceptable.

Education and experience is acceptable.

Customer (NHHC)

8 Travel. The PWS states that travel may be required but is not anticipated and that travel within 50 miles will not be reimbursed. Please identify any anticipated destinations, purposes, and frequency of travel. Please also confirm:

• whether local travel within 50 miles must be included in the firm-fixed price;

• how authorized travel beyond 50 miles will be funded and reimbursed; and

Travel is not required and will not be anticipated. I have never asked a curator to travel for similar position in 20 years.

• whether a separate travel CLIN or prior written authorization will be added if such travel becomes necessary.

9 Service Contract Labor Standards (SCLS). The solicitation incorporates FAR 52.222-41 and provides a FAR 52.222-42 informational table for Personnel Assistant I, II, and III, but states that the table is not a wage determination. Please:

• provide the controlling Department of Labor wage determination;

• confirm the intended SCLS occupation code and classification;

• explain whether Personnel Assistant III is the Government’s intended classification despite the museum-curator, collections, photography, and digital-asset duties;

• identify any applicable collective bargaining agreement, predecessor wage and benefit information, or other incumbent-employee information relevant to pricing.

Wage Determination will be provided and added to the

Solicitation.

Customer, please confirm SCLS Occupation. We can add

Photographer and Exhibits Specialist.

They will be cataloging artifacts.

This includes photographing, cleaning, preserving, updating catalog and inventory records. They will not be performing exhibit specialist tasks, and I wouldn’t add photographer as this is not a media position. Photography is one very minor task within the curatorial position.

No collective bargaining agreement is required.

CS (NAVSUP) and