Full Food Services - Fort Knox, KY

Updated Sources Sought Notice:
SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS NOTICE
United States Army - Full Food Services
Fort Knox, Kentucky
SOLICIATION NUMBER: W9124J19R0018
Full Food Service

This is a Sources Sought Synopsis (SSS) ONLY. The U.S. Government desires to procure the full food service requirements at multiple locations on a small business set-aside basis provided two or more qualified small businesses respond to this SSS with information sufficient to support a set-aside. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. We encourage all small business concerns in all socioeconomic categories (i.e. Small Disadvantage Business (SDB), 8(a), Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Business (EDWOSB), and Women-Owned Small Business concerns (WOSB)), to identify their capabilities in meeting the requirement at a fair market price.

This notice is issued solely for information and planning purposes - it does not constitute a Request for Quotation (RFQ), Invitation for Bid (IFB), or Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFQ, IFB or RFP in the future. This notice does not commit the U.S. Government to contract for any supply or service. Further, the U.S. Government is not seeking quotes, bids or proposals at this time and will not accept unsolicited proposals in response to this sources sought synopsis. The U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this notice. Submittals will not be returned to the responder. Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future RFQ, IFB, or RFP, if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on the Governmentwide Point of Entry (GPE). It is the responsibility of potential offerors to monitor the GPE for additional information pertaining to this requirement. The GPE is located at https://www.fbo.gov.

BACKGROUND: A continuing need is anticipated for the food service requirements at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Attached are the draft Performance Work Statement (PWS), Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) and Technical Exhibits with workload data.

The contractor shall provide quality services in support of the installation food service program that supports the Warfighter with flexible, efficient and cost effective service. The service outlined in this requirement encompasses Full Food Service functions such as dining facility attendants, food preparation, facility sanitation and janitorial duties.

The NAICS code assigned to this acquisition is 722310, Food Service Contractors, with a corresponding size standard of $41.5M. The Contractor shall provide all supervision, labor, personnel, equipment, materials, and supplies, with the exception of Government Furnished Property (GFP), to perform activities that comprise the full operation of an Army Dining Facility and Full Food Services.

The current contract number is W9124D-15-D-0026, which was solicited as an unrestricted requirement.

PURPOSE OF THIS SOURCES SOUGHT: To request information on capabilities of potential offerors to provide the services described herein to determine if this will be set-aside. Please note, FFS requirements are subject to both the priority established by the Randolph-Sheppard Act (RSA) and the preferences set out in FAR part 19.

While not a firm cutoff, providing responses to this announcement no later than 4:00 p.m. Central Daylight Savings Time (CDT) on 6 September 2019 will facilitate planning and ensure your capability receives maximum consideration. Only electronic submissions will be accepted.

Interested business concerns should provide a brief "capabilities statement" package (submissions are limited to no more than 15 pages in length, single spaced, and 12 font minimum) demonstrating its capabilities in reference to this requirement. A generic capability statement is not acceptable. No particular format is mandated. The Government prefers that your firm submits its response in Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat, or a combination of both and the document must be searchable. The capability package shall be sent by email to:

Samuel J. Colton, Contracting Officer at samuel.j.colton.civ@mail.mil
Juan Juarez, Contract Specialist at juan.juarez.civ@mail.mil

Your email subject line should reflect: "Firm's Name, Response to the Sources Sought Synopsis for the Full Food Service at Fort Knox, W9124J19R0018. Note: the location(s) and corresponding solicitation number(s) that you are responding to must be identified on the subject line. The size limit of each email, with all attachments, cannot exceed 9 megabytes (MB) due to the Government's email system restrictions. DO NOT SEND ZIPPED files as the Government's network will remove all zipped files.

In response to this sources sought, please provide:

1. A company profile to include name of your firm, point of contact, phone number, email address, number of employees, annual revenue history, CAGE code, and DUNs number. Respondents must also indicate whether they qualify as a Small Business, SDB, 8(a), EDWOSB, WOSB, HUBZone, or SDVOSB.

2. What you believe are the key tasks that need to be accomplished to be successful in a Full Food Services operation. In essence, what key tasks should be used for determining minimum capability to provide these services.

3. Whether your firm is interested in competing for this requirement as a prime contractor. If you are subcontracting any of the services out, contemplating a Joint Venture, and/or creating a teaming arrangement, please provide the name of these companies and what work they will be performing, if available. Please provide your company's specific experience in operating a dining facility and providing comparable services. Ensure the information is in sufficient detail regarding previous experience in managing full food service operations (indicate whether the experience has been as a prime contractor or subcontractor) on similar requirements (include the services provided (food prep, facility attendants, custodial, etc.), the number of meals typically served, the number of facilities involved, and any other relevant information you deem applicable). If applicable, please provide the same experience information from any subcontracts, Joint Venture, and/or teaming partners you may propose with.

4. What percentage of work will be performed by the small business prime contractor and all similarly situated entity subcontractors. Note: In accordance with FAR 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting (CLASS DEVIATION 2019-O0003):
"Similarly situated entity" means a first-tier subcontractor, including an independent contractor, that has the same small business program status as that which qualified the prime contractor for the award and that is considered small for the NAICS code the prime contractor assigned to the subcontract the subcontractor will perform. An example of a similarly situated entity is a first-tier subcontractor that is a HUBZone small business concern for a HUBZone set-aside.

In addition, the Contractor agrees in performance of a contract for services, it will not pay more than 50 percent of the amount paid by the Government for contract performance to subcontractors that are not similarly situated entities.

5. Type(s)/certifications(s) of proposed subcontractors (such as SDB, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, and WOSB).

6. Information on the financial capacity of your business to meet financial obligations (i.e. payroll, payment of subcontractors, etc.).

7. How the Army can best structure these contract requirements to facilitate competition by and among small business concerns.

8. Ft. Knox has a requirement to operate one dining facility that regularly serves meals 12 Months out of the year. However, there is a requirement to surge 90% during the Cadet Summer Training (CST) that occurs from May to August. During this timeframe a total of up to 11 dining facilities may be opened. The Army is seeking industry input on how to best craft an acquisition strategy (Contract type, CLIN structure, and PWS requirements) to ensure successful contract performance. Request industry provide input for the following two questions.

a. In a proposed contract, how do you mitigate the risk of surging 90% during these 4 months of performance? (at a minimum please address Contract type, CLIN pricing and potential PWS revisions)

b. How can a proposed contract address the hiring and retention of necessary staff to surge to operate up to 11 dining facilities during a 4 month period? What recruiting, staffing and retaining methods will you utilize in order to fully staff to meet the requirement during the nearly 4 month surge?

9. Based upon performance risks, the Army is contemplating an Unrestricted Acquisition (subject to the Randolph-Sheppard Act priority). If Small Business believe that the requirement can be a Set-Aside then they must respond to questions 8.a. and 8.b. above and provide demonstrated capability to be able to surge 90%.

Identify any condition or action that may have the effect of unnecessarily restricting competition with respect to this acquisition. Please contact the MICC Advocate for Competition, Mr. Scott Kukes, at scott.d.kukes.civ@mail.mil or 210-466-3015, if you believe that this action is unreasonably restricting competition. Include the subject of the acquisition, this announcement, and the MICC POC information from the FedBizOpps notice. Provide the specific aspects that unreasonably restrict competition and the rationale for such conclusion.

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SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS NOTICE
United States Army - Full Food Services
Fort Knox, Kentucky
SOLICITATION NUMBER: W9124J-19-R-0018

NOTICE TYPE: This Is A Sources Sought Synopsis Notice ONLY.

This Sources Sought Synopsis (SSS) notice is for Full Food Services (FSS) in support of the Logistics Readiness Center (LRC), located at Fort Knox, Kentucky. The information received will be used within the Mission and Installation Contracting Command - Fort Sam Houston (MICC-FSH) Contracting Center to facilitate the decision making process and will not be disclosed outside of the organization.

This announcement is for planning and informational purposes only and SHALL NOT be considered an Invitation for Bid (IFB), Request for Quotation (RFQ), or Request for Proposal (RFP). There is no obligation on the part of the Government to acquire any products or services described in this Sources Sought Synopsis. This office does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this Sources Sought Synopsis or reimburse respondents for information solicited, and provided. No funds have been authorized, appropriated or received for this effort.

BACKGROUND: The MICC - FSH Contracting Center has a requirement in support of the Fort Knox installation food service requirements. The Contractor shall provide quality services in support of the installation food service program that supports the Warfighter with flexible, efficient, and cost effective service. The service outlined in this requirement and attached draft Performance Work Statement (PWS) encompasses Full Food Services functions such as food preparation, food receiving and storage, food serving, and facility sanitation duties.

The NAICS code assigned to the acquisition is 722310, Food Service Contractors, with a corresponding small business size standard of $38.5M. The Contractor shall provide all supervision, labor, personnel, equipment, materials, and supplies, with the exception of Government Furnished Property (GFP, expendables), to perform activities that comprise the full operation of FFS.

PURPOSE OF THIS SOURCES SOUGHT: To request information on capabilities of potential offerors to provide the services described herein and in attached draft PWS. Please note, FFS requirements are subject to both the priority established by the Randolph-Sheppard Act (R-SA) and the preferences set out in FAR Part 19.

-All offerors are hereby notified that this solicitation will be subject to the Randolph-Sheppard Act. The Army applies this priority in accordance with Army Regulation 210-25 (which will be incorporated into the solicitation and resulting contract). A priority right to operate dining facilities on federal property applies as defined in Army Regulation 30-22. This notice is not designed to discourage competition; rather, it sets out the priority established by the R-SA for proposals received from State Licensing Agencies and their blind vendors.

RESPONSES REGARDING POTENTIAL SOURCES STATEMENT OF CAPABILITIES: Interested Offerors having the required specialized capabilities / qualifications to support some or all of the work identified in the draft PWS are asked to answer the following questions and submit a capability statement. Capability statements shall contain the following information:

1. Name of the firm, point of contact, phone number, email address, DUNS number, CAGE code, a statement regarding small business status (including small business type(s)/certifications(s) such as SDB, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB, etc.) and the corresponding NAICS code.

2. Identify whether your firm is interested in competing for this requirement as a prime contractor or not. Identify subcontracting, joint ventures or teaming arrangement that will be pursued, if any.

3. Information in sufficient detail regarding previous experience (indicate whether as a prime contractor or subcontractor) on similar requirements (include size, scope, complexity, timeframe, government or commercial), pertinent certifications, etc., that will facilitate making a capability determination.

4. Identify how the Army can best structure these contract requirements to facilitate competition by and among small business concerns.

5. Identify any condition or action that may be having the effect of unnecessarily restricting competition with respect to this acquisition. Please contact the MICC Advocate for Competition, Scott Kukes at scott.d.kukes.civ@mail.mil or 210-466-3015, if you believe that this action is unreasonably restricting competition. Include the subject of the acquisition, this announcement, and the MICC POC information from the FedBizOpps notice. Provide the specific aspects that unreasonably restrict competition and the rationale for such conclusion.

YOUR RESPONSE TO THE SYNOPSIS: The Government requests separate files for Statement of Capabilities and Contracting Approach response; submitted electronically in PDF format. Offeror's responses shall not exceed fifteen (15) pages single-sided - standard 8 ½ X 11 pages using not less than 10-pitch font -- and shall describe the offerors technical expertise in sufficient detail to make an informed determination of the offerors ability to successfully perform the services described in the draft PWS.

All responses to: 1) the Statement of Capabilities 2) Contracting Approach shall be received no later than 8 March 2019 at 12:30 PM CT. Please respond via electronic mail (e-mail) to the Contracting Officer, Gary Stevens, at the following address: gary.l.stevens.civ@mail.mil and Contract Specialist, Karina Haddix, at the following address: karina.s.haddix.civ@mail.mil. All questions MUST be in writing and should also be directed to Gary Stevens and Karina Haddix. In all responses, please reference W9124J-19-R-0018 - FFS in the subject line. Verbal questions will not be accepted. This synopsis is for information and planning purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government nor will the Government pay for information solicited. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. No telephonic responses will be accepted. No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized in Federal Business Opportunities. It is the potential offerors responsibility to monitor this site for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.

Primary Point of Contact: Karina Haddix
Contract Specialist
Email: karina.s.haddix.civ@mail.mil

Secondary Point of Contact: Gary L. Stevens Contracting Officer
Email: gary.l.stevens.civ@mail.mil

Contracting Office Address:
2205 Infantry Post Road, Bldg. 603 Fort Sam Houston, Texas 78234-1361 United States

Place of Performance:
Fort Knox, Kentucky
United States

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