Pilot Research Study

Added: Jan 17, 2013 11:42 am This RFQ is amended to extend the date responses are due to January 22, 2013. 

Added: Jan 11, 2013 12:40 pm TRAVEL

All travel performed under the resulting Purchase order must be approved by the Contracting Officer's Reresentative (COR) and shall be performed in accordance with Federal Travel Regulations (FTR). The actual costs for lodging, meals, and incidental expenses will be considered reasonable and allowable if they do not exceed the maximum per diem rates in effect at the time of travel as set forth in the FTR. In accordance with FAR Subpart 31.205-46, a written justification must be provided to the COTR for amounts higher than the FTR maximum amounts. Travel will be reimbursed at actual costs (with a copy of the receipts for expenses) in the following categories:

1.) Airline Tickets (commercial rates)
2.) Hotel Expenses (Government rates unless pre-approved by the COTR)
3.) All Other Modes of Transportation (Taxi receipts are not required if less than $75.00)

Food and other miscellaneous expenses will be reimbursed at the prevailing FTR reimbursement rates.

Added: Jan 10, 2013 2:48 pm This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotations are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. Solicitation No. DTRT57-13-Q-80016 is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ). This solicitation is being conducted under FAR Part 12, Acquisition of Commercial Items and FAR Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures. This solicitation document and incorporated provisions are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-62, effective December 20, 2012. The NAICS Code is 541990, the Small Business size standard is $14 million.

Statement of Work (SOW) - Begin

Pilot participants for simulator and Subject Matter Expert work

1.1 Introduction and Overview

The purpose of this requirement is to provide administrative support to the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Volpe Center Human Factors Research and System Applications Technical Center, including both the Aviation Human Factors and Surface Transportation Human Factors divisions. The contractor shall recruit, screen, and compensate an estimated 32 Boeing 737 or 757 pilots for participation in a human-in-the loop study utilizing flight simulators starting as early as February 2013 and continuing through approximately September 2013.

1.2 Scope of Work

The contractor shall have experience with providing and recruiting pilot study participants and must pay the participants in a timely manner.

The contractor shall provide services that include recruitment, screening, and compensation of participants in the research studies as outlined below. This study requires approximately 6 hours of participation per pilot at the Volpe Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The study may consist of verbal briefings/debriefings and participation in simulated flight procedures and/or flight segments using the Volpe Center fixed-base flight deck simulator. Participants will be paid for hours worked.

The contractor shall recruit participants who must complete the entire experimental protocol. Participants may voluntarily withdraw from the study at any time, without penalty, and will be paid for the hours worked. While the participants are screened, the Principle Investigator may discover that a research subject does not meet the baseline performance expectations during the administration of the experimental protocol. The Principle Investigator of a study may remove a research subject from the study at any time if that individual fails to meet baseline expectations of the study. These research subjects will be removed without penalty, and will be paid for the hours worked.

Study I: Aural Data Communications Phase II: Airline Operations required participants

Require 32 pilots with the following qualifications:
• Type rated and qualified to fly the Boeing 737-600/700/800/900 series of aircraft are preferred
   o Type rated and qualified to fly Boeing 757 will also be considered
   o Retired or currency within last 18 months will also be considered
• Native English speaker preferred
• Preference will be given to participants that do not have additional travel requirements; i.e., participants local to the Boston airport/area or are available during transition through Boston Logan International airport KBOS
• Each participant to be paid a standardized trip fee (if eligible)
• One day federal per diem
• 2 participants are required for each testing session
• Pilots must be available during the scheduled study period (exact schedule to be determined); it is expected that 32 pilots will participate from February 2013 to September 2013
• Participants will be paid for hours worked

1.3 Contractor Technical Approach
• Contractor shall describe their technical approach to meet the requirement in section 1.2, including:
  o Detailed description of prior pilot recruitment successes
  o Description of contractor resources for recruiting in Boston area, including a general description of their pilot database
  o Strategy for recruiting local to Boston area
  o Description of costs
  o Summary of personnel and partners, if any, with expertise to perform above tasks

1.4 Contract Deliverables
• Contractor must attend a kick-off meeting in person or via telecom with Volpe Center personnel within 2 weeks after award
• Contractor must supply personnel with the qualifications listed in section 1.2 for the study during the time period listed

1.5 Government Participation

Volpe Center personnel will coordinate with the contractor of a scheduled experiment no less than 2 weeks prior to experiment. Coordination will include anticipated number of research subjects to be processed and the estimated total hour requirements for each research session. Volpe Center Aviation Human Factors personnel will provide the contractor with a projected testing schedule upon contract award. The Principle Investigator or Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) can authorize deviations of pilot experience of the proposed participant from the advertised requirements (e.g., Boeing 757 qualifications) before arrival at the Volpe Center on a case by case basis. At the conclusion of the research session, the Volpe Center will provide the contractor with an electronic record of participation from which to pay the research subject. There will be no Government Furnished Equipment provided.

Statement of Work (SOW) - End

The Government intends to award one (1) purchase order on a Firm Fixed Price basis as a result of this solicitation. This RFQ is expected to result in a single purchase order award, subject to receipt of an acceptable quotation. An award will be made to the source whose quotation, conforming to the solicitation and specifications listed in the SOW, is determined to offer the best value to the Government in accordance with the evaluation criteria in Attachment No. 0001.

The Offeror shall provide pricing for the following Contract Line Items (CLINs) in accordance with the attached SOW:

CLIN 0001 - Please provide a firm fixed price proposal for all labor that includes recruitment, compensation and screening for pilot participants, in accordance with the attached Statement of Work (SOW):
$______________________

CLIN 0002 - Travel                     $_________________

TOTAL for CLINs 0001 and 0002: $_________________

INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS:
The offer should be addressed to the following: U.S. Department of Transportation, Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Attn: Karen Marino, RVP-32, 55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA 02142. The signed offer must be submitted via e-mail to Karen.Marino@dot.gov. The time for receipt of offers is 2:00 PM Eastern Time on 01/17/2013. The offeror shall provide a separate cost proposal and a separate technical proposal and provide 2 copies of the technical proposal. FAR 52.212-1, Instruction of Offerors-Commercial Items is hereby incorporated by reference. All Offerors must include a completed copy of the provision at FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items.

The Offeror is reminded that as of January 1, 2005, it must provide Certifications and Representations online at least annually via ORCA at the following website: http://orca.bpn.gov. FAR Clause 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items, (OCT 2010) is hereby incorporated by reference. FAR Clause 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items is hereby incorporated by reference. Additional clauses cited in 52.212-5 that apply to this acquisition are: 52.203-6, 52.214-35, 52.222-3, 52.222-21, 52.222-26, 52.222-35, 52.222-36, 52.222-37, 52.223-16, 52.223-18, 52.225-13, 52.232-33, 52.232-34, and 52.222-41. These references may be viewed at www.acquisition.gov/far. No telephone requests will be honored. The Government will not pay for any information received. The following notice is provided for informational purposes for Minority, Women-Owned and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises. ATTENTION: Small and Disadvantaged (SDB), Women-Owned, and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs). The Department of Transportation's (DOT) Short-Term Lending Program (STLP) offers working capital financing in the form of lines of credit to finance accounts receivable for transportation-related contracts. The Maximum line of credit is $750,000. The STLP loan has a variable rate, which is connected to the prime rate. The current rate may be found on the OSDBU website http://osdbuweb.dot.gov or call 1-(800) 532-1169.