DLA_Solicitation_SP3300-18-Q-0001_Offeror_Inquiries_and_Responses_(FINAL_101617).pdf

DLA Solicitation SP3300-18-Q-0001: Offeror Inquiries and Responses

Q1: Section 1.5.1 and its subsections along with multiple sections of the SOW refer to “RABQSA”.

RABQSA no longer exists and is known as Exemplar Global. Auditor certification should not be limited to Exemplar Global. The International Registry of Certificated Auditors (IRCA) and BEAC auditors are equivalent to Exemplar Global. The RFP needs to be modified as it is incorrect and unfairly limits competition.

A1: Past services as defined in the PWS were provided to the DLA Distribution Anniston by RABQSA certified personnel. DLA Distribution Anniston is aware of the RABQSA transition to Exemplar

Global in 2014. DLA Distribution Anniston is a tenant organization of the U.S. Army Anniston

Army Depot. DLA Distribution Anniston is required to adhere to the Host Installation’s safety requirements and environmental permits, and, to the Host Installation’s Environmental

Management System (EMS). To that end, DLA Distribution Anniston must utilize audit service providers who maintain the same certification as the Host Installation in order to ensure and maintain ISO certification consistency across all organizations. This certification is RABQSA

(Exemplar Global). The Government will modify the PWS to include the reference to Exemplar

Global.

Q2: The quantity of FTE, PTE, and contracted personnel working within the scope of each certification

(i.e. ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001) must be clearly and accurately stated. An approximation of

210 does not necessarily include all of these personnel.

A2: Two-Hundred Ten (210) is the total number of personnel employed by DLA Distribution Anniston.

Q3: State whether shift work occurs within any of the certifications (i.e. 7AM-3PM, 3PM-11PM, etc.).

A3: As stated in PWS Paragraph 1.3.4, “The normal hours of operation for performing the Surveillance and Re-assessment Audits are Monday through Friday, 0700-1630, excluding Federal

Holidays.”…”DLA Distribution Anniston is a 24-hour operation. Should the need arise, the

Contractor shall coordinate, in advance when possible, any requests to work outside of the core duty hours with the COR.”

Q4: State any exclusions taken to ISO 9001:2008 Section 7 and any exclusions taken to any section of

ISO 9001:2015.

A4: DLA Distribution Anniston is not currently ISO 9001:2008 or ISO 9001:2015 certified. Attaining

ISO 9001:2015 certification is a requirement of PWS associated with this Solicitation.

Q5: Using the attachment (pages 21-26), state the current complexity level assigned by the current

Certification Body to the ISO 14001 EMS.

A5: DLA Distribution Anniston is a “low risk” facility consisting of 1,628,352 sq. ft. of warehousing and 2,871,890 sq. ft. of vehicle storage.

Q6: Does DLA want a single certificate with each standard stated OR separate certificates for each standard?

A6: DLA prefers an individual certificate for each separate standard.

Q7: Provide a copy of the current ISO 14001 certificate for the certified organization. Note: please do not respond that this will be provided post-award to the successful offeror. All certification bodies are required to verify that the existing certificate has not been suspended or revoked and is free from suspension or revocation. The Certificate is not a classified document and is not subject to

FOIA requests.

A7: DLA Distribution Anniston’s current ISO registration is: ISO 14001:2004, Certification Number:

C0228599-EMI; Certification Date: 9 December 2014; Expiration Date: 8 December 2017. All potential Offerors are encouraged to conduct due diligence regarding this registration.

Q8: There is no requirement that the Certification Body (CB) be accredited. To ensure that the Agency receives responses from responsible Offerors, we would encourage that the Agency include the following requirement: “The Offeror shall be a Certification Body (CB) that is accredited to ISO

17021 by an Accreditation Body that is a member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) with a scope of membership that includes management system certification.”

A8: Concur. The Government will revise the PWS to include the ISO 17021 certification requirement for Certified Bodies.

Q9: State whether the organization has in its possession the previous 3 years of audit reports for the ISO

14001 audits (yes or no).

A9: Yes.

Q10: State whether the organization has in its possession the previous 3 years of nonconformance, if any, along with associated corrective actions as issued and accepted by the current CB.

A10: Yes.

Q11: State whether the current CB has issued any MAJOR nonconformance during the previous 3 years

(yes or no). If yes, state how many.

A11: No.

Q12: The CLIN structure and attached Schedules reference a “Gap Analysis” which is not stated in the

SOW. The SOW needs to clearly indicate in Section C-5 the need to conduct a gap analysis for one or more of the Standards.

A12: Concur. The Government will revise the PWS to include a specific Task for “Gap Analysis” in

Section C-5.

Q13: Provide the basis of award and the evaluation criteria in the SOW – both items are missing.

A13: The Evaluation Criteria are defined in the Solicitation. Please refer to Clause FAR 52.212-2

Evaluation –Commercial items (October 2014)

Q14: If this opportunity is a small business set-aside, the FBO posting does not reflect this requirement.

A14: This is a Small Business Set-aside. Please refer to Item 4 of the Solicitation document.

Q15: Does the Combined Synopsis/Solicitation under solicitation number SP330018Q0001 contain requirements similar to a current contract? If possible, please provide the current contract number.

Or, is this a new requirement for the government?

A15: DLA Distribution Anniston has received similar services under U.S. Army Contract W911KF-14-

V-0051.

Q16: Please note the standard ISO 45001 is not scheduled to be released until June 28, 2018. Is it acceptable to request in our proposal to substitute ISO 45001 with OHSAS 18001 for now until the standard is released.

A16: DLA Distribution Anniston is not currently OHSAS 18001 certified and does not plan to pursue it at this time. The current plan is to prepare for the release of ISO 45001.