Attachment_1_-_Responses_to_Solicitation_Questions.pdf

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 11 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 1 of 7

Responses to Solicitation Questions

1. Happy new year. I wanted to touch base and see if DLA is still on target to make an early March award for the document scanner and printer RFQ that came out several months ago? I realize that there have been many extensions, however I am planning with our headquarters to ensure that we have enough units to support the deployment if we are in fact selected. Any details on testing procedures and award dates would be helpful.

Answer: Please continue to monitor FBO for any solicitation changes.

2. DLA has product specifications but has NOT set minimum specifications for toner cartridge yields which under LPTA evaluation will not provide the government a true comparison. A lower toner capacity will cost less but when you compare under total cost of ownership it will be higher. It is highly recommended that DLA provide minimum toner capacities for this solicitation so you have a true comparison and provide the best value to the DoD community with the evaluation criteria set.

Industry standard toner capacities for lower speed devices in VB‐S0 & VB‐S1 should be 5K or greater for b&w and color. Industry standard toner capacities for higher speed devices in VB‐S2, VB‐S3 and VB‐S4 should be a minimum 7K for color toner cartridges and 12K for b&w. Providing these minimum capacities will also result in less user intervention on the output devices which is important to all users. Will DLA add these minimum toner capacities for certified and non‐certified printers in attachment 3 & 5?

Answer: No, DLA will not add minimum toner capacities. DLA requires the standard yield toner cartridges that are manufactured for the proposed devices.

3. With regards to the latest amendment please help clarify :

Unlike A3 MFP’s that ship with 90 day warranty all manufacturers on A4 MFP’s provide 1 year standard. Even though DLA is requesting 90 day warranty on VB –S0 through S3 you will receive a 1 year warranty. Manufacturers don’t offer a 15 month warranty so on the VB – S4 category you can receive a 1 year warranty or 2 year warranty. Which one does DLA want?

Manufacturers offer different levels of warranty service on desktop MFP’s but on‐site warranty repair with next business day response is the widely requested. Some of these desktop units will weigh over 70lbs and on‐site repair will result in least amount of disruption for the end user and IT support organizations. Can the government be more specific if on‐site warranty repair with next business day response is required for all MFP categories for the full warranty timeframe?

Answer: The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, for VB‐S4 only, vendors must include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the purchase. Also, onsite repair with defective media retention is required if the proposed device has a hard drive. The SOWs are updated to reflect this requirement.

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 11 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 2 of 7

4. After review of the latest amendment we have a few more questions for review.

Reference: Amendment 6 question 3.) and amendment 8 question 2.C) has created an ambiguity surrounding the requirements by indicating that some suppliers will be required to provide a longer term of warranty coverage compared to other suppliers. The Government’s answers to questions can be interpreted that it is requesting different total warranty terms (total number of months) for evaluation and thus if left unclarified, could result in an uneven comparison and thus a potential unfair advantage to select suppliers. In amendment 6 the government has stated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater. Under Amendment 8, the Government’s clarification is in conflict with amendment 6 by virtue of it stating that any supplier that provides a standard one year standard warranty will also be required to bid an additional one year warranty extension (24 month coverage) while suppliers who only offer a 90 day standard warranty need only supply a one year warranty extension (15 months coverage).

Question: Will the government please clarify the total warranty term that must be minimally supplied?

Answer: In amendment 6 the government has misstated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater.

The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, for VB‐S4 only, vendors must include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the purchase. Also, onsite repair with defective media retention is required if the proposed device has a hard drive. The SOWs are updated to reflect this requirement.

5. Reference: Amendment 8 question 2.B) will unduly prevent suppliers from offering a 90 day extended warranty to hardware added to the standard one year warranty (15 months coverage). This restriction creates an unfair solicitation by virtue of the Government comparing the cost of a 15 terms for some suppliers against a 24 month term for others. This response provides an unfair advantage to vendors offering lesser services to the government. By restricting the extended warranty the government is not allowing vendors with one year standard warranties the opportunity to be competitive and forces them to support an additional 9 months of warranty service that other vendors are not subject to.

Question 1: Will the government affirm its requirement is for suppliers to include a one year standard warranty with an option for a one year extension on all devices?

Answer: The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. However, if the proposed device comes standard with a one year full warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. The additional one year extended warranty is for VB‐S4 only, and is an option that may be ordered with VB‐S4 devices, so this is a separate CLIN.

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 11 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 3 of 7

Question 2: If denied will the government reconsider allowing vendors with a one year standard warranty to provide a 90 day extended warranty on all devices?

Answer: No, the extended warranty must be for a full year. Also, this extended warranty applies to only VB –S4 devices and is a separate CLIN. Therefore, the extended warranty may not always be ordered with a VB‐ S4 device.

6. Warranty Term REF: Amendment 6 and Amendment 8 Question: Amendment 6 question 3.) and amendment 8 question 2.C) has created an ambiguity surrounding the requirements by indicating that some suppliers will be required to provide a longer term of warranty coverage compared to other suppliers. The Government’s answers to questions can be interpreted that it is requesting different total warranty terms (total number of months) for evaluation and thus if left unclarified, could result in an uneven comparison and thus a potential unfair advantage to select suppliers. In amendment 6 the government has stated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater. Under Amendment 8, the Government’s clarification is in conflict with Amendment 6 by virtue of it stating that any supplier that provides a standard one year standard warranty will also be required to bid an additional one year warranty extension (24 month coverage) while suppliers who only offer a 90 day standard warranty need only supply a one year warranty extension (15 months coverage). Will the government please clarify the total warranty term that must be minimally supplied?

Answer: In amendment 6 the government has misstated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater.

The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, for VB‐S4 only, vendors must include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the purchase. Also, onsite repair with defective media retention is required if the proposed device has a hard drive. The SOWs are updated to reflect this requirement.

7. Warranty Extension REF: Amendment 8 Question: Amendment 8 question 2.B) will unduly prevent suppliers from offering a 90 day extended warranty to hardware added to the standard one year warranty (15 months coverage). This restriction creates an unfair solicitation by virtue of the Government comparing the cost of a 15 terms for some suppliers against a 24 month term for others. This response provides an unfair advantage to vendors offering lesser services to the government. By restricting the extended warranty the government is not allowing vendors with one year standard warranties the opportunity to be competitive and forces them to support an additional 9 months of warranty service that other vendors are not subject to. Will the government affirm its requirement is for suppliers to include a one year standard warranty with an option for a one

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 11 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 4 of 7 year extension on all devices? If not, will the government reconsider allowing vendors with a one year standard warranty to provide a 90 day extended warranty on all devices?

Answer: The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, for VB‐S4 only, vendors must include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the

8. These answers seem to conflcit, please clarify?

If VB‐S4 should be if one year warranty is standard and the additional 1 year warranty as an optional sku.

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002 Amendment 6

If the product comes standard with a one‐year warranty, is an additional one‐year warranty required for a total of two total years under warranty if this option is selected?

Answer: No.

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002 Amendment 8 With reference to Q&A below:

If the product comes standard with a one‐year warranty, is an additional one year warranty required for a total of two total years under warranty if this option is selected?

a) Please confirm that the Government wants minimum 90 days warranty for the VB S4 device(s)?

Answer:Yes.

b) If a device comes with one year warranty, can offerors bid 90 days extended warranty?

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 8 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 2 of

c) If a device comes standard with a one‐year warranty, is an additional 90 day warranty required for a total of one year and 90 days?

Answer: No, in this case we will still require an additional one year warranty. Therefore, the device in this case will have a total of 2 years warranty.

Answer: In amendment 6 the government has misstated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater. The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, For VB‐S4

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 11 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 5 of 7 only, vendors must include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the purchase. Also, onsite repair with defective media retention is required if the proposed device has a hard drive. The SOWs are updated to reflect this requirement.

9. Amendment 6 question 3.) and amendment 8 question 2.C) has created an ambiguity surrounding the requirements by indicating that some suppliers will be required to provide a longer term of warranty coverage compared to other suppliers. The Government’s answers to questions can be interpreted that it is requesting different total warranty terms (total number of months) for evaluation and thus if left unclarified, could result in an uneven comparison and thus a potential unfair advantage to select suppliers. In amendment 6 the government has stated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater. Under Amendment 8, the Government’s clarification is in conflict with amendment 6 by virtue of it stating that any supplier that provides a standard one year standard warranty will also be required to bid an additional one year warranty extension (24 month coverage) while suppliers who only offer a 90 day standard warranty need only supply a one year warranty extension (15 months coverage) Q: Will the government please clarify the total warranty term that must be minimally supplied?

Answer: In amendment 6 the government has misstated that an additional one year warranty is not required if the standard warranty is one year or greater. The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, for VB‐S4 only, vendors must include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the purchase. Also, onsite repair with defective media retention is required if the proposed device has a hard drive. The SOWs are updated to reflect this requirement.

10. Amendment 8 question 2.B) will unduly prevent suppliers from offering a 90 day extended warranty to hardware added to the standard one year warranty (15 months coverage). This restriction creates an unfair solicitation by virtue of the Government comparing the cost of 15 terms for some suppliers against a 24 month term for others. This response provides an unfair advantage to vendors offering lesser services to the government. By restricting the extended warranty, the government is not allowing vendors with one year standard warranties the opportunity to be competitive and forces them to support an additional 9 months of warranty service that other vendors are not subject to.

Q1: Will the government affirm its requirement is for suppliers to include a one year standard warranty with an option for a one year extension on all devices? If denied will the government reconsider allowing vendors with a one year standard warranty to provide a 90 day extended warranty on all devices?

Answer: The warranty requirement for all Volume Bands, is for a minimum 90‐day Full Manufacturer’s Warranty. If the proposed device comes standard with a 1 year Full Manufacturer’s Warranty, then this is acceptable and exceeds the requirement. This is not a “Best Value” source selection and award will be made to the LPTA vendor whose proposal meets the minimum Government specifications. Additionally, For VB‐S4 only, vendors must

SP7000‐17‐R‐1002, Amendment 11 Attachment 1 – Responses to Solicitation Questions Page 6 of 7 include pricing for an additional/extended 1‐year full warranty. This requirement is a separate CLIN for VB‐S4 only, so an order for a VB‐S4 device may or may not include this with the

11. CERTIFIED PRINTERS

Will the CAC device required on the equipment be required to block :

Copy Print Email Scanning to Ntwk Shares Fax

Answer: Yes, the ability for CAC authentication is required for Copy, Print, Email, Scanning to Network Shares, and Fax functions.

12. NON CERTIFIED PRINTERS

Will the CAC device required on the equipment be required to block :

Copy Print Email Scanning to Ntwk Shares Fax

Answer: Yes, the ability for CAC authentication is required for Copy, Print, Email, Scanning to Network Shares, and Fax functions.

13. In Amendment 8 – Attachment 1 – Response to Solicitation Questions, the answer to Question 2 and Question 2 c) appear to be in conflict. The answer to Question 2 states “No” to the question of whether a total of 2 years is required when the device comes with a 1‐year warranty.

However, the answer to Question 2 c) states that 2 years is required when a device comes with a 1‐year warranty. Please clarify whether a total of 1 year or 2 years is required when a device comes with a 1‐year warranty.

Answer: For VB‐S4 device only, an additional 1 year full warranty is required, if this CLIN is ordered. Please note that this additional 1 year full warranty is a separate CLIN, and only an option that we may order with the VB‐S4 device purchase.

14. Will DLA allow for, or require, the device to be joined to the Domain as a node in their Active

Directory. This will allow for automatic certificate renewal, and automatic rerouting to other Domain Controllers when one goes down or is replaced?

Answer: Yes.

15. Does DLA require that MFP's be able to log on to the web server of the device with a CAC card as opposed to username and password?

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Answer: No. Username and password (16 character, complex passwords required) but CAC is preferred.

16. Is DLA requiring that fax feature be on a separate board from the network adapter?

Answer: Logical separation of all input/output devices is required.

17. Will the customers be using analog fax only, or will there be a need for fax over IP (FOIP) as many DoD customers are moving to VOIP based telecom systems?

Answer: Yes, analog fax only.

18. Is there a requirement to release fax with CAC (for security purposes)?

Answer: The ability to release fax with CAC is required.

19. Should faxes only be held on local device HDD and deleted when released / printed, or should devices be capable of routing faxes to a shared folder, email, or other secure location for access?

Answer: Fax held on local device HDD and deleted when released/printed is required.

20. The SOW calls for VB S4 scanner to be 50ppm (100 ipm). However, the CLIN sheets show VB S4 to be 45 ppm (100 ipm). Is this a typo?

Answer: Yes, there is a typo in the CLIN spreadsheet. The VB‐S4 scanner should state 50ppm (100ipm). Revised CLIN spreadsheet will be uploaded.