Solicitation Instructions and Evaluation Criteria_Final.docx

CUI

CUI

Solicitation Instructions

The provision at FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, is replaced in its entirety by the following:

L.1 Solicitation Question and Comments Due Date.

Questions/comments pertaining to this solicitation must be submitted via email to both roberto.saenz2.ctr@mail.mil and earl.e.anderson51.civ@mail.mil using the mandatory Attachment L-1: Comment Resolution Matrix by 01 JULY 2026 at 09:00 AM EST. Questions/comments which are not submitted via email will not be provided a response.

L.2 System for Award Management (SAM.gov) and Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE) Solicitation Module.

Solicitation information and any associated solicitation amendments will be available through SAM.gov.

Vendor responses (i.e. the quotes) to this solicitation shall be submitted via the PIEE Solicitation Module by the published due date. Notify the Points of Contact (POCs) listed in L.1 via email that your submission has been delivered through the PIEE module.

L.3 Quote Preparation and Submission Instructions.

The following instructions are for the preparation and submission of quotes. The purpose of this section is to establish requirements for the format and content of quotes so that quotes contain all essential information and can be evaluated equitably. Vendors are instructed to read the entire RFQ, including all attachments, prior to submitting questions and/or preparing your quote. Omission of any information from the quote submission requirements may result in rejection of the quote.

Vendors are expected to follow the detailed quote preparation instructions fully and carefully. There is Government reliance on the information provided by vendors to conduct the competition. It is therefore imperative that vendors carefully follow the instructions set forth below and submit their quotes in the format and with the content specified herein. Vendors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of their quotes and are encouraged to submit information sufficient to evaluate against the methodology outlined in this document.

The following attachments are hereby incorporated into the solicitation for use when developing quotes:

H-1: Special Contract Requirements J-1: Statement of Objectives_WarU Cert Exam L-1: Comment Resolution Matrix L-2: CON & PM Cert Exam Historical Actuals L-3: GEO Dispersion of CON workforce (2021 Data) L-4: Wage Determination (TBD Not Included With the Initial Solicitation Release) L-5 Past Performance Questionnaire L-6: Contractor Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form

Attachments H-1, J-1, and L-4 will be incorporated into the award.

L.4 Intentionally left blank.

L.5 Quote Requirements.

The Quote contents are to be separated and submitted as standalone documents as outlined in the table below, labeled with the Vendor’s name and a brief description. E.g. ‘Company A Prior Experience’, ‘Company A Price’.

The table below outlines the content of each area comprising a Vendor’s complete quote:

*Factor 3 will be presented orally **Factor 2 is provided by each vendor’s selected customer(s) of choice and the number of submissions is capped at three total questionnaires/references.

L.5.1 Format

Page size shall be 8 ½ by 11-inch, using 12-point font. No reduction is permitted except for organization charts or other graphic illustrations, or in headers/footers. In those instances where reduction is allowable, Vendors shall ensure that the print is easily readable; no less than 8-point font on graphs and 10-point font on tables. Each page shall have adequate margins on each side (at least one (1) inch) of the page. Header/footer information (which does not include any information to be evaluated) may be included in the 1” margin space. Pages that exceed the maximum page limitation will not be evaluated.

L.6 Evaluation Submission and Instructions

L.6.1 Cover Letter and Additional Documentation

The cover letter is to include the following:

· Contractor Name

· Complete Business Mailing Address

· Solicitation Number

· Unique Entity ID (UID) Number

· Authorized Point of Contact (POC) name, email address, and telephone number

· A statement specifying the contractor’s agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation without exceptions or assumptions

· List of any subcontractors working with the prime on the project and their UID Number

The OCI Disclosure and Mitigation Plan shall be completed as applicable by using Attachment L-6 to aid in the required disclosure.

L.6.2. Factor 1: Corporate Experience.

Corporate Experience is based in experience performing within the performance areas relevant to the scope of the J-1: Statement of Objectives. The experience evaluation is tied solely to the projects provided in response to this solicitation.

The Government is only interested in the experience of the prime contractor.

Vendors are restricted to submitting no more than three projects as part of the quote package. Each experience example must include the following:

· Name of project

· Name of client and point of contact (email and telephone number)

· Contract number

· Dollar value (provide BOTH the total AND annual value)

· Your role as either a prime contractor, joint venture partner, or subcontractor

· Period of performance start and end dates must include the month and year (including option years (OY), if applicable)

· Description of work performed and how it is relevant to the instant procurement

L.6.2.1 Relevant Experience

· Preferred projects demonstrate similar scope, complexity, and magnitude to the requirements of the Statement of Objectives, especially with respect to the relative number of exams delivered per year, using the historical delivery data provided as a guidepost, as well as ability to meet the exam delivery demand both CONUS and globally, with preference to in-person delivery vs. virtually where available and feasible.

· Each project must be either ongoing or have been completed within five (5) years from the due date for responses to this solicitation. Any submitted project must have completed at least 12 months of performance.

L.6.2.2 Relevant Experience Project Types

A relevant experience “project type” is defined as:

(1) a single contract refers to a standalone agreement for a specific scope of work;

(2) a single task order awarded under a multiple award contract refers to a singular project issued as an order;

(3) multiple task orders awarded under a single award indefinite delivery contract for a singular purpose;

(4) a single task order placed under a Federal Supply Schedule contract (a blanket purchase agreement issued via the schedule program is not included in this definition only an order will be considered) for a specific scope of work; or

(5) a single task order placed under a single award blanket purchase agreement issued using the procedures of FAR Part 8. When a single award vehicle task order’s requirements are well defined, for a specific purpose, and task orders are issued on a recurring basis, a collection of task order placed under it may be combined and submitted as a single project. For a multiple award blanket purchase agreement apply the definition at (2) above

Any combination of U.S. Federal Government, State Government, International Public Sector, and Non-Government projects awarded from the private sector can be submitted.

Vendors shall submit no more than three total projects to substantiate relevant experience.

L.6.3 Factor 2: Past Performance

Vendors shall submit a unified experience and past performance portfolio of project(s). The Government will evaluate the extent to which the vendor’s recent and relevant past performance demonstrates a high level of confidence in successfully performing similar efforts of comparable scope, magnitude, and complexity. The evaluation will consider the quality of performance, performance trends, and available source information, specifically with respect to the capabilities and attributes described in Factor 1, Corporate Experience

To reiterate, past performance will be evaluated using ONLY the projects submitted under L.6.3. Factor 1: Corporate Experience. Vendors are mandated to use the attachment L-5 Past Performance Questionnaire to respond to this factor. Follow the instructions provided in the attachment. CPARS reports or questionnaires from previous competitions cannot be used as a replacement for the L-5 attachment because the Government is specifically interested in attributes unique to this requirement and desires responses from your customers regarding those attributes.

Relevance Narrative: Within the past performance questionnaire, vendors are to provide a detailed narrative explaining and mirroring how the work performed is relevant to the instant procurement. This narrative must specifically address the similarity of the prior work in terms of scope, magnitude, and complexity as compared to the required work under of this solicitation and will be used as a customer confirmation of the Factor 1 submission. Vendors are responsible for articulating the relevance of their submitted projects and the alignment with the experience detailed under Factor 1; the Government is not obligated to infer relevance.

The number of L-5 Past Performance Questionnaires any vendor can submit is capped at three questionnaires.

L.6.4 Factor 3: Transition Plan.

L.6.2.1 Oral Presentation

The vendor shall provide sufficient information for the Government to evaluate its level of confidence, regarding the vendor’s Transition Plan for being ready to meet all objectives and requirements identified in the Statement of Objectives by 30 Sep 2026, by specifically responding to the following questions:

1. What is your approach to ensure a low-risk, well-coordinated approach to achieving full operational capability by 30 Sep 2026 without disruption to exam delivery, including exam content migration / exam publishing, system integration (data interface, i.e; SFTP, Web API, etc for Examinee data), scheduling continuity, and /or schedule risk mitigation.

2. How long does it take you to publish an exam, to include website/customer entry portal development, communication artifacts (emails templates for examinee communications), exam publishing format (or whichever means you require of the customer), Quality assurance and pre-publish checks, any other critical efforts not explicitly mentioned in these objectives?

3. What will you require from WarU (customer), based on your established practices, to facilitate a timely initial customer setup and exam publishing, considering there will be between 3-6 exams to be published at time of contract award? Assume all exams are fully developed and data is ready to transfer to you for publishing. How long will it take, and can you meet the 30 September “go live” date? (Assuming no customer-driven delays)

4. Can you outline a recent & relevant example of a similar new-customer launch of similar scope and magnitude and describe the successes and pitfalls and how you would apply lessons-learned from either towards ensuring a seamless transition with the WarU certification exam contract/program.

Vendors must summarize any perceived benefit to the Government of a proposed strategy or approach and provide that information in a slide presentation and should not rely merely on describing the benefit orally. Vendors shall adhere to the format for oral presentation guidance in addition to the rules of engagement for this phase of the procurement. The guidance and engagement rules will be provided to vendors who submit quotes to this solicitation.

L.6.2.2 Location

The Government reserves the right to hold these presentations either in person or virtually via Microsoft Teams. The order in which vendors are scheduled for oral presentations will be selected by the Government.

L.6.2.3 Vendor Participants

The Government requires that oral presentations be presented by no more than three personnel. The Government highly desires that the proposed Program Manager be a presenter. The Government highly desires that at least one presenter be a current employee of the Prime Contractor. If utilizing a key subcontractor, then the Government highly desires one presenter from the respective subcontractor company be a current employee. Signed letters verifying current employment status will be required of each presenter.

L.6.2.4. Exchanges During Oral Presentations

The Government DOES NOT intend for the oral presentation to be an interactive dialogue between Vendor and Government. Any clarifications required by the Government will be done in writing.

L.6.5 Factor 4 Price

Vendors shall submit a combination of fixed unit prices and fixed prices for the base period and all option periods using Section B of the solicitation.

Solicitation Evaluation

The provision at FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation—Commercial Products and Commercial Services., is replaced in its entirety by the following:

M.1 Evaluation.

The Government will award a single purchase order resulting from this solicitation to the responsible vendor whose submission conforms to the solicitation, and will be the most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered.

The evaluation will be based on an integrated assessment of the information submitted and may incorporate other evaluation information available to the Government.

The Government anticipates selecting the best-suited response without engaging in exchanges with competitors. Vendors are strongly encouraged to submit their best responses to this solicitation.

Once the Government determines the vendor that is the best-suited (i.e., the apparent successful vendor), the government reserves the right to communicate with only that vendor to address any remaining issues, if necessary, and finalize a purchase order with that vendor. These issues may include price and non-price related areas.

M.2. Basis for Award.

Award will be made to the Vendor whose quote presents the best value in accordance with the simplified procedures of Revolutionary FAR Overhaul 12.2 for commercial acquisitions and the criteria established herein.

M.3. Corporate Experience, Past Performance, and Transition Plan.

The Government will assess its level of confidence that the Vendor will successfully perform the requirements based on their written submissions and any other information obtained.

The evaluation of the non-price factors may be conducted using a rating scale or evaluated by directly comparing submissions to one another. Price will be a consideration as part of either approach.

M.3.1 Corporate Experience.

a) The vendor's statement of demonstrated capabilities, including available resources and technology worldwide, as it applies to the execution of in-person and secure remote/virtual proctored exams.

b) The (IT) hardware and software requirements necessary for an examinee to take a virtually proctored examination.

c) The Government will evaluate the vendor's demonstrated experience in relation to the required service in terms of what the vendor has done, how many times the vendor has performed the service, and how long has the vendor performed the service.

M.3.2 Past Performance.

The Government will evaluate the extent of the vendor’s reputation for providing quality support to its customer base while servicing the projects submitted under Factor 1. The evaluation will consider the quality of performance, performance trends, and available source information, specifically with respect to the capabilities and attributes described in the past performance questionnaire.

M.3.3 Transition Plan.

The Government will evaluate the extent to which the vendor’s transition plan demonstrates a low-risk, well-coordinated approach to achieving full operational capability by 30 Sep 2026 without disruption to exam delivery, including content migration, system integration, scheduling continuity, and risk mitigation.

M.4 Price

The Total Evaluated Price (TEP) will be the sum of the total price for each performance period (base period, OY1, OY2, OY3, OY4) plus an amount to represent the 52.217-8 extension period. The 52.217-8 extension period will be represented by an amount that is of one-half of the total price for Option Year 4 that will be added to all price quotes by the Government. DO NOT provide pricing for the 52.217-8 extension this will be done by the evaluation team.

As a pre-condition to receiving award, the awardee’s pricing must be fair and reasonable. The Government will determine whether pricing is fair and reasonable based one or more of the techniques listed at FAR 15.404-1. The Government also, at its sole discretion, reserves the right to conduct a PRICE REALISM analysis of any quote to ensure that the offered prices are realistic. The results of the PRICE REALISM analysis can be used in performance risk assessments. The Government is not required to conduct a price realism analysis on any or all quotes but may do so if it determines in its sole discretion to conduct such an analysis.