Air Force Academy Cadet Shoulder Boards and Shoulder Marks

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items or services prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice and as attachments. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written (formal) solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ), solicitation number FA7000-09-T-0058, in accordance with FAR Parts 12 & 13. This solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular FAC 2005-32 effective 31 Mar 09 and FAC 2005-31 effective 20 Apr 09. The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) number is 315999 and the business size standard is 500 employees. The proposed acquisition is 100% Small business set-aside.

The USAF Academy has a requirement for cadet rank Men's and Women's Shoulder Boards and Men's and Women's Shoulder Marks in accordance with Military Specs: USAFA CU 16572, MIL-I-14645B (1988), MIL-I-14645B Amendment 1 (1988), LOE MIL-I-14645 090415 (attached).

The following provides the description of each shoulder board or shoulder mark and quantities that will satisfy the Governments needs:

CLIN Description QTY
0001 Wing Honor Chairman Men's Shoulder Boards Qty 4
0002 Wing Honor Chairman Women's Shoulder Boards Qty 4
0003 Wing Honor Committee Lt. Col Men's Shoulder Boards Qty 32
0004 Wing Honor Committee Lt. Col Women's Shoulder Boards Qty 18
0005 Wing Honor Committee Lt. Col Men's Shoulder Marks Qty 32
0006 Wing Honor Committee Lt. Col Women's Shoulder Marks Qty 18
0007 Wing Honor Committee Major Men's Shoulder Boards Qty 224
0008 Wing Honor Committee Major Women's Shoulder Boards Qty 56
0009 Wing Honor Committee Major Men's Shoulder Marks Qty 224
0010 Wing Honor Committee Major Women's Shoulder Marks Qty 56
0011 Wing Honor Committee SMSgt Men's Shoulder Boards Qty 10
0012 Wing Honor Committee SMSgt Women's Shoulder Boards Qty 6
0013 Wing Honor Committee SMSgt Men's Shoulder Marks Qty 10
0014 Wing Honor Committee SMSgt Women's Shoulder Marks Qty 6
0015 Wing Honor Committee MSgt Men's Shoulder Boards Qty 248
0016 Wing Honor Committee MSgt Women's Shoulder Boards Qty 60
0017 Wing Honor Committee MSgt Men's Shoulder Marks Qty 248
0018 Wing Honor Committee MSgt Women's Shoulder Marks Qty 60

The shoulder boards are hand sewn, in accordance with USAFA Letter of Exception dated 15 August 2008 MIL-I-14645A and USAFA CU 16572 dated 15 August 2008 (attached). The yarn on these hand sewn shoulder boards and shoulder marks must be comprised of:
1. Metallicized polyester-16-23%
2. Viscose Rayon-73-79%
3. Pure Silver-4-5%

USAFA Letter of Exception dated 15 April 2009 MIL-I-14645A describes manufacture of cadet shoulder boards and marks (attached). Please see USAFA Spec attachment for the ranks and description of the boards that are included in the letter of exception.

Addenda to FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offeror-Commercial Items.

1. Contractor shall submit their quote on company letterhead, provide solicitation number, the time specified in the solicitation for receipt of offerors, name, address, and telephone number of the offeror, unit price, an overall total price, any discount terms, cage code, DUNS number, Tax Identification Number, size of business, no more than five (5) past performance references with contract number, point of contact and telephone number, acknowledgement of solicitation amendments if required, a completed copy of the representations and certifications at FAR 52.212-3 (http://orca.bpn.gov/publicsearch.aspx) and a completed copy of DFARS 252.225-7000 (Attachment 5) or go to (http://farsite.hill.af.mil/), Buy American Act-Balance of Payments Program Certificate, which must be signed and returned with quote.

2. Delivery Requirement: FOB for this RFQ is Destination. Quotations received with FOB other than Destination will not be considered. The delivery date required no later than 31 JULY 09.

3. These products must comply with the Buy American Act (100% manufactured in the USA; and at least 51% of the cost of materials made, fabricated, purchased must be made in the USA).

4. ADDENDUM to FAR 52.212-1(10) Past performance information, when included as an evaluation factor, to include recent and relevant contracts in the past three years for manufacturing distinctive uniforms, for similar type uniforms or similar items and other references (including contract numbers, points of contact with telephone numbers and other relevant information).

5. Addenda to FAR 52.212-1, Proposal Preparation Instructions.
(a) Initially, Quotes will be ranked according to price. An offeror's proposed prices will be determined by multiplying the quantities identified in the Pricing Schedule by the unit price for to confirm the extended amount.
(b) If the lowest priced evaluated offer is judged to have a "High Confidence" performance rating that offer represents the best value for the government and evaluation process stops at this point. Award shall be made to that offeror without further consideration of any other offers.

6. Addendum to FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation-Commercial Items

The government will award a purchase order resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12 and 13. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: (1) past performance and price. The tradeoff process will be determined on the basis of the comparative assessment of offerors' past performance and price.

(a) Price: Price will be evaluated to determine its fairness, and reasonableness as it relates to the item offered.

(b) Past Performance: Past performance will be evaluated to ensure satisfactory business practices, quality, schedule, and timely performance. Past performance is significantly more important than price. The government may base its judgment on information obtained through any form of assessment reporting systems, statements of opinion from any source provided by the offeror and/or obtained by the government, the contracting officer's/evaluation team members' knowledge, customer surveys, or other reasonable basis.

In evaluating past performance, the Government reserves the right to give greater consideration to information on those contracts deemed most relevant to the effort described in this RFQ (e.g., past performance for contracts for the same or close to the same effort (manufacturing of embroidery shoulder boards or other complex embroidery items, for example, patches) will have greater past performance impact than contracts that are less complex than the requirement as described herein).

If the lowest priced evaluated offer is judged to have an exceptional performance confidence rating, that offer represents the best value for the Government and the evaluation process stops at this point. Award shall be made to that offeror without further consideration of any other offers.

The Government reserves the right to award a contract to other than the lowest priced offer if that offeror is judged to have a performance confidence rating of "very good" or higher.

7. The clause FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions -- Commercial Items, with the following addenda applies:
52.209-4 -- First Article Approval -- Government Testing.
As prescribed in 9.308-2(a) and (b), insert the following clause:
First Article Approval -- Government Testing (Sep 1989)
(a) The Contractor shall deliver 1 unit(s) of Lot/Item 0001-0018 within 20 calendar days from the date of this contract to the Government at 10 LGCB, Attn: Contracting Officer, 8110 Industrial Dr., Ste 200, USAF Academy, CO 80840 for first article tests. The shipping documentation shall contain this contract number and the Lot/Item identification. The characteristics that the first article must meet and the testing requirements are specified elsewhere in this contract.
(b) Within 5 calendar days after the Government receives the first article, the Contracting Officer shall notify the Contractor, in writing, of the conditional approval, approval, or disapproval of the first article. The notice of conditional approval or approval shall not relieve the Contractor from complying with all requirements of the specifications and all other terms and conditions of this contract. A notice of conditional approval shall state any further action required of the Contractor. A notice of disapproval shall cite reasons for the disapproval.
(c) If the first article is disapproved, the Contractor, upon Government request, shall submit an additional first article for testing. After each request, the Contractor shall make any necessary changes, modifications, or repairs to the first article or select another first article for testing. All costs related to these tests are to be borne by the Contractor, including any and all costs for additional tests following disapproval. The Contractor shall furnish any additional first article to the Government under the terms and conditions and within the time specified by the Government. The Government shall act on this first article within the time limit specified in paragraph (b) of this clause. The Government reserves the right to require an equitable adjustment of the contract price for any extension of the delivery schedule or for any additional costs to the Government related to these tests.
(d) If the Contractor fails to deliver any first article on time, or the Contracting Officer disapproves any first article, the Contractor shall be deemed to have failed to make delivery within the meaning of the Default clause of this contract.
(e) Unless otherwise provided in the contract, the Contractor --
(1) May deliver the approved first article as a part of the contract quantity, provided it meets all contract requirements for acceptance and was not consumed or destroyed in testing; and
(2) Shall remove and dispose of any first article from the Government test facility at the Contractor's expense.
(f) If the Government does not act within the time specified in paragraph (b) or (c) of this clause, the Contracting Officer shall, upon timely written request from the Contractor, equitably adjust under the Changes clause of this contract the delivery or performance dates and/or the contract price, and any other contractual term affected by the delay.
(g) The Contractor is responsible for providing operating and maintenance instructions, spare parts support, and repair of the first article during any first article test.
(h) Before first article approval, the acquisition of materials or components for, or the commencement of production of, the balance of the contract quantity is at the sole risk of the Contractor. Before first article approval, the costs thereof shall not be allocable to this contract for
(1) Progress payments, or
(2) Termination settlements if the contract is terminated for the convenience of the Government.
(i) The Government may waive the requirement for first article approval test where supplies identical or similar to those called for in the schedule have been previously furnished by the Offeror/Contractor and have been accepted by the Government. The Offeror/Contractor may request a waiver.
(End of Clause)

FAR 52.252-2 Clauses Incorporated by Reference: This solicitation incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. The full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this address: http://farsite.hill.af.mil/.
USAFA 5352.242-9000, Contractor Access to Air Force Installations (Aug 2007) (USAFA Supplemented Jul 08)
5352.201-9101 OMBUDSMAN (AUG 2005)

(a) An ombudsman has been appointed to hear and facilitate the resolution of concerns from offerors, potential offerors, and others for this acquisition. When requested, the ombudsman will maintain strict confidentiality as to the source of the concern. The existence of the ombudsman does not affect the authority of the program manager, contracting officer, or source selection official. Further, the ombudsman does not participate in the evaluation of proposals, the source selection process, or the adjudication of protests or formal contract disputes. The ombudsman may refer the party to another official who can resolve the concern.

(b) Before consulting with an ombudsman, interested parties must first address their concerns, issues, disagreements, and/or recommendations to the contracting officer for resolution. Consulting an ombudsman does not alter or postpone the timelines for any other processes (e.g., agency level bid protests, GAO bid protests, requests for debriefings, employee-employer actions, contests of OMB Circular A-76 competition performance decisions).

(c) If resolution cannot be made by the contracting officer, concerned parties may contact the USAF Academy Ombudsmen,
Kelly Snyder
8110 Industrial Drive, Ste 103
USAFA, CO 80840
Telephone number 719-333-2074
FAX 719-333-9018
email: Kelly.Snyder@usafa.af.mil

Concerns, issues, disagreements, and recommendations that cannot be resolved at the MAJCOM/DRU level, may be brought by the concerned party for further consideration to the Air Force ombudsman, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary (ADAS) (Contracting), SAF/AQC, 1060 Air Force Pentagon, Washington DC 20330-1060, phone number (703) 588-7004, facsimile number (703) 588-1067.

(d) The ombudsman has no authority to render a decision that binds the agency.

(e) Do not contact the ombudsman to request copies of the solicitation, verify offer due date, or clarify technical requirements. Such inquiries shall be directed to the Contracting Officer.
(End of clause)
52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items (Feb 2009) Deviation
52.219-6 Notice of Total Small Business Set Aside (Jun 2003)
52.219-28 Post-Award Small Business Program Representation (Jun 2007)
52.222-3 Convict Labor (Jun 2003)
52.222-19 Child Labor -- Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies (Feb 2008)
52.222-26 Equal Opportunity (Mar 2007)
52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities (Jun 1998)
52.222-50 Combat Trafficking in Persons (Feb 2009)
52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases (June 2008)
52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer--Central Contractor Registration
(Oct 2003)
52.233-3 Protest After Award (Aug 1996)
52.233-4 Applicable Law for Breach of Contract Claim (Oct 2004)

DFARS 252.212-7001, Contract terms and Conditions required to implement status of Executive Orders applicable to Defense Acquisitions of Commercial Items (Jan 2009) (Deviation) applies to this acquisition.
DFARS 252.225-7001, Buy American Act and Balance of Payments Program (Jan 2009)
252.232-7003, Electronic Submission of Payment Request (Mar 2008).

Quotes must be received NLT 1:00 pm Mountain Daylight Time, 21 May 2009 at the 10th MSG/LGCB, 8110 Industrial Drive, Suite 200, USAF Academy, CO 80840-2315. Contractor shall submit their quote by facsimile (719) 333-9103 to the attention of Rebecca Petersen or e-mail to Rebecca Petersen at rebecca.petersen@usafa.af.mil. In my absence, please contact Diana South, Contracting Officer, 719-333-8650 or email to diana.myles-south@usafa.af.mil.