19R3009_WATSON_QA8_.pdf

MILITARY SEALIFT COMMAND

N32205-19-R-3009 WATSON Operation & Maintenance

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS # 8

The following are answers to questions received from potential offerors. The answers provide clarification only and DO NOT constitute an amendment to the solicitation.

184. In your answers to the questions raised that was issued Friday July 12th; question

#55 & # 97 did not specifically state during transition when the operating hire rate would change from ROS/RAV to FOS. Our union agreements are requiring that when the first additional FOS crew member joins the vessel that the entire crew would payoff and commence to receive FOS wages. The contractors need to know when does MSC deem the vessel has transitioned to FOS; when the first FOS crew member joins the vessel or when the vessel has completed all the items specified in 1.1.4.8? Once we have that information we can accurately price our costs since transition is fixed price and not reimbursable.

ANSWER: The FOS daily rates will be paid to the contractor commencing upon the first day a non-ROS crew member works one full day. The contractor shall notify the COR once the first non-ROS crew member boards the ship. The contractor will reduce the FOS daily rate, when invoicing, based on the number of FOS crew that have not arrived onboard the ship. The Government will revise Section C-1.1.4.7 to reflect this answer in a forthcoming solicitation amendment.

185. In your amendment and revisions to the proposal Friday July 12th Attachment L

(FORM D) was revised to include FOS with AMMO Bonus. However, there was not a corresponding revision to Attachment P (Pricing Forms A-C) to include revise FORM C

Basic Pricing. Please advise when this form will be released.

ANSWER: The Government will revise Attachment P to reflect the FOS AMMO

Bonus Rate in Form C. The changes will be reflected in a forthcoming solicitation amendment.

186. Section C 3.10.3.3 requires that familiarization costs be included in the fixed price offer. We have calculated familiarization cost based on the stipulated complement and number of days set forth in C 3.103.3 to be $2.4 M for the entire fleet. In excluding the incumbent operator from including familiarization cost in their fixed priced bid it gives the incumbent an unfair advantage. We respectfully request that familiarization costs that are fair and reasonable and IAW the joint travel regulations be reimbursable.

ANSWER: The Government determined it is in its best interest to keep the requirement the same.

187. C-2.5.7.1.4 Required Contractor Attendance appears in the table of contents.

However, the RFP contains C-2.5.10.1.4 by the same name. Please advise which is the correct description of Required Contractor Attendance.

ANSWER: The Government will revise Section C Table of Contents to correct any errors. The changes will be reflected in a solicitation amendment.

188. C-3.8.1.2 - Regarding PE and APE training, will successful completion of the MSC

CMEO Ashore course (Parts I, II, and III as shown on the Emprise training website) within the 12-month period prior to the contract award satisfy the requirement for the

MSC Port Engineering training courses? This may help reduce the overall cost to the

Government while still ensuring reasonable currency of training.

ANSWER: CMEO Ashore course completion within the 12-month period prior to the contract award will not satisfy the requirement for the MSC Port Engineering training courses.

189. C-3.8.1.2 - Regarding PE and APE training, is a list available of ABS-approved corrosion and coatings training that satisfies this requirement?

ANSWER: See Answer to Question #78.

190. C-3.8.1.2 - Regarding PE and APE training, what type of “Marine Gas Turbine training” satisfies this requirement?

191. C-3.8.1.2 - Regarding PE and APE training, is successful completion of a Marine

Gas Turbine course prior to contract award considered acceptable to satisfy this requirement? This may help reduce the overall cost to the Government while still ensuring reasonable currency of training.

192. C-3.9 - This section says “All costs associated with shore side personnel attending required training shall be in the contractor’s fixed rate.” Will there be any tuition, registration, or other miscellaneous training fees charged by Emprise Corporation for shore side personnel who register and receive the MSC Engineering Training courses they provide?

ANSWER: The most up-to-date information on the costs associated with training can be received from the training institutions that provide the training.

193. C3.7.2.a - MSC Q&A stated: 22. ANSWER: Attachment K-3 should include the

Key Shoreside personnel listed on the table in Section C-3.7.2.a that are associated with an “X” in column 4 (Key (KBA)) Additionally, Attachment K-3 shall also include shore side personnel billets submitted in excess of the minimum contract requirements including the percentage of dedication. Are these just the proposed key billet shore side billets in excess of contract minimums?

ANSWER: K-3 should identify in column 1 (Shore Side Personnel) the position, in column 2 (Quantity) the number of persons filling said position, and in column 3 (%

Dedication) the percentage of time each identified person is dedicated towards supporting this contract. Any additional shore side personnel the offeror lists in excess of minimum contract requirements (that offeror desires additional consideration for as filling a “Key Billet” in its organization) should be identified with an “X” in column 4 (Key (KBA). To obtain additional consideration, a Key

Billet person’s resume must be submitted within the offeror’s proposal. Sections

L&M will be reviewed to ensure clarity and may be revised in a forthcoming solicitation amendment.

194. Amendment 1 - Given that many of the government’s responses in Q&A #1-52 promise clarification in a future amendment that has yet to be issued, can we recommend an extension to the submission deadline to July 31?

ANSWER: The Government extended the solicitation closing date in Amend 0002.

195. Section L-6 SUBMISSION OF OFFERS requires Windows 2010 compatible software. Will the government accept files in Adobe PDF format? It offers the best consistency of formatting across different computer systems and software versions.

ANSWER: Microsoft Windows 2010 compatible software includes Access, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word. The Government will not accept submission from offers in Adobe PDF format, because not all Government computers are able to access Adobe

PDF.

Revised DD254 included with amendment 2 is created in PDF and requires information to be completed by offerors. The file provided by the government cannot be edited or exported into a suitable format. Since the government cannot accept PDF files, please provide revised DD254 in an editable format.

ANSWER: The DD254 form will be accepted as a pdf. This answer will be reflected in a forthcoming solicitation amendment.

196. Last Q&A was provided on June 24, 2019 @ 9:02AM. There are still submitted questions that remain unanswered, as well as key pieces of information referenced in the posted Q&A docs that have not been posted to FBO in the form of an amendment. Please advise when the government will be posting this information and if an additional deadline extension is anticipated to be released.

ANSWER: The Government extended the Solicitation closing date in Amend 0002.

197. Section M, Basis for Award, is silent in all respects to the Government’s consideration of number of vessels presently being managed by an offeror. Please confirm that there is no limit to the number of vessels one operator can manage for the

Government and there is no basis for disqualification solely on the size of fleet presently managed.

ANSWER: There is no limit to the number of vessels one operator can manage for the Government and there is no basis for disqualification solely on the size of fleet presently managed.

198. Section L – C.Vol III Past Perf, Para (3) requires submission of numerous USCG documents (835’s, 2692’s, investigations, …) yet, Section M-1, Basis for Award, subsection E. Past Performance Factor, does not stipulate how these USCG documents will be used to determine past performance. Please clarify how these USCG documents will be utilized in determining past performance. Additionally, please clarify how these

USCG documents detailing specific vessel conditions without all relevant data, such as vessel age or operational funding, can be considered relevant or indicate confidence of operator’s ability.

ANSWER: The information submitted as required in section L(C)(3) will be evaluated if it is determined to be recent and relevant.

199. Are all the items listed in Attachment N to be included in the contractors fixed rate?

ANSWER: All Contract deliverables listed in Attachment N shall be included in the operating company’s fixed rate.

200. C-3.9 - The list of required MSC Training Courses for shore side personnel does not correspond directly with the actual MSC Engineering Training courses available on the

Emprise website provided. When we questioned Emprise staff who managed the MSC course schedule, we were told the following MSC courses would be required to fulfill the requirements for each position listed in the training matrix:

Program Manager/Port Captain - CMEO Ashore Training (I, II, III) (5 days) and N7

Engineering Academy (Basic Part I) (3 days.) Required 2 separate visits to Emprise campus.

Engineering Manager/Lifecycle Manager - CMEO Ashore Training (I, II, III) (5 days) and N7 Engineering Academy (Basic Part I and II) (6 days.) Requires 3 separate visits to Emprise campus.

Port Engineer/Assistant Port Engineer - CMEO Ashore Training (I, II, III) (5 days) and

N7 Engineering Academy (Basic Part I and II) (6 days.) Requires 3 separate visits to

Emprise campus.

Property Control Manager/Asst Property Control Manager/Purchasing Manager - N7

Engineering Academy (Basic Part I) (3 days.) Requires one visit to Emprise campus.

Crewing and Training Manager - CMEO Ashore Training (I, II, III) (5 days.) Requires one visit to Emprise campus.

Question – Since the required courses provided by Emprise are not tailored to meet the training requirements in the RFP, is it the government’s intent that the initial training may require upwards of 11 classroom days and three separate visits to Emprise to complete the initial 5-year training?

ANSWER: It is the Government’s intent that the required training be completed.

201. Request an extension to August 2, 2019 for the following reasons:

• There are questions that have been submitted that still remain unanswered,

• References were made in the response to questions raised that an amended RFP is forth coming that would contain a conforming RFP and it has not been issued,

• References were made in the questions and answers that revised pricing forms were forth coming and they have not been issued,

• Question 3 requested a history of reimbursable expenses, MSC’s response was the amount in Schedule T varies and there is no Schedule T; reimbursable expenses are needed to prepare a target for a small business subcontracting and also for estimation for the cash forecast

• Request was made for guidance on foldouts and nothing has been given

• Finally, due to the requirement that the RFP be delivered through mail/courier and not hand delivered it adds 2-3 days prior to the due date, so with the current date of

July 16th, the proposal has to be sent no later than 7/12/19 to be received timely and the above issues need to be settled prior to submisssion.

ANSWER: The Government extended the Solicitation closing date in Amend 0002.

202. One of the labor agreements indicates additional crew requirements for a Flagship vessel; however, the RFP does not address this a Flagship. Please advise if one of the

Watson class vessels is considered a Flagship vessel and indicate which is considered the

Flagship for pricing purposes.

ANSWER: It is not anticipated that a WATSON class vessel will be used as a

Flagship during the life of the contract.

203. I am not able to complete your revised DD-254 form provided in Amendment 0002 online. Can you provide the form that will allow completion online? Otherwise, I will print and complete the form manually.

ANSWER: MSC will provide a DD-254 in a format which can be completed online.

204. In Amendment 0002, Section L-7.B.2. Technical Proposal, (a) Technical Approach states:

If resumes were included in offeror’s response to Section L-7(B)(1)(iii) (Minimum

Technical Requirements Proposal) and the offeror does not want those resumes to be considered for additional credit during the trade-off evaluation then they will not need to be provided again for this section. Amend 02

I assume that although this is all Technical – it should be treated as two separate

Sections with attachments designated to each Section – correct?

ANSWER: Volume II shall contain the Minimum Technical Requirements Proposal and

Technical Proposal. The Minimum Technical Requirements Proposal and the Technical

Proposal combined shall not exceed 30 pages in length.

The Minimum Technical Requirements Proposal and the Technical Proposal are two separate proposal submissions. Each technical proposal will be evaluate separately in accordance with

Section M.

205. REFERENCE: Document R19R3009_WATSON_Q&A3_38 thru 52

49. In C-3.8.6 Qualifications of Contract Administrator, one of the requirements is for

DAWIA Level II certification in contracting. DAWIA certifications are only available to

DoD employees, military and (APF) civilians assigned to an acquisition coded position as well as select military officers whose career development will include assignment to acquisition coded positions. In the commercial industry, top level Contract

Administrators are certified as a Certified Federal Contracts Manager (CFCM). Please consider the requirements of the years of experience associated with DAWIA Level II be acceptable, and a CFCM would exceed the minimal requirements.

ANSWER: Section C-3.8.6 provides an option to meet the Contract Administrator qualifications without obtaining DAWIA Level II certification. Further, there are companies that provide DAWIA/DAU equivalent training, which would be acceptable. The Government will revise Section C-3.8.6 to add the Certified

Professional Contract Manager (CPCM) Certification to the list of other Contract

Administrator qualifications. This change will be reflected in a forthcoming solicitation amendment.

New Question: What is the purpose of the Certified Professional Contract Manager v.

Certified Federal Contract Manager as a requirement? Professional includes both commercial and Federal contract concepts, while CFCM is predominately Federal.

Differences available at the following link: https://www.ncmahq.org/standards-certification. Will you accept a CFCM certification?

ANSWER: The Government determined it is in its best interests to leave the requirement as it is currently written.

206. RESERVED

207. The Answer to Question #55 says that Section C-1.1.4.7 will be revised to add guidance regarding transition to FOS daily rate, but Amendment 0002 does not reflect an update. As a result, when a ship is transitioning from ROS to FOS when does the FOS pay begin for crewmembers?

ANSWER: Section C-1.1.4.7 will be revised in a forthcoming amendment to clarify vessel transition.

208. RESERVED

209. Section C-1.7.3.2 - Delays in travel to Diego Garcia, discusses reimbursement of expenses associated with delays/cancellations of government flights in excess of two days. Are wages due to crewmembers for these delays are reimbursable?

ANSWER: See answer to question 169

210. One of the labor agreements indicates additional crew requirements for a Flagship vessel; however, the RFP does not address this a Flagship. Which one of the Watson class vessels is considered the Flagship vessel for pricing purposes?

ANSWER: See answer to question 202 above.

211. In reference to Q&A #2, Answer #14, the Government indicated that the number of pages for the Past Performance Narrative would be increased from two (2) full pages to ten (10) full pages. This narrative is to include up to five (5) Past Performance references, each discussing six (6) areas for each of the reference contracts, and including the regulatory data (items a. through f.) for each contract. Amendment 2, L-7

C. (2) “Note” (last sentence) states “The Past Performance narratives shall be no longer than 10 full pages total in length (Time New Roman font size 12)” and revised

Attachment I more clearly shows the Government’s intent that each reference contract may be only two (2) full pages in length – up to 10 pages total. Given that the Past

Performance narratives are a trade-off factor that is assessed for Recency and Relevancy

(Scope, Complexity, and Magnitude), and that response to the regulatory data ((3) a. – f.)

can easily fill one of two page limit, would the Government consider increasing the two page maximum for each reference contract, and/or eliminating the regulatory data ((3) a.

– f.) from the total page count? The regulatory data (835s, 2692s, CDRs, etc. varies greatly in number and scope by operating contract, and, the Government already possesses this data by Program. This would enable offerors at least an additional page to provide more complete and accurate responses to an important trade-off factor.

ANSWER: Section L-7.C(2) will be revised in a forthcoming amendment to remove the documents CG-835’s, CG 2692, 2692B’s and Contract Deficiency Reports (CDRs) from the total page count of the Past Performance narratives.

212. In reference to sections C-1.3.2 Food and Hotel Services and C-1.3.2.a Food and

Hotel Service Costs: Please clarify if the contractor will need to include 12 PEP/non-crewmembers in their daily rate for all statuses or should it only be for those in FOS?

ANSWER: Only ships in FOS should include 12 PEP/non-crewmembers in their daily rate. Section C-1.3.2 will be revised in a forthcoming amendment to reflect this answer.