NRC-HQ-11-R-33-0011 A002

5. PROJECT NO.

CODE 7. ADMINISTERED BY

2. AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NO.

CODE

6. ISSUED BY

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NO. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE

9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NO.

9B. DATED

PAGE OF

10A. MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NO.

10B. DATED

BPA NO. 1. CONTRACT ID CODE

FACILITY CODE CODE

Offers must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended, by one of the following methods:

The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers

E. IMPORTANT:

is extended,

(a) By completing Items 8 and 15, and returning __________ copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted; or (c) By separate letter or telegram which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR AC- KNOWLEDGMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY is not extended.

12. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

(REV. 10-83)

is required to sign this document and return ___________ copies to the issuing office. is not, A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

15C. DATE SIGNED

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by telegram or letter, provided each telegram or letter makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

C. THIS SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS ENTERED INTO PURSUANT TO AUTHORITY OF:

D. OTHER

BY

Contractor

16C. DATE SIGNED

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION

16B. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect.

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER 16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

STANDARD FORM 30 NSN 7540-01-152-8070

PREVIOUS EDITION NOT USABLE Prescribed by GSA - FAR (48 CFR) 53.243

(Type or print) (Type or print)

(Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

(No., street, county, State and ZIP Code)

(If other than Item 6)

(Specify type of modification and authority)

(such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.)

(If required)

(If applicable)

(SEE ITEM 11)

(SEE ITEM 13)

(X)

(X)

13. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS,

IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF SOLICITATIONS

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

(Signature of person authorized to sign) (Signature of Contracting Officer)

1 17

A002

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Div. of Contracts Attn:

Mail Stop: TWB-01-B10M Washington, DC 20555

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Div. of Contracts Mail Stop: TWB-01-B10M

Washington, DC 20555

To all Offerors/Bidders NRC-HQ-11-R-33-0011

X

X

SEE PAGE 2

A002

The purpose of this amendment is to:

1. Revise language in Section M.2.3 Technical Capability Subfactor C – Corporate Experience:

Remove language:

The following evaluation criteria apply to all five functional areas.

The following subfactors are approximately equal in importance.

The Government will evaluate:

The removed language is replaced with the following:

The following evaluation criteria apply to all five functional areas.

The following subfactors are approximately equal in importance.

The Government will evaluate the Offeror, the Offeror’s subcontractors and teaming partners in the following:

2. Publish the Government’s response to Potential Offerors’ questions:

1. Question: RFP reference: L.3 52.216-1 TYPE OF CONTRACT (APR 1984) “Small businesses may submit proposals in all five functional areas, while Other Than Small Businesses are limited to being able to submit proposal(s) in the full and open competition functional areas (FA1, FA2 and FA3).”

Will the Government please confirm that Other Than Small Businesses are prohibited from submitting proposals as the prime contractor in Functional Areas 4 and 5, but may participate as a subcontractor for these functional areas?

Answer: That is correct, other than small businesses are prohibited from submitting proposals as the prime contractor in FA4 and FA5, however, they may participate as a subcontractor in FA4 and FA5. Please note that FA4 and FA5 small business offerors will be required to comply with FAR clauses 52.219-6, 52.244-2 and 52.244-2 which will impact subcontracting under those functional areas.

2. Question: If a company is a subcontractor on the team that is awarded Functional Area 1, is that company then precluded from being awarded a contract as a prime contractor or subcontractor on Functional Areas 2, 3, 4, or 5.

Answer: Yes.

3. Question: If Other Than Small Business submits a proposal for Functional Area 1, 2, or 3, are they then precluded from participating as a subcontractor on a team submitting a proposal for Functional Area 4 or 5?

Answer: No. See answer to Question 1. If an other than small business submits a proposal in FAs 1, 2, or 3, they are not precluded from participating in as a subcontractor in a proposal for FAs 4 or 5. However, the offeror who is awarded the FA1 contract will be precluded from participating as a subcontractor on any other FA.

4. Question: Can a business bid on multiple teams simultaneously for Functional Areas 1, 2, and 3?

Answer: An offeror may participate as an offeror and/or a subcontractor under multiple functional areas, but if they are awarded the contract for FA1, they would not be eligible for award as a prime contractor or subcontractor under any other functional area.

5. Question: RFP Reference M.3 Past Performance Information Factor (Volume IV)

“In evaluating past performance information, the Government will make an assessment of the offeror's (and/or significant subcontractor’s) performance completed only within the past three years or currently in process.”

Answer: If the purpose of the statement is to confirm that the Government will only evaluate past performance information within the past three years or currently in process, then yes the Government will evaluate past performance information on active contracts and/or three years past a contract ending date.

6. Question: Do you know if this contract will allow larger small businesses to stay on long term after they have graduated, or will they "off" ramp them once they graduate?

Answer: See FAR clause 52.219-28, Post-Award Small Business Size Program Representation, in Section I of the solicitation.

7. Question: If they plan to "off" ramp them once they do graduate I would expect some companies may elect to form JV's so they can remain on the contract. Would a JV be an acceptable way of participating in the response effort?

Answer: The Government assumes that “JV” means joint venture as that term is defined in FAR 19.101(7)(i) through (iv). Offerors may form joint ventures for this acquisition. FAR clause 52.219-28 would also apply to such joint ventures and would be one criterion that would impact a contractor’s ability to remain on the contract, as well as whether the Government exercises an option to extend the term of the contract for the contractor.

8. Question: Does the NRC plan on requiring a CMMI appraisal at Level 2 or 3 for the MoM small business respondents as a must have?

Answer: No.

9. Question: If an organization pledged to attain a CMMI Level 2 appraisal after a reasonable amount of time post award, would that be given equal weight as a company that already had that appraisal?

Answer: Proposals will be evaluated according to the criteria stated in Section M of the solicitation. CMMI is not a requirement for this solicitation.

10. Question: In the event that a small business did not have a current CMMI level appraisal, would NRC associate their subcontractor's/teaming partner's CMMI level appraisal with their response as a whole?

Answer: See answer to Question 9.

11. Question: Considering this RFP requirement, is there a specific evaluation criterion in Section M for which NRC will only consider the Prime contractor’s experience versus all of their teammates?

Answer: See Section M.2.3 in the evaluation factors for award. The offeror’s corporate experience, including its own experience and the experience of its subcontractors, will be evaluated.

12. Question: What is the projected distribution of the $240 million budget on this procurement per

Functional Area?

Answer: The NRC does not intend to provide an estimate per functional area; however, the total ceiling amount for the acquisition is $237 million. Of that ceiling amount, the estimate for FA1, FA2 and FA3 is approximately $97 million and the estimate for FA4 and FA5 (the small business set aside functional areas) is approximately $140 million.

13. Question: Can the NRC share their rationale for ordering the unrestricted FA submissions to precede the SBSA submissions?

Answer: The NRC has a more immediate need for FA1 and FA2 requirements than it does for FA3, FA4 or FA5 requirements. Also, anticipated availability of funding for FA3, FA4 and FA5 requirements was a consideration in the scheduling for proposal due dates.

14. Question: There is no mention in the solicitation of any requirements for managing and reporting

Capital Planning Investment Control (CPIC) and Earned Value Management (EVM) reporting. Since it is not stated as a requirement, should we identify how we should do this work requirement and develop costing and work level of effort to execute the systematic record keeping and data reporting for this requirement in our proposal

Answer: See section C.5.3 of the RFP. CPIC and EVM requirements are included in Management Directive (MD) 2.8.

15. Question: Given the FA1 contractor is ineligible for award of any other functional areas, does FA1 create a conflict with any other NRC system development efforts underway that are not part of the MOM solicitation?

16. Question: For FA1, how soon after award can the contractor expect to have access to GFE? Will GFE be transferred from the current contractor facility?

Answer: Once the FA1 contractor’s personnel for the first task order (which would be negotiated after award of the FA1 IDIQ contract is awarded) are cleared by the NRC Security Office, transition will begin.

17. Question: Given the need to incorporate GFE into the test facility for FA1 and the requirement to procure and implement a WAN connection between the facility and NRC Headquarters, what is the transition period from contract award to day one of full contract operations?

Answer: The Government anticipates a 30-90 day transition period, depending on personnel clearances, facility clearances, telecommunications, etc.

18. Question: Based on experience with connecting NRC HQ to contractor facilities, how much time should we plan for obtaining the WAN connection?

Answer: The offeror should discuss this matter with telecommunications provider(s) to determine schedule timelines.

19. Question: Please clarify if the NRC is evaluating whether the offeror plans to use personnel on NRC

MOM who represent key personnel who worked on contracts used in Past Performance.

Answer: No. Personnel qualifications are not an evaluation factor for this solicitation. Personnel qualifications may, however, be evaluated as part of proposals received for individual task order requirements in any functional area.

20. Question: For clarification, the instructions do not ask for resumes for any of the functional areas, is this correct?

Answer: That is correct.

21. Question: Given the need to incorporate GFE into the test facility for FA1 and the requirement to procure and implement a WAN connection between the facility and NRC Headquarters, what is the transition period from contract award to day one of full contract operations?

Answer: See answer to Question 17.

22. Question: Based on experience with connecting NRC HQ to contractor facilities, how much time should we plan for obtaining the WAN connection?

Answer: See answer to Question 18.

23. Question: Is the company supporting NRC’s Business Process Improvement Branch to help with guidance and implementation of the PMM restricted from bidding in any functional category?

24. Question: Is an awardee of FA3 restricted from participating in FA4 and FA5?

Answer: No. A contractor may hold a contract in FA3, FA4, and FA5 pools. However if they win a task in FA3, then they are precluded from bidding on the related development task in FA4.

25. Question: Regarding the cost/price template (Addendum FF), is the Government requesting Contractor provides Contractor site or Government site rates?

Section C.4.1.3 Place of Performance indicates work could be performed at either site, “The anticipated place of performance shall be at the contractor site and/or Government sites in Rockville, MD.” however the price template referenced in Section L12 3. Instructions For Volume II, “The offeror shall complete the cost/price template (Addendum FF).” appears to allow for rates at only one site.

Answer: The offeror may propose both on-site (Government site) and off-site (contractor site) fixed hourly rates. If the offeror elects to do that, then the Government would add the average proposed on-site fixed hourly rate to the average off-site fixed hourly rate for a given year to derive the average annual fixed hourly rate for the offeror for a given year and use those annual averages to derive the total evaluated cost/price for the offeror for evaluation purposes.

26. Question: Section C.7 Government and Contractor-Furnished Equipment & Software – references equipment that should be treated as a direct cost to NRC, how should these direct costs and any anticipated travel be included in the pricing template?

Answer: The Government does not require that these direct costs and anticipated travel be included at the time of proposal submission. This will be negotiated as a part of the first task order.

27. Question: Please explain the rationale for excluding contractors successful on bidding FA1 from bidding/winning awards on FA2 through FA5.

Answer: The Government intends to have the FA1 contractor maintain separation of duties from all other MOM contractors.

28. Question: Does participating as a subcontractor on FA-1 exclude a small business from being a subcontractor on FAs 2-5?

29. Question: The FA-3 award winner could steer design to a certain technology that would improve their chances of winning a task order in FA-4. If winning FA1 excludes winning in FA2-5, why doesn’t winning FA-3 exclude winning in FA-4?

Answer: See answer to Question 24.

30. Question: On FA-1 what is the current number and types of servers, databases and network equipment currently in use for this function?

Answer: Detailed information on the current number and type of servers, databases and network equipment will be provided with the first task order for FA1.

31. Question: On FA-1 if the testing environment migrates from a GFE based solution to a full cloud solution, will the FA-1 award winner still be required to maintain a physical presence within 10 miles of the NRC?

Answer: Yes, and the FA1 contractor would be required to provide the Government access to the cloud.

32. Question: Please clarify what is meant in "Place of Performance Sections" C.4.2.1 (pg. C-11), C.4.3.1

(pg. C-15, C.4.4.1 (pg. C-19) and C.4.5.1 (pg. C-21) where the verbiage reads: "The anticipated places of performance shall be at the contractor site(s) and/or Government sites in Rockville, MD."

Answer: The place of performance is either at the NRC location(s) in Rockville, MD or at the contractor’s location within limitation specified in Section C/Statement of Work.

33. Question: Does this mean that the contractor site(s) for FAs 2 through 5 must be in Rockville, MD, or is there merely a comma missing after “contractor site (s)?

Answer: See answer to question 32.

34. Question: This question (1) was asked earlier but we are providing it again as part of this set of questions so you will have a complete set from ATSC.

Reference RFP NRC-HQ-11_R-33-0011, Section L.4.a. l), Page L-17, which states:

“The offeror and any proposed significant subcontractor(s) shall provide the questionnaires provided as Exhibit 3 to each of the above references to establish a record of past performance. The Offeror shall instruct each of its references to return the completed questionnaire by scanning it and emailing it directly to pearlette.merriweather@nrc.gov, with a courtesy copy to joseph.widdup@nrc.gov. The questionnaire respondent shall be a representative from the technical customer and/or responsible Contracting Officer with direct knowledge of your organization’s performance on that contract/order“.

This exhibit is not among the documentation provided with the solicitation on the FBO NRC MOM page. Further there is no reference in the solicitation to an Exhibit 1 or 2 (or any others). Please provide a copy of Exhibit 3 to allow completion and processing as required, and clarify the status of any other exhibits.

Answer: See Addendum HH Past Performance Questionnaire.

35. Question: Small Business Subcontracting Plan. The following RFP references apply:

RFP Section L.10 a) on Page L-12 requires that “Small Business Subcontracting Plan that complies with FAR 52.219-9 Alternate II (required to be submitted only by offerors that are not a small business under FA2 and FA3 considering the NAICS code and related size standard for this solicitation; “It is confusing whether the reference to FA2 and FA3 is to determine a size standard, or designates a submission requirement.

a. RFP Section L.5 on Page L-17 requires that “The offeror, if “other than a small business” for this acquisition, shall submit either a commercial Small Business Subcontracting Plan or a solicitation-specific Small Business Subcontracting Plan that … for that clause.” This reference implies that all Other Than Small Businesses must submit a plan.

b. RFP Section M.1(c) on Page M-1 requires that “Each … The Small Business Subcontracting Plan factor, which applies only to FA2 and FA3, will be evaluated on a pass/fail basis.” This implies that only bidders on FA2 and 3 must submit a plan

c. RFP Section M.4 on Page M-5 requires that.” An “other than small business” offeror will be evaluated based upon its compliance with clause 52.219-9 Alternate II; its projected percentage of use of the small business concerns listed below; and the offeror’s procedures to ensure successful achievement of such projected percentages. The other than small business offeror's proposed small business subcontracting plan shall ensure that small businesses, including those identified in clause 52.219-9, have the maximum practical opportunity to participate in contract performance based upon the total dollars planned to be subcontracted. The target small business subcontracting goals for applicable NRC procurements reflect the Federal-wide small business goals and are as follows,” This reference again implies that all non small businesses must submit a plan.

Please clarify the Small Business Subcontracting Plan submission requirement, per Functional Area.

Answer:

a) See Amendment A001

b) See Amendment A001

c) See Amendment A001

36. Question: In section C.7 a “100 Mbps DS-3 WAN” is referenced while in section M2.2-FA1-c a “1 gigabit per second or faster” connection is referenced to connect the new centralized environment directly to the NRC. What speed connection is required?

Answer: Initially, the Government’s minimum requirement is 100 Mbps DS-3 WAN. At some point during the contract, the Government anticipates upgrading to a faster connection.

37. Question: In sections C.4.1.5 Development Environment and C.4.1.6 Test Environment, both environments are supposed to be “separated from the production environment”. We have several questions related to that separation:

a. What kind of connectivity (if any) is required between the test network and production network to move final versions of applications after the test phase has been completed with JAZZ suite.

b. Do the development and test environments need to be on separate networks from each other? Or can they be on the same network with logical separation.

c. If development and test networks are required to be on separate physical networks, how should changes be pushed from development to test to production?

a. DS-3 connection, as specified in Question 36.

b. Yes, the development and test environments may be on the same network with logical separation.

c. See answer to Question 37b.

38. Question: Section L.12.2 Instructions for Volume II – instructions are provided for the Management

Plan (Technical Capability Subfactor A- Management Plan), however, there are no specific instructions for Technical Approach (Technical Capability Subfactor B- Technical Approach) or Corporate Experience (Technical Capability Subfactor C- Corporate Experience) specified for FA1. Can you please clarify the Section L instructions as they apply to FA1?

Answer: See evaluation factors for award, as amended.

39. Question: Section L.12.3 Instructions for Volume III requires the completion of Addendum FF which provides the required and proposed labor categories and rates for work performed under this IDIQ. This seems to be the only pricing requirement for Volume III, however, Section C.7 Government and Contractor-Furnished Equipment & Software specifies “The FA1 contractor shall procure, operate and maintain a 100 Mbps DS-3 WAN connection between their facility and NRC Headquarters. The price for products and services required to maintain this connection shall be treated as a direct cost to the NRC.” Please clarify whether our price proposal must provide a cost estimate for the DS-3 WAN at time of proposal submission or will this be priced as part of a task order after contract award?

Answer: The Government does not require any price or configuration for the WAN at the time of proposal submission. This will be negotiated as a part of the first task order.

40. Question: Does the Government require a breakout between the fully-loaded rates/hour for the prime and any subcontractors?

Answer: Please read the instruction carefully. Also, please see FAR clause 52.216-31.

41. Question: Section L.9, Proposal Award Schedule, states that:

“The FA1 contractor will be ineligible for award of any other functional areas.”

Does this eligibility restriction apply only to a contractor who serves as prime contractor for FA1, meaning that a prime for FA1 will not be able to prime any other Functional Area proposals, or does the restriction include the following scenarios:

a. Subcontractor(s) to FA1 prime contractor – are FA1 subcontractor firms precluded from participating as a prime or a sub on any other functional area procurements?

Answer: Yes, the contractor awarded the FA1 contract will be precluded from participating as a prime or sub on any other functional area.

42. Question: For clarification what is the role of Rational tools in NRC-MOM? From our understanding;

contractors must comply with NRC’s MD 2.8 methodology, and that NRC utilizes the RUP model in the development environment. Would NRC please respond to the following questions:

a. What specific Rational tools are used as part of the RUP methodology utilized by NRC?

b. What specific Rational tools will NRC provide in the development environment for MOM?

a. Rational products currently used at the NRC:

ClearCase (7.0.1) ClearQuest (7.0.1) Functional Tester (8.2.1) Performance Tester (8.2.0) Test Manager (7.0.1) RequisitePro (7.0.1) SoDA (7.0.0) Rose (2003.06.16) ProjectConsole (7.0.1) Software Architect (7.5.4)

Rational Products that will be used in the centralized environment:

Team Concert (3.0) Quality Manager (2.0) Requirements Composer (2.0) Functional Tester (8.2.1) Performance Tester (8.2.0)

b. The pricing for use of these tools will be determined at the task order level.

43. Question: Reference RFP Section C.4.1: what is the VPN product on which NRC has either standardized or prefers in its overall IT infrastructure?

Answer: Citrix VPN is currently in use and is the standard identified in the NRC TRM.

44. Question: Reference RFP Section C.4.1.1: we request either an inventory or an estimate of NRC hardware that will be housed in the FA1 centralized environment. This inventory/estimate will help potential bidders in the sizing of infrastructure required for the centralized environment (e.g., floor space, power, cooling, etc.).

Answer: See answer to Question 30. However, new tasks may require changes using the target architecture.

45. Question: Reference RFP Section C.4.1.3: would the NRC consider data center locations in Prince Georges County as long as they meet the 10 mile distance requirement?

46. Question: Reference RFP page L-15: about half-way down the page is the paragraph “b) Technical Approach”. Does this paragraph belong to FA5-specific instructions immediately above, or to the general instructions as the following paragraph to “a. Management Plan” on the previous page (and thus applicable to all respondents regardless of FA)?

47. Question: Reference RFP page L-16: do paragraphs a), b) c) and d) at the top of the page apply to all respondents regardless of FA?

Answer: Yes. See evaluation factors for award, as amended.

48. Question: Reference RFP Section L-12.3 (page L-16): we request a clarification as to what data is being requested by the Government with the phrase “address how the proposed fixed hourly rate for the required labor categories was determined.”

Answer: See FAR clause 52.216-31 in the solicitation.

49. Questions Relate to FA 1:

a. Question: Reference RFP Section L, para 4 a) on page L-16. No limit on the number of referenced contracts is specified yet this section is limited to 10 pages including submissions by the prime and any significant subcontractors. Do you expect each offeror to submit information on all directly related contracts within the past 3 years for both the offeror and each significant subcontractor or just 3 or 4 directly related contracts?

Answer: RFP Section L, para 4 a), pg L-16 does not have a page limitation on references for the offeror and significant subcontractors. See Amendment A001 for additional information requiring the submission of past performance questionnaires by references indicated in Addendum AA – List of Contracts.

b. Question: Reference RFP Section M, para M.2.2 a) on page M-2. The NRC Technical Reference

Model (TRM) Table on page 24 of Appendix F does not mention the Jazz platform. Should that platform be added to the table? Will experience maintaining that platform be evaluated?

Answer: Please review Appendix F carefully. The Software Solution Implementation Support Tools section does mention Rational Tools based on the Jazz Platform. Yes, experience maintaining the Jazz platform will be evaluated.

c. Question: Reference RFP Section C, para C.4.1.5. How many current applications exist now in a deployed state those were developed in Java based on the Jazz platform?

Answer: No applications were deployed using Jazz; however, they have been deployed using other Rational tools.

d. Question: Reference RFP Appendix F and the Table starting on page 24 of the appendix section.

The table does not list the Jazz platform under any of the columns showing implementation platforms.

Please verify the role you expect the FA 1 vendor to have in supporting availability of the Jazz platform as part of the Technical Reference Model. Does NRC now use the Jazz Platform or will it be brought into the environment by the new FA 1 vendor?

Answer: Review Appendix F Software Solution Implementation Support Tools. The NRC is currently in the beginning stages of introducing the Jazz platform; however, it will be expected that the FA1 contractor will implement and support the Jazz platform.

e. Question: Reference RFP Section Addendum AA-List of Contracts. In the subsection titled Brief Description and How it is Similar to NRC's Requirement, will 50 to 100 words be sufficient for your evaluation purposes?

Answer: The document provided is editable. If more space is need, the offeror may either add more space to the document or attach an addendum that corresponds to the contract listed.

50. Question: Reference Section M.2.1 Technical Capability Subfactor A – Management Plan, Page M-2, FA 4: The Government will evaluate: a) The degree to which the proposed maintenance and operations approach will provide cross-utilization of staff resources in order to minimize the required number of staff while still providing timely maintenance and operational support.

The content of M.2.1 Technical Capability Subfactor A – Management Plan appears to be more applicable to FA5, not FA4. Can the government please review and clarify evaluation criteria for FA 4.

Additionally, in considering the evaluation criteria, we recommend the Government collapse FA 4 and FA 5 into one (1) functional area. Combination of the FA 4 and FA 5 into a single small business set aside provides the Government maximum flexibility during contract by: ensuring successful knowledge transfer between modernization efforts and maintenance and operations; facilitating effective use of resources by eliminating the need for parallel operations/hand-off between modernization and maintenance and operations, and; improving resource utilization by cross-training valuable resources to minimize the level of support required which will ultimately reduce the Government’s cost. It is our experience that combining modernization and maintenance and operations into a single FA provides the Government with optimal utilization of contracted expertise and the flexibility to ensure timely maintenance and operational support.

The Government will take your suggestion under consideration. At this time, separation of the functional areas will remain. The Government will make a final determination at least 90 days prior to proposal due date for FA4 and FA5 and, if the Government elects to merge FA4 and FA5, the solicitation will be amended accordingly at that time.

51. Question: Reference RFP NRC-HQ-11_R-33-0011, Section L.4.a. l), Page L-17, states:

“The offeror and any proposed significant subcontractor(s) shall provide the questionnaires provided as Exhibit 3 to each of the above references to establish a record of past performance. The Offeror shall instruct each of its references to return the completed questionnaire by scanning it and emailing it directly to pearlette.merriweather@nrc.gov, with a courtesy copy to joseph.widdup@nrc.gov. The questionnaire respondent shall be a representative from the technical customer and/or responsible Contracting Officer with direct knowledge of your organization’s performance on that contract/order. “

This exhibit is not among the documentation provided with the Solicitation on the FBO NRC MOM page. Furthermore, there is no reference in the Solicitation to an Exhibit 1 or 2 (or any others). Please provide a copy of Exhibit 3 to allow completion and processing as required, and clarify the status of any other exhibits.

Answer: See answer to Question 34.

52. Question: Reference RFP Section: L.12, Para No.: 12. a. FA1: b). Given the NRC currently uses a facility within 10 miles of the NRC Headquarters building with a dedicated high speed connection and a VPN connection already established, may the Offeror assume responsibility for continued operation of this facility?

Answer: The NRC does not use such a facility; a current contractor at NRC uses such a facility.

Responsibility for continued operation of the current facility must be coordinated with the current lease holder of that facility.

53. Question: Reference RFP Section: L.12 & C.4, Para No.: 12. a. FA1: b) & C.4.1.1. Will the NRC provide an inventory of Government-owned/furnished furniture at the facility for contractor use?

54. Question: Reference RFP Section: L.12, Para No.: 12. a. FA1: b). If floor plans are available for the current facility will the NRC provide bidders these for planning purposes?

Answer: If appropriate, floor plans will be provided with the solicitation for the first task order under the FA1 contract.

55. Question: Reference RFP Section: M.2, Para No: M.2.1. This section lists four evaluation factors that apply to all five functional areas. There are additional evaluation factors for FA2 and FA4. Are offerors to assume there are no additional evaluation factors for FA1?

56. Question: Reference RFP Section: M.2.2, Para No.: FA1-FA5. This section begins with the statement that the following evaluation criteria apply to all five functional areas, then lists 3 items for FA1 plus additional items for FA2-FA5. Please confirm that the items under FA2-FA5 apply only to those functional areas.

mailto:pearlette.merriweather@nrc.gov� mailto:joseph.widdup@nrc.gov�

57. Question: Reference RFP Section: M.5. This question is in reference to “…the Government will calculate the average of the Offerors proposed hourly rates for each of the 10 years and add those averages together to derive the evaluated cost/price for that proposal for source selection purposes.”

How will the Government evaluate its offers if Offerors are proposing additional labor categories that are not consistent among all Offerors?

Answer: Offerors shall only propose fixed hourly labor rates for the labor categories that are identified in the solicitation Addendum FF. If, on a task order by task order basis, the NRC determines that additional labor categories may be necessary, then the Government will direct offerors for those task orders accordingly.

58. Question: Reference RFP Section: C, Para No: C.4.1. This states “The FA1 contractor shall provide high-speed (something other than dial-up) internet access.” Please provide detail as to the current level of bandwidth provided.

Answer: See answer to Question 36.

59. Question: Reference RFP Section: C, Para No: C.4.1.5. How many developers will be supported in the development environment?

Answer: An exact number is not known at this time because it depends on the number of contractors selected for each FA. The Government estimates between 5 and 20 developer personnel will need to access the centralized environment at any given time.

60. Question: Reference RFP Section: C, Para No: C.4.1.5, Requirement e). Please define “ensure” within the context of ensuring non-production data sets for development systems can be imported into the development environment. Do the developers and testers create and sanitize the data sets, or is this a support requirement for FA1?

Answer: The FA1 contractor will not be responsible for creating and sanitizing the data sets; this will be performed by the development contractor.

61. Question: Reference RFP Addendum FF. Can Addendum FF be modified to apply discounts for each labor category proposed rather than having one discount applied to all the labor categories?

Answer: Yes, the offeror may discount individual fixed hourly labor categories.

62. Question: Reference RFP Addendum FF. Are there labor category qualifications / descriptions / education for each of the labor categories specified in the spreadsheet?

Answer: The labor categories identified in Addendum FF are general labor categories and are required to be included in proposals. The offeror shall identify the equivalent labor category as defined by their organization. The offeror is responsible for including their own equivalent labor category qualifications, descriptions and education for their proposed equivalent labor categories in their technical proposal.

The offeror shall not propose any additional labor categories at the time of proposal submission, and if any are proposed they will be excluded from the evaluation of the proposal.

63. Question: Reference RFP Addendum FF. If we propose additional labor categories, are we required to provide labor category qualifications / descriptions / education? If so, what format shall be used to provide this information?

Answer: See answers to questions 57 and 62.

64. Question: Reference RFP General. If there are incumbent contractors for this work, will the Government identify who they are?

Answer: Only FA2 has an incumbent, Lockheed Martin Services, Inc. - OAO Corporation.

65. Question: Reference RFP General. Is there an organizational chart or breakdown in positions and numbers for each position available for the incumbent workforce as it applies to FA1?

Answer: No. FA1 is a new requirement.

66. Question: Reference RFP General. What is the current mechanism to notify the user community of both planned and unplanned events as it relates to the availability of the COE?

Answer: The Government anticipates that the FA1 contractor will develop the notification process.

67. Question: Reference RFP General. For pricing purposes can the Government provide the number of potential users who will need access to the Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection?

Answer: See answer to Question 59.

68. Question: Reference RFP General - The RFP does not address ODCs. If there are ODCs, how should they be treated for proposal purposes?

Answer: ODCs will be identified at the task order requirement level.

69. Question: Reference RFP General. Can the NRC provide metrics as to the average concurrent number of applications expected to be tested in a given week/month and the expected average test cycle time for applications?

70. Question: Reference RFP Section: L.10, Para No.: a) & c). Table 2 requires submission of 9 electronic copies of the proposal while paragraph c) requires submission of 2 electronic copies. What is the correct number of electronic copies to be submitted?

Answer: Two electronic copies are required. See Amendment A001 for clarification.

71. Question: Reference RFP Section: Addendum AA – List of Contracts. Are offerors to submit this form with their proposal submission? If so, does this form go into Volume IV? If to be included in Volume IV, is it excluded from the page limitation?

Answer: The past performance information is excluded from the page limitation. The Offeror must submit the List of Contracts (AA) with its proposal.

72. Question: Reference RFP Section: Addendum DD – NRC Form 187. Are offerors to submit this form with their proposal submission? If so, in which volume?

Answer: Only the apparent awardee(s) are required to submit the NRC Form 187. The awardee(s) must submit the form within 5 business days of receiving the award.

73. Question: This performance based contract. What are the performance measurements?

Answer: The Government will either (a) include performance measurements in the performance work statement for a task order or (b) request that awardees propose appropriate performance measurements in their task order proposal.

74. Question: Section C.4.2 & C.3. Can NRC provide insight into how task orders under Functional Area 2 might be scoped? Offeror can identify multiple scenarios under which scoping for task orders might be divided: 1) based upon NRC Segment Architecture as described in Section C.3; 2) based upon technology supported (e.g., mainframe application maintenance and operations in one task order and Delphi-based applications in another task order); or 3) based upon NRC program office areas ?

Answer: Generally, task orders are anticipated to be negotiated and awarded at the NRC Office level within business lines and with a few tasks being ordered by technology service area.

75. Question: Section C.9.9 (a). The requirement indicates that personnel with “significant IT responsibilities” receive “in-depth IT security training.” Can NRC clarify what is meant by “in-depth security training” including the specific training course(s) that would be required to satisfy this requirement?

Answer: At this time, the Government will require the contractor take the following NRC IT Security training courses:

• PII Responsibilities Awareness and Acknowledgement

• Computer Security Awareness

• Information Security (INFOSEC) Awareness

• Continuity of Operations Awareness

76. Question: Section C.9.9 (a). The requirement defines personnel that have “significant IT responsibilities” as IT administrators as well as developers and project leads. Based upon this broad definition, it seems that NRC wishes for each contractor resource with functions other than contract administrative would require this “in-depth IT security training” and written certification of completion of training – for work under most Functional Areas, this definition would encompass the majority of contractor staff.

The training is generally web based and the system will capture completion by staff. The contractor will be required to respond to data requests by the Project Officer for those staff not completing the courses as required.

Can NRC clarify whether different levels of training are required – e.g., one level of training for an ISSO or IT administrator with access to hardware and data; and a second level of training applicable to an application developer.

Answer: See answer to Question 75.

77. Question: Section G.2 2052.216-72 TASK ORDER PROCEDURES, Item c). What information is included in the “Contractor Spending Plan” referenced in item c? Can NRC please provide an example of this Plan.

Answer: The requirements for the Contractor Spending Plan will be identified in the task order requests for proposal.

78. Question: Section L.10, Items a) and c). Item a) indicates that offerors should include 9 electronic copies of each proposal volume while Item c) indicates that two electronic copies should be submitted.

Can NRC please clarify the desired number of electronic copies?

Answer: See answer to question #70.

79. Question: Section L.11, Item a). Volume IV, Past Performance Information, has a page limitation of

10 pages for prime and subcontractor past performance information. Based upon the requirement in Section L.12.4 to include both prime and subcontracts for “similar efforts” within the past 3 years, and based upon the amount of information requested for each past performance (items a-j), offerors may be challenged in presenting this data for all prime and subcontracts for itself and each significant subcontractor within the 10 page limit.

Offeror requests that NRC consider revising the page limitation for Volume IV to no more than 2 pages her past performance reference. In addition, offeror requests that items k and n under Instructions for Volume IV, a. Past Performance Information, have no set page limit.

Answer: The page limits will remain unchanged.

80. Question: Section L.11, Item c). Where a compliance matrix will assist evaluators, may offerors also include a compliance matrix outside of page count limitations?

Answer: If the offeror chooses to submit a compliance matrix, that matrix will count against the page count limitation.

81. Question: Section L.12, Item 4, INSTRUCTIONS FOR VOLUME IV, sub-item (l). Letter (l) under this instruction references past performance questionnaires as included in Exhibit 3; however, no exhibit 3 was provided with the solicitation. Can NRC please provide this exhibit?

Answer: See answer to Question #34.

82. Question: Addendum AA List of Contracts. Can NRC provide instructions for offerors on this addendum?

a. Should this Addendum be completed for prime only or both prime contractors and subcontractors?

b. Into which volume should this completed addendum be included?

c. Is the completed list not included within volume page count limitations?

Answer: See Amendment A001.