RFP_COMBINED_Questions_and_Answers_.docx

Combined Questions & Answers re RFP-NMB-13-0001 National Mediation Board (NMB) Website Redesign

1. Since questions are due a just week before the proposal due date, will NMB consider releasing responses to questions earlier, as they are submitted?

The NMB will post these responses as quickly as possible.

2. Is there an incumbent for this effort? If so, can NMB please provide the incumbent company’s name, how long they have been performing the work, and the scope of services provided?

The Government Printing Office has hosted the NMB website since around 2000. GPO posted NMB content, maintained the system as to supporting software; reliability and functionality; and made basic structural changes such as new webpages.

3. The RFP references both September 15 and September 30 as the desired launch date. Could NMB please clarify which date is accurate?

The new website is to be available for public use no later than September 15, 2013.

4. Is NMB open to a phased approach for launch in order to ensure an initial launch date in September 2013? For example, is NMB open to a technical strategy phase that would pare down the initial build into something that can be built within the timeframe? Subsequent functionality would be added into the project via an iterative project plan.

The four (4) rounds of NMB Review and Modifications following the launch of the full-prototype, are intended to complete this website for final testing. Except for the 6-month warranty and technical assistance period following the official launch date, all work under this RFP is to be completed with no on-going commitments between the contractor and the NMB.

5. Will NMB make users of the site available to the selected contractor for user interviews and usability testing?

The 30-day test period is intended for all NMB personnel, including NMB information-technology personnel. The contractor can continue its overall review and functional testing during this period.

6. The RFP says, "the contractor will fully develop the new NMB website using at least a sample of content available in the current NMB website." Could NMB provide an estimate for a number of the pages they would like to see in this initial migration? Or is the expectation to have all content migrated?

Migration of the current websites and development of the first prototype are separate issues. The initial migrations of the current NMB website and the Lyceum are to be content complete and fully functional on the new NMB-specific server. The first prototype for the new combined website may contain sample content. The final website is to have all content and be fully functional. See Section IX.

7. On page 2 the RFP states, "the contractor will coordinate as necessary with the NMB website host", but then lists "deployed GSA approved cloud web hosting" as a technical requirement on page 3. Could NMB clarify if hosting is to be included as a part of the contractor’s proposal? If NMB will provide the hosting, can you please share details on who will host the site?

The NMB expects to host the new website.

8. Will the new website training take place in the DC metro area?

At the NMB office in Washington, DC, or as otherwise agreed upon the by winning bidder and the NMB.

9. On page 5, the schedule of deliverables includes 4 rounds of review as well as a "30-day ‘test and review’ period." Are these separate review cycles? Or will the 4 review cycles be completed within the 30 days?

The 30-day test period commences following the four (4) rounds of NMB Review and Modifications.

10. On page 6, the period of performance is listed as six months, however, on page 4, six months of post-launch support is requested. Can NMB please clarify if the period of performance will be limited to six months?

The website is to be completed and fully launched by September 15, exclusive of the 6-month warranty and technical support period.

11. Can NMB please provide the level of accessibility requirements for the new website? Is NMB looking for compliance with the existing Section 508 legislation, or a site that is progressive and tailored to accessibility based on the WCAG 2.0 standards which are the foundation for the upcoming Section 508 refresh?

NMB is looking for compliance with the existing Section 508 legislation.

12. Is accessibility testing something that NMB does internally? Or, is testing provided by a third party?

NMB Internal.

13. Can NMB please provide the type of testing software that will be used to verify that the delivered site is Section 508 compliant?

Software not yet determined.

14. Does NMB have established brand standards?

a. If brand standards do exist, is there a brand standards manual that will be provided for reference during this engagement?

Contractor-proposed National Mediation Board branding will depict the official NMB logo and agency mission. The exact primary and secondary branding will be determined through collaboration and discussion between the contractor and the NMB.

b. If brand standards do not exist...

i. Is there an expectation that branding work will be included as part of the website redesign? If so, can NMB please outline the desired scope for branding?

NMB Branding on the new website should accent the ultimately selected website design.

ii. Are there any past-produced collateral (AR’s, website presences, etc.) that must/should be followed for general NMB style (i.e. mark usage, typography, imagery, motifs, color palette, etc.)?

No.

iii. Will NMB provide examples to help guide the look-and-feel design process for each of the three distinct design concept definitions (“Traditional,” “Contemporary,” “Futuristic”), or will the contractor develop these directions through collaboration and discussion with NMB?

No. The winner bidder will provide 3 distinct design proposals for consideration. A final design will be determined through collaboration and discussion between the contractor and the NMB.

15. Is there an expectation that each of the three requested design concept directions be distinctly different in both look-and-feel and structure (i.e. based on three distinctly different approved sets of wireframes), or is the expectation that each design direction be based off of the same, single set of approved wireframes?

The winning bidder will provide 3 distinct design proposals for consideration. A final design will be determined through collaboration and discussion between the contractor and the NMB.

16. Given the accelerated timeline, would NMB consider an iterative approach where a single functional digital prototype is produced to review information architecture and user experience concurrent to three visual designs being developed?

The four (4) rounds of NMB Review and Modifications, following the launch of the full prototype, are intended to complete this website for final testing.

17. Will NMB supply all imagery for the new website (e.g. many of NMB AR’s include imagery, but it is unclear if it is stock, or commissioned and now part of an NMB image/asset library), or will the contractor be required to procure imagery (stock, commissioned)?

Any image beyond what already exists on the two NMB websites or available from NMB stock and is required by the contractor’s design selected by the NMB, will be developed or procured by the contractor and included in the price of the proposal.

18. Can NMB please further define the bulleted item in IV. Design Requirements that states: “Include a multi-language translation utility.” Is NMB looking to have the entire site multi-lingual? Or, is the desire to have some portion of the site content translatable?

The NMB is looking to make its entire site equal to or better than the translation utility on the Home page of its current website.

19. Is NMB open to a responsive site design that adapts to mobile devices instead of desktop and mobile optimized sites?

Yes.

20. Can NMB please further define the last bulleted item in the section: IV. Design Requirements: “Develop standard reference library of NMB Widgets, styles and themes.”

a. Is this requirement referring to delivery of the final Photoshop (PSD) layered file?

No.

b. If not, can NMB please elaborate and provide details regarding desired scope, and format/presentation for this deliverable?

We are looking for Widgets, styles and themes such as buttons, menues, headers, footers, color schemes, etc., for reuse in future web pages.

21. Does NMB current use a video hosting service (i.e. Vimeo, Youtube, Brightcove, etc?)

No.

22. We have identified some additional NMB web properties aside from the two mentioned in the RFP (www.nmb.gov and nmblyceum.info). Will any of the following NMB sites need to be integrated with the new website?

a. The Arbitrator Workspace: https://nmbarbitration.appspot.com/

No.

b. Employee Only Resources (quasi-intranet): http://www.nmb.gov/employee-resources/resources-menu.html

No.

c. Knowledge Store: http://kas.cuadra.com/starweb1/nmbks/servlet.starweb1?path=nmbks/nmb.web

No.

d. 2010-2012 Interactive Annual Reports: http://www.nmb.gov/documents/2010annual-report/ http://www.nmb.gov/documents/2012annual-report/

Yes.

23. Can NMB please provide further information on the bulleted item in the section: VI. Technical Requirements: “Identity Management from Google Apps (Employee only section)”. Is the employee only section included in the launch requirements? If so, can NMB please describe the content and functionality contained in this section since we do not have access to it?

Employee-only section of current NMB website will not be included. Authentication is only required for privileged users. Google authentication is a preferred option.

24. We're interested in submitting an offer for the National Mediation Board website redesign, and we qualify for small business set-aside. However, we are not certified as a HUBZone small business concern, although our office is located in a qualified HUBZone (downtown Hagerstown, MD). Are we still eligible to submit an offer to be considered for the NMB website redesign project?

This is a full and open competition.

25. Is there a page limit for the RFP response?

No.

26. Does NMB require that the contractor rewrite or rework any of the existing text/video/courses/PowerPoint files, and/or does NMB require the contractor to write new content? If so, to what extent?

Only to the extent that content modifications are required for the contractors proposed website.

27. Is the contractor required to build-out functionality for the Employee section, Arbitrator Workspace, and/or Knowledge Store? If so, approximately how many additional pages are included in the Employee-only section and Arbitrator Workspace?

See question 25.

28. For mobile interoperability, does the NMB require a “responsive design” approach in which the website automatically scales to fit a user’s device whether desktop, phone, or tablet? Or, does the NMB desire that the website only displays reasonably well on mobile devices (without a responsive design with automatic scaling)?

The NMB prefers a true, “responsive design”.

29. Will an instruction manual and/or style guide be needed to guide the NMB?

Yes.

30. For hosting, is NMB only interested in cloud hosting solutions that are on an approved list from the GSA? Or, is the NMB open to recommendations for any cloud hosting provider?

We prefer GSA approved hosting.

31. Does NMB require that the website be hosted by a FedRAMP-authorized cloud service provider? (http://www.gsa.gov/portal/category/102371)

No.

32. Who designed the current NMB website (www.NMB.gov)?

Government Printing Office

33. Who designed the Lyceum (http://nmblyceum.info/) website?

Internal, NMB.

34. Who maintains the NMB website (www.NMB.gov)?

Government Printing Office

35. Do they have any proprietary data or information?

No.

36. Who maintains the (http://nmblyceum.info/) website?

Internal, NMB.

37. For the pricing proposal, do you require any detail other than the FFP and the detail outlined in your SOW, Section X?

A FFP is the only requirement, but the more detailed information provided make it easier to determine the value of a proposal.

38. Section I Introduction: Has the NMB established the “GSA-approved cloud environment”?

Our preferred host is either Amazon or Google. Any different proposed environment must be GSA approved. The NMB will provide the hosting when it has been decided.

39. Section II. Background, second paragraph, first sentence: There is reference to required pages/hyperlinks on government websites with three examples listed. Please clarify what is included in the “etc.” reference at the end of the sentence.

See the current NMB website. The bidder should have knowledge of federal-website requirements.

40. Section II. Background, second paragraph, second sentence: Please clarify “any other requirements” beyond the “508 Compliant” reference listed parenthetically.

See the current NMB website. The bidder should have knowledge of federal-website requirements.

41. Section III. Scope of Work: Please provide clarification on the level of “functionality” required in this early stage of design.

This section is self-explanatory. There needs to be enough functionality to demonstrate the design.

42. Section III. Scope of Work: Please clarify whether the “2 rounds of customer-specified design edits” listed here represent two rounds per design concept (6 reviews), or two rounds of reviewing all three designs at the same time.

Two rounds for reviewing all three designs.

43. Section III. Scope of Work: Where are the current websites hosted?

Government Printing Office

44. Section III. Scope of Work: What are the number of days NMB requires for each review/edit round?

See Section XI.

45. Section IV. Design Requirements, 10th Bullet: Please provide clarification on whether “Video Streaming” from the NMB website is a requirement of the new design, or the ability to link to a third party source (YouTube) to play videos from the website.

Both.

46. Section IV. Design Requirements, 12th Bullet: Please provide additional details on “cell phones” required for the mobile website presence. Are these the current generation of smart phones using Android and iOS operating systems?

See question 32.

47. Section V. Optional Features, 1st Bullet: Please clarify whether this requirement is a single calendar or three separate calendars. If this is three separate calendars, is there a requirement for a master calendar showing all information?

Per your proposal.

48. Section V. Optional Features, 3rd Bullet: How many forms are required at initial launch?

The current noted NMB websites have very few forms for applying for NMB Services, but it’s up to the bidder to propose making any of them fillable.

49. Section VI. Technical Requirements, 3rd Bullet: Please provide insight to the “NMB specified cloud-based server”:

a. Is the server operational now, or will it be operational at contract award?

See question 44.

b. What is operating system environment, e.g. Windows/Linux?

Vendor proposed; Linux preferred.

c. What applications are now or will be installed on the server at contract award?

None.

50. Section VI. Technical Requirements, 8th Bullet: Please provide information on the functionality and content of the “Employee only section”. Is there a requirement to redesign the employee only section?

See questions 25, 26, and 30.

51. Section VI. Technical Requirements, 9th Bullet: Please clarify the definition of unit and regression test scripts. Are these a test plan/procedures document or actual software scripts that test functionality of an application?

Software scripts are preferred.

52. Section IX. Security Requirements, 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 6th Bullets: Which of these items are currently in use?

All of them.

53. Section IX. Security Requirements, 2nd Bullet: Are these Procedures related to just security or the administrative procedures of the entire website.

Entire site.

54. Where would you require training to occur? Can this be done remotely?

See question 11.

55. Regarding your evaluations and approvals of prototypes, is this being done by individuals within your organization, or will this be accomplished by committee?

NMB Committee.

56. What information on the existing sites would you say are priority/more important - something you'd want to be sure is more prominent on the homepage/ more accessible?

To be determined in consultation between the winning contractor and the NMB. See section XI.

57. Can you expand on the requirement noting "Include a multi-language translation utility?"

See question 21.

58. When you say "Optimize the website for Mobile Devices" -- Does that mean you're wanting a complete separate mobile site developed, or simply that you want to be sure that the new site displays and is viewed properly on mobile devices?

See question 32.

59. Under "Optional Features" - You have "Social Media for Blogs…" listing out social media networks… what work does this refer to for the contractor? Is this merely setting up accounts for NMB at each social network site? Several also may not apply to NMB's purpose (i.e., Pinterest, Instagram, and Foursquare). Can we gain further clarification on what this entails for the contractor?

Optional.

60. Under "Technical Requirements" there are Browser Compliance guidelines. We noticed these specify fairly high version numbers of each browser, such as IE10+. Does that mean it does not need to be bullet-proof in IE8? (Most common specifications for browser requirements insinuate wanting to make sure 'older' versions of browsers work properly, not necessarily the newer ones).

61. On p.3 of the RFP under technical requirement "Identity Management from Google Apps (Employee only section)" is listed. What does this refer to? Is it a link to a Google hosted Intranet, enabling of Google apps such as maps and analytics or something else?

See question 26.

62. P. 4 of the RFP refers to six months of "tech support" can you better define the scope of work for this requirement. What would you expect would be included within or what number of hours would you plan on utilizing within the six month period.

See the second bullet; your proposal is to specify the mode and level of support.

63. P. 4 under security requirements lists "Federal system usage notification on all logins." Is this essentially a usage agreement disclosure similar to this:

Usage Agreement: This is a Federal computer system and is the property of the United States Government. It is for authorized use only. Users (authorized or unauthorized) have no explicit or implicit expectation of privacy in anything viewed, created, downloaded, or stored on this system, including e-mail, Internet, and Intranet use.

Yes.

64. You have indicated the site should be an open source CMS - is there a particular content management system you are seeking (WordPress, Joomal, Drupal, etc.)

Your proposal should specify what CMS is best regarding the totality of this NMB RFP; we prefer the files on the server remain HTML5, Javascript, and CSS .

65. How do you make updates to the current website?

Our current Host does them. The NMB will take on the role of host under this RFP.

66. Do you have your own GSA-approved web hosting solution already in place, or will we be required to present a hosting solution?

The NMB will have a Hosting solution in place.

67. What is the extent of the multi-factor login for privileged users?

a. Are there specific security requirements or systems that will need to be tied into the multi-factor login system?

No.

b. Does this include different user levels and permissions?

Yes.

68. You’ve requested three working prototypes of three different designs.

a. How much work needs to go into a design before choosing one design for full development? i.e. Do we need to provide three separate wireframes designs, or three designs from a single wireframe?

Only the winning contractor will provide the 3 designs. The NMB may pick anyone of them or some mix of them.

b. This could be a significant cost driver, so please clarify as much as possible.

See previous answer.

69. Can you provide more details concerning expected functionality of the multi-language translation utility?

It should equal or exceed the translation utility on the current NMB website.

70. Do you have an existing system for video streaming, or are we required to create one?

Create or propose.

71. What are the standard NMB header and footer?

Create or propose.

72. What kind of training is required?

a. In person

b. Via video chat

c. Archived instruction video

d. If in-person training is required, where will it be held, how many times, etc.?

e. Presume all training will be conducted on a cost reimbursable CLIN unless specific number of sessions, type of delivery and location of training is specified.

The bidder will propose a training solution.

73. Do you have a preferred content management system (CMS)? Would you consider our recommendation for a particular CMS?

See question 76

74. Does the term “identity and authorization control” refer to user roles and account permissions?

Yes.

75. For the Federal System Usage Notification, are we integrating another system, or using an API / Web service to handle notification? Or will we simply send out an email that records the event in the database every time a user logs in?

See question 75.

76. What is your planned budget for this project?

See Question 2.

77. Is there an incumbent? If so who?

See Question 3.

78. Does NMB have an anticipated budget for this opportunity? If so what is the range?

See question 2.

79. Does NMB have an anticipated level of effort required for this opportunity? If so what is the LOE?

No.

80. Does NMB have an accurate page count? (Content migration could be relatively high. A Google site: check rendered about 4,300 pages, but additional investigation would be required to determine page validity.)

No, but most are PDFs.

81. Is all content hard-coded in or is there a database backend that it is being pulled from? If there is a database, what is it?

Hard coded.

82. Will the NMB Knowledge Store remain as is or will it need to be integrated to the new site? (See: http://kas.cuadra.com/starweb1/nmbks/servlet.starweb1?path=nmbks/nmb.web). If integration to the new site is required, what database/system is the backend built upon?

See question 25.

83. Does NMB desire a true mobile site, or a site that renders adequately well on mobile platforms?

See questions 22 and 32.

84. The case management information presented in the site is hardcoded html. Does NMB desire optimization of this information? If so is this stated specifically in the SOW? If not where is the “implied” request and is it budgeted?

Per your proposal.

85. Please clarify the ambiguity and provide additional information on the video streaming requirements.

See questions 24 and 51.

86. Will the new/redesigned website utilize the current .gov domain name?

Yes.

87. If not what will NMB use as the new URL/domain name for the redesigned website?

See question 98.

88. Does NMB have a specific tool in mind (i.e., Sitefinity, Drupal, Joomla etc) that they would prefer the winning contractor to use to build/redesign the website?

No. See question 85.

89. Would NMB prefer a content management (CMS) website or a regular Static website?

Per your proposal.

90. Will this be a remote/onsite project?

Contractor may work remotely.

91. Will the Development, Testing/Staging and Production environments be in the cloud?

92. The RFP states that the final delivery will be via DVD. This is not recommended as that will create a static site. Is the government open to different delivery options?

Vendor to supply standard NMB widgets library and standard NMB style sheets/themes separate from deployed website.