Sources Sought CAI.pdf

Sources Sought:

Computer-Assisted Interviewing (CAI) Authoring Software.

9 February 2024

SOURCES SOUGHT:

Computer-Assisted Interviewing (CAI) Authoring Software.

In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulations Part 10, the following Notice is issued solely for Market Research purposes. It does not constitute a Request for Proposal or a commitment to issue a Request for Proposal by the U.S. Census Bureau. The Census Bureau is not requesting or accepting offers at this time. Information received in response to this notice will not be evaluated or considered by the Government as an offer. The Census Bureau is not responsible for any administrative cost incurred by respondents for answering to this announcement.

TITLE:

BACKGROUND

The U. S. Census Bureau is the primary source of basic statistics about the population and economy of the Nation. These statistics assist the Congress, the executive branch of the Federal Government, state and local governments, the general public, and the private sector in the development and evaluation of social and economic activities. Our major programs are the periodic censuses, current surveys, and a wide range of reimbursable work for other agencies. The programs cover a broad spectrum of demographic and economic statistics. To fulfill the critical and continually expanding mission to meet the data requirements of our users, we have become increasingly reliant upon information technology (IT) to improve the timeliness and quality of statistical products.

The importance of maintaining a state-of-the-art capability to accomplish our mission is imperative. The computing resources enable our staff to develop, process, and maintain enormous collections of basic data about the people and economy of the Nation.

The Application Development and Services Division (ADSD) specializes in the design, development, implementation and support of electronic data collection technologies. The Instrument Development Teams in ADSD are currently responsible for the design, development, and support of all computer-assisted interviewing (CAI) instruments for in-person interviews, telephone interviews, and listing operations. The programming of instruments is referred to as “authoring,” and the software used to develop the instruments is referred to as an “authoring language.”

DESCRIPTION

To meet the needs of existing surveys the BOC has a requirement to produce highly complex demographic and longitudinal automated survey questionnaires, as well as some economic survey questionnaires and automated listing instruments. These instruments are used by trained interviewers working on Microsoft Windows platforms, desktops and laptops. These instruments must be capable of running in a disconnect mode; i.e., with no connection to a network or the Internet.

However, to meet the Census Bureau’s emerging requirements, the software also needs to be capable of producing instruments that can run on mobile devices, such as tablets and smart phones, both in a connected and a disconnected state. These instruments may be used by trained interviewers or by respondents.

Key Requirements:

Following are the key requirements that the Computer-Assisted Interviewing (CAI) Authoring Software solution must meet:

To meet existing needs, the software requirements are as follows:

• The software must have an integrated development environment (IDE)

• To meet existing needs, the resulting automated questionnaires (instruments), must run on Windows operating systems (OSs) (Windows 10 and higher)

• The system architecture must be open so that it can be integrated easily with existing systems and software.

• Provide the ability to shell out of an automated questionnaire - launch and pass data between an application developed in another language.

• Must be fully integrated so that multiple software packages do not need to be used in the development environment in order for the product to function properly.

• Must provide the ability to produce instruments in multiple languages and to allow the interviewer to toggle back and forth between languages.

• Must be able to handle complex pathing in the instruments.

• Must be able to handle very large (5,000+ data items) complex surveys.

• Must be able to handle irregular navigation, such as, backing up, changing paths, jumping to different areas in the instrument.

• Must be able to support dynamic fills of text.

• Must be able to handle complex edit rules.

• Must have the ability to manage data in grids or tables.

• Must support multi-mode surveys (CATI, CAPI, CAWI, CADE, etc.)

• Must provide screen layouts that can be customized.

• Must be able to easily implement Computer Audio Recorded Interviewing (CARI) instruments.

• Must be able to store data and produce data output in a file format or provide the ability to output data in a file format.

• Must provide the ability to generate data about the interviewing process, such as keystroke files and audio recordings of questions.

• Must provide the ability to break up the source code into modules and allow for the re-use of code.

• Complete documentation must be available, that is updated on a regular basis.

• Training and support services must be available.

• The product must be backed with long-term, committed development plan that adapts to changes in technology.

To meet emerging needs, additional requirements may be needed and are as follows:

• Must be capable of storing data in a variety of relational databases, including SQLite, SQL Server Express, and Oracle.

• Must provide the ability to produce instruments that can be run on mobile platforms, such as iOS, Android, and WinRT.

• Must provide the capability of separating the screen display layout from the rules of the questionnaire so the same instrument could be used in multiple form factors by applying the appropriate layout for the device.

The Contractor shall furnish the USCB with a single annual corporate license, product documentation and technical support.

Response Submission Instructions

The following company information requested is intended to assist the USCB in learning more about potential sources that could provide a solution for Computer-Assisted Interviewing (CAI) Authoring Software. The USCB appreciates and encourages vendors to submit responses based on their knowledge, experience, and expertise that meet the requirements addressed.

All information provided will be utilized for market research purposes directly related to the potential acquisition of the services described in this source sought. Based on the information provided, and as part of its ongoing market research, the USCB may contact individual respondents for additional information.

HOW TO RESPOND:

The following information shall be provided in your company’s response to this source sought notice:

Section I – Capabilities Statement

A summary of your company’s capabilities, and related similar experience in meeting the technical requirements described herein.

Section II – Business Information

Company Name, Mailing Address, Representative Contact information, System for Acquisition Management (SAM) Unique Entity Information (UEI) Socio-Economic Business Size, Available Government-wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) vehicles, Section III – Responses to Both Market Research Questions below:

1. To meet the needs of existing surveys the USCB strive to produce highly complex demographic and longitudinal automated survey questionnaires, as well as some economic survey questionnaires and automated listing instruments. These instruments are used by trained interviewers working on Microsoft Windows platforms, desktops, and laptops. Do the proposed instruments have the capability of running in a disconnect mode, i.e., with no connection to a network or the Internet?

If so, please describe the capability.

2. Does the proposed software have the capability to collect data for more than 50+ critical current surveys such as the Current Population Survey (CPS), the American Community Survey (ACS), and the Survey of Construction (SOC)? If so, please describe the capability.

The overall response submission (including all 3 sections) shall not exceed 10 pages using 8.5” x 11” pages, 12-pitch font size in Times New Roman, and single-spaced.

Interested vendors that are capable of providing the services must submit their responses paul.w.boesch@census.gov and michael.d.walton@census.gov by 5:00pm (EST) on Feb. 23, 2024.

No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).

DISCLAIMER AND IMPORTANT NOTES:

Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organizations qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. The Government may contact individual respondents for additional follow-up exchanges or to request additional information. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published.

The USCB will review each respondent’s capabilities statement to determine if the respondent has the requisite experience and past performance to fulfill the requirements described herein. The U.S. Census Bureau may or may not publish a Request for Proposal (RFP) in the future. The Government does not guarantee any action beyond this source sought notice.

mailto:paul.w.boesch@census.gov mailto:michael.d.walton@census.gov

DISCLAIMER AND IMPORTANT NOTES: