Loren Data's SAM Daily™

FBO DAILY ISSUE OF MARCH 20, 2011 FBO #3403
MODIFICATION

R -- On-Site Interpreting Services - Solicitation 1

Notice Date

3/18/2011
 

Notice Type

Modification/Amendment
 

NAICS

561320 — Temporary Help Services
 

Contracting Office

Library of Congress, Contracts Services, Contracts Section, 101 Independence Ave SE, LA-325, Washington, District of Columbia, 20540-9411
 

ZIP Code

20540-9411
 

Solicitation Number

QSLCOWD11R0002
 

Archive Date

4/15/2011
 

Point of Contact

A J Johnson, Phone: 202-707-9129
 

E-Mail Address

abjo@loc.gov
(abjo@loc.gov)
 

Small Business Set-Aside

N/A
 

Description

LOC Solicitation Number QS LCOWD11R0002 mod 0003 Revised Section M per the following: SECTION M-EVALUATION FACTORS FOR AWARD M.1. METHOD OF AWARD A. Award will be based on the lowest priced quote that is technically acceptable. B. Award Without Discussions In accordance with FAR 52.215-1, the Government has the option to evaluate proposals and award a contract without discussions with Offerors (except clarifications as described in FAR 15.306(a)). Therefore, the Offeror's proposal should contain the Offeror's best terms from a cost or price and technical standpoint. The Government reserves the right to conduct discussions if the Contracting Officer later determines them to be necessary. C. Technical Acceptability: •1. Meets all the LOC requirement/needs set forth in Section C, the Scope of Work and/or the Schedule B equipment/parts list. 2. Determined to be responsible according to the standards of FAR Subpart 9.1. The LOC reserves the right to conduct a Pre-award survey in accordance with FAR 9.106 to verify and determine that the Offeror has the facilities and equipment necessary to perform the contract. 3. Complies with all applicable laws and regulations and agrees to terms and conditions set forth in the solicitation. 4. Proposal is prepared according to instructions set forth in the solicitation and demonstrates the Offeror's capability to perform the scope of work required. The contractor must provide documentation, which demonstrates his/her interpreters have the following certification, proficiency, competency, experience, and knowledge: •§ Certification from either the National Interpreter Certification (NIC), Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), or National Association of the Deaf (NAD) •§ Proficiency in signing American Sign Language •§ Competency in the Code of Ethics of the National Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc. and professional standards in the field of American Sign Language interpreters and transliterators. •§ Experience maintaining confidentiality. •§ Experience in sign language interpreting in highly technical, academic, and research settings. •§ Experience working in a large federal workplace setting that requires knowledge of facilities including buildings, public meeting rooms, conference rooms, processing areas; policies and procedures for health services, police services, safety and emergency evacuation services, research and information processes, visitor service programs, and labor unions practices. •§ Experience scheduling requests for interpreting services. •§ Experience and Past Performance Offerors shall provide evidence from at least three other agencies or organizations with similar needs as those of the Library of Congress. The contractor shall provide examples of relevant past contracts (at least three examples within the last THREE years). The description of the past capabilities and experiences must clearly demonstrate the performance of similar complexity and in similar services to those required in this solicitation. To be considered for award, an offeror must show that he/she is a current established provider of the same type of similar professional interpreting services in a similar environment or industry as that of the Library of Congress. These evidences of services must be clearly demonstrated with a history of successful performance. If the offeror has provided these services for the Library of Congress within the last THREE years, than the offeror is required to submit the 'Vendors Past Performance Evaluation' form as one of the past performance references. For each example, the offeror shall provide: •1. contract/order number, agency/firm who placed order •2. name and phone number of contracting officer/contact person •3. quantity of services and delivered. •4. the original schedule and the delivery performance (explain any significant delivery problems) •5. explain any problems that occurred or abnormal delivery of services issues) M.2. DESCRIPTION OF EVALUATION PROCESS, METHODOLOGY, AND TECHNIQUES TO BE USED: A. Price Evaluation Method by CO The LOC will examine the price proposals as prescribed in Sections 15.403 and 15.404 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation to ensure a fair and reasonable price. The LOC will evaluate the overall evaluated price for each Offeror and determine which proposed prices are based upon the lowest priced that is technically acceptable. End of Section M Added: <input type="hidden" name="dnf_class_values[procurement_notice][description][1][added_on]" value="2011-03-09 13:15:26">Mar 09, 2011 1:15 pm Modified: <input type="hidden" name="dnf_class_values[procurement_notice][description][1][modified_on]" value="2011-03-18 13:38:54">Mar 18, 2011 1:38 pm Track Changes TO: All Interested Parties Subject: Revisions to the solicitation and due dates In addition to recent questions and answers, the LOC is planning to amend the FEBIZOPS solicitation to reflect the following change in due dates and procurement schedule; 1. 3/24/11 - Pre-bid Conference in LM623 at 10am 2. 3/25/11 - Questions Due 3. 3/31/11 - Revised Bids Due Date 4. 4/18/11 - Pre Award Conference in LM623 at 10am 5. 4/30/11 - Award Date 6. 5/1/11 - New Contract Start Date SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS: The Library of Congress is offering a pre-bid meeting for ALL interested offerors to answer related questions pursuant to this solicitation. We will need to know the number of persons that will be attending by 2pm on Wednesday March 23rd via e-mail to iher@loc.gov or eeld@loc.gov. Eric Eldrige or Ida Hernandez will meet ALL interested offerors that respond to this notice by 03/23/2010 2:00pm, in the LOC Madison Facility Lobby at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday 24, 2011. The address is as follows: Madison Memorial Building, Library of Congress Room LM 624 101 Independence Ave., S.E., Washington, DC 20540 The following are questions and clarifications asked by ALL interested parties as of 03/17/2011: 1. On Page 3 of the solicitation, at the top, it states that LOC is requesting a $75,000 contract. Based on the number of hours requested in the RFQ and the market rate for certified interpreters, this number seems far below current government market rates. Will the Government consider offers that are more than this amount? Answer: Disregard. This was an old government estimate that will be remove in the revised solicitation. 2. Section A.2.2.2 states questions are due no later than March 21, 2011, while Section A.2.2.4 states that they are due after the pre-proposal conference and site visit, five calendar days before the due date for submission of proposals. Can the Government clarify when is the last date that questions can be submitted in case we have further questions? Answer: See the above notice. 3. Section A.2.2.4 mentions a pre-proposal conference and site visit. We are very interested in attending such a conference and feel it would be highly beneficial to our understanding of the requirements. Can the Government inform us of when and where such a meeting will take place? Answer: See the above notice. 4a. CLIN 001c (and related CLINs for option years) seems to have been drawn from the title of a section and does not specify what the offeror would be pricing. If there is a service that we should price under this CLIN, can the Government specify the exact service so that we may price accordingly. Answer: Any other communication access services not already listed. 4b. CLIN 001a requests sign language interpreting services in the amount of 1500 hours per year. CLIN 002 is for additional personnel to provide communication access services (sign language interpreting, CART, CAN, VRI, etc) during normal work hours in the amount of 100 hours per year. What additional services is CLIN 001c asking for during the regular work hours as designated by CLIN 001 since sign language, VRI, CART, and CAN are already covered by separate CLIN designators? Answer: Interpreting services across a range (ASL; Contact Signing; Close Vision; Tactile; Oral; Cued Speech; Certified Deaf Interpreter; Reader for the Blind). The most common type of request is for ASL and Contact Signing. 5. CLIN 003b (and related CLINs for option years) states "Emergency or additional personnel..." Can the Government clarify the meaning of the word "emergency"? Is it simply referring to a last minute, unexpected need (ad hoc), or is it in reference to something related to disaster/crisis? Answer: The wording "emergency or additional personnel" related to last minute interpreting services. The Library of Congress has medical staff on site and from time to time do request interpreting services for routine and emergent consultations. Actual emergency medical needs are referred to local outside medical services. 6. In the Scope of Work, under Interpreter Qualifications, the solicitation states that the interpreters must be competent in the "Code of Ethics of the National Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf". The Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) is a national organization, however the word National is not a part of the title of the organization. Also, the Code of Ethics was revised and interpreters now adhere to the Code of Professional Conduct. Will the Government accept a constructive change in the proposals to reflect the correct names? Answer: Yes 7. In the SOW, page 11, the terms "Core Hours" and "On-Call Hours" are used. It is an industry standard that "On-Call" refers to the interpreters who are regularly scheduled to be on-site and be available to provide services to all the Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing employees and/or visitors during predetermined hours. It appears that the item labeled "Core Hours" is actually referring to regularly scheduled on-call services. Can the Government clarify if this is the intended meaning? If so, is the section labeled "On-Call" actually referring to additional service requests beyond the on-call schedule? Answer: The wording Core Hours refers to onsite interpreting services Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The wording "On-Call" refers to supplemental interpreting services beyond the services provided by the onsite interpreter during core hours. 8. The requirement for Past Performance information that was added to the solicitation via the modification does not state in which volume this information should be included. Can the Government please clarify if this information should be included in the Contract Data Price Proposal or the Technical Proposal? Answer: Include this in Volume II, Technical Proposal 9. Are resumes counted against the page count for the technical proposal? Answer: YES 10. In Section L under the instructions for Volume I, it states that offerors are required to complete the LOC Vendor Information Request form attached to the solicitation. We did not find this form attached. Can the government please provide this form. Answer: Will attach it in the revised solicitation. (SEE ATTACHMENT) 11. The NIACS Code listed for this solicitation is 561320. Most solicitations for sign language interpreting services are listed under NIACS Code 541930, Translation and Interpretation Services. What is the correct NIACS code for this solicitation? Answer: Use NIACS Code 541930 12. How many consumers (Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing) are served by the contract? Answer: 17 full time Deaf employees (professional and technical positions, currently no managerial positions). An average of 7 Deaf high school and college interns working or volunteering part time intermittently throughout the year. Plus public. 13. The solicitation, in section B.3.1 Services and Pricing & C.1 Statement of Work - Assistive Technologies, requests capabilities and pricing for Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) services. Do LOC employees currently utilize VRI services as part of their daily work? If so, what platform/equipment are they currently utilizing? Answer: No. We are building in the capability. All Deaf employees currently have Sorenson videophones. 14. VRI services require broadband network access in order for equipment to communicate with each other. Will the VRI equipment be hooked to an existing network within the LOC or will VRI services run on a separate network? Answer: The current videophones are on their own internal network maintained by the Library. 15. Are the VRI services intended to only connect to the Core Hours interpreter, meaning the interpreter occupying an LOC furnished office space on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, or are they intended to act as an emergency measure to provide services and connect to an interpreter located outside of the LOC complex of buildings? Answer: VRI services would be available from the ISP office using LC equipment onsite to connect to the Sorenson videophones at the individuals desk (for brief consults with hearing colleagues). VRI would also be provided by the contractor calling from an offsite location to LC would used as a back up in the event that we cannot coordinate services of an interpreter onsite. 16. Are CART services currently utilized by employees? If yes, is the service provided by an on-site CART writer or by a remote audio and data connection? Answer: CART has been provided both by an onsite provider and provided by a remote provider. In both cases, the contractor used their own transcription equipment connected to an LC monitor. 17. Are Computer Assisted Note taking (CAN) services currently utilized by LOC employees? If yes, is the service provided on-site or remotely? Answer: CAN has been used only several times on site via a laptop and an volunteer typists. 18. Can you please clarify the purpose of CLIN 004? Answer: For the use of the equipment provided by the contractor, specify how the cost will be charged, i.e., cost per hour, percent for overhead, etc. 19. Some interested parties wanted to know if there is another option for the Financial Data requirement besides the audited financials or the D&B Financial Report? This can be a Hugh cost for small business. Are financial records endorsed by a company's accountant and/or CFO suffice for this requirement? An interested party can send what their CFO certifies and the CO can confirm the information with our legal department. Keep in mind that if they reject the financial information as being legally insufficient, your bid could be declared as 'Non Responsive". 21. Does the interpreter desk currently have its own Sorenson videophone for communicating with LOC employees? Answer: For the use of the equipment provided by the contractor, specify how the cost will be charged, i.e., cost per hour, percent for overhead, etc. In addition, the LOC simply wants ALL interested parties to bid with the intent of fulfilling the requirements as stated in the solicitation. As an interested party, the LOC is requesting that ALL interested parties submit a proposal that covers all requirements outlined in the solicitation to be considered as a 'Responsive Offeror'. There is an incumbent, but the LOC has determined that there is a need for a new contract instead of exercising the option to extend the term of the existing contract. There will be some revisions to the actual solicitation document, please review. Absenia Johnson Jr. Senior Contract Specialist Office of Contracts and Grants Management The Library of Congress (LA 325) 101 Independence Avenue, S.E. Washington, DC 20540-9410 tel 202-707-9129 e-mail abjo@loc.gov
 

Web Link

FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/LOC/CS/CS1/QSLCOWD11R0002/listing.html)
 

Place of Performance

Address: Office of Contracts and Grants Management, 101 Independence Ave. SE, Room LA325, Washington, District of Columbia, 20540, United States

Zip Code: 20540
 

Record

SN02404457-W 20110320/110318234522-8c8f5abd8d65e4750634c3137a18bafa (fbodaily.com)
 

Source

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

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