HWAD Industry Day 3 QA.pdf

Number Question Answer

PWS 2: Are the utilities (electrical, water, ..) fully operational at each of the buildings to perform demil activities?

The Government will provide all available information in the

Hawthorne Army Depot Virtual Technical Library on SAM under Notice ID W519TC-25-V-HWAD.

Will the government provide historical data on the number of replacements of solar panels each year.

No solar panels have been replaced to date.

PWS 6: Will the government provide a list of dates wood floors have been refinished within the last four years?

No wood floors have been refinished in the past 4 years.

PWS 6: Will the government provide historical of termite infestation, treatment for housing units within the last five years?

There has been no termite treatments for housing units in the past 5 years.

We request clarification from the Government regarding the change in the Small Business Participation from 10% to 30%.

The goals in the self-scoring matrix reflect the Department of

Defense small business goals, but the Government anticipates removal of this part of the Small Business matrix.

The Government anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

We assume that in section L.2.1.6.3 that contractors may submit work samples where they were the subcontractor on a project. We also assume that the prime contractor for this effort may use their subcontractors’ work samples for subcontractors that plan to perform on this contract.

The Government will accept work samples where the contractor performed as the prime contractor or first tier subcontractor. If subcontractor Work Samples are used, the

Offeror shall submit letters of commitment from the subcontractor(s).

Would it be possible to submit technical data from non-DoD contracts, e.g.: state contracts or commercial contracts?

The Government is currently working on removal of the requirement for Work Samples to be only from DoD contracts/task orders. The Government anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to

Industry Day #4.

Explain why work samples are needed for five years but number of consecutive years requested is seven.

The Government is currently working on additional updates to

Work Sample requirements and is considering extending the requirements of all Work Samples to the last seven years. The

Government anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

If contract number changes is this considered a new sample since it is a new contract number?

Yes, award of an additional contract or task order would be considered an additional Work Sample, as long as at least one year of work has been completed under the new contract or task order. Please see Section L for a list of all Work

Sample requirements.

If payroll cannot be found going back five years because payroll records may not be retained that long, are there any other options like companies self-certify their records?

As stated in L.2.1.4, "The Government will accept a Statement of Fact from the cognizant contracting officer or contracting officer representative (COR) to confirm missing information, should contractual documents not carry all the information necessary to substantiate the offeror's scores. The offeror will need to provide this statement (if needed) and submit as part of its proposal."

Would work samples be required based on what a company is a subcontractor for?

As stated in L.2.1.6.2, "Offerors shall identify what company will be performing identified PWS work if awarded the

Hawthorne Army Depot contract and all Work Samples shall represent work previously done by that contractor or subcontractor. If subcontractor Work Samples are used, the

Offeror shall submit letters of commitment from the subcontractor(s). "

Please confirm if Phase I is a go, no-go approach and Phase II will include a best value trade-off evaluation?

Yes, the Government intends to use Phase I to ensure all capable Offerors have the opportunity to participate in the

Phase II best value trade off.

Can a subcontractor submit their CPARS if they were prime and received ratings?

Yes, CPARS ratings received by prime contractors for the associated technical experience will be accepted for companies that intend to perform as subcontractors on the

HWAD effort, if the required letter of commitment is submitted.

14 Will the virtual Industry Day #3 slides be posted?

Yes, the slides and attendance were posted to SAM.gov under

Notice ID W519TC-25-S-HWAD.

What is the Government rationale for 10-year FFP for this contract given market volatility?

There are CBAs currently in place and adjustments can be made during the negotiations of future revised CBAs. The

Government realizes there is risk but some of it is mitigated since this is not a supply contract.

In large, complex in magnitude contracts regarding payroll, how does the Government plan to understand these samples and expect vendors to show all of their abilities?

The Government is looking at multiple-page proposal reference to connect the dots that may not jump out when looking at the samples provided.

17 How does the Government plan to incentivize innovative solutions?

In addition to CPARS ratings, the Government will evaluate innovative solutions in phase two as part of the best value trade off evaluation and is open to additional suggestions from industry.

What keeps the Government up at night in regards to this contract?

Constraints of the remote location and how that factors into performance/recruiting/personnel.

Can Government explain the duration of the contract/why is RFP coming out early?

The U.S. Government has done extensive evaluations to determine the best path forward. Due to the evaluation completed, it has been determined that the best option for the

U.S. Government is to recompete this requirement.

20 Is the Government using AI to develop or evaluate the solicitation?

Language has been added to the solicitation to outline the possibility of AI being used for evaluations.

A one-page narrative is pretty restrictive which creates risk if proof cannot be found in the attachments, would Government consider expanding the narrative to a minimum of 3 pages?

The Government intends to increase the page limit for the project reference and provide a template. The Government anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

If offeror has no CPARS they will receive higher rating than marginal, would the Government consider updating the scoring for past performance?

The Government is re-evaluating the way scores are calculated for CPARS submissions and anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to

Industry Day #4.

23 What is the Government rationale for 84,000 total points?

The Government Technical Team came to a consensus on how things should be valued.

Has the Government confirmed Industry Day #4 for 30-days before

RFP release or 10-days after?

The Government is looking at 30-days before and will post additional information to SAM once details have been finalized.

Do offerors still have until June 24 to submit further questions and follow-up?

Yes, the Government appreciates any additional feedback/questions industry provides.

Does the Government plan to post new L&M based on new approach?

The Government anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

27 Does the Government plan to post final RFP in August 2025?

Yes, this is still the Government's tentative timeline. Any updates to this timeline will be posted to SAM.

Can references be submitted by subcontractor with letter of commitment?

As stated in L.2.1.6.2, "Offerors shall identify what company will be performing identified PWS work if awarded the

Hawthorne Army Depot contract and all Work Samples shall represent work previously done by that contractor or subcontractor. If subcontractor Work Samples are used, the

Offeror shall submit letters of commitment from the subcontractor(s). "

29 Can work samples be submitted multiple times?

Yes, one contract can be submitted as a work sample for multiple technical experiences with the exception of the first technical experience for each factor that requires submission of three different contracts for the three different work samples.

If you hit the 30% small business does that qualify for minimum? Is this total contract value or based on subcontractor total value?

The Government is currently re-evaluating requirements for the small business factor and anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day

#4.

Can Government clarify what the weighting column was in the price matrix and why it was removed?

It was not value added, therefore the Government removed it.

Is the Government going to release MGQ for MIDAS families as this is vital for pricing?

This was provided in the first RFP release and has not changed.

What is the Government plan for partial work in process at time of new prime taking over control?

There should be no work inherited from previous contractor, if there is work it would be a separately priced effort to negotiate with incoming contractor.

Why is the Government splitting between written and oral presentations?

This determination has been made in an effort to reduce the burden on contractors and the U.S. Government and to expedite evaluations.

Since maintenance is the highest rated volume, would the

Government consider oral and written proposals?

The Government is looking into this, however, there should be no duplicative effort or information between the two proposals.

The Government welcomes feedback regarding how this would be done without duplication of efforts.

36 Who does Government anticipate doing the Oral presentations?

As stated in L.3.1.6.4, "It is recommended, the Offeror’s key personnel who will perform or personally direct the work being described conduct their relevant portions of the presentations.

Key personnel include project managers, task leaders, and other in-house staff of the Offeror. Subcontractors can be utilized as presenters at the Offeror’s discretion."

37 How does Government want new innovations added to proposal?

The Government has included language in the Phase II

Maintenance and Innovation/Business Development Factors to specify requirements regarding innovation. The

Government will also be adding additional language to the

Phase II Demil Factor to address innovation. The Government welcomes feedback regarding the approach to inclusion of innovation.

Two hours might be too short for Demil orals, would Government be open to more time?

The Government is in the process of re-evaluating the time for oral presentations and anticipates posting an updated draft

RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

Regarding the Demil matrix, what is the importance of seven consecutive years of performance when most DoD contracts are three to five years?

Given the amount of requirements and complexity of this requirement, it was determined seven years is the appropriate amount of time to be used. To clarify, this experience is requesting Offerors provide Work Samples to show they have done the work for seven years consecutively, not that they had one contract for seven years. Work Sample submission for this technical experience may require more than one contract/task order submission.

40 Why is it important only the last year of CPARS matters?

The Government would like to evaluate the most recent information we can regarding contractor performance.

41 Can other task orders be used instead of last year on a contract?

The Government is currently re-evaluating requirements for past experience submissions. At this time the Government anticipates allowing submission of individual task orders under both single award and multiple award IDIQ contracts and posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

Will Government consider looking at all 6 CPARS categories instead of 3?

The Government chose to evaluate only CPARS categories of

Quality, Schedule, and Management because these categories represent the areas the Government is most concerned with good performance for this effort.

The Government has structured the HWAD contract as Firm-Fixed

Price (FFP) over a multi-year period. This introduces significant risk to contractors due to potential operational volatility, evolving mission requirements, and market fluctuations. How does the

Government intend to manage these risks and ensure pricing realism over a 10-year period without adjustment mechanisms?

Will the Government consider revising the contract structure to

Cost Plus Award Fee with the premise that that contractors will be awarded based on performance as a major incentive with innovative solutions being one of the evaluated criteria?

The Government acknowledges the risks associated with a 10-year FFP contract. However, the Government considers these risks significantly decreased due to the Collective Bargaining

Agreements (CBAs) in place. If CBAs are renegotiated, the

Government will evaluate the need to update prices based on

CBA changes. The Hawthorne contract is mainly for services so the risk to industry is not as high as if this was a supply contract or a service contract without CBAs.

In relation to this, when does pricing get evaluated and how does that tie back to staffing and management and technical approaches?

The Government is currently re-evaluating the need for submission of price with Phase I information and anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

As part of the evaluation of proposals, does the Government expect contractors to include and price technology-based solutions and innovations to perform PWS requirements?

The Government expects Offerors to propose their best prices based on their proposed solutions. Offerors are instructed to include all costs in their proposed prices and the Government will evaluate phase II proposals using a best value trade off process.

Can the Government confirm existing Government furnished

Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS) being used by the incumbent contractor in the performance of the contract?

The Government did not furnish the existing CMMS. The

CMMS currently being used is Maximo.

Can the Government confirm that original contract price/cost will be negotiated based on any future factors which can impact contract performance, including but not limited to Collective

Bargaining Agreements (CBA), market fluctuations, and

Government funding/spending during contract’s out years given the 10-year FFP submission requirements?

The Government will evaluate the need for updated prices based on CBA increases. Any additional projects the

Government funds outside of the basic PWS requirements will be separately negotiated prior to award.

How does the Government plan to incentivize innovation throughout the life of the HWAD contract? Consider incorporating mechanisms such as award fees, CPARS weighting, or performance-based incentives. Alternatively, consider a contract structure that includes a cost-reimbursable element with award fees, that reward contractors for proposing and implementing innovative solutions that improve mission outcomes or reduce lifecycle costs.

The Government intends to post an RFI soliciting industry's feedback regarding how to incentivize innovation throughout the life of the contract. Please take the time to respond to the

RFI to assist the Government with tailoring an approach appropriate to HWAD.

Small Business Factor establishes 0 points for “No Goal Identified or Missed by More Than 10%”. Many overseas contracts do not include SB goals. Will the Government allow Offerors to provide narrative context for not meeting goals?

Small Business Work Samples are not tied to Work Sample submissions for other technical experiences. Small Business

Work Samples will include the same Project Reference submission as Work Samples for other factors and narrative information can be included in the associated Project

Reference.

The Self-Scoring Matrix does not provide Offerors with an opportunity to highlight innovations, efficiencies, or other evidence of successful performance on referenced contracts. Will the

Government consider allowing alternative formats—such as written past performance narratives—to demonstrate technical experience beyond the rigid scoring matrix? This would enable Offerors to present innovative or emerging capabilities that may not be captured through historical contract documentation or fall outside the matrix criteria, but which can be clearly explained and tied to measurable outcomes.

Offerors will have the opportunity to submit written/oral narratives for topics such as innovation in phase II. The

Government welcomes feedback regarding the incorporation of innovation in the phase II evaluation.

RFP states: “L.2.1.4 The Work Samples shall consist of only official contract documentation (including, but not limited to, Performance Work Statements (PWSs), Statements of Work

(SOWs), Contract Data Requirement Lists (CDRLs), and

Invoices). ” Will the Government system-generated reports in lieu of missing contract documentation?

The Government will accept system-generated reports if they are submitted with a statement of fact from the cognizant contracting officer or contracting officer's representative to confirm the information provided in the system-generated report.

Paragraph L.2.1.6.3.1 states: “Primes may also include subsidiaries or legal entities which fall under the parent corporation. In order to use a subsidiary or legal entity as a prime

Work Sample, the acquisition of the subsidiary or legal entity shall have been finalized as of the date of initial RFP issuance of this solicitation, and objective evidence shall be included in the Work

Sample to demonstrate that they are now a legal entity of the corporation.” For subsidiaries, what constitutes “objective evidence” of legal integration sufficient to qualify as a prime Work

Sample?

Objective evidence include corporate documents showing they are affiliated like Articles of Incorporation, Operating

Agreements, Bylaws, or anything that notes they are owned by the parent company.

For the “Number of Consecutive Years the Offeror Performed

Facility Maintenance Work,” can the Government clarify whether overlapping contracts will be aggregated to meet the “consecutive years” requirement?

The Government would like Work Sample submissions to include contracts that cover the prior consecutive seven years to receive full points. If the Offeror can meet this requirement by submission of numerous contracts, regardless of whether or not there is overlap, the Government will consider the submission complete. However, the overlapped time will not count for additional years.

Will the Government provide Offerors with feedback on which elements of their Self-Scoring Matrix were downgraded and why, and also allow offerors to provide clarifications to correct?

As always, Offerors have the option to request a debriefing to receive additional information regarding their proposal submission. The Government is in the process of adding language regarding clarifications during phase I to the RFP and anticipates posting an updated draft RFP reflecting all changes to SAM prior to Industry Day #4.

Can the Government provide the full list of MIDAS families referenced in the Demil PWS to ensure accurate scoring?

The list of MIDAS families can be found in the Demil PWS.

The Government anticipates posting an updated draft RFP, including PWSs, reflecting all changes to SAM prior to

Industry Day #4.

Many mid-sized companies have successfully conducted

SDO Class V operations on a smaller scale, often as part of broader base-wide Supply Chain Management contracts.

These contracts include planning, provisioning of equipment and supplies, personnel management, and full-service logistics support for Classes I through IX. While not all these operations involve Class V storage, they do require strict adherence to DoD Supply Chain Management procedures, hazardous materials regulations, and inventory accountability procedures that are similar to those for Class V operations.

Given this, can the self-scoring matrix be revised to consider similar past performance/work samples involving other classes of supply operations, especially when they reflect similar scale, operational complexity, regulatory compliance, and accountability requirements associated with Class V ammunition storage and management?

The majority of SDO conducted at HWAD is for Class V material and the Government intends to evaluate Offerors' experience specifically with this type of material.