SOLICITATION NOTICE
B -- Local Calibration of the MEPDG using pavement management systems.
- Notice Date
- 7/3/2007
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 541330
— Engineering Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Office of Acquisition Management, HAAM, Room 4410 400 7th Street, S.W., Washington, DC, 20590, UNITED STATES
- ZIP Code
- 00000
- Solicitation Number
- DTFH61-07-R-00143
- Response Due
- 7/24/2007
- Description
- Local Calibration of the MEPDG Using Pavement Management Systems The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has a requirement to conduct a study to establish a framework for collection and storage of required data for local calibration of the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) using Pavement Management Systems (PMS) database. The purpose of the study is to provide the users (States) with a step by step procedure for setting up a system to integrate PMS and other databases required for the MEPDG local calibration using existing pavements, as well as provide recommendations for establishing a system for collecting and electronically storing data for new pavements required for future local calibration. COMMERCIAL SOLICITATION Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12 This notice is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in [FAR] Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included herein. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. The provisions at FAR 52.212-1 apply. FAR 52.212-4 and 52.212-5 will be included in any award resulting from this notice. Full text for these FAR provisions and clauses may be accessed at http://acquisition.gov/far/index.html. SCOPE The purpose of this project is to work with one State to establish a framework for collection and storage of required data for local calibration of the MEPDG using PMS database. A portion of this project will require a State to collect and electronically store additional data as required for the MEPDG local calibration. The contractor will verify and confirm that the data was properly collected and stored electronically with a link to the State?s PMS. Existing pavements will be used to complete this project. The final product will provide the users (States) with a step by step procedure for setting up a system to integrate PMS and other databases required for the MEPDG local calibration using existing pavements, as well as providing recommendations for establishing a system for collecting and electronically storing data for new pavements required for future local calibration. This effort will require the contractor to conduct extensive communication and coordination with the State?s pavement management engineer, pavement design engineer, materials engineer, maintenance and traffic monitoring system personnel and information technology (IT) personnel. FIRM FIXED PRICE CONTRACT AWARD The Government intends to award a Firm Fixed Price contact from this solicitation. EVALUATION CRITERIA The Government?s source selection decision will be based on a Best Value, Trade-off process using the following three factors, further defined below: (A) Technical; (B) Price; (C) Past Performance. When combined, Technical and Past Performance are more important than Price. As differences in technical and past performance ratings and evaluations between offerors proposals become narrower, price will increasingly become more important as a factor. Each of these factors is described below. A. Technical 1. Technical, Management, and Organizational Capability (a) Technical approach to meeting the requirements of the SOW, including, but not limited to: ? Knowledge of pavement management systems and pavement design ? Knowledge of MEPDG ? Approach to coordinating and managing the calibration effort ? Experience in working with State DOTs (b) Capability of organization itself to manage, coordinate, and staff efforts of the type delineated in the SOW, including: ? Organizational hierarchies and lines of communication. ? Filling vacancies that may occur related to poor performance, retirement, new Government requirements, and/or normal turnover. 2. Staffing / Qualifications of Key Personnel The relevancy, depth, and breadth of experience and education for proposed personnel and/or team members and subcontractors, and the extent to which they meet the Government?s needs as specified within this solicitation. B. Price C. Past Performance The Government will evaluate the relevant merits of each offeror?s past performance on the basis of its reputation with its former customers. The lack of a relevant or recent past performance record will result in a rating of neutral. The Government may review some or all of the following past performance areas: ? Timeliness; ? Delivery or Performance; ? Problem Responsiveness; ? Quality of Purchased Product or Services; ? Cost Control; ? Technical Support; and ? Delivered Quantities. In evaluating Past Performance, the Government may consider information provided by offerors in their proposal submissions, as well as any other information available to the Government. Phase I (Tasks) This effort will be divided into two phases. Phase I of this SOW will accomplish first. Phase II will be structured as an option. Upon completion of the first phase, the Government, at its sole discretion, may exercise the option to continue with Phase II. Phase I Tasks The purpose of Phase I is to establish a framework that could be used to collect and store data required for local calibration of the MEPDG using PMS database in one State. Task A ? Literature Review The Contractor shall review the ?Using Pavement Management Data to Calibrate and Validate the New Design Guide? study which was finalized in September 2006 and the ?Local Calibration guide for the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide and Software? under development by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP). This study investigated the possibility of using pavement management data for calibrating the MEPDG in eight States. Task B ? Three State Selection The contractor shall select three States involved with the above study for follow up interviews. The selection criteria must include the following: 1) availability of data in electronic format, 2) the extent of effort required to acquire additional data for the MEPDG calibration, 3) anticipated required IT work for linking various databases, 4) availability of asphalt, concrete, and composite pavements, 5) availability of essential data at level I and II of MEPDG, and 6) State?s plan to implement the MEPDG within the next three years to move ahead with the MEPDG. The contractor shall supplement the above criteria with additional criteria of its own, if necessary. Prior to beginning the selection process, the Contractor must request and receive written Government approval. Upon receiving such approval, the contractor may proceed to the selection portion of this Task, and select the three States. Upon conclusion of Task B, the contractor shall prepare and submit a Technical Memorandum highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each candidate State relative to the selection criteria. Deliverables of Task B Technical Memorandum ? Advantages/Disadvantages (one electronic copy in word format) Task C ? Preliminary Framework Development The contractor shall prepare a preliminary work plan explaining its approach for development of a framework for the collection and storage of required data for local calibration of the MEPDG using a State?s PMS database. Deliverables of Task C Preliminary work plan (one electronic copy in word format) Task D ? Selection of a Single State The Contractor shall interview the three candidate States for final screening. The purpose is to assess their level of support in terms of staff requirements, staff availability, and budget. The criteria for final screening shall be developed by the Contractor and approved by the Government. The Contractor shall summarize the interviews and submit the summery along with a recommendation to the Government highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each State. Deliverables of Task D Technical Memorandum I - Final Screening Criteria (one electronic copy in word format) Technical Memorandum II- Results of Final Screening (one electronic copy in word format) Task E ? Final Framework Development The Contractor shall prepare a final work plan for collection and storage of required data for local calibration of the MEPDG using PMS database. The work plan shall be approved by the Government before proceeding with Task F. The work plan shall explain all required steps to carry out Task F of this contract. It shall determine if additional data collection is required, what types of data are needed, how the required data will be stored, how various databases will be linked to PMS to accomplish the local/ regional calibration of the MEPDG, how the future data will be stored, and how the future calibrations using the proposed integrated system will occur. It is highly recommended that the required data be collected geo spatially. The work plan must be developed in close coordination with the selected State and NCHRP and include a schedule of activities for the MEPDG calibration. The Contractor?s work plan must be inclusive and applicable to new pavements as well. The final plan must clearly identify roles and responsibilities of the involved parties and be developed with full participation of the State?s personnel from various disciplines including the pavement management engineer, pavement design engineer, materials engineer, traffic monitoring system personnel and IT personnel. The contractor shall not recommend modifying existing commercial software. Any changes to the work plan must be approved by the Government and coordinated with the State. Deliverables of Task E Final Work Plan (one electronic copy in word format) Task F ? Verification The Contractor shall verify and confirm that the State has accomplished the following efforts, in accordance with the contractor?s Final Work Plan: ? All necessary data has been collected ? Data has been stored in the State?s database ? The database is linked to the State?s PMS database and other State databases holding required information for the MEPDG calibration such as pavement design, traffic/load, as-built construction, maintenance, and climate data ? The developed database is capable of storing actual future data for an on going system monitoring and future calibrations . Task G - Final Work Plan Implementation The Contractor shall conduct the calibration using a Government provided MEPDG software. Contractor shall compare the distress prediction models with measured distresses, evaluate the accuracy of the prediction models, and adjust the exponents and coefficients of the prediction models as necessary. The Contractor shall validate the performance of the calibrated models using a minimum of three projects per pavement type not included in the original set of data used for local calibration. All recommended adjustments must be explained. The Contractor shall resolve all issues and problems that may arise during the calibration phase. Implementation process shall be documented in detail in a report explaining the developed framework for performing local calibration using existing pavements and setting up a new system for storage of current data for new projects. The report shall also include an estimate of man hour devoted by the State to accomplish the implementation task. Deliverables of Task G Implementation Procedure Report (one electronic copy in Microsoft word format, version) A locally calibrated software (MEPDG) for the selected State Task H - Prepare Draft Final Report and Final Report The contactor shall prepare a draft final report including all previous deliverables for the Government?s review. The contactor shall incorporate comments received from the involved agencies, resolve the raised issues, and prepare the final report. Deliverables of Task H Draft Final report (one electronic copy in Microsoft word format, version) Final Report (one electronic copy in Microsoft word format, version) An electronic copy of the final report in HTML format conforming to the requirement of Section 508 of the rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S. Code (U.S.C.) 749d suitable for posting on federal web site Phase II (Option) Task A ? Webinar The Contractor shall prepare and present a power point presentation and present the result of the project in a two hour Webinar to explain how to use PMS and other databases for storing and linking all data needed for local calibration of the MEPDG and use this system for future calibrations. The Webinar will be arranged by the Government. The attendees will consist of the FHWA and States personnel. Deliverables of Task A Power point presentation with speaker notes (one electronic copy in Microsoft power point format) Two hour Webinar Task B ? Workshop The Contractor shall participate in a one day workshop and present the result of the project. The attendees will consist of the FHWA and States personnel. The location of the workshop will be determined later. Deliverables of Task B Workshop presentation INTRUCTIONS: Volume I shall consist of two (2) parts: Part I ? Technical & Management Approach Part II ? Staffing Part I, II, shall be bound together in a single volume that is separate from VOLUME II. Volume II shall consist of two (2) parts: Part I ?Price Information Part II ? Past Performance VOLUME I PART I - TECHNICAL & MANAGEMENT APPROACH Please include the following: a) A discussion that describes in detail your technical approach to meeting the requirements of the SOW if awarded a contract. Include at a minimum those areas of importance highlighted in the evaluation criteria. b) A discussion of the organization overall capability to manage, coordinate, and provide the required staffing to accomplish efforts of this type. Organizational hierarchies, lines of communication, and program/project methodology should be addressed. Include your plan to fill the differing types of vacancies that may occur related to poor performance, retirement, new Government requirements, and/or normal turnover. PART II ? STAFFING PROPOSAL The Staffing Proposal shall consist of a clear description of how the proposed staffing meets the needs of the SOW. Provide the names and resumes of all key personnel proposed, and their roles and responsibilities. Resumes shall clearly identify and describe the individual?s education and experience and computer skills. If subcontracting for professional staffing is required, indicate the number and types to be subcontracted to other sources. VOLUME II Part I ? PRICE ? Provide a total price for the effort. Also include your DUNS and TIN numbers. PART II PAST PERFORMANCE Include two Past Performance References by the Offerors customers. 1. The completed References must be for current (within the last three years) customers involving similar or related services, at similar dollar values if possible. Include Point of Contact, Dollar Value, Type of Service, and Company/Government name. 2. The Government may contact the customer point of contact (POC) for verification. POC telephone and facsimile numbers must be accurate and current. 3. The CO will consider such performance information, along with other factors, in determining whether the Offeror is to be considered responsible, as defined in FAR 9.104. The Offeror is responsible for ensuring the questionnaires are completed in a timely manner and are submitted with its VOLUME II proposal. . CONTRACT AWARD To receive an award of a contract from FHWA, manufacturers must be registered in the CCR database prior to award. CCR may be accessed at: www.ccr.gov Offerors must also have on file a completed copy of the provision at FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications - Commercial Items. Offerors may complete the provision during any phase of this solicitation. The automated system for complying is called ORCA, and is available at: https://orca.bpn.gov/login.aspx For additional information, see the ORCA FAQ sheet at: https://orca.bpn.gov/faq.aspx Comments or questions should be submitted via e-mail to: Ms. Angela Fortson, at angela.fortson@dot.gov No phone calls please. This competition is unrestricted. All potential offers are invited to propose including Small Businesses, Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDB), and those businesses located in HUB Zones (https://eweb1.sba.gov/hubzone/internet/). The NAICS code for this solicitation is 541330, Engineering Services with the Small Business Size Standard being 500 employees (http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html). Proposals should be received at the below address via uniformed common carrier such as FEDEX, UPS, or DHL for example, no later than 3:00 p.m. EST July 23, 2007. U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration Office of Acquisition Management Mail Stop: W36-455 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590 Attention: Angela Fortson, HAAM-30 Late proposals will be handled in accordance with FAR 15.208
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