Section III_Instructions for Proposal Preparation Rev 1 10-7-2020.pdf

RFP 20-073

Instructions for Proposal Preparation

Rev 1

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROPOSAL PREPARATION

1. DESCRIPTION OF PROCUREMENT

Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), is soliciting proposals from qualified suppliers to replace the current Financial and Supply Chain business systems, and the related underlying IT infrastructure, with a commercial SaaS solution(s) based on a fully integrated Financial and Supply Chain ERP solution capable of supporting PPPL’s current and future business.

Specific requirements for these services can be found in the Statement of Work ERP Software (SaaS); CAT; A1: Refence work Planning No. N/A; Revision 1 dated 10-7-2020

Recognizing PPPL’s vision, mission and core values, each Offeror’s proposal should include the approach and methods necessary to completely execute aspects of the requirements within the Statement of Work (SOW) as detailed in Section I.

2. ABOUT PRINCETON PLASMA PHYSICS LABORATORY (PPPL)

Princeton University manages and operates Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) under a prime contract with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science (Contract No. DE-AC02- 09CH11466). PPPL, located on Princeton University’s Forrestal Campus in Plainsboro, N.J., is devoted to understanding the physics of plasmas and to developing practical solutions for the creation of fusion energy.

Based on its dual status as an accredited institution of higher learning in the State of New Jersey and a U.S. Department of Energy prime contractor, PPPL may qualify for academic and/or federal government prices/discounts. Offerors shall specifically identify any discount arrangements offered with their proposals.

3. RFP PROCUREMENT SPECIALIST(S) CONTACT INFORMATION

Cheryl Colan, ccolan@pppl.gov, (609) 243-3486 Kelly Gencarelli, kgencare@pppl.gov, (609) 243-2080

4. SUBCONTRACT TYPE/DURATION

Any award issued will be a Firm Fixed Price Subcontract between the Awardee(s) and the Trustees of Princeton University under Princeton’s Prime Contract No. DE-AC02-09CH11466 with the U.S.

Department of Energy (DOE). Duration of the subcontract will be determined at the time of the award.

It is PPPL’s intention to incorporate the terms and conditions set forth in the Terms and Conditions awarded to the supplier as a result from this RFP.

5. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• The Offeror has a minimum of (10) ten years’ experience providing SaaS to government clients in the areas of Financial, Budgeting, or Procurement.

Offeror shall have previous experience in a regulated environment (U.S. Department of Energy, Department of Defense, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, or ISO, for example).

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Offeror shall have successful history of a minimum of three (3) implementations.

Offeror shall have a favorable history of repeat business and customer subscription renewal.

6. PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE

A pre-proposal video conference will be held October 5, 2020 from 1pm to 3pm, participation is not required, but strongly encouraged. To obtain access on the video log in, please confirm interest by submitting the Acknowledgement Form.

7. SUBMISSION OF QUESTIONS

All Offerors questions MUST be submitted in writing, emailed to the contact persons: Cheryl Colan email: ccolan@pppl.gov and Kelly Gencarelli email: kgencare@pppl.gov. All questions will be combined with all other Offeror questions and all responses will be distributed to each Offeror in the form of an amendment to this RFP. Oral explanations or instructions provided by PPPL will not be binding. Any substantive information will be furnished to all prospective Offerors via a written Amendment to the RFP if determined to be necessary to Offerors in submitting their proposals or if the lack of such information would be prejudicial to uninformed Offerors.

The deadline for submission of questions is by 4:30 pm EST, October 12, 2020

8. SMALL BUSINESS CONSIDERATION

Because of the nature of the services required, this RFP is not being set aside for small business concerns; however, qualified small businesses are encouraged to submit proposals. “Small business concern”, as used in this clause, means a concern, including its affiliates, which is independently owned and operated, not dominant in the field of operation in which it is bidding on Government contracts, and qualified as a small business by the Small Business Administration based on the following:

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code

NAICS Code 511210 Software Publishers

Small Business Size Standard - $41.5 Million in Annual Receipts* *For this NAICS code, a firm submitting an offer in response to this RFP in its own name will be considered small if its average annual rec for its three most recent completed fiscal years do not exceed the amount shown above.

PPPL reserves the right to make any award it deems necessary to satisfy the Small, Small Disadvantaged, Women-Owned, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned and HUBZone small business subcontracting goals and objectives set forth in the prime contract.

9. ORAL PRESENTATIONS

Based on the final rankings a competitive range will be established. Selected Offerors will be required to make oral presentations of their proposals either remotely (video) or onsite at PPPL/Princeton University offices. Offeror participants should include all persons on the engagement team including the Engagement/Project/Program Manager and/or Director/Partner, but no more than five (5) persons who are knowledgeable of the RFP and the response submitted by the Offeror’s organization and who are qualified to answer questions relating to the proposal.

The purpose of the oral presentation will be to:

a) Provide a summary of the respective Offeror’s proposal for the benefit of PPPL;

b) Demonstrate the Offeror’s solution capabilities to meet or exceed PPPL’s requirements;

and

c) Permit Review Team members to ask questions pertaining to the Offeror’s proposal.

Offerors will be provided no more than 2 days each for functional capabilities and 1 day each for technical oral presentations, to be inclusive of a summary of the proposal contents and a question and answer session.

Anticipated Period for Oral Presentations:

November 30, 2020 through December 18, 2020

10. CLOSING DATE AND SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

Offers are required to submit one (1) electronic copy of the proposal to be received by the Procurement Specialist to the email addresses listed below by the RFP closing date and time.

It is required that filenames for the electronic proposal include the name of the Offeror, the solicitation number, and the file name (e.g. ABCCompany_RFP_20_073_Form.pdf).

THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF PROPOSALS VIA EMAIL:

by 4:30 PM EST by NOVEMBER 6, 2020, Subject Line: ABCCompany_RFP_20_073_Form.pdf.

To: Cheryl Colan (ccolan@pppl.gov); Kelly Gencarelli (kgencare@pppl.gov).

Faxed proposals will not be accepted.

11. SUPPLIER REGISTRATION

All Offerors are required to register in the Princeton Supplier Portal (https://solutions.sciquest.com/apps/Router/SupplierLogin?CustOrg=Princeton) in order to be considered for award. Offerors shall provide confirmation of registration into the Princeton Supplier Portal on the Offeror Information and Pricing Form.

12. PROPOSAL PREPARATION COSTS

This Request for Proposal (RFP) is not intended and shall not be construed to commit Princeton University to pay any costs incurred in connection with the preparation of any proposal or to procure any items or services.

13. PROPOSAL VALIDITY PERIOD

Proposals are to be valid for a period of 120 days from the closing date specified in this RFP.

14. COST AND PRICING DATA

Due to the commercial and competitive nature of this procurement, PPPL is not requesting the submission of certified cost or pricing data under this solicitation. However, Offerors are advised that in the event that PPPL deems such information is necessary, Offeror should be prepared to submit cost or pricing data within ten business days after being requested.

15. SALES TAX EXEMPTION

Princeton University is exempt from New Jersey Sales Tax (Exemption Certificate No. E-210-634- 501). A copy of PPPL’s sales tax exemption form will be provided upon request.

16. RESTRICTIONS ON DISCLOSURE OF DATA IN PROPOSALS

Offerors who include data in their proposals that they do not want disclosed to the public for any purpose, or used by the Government or Princeton except for evaluation purposes, shall:

● Mark their proposals title page with the following legend:

This proposal or quotation includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the Government and Princeton and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed –in whole or in part—for any purpose other than to evaluate this PROPOSAL or quotation. If, however, a subcontract is awarded to this offeror as a result of—or in connection with –the submission of this date, the Government and Princeton shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the date to the extent provided in resulting subcontract. This restriction does not limit the Government’s and Princeton’s right to use information contained in this data if it is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this are contained in sheets (insert number or the identification or affected sheets).

● Mark each sheet of data it wishes to restrict with the following legend:

Use or disclosure of data contained on this sheet is subject to restriction on the title page of this Offer or quotation.

● Furnish details, if their offer is based upon or includes any amount of patent license or royalty fees to be paid to others.

17. MODIFICATION OR WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSALS

Proposals may be modified or withdrawn by the Offeror by written notice if the Procurement Specialist receives such notice prior to the RFP closing date.

18. LATE PROPOSALS

Any proposal, including notifications of withdrawal or modification, received by PPPL after the closing date specified for this RFP shall be considered to be late. Except as otherwise specifically provided for in this RFP, PPPL may consider, in its sole discretion, for award such late proposals if it is in the best interest of PPPL.

19. PRE-AWARD CONFERENCE

PPPL may require the apparent successful Offeror(s) to attend a Pre-Award Conference to review the work requirements to ensure a mutual understanding of the requirements. The Offeror may also be required to show evidence of its ability to perform under the terms of the proposed subcontract.

20. OTHER POST AWARD INFORMATION

Insurance. Insurance Certificates, evidencing compliance with Part T – Provisions for Work Performed on the PPPL Site, RFP Section II, must be submitted to the Procurement Specialist for review and approval within ten (10) consecutive calendar days after subcontract award and prior to commencement of on-site work.

21. CANCELLATION

PPPL reserves the right in its sole discretion to cancel this procurement at any time without making an award and without providing a reason.

22. FORMAT AND CONTENT OF PROPOSALS

Prospective Offerors are expected to thoroughly examine all sections of this RFP and to comply with all instructions for preparation and submittal of proposals in response to this RFP. Written proposals must set forth full, accurate, and complete information as required by, or referenced in this RFP. The proposal must be sufficiently detailed to demonstrate complete compliance with PPPL's requirements.

In addition, selected Offerors may be required to supplement their written proposals with oral presentations of their proposal to the PPPL evaluation team. In case of a conflict, a written submittal overrules an oral statement. Any oral statements or oral promises will be reduced to writing and submitted by the Offeror. The information provided in the written proposal and any oral presentation will be the basis for determining an Offeror's capability to perform the work described in this RFP.

Offerors shall prepare and submit the following documents which will comprise a complete proposal in response to this RFP. Failure to provide a proposal in the format and with content prescribed by this RFP may result in the proposal being determined to be non-responsive and eliminated from consideration.

23. OFFEROR PROPOSAL ORGANIZATION

Proposals must provide information in the order as presented in this document with the same headings. This will not only be helpful to evaluators of the proposal but should assist the Offeror in preparing a thorough response.

If offeror plans to subcontract any portion of the work, identification of proposed subcontractor and subcontractor's cost must be included in the proposal.

Proposals must be submitted in the order noted below:

A. PART I – OVERVIEW AND ADMINISTRATIVE

B. PART II – PROPOSAL

a. BUSINESS CAPABILITIES

b. TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES

c. SUPPORT CAPABILILTIES

d. FUNCTIONAL CAPABILITIES

C. PART III – OFFER AND PRICING

Offerors’ Part III shall be separated, clearly identified and labeled accordingly.

No pricing information shall be included in Parts I and II.

PART I – OVERVIEW AND ADMINISTRATIVE

All required documents must be signed and dated by person authorized to legally bind the Offeror to a contractual relationship.

a. Letter of Submittal – Introduction of the company.

b. Brief Description of Company - Offerors shall submit a brief description of their history and organization and a description of their facilities, products, services, and customers (of similar size, scale and sophistication of PPPL). A preprinted company brochure may be used. The company shall provide a copy of their latest annual report, if applicable, and DUNS number. (page limit maximum of 5).

c. Minimum Qualifications – Offeror shall address the following minimum qualifications Outline a minimum of ten (10) years’ experience in providing SaaS to government clients in the areas of Financial, Budgeting, or Procurement.

Outline experience in a regulated environment (U.S. Department of Energy, Department of Defense, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, or ISO, for example).

d. PPPL Supplier Qualifications and Reference Workbook. Offeror must complete and attach: Attachment 9 – PPPL Supplier Qualifications and References Workbook* included in Section V of the RFP.

e. PPPL Functional Requirements. Offerors shall complete and attach: Attachment 1 –

PPPL Functional Requirements* included in Section V of the RFP.

f. PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements. Offerors shall complete and attach: Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements* included in Section V of the RFP.

g. PPPL Implementation and Support Requirements*. Offerors shall complete and attach:

Attachment 8- PPPL Implementation and Support Requirements* included in Section V of the RFP.

h. PPPL Software Solutions Response Form. Offerors shall complete and attach:

Attachment 10 – PPPL Software Solutions Response Form* included in Section V of the RFP.

i. PPPL Training Response Form. Offerors shall complete and attach: Attachment 11 – PPPL Training Response Form* included in Section V of the RFP.

j. PPPL Representations and Certifications. Offerors shall complete and sign Attachment

13 - PPPL Representations and Certifications Booklet* included in Section V of the RFP.

k. PPPL Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI) Certification. Offerors shall complete and sign Attachment 14 - PPPL Organization Conflicts of Interest (OCI) Certification Form* included in Section V of the RFP.

PART II – PROPOSAL (See Evaluation and Basis of Award document and Statement of Work for more detail)

I. Business Capabilities –Offeror must demonstrate their overall capability to perform the work required by this RFP.

i. Alignment to PPPL’s Functional Requirements Attachment 1- ability to manage and trace the original business benefits

ii. Alignment to PPPL’s Technology Requirements-Attachment 2- ability to conform to established federal technical standards and requirements

iii. Risk Plan*- Offeror must provide details that convey a sound plan and have the ability to mitigate risk

iv. Offeror Product & Strategy -Attachment 8 and Attachment 10 each piece of software proposed, in areas that future business and technical requirements may prove beneficial to PPPL. Documentation to include:

three (3) year product roadmaps for the capabilities that comprise the solution being proposed

v. Offeror References, Key Personnel Qualifications and Implementation Capabilities. Attachment 9; Documentation to include:

1. Three (3) References with contact information

2. Description of past implementations

3. Resumes of all proposed service team members, including training received in the past two (2) years along with training program opportunities to allow team members to retain and enhance skills.

(page limit maximum of 3 per team member)

II. Technical Capabilities – Offeror must provide documentation to support their overall technical capabilities for experience in the following:

i. General Architecture Platform Offeror must convey the ability of the software implementation using readily available open source commercial tools, toolsets and other technologies along with the ability to implement the software using accelerators to reduce the time to deployment that will be required. Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

ii. Integration (integration to bolt-ons, existing solutions, workflow, external services, etc.) Offeror must provide details on the ability for the software to integrate with other packaged or custom-built software via web services. Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

iii. Security & Audit Offeror must provide details on security solutions and audit requirements to meet applicable requirements of being FedRAMP compliant; or audited and certified by a third party. Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

iv. Infrastructure Offeror must provide documentation such as published description of network and internet topology. Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

v. Data Management, Reporting & Analytics Offeror must describe the approach and methodology. Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

III. Support Capabilities Offeror must provide documentation to support their overall support capabilities for experience in the following:

i. Configuration Management Patch/Upgrade Offerors ability to utilize standard processes to deploy software patches and upgrades-Attachment 8 – PPPL - Implementation and Support Requirements and Attachment 2

- PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

ii. Service Levels High Availability (HA)/ Disaster Recover (DR) Performance & Scalability the ability for the Offeror to provide timely, effective and standard support processes for the software solution.

Attachment 2 - PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

iii. Application Technology Services (post-production services) Offeror must include how the Offeror’s application technology services (post-production services) capabilities will support an organization of similar size and scale of PPPL-Attachment 8 – PPPL - Implementation and Support Requirements and Attachment 2 - PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

iv. Training & User Group Collaboration Offerors capabilities on training and availability of user groups. - Attachment 8 – PPPL - Implementation and Support Requirements

v. Call Center/Problem Ticket Offerors detail of its solution’s ability to requirements of PPPL- Attachment 8 – PPPL - Implementation and Support Requirements

IV. Functional Capabilities Offeror must provide documentation to support their overall functional capabilities for experience in the following:

i. Functional Fit Against PPPL Use Cases, Demo Scenarios and Requirements Offerors ability to demonstrate the solution’s capabilities to support the uses cases and demonstrations outlined in Attachment 7 – PPPL Use Case

ii. Ease of Use Offeror’s to demonstrate an intuitive and pleasant user experience, while reducing the need of user training and software customizations for the implemented software solution. - Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

iii. Security (post-production services) Offerors ability to support and maintain the solution’s security requirements of PPPL as outlined in the RFP. - Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements

iv. Reporting & Analytics Offerors ability to support end-user access/modify reports in a self-service capacity and the availability of end-user analytics to meet applicable requirements as outlined in this RFP. Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements and Attachment 5 – PPPL Reporting Requirements

v. Mobile the Offeror’s mobility capabilities will support an organization of similar size and scale of PPPL.

PART III – OFFER AND PRICING

This section must be submitted in a separate file.

1. Offeror Information, Pricing Form and Cost Estimate Template. Offerors shall complete and submit the Offeror Information and Pricing Form included in Section V of the RFP Attachment 12 – PPPL Supplier RFP Pricing Response* and shall include pricing information as described on the form for review by PPPL.

2. Offeror to include a copy of the following documents (where applicable) and each Document must be marked accordingly to the title listed below as the identifying corresponding document.

a. Software Subscriptions – Submittal A

b. Master Service Agreement- Submittal B

c. Software Subscription Agreement - Submittal C

d. Maintenance Agreement-Submittal D

e. Service Level Agreement-Submittal E

f. Support Agreement – if not included in Master Service Agreement or SLA agreements-

Submittal F

g. Statement of Work or Professional Services Agreement-Submittal G

h. Premium Support Agreement-Submittal H

i. Software Documentation (including Verification and Validation Documentation and operational testing report)- Submittal I

j. Other – Submittal J

ATTACHMENTS FOR REFERENCE Included in Section V of the RFP:

Attachment 1 – PPPL Functional Requirements*

Attachment 2 – PPPL Detailed Technical and Support Requirements* Attachment 3 – PPPL Conversion Items Attachment 4 – PPPL Interface Requirements

Attachment 5 - PPPL Reporting Requirements Attachment 6 - PPPL Business Process Inventory Attachment 7 – PPPL Use Case Attachment 8 – PPPL Implementation and Support Requirements* Attachment 9 - PPPL Supplier Qualifications and References Workbook* Attachment 10 – PPPL Software Solutions Response Form* Attachment 11 – PPPL Training Response Form* Attachment 12 - PPPL Supplier RFP Pricing Response * Attachment 13 – PPPL Representations and Certifications Booklet* Attachment 14 – PPPL Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI)*

-End Instructions for Proposal Preparation-