Responses_to_Questions_Received.pdf

“NICHD Meeting and Conference Logistics Support”

Responses to Questions from RFP NIH-NICHD-DER-2019-17

Amendment Two is hereby released to provide answers to the questions received in response to the subject solicitation issued on July 22, 2019. Offerors were instructed to provide all questions no later than 10:00 a.m. on July 30, 2019. In the following document, the Government provides the answers to each question that was received. NO further questions will be accepted in regard to this solicitation.

This amendment also provides the following attachments to assist Offerors with preparation of their Business proposals:

Attachment #12 – SAMPLE TASK ORDER Attachment #13 – LEVEL OF EFFORT FOR IDIQ SOW Attachment #14 – LEVEL OF EFFORT FOR TASK ORDER #1

TECHNICAL QUESTIONS

1. Can the Government please provide the typical metrics, conference requirements and/or plug number for the ODC requirements to ensure a level playing field and fair and equal competition based on clear requirements and plug numbers for specific requirements that are not available or known? The government provides Attachment #12 Sample Task Order to assist with preparation of your proposal. The Sample Task Order will be used to assess the Offeror’s capabilities to conduct and fulfill the requirements of the SOW for projects of similar scope and size to be issued under the IDIQ contract awarded in response to this solicitation. Although the Sample Task Order will NOT be executed nor will an award be made for this Sample Task Order, Offerors are to include in their proposals a response that specifies the methods by which the Sample Task Order will be accomplished and the project management plan, with associated costs. The Government also provides Attachment #13 Level of Effort - IDIQ SOW to assist with budget preparation.

2. Will the government please provide specifics regarding the historical staffing level or projected level of effort on the contract, ideally labor categories and associated FTEs / hours. See Attachment #13 – Level of Effort IDIQ SOW.

3. Will the Government please provide sufficient historical conference metric/data or an example conference requirement to enable all offerors to provide the correct labor mix and basic cost/price elements information on a level playing field See Attachments #12 & #13 – Sample Task Order and Level of Effort IDIQ

SOW.

4. Will the Government provide previous workload data of conferences that has been conducted by the organization on the current contract vehicle, or provide examples or a Sample Task of a representative conference that may be issued as part of the new contract vehicle? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

5. In order to best compare vendor pricing, could you provide additional details to quantify the anticipated work? i.e. number and size of meetings and conferences, travel information, location of meetings, etc. Or, are you just looking for a pricing sheet similar to a GSA price list? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

6. For budget purposes, how many participants should contractor anticipate at each meeting? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

7. Can the government provide additional information on the types of potential meetings that may require support? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

8. Can the government provide an estimation of the number of registrants per meeting type? (e.g. committee meetings, symposiums, conferences) See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

9. Can the government provide an estimation of the number of participants the contractor will travel per meeting and/or per year? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

10. How many total participants for each meeting? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

11. What is the anticipated level of effort for each contract year? See Attachment #13 – Level of Effort IDIQ

SOW.

12. What is the anticipated level of effort for each contract year? See Attachment #13 – Level of Effort IDIQ

SOW.

13. Will NICHD provide historical data for the number, size, location and types of meetings held each year?

See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

14. For budget purposes, how many meetings do you anticipate per year? Is Attachment 10: Task Order #1

SOW provided as a sample task order, or a finite task order completed and submitted in tandem with this IDIQ? The Government anticipates 15-20 meetings per year. Task Order #1 is a finite task order which will be evaluated and awarded with the IDIQ contract. The Government also provides Attachment #14 Level of Effort – Task Oder #1.

15. Can the government provide an estimation of the number of meeting and conferences per year? 15-20 meetings per year

16. Can the government please inform vendors of approximately, how many events per calendar year are we expected to support and in what locations? 15-20 meetings per year. Location details will be provided in individual task order requests.

17. For budgeting purposes, how many meetings will NICHD hold each contract year? 15-20 meetings per year.

18. How many sponsored travelers for each meeting? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order

19. In what city will these meetings take place? Montgomery County, MD and DC areas.

20. For budget purposes, if offeror is expected to perform services for conference management, does NIH anticipate honorarium to participants? If so, how much should each participant receive per day? No honoraria payments for participants.

21. Will any sponsored participants receive an honoraria? If so, how many and in what total amount per person? No honoraria payments are anticipated.

22. For budget purposes, does NIH anticipate any component of the meetings to take place virtually? The Government does not anticipate virtual meetings.

23. For budget purposes, should the offeror anticipate printing large documents that could include binders, PowerPoints, and meeting documents? If so, how many pages per document to budget for? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

24. How many events will require materials produced by the contractor?

i. How many color pages?

How many black and white pages? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

25. For budget purposes, do you anticipate that the offeror will need to secure AV needs for each meeting? If so, what type of AV is needed? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

26. Will the government require the contractor provide audio/visual support or arrange for a vendor to support audio/visual requirements? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

27. How many events require onsite support? All meetings will require an onsite meeting coordinator.

28. How many events are held in Federal space? The Government anticipates all meetings to be held in federal meeting space. However, there may be instances where government meeting space is not available.

29. How many events are held in other venues where the contractor would be responsible for the cost of the meeting space? See response to question above.

30. Will any of the events require commercial meeting space? Only if government meeting space is unavailable. Meeting location details will be provided in individual task order requests.

31. Does the government, have a list of conferences that vendors will support under this IDIQ and the approximate locations? No. Details of name of conference and location will be provided in individual task order requests.

32. Does the government expect vendors to support conference and meetings OCONUS? How much of the work (appx what percentage) will be OCONUS? Will there be any foreign travel required in support of conference and meeting support under this IDIQ? No. The Government does not anticipate foreign travel; however, details for specific meeting information will be provided in individual task order requests.

33. For budget purposes, should the offeror assume meeting locations will be provided within the NIH campus in Bethesda? Yes, but some instances meetings may be off site depending on the availability of government meeting location.

34. Please confirm that the offeror may propose Assistant Principle Investigators/Project Manager for the TO level as they see fit? Offeror’s are to propose personnel commensurate with the requirements in the IDIQ and Task Order #1 SOW.

35. Please confirm that the Principle Investigator/Project Director and Contract Project Manager titles are all the same requirement at the contract level? Pg 51, b.1. title should read Project Manager.

36. Please confirm whether the Government consider the PM for TO SOW key? The Government considers the Project Manager and a Meeting/Conference Planners as key personnel for the IDIQ SOW. The Government considers the Project Manager as key personnel for the TO #1 SOW.

37. Will the government please confirm that the only Key Personnel is the Project Manager. See response to Question #17, under Technical Questions.

38. Please confirm whether only the Project Manager's resume (key personnel) is required to be submitted?

Resumes for key personnel are required in your submission.

39. PG 51, personnel, can the government confirm whether the single Principal Investigator/Project Director is considered Key personnel? Are their other positions the government considers key? Pg, 51, personnel, should read Project Manager. There is no Principal Investigator. Project Manager is a key personnel.

40. PG 10 under Article G.2 Key Personnel, it states, “ the following individuals is/are considered to be essential to the work being performed here under: Project Manager.” Does the government consider the project manager to be key personnel or/and Principal Investigator/Project Director? Or both? The Government considers the Project Manager to be a key personnel.

41. Can the Government please confirm that the only requirement for this TO technical response and Business Proposal pricing is the offeror’s approach to providing a fully qualified Project Manager, support staff, attending planning meetings with the COR/CO/Task Leads, and developing and providing the two deliverables as described in the SOW? Yes

42. Can the government clarify “Develop a database of participants, including contact information and any other information specified by the COR and CO, in a format acceptable to the COR?” Will a MS Excel roster of participants be acceptable? Is this a web-based environment such a google docs? Can the government provide more information on this requirement? “Develop a database of participants...”

means a participant roster. Specific details of the requirement will be provided in the individual task order request.

43. What is the government expectation for event webpages, what elements are potentially required? To disseminate and share conference information to participants. Specific details about the requirement will be provided in the individual task order request.

44. Does “Prepare meeting materials and speaker slides for posting on the NICHD Website following the meeting.” refer to 508 compliance editing? Or is this a reference to science and technical editing? No, the SOW requires the contractor to prepare meeting materials and speaker slides to be posted on the NICHD Website. All documents or services developed, created or prepared in the performance of the resultant contract must be 508 compliant.

45. Attachment 3 IDIQ Statement of Work, Section 2a top of p. 3 states the need for temporary web pages to disseminate information regarding conferences and to register conference participants. Is 508 remediation of all meeting materials posted to these web pages expected to solely be handled by the contractor? Or will some or all of the documents be checked for compliance internally by NICHD? Offerors are to refer to pg 24, Article H.9 Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Notice for details on Section 508 compliancy. Any services provided in the creation and development of materials must meet 508 requirements.

46. Since this requirement does not entail the delivery of research, please provide clarification on the need for a Principal Investigator or Project Director. A Principal Investigator or Project Director is not required for this work.

47. The Approach in the statement of work refers to the delivery of Research Information, which is not referenced in the Statement of Work. Please advise on the need for the delivery of Research for this requirement. Information throughout the solicitation that references research does not apply to this acquisition.

BUSINESS QUESTIONS

1. Can the government please clarify the contract maximum ceiling is $8,590,000? The government confirms that the max ceiling amount is $8,590,000.

2. Can the government please confirm the ceiling dollar value on this IDIQ? $8,590,000

3. Request the Government provide a reasonable extension of the due date commensurate with the time it takes the

Government to provide the required data/metric to bid this opportunity? The government extends the proposal submission due date to August 22 by 11:00 am local time.

4. Will the government extend the submission date by 1 week (7 days)? The government extends the proposal submission due date to August 22 by 11:00 am local time.

5. Please clarify whether it is Government’s intent to award an IDIQ contract as SATOC or MATOC? Can the Government please clarify whether all TO issued on this IDIQ will be CR or is possible that some TO’s or other contract requirements may be issued as FFP (if appropriate) or some other contract type? See page 44, item (d) Type of Contract and Number of Awards in the solicitation. All task orders issued from this contract will be CR.

6. The requirements/stipulations in Article H3 and H14 applicable to the purchase of Promotion Items appear to be in conflict and confusing. Please clarify? Article H3 is not found on page 26; therefore, the government cannot answer your question. Article H.14, Use of Funds for Promotional Items, does apply in which the Contractor shall not use contract funds to purchase promotional items. Article B.3 reads “The following is a list of items that may be included in the resultant contract as applicable. This does not say the items will be included as applicable to the resultant contract. For this requirement, promotional items will not be applicable to the resultant contract.

7. Can the Government please provide additional guidance for submissions from Joint Venture offerors? Offerors submitting proposals in response to this solicitation shall follow #2(a-c), Instructions to Offerors, pg 46.

8. We assume that Government also wants to have information provided for Part Time employees that we propose to be used on this contract and no letter of committee is required for any full time or part time employee of the company.

Please clarify? Offerors are to submit information on proposed personnel (whether full-time or part-time) that are currently members of the Offeror’s staff. For proposed personnel who are not currently members of the Offeror’s staff, then commitment letters are required.

9. Will the government please clarify if and how the section Additional Personnel paragraph b.1.b.2 (pages 51 /52) applies to this solicitation. Specifically, “…For all proposed personnel who are not currently members of the offeror's staff, a letter of commitment or other evidence of availability is required. A resume does not meet this requirement…” A requirement for respondent companies to supply resumes and letters of commitment for all position would place an unfair burden on small companies and severely impact competition. Offerors who are proposing personnel to be assigned for direct work on the resultant contract and they are not employees of your company must submit commitment letters or other evidence of availability to assure the Government that these individuals are committed and available for work on the resultant contract.

10. For open positions that may require new personnel to be identified and hired or contracted, what should be included in our proposal in lieu of a letter of commitment? The Offeror should follow the instructions for b. Personnel pg 51.

11. Does the government require individual LOCs from proposed subcontractor staff? See response to Question #9, under Business Questions.

12. It is impossible for any offeror to know whether they would require the use of Government property unless the Government provides information on whether Government property would be available for use and detailed information on the number, type, and location of the conferences to be held. Will the Government provide sufficient information for offerors to answer this question? If not, recommend this requirement be removed from the proposal submission instructions. Offerors are to use the pricing instructions for #3, Data Other than Certified Cost or Pricing Data, pg

53. The information for #4, Certified Cost or Pricing Data, pgs 54-58 will not apply and is omitted.

13. Will the government please provide reference to the appropriate Wage Determinations. The Government does not understand the question asked. However, wage determinations can be searched beta.sam.gov.

14. Will the Government please clarify whether the TO SOW proposal requirements are included in the 50-page technical volume or whether the technical proposal for the TO is a separate document with its own page count yet to be determined. The Technical proposal will comprise of two sections, the IDIQ discussion and Task Order #1 discussion. The Technical proposal which will consist of both discussions shall not exceed 50 pages.

15. Can the Government please clarify whether the proposal for the TO is included in 50-page limitation and a part of the IDIQ Technical Volume or should be developed as a separate technical proposal with additional page count? See response to question above.

Should the pricing for the TO be include in the Business Proposal or included in a separate Business Proposal for the TO? The TO #1 should be included in a separate Business proposal.

16. Is there a page limit for individual resumes, as part of the Personnel response of the Technical Proposal? Are resumes included in the 50-page limit for the Technical Proposal, or should they be included as an appendix? Offerors should limit resumes to 3 pages. The resumes/CVs, HHS Section 508 Produce Assessment template, charts, tables and graphs are excluded from the 50-page limitation of the Technical proposal.

17. Are quoters required to submit their Section 508 response as part of the Technical Proposal. If so, is it excluded from the 50-page limit set for the volume? Yes, Offerors are required to submit an HHS Section 508 Product Assessment Template to facilitate the Government’s determination whether proposed EIT supplies meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards. Yes, it is excluded from the 50-page limitation.

18. Resume instructions are for key personnel only. Would the government want to see non-key personnel? And can resumes be attached as an appendix outside of the 50-page limit? Yes, resumes are required for key personnel. Resumes are excluded from the 50-page limitation.

19. Will the government amend the page count limit in the RFP to allow resumes, LOCs and 508 compliance checklist to be excluded? The Technical proposal page limitation remains at 50 pages; however, resumes, LOCs, and 508 compliance checklist are excluded from the page limitation.

20. Will the Government consider excluding a compliance matrix and key personnel resumes from page count? The Government excludes compliance matrix and resumes/CVs from the 50-page limitation.

21. Could the Government please confirm that the current incumbent is ineligible to bid this new requirement? Could the government please reconfirm the contract number provided is accurate? The incumbent is not eligible to bid on the services. The solicitation was set aside for 8(a) vendors. The HHSN275201800078U contract # is correct and was awarded through the GSA Federal Supply Schedule and not via FBO.

22. Is there an incumbent currently performing all or some of the requirements in the SOW? The incumbent currently performs requirements of the SOW.

23. If there is an incumbent can you please provide the contract number? HHSN275201800078U

24. Is there an incumbent currently performing these services? Yes

25. Please clarify the contract award number for Palladian Partners, which was listed as HHSN275201800078U. Unable to locate this contract number in the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS). The HHSN275201800078U contract # is correct and was awarded through the GSA Federal Supply Schedule and not via FBO.

26. Is the incumbent or any of its subcontractors under the prior contract eligible to bid? This solicitation is set aside for 8(a) firms in which the incumbent is not eligible to bid.

27. Can the Government please add the requirement to section L that are being evaluated in Section M. Amendment 1:

Attachment 11 – Technical Evaluation Factors was posted July 23, 2019 to add the criteria for the evaluation factors. Additionally, the rating will be based on a combined evaluation of the technical proposal comprised of two sections, the IDIQ discussion and Task Order #1 discussion. Therefore, the two sections will not be rated individually. The combined evaluation rating will be used for selecting the Offeror.

28. Page 46 states that the proposal shall be submitted according to instructions indicated in the Attachment entitled PACKAGING AND DELIVERY OF PROPOSAL, Part III, Section J. This section of the RFP refers to a List of Attachments, none of which reference PACKAGING AND DELIVERY OF PROPOSAL. Should offerors assume that this refers to Attachment 1 on page 65 of the RFP pdf, despite this section not being labeled as Part III, Section J? Yes

29. What specific ODC line items should be included in the offerors budget? See Attachments #12 & #13 – Level of Effort, IDIQ SOW and Task Order #1 Level of Effort.

30. Will NICHD provide a standard line item for ODCs for offerors to use in their cost proposals for equal comparisons across offerors? See response above.

31. Will NICHD provide a sample task for budgeting purposes? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

32. Will the Government please provide clarification on what minimum font size is required for text and what font size is required for graphics and tables. Per the solicitation, Arial font size of 10 to 12 point. Offerors are permitted to use graphics and tables but they must be easily legible.

33. On page 53 and page 55 under general instructions, the first page pricing instruction seems to be different. Which should we use for the first page of pricing proposal? Offerors are to use the pricing instructions for #3, Data Other than Certified Cost or Pricing Data, pg 53. The information for #4, Certified Cost or Pricing Data, pgs 54-58 will not apply and is omitted.

34. Does the government require an executive summary as part of the submission? It is at the Offeror’s discretion to submit an Executive Summary.

35. RFP p. 49 Number 10. Past Performance Information requirements conflict with Pertinent Contracts requirements on page 62. Please clarify if the past performance documentation requires three contracts completed during the past three or five years or currently being performed by the contractor. Will the government consider three past performances similar in nature to the solicitation from the prime and one additional from the subcontractor? Per the instructions on pg 49, 10.1- Past Performance Information, Offerors shall submit a list of the last 3 contracts completed during the past Five years and currently being performed that are similar in nature to the SOW. Offerors may use past performance for subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement when information is relevant to the instant acquisition.

36. Also, please clarify the required listing of data for each past performance as there are discrepancies between pages 49 and

62. Pg 62, Pertinent Contracts requires Offerors to provide a summary listing of each related contract completed within the last three years or currently in process.

37. Can subcontractor past performance count as one of the three required references for past performance?

See pg 49, #10 Past Performance, 1, 4th sentence: Offerors may also submit past performance information regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience or subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement when such information is relevant to the instant acquisition.

38. RFP p. 50 letter b. Technical Proposal Instructions contain numerous references to requirements that are not consistent with the scope of work for meeting and conference logistics support. An example: under 1.a.1. Objectives: “Review pertinent work already published which is relevant to this project and your proposed approach.” Also, on p. 51 number 4 “Schedule” asks for a schedule for completion of work and delivery of items in the statement of work (SOW). The statement of work in Attachment 3 and the Sample Task Order #1 SOW in Attachment 10 provide insufficient detail from which to develop a schedule. Please clarify technical proposal instructions. The Offeror shall follow the instructions in the paragraph under b. Technical Proposal Instructions, pg 50 to satisfy a discussion of the Technical proposal.

Item b.1. Technical Discussions provides a baseline of what the Offeror should cover in their discussion if it applies. Language referencing research shall be excluded as it does not apply. Offerors should provide a discussion of their Technical proposal of how they will accomplish the work.

39. Attachment 10 – Task Order 1- SOW, does the government expect vendors to respond to the IDIQ and task order? If so, please provide evaluation criteria for both. Yes. See Attachment #11 – Technical Evaluation Criteria and response to Question #27, under Business Questions.

40. Attachment 10 – Task Order 1 -SOW, can the government clarify if we need to provide a technical solution and pricing to the task order and IDIQ? Yes

41. How many awards will be made under this IDIQ? Is this a single award? The Government anticipates one (1) IDIQ contract and the first Task Order #1 will be awarded from this solicitation.

42. Will there be one or multiple awardees? The Government anticipates that one (1) IDIQ contract and the first Task Order #1 will be awarded as a result of this solicitation.

43. How would the NICHD like contractors to estimate costs within the Electronic Contract Business Proposal template for hard costs like meeting space, travel and invited speakers given the expected variances and factors that will impact costs (e.g., location, number of days, number of attendees, number of events)?

Should we instead focus on rates for Direct Labor only? To assist with your budget estimates, see Attachments #12, #13, #14.

44. Are there any preferred project management tools for communication with the NICHD? No

Additional Responses to Questions

1. Article G.2. on page 10 of the solicitation lists Project Manager as the primary (or essential) key personnel.

Page 51, section b. (1.) lists Single Principal Investigator/Director as the first key primary personnel. Which is accurate? Project Manager is the accurate title.

2. The Technical Proposal Instructions (item b) on page 50 of the solicitation indicates, “A detailed work plan must be submitted…” followed by a sentence that states, “Your technical approach should be in as much detail…as necessary…” In this first paragraph, are the words work plan and technical approach being used interchangeably? Yes.

3. For meeting-related task orders: a. on average, approximately how many attendees would the awardee be supporting?

a. on average, approximately how many guest speakers would be included on a program agenda?

b. does NIH require the awardee to collaborate with specific travel agencies to coordinate travel logistics?

c. will in-person conferences be required to be conducted at NIH-specific facilities?

e. on average, how much advanced notice will the awardee be given to plan for teleconferences? in-person conferences? video-conferences? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order.

4. Article B.3 Provisions Applicable to Direct Costs, states in part “The following list of items that may be included in the resultant contract as applicable (2) food for meals, light refreshments & beverages, (3) promotional items” . . . Article H.13 and H.14 expressly prohibits the use of contract funds for these items.

Which is correct? Article B.3 reads “The following is a list of items that may be included in the resultant contract as applicable. This does not say the items will be included as applicable to the resultant contract.

For this requirement, food for meals, light refreshments & beverages and promotional items will not be applicable to the resultant contract.

5. Article G.3 Task Order Procedure, Paragraph 2 Requesting Task Orders Proposals states the contracting officer may solicit responses to requirements from contractors within a technical area covered by a task order requirement in writing. Based on Attachment 3 – IDIQ Statement of Work, to what type technical area is the Task Order Procedure referring to? It refers to Management and Administration, Logistical Meeting and Conference Support..., Data Retrieval and Other Admin Support, and Transition.

6. Will task orders cover coordination of multiple concurrent events or a single planning event? Task orders will cover single events.

7. For Attachment 10, Task Order 1 SOW, will more information be provided to complete the Pre-task Work Plan, i.e where the meeting will be held, and the length of the meeting, etc.? Task Order #1 will not require meeting support. This task order will be to provide core contract management functions.

1. What is the quantity of events that will require high level program management? 15-20 meetings per year

2. What is the objective of these events? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order

• Will these be 3rd party events? No

• Will these be NICHD hosted events? Yes

3. What is the audience of this event? researchers, scientists, NIH staff

• Ex: Customer, partner, etc.

4. How often will you need someone onsite at this event? See IDIQ SOW under Logistical Meeting and Conference Support, Evaluation and Strategic Planning

• Will you need someone at each meeting to record the meeting minutes and create summaries that capture salient points of the discussions? No

5. What is the database platform that will host participant information? The Contractor will be required to develop database of participant roster information.

6. How often will you need us to schedule travel/accommodations (gifting and hospitality)? See response to Question #1, Technical Questions.

7. What is the targeted experience for a Project Manager? Offeror is to refer to Amendment 1, Attachment #11, Section M – Technical Evaluation Factors for Award

• Entry level 1-3 years

• Associate 4-6 Years

• Senior 6+

8. What is the targeted experience for a Meeting Coordinator? Offeror is to refer to Amendment 1, Attachment #11, Section M – Technical Evaluation Factors for Award

• Entry level 1-3 years

• Associate 4-6 Years

• Senior 6+

9. What level of technical support will you need at these events? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order

• Audio, video, webcast, sign language interpretation?

10. What level of experience is expected for a Graphic Designer? Offeror is to refer to Amendment 1, Attachment #11, Section M – Technical Evaluation Factors for Award

11. Is there a specific standard that the facilities must be aligned to? No

12. How frequently could activities be carried out under subcontracts? The Government does not understand this question.

13. How frequently does communication need to occur with the COR? Specific details will be provided in the individual task order requests.

• Ex. - monthly meeting support

14. Is there a specific platform that must be used to carry out surveys, teleconferences, printing, etc.? No.

15. Are there any Service Level Agreements that should be outlined? No.

1. We respectfully request extending the submission due date to August 30, 2019 to ensure there is adequate time to incorporate responses to questions and provide the Government with sufficient information and our best terms from a technical, past performance, and price standpoint. The Government extends the proposal submission due date to August 22 by 11:00 am local time.

2. The contract resulting from this solicitation will be an templated by FAR 16.504. The Contractor shall be reimbursed by the Government in an amount not less than a total of $60,000 (minimum) nor more than a total of $8,59,0000 (maximum) for successful performance of this contract. Can the government confirm the maximum contract value? The maximum contract value is $8,590,000.

3. Is there a page limit or range for the final report? No

4. Page 50 of the RFP states that the Technical Proposal should be organized as follow: a) Statement of Work, b) Personnel, c) Other Considerations. On the other hand, Section M identifies the following Technical Evaluation Factors: 1) Corporate Experience, 2) Project Management Plan, 3) Key Personnel and Other Personnel Qualifications, 4) Transition. Please clarify which structure/guideline offerors should follow when preparing their proposals. Section M: Technical Evaluation Factors have no bearing on the layout of the Technical proposal. The Technical Evaluation Factors will be used in evaluating the Technical proposal. Offerors are to follow Technical proposal instructions on pg 50 of the RFP to organize their proposals.

5. How should offerors organize their response to the IDIQ and TO-1 requirements within the Technical Proposal?

See response to Question #11, under Business Questions.

6. Can the government confirm what items should be included in the IDIQ business volume? The Technical proposal will comprise of two sections, the IDIQ discussion and the Task Order #1 discussion.

7. Please clarify how the IDIQ and TO-1 will be scored? Both the IDIQ and TO-1 proposal will be evaluated using an adjectival rating scale as stated in Section M of the solicitation.

8. Volume 1 – Technical shall not exceed a total of 50 pages (inclusive of all Attachments). The total page limitation does not include: Title and Back Page, Table of Contents, Executive Summary, or Section Dividers that do not contain information other than the title of Section. Can the government confirm (1) that both the IDIQ and TO-1 responses must fall within the 50-page limit or is the 50 pages for the IDIQ alone? If so, what is the page limit for TO-1? The Technical proposal will comprise of two sections, the IDIQ discussion and Task Order #1 discussion. The Technical proposal shall not exceed 50 pages.

9. Please confirm that resumes are excluded from the 50-page limit for the Technical Proposal. Yes

10. Are works cited/bibliographies exempted from the NTE page limit for Technical Proposal? Yes

11. Will the Government consider increasing the page limit for the Technical Proposal to 60 pages given that Offerors are required to address both the IDIQ and TO-1 requirements in this volume? No, the technical proposal page limitation is 50 pages.

1. Is there a budget for this Solicitation? See Attachment #13 & #14 for level of effort for both the IDIQ SOW and Task Order #1 SOW.

2. Is there an existing NICHD web registration website, or is the Contractor required to develop a new website from scratch? The Contractor will be required to develop conference registration website.

3. How many events is the Contractor required to plan per year? 15-20 meetings per year

4. What is the number of staff required on-site? See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order

5. Can you clarify what the ‘evaluation support of meetings’ requires? Specific details for this activity will be provided in the individual task order requests.

6. Is there a preferred transcription service by NICHD or can the Contractor make its recommendations?

Contractor will recommend.

7. Should the Cover page be submitted as a separate document or as part of the Technical response? Separate document

8. Is the Single Principle Investigator/Project Director position required to perform on-site? There is no Single Principle Investigator/Project Director position for this requirement. The title is Project Manager. No, the Project Manager is not required to perform onsite.

9. Page 47, #4 mentions the technical proposal must include a direct cost. Does that mean a full burden rate which includes the direct and indirect rates? Please refer to same paragraph, 3rd sentence, which states “However, the technical proposal should not include pricing data relating to individual salary information, indirect cost rates.....”

10. Page 87 – can the government provide visibility to how many new Project Assignments are initiated annually? Not at this time.

11. Task Order 1: How many labor hours does the government anticipate the Project Manager? See Attachments # 13 & #14, Level of Effort for IDIQ SOW and Task Order #1.

12. With regards to pricing the IDIQ, does the government prefer we only provide Labor Categories and Labor rates? See response to question above.

13. Can the government provide a forecast on annual labor hours by labor categories anticipated for the IDIQ and Task Order? See response to question #11 above.

1. Is there an expectation that the contractor will conduct most work within the NIH IT Network onsite at a designated NIH location or remotely using a VPN? No

2. Is the contractor expected to maintain its own NIST SP 800-171 compliant WAN/LAN network? This requirement is not for IT services.

3. Will all PCs used by the contractor for this contract need to be encrypted using a FIPS 140-2 validated encryption solution? This requirement is not for IT services.

4. Are files at rest encrypted using 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) compliant within the framework of this contract? This requirement is not for IT services.

5. Are files in transit using SSL/TSL to create a secure tunnel protected by 128-bit or higher Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption compliant within the framework of this contract? This requirement is not for IT services.

6. What is the expected frequency of in-person and virtual meetings during the base year? 15-20 meetings per year

7. Please elaborate on what Patient Care Costs could arise out of this contract award. There are no Patient Care Costs for this requirement.

1. Should the technical proposal address the broad requirements in Attachment 3 (IDIQ Statement of work) or in Attachment 10 (Task Order #1 SOW) or both? Both; the Technical proposal will consist of two sections, the IDIQ discussion and the Task Order #1 discussion.

2. Should the price proposal address the broad requirements in Attachment 3 (IDIQ Statement of work) or in Attachment 10 (Task Order #1 SOW) or both? Both.

3. If Attachment 10 (Task Order #1 SOW) has to be addressed, is there any more details on the requirement of this task order since the SOW provided does not list many specific requirements? Task Order #1 is only for core contract management functions. Meeting support will not be required for this task order.

4. With regards to the price proposal, how should ODCs be addressed, since ODCs are not described or quantified in enough detail to price them accurately? See Attachments #13 & #14 – Level of Effort for IDIQ SOW and Task Order #1.

5. Based on past activity, can the government provide an expected number of task orders anticipated over each year of the period of performance and a brief description of each (number of participants, anticipated dates, broad requirements, location, etc.) See Attachment #12 – Sample Task Order. The government anticipates 15-20 meetings per year.

6. Based on past activity, can the government provide the expected level of effort from the program manager over each year of the period of performance (is it 100% or less?), as well as the overall anticipated contractor labor hours spent per year? See Attachments #13 & #14, Level of Effort for IDIQ SOW and Task Order #1.

7. Are there any specific requirements for the project manager? (years of experience, special qualifications, etc.) See Amendment 1, Attachment 11 - Section M: Technical Evaluation Factors

1. We ask for the government to please remove or clarify the statements below:

Can the Government please provide a revised RFP with Technical Proposal Instructions that pertain to the SOW?

Otherwise, Offerors cannot provide a compliant response to the solicitation. The Government will not provide a revised RFP. Language referencing research does not apply to this requirement.

Page 51, Approach, second paragraph states: “Discuss phasing of research and, if appropriate, include experimental design and possible probable outcome of approaches proposed.” The Government agrees this statement does not apply and is omitted from this solicitation.

Page 51, Methods states: “Describe in detail the methodologies you will use for the project, indicating your level of experience with each, areas of anticipated difficulties, and any unusual expenses you anticipate.” The Government agrees this statement does not apply and is omitted from this solicitation.

Page 51, Personnel states: “Special mention shall be made of direct technical supervisors and key technical personnel, and the approximate percentage of the total time each will be available for this program.” The section further states: “OFFERORS SHOULD ASSURE THAT THE PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR, AND ALL OTHER

PERSONNEL PROPOSED, SHALL NOT BE COMMITTED ON FEDERAL GRANTS AND CONTRACTS FOR

MORE THAN A TOTAL OF 100% OF THEIR TIME. IF THE SITUATION ARISES WHERE IT IS DETERMINED

THAT A PROPOSED EMPLOYEE IS COMMITTED FOR MORE THAN 100% OF HIS OR HER TIME, THE

GOVERNMENT WILL REQUIRE ACTION ON THE PART OF THE OFFEROR TO CORRECT THE TIME

COMMITMENT.” The Government agrees this language does not apply and is omitted from this solicitation.

Page 51, 1. Single Principal Investigator/Project Director position is inconsistent with the requirement to provide a Project Manager as detailed on page 2 of the SOW and page 10, Article G.2. Key Personnel. The title for this item should be Project Manager.

Page 52, 2. Additional Personnel requires Commitment Letters to include “How rights to publications and patents will be handled.” The Government agrees this statement does not apply and is omitted from this solicitation.

Page 52, 3. Resumes states “Resumes of all key personnel are required. Each must indicate educational background, recent experience, specific or technical accomplishments, and a listing of relevant publications.

Resumes of key personnel are required; however, a listing of relevant publications does not apply and is omitted from this solicitation.

Page 52, 2. Other Considerations, part d. requests “Other factors you feel are important and support your proposed research. The Government agrees this statement does not apply and is omitted from this solicitation.