SPECIAL NOTICE
L -- Questions and Answers to DRAFT RFP W912PA-10-R-0001, Civilians on the Battlefield
- Notice Date
- 4/16/2010
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 541690
— Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- RCO Benelux (PARC Europe, 409th CSB), Attn: AEUCC-B, PSC 79/BRCO, APO, AE 09714-0003
- ZIP Code
- 09714-0003
- Solicitation Number
- W912PA10R0001
- Archive Date
- 7/15/2010
- Point of Contact
- Brenda D. Edwards, 003227179628
- E-Mail Address
-
RCO Benelux (PARC Europe, 409th CSB)
(brenda.d.edwards@us.army.mil)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- COB Questions and Answers Draft RFP NOTE: All para references are applicable to the Performance Work Statement (PWS) Q1. Are joint bids, for example from 2 or 3 partner companies, acceptable? A1. Yes, a joint bid from 2 partner companies is acceptable. Contract management must be in country. Q2. Is it necessary for bidders to be German registered companies, or can other EU registered (i.e. UK) companies tender? A2. Any company, not just EU, may bid on the requirement. However, all companies are subject to the laws of Germany to include, but not limited to, immigration, tax, Technical Expert Status Accreditation (TESA), Status of Forces Agreements (SOFA) and Visa. The government does not assume this responsibility. Q3. Is it possible to bid for just some of the supplies required, or are we required to bid for the whole contract? A3. You are required to bid the whole contract. Q4. The tender indicates the level of English fluency required from role-players and interpreters. What level of German fluency is required? A4. Reference Attachment J-2, Language Proficiency Level Definition. Language proficiency levels apply to all languages, German, English, Modern-Standard Arabic, and Pashto-Dari. Q5. Subject to the language requirements do the role-players have to be from specific nationalities? A5. No, a specific nationality or origin is not required. Q6. Could you clarify what you mean by subcontractors in section 2.1? Are we required to directly employ role-players or can we work with them as self-employed employees? A6. Sub-contractors are defined at FAR 44.101. All role players must be directly employed by the contractor. Self-employed employees or independent contractors may not be used as those are subcontractors. Q7. Would it be acceptable for role-players to hold other EU driving licenses instead of German driving licenses? A7. Yes, a valid EU or international license may be used. Licenses from the US are not valid. Q8. Do we need to submit Resumes for any of the nominated employees? A8. Resumes are required only for managers and supervisors. See Evaluation Sub-Factor 4 in Section L of the RFP. Q9. Is there a minimum annual financial turnover or sales figure you require Offerors to demonstrate? For example, will you only accept Offerors with annual sales in excess of, say US$5 million? A9. No. There is no requirement for offerors to demonstrate a minimum annual financial turnover or sales figure. Q10. How many Offerors are so far/will be involved? A10. This is a competitive requirement. Q11. In Proposal Instructions - Tab 1 you stated: The Offeror shall provide a database of 3000 individuals inclusive of 1,000 generic type role players and 1,000 cultural type role players who speak Modern Standard Arabic and/or Pashtu-Dari. How should the database be provided within the Technical Proposal (as the Technical Proposal is limited to 50 pages)? A11. This requirement has been deleted from Section L, Proposal Instructions, Tab 1. It will be required after contract award. See PWS, revised paragraph 5.1. Q12. Which personnel data should be included in the database (name, address, dob...)? A12. See Question 11 Q13. Is it mandatory that all Arabic / Pashtu or Dari speaking Role Players speak the German language as well? There would be a significant reduction of the price if the German language would NOT be mandatory. A13. Yes, it is mandatory. The language of the Training Center is German for safety reasons. Q14. Does the US army manage the fingerprint system with the help of the contractor or does the US army wish the contractor to manage this system alone? A14. The Contractor is responsible for managing their own fingerprint system; however, the Government reserves the right to access the system as needed. Q15. If the contractor has to manage the fingerprint system what is the deadline for the US Army to receive the fingerprint information from the date it was taken? Is there a special technical system required for taking the information and storing it....also is there any additional information to be added the fingerprint? A15. Fingerprint information must be received prior to execution of the task order. See revised para 5.2.1. There is no special technical system or additional information required. Q16. Is it required that the fingerprint is taken at the beginning of every exercise or is it enough that the fingerprint is taken only once? A16. In accordance with revised para 5.2.1, contractors are responsible for having standard 10-print fingerprint cards for all of their role players, supervisors and administrative personnel. Fingerprints only need to be taken and turned in once. The Government requires the fingerprints of all contractor personnel who have been cleared for access to the installation. Q17. Does the JMRC provide the possibility of accommodation and food for a CoB Reservepool? If yes what is within this facility and what such food is provided, i.e. Size of rooms, number of people per room, is breakfast and dinner provided but not lunch or is it just breakfast, are the shower facilities communal, are there specific religious prayer rooms also, is the accommodation free or at the contractors cost if the accommodation is provided? A17. Para 4.2.7 addresses Replacement Role Players. Also see para 4.2.6 concerning billeting. The government will house, on post, in open bay billets. Para 4.2.4 addresses government furnished meals. Lastly, there are no specific religious prayer rooms available. Q18. What is the method of payment to the contractor for the standby reservepool? A18. There is no monetary payment for reserve pools. Q19. Are the reservepool hours in addition to the hours already outlined in the tender? A19. No. The reserve pool is a contractor responsibility to ensure guaranteed services. Q20. Is the contractor only allowed to use exiled Afghans or people with afghan roots or is it allowed that the contractor uses foreign nationals of Afghanistan with common knowledge of Afghanistan? (By common knowledge we mean speakers of Pashtu or Dari) A20. No specific origin or nationality is required. Q21. Is the contractor subject to a fixed amount of hours to work per day? If the contractor completes the set tasks for that day in less hours than is in the contract does the contractor get paid for the full amount of hours or just the hours worked? A21. The RFP has been restructured whereby the minimum number of hours per role player, per day is 10. All hours over the normal 10 hour work day will be paid in accordance with the applicable RFP line items for overtime and weekends. Q22. Are the COBs fully insured for all vehicular activity within base or outside of base? A22. Contractors are responsible for insuring their own employees. Q23. Does the US Army give familiarisation lessons into vehicles and surroundings to the COBS or is this on the contractor? A23. Yes, the US Army will be responsible for providing familiarization lessons to all drivers on the vehicles and their surroundings. Q24. Are all vehicles insured by the US army for accidents, damage or fatality? Or is this a requirement from the Contractor? A24. The Government is self-insured, therefore, the vehicles to be furnished and used are covered by the Government. However, should it be determined that the accident or damage was caused due to negligence by the contractors employee, the Government will seek remedy. As referenced in Question 22, contractors are responsible for insuring their own employees. The Federal Tort Claims Act only protects federal employees from liability arising out of their negligent or wrongful acts, as long as such acts were performed while acting within the scope of employment. Contractors are not considered Government employees and therefore must have their own insurance. Q25. Do the COBS have to be security cleared prior to contract starting? Is the allocated time between the contract being signed and the contract starting enough for the US Army to carry out the security checks on the COBS. A25. No. The Government will start security checking COBs on the first day of the contract (task order). Yes, the time between contract signature and contract start date is sufficient for the US Government to perform security checks. Q26. Is a phase for implementation planned? If so in which period? A26. No, there is no phased implementation planned. Q27. Is it possible to use COBs from the USA or the UK? A27. Yes. See Question 2. Q28. CLIN DELIVERY/TASK ORDER MINIMUM/ MAXIMUM QUANTITY AND CLIN ORDER VALUE. What are this tables used for? A28. Nothing. Tables have been deleted from RFP. Q29. 5.1.1 PWS. The Contractors employees must submit to screening by the German Intel agency. This includes biometric screening, fingerprinting, retina scanning and polygraph. In which cases is this necessary? Can you give more explanation? A29. This is necessary in all cases. All contractor personnel requiring access to the Government installation must consent to being screened. See revised para 5.2.1. Q30. PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS, A. Proposal Submission, Volume I: Technical Proposal, Tab 1 Recruiting & Casting Plan (Evaluation Sub-Factor 1). The offeror shall demonstrate its understanding of the overall Statement of Work as set forth in paragraphs 1.0 through 8.0. The Offeror shall provide a database of 3000 individuals inclusive of 1,000 generic type role players and 1,000 cultural type role players who speak Modern Standard Arabic and/or Pashtu-Dari. In what form shall the offeror provide the database in its proposal? The datasets are property of the firms and are subject to the privacy policy for its staff. A30. See Question 11. The databases will not be released. Q31. EVALUATION FACTORS FOR AWARD. 1. FACTOR I - TECHNICAL. Under this evaluation factor, the sub-factors will be evaluated to assess the following: a. Sub-Factor 1, Recruiting and Casting Plan. The proposal will be evaluated to determine whether the offeror demonstrated an understanding of the overall Statement of Work; demonstrated database of proposed Role-players, How is the demonstration of the database to be carried out? A31. The word demonstrated has been deleted. With regards to the security checks: Q32. Will the fingerprints be taken by the government with the support of the contractor? A32. No, the contractor is responsible for taking their employees fingerprints. Q33. If so what is the contractor required to perform? A33. See revised para 5.2.1. Q34. If the contractor has to take the fingerprints, until when are the prints to be submitted to the government? A34. Fingerprints must be submitted prior to the start of the task order the employee works. Q35. Which are the technical requirements for taking fingerprints and storing this data? A35. See revised para 5.2.1. The Government has no technical requirements for taking fingerprints or storing the data. Q36. Do all Cobs have their fingerprints to be taken at each rotation, or is a onetime submission sufficient? A36. See Question 16 Q37. With regard to the COB reserve pool personnel, is the contractor expected to pay the full cost of both housing and meals? Will the government pay for any amount of housing and meals, if so how much and under which circumstances. In the Estimated Quantity of hours, are there hours included for the reserve pool? A37. See Question 17. There are no hours included for the reserve pool. Q38. Please specify the format of the database which you want submitted as performance capability. When it will be required to be submitted (with the offer?/after the award?) and what level of detail should be included in the database (e.g. COB Name, address, phone contact, nationality, etc.). A38. See Question 11 Q39. In regards to generic cultural role players, do contractor COBs have to have a nationality in which the required languages are spoken? Or can COBs have a different nationality? A39. No specific origin or nationality is required. Q40. Will there be a guarantee of a minimum number of working hours per day for each (per Task Order required) COB? A40. Yes, see Question 21 Q41. Will there be a guarantee of a maximum number of working hours per day for each (per Task Order required) COB? A41. No. All hours over the normal 10 hours will be paid in accordance with the applicable contract line items for overtime and weekends. Q42. The draft RFP requires that the contractors COB drives US government vehicles, are the vehicles insured by the US Government, or should they be by the contractor. Is the driver insured by the US Government or should the driver be insured by the contractor. A42. See Question 24 Q43. Will the contractors COBs instructed by the government on how to drive the vehicles and also on the driving environments in JMTC. A43. Yes, the US Army will be responsible for providing familiarization lessons to all drivers on the vehicles and their surroundings. Q44. In regards to the government security checks, when does the contractor have to submit the database for the government security check the first time? A44. In accordance with revised para 5.1, a fully populated database must be submitted 7 days after contract award. Q45. How long does the government anticipate the security check will take? A45. See revised para 5.0, Processing of Role Players. Excluding the initial background check, the government security check generally takes one (1) day. Q46. Is the contractor only able to submit new COBs for the government security checks only every 180 days as specified in the RFP, or can the contractor submit new COBs for the government security check anytime? A46. New COBs may only be submitted every 180 days, however, the Government reserves the right to review new COBs on a case by case basis. Q47. Is there going to be a Phase In for the new contractor? If there is how long is it going to be? And will the incumbent support the new contractor? A47. See Question 26. The incumbent is not required support a new contractor. Q48. Will there be a question and answer round after the final solicitation is issued? A48. Only as required. Q49. The Draft RFP states, In no event shall the Contractor have subcontractors working as Role Players on this contract. Would the Government consider Joint Ventures (JVs) as an allowable approach to providing the required Role Player services? A49. Yes, JVs are an allowable approach (See Question 1). Q50. The Draft RFP states, The Offeror shall provide a database of 3000 individuals inclusive of 1,000 generic type role players and 1,000 cultural type role players who speak Modern Standard Arabic and/or Pashtu-Dari. Must a proposal include this data or could the bidding company demonstrate how it would fully populate its database prior to start of work? It would considerably limit competition if a bidder must have a German based database of that magnitude to provide a compliant proposal. A50. See Question 11 Q51. The Draft RFP states, Total page count, excluding tabs shall not exceed 50 pages. Is the page count for all four volumes or just Volume1? A51. 50 page count limit is per volume, not just Volume 1. Q52. The Draft RFP states, The contractor shall use Standard Form 1034, Public Voucher for Purchases and Services Other Than Personal, for all reimbursable hours billed against this contract. Is billing to be in Euro or USD? A52. US based companies must be in US dollars; all others must be in the local currency, euros. At time of proposal evaluation, for price comparison purpose, euros will be converted to US dollars using the US Govt annual fiscal year conversion rate. Q53. Would German Technical Expert Status (TES) be offered to the PM / A, PM under the provisions of a contract award? A53. See Question 2 Q54. Reference the following terms of the solicitation, which states: 2.1.1 Definition of Role Players Generic speaks German, English language proficiency, Lvl I Interpreter/Special Skill speaks German, English language proficiency, Lvl II Generic Cultural speaks German, Modern Standard Arabic, English language proficiency, Lvl I Cultural Interpreter/Special Skill speaks German, Modern Standard Arabic, English language proficiency, Lvl II Generic Cultural speaks German, Pashto/Dari, English language proficiency, Lvl I Cultural Interpreter/Special Skill speaks German, Pashto/Dari, English language proficiency, Lvl II Tab 1 Recruiting & Casting Plan (Evaluation Sub-Factor 1), The offeror shall demonstrate its understanding of the overall Performance work statement as set forth in paragraphs 1.0 through 8.0. The Offeror shall provide a database of 3000 individuals inclusive of 1,000 generic type role players and 1,000 cultural type role players who speak Modern Standard Arabic and/or Pashtu-Dari. & The evaluation criterion for Sub-Factor 1 indicates that the data base must contain 1,000 cultural type role players with either Arabic or Pashtu-Dari speaking ability. Does the mean that the database need not have a mandatory minimum number of Pashtu-Dari speakers? A54. See revised para 5.1. Submitted database must include 1,000 generic type role players, 1,000 cultural type role players who speak Modern Standard Arabic, and 1,000 cultural type role players who speak Pashto or Dari. Q55. Is there a requirement that proposed COBs listed in the data base provide their consent to the listing? In other words, can any names be listed in the data base, regardless of whether the individual knows about it? A55. See Question 11. The requirement for submission of database before contract award has been deleted. Q56. We have the following question regarding Exhibit A (Price Proposal) of the solicitation: Under past solicitations for the COB project the unit prices for e.g.ELIN A001AA were for days (normal work day up to 10 hours). In the present solicitation the unit prices for these ELINS were changed to hours. How are these work hours defined? A56. For the current solicitation, ELINs were deleted. The requirement for COB services was re-established as CLINs (contract line items). The normal workday has been revised to 10 hours. See Question 21. Q57. The COB Personnel are not allowed to leave the training village nor the training area (PWS 1.4). What is the minimum of work hours per person and per day? Example: If the proposal is by hours, a purchase order with 1000 hours could ask for 500 COBs that are used only 2 hours a day. Or the other way round, the contractor can send only 42 COBs to fulfill the 1000 hours order. This has a great influence on the proposal pricing. We would appreciate to get a clarification, how many workdays are included in the ELINs A001AA, A001AB, A001AG, A001AH and for the other workday related ELINs, or how a workday is defined. A57. ELINs do not apply to this solicitation. Additionally, see Question 21. Q58. Para 3.1 states In no event shall Contractors have subcontractors working as COB Role Players on this contract. Does this mean the contractors Role Players must all be employees/part time employees of the Prime and cannot be provided from potential Team Members on the effort? A58. All role players must work for the Prime contractor. If the successful offeror is a joint venture company, role players must work for one of the joint venture companies. Q59. Reference Para 1.12.6.1. Initial Processing of COBs Point 1. (Page 7) It is upon the Governments discretion to determine the location of the security check prior to each rotation. Does this mean that the Government decides whether the GSC is performed on post or off post? Or does it mean the Government determines the place of the location also when the GSC is off post? A59. Yes, the Government determines whether the GSC is performed on or off post. If off post, the Government does not determine the place of location. See para 3.4. Q60. Is the contractor responsible for the buses/drivers that will bring the role players on to the base to the designated location, or is the contractor only responsible for transportation up to the entrance gate? A60. The contractor is responsible for ensuring their employees get to the initial designated location on post. Once all security checks have been completed, the Government is responsible for transporting role players to their designated location. See para 3.2. Q61. Reference Page 13 of 55, paragraph 3.6, which states Contract employees shall not be granted passes to leave to visit businesses or restaurants outside of HTA. Are Contract employees authorized to visit businesses or restaurants inside of HTA? A61. For security reasons, contract employees are not granted passes to visit businesses or restaurants outside or inside of HTA. Q62. Reference Page 14 of 55, paragraph 5.3, which states The Government shall provide transportation for COB Role Players within the HTA and all transportation related to their assignment. Are Contractor CM, ACM, or Supervisors authorized to operate Contractor/Privately Owned Vehicles to training sites? A62. Yes Q63. We feel that the following problem may arise in non-active periods were not included in the above time volumes: The actors stay on the ground of JMRC for 24 hours and are bound to taking orders, whereas deployment of less than 24 hours is provided by exhibits A through C. How will such unaccounted time be accounted by the government? A63. This will be a labor hour contract. ALL costs must be included in the labor hour rates proposed. Q64. Can you provide information on minimum action hours per day of exercise, as will be paid per employee? Your wording up to 10 hours may be open to the conclusion that in an extreme case there might be only one hour of action or maybe no action at all on a given day. This, in our understanding, might rule out any payment for that given day by the client. A64. See Question 21 Q65. Our pricing department has questions concerning potential Other Direct Costs (ODCs); specifically would bus transportation to and from the exercise area for Role Players be considered a reimbursable ODC? The RFP states it is the contractors responsibility but might these cost be reimbursable under Task Order as ODCs? A65. See Question 63 Q66. The other potential ODC in question is leased vehicles/fuel for the contractors management team in support of the exercise. Again, would these costs be a reimbursable as ODCs under a TO? A66. See Question 63 Q67. Does the documentation for temporary employment agency (Arbeitnehmeruberlassung) have to be submitted at time of submitting the offer as dictated by German labor? A67. Yes. Verification of compliance with Arbeitnehmeruberlassung will be conducted when the Contracting Officer evaluates an offerors responsibility. Award cannot be made to a firm which cannot comply as dictated by German law. Q68. Is there a possibility that the double number of COBs (max. 1600 people) has to be provided if labor hour limits as prescribed by German labor law are exceeded? A68. The number of COBs required will be stated on each task order. Please refer to clause 52.216-19, Order Limitations of the RFP. The Governments requirement is a standard 10 hour work day. It is the contractors responsibility to ensure the requirement and labor laws are met. All costs must be factored into the labor hour rates proposed. Q69. How long do the required security checks of the different agencies take? A69. See Question 45 Q70. Will there be payment for replacement COBs on stand-by which are not used during the exercise? A70. No. See Question 18 Q71. Reference Page 12 of 55, paragraph 3.3, which states Contractor employees shall be required to wear a Kevlar or safety helmet at all times during vehicular movement. Will Contractor employees (COB Role Players, Supervisors, etc.) ever be required to operate any military vehicles? A71. No. Role players will only be required to operate non-tactical military vehicles. Q72. What compensation will be paid in the event of premature termination or extension of the exercise? A72. In accordance with applicable with FAR clauses, the contractor will be fairly compensated should a task order be terminated prior to or extended beyond the original scheduled date. Q73. Can the COBs move about freely during their free time, to include leaving the site? A73. No Q74. What insurance documentation must be submitted with the offer, for example insurance indicating that the COBs may fly in the military helicopters? A74. No insurance documentation is required to be submitted with offer. See para 3.1.1 Q75. How will overtime hours be compensated? A75. CLINs have been established for overtime hours which will be paid on an hourly rate. Q76. With reference to submission of the data banks, do these have to contain the level and test results for the listed COB? A76. No Q77. In the event the level and test results must be included in the data bank, what procedure is used to determine whether this information is actually correct? A77. The level and test results are not required to be included in the data bank.
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