SOURCES SOUGHT
D -- Testing, Certification, Configuration Management & AutomatedTesting
- Notice Date
- 7/21/2011
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541511
— Custom Computer Programming Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency, Acquisition Management Division, Contracts Operations Branch, 1280 Maryland Avenue, SW, Portals Bldg., Room 508A, Washington, District of Columbia, 20250-0567
- ZIP Code
- 20250-0567
- Solicitation Number
- AG-3151-SS-11-TestingCertificationConfigurationManagementAutomatedTesting
- Archive Date
- 8/12/2011
- Point of Contact
- Jeffrey McRae, Phone: 2026904030, Billy Rowland, Phone: 202 720 9356
- E-Mail Address
-
Jeffrey.Mcrae@wdc.usda.gov, billy.rowland@wdc.usda.gov
(Jeffrey.Mcrae@wdc.usda.gov, billy.rowland@wdc.usda.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- **This is a Sources Sought for SBA Certified Small Disadvantaged Businesses** Please respond with your corporate capabilities and any other relevant information that would allow USDA to determine your ability to perform the following type of requirement. 1. Background The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farm Service Agency (FSA) administers and manages financial, farm, commodity, credit, conservation, disaster and loan programs as authorized by Congress through a network of federal, state and county offices. FSA's administrative and programmatic functions are supported by a large network of automated systems that are maintained by its Information Technology Services Division (ITSD). The Testing and Certification Office (TCO) acceptance test provides final quality assurance testing and support for software applications developed in-house and COTS packages deployed on a variety of computer platforms. Hardware includes mainframe, IBM AS/400 systems (running both the S/36 SSP guest operating and S/400 operating systems), personal computers and web based Intranet/Internet applications. 2. Objective The objective of this requirement is to provide Contractor support for software testing including automation of software applications and configuration management of the multiple computing platforms utilized by the Farm Service Agency. 3. Scope The applications configured, tested and certified may be developed by FSA system developers or other contractors. The software must be controlled, installed, tested, certified and released based on project schedules, requirements, change requests, agency standards and system development documentation. Certified software will be released following established procedures for state/county software distribution, mainframe and web software implementation. The contractor will be required to work directly with the Government's Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) in the Kansas City Operations and Testing Center (OTC). This office is located at 6501 Beacon Drive, Kansas City, Missouri, 64133, third floor. Direct Contractor interface with the COTR will be mandatory under this requirement. The COTR shall be responsible for involving other Government subject matter experts. The Contractor will not be allowed to contact nor take direction from unauthorized Farm Service Agency employees under any circumstances. When technical meetings are scheduled, any actions resulting from such meetings that affect the contract's scope of work, or administrative issues (including work schedules and/or resources) will be required to document and report to the COTR and Contracting Officer (CO) as appropriate, before being implemented by the contractor. Contractor will be required to have operational expertise with: Microsoft Office Suite, HP Quality Center (including Quick Test Professional), Rational Test Studio Suite (including Performance Tester/Robot), Java, JavaScript or other scripting languages, WebSphere,.Net, Visual Basic, Microsoft Windows Server 2000/2003 (with IIS v5/v6), XML, HTML, Structured Query Language, DB2, Oracle, MQ Series, Section 508 tools, ESRI ArcGIS Desktop Applications, ESP Scheduler, Soap UI and computer programming. The nature of work sought under this requirement consists of contractor resources required for: • Project management and reporting • Software installation/configuration on all supported platforms • Requirement review for completeness and test plan preparation • Requirements traceability • Test Case documentation • Functional Testing • Regression Testing • Automated Testing • Section 508 Testing • Procedure input and review for software usage • Application Support Help Desk Overview Presentation • Software Release documentation/production release instructions • Problem resolution in support of Application Support Help Desk • Documentation Preparation/Consolidation and testing for OMB Circular A-123 Compliance and Financial Audit Compliance Reviews. The contractor will work directly with Government personnel in the performance of specified requests and in the implementation of specified applications. Normal tour of duty will be between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. 5 days a week, although, as testing conditions dictate, support may be required after office hours, including nights, weekends or holidays to meet required deadlines. 4. Task 1 - Startup Briefing Within one week of award, the Contractor will be required to conduct a meeting with the Government. The intent of this briefing will be to initiate the communication process between the Government and the Contractor by introducing key participants and explaining their roles, reviewing communication ground rules, and assuring a common understanding of the task order requirements and objectives. The briefing can be held at the Government's facility or via conference call. Both parties shall agree to the date and time. The agenda of this briefing shall include the following: • Government and Contractor personnel working under this task order shall be introduced. If the Contractor is working onsite, the Government will show the Contractor the applicable facilities. • Any issues concerning the Minimum Background Investigation for Contractor employees shall be discussed. • The Contractor shall demonstrate confirmation of their understanding of the work to be accomplished under this award. All Government and Contractor expectations shall be addressed and discussed. Meeting minutes shall be documented by the Contractor and provided to the Government within two business days of the completion of the briefing. • Discussion of any potential problems. The contractor will be required to ensure proper management of this requirement in order to keep testing tasks on schedule. In addition, the Contractor shall make recommendations on project priorities and advise the COTR of remedial action when necessary to keep tasks/subtasks on schedule. 5. Task 2 - Configuration Management The contractor will be required to provide technical support for the following: Local Environment Maintenance and Configuration The contractor shall provide configuration maintenance of equipment in the test lab which includes: 9 servers and 16 workstations with a combination of desktops and laptops. This task includes loading application software and preparing release documentation that will be delivered to the ITS Interoperability Lab for deployment to field offices. The contractor will coordinate FSA testing for Department wide software upgrades. Mainframe, NT and UNIX Configuration Management The contractor shall provide technical support to schedule and run cross platform jobs for mainframe, NT and UNIX within the acceptance test environment. The contractor will be responsible for verifying operations manuals are updated as changes are received. Contractor must document opportunities for performance improvement if needed in job execution for referral to the developer. Web Configuration Management The contractor shall provide configuration support for web applications and reporting systems in the certification environment. Application frameworks include Microsoft Windows Server 2000/2003 (with IIS v5/v6), SQL, DB2, Informix, Oracle, MQ, Java, WebSphere,.Net, and Visual Basic. Configuration of settings will include coordination of JVMs, Name Space Bindings/JNDIs, Datasources (including database IDs and passwords), and MQ settings. 6. Task 3 - Functional Testing\Certification The contractor shall be required to provide technical support for the following testing/certification activities: Requirement Review The contractor shall perform a review of the requirements\change request for the applications identified in the task assignment. The outcome of this review shall be documentation which may include a request for clarification, best business practice recommendations, or other considerations. Required review documentation will include a test plan that identifies high level test approach/scenarios. Test Case Documentation The contractor shall create detailed test cases or review previous test cases to ensure full coverage of requirements for each application in compliance with FSA standard procedures under the SDLC. Test cases must be documented in HP Quality Center or other tool adopted as the official office tool. The contractor shall provide a walk through of the application and associated test cases at timeframes agreed upon with the COTR to ensure project timelines are met. Software Testing The contractor shall perform testing to ensure compliance to user requirements and FSA standards within the established timeframe. Testing will include verification that: functionality meets requirement specifications, file/database table updates are accurate and have appropriate audit trails, security access meets specifications, regression testing completed, interface testing is completed timely, and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998 compliance is met. Test results by build must be documented and status updates provided weekly to the COTR and Lead IT Specialist. Reports should include test case completion progress, testing barriers (e.g. software availability, resource availability, system down time), other impacts to timely task completion. Automated Testing The contractor shall perform automated testing utilizing HP Quick Test Professional (QTP) or other automated testing tools. The contractor shall perform automated testing that will significantly increase test coverage and improve software quality. The automated testing will improve the speed, accuracy, and flexibility of software testing, enabling the tester to find and fix more defects earlier in the testing process. The automated testing will reduce risk by providing more comprehensive testing coverage and reduce the risk of production failures and increase ROI (return on investment). The automated testing will facilitate greater test coverage by supporting execution of test scripts across all popular browsers and operation systems. The contractor shall automate test cases that will allow the functional testers to perform calculations, manipulate data sets, and quickly create multiple test iterations to expand test coverage. Test results by build must be documented and status updates provided weekly to the COTR and Lead IT Specialist. Reports should include ROI (return on investment) measured in terms of time and man-days, test case completion progress, testing barriers (e.g. software availability, resource availability, system down time), and other impacts to timely task completion. Release Preparation The contractor shall be responsible for providing complete and comprehensive release documentation including, but not limited to: Technical Information Bulletins, Software Release Transmittal information, Software Release Document. Support may be requested for procedure preparation or review for content clarity and completeness. Additionally, contractor shall be responsible for providing overviews to the Applications Support Help Desk which may include written and/or oral communication. Post Production Support Contractor support is needed to resolve production problems identified during the routine operation of the applications. The contractor shall be responsible for tier support in assisting the Application Support Help Desk research problems identified as a result of production processing. Outcome may result in referral of improperly functioning code and/or incorrectly implemented requirements to appropriate Development Office personnel. Contractor may be required to provide electronic documentation related to tested applications in support of OMB Circular A-123 and financial audit reviews and/or provide control testing. Test Tool Software Maintenance Support The contractor shall provide expertise in HP Quality Center administration or other adopted tools for project support. Project support includes but may not be limited to updating roles within projects, creating/revising reports, establishing new projects within HP Quality Center, and troubleshooting system problems. 7. Reports and Meetings Weekly Oral Briefings and Status Reports The Contractor shall brief the COTR through weekly oral discussions. These briefings will detail the week's accomplishments, review the goals for the coming week, and act as a forum for logistics and general strategy issues. Weekly Status Report The Contractor shall provide weekly status reports, monthly reports, and ad hoc reports as required, including: a) work accomplishments, b) delays, c) new forecast completion dates, d) problems encountered and corrective actions taken, e) resources expended in the current reporting month, f) cumulative information on resources expended from task start to current date, g) an updated Testing Schedule and milestone list, and h) standard operating procedures including process documentation. The Contractor shall provide periodic briefings as directed and scheduled by the COTR and/or the designated FSA representative, as well as at the beginning and end of the project. All contractor technical communications, throughout the project lifecycle, shall be submitted through the COTR. The contractor shall copy the COTR and forward a copy to the Contracting Officer (CO). Administrative correspondence shall be directed to the CO with a copy to the COTR. Due to the aggressive timeframes, it is preferred that the Contractor provide weekly status reports, in a format approved by the COTR on Monday, which will include the following information: • Breakdown of projects by individual. • Discussion of work performed to date. Each discussion will contain a detailed narrative or analysis of the work performed or of the completed phases of study. The Contractor will present negative as well as positive findings and identify any areas that may require special attention. • Projected work schedule and any problems or issues requiring attention. • Status of all deliverables and any other pertinent information applicable to the work being accomplished. Periodic Meetings The FSA COTR may coordinate periodic meetings and reviews to ensure all relevant provisions of the PWSPWS are being met. 8. Deliverables and Schedule All deliverables submitted under this contract shall be accompanied by a transmittal letter that will identify the contract number and the products presented. A copy of the transmittal letter shall be forwarded to the Contracting Officer (CO) for inclusion in the contract file. NOTE: All deliverable due dates will be workdays unless otherwise specified. Application Criteria Small Application (one or both) 1 EAR file (or equivilant for.NET or other platforms) Small user base (e.g., state/national only) Medium Application (one or both) Multiple EAR files (or equivilant for.NET or other platforms) Large user base (e.g., all county users) Large Application (two or more of the following criteria) Multiple EAR files (or equivilant for.NET or other platforms) Large user base (e.g., all county users) Significant data storage (1 million+ rows) Qualifications Number of deliverables is estimated and may be revised in future years to reflect changing demands for testing services. Usage for the preceding year indicates current estimate. Instructions for Deliverables Deliverables shall be delivered on the dates specified and in accordance with and consistent with a deliverables schedule which will be provided. The customer shall have three (3) workdays to review draft deliverables upon receipt of delivery to the customer. If for any reason a deliverable cannot be delivered within a scheduled time frame, the Contractor will be required to notify the COTR or designated representative in writing within one day detailing the cause of delay and provide a revised schedule. This notice shall include the impact on the overall project. The COTR or designated representative shall make a business decision about the impact of the delay and forward the impact to the Contracting Officer (CO). 9. Place and Period of Performance The Period of Performance for this effort is anticipated to be for one 12 month base period and three 12 month option periods. Performance will be primarily on-site in Kansas City, Missouri. U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency 6501 Beacon Drive Kansas City, MO 64133 In instances where tasks do not require direct involvement of FSA personnel, work may be performed at the Contractor's location. Performance of such tasks will be coordinated with the designated COTR. 10. Government Furnished Equipment, Information, Materials, and Services Government furnished property may be provided under this contract for work to be performed at the Government's site. The contractor will be provided office work space, office automation equipment, telephones, office supplies and furnishings for Contractor personnel for work related to this contract unless specifically authorized by the Contracting Officer to deviate from this requirement. • The Government may provide data processing/telecommunications specialist personnel to assist and interface with Contractor personnel, as the Government may deem necessary. • The Government will provide certain data processing ADP equipment and software, as it may deem necessary, to the Contractor for the exclusive purpose of performing the services as defined in the task order. • The Government will provide a copy of any applicable user requirement or change management documentation with each task. • Contractor personnel will have access to all Agency technical standards. • The Government will provide access to individuals within the KC/ITSDO having application knowledge. The degree of Government and contractor interface will be controlled by the designated COTR and the Contractor Project Manager. All contractor access to Government application specialists shall be through the assigned COTR unless otherwise specified. • Contractor shall make documentation requests known to the COTR on an as needed basis. • The Government will make meeting rooms available when required. • The Contractor shall specify in the response to this PWS any other requirements needed to perform successfully on this contract. • Unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties, these Government-furnished resources will be provided only during normal business hours at the designated work sites. 11. Security Requirements General All applicable contractor employees requiring routine physical access to Federally-controlled facilities or routine access to Federally-controlled information systems must go through the identity proofing and registration process, and must have been successfully identity proofed, and have a successfully adjudicated National Agency Check with (Written) Inquiries (NACI) or Office of Personnel Management (OPM)/National Security (NS) Background Investigation (BI) to serve on the contract. Contractor Identification (ID) badges will be issued after successful identity proofing of the contractor employee applicant, and upon a successfully adjudicated NACI or OPM/NS BI. All contracts must detail periods of performance. Contractors must return their cards at the end of their period of performance. The component parts of this effort and reports are expected to contain highly sensitive information that could act as a guide for hostile entities to cause harm to the Department's critical infrastructure. Any such information made available in any format shall be used only for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this agreement. Building Access Passes FSA has specific Agency security requirements that must be followed to obtain access and obtain a Building Pass. The following applies: • Ensure that each contractor employee has been issued either a temporary or permanent badge from the Government. Temporary or visitor badges will be provided for persons who are identified as having an infrequent or temporary legitimate business need for access to the site. The badge will serve to authorize the wearer to enter and leave the security area. The badge must be worn above the waist so as to be clearly visible at all time when on the work site. The badge will be retained by the individual as long as he is required continued admittance to the site. • Each will be subject to Federal laws applicable to Government installations, i.e., a ticket issued by the Federal Protective Officers and possible tow-away of vehicle. • The Government reserves the right to exclude or remove from the site or building any employee of the contractor or subcontractor whose background investigation indicates an undesirable history. Current Federal and USDA laws and regulations will be the applied reference to suitability for employment. • When the Government directs, the contractor shall restrict the employment under the contract or remove from performance on the contract any person who is identified as a potential threat to the health, safety, security, general well being, or operational mission of the USDA and its population. • The applicable contractor employees are subject to approval by USDA. Applicable contractor employees who undergo Minimum Background Investigation checks which reveal the following may be unacceptable under this contract: conviction of a felony, a crime of violence or a serious misdemeanor, or a record of arrests for continuing offenses. The USDA and the Federal Protective Services reserves the right to determine if a contractor employee assigned to a task shall continue with the task. The contractor shall agree to remove the person assigned within one day of official notification by USDA and provide a replacement within five days. New hires or substitution of personnel are subject to the Minimum Background Investigation requirement. • The contractor is responsible for all building access passes issued to its employees. Upon an employee's termination of employment with the contractor, the contractor shall ensure that the USDA issued badge is returned. The contractor shall turn in all employee badges upon termination of said contract. Protection of Information The component parts of this effort and reports are expected to contain highly sensitive information that could act as a guide for hostile entities to cause harm to the USDA's critical infrastructure. Any such information made available in any format shall be used only for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this agreement. Such information shall not be divulged or made known in any manner to any person. The Contractor shall immediately notify the COTR and TCO Division Chief upon discovery of any inadvertent disclosures of information. The Contractor shall not retain any information regarding vulnerabilities, to include summaries, the actual vulnerability report, etc., at the end of the PWSPWS. All information arising from this task, both hard copy and electronic, shall be returned to the government at task conclusion. The Contractor shall not disclose sensitive or proprietary information of, or in the possession of, the USDA or any of its operating units, contractors or business partners to unauthorized persons. The Contractor will be subject to any and all penalties imposed by law for unlawful disclosure of USDA information. Security Clearances Prior to beginning any work under PWS this contract, all identified Contractor employee(s) require security clearances for performing work under this contract in government facilities, as well as employees with access to government IT systems. All necessary facility and/or staff clearances shall be in place prior to award of this contract. The Contractor shall provide only fully qualified personnel for the work performed under this PWS and they shall also have the appropriate background investigation known as a National Agency Check with written Inquiry and Credit (NACIC). 12. Other Special Requirements Quality Assurance The Contractor shall be solely responsible for the supervision, management, and inspection of its employees under this PWS. The Contractor will monitor and ensure its employees meet the requirements of this PWS. The Contractor shall provide and maintain an inspection system acceptable to the Government covering services provided under this PWS. Contractor Qualifications The contractor shall be required to furnish personnel with qualifications meeting or exceeding the criteria specified in the Contract document governing the issuance of this award. The contractor shall provide: • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced in server configurations. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced with a task scheduler. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced in utilizing the HP Quality Center software to manage test case execution and defect reporting. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced in utilizing the Rational Test Studio Suite 7.0 to manage test case execution and defect reporting. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced in utilizing database models to evaluate the proper update of functional test scenarios. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced in utilizing MS SQL 2008 to support database review. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced with testing web services using SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) technology and XML. • Personnel knowledgeable and experienced with automated testing tools including JWebUnit, QTP, DbUnit, Hudson, Maven, Subversion, Eclipse, Nexus, or other automated testing tools. • Person knowledgeable and experienced in configuration management using: o Microsoft Visual Studio 2005, Version 8.0.50727.42 (RTM.050727-4200) o Java - jre1.5.0_14 and jre1.5.0_21 o WebSphere - 6.1.0.23 o.Net - 2.0 to 3.5 o XML - XML Gateway - 6.5.195 o ESP Scheduler - Server Agent - Cybermation - R7 o Oracle - 11G o DB2 - v 9.5 o ESRI ArcGIS - 9.2 The Contractor will submit the resumes of its proposed Project Manager and all technical personnel to the Government for evaluation. The staff shall have the ability to meet or exceed the technical qualificatons of this PWS. 13. Key personnel The contractor shall furnish personnel with qualifications meeting or exceeding the criteria specified in the contract document governing the issuance of this contract. The Key Personnel for this task order are those personnel proposed to fulfill the following Skill Category: Testing Task Lead (1) Senior Software Testing Specialist (3) Configuration Management Lead (1) Senior Automation Test Specialist (2) The Contractor shall assign key personnel for the duration of the contract, in accordance with AGAR 452.237-74 Key Personnel and provide resumes for these personnel., COTR, and TCO Division Chief. 13.1 Qualifications of Substitutions Any personnel the Contractor offers as substitutes shall posses experience and qualifications equal to or better than the personnel to be replaced. Requests to substitute personnel shall be approved by the CO and COTR. All requests for approval of substitutions in personnel shall be submitted in writing to the CO and COTR within 30 calendar days prior to making any change in personnel. The request shall provide a detailed explanation of the circumstances necessitating the proposed substitution. The Contractor shall submit a complete resume for the proposed substitute, any changes to the rate specified in the order (as applicable) and any other information requested by the CO needed to approve or disapprove the proposed substitution. The CO and COTR shall evaluate such requests and promptly notify the Contractor of approval or disapproval. 13.2 Schedule of Work On-Site services are generally to be performed during the day shift between 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CST, Monday through Friday, excluding Federal Holidays. The Contractor shall coordinate work schedules with the COTR to ensure service requirements are met and the availability of, and access to, Government personnel and resources. 14. Section 508 Accessibility Compliance All Electronic and Information Technology (EIT), as defined at FAR 2.101, supplied under this contract, must conform to the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards (36 CFR Part 1194). The Contractor shall have readily available a comprehensive list of all offered EIT products (supplies and services) that fully comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, per the 1998 Amendments, and the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board's Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards at 36 CFR 1194. The Contractor shall also identify the technical standards applicable to all products proposed. Additionally, the Contractor shall clearly indicate where this list with full details of compliance can be found (i.e., vendor's or other exact web page location). The Contractor shall ensure that the list is easily accessible by typical users beginning at time of award. At time of award, the list provided by the Contractor shall be included as an attachment. The Contractor shall ensure that all EIT products that are less than fully compliant are offered pursuant to extensive market research, which ensures that they are the most compliant products available to satisfy the solicitation's requirements. If any such EIT product proposed is not fully compliant with all of the standards, the Contractor shall specify each specific standard that is not met; provide a detailed description as to how the EIT product does not comply with the identifiedstandard(s); and shall also indicate the degree of compliance. 16. Performance Measurements Performance Quality Evaluation Task quality level will be assessed by the COTR or their designated representative based on a yes-no evaluation of completed tasks and sub-tasks. The Government will periodically evaluate the Contractor's performance in accordance with the performance goals and objectives of the PWS. For those tasks listed on the Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) Table (below), the COTR or their designated representative will require the Contractor's representative to acknowledge notification of the deficiency. The Contractor's representative's acknowledgement of the deficiency's notification will not necessarily constitute concurrence with the finding. Government surveillance of tasks not listed in the PRS or by methods other than those listed in the PRS may occur during the performance period of the contract. Such surveillance will be accomplished according to standard inspection procedures or the applicable provisions of the PWS. Any action taken by the CO as a result of surveillance will be in accordance with the terms of the PWS. Performance Evaluation Meetings The COTR may require the Contractor's program or project manager to meet with the USDA officials, and other government personnel as necessary. The Contractor may request a meeting COTR with all interested parties whenever the Contractor's technical or administrative personnel believe such a meeting is necessary. The Contractor shall prepare and provide written minutes of any such meetings to the COTR for signature by the COTR. If the COTR does not concur with any portion of the minutes, notice of such non-concurrence will be provided to the Contractor's program or project manager within five business working calendar days following receipt of the minutes. The Contractor shall acknowledge or resolve all disputes and resubmit the minutes to the COTR within five (5) business days of receipt of the USDA's non-concurrence. **This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP). This is a Sources Sought only to ascertain the market availability of firms that are SBA Certified Small Disadvantaged Business only and can provide the support outlined which falls under NAICS 541511.**
- Web Link
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FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/USDA/FSA/MSD/AG-3151-SS-11-TestingCertificationConfigurationManagementAutomatedTesting/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency, 6501 Beacon Drive, Kansas City, Missouri, 64133, United States
- Zip Code: 64133
- Zip Code: 64133
- Record
- SN02506868-W 20110723/110721235815-e0d3344c35bc404e96decf5caba875be (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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