Notice No. 1.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

NAVAL FACILITIES ENGINEERING SYSTEMS COMMAND FAR EAST

PSC 473 BOX 13

FPO AP 96349

DISTRIBUTION: DoW COMMUNITY ONLY

Notice No. 1 30 June 2026

RFP N40084-26-R-1025

BASE OPERATING SUPPORT SERVICES

AT

U.S. MARINE CORPS AIR STATION (MCAS) IWAKUNI, JAPAN

NOTE: The following schedule is provided for INFORMATION ONLY. The RFP remains unchanged unless it is amended in writing on a Standard Form 30.

Request for Information Questions and Responses

1. [We] respectfully request that NAVFAC Far East extend the proposal submission deadline for Solicitation No. N4008426R1025, Base Operating Support Services for U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, from 12 June 2026 to 31 July 2026.

[The current schedule] provides a very compressed proposal preparation period for a BOS requirement of this magnitude, operational complexity, and importance to MCAS Iwakuni. The FAR recognizes that solicitation response times should afford offerors a reasonable opportunity to respond, and RFPs are intended to communicate the Government’s requirements and obtain meaningful proposals from prospective contractors.

This acquisition requires significant technical, staffing, transition, subcontractor, pricing, risk, and compliance analysis. In addition, the solicitation was released during Japan’s Golden Week holiday period, when many key Japanese subcontractors, vendors, labor sources, and internal support personnel are unavailable or operating on limited schedules. Because the site visit is scheduled for 21 May 2026, offerors will have limited time after the site visit to evaluate the site conditions, develop questions, receive clarifications or amendments, validate subcontractor pricing, assess local labor availability, prepare transition assumptions, and produce a complete and accurate technical and price proposal.

[We] believe that an extension to 31 July 2026 would be in the Government’s interest because it would allow offerors to submit more complete, accurate, and competitive proposals.

A longer response period would reduce the risk of incomplete assumptions, pricing contingencies, avoidable exceptions, or post-award performance issues. It would also support full and open competition by giving all prospective offerors a fair opportunity to conduct proper due diligence after the site visit and any subsequent Government responses or amendments.

ANSWER: See Amendment 0003.

2. Reference: Solicitation

Solicitation requirements as published requires that bidders/awardee be duly authorized to operate and conduct business in Japan and without consideration of SOFA status. Confirm that all bidders/awardees must possess both a business license and a construction license in Japan to

N4008426R1025 be able to receive the award and to perform scope requirements of this solicitation, and that proof that demonstrates bidders possesses required licenses at time of bid?

ANSWER:

The Government confirms that the awardee must be duly authorized to operate and conduct business in Japan and must fully comply with all laws, decrees, labor standards, and regulations of Japan prior to the commencement of contract performance. However, proof of these licenses is not required to be submitted at the time of bid/proposal submission. Obtaining the necessary licenses and permits is a matter of contractor responsibility and a prerequisite for contract performance, not a prerequisite for submitting a proposal.

See forthcoming Amendment regarding SOFA status.

3. Reference: Solicitation

Solicitation requirements appear to be structured in such a manner that not only restricts capable contractors from bidding but also defines requirements that only a current BOSC contractor holder or incumbent BOSC contractor is able to bid, which removes the “competitive bidding” aspect of government solicitations. Does FAR 6.101 and 6.102, full and open competition apply to this solicitation?

ANSWER:

The policies and procedures of FAR 6.101 and 6.102 regarding full and open competition apply to this solicitation. The Government's intent is to maximize competition to the greatest extent practicable in accordance with federal acquisition regulations. The requirements outlined in this solicitation have been evaluated and determined to represent the Government's minimum baseline required to ensure successful mission execution for this Base Operations Support Contract (BOSC).

4. Reference: Solicitation

According to the FAR, if a solicitation is written so narrowly that it places limits on potential numbers of bidders, then the government is not achieving “full and open competition”. Furthermore, a solicitation that is “open” and “unrestricted” but functionally that is functionally restricted violates the FAR competitive procedure requirements. A solicitation that is structured so restrictive in nature excludes capable sources and per FAR requires justification. Can government provide this justification?

ANSWER: The Government's intent is to maximize competition to the greatest extent practicable in accordance with federal acquisition regulations. The requirements outlined in this solicitation have been evaluated and determined to represent the Government's minimum baseline required to ensure successful mission execution for this Base Operations Support Contract (BOSC). The Government has determined that this requirement is appropriate for full and open competition and therefore a justification is not required.

5. Reference: Solicitation Section B

Solicitation Section B states “proposals shall be priced only in U.S. dollars”, yet the contracting agency is in Japan, and solicitation is for bidders duly authorized to operate and conduct business in Japan, which would suggest that YEN would be the currency of choice for this solicitation. Define why this Japan based solicitation restricts proposals to US dollars and does not allow for local currency YEN to be used for proposal?

ANSWER: The requirement to price proposals in U.S. Dollars (USD) remains unchanged.

Proposals submitted in Japanese Yen (JPY) or any other currency will not be considered for award. The U.S. Government retains the sole authority to establish the currency for its solicitations. For this requirement, the Government requires all proposals to be priced and paid exclusively in U.S. Dollars (USD).

6. Reference: Solicitation Factor 2 – Experience

Bidders must demonstrate Past Experience by presenting a past contract or task order with an “award value or $50,000,000” or at the exchange rate of \7,522,075,000, performed in the last 5 years. The only relevant contract of this value is held by the incumbent contractor and potentially other BOSC contractors not located in Japan. This requirement is not conducive to “full and open competition” and is not justifiable given that relevant Japan contracts and task orders of this magnitude are non-existent, except to incumbent BOSC contractor. Furthermore, the previous solicitation for the current contract under performance was solicited with past experience value of \400,000,000. What justifies a 1,780.52 percent increase in Past Experience requirements for this solicitation over the previous solicitation?

ANSWER: The Government has established the size and recency requirements in Factor 2 – Experience to be directly proportionate to the magnitude, scope, and complexity of the work required under the current solicitation. While previous solicitations may have different evaluation thresholds, the current size and recency requirements outlined in Factor – 2 Experience have been established independently to accurately reflect the financial, administrative, and operational capacity necessary to successfully execute this specific effort.

To ensure clarity for all prospective offerors, the Government notes that the solicitation does not state a specific Japanese Yen award value of 7,522,075,000 JPY. The Government understands this inquiry to reference Factor 2 – Experience, which evaluates U.S. Dollars (USD) size thresholds and establishes an exchange rate of 150.4415 yen / USD for any contract or task order submitted in Japanese Yen.

7. Reference: Solicitation Factor 2 – Experience

Current solicitation as published requires bidder to demonstrate a relevant single contract or task order with a value of \7,522,074.000, which does not appear to be coincidental to the current BOSC contract award value of \8,178,309,688, and appears to be structured in such a manner that removes “full and open competition”, and limits potential bidders to the incumbent contractor or possibly other BOSC contract holders, not necessarily in Japan. Define the rationale that determined that single contract or task order past experience value of \7,522,075,000

ANSWER: The Government has established the Experience minimum award value to be directly proportionate to the magnitude, scope, and complexity of the work required under the current solicitation. While previous solicitations may have utilized lower evaluation thresholds, the current Past Experience requirement has been established independently to accurately reflect the financial, administrative, and operational capacity necessary to successfully execute this specific effort.

To ensure clarity for all prospective offerors, the Government notes that the solicitation does not state a specific Japanese Yen award value requirement of \7,522,074,000 or \7,522,075,000. The Government understands this inquiry to reference Factor 2 – Experience, which evaluates a U.S. Dollars (USD) size threshold and establishes an exchange rate of 150.4415 yen / USD for any contract or task order submitted in Japanese Yen.

8. Reference: Solicitation

Solicitation is designated as Unrestricted / Full and Open Competition, yet several requirements appear unusually specific and may limit participation by otherwise capable offerors. Could the Government clarify the rationale for these restrictive elements and confirm whether they are essential to the Government’s minimum needs? Additionally, would the Government consider revising any requirements that are not mandatory to ensure the solicitation fully aligns with the stated intent of Full and Open Competition?

ANSWER: The Government's intent is to maximize competition to the greatest extent practicable in accordance with federal acquisition regulations. The requirements outlined in this solicitation have been evaluated and determined to represent the Government's minimum baseline required to ensure successful mission execution for this Base Operations Support Contract (BOSC).