Final QA SP4704-26-Q-0016 04292026.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 27 KB Posted
- Attached to
- DLA Transportation Process Support
- Solicitation number
- SP4704-26-Q-0016
- Issued by
-
Defense Logistics Agency
About this file
This file is a Questions and Answers (Q&A) document for the DLA Transportation Process Support solicitation SP4704-26-Q-0016, providing government responses to 41 contractor inquiries submitted during the solicitation period.
The solicitation is a 100% small business set-aside under NAICS 541611 (Other Management Services) for a standalone open-market procurement with no underlying contract vehicle requirement. The Defense Logistics Agency is seeking a successor contractor to follow-on from incumbent IB Logistics LLC's contract SP3300-22-C-0006, which ended September 8, 2025. The requirement encompasses the development and delivery of financial analysis reports, audit compliance support, and process analysis tools for DLA transportation operations. The contract structure includes one base year plus two 12-month option years (not four as initially stated in some documents), with firm fixed price labor CLINs based on quoted hourly rates and the government's estimated annual hour requirements of approximately 4,000–8,000 hours, though contractors may propose alternative labor mixes. All pricing is based on FAR 13.106-3 fair and reasonable analysis, and holding a GSA MAS schedule is not required. Key personnel must possess a bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or equivalent degree in Finance, Accounting, Management Information Systems, or Business Administration with IT concentration, along with five years of specialized experience including expertise with the Tracker Lite application or acceptable alternative systems. All key personnel require IT-III Tier 1 security clearance with Common Access Card (CAC) issuance by DLA within 3–5 business days (or up to two weeks if volume is high), and personnel cannot begin work prior to CAC issuance. The transition-in period shall not exceed 30 days and is absorbed within base-year pricing; the incoming contractor must submit a transition plan within 10 business days of award. System access to TPPS, DFAS TGET, and relevant DoD shipper systems will be provisioned by DLA within 3–10 working days post-award. The solicitation final close date is May 4, 2026, at 12:00 PM EDT, with award expected after evaluation completion and no specific base-year start date provided at time of Q&A issuance (anticipated "shortly after award").
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Sheet1
| Question | Question | Government Response | Response from: |
| 1 | Is this a completely new requirement or is there an associated incumbent? If the latter, please provide the incumbent contractor name and contract number. | This is a follow-on to contract SP3300-22-C-0006 which ended September 8, 2025. The incumbent contractor was IB Logistics LLC. | |
| 2 | We would like to know if this is a brand new contract OR if there is (was) an incumbent performing these services.If not brand new, could you please provide the current / previous contract number? | This is a follow-on to contract SP3300-22-C-0006 which ended September 8, 2025. The incumbent contractor was IB Logistics LLC. | |
| 3 | The PWS references a base period and four additional option periods, while Attachment 4 Schedule B contains pricing tabs only for Base Year, Option Year 1, and Option Year 2. Please confirm the intended number of option years. | The PWS has been updated on page 41 (III Other Performance Requirements R. Place of Performance). | |
| 4 | Please provide the anticipated start date and end date for the base period of performance, and confirm the anticipated dates for each option period, if applicable. | The anticipated start date will be shortly after award. The dates will be provided at the time of award. The start and end dates for the base period and option periods will each be based on a twelve (12) month period of performance. | |
| 5 | Section S of the PWS states that the Government anticipates the Financial Subject Matter Expert and the Audit Compliance and Control Environment Program Manager labor categories, and also states that those labor categories are approximations and that the contractor is responsible for determining the appropriate labor mix. Please confirm whether offerors may propose additional non-key labor categories in Attachment 4 if needed to support successful performance. | The PWS has been updated on page 22. | |
| 6 | The PWS provides an estimated labor-hour range of approximately 4,000–8,000 hours for the base year. Does the Government anticipate a similar annual level of effort for each option period, or should offerors independently estimate option-year hours based on their proposed staffing approach? | Yes, the Government anticipates a similar annual level of effort for each period of performance. The 4,000 - 8,000 hours has been removed from section II Performance Requirements R Contractor Personnel Requirements of the PWS. This is on page 22 of the PWS. | |
| 7 | Please confirm the minimum personnel security or suitability requirement applicable to this effort at the time of proposal submission and performance commencement (for example, T1/public trust, secret, or other), and whether all proposed personnel must meet that requirement at award. | The security level has been changed on page 33 of the PWS under section III Other Performance Requirements H. Contractor Personnel Security Requirements. Minimum security investigation level for key personnel is IT-III Tier 1. For any non-key personnel that does not have access to federally-controlled information systems, must have a Tier 1. | |
| 8 | For purposes of Factor 4, will the Government consider contracts relevant if they demonstrate comparable transportation financial management, audit readiness, SOC/internal controls, data analysis, and process-support scope, even if they are not specifically for DLA transportation or TPPS/U.S. Bank freight payment? | Please see the updated definition of Relevancy under Factor 4 Past Performance (a) Relevancy in the document DLA Transportation Process FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation-Commercial Items Attach 2. | |
| 9 | I am writing to enquire about the incumbent contractor for the DLA Transportation Process Support? Also can you please provide the contract number for this contract. | This is a follow-on to contract SP3300-22-C-0006 which ended September 8, 2025. The incumbent contractor was IB Logistics LLC. | |
| 10 | The solicitation is structured under FAR Subpart 12.6 (Commercial Items) with no reference to a specific contract vehicle. Can the government confirm this is a standalone open-market procurement and that award will be made directly without requiring an underlying GWAC, IDIQ, or GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract vehicle? | This is a standalone open-market procurement and it will be made directly without requiring an underlying GWAC, IDIQ, or GSA multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract vehicle. | |
| Schedule B (Attachment 4) includes a "GSA Rate" column in the Base Year and Option Year 1 tabs, and a "GSA Labor Category" column added in the Option Year 2 tab. Can the government clarify: (a) Is holding an active GSA MAS schedule a requirement to be eligible for award, or is it optional? |
(b) If a quoter does not hold a GSA MAS schedule, how should those columns be completed (e.g., "N/A", market rate, or another reference)?
| (c) What pricing basis will the government use to determine price reasonableness for offerors who do not hold a GSA MAS schedule? | Holding a GSA MAS schedule is not required. Please see updated DLA Transportation Process Support Schedule B spreadsheet with updated columns. Pricing will be determined fair and reasonable based on FAR 13.106-3. | ||
| The NAICS code is 541611 (Other Management Services, $24.5M size standard). STARS III is a GWAC under NAICS codes in the 541500 series and does not include 541611. Can the government confirm that STARS III is not an eligible or required vehicle for this procurement, and that open-market small business responses under NAICS 541611 are the intended and only eligible acquisition pathway? | As stated on page 1 of SP470426Q0016, "This procurement is being solicited as a 100% small business set-aside under North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) 541611, Other Management Services." Therefore, the only eligible quoters to provide a quote for this solicitation are those that meet this criteria. | ||
| The Schedule B spreadsheet (Attachment 4) contains no pre-populated values in the "Estimated Labor Quantity" column for any labor category in any performance year. The PWS provides only a wide range of 4,000–8,000 hours for the base year with no breakdown by labor category. Will the government provide estimated hours per labor category per performance year to allow quoters to accurately price FFP CLINs? Without this information, quoters cannot develop meaningful or comparable FFP prices. | No, the requirement stated in column B and C of DLA Transportation Process Support Schedule B of the solicitation meets the minimum needs of the government and will remain as stated in the solicitation. Please see on page 22 (II Performance Requirements R. Contractor Personnel Requirements) it states the following: "Note: The labor categories are only approximations, it is the contractor's responsibility to determine the appropriate labor mix to ensure successful performance. The contractor may proporse additional non-key labor categories in their quote." The 4,000 - 8,000 hours has been removed from section II Performance Requirements R Contractor Personnel Requirements of the PWS. This is on page 22 of the PWS. | ||
| The PWS states the contract is "one base year with four option years" (five total years). However, the Schedule B spreadsheet contains only three tabs: Base Year (CLIN 0001), Option Year 1 (CLIN 1001), and Option Year 2 (CLIN 2001). The Summary sheet total formula (=B4+B6+B8) also totals only three years and is labeled "Total Price (Base Year Plus 2 Option Years)." Please confirm: (a) Are Option Years 3 and 4 intentionally excluded from the pricing submission at this time, or is the Schedule B spreadsheet incomplete? |
(b) If OY3 and OY4 should be priced, will the government issue an amended Schedule B that includes those tabs?
| (c) Will OY3 and OY4 be priced by modification at a later date, or is the total evaluated price only for the base year plus two option years? | The PWS has been updated on page 41 (III Other Performance Requirements Q. Period of Performance). Option Year 3 and Option Year 4 should not be priced. They will not be priced by modification at a later date. The total evaluated price is for a base period plus two 12-month option periods. | |
| The Schedule B column structure is inconsistent across performance years: - Base Year and OY1 have 6 columns (no "GSA Labor Category" column) |
- OY2 has 7 columns (adds "GSA Labor Category" as column B, shifting all other columns right, and uses a different formula: =D*F instead of =C*E)
| Will the government issue a corrected, consistent Schedule B so that all performance years use the same column structure and formulas? | Please see updated DLA Transportation Process Support Schedule B spreadsheet with updated columns. | |
| The solicitation states "Labor CLINs will be firm fixed price." The Schedule B formula multiplies "Quoted Number of Hours" by "Quoted Discounted Rate" to derive Total Price. Please confirm the intended pricing mechanism: (a) Is the government expecting a loaded hourly rate multiplied by a government-estimated hours ceiling to produce a FFP CLIN total? |
(b) Or is the government expecting a lump-sum fixed price per CLIN regardless of actual hours expended?
| (c) If hourly rate based, who bears the risk if actual hours differ from the estimate — the contractor (true FFP) or the government (T&M/labor-hour risk)? | The government is requesting all cells to be filled in based on the updated DLA Transportation Process Support Schedule B spreadsheet that has updated columns. The CLINs on the contract will be based on cell E10 of each applicable tab of Schedule B. Therefore, on the contract it will be one lump-sum fixed price per CLIN. | ||
| The PWS states travel is not anticipated but may be added via bilateral modification with a firm fixed price travel CLIN. Should quoters include a travel CLIN in Schedule B priced at $0.00, or should travel be omitted entirely from the pricing submission? | No, quoters should not include a travel CLIN in Schedule B. Travel should be omitted entirely from the pricing submission. The requirement is stated in section II. Performance Requirements Q. Contractor Travel of the PWS meets the minimum needs of the government and will remain as stated in the PWS. | ||
| Are there any Other Direct Costs (ODCs), materials, subcontractor costs, or other cost elements beyond direct labor that should be priced in Schedule B? The current spreadsheet has no ODC or travel CLIN rows. | Schedule B spreadhseet has been updated to include other direct cost. Please note that ODC will not be reimburable. The contract will be evaluated as total price (base plus two option years) with one CLIN per year. | ||
| All period of performance dates in the PWS are listed as "TBD." Can the government provide: |
(a) The anticipated award date?
(b) The anticipated base year start date?
(c) The specific start and end dates for all five performance periods (base year plus four option years)?
| This information is essential for key personnel availability planning and for pricing labor accurately across all performance years. | The anticipated award date will be after evaluation(s) are complete and the government has completed the award process. The anticipated base year start date will be shortly after award date. The period of performances will be a base year (12 month) plus two 12 month option periods. | |
| The SOC 1 Type 2 audit assurance is due annually by August 15, covering the period December 1 to June 30. If the contract is not awarded until after June 1, 2026: |
(a) Will the August 15, 2026 assurance deadline be waived or adjusted for the base year?
(b) Will the base-year assurance period be modified to reflect actual performance start?
| (c) Or will the contractor be held to the August 15 deadline regardless of award date? | No it will not be waived or modified, the requirement is stated in II. Performance Requirements B Financial Statement Audits on page 5 of the PWS meets the minimum requirements and will remain as stated in the solicitation. | |
| The PWS Phase-Out section references "the incumbent contractor" and requires the incumbent to cooperate with the successor during transition. Please confirm: |
(a) Is there an existing incumbent contractor currently performing this work?
(b) If yes, who is the incumbent (company name)?
| (c) What is the incumbent's current contract number and expiration date? | This is a follow-on to contract SP3300-22-C-0006 which ended September 8, 2025. The incumbent contractor was IB Logistics LLC. | |
| The PWS requires the incoming contractor to submit a transition-in plan within 10 business days of award but does not define the duration or funding of the transition period. Please clarify: |
(a) What is the anticipated transition-in period duration (e.g., 30, 60, 90 days)?
(b) Is the transition-in period separately funded (i.e., a dedicated transition CLIN), or is it absorbed within the base year period of performance and pricing?
| (c) Is the incoming contractor expected to begin full performance immediately upon award, or is a concurrent transition period with the incumbent provided? | (a) The anticipated transition-in period shall not exceed 30 days. (b) The transition-in period is not separately funded. It will be a part of the priced CLIN for the base year. (c) The incoming contractor is expected to begin shortly after award. The PWS has been updated on page 11 of the PWS in section II. Performance Requirements F. Transition Plan. | |
| During phase-in, will the incumbent contractor be contractually required to: |
(a) Provide access to existing documentation, functional specifications, scripts, and report source code as described in PWS Sections II.C and II.D?
(b) Participate in knowledge transfer sessions with the incoming contractor?
(c) Provide access to or copies of existing SOC 1 Type 2 reports and bridge letters?
| If the incumbent is not contractually required to cooperate, how does the government intend to ensure continuity and knowledge transfer? | The previous contract has already expired, therefore the previous contractor will not be able to provide this information. | ||
| Will the government provide Government-Furnished Information (GFI) to the incoming contractor during phase-in, including: (a) Existing functional specifications for all reports and capabilities listed in PWS Section II.B? (b) System interface documentation, data, dictionaries, and TPPS configuration documentation? (c) Prior SOC 1 Type 2 reports, bridge letters, and IPA correspondence? (d) The existing QASP and any open Deficiency Reports or corrective action plans? | No, neither the government nor the incumbent contractor will not be sharing this information as the previous contract expired in September 2025. | ||
| Of the seven base-year report/capability scope items listed in PWS Section II.B (Accrual Report, TPPS Business Rules Review, TPPS Metrics, TPPS User Report, Statistical Sampling Script, TGET TAC/LLD Comparison Tool, Open Invoice Trending), which are currently in production by the incumbent? Are any of these required to be built from scratch by the incoming contractor? This distinction has a significant impact on staffing and pricing. | None of these reports are currently in production. They are required to be built from scratch by the incoming contractor. The verbiage has been updated in section II. Performance Requirements B. Financial Statements Audits which is on page 5 of the PWS. | ||
| Is the LTS/Tracker Lite application currently operational and accessible to DLA contractors? Or has it been replaced or is being replaced by another system during the base year? If an alternate system is in use or planned, please describe its current state and the incoming contractor's expected role in supporting that transition. | Yes, the LTS/Tracker Lite application is currently operational and accessible to DLA contractors. It was recently awarded to IB Logistics. That contract number and order number is 47QTCA21D00DD and FA860426FB017 respectively. | ||
| Will the incoming contractor be granted access to TPPS (U.S. Bank Freight Payment system), DFAS TGET, and relevant DoD shipper systems (DSS, WMS, VSM, GFM) from day one of the contract? What is the typical timeline for access provisioning to each of these systems, and does DLA coordinate access on behalf of the contractor, or must the contractor independently coordinate with each system owner? | Yes, the incoming contractor will be granted access to TPPS (U.S. Bank Freight Payment system), DFAS TGET, and relevant DoD shipper systems (DSS, WMS, VSM, GFM) after all accesses have been approved through DLAs AMPs process. Timeline typically takes 3-10 working days. Yes, DLA TPPS PM or TPPS support on behalf of the contractor. | ||
| The PWS specifies "Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or Information Technology" for both key personnel positions. Will the government consider an equivalent degree in a closely related field (e.g., Finance, Accounting, Management Information Systems, or Business Administration with an IT concentration) as satisfying the education requirement when combined with the required five years of specialized experience? | Yes, the government will consider an equivalent degree in a closely related field. Equivalent degree in a closely related field is limited only to the following: Finance, Accounting, Management Information Systems, or Business Administration with an IT concentration. The PWS has been updated on pages 23 and 25 of section II. Performance Requirements S. Key Personnel. | ||
| The key personnel experience requirements reference "Logistics Tools Suite (LTS) and more specifically the Tracker Lite application." Given Tracker Lite is a highly specialized DoD-specific system with limited contractor access, will the government consider demonstrated equivalent experience in systems that perform substantially similar functions (TAC-to-LOA conversion, DoD shipper system integration, TPPS dataflow management) as satisfying this requirement | No, the requirement stated on pages 24, and 25 of the updated PWS meets the minimum needs of the government and will remain as stated in the updated PWS. Please note that on pages 24, and 25 the PWS states, "If Tracker Lite application is not provided, then personnel must have experience in the following alternate resulting software system that has the following minimum salient characteristics:" | ||
| For the Letters of Intent (LOI), must the LOI be signed by the proposed key personnel individual personally, or is a company commitment letter signed by a corporate officer on behalf of the individual acceptable? | The LOI must be signed by the proposed key personnel individual. Please see page 23 in Section Performance Requirements S. Key Personnel of the updated PWS. | ||
| What is the minimum security investigation level required for contractor personnel accessing TPPS, DFAS TGET, and DLA financial systems (e.g., Tier 1/NACI, Tier 3/Secret, Tier 5/TS)? The PWS references IT-I, IT-II, and IT-III position designations — which designation applies to the two key personnel positions and to non-key personnel? | The security level has been changed on page 33 of the PWS under section III Other Performance Requirements H. Contractor Personnel Security Requirements. Minimum security investigation level for key personnel is IT-III Tier 1. For any non-key personnel that does not have access to federally-controlled information systems, must have a Tier 1. | ||
| Is a Common Access Card (CAC) required for system access? If so: |
(a) What is the typical timeline for new contractor CAC issuance at DLA?
(b) Can personnel begin billable work prior to CAC issuance using alternative access methods, or is CAC issuance a prerequisite to starting work?
| (c) Does DLA sponsor CAC issuance, or must the contractor self-sponsor through a separate process? | Yes a CAC is required. (a)It depends on the number of CAC issuances that the government has to process. It usually takes 3-5 days for CAC issuance, but may take a couple of weeks. (b) No, personnel cannot begin work prior to CAC issuance. (c) DLA will sponsor the CAC issuance. | ||
| The page limit footnote in Attachment 1 states "page count does not include cover page and table of contents." Do headers, footers, and any required certifications or signature pages also fall outside the page count limits for each volume? | The requirement stated on page of 3 of updated DLA Transportation Process FAR 52.212-1 Instruction to Offerors Attach 1 meets the mininimum needs of the government and will remain as stated. | ||
| Attachment 2 states past performance must be relevant, recent (within three years), and of acceptable quality. Please confirm: |
(a) Is past performance as a subcontractor (rather than prime contractor) eligible for submission? If so, what additional documentation is required?
(b) If a quoter's most relevant contract was awarded more than three years ago but continued performance into the three-year window, will the government evaluate the performance that falls within the three-year recency period?
| (c) Can a quoter submit fewer than two past performance references if it does not have two qualifying contracts, or does submission of fewer than two references result in an Unacceptable rating? | (a)Past performance may be as a subcontractor or a prime contractor. Please see page 2 of the updated DLA Transportation Process FAR 52.212-1 Instruction to Offerors Attach 1. (b) Yes, the Government will evaluate past performance efforts that commenced outside of the three-year recency period so long as some of the effort occurred within the three-year recency period. (c)The requirement stated at the bottom of page 4 under table 3 on DLA Transportation Process FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation Commercial Items ATTACH 2 meets the minimum needs of the government and will remain as stated in this attachment. | ||
| We note that in the Pricing Schedule (Excel Template), it references a GSA Rate, as if the RFQ may be limited to GSA Schedule holders. We are wondering if it's limited to GSA holders, and if so, on which SIN? | This is a standalone open-market procurement and it will be made directly without requiring an underlying GWAC, IDIQ, or GSA multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract vehicle. Please see updated DLA Transportation Process Support Schedule B spreadsheet with updated columns. | ||
| A draft Quality Control Plan (QCP) must be submitted as well. This draft qualify control plan must outline the processes that the contractor will implement to ensure that the staffing and procedures for self-inspecting the quality, timeliness, responsiveness, and other performance requirements in the PWS are met. Will the USG permit the QCP to be outside of page count? | No, the requirement stated under Factor 3, Management and Staffing Plan of DLA Transportation Process FAR 52.212-1 Instruction to Offerors Attach 1 meets the minimum needs of the government and will remain as stated. | ||
| The estimated range of hours for the personnel and required support is expected to be approximately 4,000-8,000 hours for the base year period of performance. In the absence of clear transactional level of effort (LOE), does the USG anticipate a surge requirement? | The government does not anticipate a surge in this requirement. The 4,000 - 8,000 hours has been removed from section II Performance Requirements R Contractor Personnel Requirements of the PWS. This is on page 22 of the PWS. |
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