W911SG-26-Q-A026 - Questions and Answers.pdf

W911SG-26-Q-A026 Questions and Answers

1. Does the Government intend for the prime contractor to possess direct OEM relationships or authorized training status with the machine manufacturers identified in the PWS? Prime Contractor will not need direct relationship with OEM unless they use their blueprints for training; Vendors will need to have authorized training status with machine manufacturers to teach training

2. Can the Government clarify whether the contractor is expected to own all training equipment or if leased equipment or OEM-supported demonstration equipment is acceptable? Contractor is required to own all equipment for training demonstrate a full mastery of equipment; OEM- supported demonstration is not acceptable as the government is requiring outlined equipment in the PWS

3. Are OEM-certified instructors preferred or required for machines included in the curriculum? No; but the instructors must meet the requirements outlined in the PWS to teach or train personnel

4. Are there any restrictions on subcontractors providing specific machine instruction (e.g., OEM trainers or partners)? No, however the contractor shall be held responsible for paying any subcontractors

5. What is the contractual impact if the government fails to provide students or the necessary CAD files to test students on? Will the 6-week training be the same training repeated 6 times? In other words, are they running 48 -60 students through this training over the 12-month period? I believe that is what they’re planning on doing but I wasn’t sure. The contractor will not be held reliable if the government fails to produce the necessary CAD files for students to train on; The training will be the same for the 6 classes with up to 10 personnel attending each class

6. Will the Government provide software licenses, laptops, and training materials for on-base training, or should the contractor provide these for all classes? On-base the government will provide the license, laptops and training materials required;

however the vendor will be highly encouraged to bring materials required for the training that the government may or may not have based on their training outline

7. Are there minimum square footage or facility layout requirements for the off-base training location? The facility will be required to be at minimum 5,000 or more square feet or more to house all printers and equipment, along with having the ability for students to be taught in a classroom setting and have room for training

8. Will the Government support student transportation between the installation and contractor facility if required? The students will have transport to the facility during the duration of the class

9. Will Government personnel be responsible for machine maintenance on government-owned equipment used during training? Yes

10. Can you clarify which machines need NDT Training? The training requires the students to be taught on NDT testing using the follow methods Ultrasonic testing, Radiographic testing, Magnetic testing, Eddy current testing and visual testing; the vendor will need the required equipment to teach these requirements

11. Given the 72-hour phase-in period following contract award, does the Government anticipate that offerors will already possess an operational advanced manufacturing training facility within the required geographic radius of Fort Bliss at the time of proposal submission? Yes

12. Can the Government provide full specifications and configuration details for the printers listed as Government Furnished Equipment? No

13. Will spare materials and consumables be provided for all additive manufacturing processes used during the training? Only for the classes being taught on Installation;

the contractor will need to supply the materials for classes off installation for all manufacturing processes

14. Have CAD files been approved for use in this program? If so, what are those files? As it determines scope of the program. Or are the CAD files up to the contractor? CAD files have been approved for use in this program

15. Does the Government require specific OEM models, or will equivalent systems meeting the required build volumes be acceptable? No; however, they must adhere to section 849 of FY26 NDAA

16. Is the contractor required to provide multiple units of each machine, or will one unit per technology be acceptable? They will need 2 or more of each machine

17. For equipment listed without a model (e.g., CT Scanner, Sand Molding printers, Injection molding printers), what technical specifications or capabilities are required? They will at least need to be on an industrial level capacity as the hobbyist style will not meet the governments intent

18. Is the contractor expected to demonstrate WAAM builds during training, or is conceptual instruction sufficient? For the WAAM and Hybrid WAAM systems, can the Government clarify: They will be expected to demonstrate WAAM builds during the training

Required deposition rate- needs to be variable and controllable based on material used, complexity of part and desired layer thickness Wire material types- low and high alloyed steels, stainless steel, aluminum and aluminum alloys, nickel-based alloys, magnesium Integration with CNC systems- need to be designed for seamless integration with CNC machines

19. Does the Government require OEM-certified training for all equipment? Yes, as they would have received that during purchase from the manufacturer of the equipment

20. Can the Government confirm whether 3-axis or 5-axis machining capability is required? 5 axis machining will be required

21. Does the Government expect training at an operator level, programmer level, or advanced manufacturing engineer level? The training needs to be taught at an advanced manufacturing engineer level encompassing the ability to teach soldiers how to operate and program

22. Are students expected to generate their own CAM toolpaths, or primarily learn machine operation? They will be required to do both

23. Is there a preferred format or template for the weekly reports? This will be generated by the government during the acceptance of the contract

24. Should lesson plans be delivered as detailed technical modules or high-level curriculum outlines? Both

25. Does the Government require courseware ownership or intellectual property rights for training materials developed by the contractor? Yes, government will own all rights

26. Will the Government provide standard evaluation criteria for student capstone projects? Yes

27. Will the Government require the contractor to align training with DoD or Army certification frameworks? Yes

28. Does the Government anticipate OEM participation or demonstrations during the training program? No

29. Will the Government accept OEM partnerships as subcontractors to support specialized machines? Yes, but this will be at the cost of the vendor, however if the OEM partnerships fail to train required material the PWS contract holder will be held responsible

30. Given the scope and to ensure adequate competition and best available solution, will this be full & open as indicated in the notice? Yes

31. The notice is identified throughout as a Sources Sought and indicates it is for informational purposes only. However, Section VI (Submission Instructions) references submission of three proposal volumes (Price Proposal, Technical Proposal, and Phase In).

Can the Government Clarify whether respondents are expected to submit these volumes as part of the Sources Sought response, or if the response should be limited to the Sources Sought capability information identified later in the section? Highly recommended that the three proposed volumes be incorporated into Source of Sought

32. Section VI references an SF1449. If the Government intends for respondence to submit the referenced proposal volumes, can the Government provide the referenced SF1449 so that respondents may review and include it in Volume I? Yes

33. I was hoping you might be able to inform me if this is a new effort or if there was a previous contractor that performed these requirements? If the latter, would you be able to inform me of the Contract # used for these services? This is a new effort by the government