Attachment_4_Technical_Proposal_Instructions.docx

Attachment #4

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE PREPARATION OF TECHNICAL PROPOSALS

A. General Instructions

(1) The offeror shall submit a cover letter indicating that the proposal is its official offer to the Government. The letter must be signed by an official authorized to bind the offeror. The proposal shall be considered to be firm for a period of not less than one hundred eighty (180) days from the due date of the solicitation.

(2) The offeror shall submit an electronic copy (in Microsoft Word or .pdf) via www.FedConnect.net (see Section L provision EPA-L-15-104) of the Technical Proposal, the Quality Management Plan, the Security Plan, and the Small Business Subcontracting Plan. Proposals not submitted via FedConnect will not be considered or evaluated.

(3) All submitted materials shall be submitted electronically, and the document must be single spaced, no less than 1" margins. Pages must be numbered consecutively. A page is defined as one side of a piece of paper. Type size shall not be less than 10 point. Any page over the page limit provided below (see Section B. Technical Proposal Instructions) as well as any page not conforming to the specifications above will not be reviewed.

B. Technical Proposal Instructions

The technical proposal shall be submitted as a separate part of the proposal package. All cost or pricing information shall be excluded from the technical proposal. The technical proposal is limited to 50 pages exclusive of the required resumes, letters of intent, past performance questionnaires, Quality Management Plan, Security Plan, and Small Business Subcontracting Plan. Any page exceeding the maximum limit will not be reviewed.

1. Technical Capability

(a) Understanding and Approach

The offeror shall provide sufficient information for the Agency to evaluate the offeror’s ability for developing approaches which are appropriate, complete and adequate for performing tasks outlined in the statement of work, particularly approaches relevant to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

The offeror shall submit sufficient information for the Agency to evaluate the offeror’s ability to provide readable, complete reports; ability to produce clearly written documents; ability to present clear oral briefings to government officials using briefing packages; and ability to display competent technical editorial capability.

(b) Personnel Qualifications and Utilization

The offeror shall provide sufficient information for the Agency to evaluate the offeror’s ability to provide personnel with the appropriate experience, expertise and availability including mechanisms for obtaining access to nationally-recognized practicing consultants (National Experts) in the disciplines outlined in the statement of work.

The offeror shall submit a Staffing Plan to aid in the evaluation of the availability of qualified employees to contribute to this requirement. This plan shall outline the other personnel to be assigned to perform this contract. The information shall include present employment status, proportion of time available for this contract, as well as the nature and extent of commitment to other projects

The offeror shall submit sufficient information for the Agency to evaluate the offeror’s proposed Program Manager’s (Key Personnel) experience and availability in the following areas: managing tasks similar in magnitude of this effort, managing toxicological review tasks, and intra-organizational management.

For Key Personnel, the offeror shall include resumes which include sufficient information to demonstrate the qualifications necessary to successfully perform the requirements of the SOW. Resumes should include examples of work similar in nature to this contract that have been performed in similar roles by the Key Personnel. Each resume shall not exceed four (4) pages. Any page exceeding the maximum limit will not be reviewed. In addition to the resumes for Key Personnel, the offeror shall discuss the ability to replace individuals with equally qualified personnel if the Key Personnel need to be replaced. If Key Personnel are not presently employed by the company, include letters of intent.

2. Past Performance

The offeror shall submit the past performance information requested in Section L, Clause L-14, entitled, PAST PERFORMANCE INFORMATION (EPAAR 1552.215-75).

3. Written Plans

The following plans shall be included under separate tabs:

Quality Management Plan (section E clause, Higher-Level Contract Quality Requirements (FAR 52.246-11)) as well as the requirements for Quality Plans as outlined at the following website: http://www.epa.gov/quality/qmps.html)

Security Plan (see section H clause, EPAAR 1552.235-75, Access to Toxic Substances Control Act Confidential Business Information as well as the requirements for Security Plans outlined at the following website: http://www.epa.gov/oppt/pubs/tsca-cbi-protection-manual.pdf)

Small Business Subcontracting Plan (see Section I clause, FAR 52.219-9 SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN)