MODIFICATION
R -- SSA Homeless Outreach Projects & Evaluation (HOPE) Annual Conference
- Notice Date
- 2/11/2005
- Notice Type
- Modification
- NAICS
- 561920
— Convention and Trade Show Organizers
- Contracting Office
- Social Security Administration, Deputy Commissioner for Finance, Assessment and Management, Office of Acquisition and Grants, G-C-7 East High Rise Building 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD, 21235
- ZIP Code
- 21235
- Solicitation Number
- SSA-RFQ-05-1183
- Response Due
- 2/18/2005
- Archive Date
- 4/15/2005
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- This amendment A) extends the closing date for receipt of quotations from February 15, 2005 to February 18, 2005, B) answers vendor questions, and C) modifies the language of the solicitation. A) TIME EXTENSION: By this amendment, the time and date for receipt of quotations is extended to 3 PM local time, February 18, 2005. B) RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS: 1. It is extremely difficult to find acceptable hotel accommodations for April 19-20, 2005. Are there any other acceptable alternative dates for the conference? RESPONSE: See revised specification language. SSA can accept any of the following dates: April 19-20, April 20-21, April 26-27, or April 27-28, 2005. Dates outside these periods are unacceptable. 2. Would SSA accept any conference location other than Baltimore?s Inner Harbor area, including locations over 5 miles from the Baltimore Inner Harbor, or in another city? RESPONSE: No, SSA requires a conference location in the Baltimore Inner Harbor area. 3. Does SSA have a conference planning firm in mind to do this conference in this very short timeframe? RESPONSE: No. SSA is competing this requirement and expects firms will be able to respond to this solicitation within the timeframe established. 4. Has SSA preselected or otherwise arranged already for the conference location/hotel? RESPONSE: No. SSA requires vendors responding to the RFQ to propose a location as part of their quotation. 5. To quote on the RFQ, should we select a hotel that we feel would fit your group rather than going through a site search? RESPONSE: It is up to the vendor to determine whether it will propose a hotel in its quotation based on its knowledge of the market (as well as availability of suitable facilities for the required days) or a site search. If you mean by this question that you presume that you can quote on the requirement without proposing a specific hotel facility, with the understanding that you and SSA will settle on a site after a post-award site search, that is an incorrect assumption. As stated in the solicitation (Instructions to Offerors, 2)B)), you must provide a proposed conference site, with sufficient detail about facilities proposed so that SSA can determine that they are in fact suitable for the event. SSA will not award the order to a firm without a specific, proposed conference site suitable for the conference requirements and available for the conference dates. Note also that the specification requires a detailed report on the proposed conference facilities within 10 days of award (Pre-Conference Activities, Task 2). 6. Has this meeting been held before? RESPONSE: Yes, there was a HOPE conference on August 24-26, 2004. SSA competed and issued order SS00-04-30871 to A-S-K Associates, Inc., of Lawrence Kansas for planning and related services for $78,249.34, and order SS00-04-50266 to the Wyndham Baltimore Inner Harbor hotel for meeting space for $6,900. This year SSA will issue one order for both planning and related services, and meeting space. 7. Is there an incumbent contractor? RESPONSE: See question #6 8. What is the incumbent contract number and value? RESPONSE: See question #6 9. Hotel accommodations in the Baltimore Inner Harbor are already heavily booked for the April 19-20 period because of other planned events. Can you modify the requirement for the contractor to offer the Government rate for sleeping rooms to conference participants? RESPONSE: No, SSA requires (Pre-Conference Activities, Task 2) that the vendor provide accommodations at the Government rate. Note that SSA has added additional acceptable time periods for the conference. 10. Will conference participants call in their room reservations individually? RESPONSE: Yes, the conference participants will be responsible for making their own room reservations. 11. Will the contractor handle a VIP or speaker room block? RESPONSE: No. This is not part of the requirement. 12. What is the projected number of conference participants for each breakout room? RESPONSE: 40 participants for each breakout room. 13. What is the estimated number of speakers/presenters for the conference? RESPONSE: 5 speakers. 14. How many of the speakers/presenters will attend the conference from outside the Baltimore metropolitan area? RESPONSE: 5 speakers. 15. Will the contractor pay lodging and/or travel for speaker/presenters and other special guests? RESPONSE: No. 16. What is the projected number of conference participants needing reimbursable travel, lodging and per diem? RESPONSE: 50 conference participants. 17. Will the contractor pay for any conference participant's travel, lodging and/or per diem? RESPONSE: No. All conference participants will either pay their own way, or will be reimbursed by the Government directly. The contractor will have no involvement in this. 18. Will conference participants pay a registration fee for the conference? RESPONSE: No. 19. Is it correct to state that providing any breakfast (continental or other) is not part of this requirement? RESPONSE: That is correct. Conference participants will be responsible for providing their own breakfasts. 20. Is the contractor responsible for providing notepads and pens, or should I simply assume the pads and pens typically provided by the hotel will be sufficient? RESPONSE: As stated in the specification (Pre-Conference Activities, Task 2), the vendor must provide notepads and pens, not the hotel. 21. Do you have an invitation list--or will one have to be developed, and what role do you expect the contractor to play in this? RESPONSE: As stated in the specification (Pre-Conference Activities, Task 4), SSA will provide the list and invitation text, and the contractor will do the mailing (electronic and paper), and tracking of responses. 22. How many persons are on the invitation list? RESPONSE: 143 persons. 23. How many persons do you anticipate sending paper invitations to and how many do you wish to invite by email? RESPONSE: That will be at the contractor?s discretion, in consultation with SSA?s project officer, after award. 24. Concerning evaluations forms, does SSA plan on having evaluations for each breakout session or just one per day? If it's by session, can you tell me if the breakout sessions repeat or should I count on four unique breakout sessions per day? RESPONSE: SSA requires evaluation forms for each breakout session. As to whether all breakout sessions will be unique, SSA has not determined that at this time. The vendor should assume, for quotation and pricing purposes, that each session will be unique and will require a separate evaluation form. 25. In order to price printing costs, I need to understand better what SSA wants the contractor to hand out to conference participants at registration. Will folders with photocopied handouts suffice, or do you require binders of printed material? RESPONSE: Providing folders with photocopied handouts meets the specification (Pre-Conference Activities Task 6, Conference Packages). 26. Is there an established procedure for completing, and format for, the final report? RESPONSE: No, that will be up to the contractor, in consultation with SSA?s project officer. The deadlines for the draft and final version are in the specification. 27. Will the final report include conference proceedings (minutes of the sessions)? RESPONSE: No. 28. What do you mean by "1) Price quotation, separate from technical submissions, including a detailed breakout of: ....applicable overhead rates (profit/fee not applicable)" (Instructions to Offerors, 1)) RESPONSE: The sentence means that profit/fee are not to be included in overhead rates quoted. 29. What editing services (Instructions to Offerors, 2)C)) will the contractor be required to provide? RESPONSE: The contractor will be required to provide editing services for all written and/or printed products that the specification requires the vendor to provide. These products include conference invitation letters, conference badges, tent cards and conference signs, the conference agenda and evaluation forms, status reports, and the conference final report. This list may not include all items: vendors are responsible for identifying all such products from the specification in their quotation and providing a fixed price for providing them. The contractor is not responsible for editing products identified in the specification as government-provided. C) CHANGES TO SOLICITATION: The following sentences are substituted for the current language in the solicitation: CURRENT LANGUAGE: The Social Security Administration (SSA) needs conference planning services for SSA?s Homeless Outreach Projects and Evaluation (HOPE) Conference to be held at an ADA accessible hotel selected by vendor in the Inner Harbor, Baltimore, Maryland with 125-160 attendees on April 19-20, 2005, 8:00-5:00 each day. SUBSTITUTED LANGUAGE: The Social Security Administration (SSA) needs conference planning services for SSA?s Homeless Outreach Projects and Evaluation (HOPE) Conference to be held at an ADA accessible hotel selected by vendor in the Inner Harbor, Baltimore, Maryland with 125-160 attendees on April 19-20, April 20-21, April 26-27, or April 27-28, 2005, 8:00-5:00 each day. CURRENT LANGUAGE: Vendor shall negotiate with a hotel in the Baltimore Inner Harbor for meeting space, meals, audio visual (A/V) equipment, and the Government rate for sleeping rooms for approximately 125-150 people. SUBSTITUTED LANGUAGE: Vendor shall negotiate with a hotel in the Baltimore Inner Harbor for meeting space, meals (no breakfast, two breaks and lunch each day), audio visual (A/V) equipment, and the Government rate for sleeping rooms for approximately 125-150 people. CURRENT LANGUAGE: Vendor shall provide the following hotel facilities: A) 1 main conference room meeting the following requirements: 1) for plenary sessions and working lunches;.... SUBSTITUTED LANGUAGE: Vendor shall provide the following hotel facilities: A) 1 main conference room meeting the following requirements: 1) for plenary sessions, working lunches and breaks;.... CURRENT LANGUAGE: Vendor shall prepare the agenda and evaluation form formats based on information/text provided by PO. SSA will work with vendor to prepare the agenda and evaluation formats and provide other technical support as needed. Vendor shall submit a draft agenda and draft evaluation forms to PO for approval via email within 21 days of award. SUBSTITUTED LANGUAGE: Vendor shall prepare the agenda and daily evaluation form formats based on information/text provided by PO. SSA will work with vendor to prepare the agenda and evaluation formats and provide other technical support as needed. Vendor shall submit a draft agenda and draft daily evaluation forms to PO for approval via email within 21 days of award.
- Place of Performance
- Address: Social Security Administration, 6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland
- Zip Code: 21235-6401
- Country: US
- Zip Code: 21235-6401
- Record
- SN00750265-W 20050213/050211212517 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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