Loren Data's SAM Daily™

FBO DAILY ISSUE OF MARCH 09, 2008 FBO #2295
MODIFICATION

D -- Telephone Inventory and Audit

Notice Date

3/7/2008
 

Notice Type

Modification
 

NAICS

541618 — Other Management Consulting Services
 

Contracting Office

Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Public Debt (BPD), Division of Procurement, Avery 5F 200 Third Street, Parkersburg, WV, 26106-5312, UNITED STATES
 

ZIP Code

26106-5312
 

Solicitation Number

TGT-50000-08-0012
 

Response Due

3/17/2008
 

Archive Date

3/8/2009
 

Point of Contact

Todd Ward, Contract Specialist, Phone 304-480-7174, Fax 304-480-7203, - Susie Daugherty, Contracting Officer, Phone (304) 480-7138, Fax (304) 480-7203
 

E-Mail Address

PSB1@BPD.TREAS.GOV, PSB1@bpd.treas.gov
 

Small Business Set-Aside

Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned
 

Description

The purpose of Amendment #4 is the following: 1. The new response date will be set for 2:00pm eastern time on March 17, 2008. Also the deadline for questions has passed and we will not be accepting further questions. 2. To address the question(s)/answer(s) below. Telephone Inventory and Audit Questions 1.Does the government have an application to use for auditing invoices from prior years or is the contractor able to use proprietary software packages to identify variances? If the government requires the contractor to use a system currently used by the program, please provide the system name. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) does not have an auditing tool or application. Contractor may use other proprietary systems to perform analysis. Any data collected for the purpose of this task belongs to the TIGTA and may not be retained by the contractor after completion of analysis. 2.Has this work been performed by a contractor in the past? If so, please provide the name of the firm. TIGTA has not performed this work in the past. 3.Was a sources sought notice advertised for this requirement? No we posted on FedBiz a combined Synopsis/Solicitation 4.What is the total amount of in charges for the invoices (fiscal years 2004 - 2008) to be audited? At this time this amount is unknown, however, the current expense rate is approximately $120,000 annually. 5.Will line items on prior years' invoices map exactly to the electronic data elements listed in the Task 1 Deliverables Section of the Combined Solicitation? Or are the invoices including other services (e.g., Electronic Data Interchange, Internet, mobile services)? TIGTA?s financial systems do not separate the costs of voice from data. 6.Is it safe to assume that travel to the various locations will not be necessary? This needs to be determined by the contractor and included in the proposal. 7.How many TIGTA assets are associated with the audit? If assets refer to the number of telephones, that is the purpose of the contract. TIGTA does not know what the exact current number of telephone lines is. 8.What is the monthly or annual Telecom spends for services associated with the audit? The current monthly expense is approximately $100,000. 9.The solicitation states that payment type for Task #3 is Contingent Fee. Please provide more detail. For example, is there a target shared & savings goal? There is no target since TIGTA does not know whether or not savings can be achieved. The contractor shall propose a percent of the savings, which will result in the payment for these services. (Example: If the contractor recuperates $100,000 in a fiscal year and the proposed compensation percentage is 5%, then the contractor receives $5,000 as payment.) 10.Are their any response requirements regarding page sections, page limits or formatting? No requirements or limits have been put into place. However consideration for pertinent information is requested. 11.What does OMS, INV stand for? TIGTA has five major functions. They are: IG = Inspector General; CC = Chief Counsel; OMS = Office of Mission Support; Human Capital and Support Services; Information Technology; Finance and Accountability; OI = Office of Investigations (same as INV); OA = Audit. 12.Should travel expenses be built into the final price? Yes 13.Will there be a single point of contact (POC) for the government/TIGTA assigned to ensure that the Contractor is able to obtain Contractor requested data/information from the Government? Or will the Contractor be expected to arrange with each of the 68 locations points of contact in order to gather required data (service provider invoices, contracts, letters of authorization, etc)? This data and the timeliness of receipt of the data are necessary to accomplish the tasks in a timely fashion. Yes. There will be a primary and an alternate COTR. A COTR will be available to provide all necessary data. 14.Can prospective bidders contact the tech rep or single POC at this time to obtain an understanding of how readily available and how well organized data is? All contact should be made through the BPD Contracting Officer. Prospective bidders shall not contact the COTR until the contract is awarded. 15.Is there an anticipated % of recovery sharing for task 3 at this time? No. However, the contractor can propose a specific percent in their offer. 16.Is there any consideration to obtaining savings for go-forward recommendation (documented via task 2) implementations via task 3, or will only potential refunds and recovery for past issues be part of task 3? TIGTA may consider contracting for these services in the future if recovery/sharing are substantial. 17.Is an on site meeting required as part of the deliverables process? Or will emailed or regular mailed reports and phone calls be acceptable to the Government? If on site meetings are required as part of the "reporting" or "deliverable" process, how many meetings will be required and at what addresses/locations will these meetings be held? We realize that progress reports are required each 60 days and that one-time deliverables are required for tasks 1 and task 2. Majority of the meetings may be done via teleconference. However, the following meetings must be on-site meetings: Initial kick-off meeting; After the deliverable of task 1; After the deliverable of task 2; Post-contract conference. On-site meetings will be held at TIGTA, HQ's (1125 15th Street NW, Suite 700A, Washington DC 20005). 18.If as a result of tasks 1 and task 2 little to no recovery is expected, will the Contractor be "required" to pursue task 3? What will the terms of that option be? The completion of task 3 for fiscal year 04-08 is required. 19.With regard to the "timing" of task 3, and depending upon the nature and dollar amount of potential billing issues and the nature of certain service providers in the telecommunications industry it might be necessary to begin related recovery efforts during tasks 1 and task 2 in order to meet the 12 month from award date requirement. Will the Government entertain that prospect at the Contractors request? If not - it should be understood that meeting the 12 month deadline may not be possible with regard to some specific issues, as this would potentially only allow a 5-month recovery period. Although many issues can be resolved within 30-90 days, some larger dollar issues have taken over 12 months to completely resolve with a provider. Yes, the recovery process may be done consecutively. 20.There was no mention in the solicitation of wireless voice or wireless data services. Is this not part of the project? No. 21.What is the Dept of Treasury's current monthly Telecom spenditures? See question #4. 22.How many paper invoices are received monthly? TIGTA receives no paper invoices. 23.How many electronic invoices are received monthly? Approximately 50 invoices are received monthly. 24.What is the current invoice validation process today? Are invoices reviewed for accuracy prior to submission for payment? Presently, TIGTA does not have a formal process for validating invoices. For the most part, after receiving the invoices, we compare current invoices with previous invoices for correctness and consistency. Whenever necessary, we contact the source provider for clarification of bills. 25.For all Audit projects we ask our clients to provide a list of items that they maybe pursuing for either credit or cost savings (an exclusion list) so that we do not duplicate efforts. Is this something that you will be providing? TIGTA does not have an exclusion list at this time. 26.Have there been any recent technology changes? Is so, please describe. No. 27.Approximately how many MACD requests are submitted on a monthly basis? Unknown 28.Is there a central inventory database that can be shared during this project? No. 29.Are there separate departments for voice and data? Is the wireless part of these groups or separate? Please describe the internal IT structure. Yes. The Office of Information Technology is responsible for the data lines, and the Office of Support Services and Finance share responsibility for voice lines. 30.Is equipment maintenance part of this project? No. 31.On Task # 3 (contingency) arrangement: We understand the refund and credit process and resulting compensation piece, but have a question on something we think may not have been considered: As we typically produce many "line-item" recommendations for efficiencies and operational improvements, we deliver the estimated/expected-annualized savings within a detailed report. For example, in Task 2 - we typically derive the same contingency income for our labor in effectuating or implementing any initiatives after the client's approval and concurrence. We verify the results based on a like-for-like comparison of historical cost and each line item initiative is compensated on it's own 12 month life cycle until term end at a predetermined rate of share/percentage. Will you also consider this additional contingency model (in addition to the refund and credit model) for the method of payment for the necessary labor to implement and deliver the efficiencies and improvements' This model eliminates unsure labor costs; gives client control and approval, and parallels the other contingency phase. In our mind, this should be addressed now, rather then trying to figure out how to fund the labor for the implementation needed for obvious positive opportunities from our analysis. The contractor may propose a contingency arrangement for TIGTA's consideration. 32.Do you have vendor web portal access for your accounts? If so, what percent of the invoices are accessible thru vendor web portals? Yes. Approximately 70% of the invoices are available through vendor web portals. 33.Exalt typically performs the circuit database creation remotely in our locations. Are there any restrictions with regards to having invoices and records offsite assuming that all records either obtained from the client or vendors are returned upon completion of the project? No. All documentation and data collected by the contractor must be returned to TIGTA. At the end of the contract period, the contractor must provide a written certification that all electronic data has been permanently removed from all contractor systems. 34.Are services in Task #2 ordered centrally? Are invoices received centrally or at the various locations nationwide? In both instances, they are received centrally. 35.Are the interviews going to be with central agency representatives or field office representatives? There will be a single POC for general data requests. However, the contractor may be required to follow-up with field offices for clarification and review of data. 36.Is the ultimate goal to provide a recommendation for what type of TEM service: license software, ASP, or BPO? Yes. 37.Is another goal of Task #2 to provide a roadmap to a TEM RFP? TIGTA may or may not select to contract for TEM services in the future. 38.Are the chosen vendors able to provide a recommendation of their own TEM services? Yes, as an unsolicited proposal. 39.What % of services is governed by the GSA schedule? Approximately 70% 40.What % of services is governed by direct contracts with the vendors? Approximately 30% 41.What is the current invoice validation process today? Are invoices reviewed for accuracy prior to submission for payment? Please see question #25. 42.Have there been any recent technology changes? If so, please describe. Please see question #27. 43.Approximately how many MACD requests are submitted on a monthly basis? Please see question # 28. 44.Is there a central inventory database for voice & data? Is the wireless part of these groups or separate? Please describe the internal IT structure. Please see question # 29. 45.Is equipment maintenance part of the project? Please see question #31. 46.Where are the records for Task #3 and can they be provided to the Contractor at the Contractor's Office? The records, assuming the reference is to billing statements, for task #3 are at TIGTA, HQ's. These records can be made available to the contractor with the stipulation outlined in question# 34. 47.Are you looking for an annual cost or a total cost of the four-year period in Task #3? An annual cost 48.The first data field in the database is Telephone Inventory, are you wanting a physical count of all device types or just the quantity of telephones? The first data field of the "Telephone Inventory" is "Telephone Number." TIGTA is seeking to know the exact number of lines in existence. Although TIGTA did not request the device type, however this could be an additional field included in the database. 49.Please identify offices located within facilities sharing telecommunications systems and offices that have their own telecommunications systems. We cannot provide this information at this time; however, this information can be made available at a later date. 50.Please identify offices that utilize VoIP systems. TIGTA cannot specifically identify these offices, however, some TIGTA offices may be sharing IRS VoIP systems. 51.In cases where all three requirements, are the audit and investigations the same employees? Additionally, who determines which should be included in the various categories? No. TIGTA has 5 major functions (please see question #11) and all functions must be included. 52.Will you provide the name of your current telecommunications vendor(s) and the Contract Vehicle used to procure current services? Yes. 53.Do you have centralized regions or a nationwide system using VoIP or consolidated voice/data services such as MPLS? No. Please see question# 54. 54.Do you have a centralized voice mail system? No. This needs to be identified by the contractor as part of the deliverable of Task 1. 55.What is the method currently used for telecommunications inventory and control? None 56.Will you allow the successful vendor access to your current inventory and control information? Yes. 57.How do you receive your billing data - paper, magnetic tape or CD ROM? Please see questions #23 and #24. 58.If telecommunications services were purchased under the FTS Crossover Contract what biller is being used for local services (i.e. Martin Biller, ISB)? Unknown. Presently, TIGTA bills are received from GSA TOPS and BPD. NOTE: THIS NOTICE WAS NOT POSTED TO FEDBIZOPPS ON THE DATE INDICATED IN THE NOTICE ITSELF (07-MAR-2008); HOWEVER, IT DID APPEAR IN THE FEDBIZOPPS FTP FEED ON THIS DATE. PLEASE CONTACT fbo.support@gsa.gov REGARDING THIS ISSUE.
 

Web Link

Link to FedBizOpps document.
(http://www.fbo.gov/spg/TREAS/BPD/DP/TGT-50000-08-0012/listing.html)
 

Place of Performance

Address: Washington, DC

Zip Code: 20005

Country: UNITED STATES
 

Record

SN01527668-F 20080309/080307231818 (fbodaily.com)
 

Source

FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)

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