SOW.pdf

Scope of Work: Update park videos to meet 508 compliance standards

For reference: Accessibility & Section 508 (sharepoint.com)

I. Purpose

The Communications and Public Affairs Team at Everglades and Dry Tortugas National Parks intends to contract to remediate existing park videos so that they meet Accessibility and Section 508 requirements, including closed captioning and extended audio descriptions. Final product needs to be original video with closed captions and a second version of each video with audio descriptions incorporated. Video file format should be MP4 or MOV.

II. Description of Project

The contractor will remediate 64 previously produced videos, totaling approximately 18 hours, for Everglades and Dry Tortugas National Parks, so that they are all 508 compliant. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. § 794d), as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-

220) requires federal agencies to develop, procure, maintain and use information and communications technology (ICT) that is accessible to people with disabilities - regardless of whether or not they work for the federal government. The US Access Board established the Section 508 standards that implement the law and provides the requirements for accessibility.

For videos, this means ensuring closed captioning and audio descriptions are available. The deliverable as a whole and all of its components shall be accessible and usable by persons with disabilities. At a minimum, compliance with most current version of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act as amended shall be met. See https://www.section508.gov/. In addition, the NPS strives to meet level AAA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. but acknowledges that not all products can achieve this level. See http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG/. The contractor shall list the proposed deliverables and the WCAG level which they believe can be met for each deliverable. As more is understood about the deliverable, the achievable level may be impacted either positively or negatively. Any changes shall be discussed with the government for approval. The contractor will be required to deliver a plan to detail how they will test for accessibility and how they intend to meet WCAG levels for each deliverable.

III. Scope of Work

In order to perform effectively on this contract, the contracted company must show extensive knowledge of the most current Section 508 standards. The Contractor shall provide all labor, materials, equipment, research, and facilities necessary to fulfill 508 compliance of provided videos. Upon completion, each newly audio described video will have a resolution of 4K (Ultra HD) in HDR (high dynamic range) or at least as good as the original provided video file. The Contractor will provide the deliverables, adhering to specifications detailed below. If a question arises regarding a particular item, the Contractor shall communicate such questions to the Acquisition Team before beginning the work.

The contractor must include documentation and confirmation that the resulting product meets Section 508 requirements and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 compliance.

The Contractor will need to submit a detailed quote (or price related issues) solely to the Contracting Officer (CO). Once that is reviewed and feedback taken into consideration, 508 compliance work can then proceed. Once complete, the Contractor must provide the products outlined below by a downloadable link accessible to government computers.

IV. Copyright and Ownership

Everglades National Park has full permission to use, broadcast, and distribute the final edited videos produced in this contract in perpetuity.

V. Products and Deliverables Schedule

Performance period: The work for this service shall be provided from 20 days after being awarded the contract up until September 30, 2022.

The contract will have initial year plus 4 option years.

Based on discussions with the COR, the contractor shall provide a plan to remediate all requested videos within 60 days of being awarded the contract. Plan must specify all deliverable types and files based on playback venues. File types must be compatible with park website, NP Gallery (a National Park Service website) and YouTube.

The park is requests to review caption and audio description deliverables in tandem for each video.

Videos will be submitted to the contractor on a rolling basis throughout the year. The delivery timeframes are calculated based on submissions of 10-12 videos.

A list of videos and their timeframes are provided.

The contractor shall provide the following products on this contract by providing them in downloadable format from a website that is accepted by the Department of the Interior:

Caption Deliverables Delivery Timeframe

Draft caption script with timecode placement within original video/soundtrack and send to park for review

Within 10 business days of submissions

Based on park feedback, final caption script with timecode placement within original video/soundtrack

Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Captions synced with video for review Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Based on park feedback, final captions synced with video

Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Audio Description (AD) Deliverables Delivery Date Rough draft AD script with timecode placement within original video/soundtrack

Three professional narration samples for AD narration for the park to select one from

Within 10 business days of submissions

Based on park feedback, revised rough draft AD script with timecode placement within original video/soundtrack

Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Based on comments, final AD script with timecode placement within original video/soundtrack

Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Recorded narration of script synced with video for review

Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Based on comments, final synchronized AD per specific delivery types.

Within 10 business days of receiving park feedback

Final Products Delivery Date Final videos with audio descriptions and closed captions as uncompressed video files

Within 5 business days of park approved captioned and audio-described video

Final videos with audio descriptions and closed captions as compressed video files (i.e., web ready)

Within 5 business days of park approved captioned and audio-described video

An Edited Decision List (EDL) and assets for the packaged native files

Within 5 business days of park approved captioned and audio-described video

VI. Schedules and Payments

Once the Contractor has submitted a deliverable to the COR, the COR will have 21 business days to review the deliverable. Following the 21 business day review period, the COR may return the deliverable to the Contractor for re-work or may accept the deliverable as completed. If the deliverable is returned to the Contractor for re-work, the Contractor shall be responsible for the cost and logistics associated with editing and reworking. If re-work is required, it shall be completed within 21 business days, and shall be at no additional cost.

Schedule of Partial Payments

The Contractor will be paid for work upon completion and acceptance, and receipt of a proper invoice.

Partial payments are authorized. Partial payments will be made after receipt of an invoice from the Contractor once the following milestones are met: 1) when 25% of the requested work is completed 2) when 50% of the requested work is completed, and 3) when 100% of the work has been completed.

VII. Selection Criteria

Specialized experience – Addresses the Contractor’s technical understanding, experience and knowledge of Section 508 (40%)

Technical Approach – The Contractor should also be able to deliver all the products outlined in Section V of this document: Products and Deliverables Schedule. (20%)

Past performance – Descriptions of at least 2 similar projects and explanation of the roles the key personnel fulfilled in these projects. Client points of contact shall be provided to serve as references.

Specify whether the Contractor was the primary contractor or subcontractor on the projects identified.

Description of the work performed and comparability of the project to the project outlined in this Scope of Work. (20%)

Cost – Due to the specialized nature of having to depict specialized concepts associated with meeting the federal requirements for 508 compliance, the lowest bid will not automatically be the winning bid.

However, cost is a factor which must be considered in the bid. Selection of the Contractor for this project will be based on meeting the best overall value for the National Park Service. (20%)

VIII. Inspection and Acceptance

The COR will inspect and evaluate all work of this contract for compliance with terms of this statement of work.

The COR is responsible for: (1) monitoring the Contractor's technical progress, including the surveillance and assessment of performance and recommending to the Contracting Officer changes in the requirements; (2) interpreting the scope of work; (3) performing technical evaluation as required; (4) performing technical inspections and acceptances required by this contract; and (5) assisting the Contracting Officer in the resolution of technical problems encountered during performance.

The Contracting Officer is responsible for and has the sole authority for directing and/or negotiating any changes in the terms, conditions, or amounts cited in the contract. All communication must go through the Contracting Officer.