Q A.docx

Q1. Please provide IBM Customer and Site Numbers which are associated with this RFQ.

A1. IBM Customer #9255575, Site #7929224, Passport Advantage #3732286

Q2. Are all Maximo licenses current? If not, what was the last date of renewal for each Maximo License?

A2. No, S&S expired on 12/3/12 for all licenses (10 concurrent - Flexible Contract Type)

Q3. CLIN 0002 appears to include a full systems upgrade from Maximo 7.1 to Maximo Version 7.6 as described in the SOW, in order to support such an upgrade the following data is required for scoping:

· Full description of current architectural environment – -APP SERVER: IBM WebSphere Application Server 6.1

-USER NAME: N/A

-VERSION: TPAE 7.1.1.5 Build 20090911D2 DB Build V7115-01

-SERVER OS: Windows Server 2008 6.1 build 7601 Service Pack 1

· Maximo Data source (Oracle, or SQL? What Version?)- -SQL, the server is running OS Server 2008 R2 and the Sql version is SQL Server 2008

· Full description of Maximo Application environment to include all implemented modules, customizations and complete description of any interfaces with other solutions- -First, the modules implemented were the ones available to the Asset Management 7.1 less all financial (no GL accounting) and purchasing.

-Second, the only customization is a Syclo Mobile Work Manager that is not used and is to be removed.

-Third, the only interface is with e-mail, though when v7.1 was installed the LDAP link was to have been made, but did not happen (our IT people asked the contractor to wait until they completed their upgrade and when our IT was complete, the contractor was long done with all else and we had let them go as completed).

· Total number of assets currently managed, breakdown of asset types with associated counts per type- -8,733 assets without any breakdown of types

· Total number of active reports currently in use and if each will be migrated into the Maximo 7.6 upgraded environment. What is the complexity breakdown of each/any report (simple, medium, complex)- -229 reports, of which less than 30 are used (most are default reports which came with the program) and those used mostly are simple with only three in the medium range.

· What type of upgrade is requested (like for like, or new capabilities?) If new functionality/capability is desired please describe in detail- -Only that functionality that comes with the Asset Management package is expected with this contract, if new capabilities come with the new version, then they will be expected.

Q4. CLIN 0002 appears to be described as a requirement to upgrade the NIST Maximo annually; this is highly irregular as Maximo version upgrades rarely occur in less than three years. Please confirm requested scope for CLIN 2002, 3002 and so on. (Please note, ACSP Maintenance as included in the annual renewals (CLIN 0001 SOW Items) completes patches and same version upgrades for debug and maintenance fixes.)

A4. A version upgrade will only be expected when there is a new version available and installed in that option year. Same version upgrades for bugs and maintenance fixes are expected to be installed by the contractor on site once a year. It is projected (guess) that IBM would issue a new version in the third option year.

Q5. Please address how the Government desires travel to be accounted for in support of CLIN 0002 Upgrade services and for the rare occurrences where Maximo Annual Maintenance may require onsite support.

A5. Travel is the contractor’s sole responsibility. The Line Items for Training and Travel will be set up as NTE Line Items as a result of the unknown information for travel. All Travel is to be conducted in accordance with Federal Travel Regulations.

Q6. Response to this RFQ by the published 4/26 closing date will require Q&A be published with at least one full business week to consume and adjust offers. Please consider an extension based on date of answer publication.

A6. The RFQ due date shall be extended.

Q8. How many Maximo licenses per type (e.g. full, limited, and express) need to be supported?

A8. 15 – Full (E0AUULL), 15 - Limited (E0AUTLL), 35 - Express (E0ED7LL)

Q9. Does the current Maximo 7.1 system have any customizations that were done without using the native Maximo tools such as db config or application designer?

A9. See Q3

Q10. It is stated that quotes are due on Sunday (26th). Is this accurate?

A10. See Q6

Q11. Is NIST able to provide the contractor a government furnished laptop for use in connecting via VPN to Maximo when offsite for “Remote problem analysis and assistance” as requested?

A11. No, VPN sessions would only be used for emergency situations and would not be in the scope of this contract.

Q12. Being that travel (based on number of upgrades is unknown), will the government pay for all approved travel separately (outside of this quote)?

A12. See Q4 and Q5

Q13. How many licensed users are to be supported?

A13. See Q8

Q14. How many users may call for support?

A14. We would like to limit this to only 2 people to be able to call for support.

Q15. The IBM-Maximo Proof of Entitlement comes directly from IBM to the client. This is not something that the support vendor is able to provide. Please clarify.

A15. The contractor would ensure that IBM has issued the POE within 30 days, after each year’s payment.

A16. Part number E036GLL is no longer a support part number from IBM. Has NIST received information that IBM still intends to provide that part number to NIST?

A16. No - See Q6

Q17. What are the exact and current part numbers and quantities for all licensing items to be renewed?

A17. See Q8

Q18. What is your new “due date” for our response? You mentioned that you were going to extend.

A18. See Amendment 1 and See Q6

Q19. We would like to know what company NIST has previously renewed these Maximo licenses with? Is there any reason for NIST to change the company you have been working with?

A19. The previous company we had worked with was over two years ago and this is a new contract and needs to competed. The basic reason for change is that this is a new contract, there are small businesses available to allow for competition per the FAR.

Q20. Given the due date of this Sunday (4/26) in combination with me just receiving the RFQ, might you consider an extension of three additional days to allow for enough time to get answers to these questions back, collaborate with our team, and get the required information from IBM and our Maximo Distributor?

A20. See Q6

Q21. The RFQ refers to “maintenance” work being required but I can find no definition of is meant by the term “maintenance” work. Can you provide a definition for “maintenance” work such that we can provide a time estimate for performing this task?

A21. “Maintenance work” for this contract, would mean work that would be required on a yearly basis to install patches, fixes and/or an upgrade.

Q22. The RFQ references performing “upgrade” work each calendar year (during the option years) but IBM does not always have upgrades each year. Is the intent to just make sure the latest patches (or upgrades if available from IBM) are applied during one time period (within 30 days of option notice) each year?

A22. That is correct, that is the intent.

Q23. To properly estimate the upgrade level-of-effort/cost, we need to know if any customizations exist within the current Maximo system. We define customizations as any extensions to the delivered Maximo objects (e.g. Java class files, custom programming, etc…).

A23. See Q3

Q24. To properly estimate the upgrade level-of-effort/cost, we need to know if any integration to external systems exists within the current Maximo system. If so, please provide a list of these integrations including the number of interfaces for each integration and the whether the Maximo Integration Framework (MIF) is used for the integration.

A24. See Q3

Q25. We would like to confirm all upgrade work needs to be performed onsite as this increases cost for NIST? While we are happy to take this approach, it is standard within the industry to perform upgrades offsite and then deliver the resulting upgraded database onsite.

A25. All upgrades, patches and fixes work would be done at the Boulder site once a year. This is mandated by NIST IT security.

Q26. Assuming the upgrade must be performed onsite; can you confirm the availability of required IT infrastructure to support up to 3 additional instances of v7.6 Maximo (Dev, Test, and Prod)?

A26. Our IT people are aware of the requirements and the infrastructure is already in place. On a side note, we are only using Production and Test environments (development does not exist). Also see Q27

Q27. Can you clarify what happens if contractor shows up to perform the upgrade and NIST IT personnel are not available in a timely manner to provide the necessary access to the NIST systems?

A27. The contractor schedules their site visit with the Maximo Administrator; no unannounced site visits will be done by the contractor. This scheduling will ensure that our IT department, which has a large staff, will have the appropriate personnel available. But, in the event that there are unforeseen circumstances, a work around will be made with substitute staff and any down time will be short (less than an hour) in nature.

Q28. Can we assume this is a Time & Materials quote?

A28. No, all quotes shall be firm-fixed price. Training and Travel Line Items will be NTE.

Q29. Can you clarify the planned time for an award announcement?

A29. Award is planned to be made for a June 1, 2015 start date.

Q30. What is your IBM Customer Number (ICN) and Site ID for the licenses indicated?

A30. See Q1

Q31. How many Maximo licenses are included on your Annual S&S Agreement? The RFQ seems to indicate you only have quantity one (1) license – is that correct?

A31. No - See Q8

Q32. Regarding Training, I only want to confirm only two employees are required to attend?

A32. That is correct and any travel/per diem for federal employees are at the government’s expense.

Q33. Can you clarify what the following statement means exactly as we are a small business (with ORCA certification) but I don’t know what the size standard dollar amount means exactly? This solicitation is a total small business set-aside. NAICS Code is 541519 with a size standard of $27.5M for this procurement.

A33. All interested parties must have updated representations and certifications in SAM.gov. For quotations to be considered the interested parties are to have this NAICS code on file identifying that they are a small business when using this NAICS. Some companies have multiple NAICS, some for which would exclude them from quoting as a small business. It is up to the contractor to discuss with their financial department where they stand.