QnA Response to Solicitation N0018926R3103 - NCTAMS Response.pdf

Questions and Answers in Response to Solicitation N0018926R3103- Telecommunications Support Services

1. Question: Is the requirement strictly limited to SeaPort NxG contract holders as prime contractors, or would the Government consider participation from qualified vendors operating under other approved contract vehicles (e.g., GSA Schedule), or Alternate acquisition approaches could be considered that allow qualified non-SeaPort vendors to compete as prime contractors?

Answer: The requirement is limited to SeaPort NxG Small Businesses contract holders only

2. Question: Can you confirm that the replacement for VOIP will not negatively impact RSM? If it will, what changes are needed for RSM?

Answer: There’s no impact on the VOIP solution requirement on the RSM solution requirement.

3. Question: Please confirm whether offerors should price all required maintenance, repair, parts, technical support, and OEM support permissions based on the systems in their current installed configurations for the full base and option periods.

Answer: The offeror shall include all costs to execute the contract within the CLINs provided.

4. Question: Please confirm whether the Avaya/Nortel Authorized Diamond or Sapphire Partner certification must be held by the prime offeror, or whether this requirement may be satisfied through a proposed subcontractor/team member that will perform the Avaya/Nortel maintenance and repair work. (Page 50, Factor I-Certifications and Page 56, Section M, Factor I Certifications)

Answer: The Avaya/Nortel Authorized Diamond or Sapphire Partner certification must be held by the prime offeror or may be satisfied through a proposed subcontractor/team member that will perform the Avaya/Nortel maintenance and repair work. The subcontractor must be identified as part of the proposal.

5. Question: Please identify which BCO locations currently maintain Government/BCO Crash Kits, the contents of those kits, and whether offerors should assume responsibility for initial provisioning of Crash Kits at locations where no current Government/BCO kit exists. (Pages 23–24 of 46, Section 7.3 Spare Parts/Crash Kits.)

Answer: A revised PWS will be provided with a list of available crash kits. Per section 7.3, “Contractors shall provide a Crash Kit for each location if the BCO does not maintain a Crash Kit on-site.”

6. Question: Please clarify the minimum required interim switch capacity, interface requirements, configuration expectations, trunking/DSN requirements, and whether a single deployable interim switch solution may support multiple locations or whether dedicated interim switch capability is expected for each region or site. (Pages 21–22 of 46, Section 7.1.6.1.2 “Total Loss of Service” Response.)

Answer: Capacity and configuration must support all BCO-identified critical lines and successfully perform a Commercial Local and Long-distance test call. Offerors may propose either a shared deployable or dedicated interim switch solution, provided it meets the mandatory 48-hour operational restoral SLA for any affected site. A revised PWS will be provided excluding any mention of DSN services since they are no longer supported.

7. Question: Please clarify how downtime will be calculated for purposes of the 99.9% availability requirement, including whether downtime caused by Government-directed outages, site access delays, power/HVAC failures, external carrier issues, force majeure events, unavailable Government-furnished information, or excluded damage conditions under PWS Section 7.1.7 will be excluded from the contractor’s availability calculation. (age 14 of 46, Section 7.1 Maintenance and Repair; PWS, Page 22 of 46, Section 7.1.7 Exclusions and Damage Liability)

Answer: Availability is calculated as operational hours per month minus valid downtime, divided by total operational hours. Downtime calculations exclude conditions explicitly outlined in PWS Section 7.1.7 (Exclusions and Damage Liability) and Section 7.1.6.1.2.

8. Question: Please clarify whether incumbent personnel, if proposed, may continue site access under existing credentials during transition, and whether the Government will provide expedited access processing or interim access procedures for newly proposed personnel required to perform on the first day of performance. (Solicitation, Page 51 of 61, Section L, Factor II, Subfactor II – Staffing Approach; PWS, Pages 32+ of 46, Section 8.0 Clearances, Passes, and Security Regulations; PWS, Page 31 of 46, Section

7.13 Access)

Answer: The transition period overlaps with the final month of the current task order. As such, any incumbent personnel still performing on the current task order will retain their credentials during the transition but will require new credentialing if they will be joining the follow-on award. Incoming personnel that do not yet have credentials will coordinate with the COR for interim base and facility access.

9. Question: Please clarify the required activities, deliverables, staffing expectations, and performance obligations associated with CLIN 5000, and whether full maintenance responsibility begins during the transition period or on the first day of the base performance period. (Solicitation, Page 3 of 61, Section B, CLIN 5000 Transition Period; Solicitation, Page 7 of 61, Section F Delivery Schedule, CLIN 5000; PWS, Page 10 of 46, Section 2.9.1 Phase-In.)

Answer: The one (1) month transition period, stated within the solicitation, overlaps with the final month of performance on the current task order. As such, full maintenance responsibility will remain with the incumbent during the transition period of performance. Full maintenance responsibility will be assumed by the awardee when the transition period ends and the base performance period begins.

10. Question: What is the anticipated award date for this solicitation?

Answer: Estimated POP will start around 1 August 2026

11. Question: What minimum staffing levels are required at award?

Answer: The Government does not mandate specific minimum staffing levels. Offerors are expected to determine and propose a staffing plan sufficient to successfully meet all performance objectives and service level agreements outlined in the PWS.

12. Question: Will the government provide FTE hours for this solicitation or any historical labor hours?

Answer: Offerors must propose a solution based on the performance requirements outlined in the PWS.

See question 24 for additional details.

13. Question: Will there be a GFE warehouse of available or obsolete replacement parts accessible to the contractor, and if so, will it be managed by the Government or the contractor, and where will it be located given the geographic scope of the effort?

Answer: No. As outlined in PWS Section 6.0, the contractor is responsible for furnishing all materials and supplies required for this effort. There is no Government-managed inventory or warehouse available for contractor use.

14. Question: Would the government accept CPARS in lieu of the Past Performance Report Form?

Answer: CPARS is reviewed on all past performance submissions but does not take the place of the Past

Performance Report Form

15. Question: Is Section B of the Solicitation document the only table of pricing values to be submitted, and no other table/spreadsheet will be provided?

Answer: Offerors may submit pricing in whichever format they choose to best display their offer.

16. Question: If a pricing workbook is required will the government provide a template/spreadsheet?

Answer: The government will not be providing a pricing template. See A15 above.

17. Question: The Section B – Additional Information/Notes table shows Option Line Item 5202 with the following information in the Services/Supplies column “Option Period 1- Telecommunications Technician Support for the Southeast region in accordance with PWS.” Will the government confirm Option Line Item 5202’s corresponding option period?

Answer: Solicitation has been updated with correction. See Amendment I for further details.

18. Question: Will the government provide clarification on submission of subcontractor pricing? Are separate submissions required? How should we integrate subcontractor pricing?

Answer: The subject solicitation will result in a firm fixed-price task as such all pricing should be included in single price proposal submitted by the prime offeror.

19. Question: PWS states (1) base year, (4) 12-month option years, and (1) 6-month option. The Solicitation states 1 month of transition and 7 months are the base period. Please confirm if the base year is 8 or 12 months.

Answer: Updated PWS see Amendment I.

20. Question: What are the Government's expectations in terms of level of Contractor involvement when new equipment is procured by the Government (e.g., contractor procure/install supporting equipment)?

Answer: Per PWS Section 7.11 (Switch Upgrades), when the Government upgrades systems, the contractor's role is strictly to coordinate the repair and replacement of components with the local BCO.

21. Question: Would the government allow equipment salvaged from other bases to be retained as inventory for this contract?

Answer: Yes. The contractor is responsible for furnishing functional replacement parts that meet the 99.9% availability and performance metrics outlined in the PWS, regardless of how the contractor sources them.

22. Question: Due to the age of existing equipment would the government allow contractor input on potential system upgrades?

Answer: The Government welcomes informal technical feedback; however, there is no formal requirement, deliverable, or dedicated CLIN for the contractor to provide engineering or design consulting for future system upgrades.

23. Question: Some of the equipment identified is listed on JITC UC AP, does the Government have current inventory of spare equipment in place that could be utilized for this Contract?

Answer: No, there is no Government-furnished inventory. Per PWS Sections 6.0 and 7.3, the contractor is entirely responsible for providing and maintaining their own inventory of spare parts and equipment.

24. Question: Will the government provide historical information related to the maintenance calls identified in

Section 7.16 (frequency, severity, etc.)

Answer: Offerors must base their proposals on the requirements and service levels defined in the PWS.

The average number of maintenance tickets created through the life of the current contract is 140 (monthly) with approximately 1 (monthly) of those tickets submitted as emergency/critical.