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VENDOR QUESTIONS ON SBAHQ-11-R-0022
| 1 |
| Regarding the requirement to prove 8(a) status for the duration of the contract: Our company’s participation in the 8(a) program ends in November 2015, 3 months into the last option year. Will our proposal be considered? |
| Contractor is required to be an 8(a) certified contractor at the time of award only. See Modification 1 to the original posting, with a revised SF-1449, which states in paragraph 5 of the text, “Certify on page one of offeror’s proposal, that offeror is and will be an 8(a) firm at the time of award.” |
| 2 |
| If we supply our SBA letter as proof of 8(a) status, would it be included in the page limit? |
| Do not include this letter in the proposal page limit. This letter is not required. If you do include it, attach it to your proposal/. |
| 3 |
| Can we get a copy of “attachment 5” as mentioned in SF 1449, page 2? |
| Attachment 5 will be a Department of Labor Wage Determination for the location of Awardee’s place of business. Wage Determinations can be found online at www.wdol.gov. The wage determination is for the location where the work is performed. For the base IDIQ contract, Attachment 5 will be for the location of awardee’s place of business. For each task order the wage determinations attached will be for the location of the work to be performed. |
| 4 |
| Does SBA intend to award multiple IDIQ award or a single award for Solicitation Number: SBAHQ-11-R-0022? |
| SBA intends to make a single award. |
| 5 |
| When do you anticipate making an award for this procurement? |
| SBA intends to make an award on or about 8/15/2011. as indicated in the SF-1449. |
| 6 |
| Would you please clarify the bonding and insurance requirements the government is requesting in Attachment 2- Statement of Work on page 3? |
| “Contractor shall carry workmen’s compensation insurance on each of its employees performing work pursuant to this contract.” In addition, Contractor’s personnel shall be bonded and insured “in accordance with usual practices at the location where the individual contract employee is working.” There is no additional information to that stated in the Statement of Work. |
| 7 |
| Please confirm that the completed Reps and Certs do not need to be submitted with the proposal response and that SBA will access them in CCR. |
| The SBA will access Contractor’s representations and certifications from the ORCA website. Paper representation and certifications should not be submitted as part of the proposal. |
| 8 |
| What is the average processing time to process contractor clearances? |
| Processing time varies by the individual. Typically, the average is 4-6 weeks but it is dependent on the individual's background, credit analysis, and responsiveness to the SBA Inspector General. |
| 9 |
| What type and level of security clearance is required for this contract? |
| The security clearance is Public Trust background check which requires meeting the Moderate Risk Background Investigative Requirements. |
| 10 |
| “SBA shall have and exercise full and complete control over granting, denying, withholding, or terminating clearance for Contract personnel”. Can existing DoD clearances be transferred to expedite contractor staff placement on this contract? |
| All applicants must submit the same package but it is possible that current clearances will be sufficient to meet the moderate risk background investigative requirements. This matter will be determined on an applicant basis by the SBA Inspector General. |
| 11 |
| Since we are technically managing the work that is to be done, do our hires have to be approved by government employees? Would any of the "augmentation staff" at a location be considered contractually to be "key personnel"? |
| Applicants must clear the security background check process which is managed by government employees before showing up for work. At this time, no individuals are considered key personnel though this can change dependent on situation and need. |
| 12 |
| Appendix A, Position Descriptions, Page 2 – Should “01111 General Clerk III” be “01111 General Clerk I”? |
| Yes. It should be General Clerk I. |
| 13 |
| Do you know what the dollar value will be? |
| The minimum value is $50,000 with a maximum contract value for the entire period of performance of $65,000,000. See Statement of Work, pages 10 and 11. |
| 14 |
| Ref Append A, PD’s, pg 18. No quantities are indicated for the various labor categories. Recommend the government provide the historical manpower requirements for each. |
| The quantities will depend on the rollout of loan programs or changing program requirements and funds availability. No additional information is available at this time. |
| 15 |
| What is the SBA’s estimated spend for this contract or if in fact there is an incumbent, what is the historical spend? |
| No historical spending information is available. |
| 16 |
| Please identify the labor categories currently being supplied in each of the above cities where staffing is currently being provided. |
• On-Site Supervisor
• General Clerk I, General Clerk II, General Clerk III (GS Level Equivalent of GS-2/3/4)
• Loan Specialist (GS Level Equivalent of GS-9/11)
• Financial Analyst (GS Level Equivalent of GS-11/12)
• Computer Programmer I, II, III, IV (GS Level Equivalent of GS-5/7/9/11)
• Personal Computer Support Technician (GS Level Equivalent of GS-7)
• Paralegal/Legal Assistant I, II, III, IV (GS Level Equivalent of GS-5/7/9/11)
• Loan Processing Assistant (GS Level Equivalent of GS-5/7)
• Attorney Advisor (GS Level Equivalent of GS-11/12) Most of these labor categories are supplied but not at every location. The task orders issued under this award will indicate the need per location.
| 17 |
| Is this a follow-on contract? If so, can you provide historical data for each location (# of employees, # of hours, etc)? |
| This Solicitation is for future needs. This solicitation is not a follow-on contract. Historical data is not available. |
| 18 |
| Will any particular location, e.g., Herndon,VA/Washington, DC, field more of the labor than others? |
| It is expected that some locations will have a greater future labor need than other locations. Labor is not guaranteed in every location. |
| 19 |
| Is there an incumbent? |
| This Solicitation is considered a new need without an incumbent. |
| 20 |
| Since this is an SBA set aside, we assume it is a subset of a larger staff augmentation contract? Is there a prime already in place for the larger contract? |
| This solicitation is for a separate award. The awardee will be the prime contractor on the award. |
| 21 |
| Who is eligible to make an offer? |
| This solicitation is set-aside 100% for an 8(a) awardee. |
| 22 |
| Are staff currently being supplied at the listed locations? |
| Contractor employees are working at most of the locations listed in the Statement of Work. |
| 23 |
| This is a new requirement, correct? If some of the labor is currently being performed under a different contract, would you provide related incumbent(s) and contract number(s)? |
| Upon award, SBA will supply names of staff who may be interested in joining a new contract to continue work at their location. |
| 24 |
| What are the lengths of employment anticipated for this contract? |
| Length of employment in task orders ie anticipated to range from 6 months to one year. |
| 25 |
| Must awardees have a regional presence in all locations listed in the Statement of work at time of award? |
| A regional presence at all listed locations by the Awardee at time of award is not required. |
| 26 |
| Does the selected firm have to have a physical office in all locations stated in the SOW? |
| Awardee need not have a physical location at the locations listed in the Statement of Work. |
| 27 |
| SOW, Page 10, Ordering Procedures, lists the minimum for a delivery order as $5,000.00. Under Maximum and Minimum Task Order Amounts, the minimum for a Task Order is identified as $50,000.00. Are there different minimums for different types of orders, or is one or the other amount correct? |
| The minimum amount for an individual Task Order is $5,000.00. The maximum amount for an individual Task Order is $700,000.00. |
The minimum total amount for all Task Orders pursuant to this IDIQ contract is $50,000.00. The maximum total is $65 million.
See pages 10 and 11 of the Statement of Work are modified to clarify.
| 28 |
| The sample task order has zero “IT” billets, yet the RFP suggests there is a significant number of IT-related billets. In order to be representative of ‘real life’, we recommend the government add some IT billets to the Mock TO. |
| This addition isn't necessary as the proposal also requires fully loaded rates for all positions across all potential option years. |
| 29 |
| Ref Attach 2 SOW, pg 10, “Minimum-Maximum”. The maximum Task Order is established at $700k. The value of the Mock TO vastly exceeds this number (unless one thinks bill rates of $5.00 are realistic). Recommend revise the Max Task Order ceiling; it need not conform to the GSA Schedule for Temp Services. |
| This Task Order is “mock” and will be used for pricing realism only. Maximum and minimum level amounts on the contract will not matter. Note that, if an actual Task Order exceeds the $700,000.00 maximum, the Awardee will have the option of not accepting that particular Task Order (but may choose to accept it). |
| 30 |
| Although the mock task asks for 71 people, is that a pretty good estimate of the people that would start initially? |
| It is likely that the initial task order will be less than 71 people. |
| 31 |
| Can you estimate the initial staffing needs for the first three months of the contract? |
| An estimate is not possible as programmatic need and funding availability are not yet known. |
| 32 |
| On the mock task order #1, in the Attachment 4, the number of personnel and the number of hours for some of the line items are empty. Are these missing on the task order, or shall we consider this as a “heading” for the labor categories that follows this line. Ex: The first line item, General Clerk I at Little Rock has no number of hours and number of personnel. General Clerk II at Sacramento does not have the number of hours and the number of personnel. |
| The positions that are empty are not needed in the Mock TO. Therefore, do not add these individuals to your proposed Mock TO. They are not a heading. |
| 33 |
| On the mock task order #1, in the Attachment 4, the role of Onsite Supervisor is performed by either Loan Specialist or General Clerk III. Assuming that the Onsite Supervisor’s rate is higher than the Loan Specialist and General Clerk, do we use the Onsite Supervisor’s rate for these two positions to calculate the total firm fixed price? |
| The On Site Supervisor should be a standard wage increase dependent on the main position that they occupy (e.g. Loan Specialist or Clerk III). |
| 34 |
| MOCK Task Order No. 1 indicates a total of 2,000 hours be used to calculate the total labor costs. Will the contractor be required to have a position filled for every working day besides the 10 Federal holidays (i.e., if an employee is on vacation or sick leave)? |
| No. This is not required. SBA, however, will not pay for leave or holidays. SBA will only pay actual contact hours, using the Contractor’s fully loaded labor rates. |
| 35 |
| Please refer to the Attachment 2 Statement of Work document, Required Personnel Labor Categories section, page 1. What is the GS grade and step equivalent for the On-Site Supervisor position? |
| There is no grade/step position equivalent for the On Site supervisor. As indicated in the SOW, the On Site Supervisor is a collateral duty to a main labor category (e.g. Clerk II, Loan Specialist…) Therefore; the supervisor will receive an increase based on the supervisor’s current occupied labor category. |
| 36 |
| Is On-Site Supervisor an additional employee? An example would be helpful. |
| No. The On Site Supervisor serves as a collateral duty to a position already on location (e.g. Clerk III, Loan Specialist, etc…) as indicated in the SOW. |
| 37 |
| The On-Site Supervisor serves as a full-time, on-site supervisor who shall also encumber the collateral duty a position described below…The On-Site Supervisor responsibilities shall be a collateral duty of individuals encumbering one of the positions. Is that right? |
| For example, the On Site Supervisor does daily work as a Clerk III for the location. Their supervisory role may come into play for payroll processing or any issues on site. The On Site Supervisor role is a collateral duty for an individual serving a needed position. |
| 38 |
| Would the Government allow Site Leads for a site to be based in another location? For example, could the site lead for contractors in Little Rock be based in Washington DC? |
| No. The On Site Supervisor must be co-located with the staff being supervised. |
| 39 |
| The Government says that we need to have a Project Manager for each site location where we have three or more people on-site. I understand that that position is not billable, but will be responsible for reporting. Theoretically, you could have a site with a clerk, a financial analyst, and a loan specialist, which would require the Project Manager to oversee three people with completely different functions. Is it more likely or does it make more sense to have the Project Manager’s oversight by function, instead of location? Furthermore, would the Government allow Project Managers for a site to be based in another location? For example, could the project manager for contractors in Little Rock be based in Washington DC? |
| No. SBA has indicated an On Site Supervisor for each location. Only one project manager is necessary for the contract. The Project Manager cannot bill time and may be located anywhere. |
The Awardee’s cost for a Project Manager is built into its fully loaded labor rates.
| 40 |
| Referring to Attach 2 SOW, pg 5, Overtime. We recommend the government evaluate how Overtime will be totaled and billed by offerors. The Mock TO might have a column added for some overtime on one or two of the categories to perform this evaluation. |
| It is indicated in the SOW that overtime can only be billed at 1.5 times the fully burdened hourly wage. |
| 41 |
| On page 12 of Attachment 1 – Clauses and Provisions, it states that, “resumes are not a part of the technical proposal, but are not a part of the proposal page count limitations.” Does the government indeed mean that the resume is not part of the page count? |
| Good catch. This sentence is modified to read, “Resumes are a part of the technical proposal but are not a part of the proposal 10-page count limitation.” |
| 42 |
| Please refer to the Attachment 1 Clauses and Provisions document, Evaluation - Commercial items section, Factor 2 Past Performance, page 11 of 25. Is there a minimum or maximum number of past performance references required to be submitted? |
| Please supply all past performance references for “similar services…provided in the last two (2) years.” This limitation on information provided is the 10-page count limitation for the Technical Proposal. |
| 43 |
| May subcontractors provide past performance references and PPQs and if so, how many of the past performance references and PPQs submitted may come from subcontractors? |
| Please supply all past performance references for the last two years as indicated in the Clauses and Provisions document. If subcontractors are being used, past performance for the subcontractors may be included. |
| 44 |
| Are the Past Performance References (PPRs) included in the technical response and therefore included in the 10-page limit? |
| The Past Performance references are included in the Technical Performance and are a part of the 10-page limitation for the Technical Proposal |
| 45 |
| Should PPRs be submitted for all teaming partners or just for the prime? |
| Yes, past performance from all teaming partners would be helpful. |
| 46 |
| Is there a page limit for each PPR or a limit to the overall number of PPRs submitted? |
| The limitations are (1) similar services, (2) past two (2) years, and (3) 10-page count limitation for Technical Proposal. |
| 47 |
| Please refer to the Attachment 2 Statement of Work document, Required Personnel Labor Categories section, page 2. Please provide clarification for the following positions: Loan Specialist, Load Processing Assistant, Attorney Advisor. Do the listed GS level equivalents pertain only to the grade, or to both the grade and step (e.g., for Loan Specialist listed as GS-9/11, does this mean grade 9/step 11, or does it mean the range of values between grades 9 and 11)? |
| The designation only pertains to the grade. Therefore, in this example, the range is grades 9 to 11. |
| 48 |
| Please refer to Appendix A Position Descriptions, Computer Programmers, starting on page 8. What programming languages or hardware environment knowledge is required? |
| The specific requirements on programming languages or hardware environment knowledge will be issued with the Task Order. |
| 49 |
| Are all positions listed currently filled at each site? |
| Most positions are filled in some capacity but not all positions for every location. |
| 50 |
| We did not see anything that says how long we will be given to fill open positions. How much notice will be given by the Government to produce candidates and have them start after a new work order is issued under this contract? |
| There is not designated fill time to produce a candidate but staffing needs are immediate. We anticipate every effort to be made to fill as quickly as possible taking into consideration the clearance process. |
| 51 |
| How many years of experience are required for the following positions? |
Loan Specialist Financial Analyst Loan Processing Assistant Attorney Advisor We rely on the contract award recipient to make the determinations that candidates are able to complete the work and are best qualified.
| 52 |
| How many positions are currently being filled? Could you please indicate the job titles and at which SBA office they are located? |
| Most positions are filled in some capacity but not all positions for every location. Future staffing will depend on need, workload, and funding availability. |
| 53 |
| SOW, Page 2 – How should the Contractor bill the Government when the Project Manager, whose duties are not billed directly to the SBA, serves as on-site supervisor, whose services will be billed directly? |
| The Project Manager and On Site Supervisor should not be the same individual. The Awardee’s costs for a Project Manager are a part of its fully loaded labor rates. The Project Manager will not be billed separately to the SBA. |
| 54 |
| How often does the Government anticipate the Project Manager visiting each site? |
| There is no requirement for visiting locations. |
| 55 |
| Please confirm that the Project Manager's resume IS a part of the technical response but is not included in the 10-page limit. |
| It is correct to state that the Project’s Manager’s resume is a part of the Technical Proposal but is not included in the 10-page limit.. |
| 56 |
| Do the proposals have any special formatting requirements or page limitations? |
| As indicated in the Contract Clauses and Solicitation Provisions, the proposal should be 12 point font, double spaced on one side of the page only. |
| 57 |
| Please confirm whether each submission (SF 1449 - 1 copy; Technical Proposal - 4 copies; Pricing Schedule - 1 copy; and Mock Delivery Order - 1 copy) should be packaged separately. |
| The separate parts of the entire proposal can be in the same container, envelope, box. However, the parts should be separate and not bound together. |
| 58 |
| The QASP provides standards for overall project oversight but does not provide standards by which acceptable or unacceptable performance for identified positions may be measured. Will such standards be identified in the relevant task orders? |
| Where available, standards can be supplied prior to issuance of task order, those standards will be included with the Task Order Statement of Work. |
| 59 |
| The Contract Employee Report (Attachment 2, page 5 and page 9) indicates that the list of employees assigned to SBA operating centers be submitted bi-weekly. However, the dates of submission are the 1st and 16th. Should this requirement read semi-monthly (twice a month) versus bi-weekly (every two weeks)? |
| Submission timelines are on the 1st and 16th of each month. |
| 60 |
| Does the resume (which is not included in the page count) also need to be double spaced? |
| There is no special requirement to double-space any resumes. |
| 61 |
| Regarding Attachment 1 (Contract Clauses & Solicitation Provisions), Page 12: Include … (2) a technical proposal written in 12-point font, double-spaced on one side only of each page, and of no more than 10 pages which addresses Factors 1 and 2, along with the required resume…Resumes are not a part of the technical proposal, but are not a part of the proposal page count limitation. Please confirm whether or not resumes are a part of the technical proposal. If not, in which section should they be included? |
| Resumes are a part of the technical proposal but not subject to the page limitation. Resumes may be attached to the Technical Proposal. |
| 62 |
| Is the resume for the Project Manager, the only resume that is required for submission? |
| The resume of the Project Officer must be included but other resumes may also be included – such as company principals with potential involvement. |
| 63 |
| Reference Append A, PD’s, pg 11. Recommend creating levels for this category, similar to that for others, such as I, II, III. |
| The levels (I, II, III) are direct from the Service Contract Act of 1954 (SCA). Historically, it has not been necessary to create levels for the non-SCA positions. |
| 64 |
| Will there be an extension to the due date for this RFP? |
| An extension is not being contemplated at this time. |
| 65 |
| Is this a wage determination SCA contract? If so, can the government provide the applicable wage determination schedules? |
| The schedules will be provided with the task orders. In order to gauge the possible wage determination rates, one can visit the wage determination rates online and compare with the locations identified in the statement of work. A Wage Determination will be attached to the IDIQ for the Awardee’s location. Each Task Order will have Wage Determinations attached for the locations of the work to be performed. |
| 66 |
| Labor categories for Computer Programmer I, the wage determination rate is $26.36 for DC area, but appendix A position description shows it is GS-5 equivalent where max pay is $21.22 for step 10. Could you advise which labor rate we should use? |
| The grade levels are provided as a suggestion by the Department of Labor. However, the wage determination rate will override if the two do not coincide. |
| 67 |
| Is it the Government's intent that this contract needs to be compliant with the Service Contract Act (SCA)? For some jobs, SCA compliance could significantly affect pricing. If this contract must be compliant with SCA, please indicate which labor categories map to SCA labor categories. |
| This contract will be compliant with the Service Contract Act of 1965. The current labor categories covered under the Services Contract Act are General Clerk I, General Clerk II, General Clerk III, Computer Programmer I, II, III, IV, Personal Computer Support Technician, Paralegal/Legal Assistant I, II, III, IV . |
| 68 |
| We would assume that a Clerk in Little Rock, AR makes less than the same person in Fresno, CA (not to mention the higher workers comp and tax costs of a CA employee). Will the pricing an offeror submits for the various labor categories have a component that considers regional cost of living or the regional ECI (employment cost index)? May we submit different rates for each region covered by this contract? How would we do this and how would the Government evaluate price in such a case? |
| It is expected that the rates may be different by region or location. Please reference the Services Contract Act, the wage determination rates (www.wdol.gov) and any proposed grade levels for non-SCA categories (www.opm.gov). Offeror may submit different fully loaded labor rates for the same positions for different locations, but must be clear about its pricing. |
| 69 |
| SOW, Page 8 – Will the Government facilities be secured? What safeguards currently exist for SBA property, equipment, and supplies? |
| All facilities under this contract are secured in accordance with federal standards. |
| 70 |
| Is/are there any site visit(s) planned? |
| No site visits are planned in association with this Solicitation. |
| 71 |
| How many incumbents meet the Service Contract Act requirements for 3 weeks vacation? SCA says incumbents with 8 or more years at the job receive 3 weeks vacation. |
| SBA will provide a list of incumbent contractor employees to the Awardee upon award. The specifically requested information is not available. |
| 72 |
| Approximately how many incumbents are working on tasks today? |
| This information has not been assembled. |
| 73 |
| Can you provide a listing showing the longevity (original hire dates) of the current incumbent employees on this project? |
| SBA will provide a list of incumbents upon award. Additional information beyond identifying the incumbent contract employees may not be available, except by interviewing the personnel themselves. |
| 74 |
| If an incumbent employee accepts our offer of employment, can the burdened hourly rate be adjusted after award to accommodate any increased hourly pay rate requested by the incumbent? |
| No. The rates will be fully loaded and fixed at time of award. |
| 75 |
| Would SBA consider acceptable if the offerer forms a Team with another company? |
| Yes – provided all laws and regulations are met as indicated in contract, an explanation for bidding per task order is included, and billing is centralized. FAR clause 52.219-14, Limitations on Subcontracting is part of Attachment 1 and must be adhered to by the Awardee. |
| 76 |
| Will Reps and Certs be required for all subcontractors/teaming partners as well as the prime? |
| No. As a result of this contract, the Government will have a legal relationship only with the Contractor/Awardee. The Contractor/Awardee is responsible for any subcontractors. |
| 77 |
| Is there a requirement that any subcontractors use the prime contractor's timesheet, or can each company use their own timesheet? |
| SBA prefers that timekeeping is standardized by the Awardee. The SBA will only be dealing with the Awardee. |
| 78 |
| Is there a technology platform already in place to manage this staff augmentation business, or could we also include a technology component in our response, beyond the staff augmentation pricing? |
| SBA will not cover a technology platform for the contract company to manage their staff. No platform is currently in place. |
SBAHQ-11-R-0022 – Staff Augmentation Support Services - IDIQ Contract – Questions and Answers
