Vendor Questions and Answers.docx

Vendor Questions & Answers

1) Who is the incumbent?

Answer: There is currently no incumbent this is a new requirement. Moreover, the previous incumbent is not relevant for this solicitation.

2) What was the previous/current contract# for this requirement?

Answer: Currently there is no active service contract because it has lapsed. The previous service contract is not relevant since this is a new requirement with all necessary details listed in the RFQ, SOW, and WDEQ Permits.

3) What is the budget for this requirement?

Answer: The VA does not disclose the funding/budgeted amount for the requirement since this is a simplified acquisition under FAR 13. Therefore, we highly recommend for vendors to provide their best offer that they believe is competitive.

4) Why is this solicitation open for only 6 days?

Answer: 6-days is more than enough time for a company to provide a competitive quote as long as they are not sub-contracting 50% or more of the work out and adding their pass-through cost to the VA.

5) Why are Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 not in the base year period?

Answer: Per SOW, Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 have not been installed yet, and they aren’t expected to be installed till Fall of 2024.

6) Why is Boiler #4 not in Option Years 1-4?

Answer: Boiler #4 will be removed and replaced, but it is unknown when, so boiler tuning services are only required during the base year, but not in option years 1-4 for this solicitation.

7) Why and how are you going to enforce the Limitations of Sub-Contracting?

Answer: As a responsible steward of taxpayer funds, the CO has to exercise the right of the limitations of sub-contracting under FAR 52.219-14 and the CO will use any other pertinent VAAR, VHA Policies, and FAR to ensure that Limitations of Sub-Contracting for set-asides are met.

8) Does the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) Permits provided in the solicitation apply to Boiler #1 and Boiler #2? If not, then why, and what is the WDEQ permit for Boiler #1 and Boiler #2?

Answer: No, the current WDEQ permits in the solicitation does not apply to Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 because the listed Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 in the WDEQ permit pdfs are the old coal fired boilers that are not active and will be replaced. Per question and answer 5) the new Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 are not yet installed, so currently there is no WDEQ permit for Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 until after they are installed estimated around Fall of 2024.

9) Have the boilers been inspected and meet all the requirements of the VHA Directive, NFPA-85 and ASME CSD-1?

Answer: The temporary boiler, Boiler #4 only meets the NFPA-85 and ASME CSD-1 codes. Boiler #3 meets the VA Boiler Safety Device Testing manual requirements, ASME CSD-1, and NFPA-85 requirements.

10) Is it the Contractor or Subcontractor's responsibility if they DO NOT meet the above Codes to make the boilers comply with these Codes?

Answer: The contractor shall include the discrepancies observed in the tuning report.

11) Are there any known problems/faults with any operating control component, any identified boiler inspection problems, violations, incidents/explosions or chemical treatment problems, on these boilers?

Answer: No.

12) If a failed part is identified during testing or a part that is installed cannot meet the required specification guidelines, is it the government's responsibility to fund the replacement of these parts and all additional tuning time?

Answer: Yes.

13) Is it the government's intention to extend the base period through November 2023?

Answer: Per the SOW, paragraph V. the Base year is from 11/1/2023 – 10/31/2024. If you are asking if the government intends to exercise Option Year 1 from 11/1/2024 – 10/31/2025 that will depend on the needs of the VA Medical Facility and the contractor’s performance.

14) Has the boiler been visually inspected by a National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Certified Inspector and found to be satisfactory to operate?

Answer: Yes, annually.

15) Since both gas and fuel oil are not being tuned on all boilers, but appear to be available to all boilers, how does the VA plan to ensure these sources are isolated from being used so the Contractor/Subcontractor is not liable from its use?

Answer: During the base year Boiler #3 only operates on NG (Natural Gas), and Boiler# 4 only operates on fuel oil as a backup boiler and backup fuel capability. They have no other options. Once Boiler #1 and Boiler #2 are replaced, and the burner for Boiler #3 is replaced, Boiler #1, Boiler #2, and Boiler #3 will need tuned on both NG and fuel oil.

16) Why is this solicitation a Small Business Total Set-Aside?

Answer: Based on the market research and results from an unsuccessful SAM.gov SDVOSB total set-aside solicitation, it was determined by the CO that in order to obtain quotes that were price reasonable while ensuring the limitations of sub-contracting, the best option is for a Small Business total-aside.