This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This procurement is being conducted under Simplified Acquisition Procedures in accordance with FAR Part 13. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.
This Solicitation is full and open competition. The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 541511 – Custom Computer Programming Services with a business size standard of $34.0 Million.
The FSC/PSC is DA10.
DESCRIPTION: The purpose of this requirement is to provide a document delivery and interlibrary loan request management system. The system shall facilitate tracking of interlibrary loan requests from receipt to delivery and facilitate the scanning of documents on document scanning workstations and the automatic delivery of these documents via the Internet or to be printed and/or mailed to the requesting institution. Please see attached Statement of Work (SOW) for details.
It is contemplated that a single-award Firm Fixed Price (FFP) contract will be awarded as the result of this notice.
The contractor shall provide pricing for Document Delivery and Interlibrary Loan Request Management System as described in the Statement of Work for a twelve-month base period plus four one-year options.
Line Item Period of Performance Unit Price
1 Base Year Period: 10/01/2024 to 08/31/2025 Year
2 Option Year One: 09/01/2025 to 08/31/2026 Year
3 Option Year Two: 09/01/2026 to 08/31/2027 Year
4 Option Year Three: 09/01/2027 to 08/31/2028 Year
5 Option Year Four: 09/01/2028 to 08/31/2029 Year
QUESTIONS: Submit questions to the Contract Specialist in writing, via email to Janna Weber at janna.weber@nih.gov on or before 2:00 PM EST, August 29, 2024. Telephonic (verbal) questions will not be addressed. All responses to questions which may affect offers, will be incorporated into a written amendment to the Request for Quote.
DUE DATE: All offers shall be submitted by 1:00 PM EST, September 4, 2024. The proposal must be signed by an official authorized to bind your organization and must stipulate that it is predicated upon all the terms and conditions of this RFQ.
- Quotes may be submitted to janna.weber@nih.gov.
- Offerors are solely responsible for submitting proposals and any modifications or revisions so as to reach the Government office designated above by the date and time specified in the solicitation. If your proposal is not received by the date and time specified in the solicitation, it will be considered a “late proposal,” in accordance with FAR Clause 52.215-1 Instructions to Offerors – Competitive Acquisition.
- Create a PDF file of your Proposal, including all attachments. The Proposal should be created in a PDF format that enables word searches to the maximum extent practicable. Forms and/or documents requiring signature(s) may be scanned but must be merged into the Proposal PDF file.
BASIS FOR AWARD
The Government will award a firm fixed priced contract to the responsible quoter whose quote, conforming to the requirements in this Request for Quote (RFQ), is the most advantageous to the Government taking into consideration Technical and Cost/Price and other factors.
The Government can make tradeoffs between price and non-price factors in determining which Offeror proposes the best value. Award could be made to other than the lowest price Offeror or other than the highest technically rated Offeror.
Offerors are advised that each quotation may be subjected to a price evaluation to determine the reasonableness of price as determined to be appropriate by the Government.
EVALUATION FACTORS
- Technical
- Past Performance
- Price/Cost
- Section 508
TECHNICAL EVALUATION CRITERIA
The evaluation factors are used by the technical evaluation committee when reviewing the technical proposals. The evaluation will be based on the demonstrated capabilities of the prospective offerors in relation to the requirements set forth in this RFQ. The merits of each quotation will be carefully evaluated. Each offer must document the feasibility of successful performance of the requirements of this RFQ. Offerors must submit information sufficient to evaluate their offers based on the detailed factors listed below.
Technical Factors
1. Understanding the Requirement & Technical Approach
• The Offeror must demonstrate a thorough knowledge and understanding of the work requirements as outlined in the SOW and its appendices. This includes the methodologies, processes and techniques used to successfully complete the requirements described in the Statement of Work.
• The Offeror must demonstrate a logical approach to how the tasks will be successfully completed with the identified resources. The Offeror shall describe an approach that demonstrates the achievement of timely and acceptable performance of tasks.
2. Management Approach
• The Offeror shall provide sufficient detail to demonstrate how they will accomplish the tasks outlined it the Statement of Work and appendices, including a management plan. The management plan must include an effective communications plan with the NLM project officer and technical staff as needed.
• The Offeror’s management approach will be evaluated based on the methods proposed for organizing and administering workflow in order to successfully accomplish tasks described in the Statement of Work and appendices.
• The Offerors will be evaluated on their description of how the company will assume responsibility for the tasks identified in the Statement of Work.
• Staffing plans should include proposed staff, their roles and responsibilities as they pertain to requirements of the SOW and appendices.
PAST PERFORMANCE EVALUATION CRITERIA
• The Offeror must demonstrate a history of successful performance providing similar services. The past performance shall demonstrate the contractor’s background and experience with projects of a similar size and similar technical requirements.
• The Offeror’s corporate past performance will be evaluated on the relevance of performance documented, submitted project summaries relating to the type of work, complexity, and technical applicability of experience.
• The Government will conduct reference checks in order to determine the Offeror’s corporate past performance. The Offeror shall provide a point of contact (name, email and telephone number), for each key personnel proposed and for each contracted project listed, who can attest to past performance. Relevant contracts and projects referenced must have been completed within the past five (5) years or currently in progress for services and support similar to the requirements of the statement of work.
PRICE/COST EVALUATION CRITERIA
• Firm Fixed Price for base year and four option years.
- The Government will review the cost/ price schedules for completeness and accuracy. A determination will be made as to whether the Offeror has properly understood the business quotation instructions and properly completed the cost/price schedules. Changes to the evaluation quantities, blanks or zeros in the pricing columns, and/or mathematical mistakes are subject to clarification for confirmation of the Offeror’s intent.
SECTION 508
Responses to this solicitation will only be considered for award after it has been determined that the quotation adequately addresses the requirements for Section 508. NLM uses the ART Wizard for Section 508 compliance (attachment 2) Only proposals which contain adequate information to document their responsiveness to the Section 508 requirements will be eligible for any additional merit consideration.
ELECTRONIC AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ACCESSIBILITY NOTICE,
HHSAR 352.239-73 (December 2015)
a. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board Electronic and Information (EIT) Accessibility Standards (36 CFR part 1194), require that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, Federal employees with disabilities have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access and use by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. Section 508 also requires that individuals with disabilities, who are members of the public seeking information or services from a Federal agency, have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency.
b. Accordingly, any offeror responding to this solicitation must comply with established HHS EIT accessibility standards. Information about Section 508 is available at http://www.hhs.gov/web/508 . The complete text of the Section 508 Final Provisions can be accessed at http://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and standards/communications-and it/about-the-section-508-standards.
c. The Section 508 accessibility standards applicable to this solicitation are stated in the clause at 352.239-74, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility. In order to facilitate the Government's determination whether proposed EIT supplies meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must submit an HHS Section 508 Product Assessment Template, in accordance with its completion instructions. The purpose of the template is to assist HHS acquisition and program officials in determining whether proposed EIT supplies conform to applicable Section 508 accessibility standards. The template allows offerors or developers to self-evaluate their supplies and document—in detail--whether they conform to a specific Section 508 accessibility standard, and any underway remediation efforts addressing conformance issues. Instructions for preparing the HHS Section 508 Evaluation Template are available under Section 508 policy on the HHS Web site http://www.hhs.gov/web/508 . In order to facilitate the Government's determination whether proposed EIT services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must provide enough information to assist the Government in determining that the EIT services conform to Section 508 accessibility standards, including any underway remediation efforts addressing conformance issues.
d. Respondents to this solicitation must identify any exception to Section 508 requirements. If an offeror claims its supplies or services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, and it is later determined by the Government, i.e., after award of a contract or order, that supplies or services delivered do not conform to the described accessibility standards, remediation of the supplies or services to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its expense.
The Government may perform comparative evaluations of quotes per FAR 13.106-2. The NLM reserves the right to make a single award, multiple awards, or no award at all as a result of this RFQ. In addition, the RFQ may be amended or cancelled as necessary to meet NLM's requirement.
CLAUSES
This notice incorporates provisions and clauses in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2024-05 effective May 22, 2024, and Health and Human Services Acquisition Regulation (HHSAR) effective date February 2, 2022. The complete text of any of the clauses and provisions may be accessed in full text at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far and https://www.acquisition.gov/hhsar.
This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its proposal. In lieu of submitting the full text provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its proposal.
FAR CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
1. FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services. (March 2023)
2. FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation—Commercial Products and Commercial Services. (November 2021)
3. FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications—Commercial Products and Commercial Services. (May 2024)
4. FAR 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions—Commercial Products and Commercial Services. (November 2023)
5. FAR 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes or Executive Orders— Commercial Products and Commercial Services. (May 2024). See Attachment.
FAR CLAUSES INCLUDED IN FULL TEXT
1. FAR 52.217-8 OPTION TO EXTEND SERVICES (NOV 1999)
The Government may require continued performance of any services within the limits and at the rates specified in the contract. These rates may be adjusted only as a result of revisions to prevailing labor rates provided by the Secretary of Labor. The option provision may be exercised more than once, but the total extension of performance hereunder shall not exceed 6 months. The Contracting Officer may exercise the option by written notice to the Contractor within 7 days. (End of clause)
2. FAR 52.217-9 OPTION TO EXTEND THE TERM OF THE CONTRACT (MAR 2000)
(a) The Government may extend the term of this contract by written notice to the Contractor before contract expiration; provided that the Government gives the Contractor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 7 days before the contract expires. The preliminary notice does not commit the Government to an extension.
(b) If the Government exercises this option, the extended contract shall be considered to include this option clause.
(c) The total duration of this contract, including the exercise of any options under this clause, shall not exceed 60 months.
(End of Clause)
Attachments
- Statement of Work
- 508 Compliance from ART Wizard Document Delivery Software
3. FAR 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Products and Commercial Services
