Questions Answers for solicitation TIRNO12R00004Middleware IT OperationJan6.doc

Middleware IT Operation & Maintenance Services

TIRNO-12-R-00004

Questions and Answers

1. Please let us know if IRS will consider past performance of Sub-Contractor as reference for this solicitation.

ANSWER: Reference section L.8 PROPOSAL STRUCTURE AND CONTENT, Volume I-Technical Proposal, General, Section 3 –Management Solution-Past Performance of the solicitation. Past Performance The offeror shall submit past performance for contracts that meet the currency and relevancy standards established by the Government, as it relates to the probability of successful accomplishment of the required effort. The history of successful past performance should demonstrate a history of successful completion of similar projects, the ability to stay on schedule and within budget and anticipation and resolution of problems that occurred during performance of similar tasks. Only one past performance shall be submitted for the prime’s subcontractor.

2. Regarding the above solicitation, would the teaming partner's experience/past performance be adequate to satisfy the past performance requirements? Or would the responsibility solely rely on the prime. ANSWER: Please see the response to question number 1.

3. Since this is 8a set aside, would you consider procuring through 8a Stars II? It would provide IRS a strong pool of 8a companies that could respond to this RFP with rate structures that are pre-competed. ANSWER: The requirement will be competed as outlined in the solicitation.

4. There is no attachment number 7 Priority Tickets 1 and 2 (22 pages) associated with the FEDBIZOPS files. The opportunity is not on the IRS.GOV procurement website (updated 12/13/2011). ANSWER: Solicitation has been amended/updated to include Attachment 7 –Priority Tickets.

5. Can you clarify whether or not it is the Certification or Appraisal (or either) will be acceptable in this process? It is not clearly stated in the statement of work.

ANSWER: Any appraised entity receives an Appraisal Disclosure Statement (ADS) or final findings report from their Lead Appraiser. This form not only documents the achieved maturity level or capability level profile, but also documents which parts of the organization were appraised and this is the document that is required under this solicitation.

ANSWER: Hard copy proposals should be delivered to Oxon Hill as specified on the cover letter. Block 15 of the SF 1449 should read

Attn: Laquisha Levy

Internal Revenue Service

6009 Oxon Hill Road

Oxon Hill, MD 20745

7. Page 6: Schedule B-Option Year

Should 1004 read 1003?

ANSWER: CLIN 0004 of the base year covers the Contract Initiation Plan which is only required for the base year as the option years would follow the outline of the Contract Initiation Plan submitted with the proposal. Therefore, there will not be a recurring need to submit a Contract Initiation Plan during the option years. As a result, the Schedule B has been changed to eliminate confusion on the CLIN structure. CLIN 0004 Contract Initiation Plan will become part to CLIN 0001 as CLIN 0001A and will be labeled as such and will result in four clins rather than five. Only CLIN 0001 (base year) will have CLIN 0001A (subclin) for the Contract Initiation Plan. CLINS 1001, 2001, 3001 and 4001 will not have a subclin for the Contact Initiation Plan. The new CLIN 0004 will be the IDIQ portion –labor categories.

ANSWER: See number 7 above

ANSWER: See number 7 above

ANSWER: See number 7 above

11. Page 6-9: Schedule B

The RFP is indicating that the Min/Max Est Hours for both Senior IT Specialist and IT Specialist as 25/520. Should those values be increased since those are the more widely used labor categories for IT services within the IRS? ANSWER: NO – The computation of the actual hours presented in the evaluation table was determined by a realistic estimate of the hours to support a “hypothetical” development project.

ANSWER: Yes, the Table No. reference should be C.7.2 and not C.4.2.

ANSWER: The double spacing requirement has been changed to single space.

ANSWER: Yes, only pages 1 and 2 of 28 and Section K are required along with the company’s statement of agreement.

19. Page 44: H.6 IR1052-96-063 Key Personnel

Page 76: L8. Section 4-Past Experience Section states: “Key Personnel -- Program Manager, Security Specialist, and Subject Matter Experts" are key whereas page 76 states that Key Personnel consist of the "Program Manager, Project Manager and Subject Matter Expert”. Please clarify if the correct Key Personnel are Program Manager, Security Specialist, and Subject Matter Experts?

ANSWER: Section L.8 Section 4-Past Experience should read “Key personnel consist of the Program Manager, Security Specialist and Subject Mater Expert.”

20. Various pages:

Project Manager: 29-31 (Position Descriptions), 39 (G.2 IR1052-96-017 AUTHORITY), 76 (L.8-Section 4– Past Experience) and;

Program Manager: 4-9 (Schedule B), 26-28, 31 (Position Descriptions), 44 (H.6 IR1052-96-063 Key Personnel), 76 L.8-Section 4– Past Experience) Project Manager is not a CLIN position but is used several critical times in the solicitation, should there be a job description? Is this an error? or does the duties fall under the Program Manager?

ANSWER: While the overall duties of project management fall under the Program Manager, a specific IDIQ task may have a technical individual act as project manager for that task.

21. C.3.2.1.1. After Hours Level 2/3 Help Desk Support (24x7x365). (page 15) Will remote access be granted for the help desk support portion of the RFP?

ANSWER: Yes. If so will the agency allow off shore support? ANSWER: No.

22. C.8 Government Furnished Equipment. (page 32) Given the challenges for space does the IRS wish to have On-site and Off-site rates for this solicitation?

ANSWER: No.

23. For clarity in the pricing table is the extended total price the unit price x quantity?

ANSWER: Yes, the extended total price is the unit price multiplied by the quantity.

24. C.3.2.1.4. Root Cause Analysis Support. (page 15) Is there a specific tool or methodology currently being used for conducting Root Cause Analysis?

ANSWER: No.

25. C.3.2.2.3. Subject Matter Expert (SME) Support. (page 17) In section C3.2.2.3 Subject Matter Experts, it talks about the availability of SME in support of some of the more critical applications and tools. The pricing table shows a maximum of 520 hours for the SME. Is this a realistic number given the complexity of the systems that will potentially require continuous engagement of knowledgeable experts throughout the year?

ANSWER: The computation of the actual hours presented in the evaluation table was determined by a realistic estimate of the hours to support a “hypothetical” development project.

26. C.3.2.4. Technical Documentation Support. (page 17) In section C.3.2.4 Technical Documentation, does the IRS want these documents in electronic format? ANSWER: Yes. If not, should we be expected to put the cost of producing hard copies under a separate line item or ODC?

ANSWER: No.

27. C.4.6. Infrastructure Application Testing. (page 20) In section C.4.6 Infrastructure Application Testing, the last sentence state, “Test results shall be an informal deliverable, regardless of outcome.” To help with interpretation after contract award could the IRS change the wording to state, “Test results will not be a required deliverable, regardless of outcome.” ANSWER: No.

28. C.4.18. Security Support. (page 24) Under Section 4.18 Security Support, is the IRS expecting the contractor to provide management of the overall compliance requirements to include continuous monitoring, remediation to TIGTA audits, and the development of POA&M on behalf of MSSS. ANSWER:Yes.

29. C.3.1.2. Transition Planning and Execution Support. (page 13) Who is the current incumbent company? ANSWER: Delmock Technologies Inc

30. C.3.1.2. Transition Planning and Execution Support. (page 13) Will the new contractor be able to hire personnel currently working on the contact that wish to remain on the project? ANSWER: Hiring and staffing practices should be determined by the individual company.

31. C.3.1.2. Transition Planning and Execution Support. (page 13) In creating a transition plan what is the involvement of the incumbent in relation to the contractor’s transition plan. How involved with the incumbent be with the new contractor’s transition plan. Will the government direct the incumbent to follow the new contractor’s transition plan? ANSWER: The incumbent will be on site for 5 days to execute the Transition Plan. The Government will oversee the overall Transition process.

32. C.3.1.2. Transition Planning and Execution Support. (page 13) For what period of time will the incumbent be on site? For what time period will they be supporting the transition? ANSWER: The incumbent will be on site for 5 days to execute the Transition Plan

33. C.3.2.1.1. After Hours Level 2/3 Help Desk Support (24x7x365). (page 15) What is the current help desk configuration? Answer: Telephone and computer. Does the IRS have a call center as the central point of contact for responding to trouble tickets? ANSWER: Yes.

34. C.1.2. Middleware O&M System Overview. (page 11) Are there SLA’s in place for the COTS products? ANSWER: Yes.

35. C.3.2.4. Technical Documentation Support (page 17) Documentation support must adhere to the Enterprise Life Cycle (ELC) documentation requirements. What are the documentation deliverables for the ELC? ANSWER: Deliverables defined in ECC, ECC Lite

36. C.3.2.5. Knowledge Transfer Support. (page 18) Will the formalized knowledge transfer activities fall under the ITIL framework? If so, what level of ITIL expertise is needed as a subject matter expert for the knowledge transfer support?ANSWER: Both Government and Contractor personnel shall accomplish knowledge transfer (communication of technical and non-technical concepts, principles, and activities).

37. C.3.2.8. Transition & Change Management Support. (page 19) Will the Change Management activities fall under the ITIL framework? ANSWER: ITIL framework as appropriate but specific to the project’s Transition Management Plan (TMP)

38. C.4 Software Development. (page 19) What level of expertise is required to adhere to the ITIL guidelines, processes, and products? ANSWER: ITIL V3 Foundation Certification

39. C.4.2. Custom Code Technical Refreshment. (page 20) What tools are used by the IRS to manage, capture, track, and baseline custom code? ANSWER: Rational Tools

40. C.4.10. Requirements Management. (page 21) How are the requirements currently managed? Is the contractor free to implement a new requirement management system based on the ELC? Are there tools in place that manage and track requirements?ANSWER: Rational Tools are used. The contractor is not free to implement a new requirement management system based on the ELC.

41. . C.4.17. Configuration Management Support. (page 24) What version of ClearCase is currently in use? ANSWER: 7.1.0.2

42. C.8 Government Furnished Equipment. (page 32) What is the lag time for receiving access to the LAN, access to government documentation, etc.? Will the new contractor receive access to the government furnished equipment before the incumbent transitions the work to the new contractor. How long will it take to process security clearances for new contractor personnel? ANSWER: 3 months or more for MBI, few weeks for GFE, few days for LAN access.

43. C.9 Applicable Directives. (page 32) Can you supply copies of the directives for our review? This will ensure we are able to comply with said directives.

-Treasury Directive (TD) 15.71 – Department of Treasury TD P 15-71 http://intranet.treas.gov/securitymanual/td15-71/glossary.asp -Treasury Directive (TD) 71.10 http://www.treasury.gov/about/role-of-treasury/orders-directives/Pages/default.aspx -Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) 25.10 http://www.irs.gov/irm -Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) 10.23.2 http://www.irs.gov/irm -Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) 10.23.3 http://www.irs.gov/irm -Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD) 12 http://www.dhs.gov/xabout/laws/gc_1217616624097.shtm#1 Note: All Treasury Directives can be found on the Treasury website and all Internal Revenue Manuals can be found on the IRS’s website.

44. H.5 1052.239-9006 Software Development Prerequisite -- Supplement (Jan 2006). (page 42) If the prime contractor does not have CMMI-SW Level 2 rating, can one or more of their subcontractors be responsible for the planning, management and software development in order to meet the requirement for CMMI-SW Level 2. ANSWER:The prime contractor must meet the requirement for CMMI Level II and provide the necessary documentation to support their certification with the proposal.

45. BUSINESS PROPOSAL PAGE LENGTH (page 75) The business proposal may include Excel spread sheets. Are Excel spread sheets required to be submitted on standard 8.5 by 11 inches paper? Can they be fold-outs (e.g. 11 by 17 inches paper). ANSWER: All pages should comply with the 8.5 x 11 guideline mentioned in the solicitation (no foldouts).

46. Can you tell me what contract vehicle the above referenced solicitation will be let under? Will it be coming out under TIPSS or something similar?

ANSWER: The presolicitation notice will be associated with TIRNO-12-R-00004. This is an 8(a) competitive requirement to be posted to Federal Business Opportunities.

47. I have reviewed the SOW and found the statement regarding CMMI Level II requirement. We are near the end of our CMMI Level II Appraisal, we should have it 100% completed by the end of February 2012. My question is- Will this be an acceptable timeframe to submit a technically acceptable proposal to the IRS for evaluation as long as the award is not made before we can get the CMMI Level II Appraisal. ANSWER: The CMMI Level II requirement must be met at the submission of the proposal as proof of the CMMI Level II certification must be submitted with the proposal.

48. Please let us know the incumbent. ANSWER: Delmock Technologies Inc

49. Is the incumbent eligible to bid on this opportunity? ANSWER: The IRS Procurement office has not sought to determine the eligibility of any company as it pertains to this requirement. Eligibility will be determined by the SBA 8(a) Program Office.

50. Please let us know the number of technical staff that provides middleware operations and Maintenance support. ANSWER: The number of technical staff has varied over the years of the Middleware requirement.

51. Please let us know the labor category and their associated annual effort details spent towards middleware operations and Maintenance support services. ANSWER: Current Middleware contract TIRNO-11-C-00031 was awarded in the amount of $1,879,994.88.

52. In page 4, the CLIN 0005 specifies the min and max labor hours for each labor category. For our pricing purpose, please let us know if we need to provide pricing based on the max labor hours. Or can we project our own labor hours? ANSWER: Pricing should be provided as outlined in the revised Schedule B table (complete the billing rate on an hourly basis and provide pricing for both the stated minimum and maximum under the column labeled Extended Min/Max).

53. We assume the transition period (take over from the incumbent staff) will be for 90 days. ANSWER: Section C.3.1.2 has been updated to require a 5 day transition period, and Sections C.3.1.2.1 has been updated to specify 2 days for the Government to review the draft Transition Plan and 2 days for the contractor to implement the agreed-upon changes and deliver a final transition plan.

54. Let us know the security requirements of the proposed IT Staff. We assume any staffs that are legally eligible to work at US can be proposed for this project. Please confirm. ANSWER: Must meet MBI qualifications.

55. We assume the place of performance is NCFB, Lanham, MD. No offsite (contractor’s site) work is allowed. Please confirm. ANSWER: Yes, normal working hours will be at NCFB, Lanham, MD however, in response to a System Restoration Team (SRT) or P1/P2 Ticket event after hours or on weekends, contractors may be called to support and work from home as necessary.

56. In regard to quality management requirements, the government refers to a Quality Management Plan (QAP) in Section C.5.4. Quality Assurance Plan and a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) [Factor 2] in Section M.2.2 Evaluation Factors For Award and in Attachment 1- Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan Elements (QASP Elements). As part of this response, does the government want the development of two plans, a Quality Assurance Plan and a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP)? ANSWER: Yes.

57. In regard to Section # B, Supplies or Services and Prices/Costs; Pages 4-5, can the government please clarify its requirement for the Grand Total for CLIN 0005? Should the Grand Total CLIN 0005 field on Page 5 include Min/Max IDIQ CLINs 0005a through 0005j, as well as the CLINs 0005a through 0005j shown as part of the Evaluation Table? Additionally, can the Government please clarify if the “Grand Total CLINs x001-x004” fields on Pages 6-8 should include the IDIQ CLINs x004? The Grand Total field appears in between CLINs x003 and x004, leaving some confusion as to whether CLINs x004 should be included in the totals. ANSWER: Schedule B has been amended to place the grand total at the end of pricing tables.

58. In regard to Section L.8, Instructions, Conditions, and Notices to Offers, Volume III – Cost Proposal, Page 78, can the government provide more detailed instructions regarding the cost or pricing substantiation requirement in the sentence, “The offeror shall also provide a copy of applicable current GSA Schedules or commercial labor hour price lists, as well as any required cost or pricing substantiation.” What constitutes acceptable cost or price substantiation? ANSWER: This reference has been deleted in its entirety and will not be required.

59. In regard to Section C.4 Software Development, Pages 19-26, can the government provide more detailed instructions regarding the transition period and how existing development efforts will be transferred to the new contract?

· Additionally, will there be allowances to provide the new contract the ability to re-assess, re-evaluate and re-cost existing development efforts as it pertains to the contract’s initiation period and software development budget? ANSWER: O&M Support will transition to the new contract. No IDIQ development efforts are currently in process therefore no transition of existing development efforts will be transitioned.

· In regard to Section C.3 Performance Work Statement – Scope: Operation & Maintenance Services, Pages 12-19, the government provides COTS product and platform support requirements.

· Can the government clarify if there are additional COTS products and platforms that the contractor will be responsible for supporting?

ANSWER: As stated in C.1.2, C.2, C.3, The contractor shall be required to provide a wide range of support in the area of information systems services; specifically relating to the transition of infrastructure components. Section C.2 states that the purpose of the contract is to improve the support of production middleware infrastructure software components to include the existing middleware components as well as the transition and support of new Infrastructure Shared Services (ISS) components from Modernization to the EOps.

60. In regard to Section L.8 Proposal Preparation Instructions, Volume I: Technical Proposal, Technical Proposal Page Length, Page 74, the government provides instructions regarding the font requirements for the Technical Proposal and Resumes.

· Can the government provide more detailed instructions regarding the font requirements for tables and figures?

ANSWER: All documents should adhere to the Arial, 12 point font required for the Technical Proposal.

61. In regard to Section L.8 Proposal Preparation Instructions, Volume I: Technical Proposal, Resume Page Length, it states that “Pages shall be numbered sequentially 1-3…”

· Can the government please clarify if the Resumes are included in the 150 page limitation for Volume I: Technical Proposal?

ANSWER: Resumes will not count against the page limit.

62. In regard to Section L.8 Proposal Preparation Instructions, Proposal Structure and Content, Page 76, the government states that the proposal shall consist of Section 1 – Transmittal Letter, and Section 2 – Executive Summary and Table of Contents, Section 3 – Management Solution: Technical Approach, QASP and Past Performance and Section 4 – Past Experience.

· Can the government clarify if Section 1 – Transmittal Letter and Section 2- Executive Summary and Table of Contents are included in the 150 page limitation for the Volume I: Technical Proposal?

ANSWER: Yes, these items are included in the 150 page limitation.

63. In regard to Attachment 2 – Past Performance Cover Letter, Page 88, it specifies that the Past Performance Questionnaires should be returned no later than January 10, 2012.

· Since the due date for proposal responses is January 20, 2012, can the government clarify if January 10, 2012 is the due date for the Past Performance Questionnaires?

ANSWER: Yes, January 10, 2012 is the deadline for the submission of Past Performance Questionnaires.

64. In regard to Section C.4: Software Development, Page 19-26, can the government provide either a list or number of projects/task orders that have been executed over the course of the current contract?

ANSWER: There has been no projects/task order executed over the course of the current contract.

65. Please explain why the past experience is tied to specific individuals - and not the corporation as a whole. Wouldn't this criteria result in an unfair advantage being given to any incumbent(s) proposing?

Factor 4 - Past Experience The Government will evaluate the Offeror’s relevant corporate experience to include the selection of key personnel positions and the relative role of these positions within the program team. The Government will evaluate the Offeror on the availability, experience and qualifications of the proposed key personnel relative to the tasks specified in the RFP. Specifically, the experience and skills of the proposed key personnel in successfully managing and delivering services in a performance –based IT managed services environment, and how their experience translates to lowering contract performance risk.

The Government will also evaluate the Offeror’s commitment to provide Key Staff and technical personnel and contractors including its provision for replacing key personnel should it become necessary and the approximate percentage of time each individual will be available for this project.

The Government may use information provided by the Offeror in its proposal submission. The contractor should address the past experience elements outlined in Section L of the RFP ensuring that the response is relevant to the customers identified under the past performance Section 4– Past Experience Address the following Past Experience Criteria elements. Past experience information should be relevant to the three customers identified under the past performance references. In this section the offerors shall describe the experience and previous performance of their proposed Key personnel and service staff. Key personnel consist of the Program Manager, Project Manager and Subject matter Expert. Offerors shall provide complete references for all contracts in the past three years for which the proposed personnel provided services. Include the resumes and reference information in this section. Offerors may submit commercial references as welll as government references. Information provided shall be supported by and directly relate to references supplied within the technical proposal.

ANSWER: The intent of the past experience information is to ensure that quality services that represent the best value to the Government is acquired. The Past Experience references above have been modified to place majority of the emphasis on the Corporate experience.