SOLICITATION NOTICE
76 -- REQUEST FOR QUOTATION: PROVIDE ACCESS TO AN ONLINE SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH DATABASE SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES FOR THE EEOC
- Notice Date
- 3/28/2016
- Notice Type
- Combined Synopsis/Solicitation
- NAICS
- 519130
— Internet Publishing and Broadcasting and Web Search Portals
- Contracting Office
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Acquisition Services Division, 131 M Street, NE, 6th Floor, Washington, District of Columbia, 20507, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20507
- Solicitation Number
- EEC45016Q0014
- Archive Date
- 6/30/2016
- Point of Contact
- Caroline A Fowler, Phone: (202) 663-4219, Gregory A Browne, Phone: (202) 663-4292
- E-Mail Address
-
caroline.fowler@eeoc.gov, gregory.browne@eeoc.gov
(caroline.fowler@eeoc.gov, gregory.browne@eeoc.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items/services prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation. Quotations are being requested and a written solicitation (Standard Form 1449) will not be issued in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) 12.603. The Contracting Officer is utilizing policies and procedures prescribed in Part 12, Acquisition of Commercial Items. This Solicitation Number is: EEC45016Q0014 and is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ). This acquisition is being conducted as an unrestricted procurement. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code for this requirement is 519130. This solicitation document and incorporated commercial item provisions and clauses are those in effect through FAC 2005-85, effective February 26, 2016. The Government contemplates the award of a firm-fixed price (FFP) contract. BACKGROUND: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Office of Research, Information and Planning, Library and Information Services Division (ORIP/LISD) has a requirement to obtain a commercial contractor to provide access to an online social science research database subscription services. These online databases (resources) are available to all EEOC staff, herein referred to as "the Commission," and are primarily used to support the litigation and enforcement efforts undertaken by the PhD social scientists in the Office of General Counsel (OGC), Research and Analytic Services unit (OGC-RAS), the Office of Research, Information and Planning (ORIP) and more recently, the Office of Federal Operations (OFO). The Library research staff also utilizes these resources in order to respond to requests for peer-reviewed social science literature by the offices of the Chair, Commissioners, Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), Office of General Counsel (OGC) and the Trial Attorneys in the EEOC Field offices. Research requests cover a myriad of subjects, supporting the formulation and execution of Commission policies such as the use of an individual's criminal history in employment selection decisions; task force efforts such as the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing and the Equal Pay Task Force; as well as issues related to cases in litigation. The online social science research database subscription services must include the following critical elements: • The following databases or equivalent or similar databases to the Commission's current subscription services which must be available to all staff: Academic Search Complete, Business Source Complete; EconLit with Full Text; Mental Measurements Yearboook with Tests in Print; PsychArticles; PsychINFO; Psychology and Behavior Sciences Collections; Race Relations Abstracts; and SocINDEX with Full Text. All of the currently available databases (resources) are required to satisfy the need for social science research at the Commission. • A single search platform providing a large volume of social science resources. The ability to execute one search across multiple databases (resources) allows for more efficient effective research. • Extensive coverage of all types of literature in the social sciences, including business, economics, psychology and sociology. • A large volume of peer-reviewed literature. Access is critical to the research needs of the Social Scientists and Trial Attorneys who are pursuing investigation and litigation activities. • A large percentage of full text. This ensures many required materials are available immediately which is a great benefit for urgent research requirements. Additionally, immediate access to full text saves the manpower necessary to find, borrow and receive the articles. • The search interface must offer the ability to search by author, title, keyword, subject index terms, abstract, and publication name. Also present, must be the ability to narrow searches by date of publication; type of source which must include peer-reviewed literature; and sources which are full text. The search interface must offer the following critical techniques: truncation; wild cards; proximity; phrase and full Boolean capability. In addition, at least two options for conducting a search must be offered: a search form allowing the user to enter search terms, any fields (such as title or source) and Boolean logic directly; and a guided search which allows a user to employ pull-down menus to select Boolean logic, date or other limitations, and search field (such as author or subject). The quoter's search results display function must provide the ability to sort results by relevance or date (oldest publication date to newest and vice versa). The search results must offer the ability to display, download, print or e-mail a bibliography of citations, with or without available abstracts. In addition any full text resources should be available to display, download, print or e-mail in PDF and/or HTML. The contractor must be in compliance with the requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as well as those in 36 CFR 1194.22, Web-based intranet and internet information and applications. All future versions of web-based applications or services offered shall be in compliance with these authorities. Businesses and distributors that specialize in the distribution and on-line access of periodicals and publications that can satisfy the requirements listed below are encouraged to submit a quotation. The quotation package shall include the following databases or equivelent or similar databases: Academic Search Complete; Business Source Complete; EconLit with Full Text; Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print; PsycARTICLES; PsycINFO; Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collections; Race Relations Abstracts; and SocINDEX with Full Text. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: The anticipated period of performance will be for a base year (12) months, commencing from May 1, 2016 up through April 30, 2017 with four 1-year options to extend the terms of the contract. SCHEDULE OF SERVICES : The quotation package shall include the following databases or equivalent or similar databases (Line Item Nos. 0001 thru 0005) in a written quotation for the base year plus four 1-year option periods: 1. Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) 0001 (Base Year): Access On-line Social Science Research Database Subscription Services - (Quantity: 12 months): The requirements (databases) for the base year period include: Base Year Period: From May 1, 2016 up through April 30, 2017 - a. Academic Search Complete; b. Business Source Complete; c. EconLit with Full Text; d. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print; e. PsycARTICLES; f. PsycINFO; g. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collections; h. Race Relations Abstracts; and i. SocINDEX with Full Text. TOTAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT (CLIN 0001 - Base Year): $__________. 2. CLIN 0002 (Option Year 1): Access On-line Social Science Research Database Subscription Services - (Quantity: 12 months): The requirements (databases) for the Option Year 1 period include: Option Year 1 Period: From May 1, 2017 up through April 30, 2018 - a. Academic Search Complete; b. Business Source Complete; c. EconLit with Full Text; d. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print; e. PsycARTICLES; f. PsycINFO; g. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collections; h. Race Relations Abstracts; and i. SocINDEX with Full Text. TOTAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT (CLIN 0002 - Option Year 1): $ __________. 3. CLIN 0003 (Option Year 2): Access On-line Social Science Research Database Subscription Services- (Quantity: 12 months): The requirements (databases) for the Option Year 2 period include: Option Year 2 Period: From May 1, 2018 up through April 30, 2019 - a. Academic Search Complete; b. Business Source Complete; c. EconLit with Full Text; d. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print; e. PsycARTICLES; f. PsycINFO; g. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collections; h. Race Relations Abstracts; and i. SocINDEX with Full Text. TOTAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT (CLIN 0003 - Option Year 2): $ __________. 4. CLIN 0004 (Option Year 3): Access On-line Social Science Research Database Subscription Services - (Quantity: 12 months): The requirements (databases) for the Option Year 3 period include: Option Year 3 Period: From May 1, 2019 up through April 30, 2020 - a. Academic Search Complete; b. Business Source Complete; c. EconLit with Full Text; d. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print; e. PsycARTICLES; f. PsycINFO; g. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collections; h. Race Relations Abstracts; and i. SocINDEX with Full Text. TOTAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT (CLIN 0004 - Option Year 3): $ __________. 5. CLIN 0005 (Option Year 4): Access On-line Social Science Research Database Subscription Services - (Quantity: 12 months): The requirements (databases) for the Option Year 4 period include: Option Year 4 Period: From May 1, 2020 up through April 30, 2021 - a. Academic Search Complete; b. Business Source Complete; c. EconLit with Full Text; d. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print; e. PsycARTICLES; f. PsycINFO; g. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collections; h. Race Relations Abstracts; and i. SocINDEX with Full Text. TOTAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT (CLIN 0005 - Option Year 4): $ __________. CUMULATIVE TOTAL COST TO THE GOVERNMENT (Base plus four 1-Year Option Periods -CLIN Nos. 0001 thru 0005): $ __________. The quoter must provide pricing for all of the above required databases (CLIN Nos. 0001 thru 0005) or equivalent or similar databases. The total price offered shall include charges of all required subscription services for the base year plus four 1-year option periods. A contract will be awarded to the responsible quoter whose quotation represents the best value to the Government. The prospective contractor must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database prior to award of the resulting contract. Registration is free and vendors may register with SAM by accessing http://www.sam.gov. Vendors not registered in SAM prior to award will not be considered. Each quotation must clearly indicate the capability of the quoter to meet the requirements specified in this combined synopsis/solicitation. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION : The Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) under the resultant contract shall be designated at the time of the contract award. SUBMISSION OF QUOTATIONS : Submission of Quotations: Quotations will only be accepted via email. Quotation submitted via Hand delivery, facsimile, Internet or any other electronic means (except email), or the U.S Postal Services WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. The deadline for quoters to e-mail questions regarding RFQ EEC45016Q0014, which will only be accepted via email at: caroline.fowler@eeoc.gov, with a cc to gregory.browne@eeoc.gov is Wednesday, March 30, 2016 at 10:00 a.m., (Washington, DC local time). Each quotation in response to RFQ EEC45016Q0014 must be received via email only, no later than Monday, April 4, 2016, by 12:00 Noon (Washington, DC local time). Quotations submitted in response to this notice shall include the solicitation number in the subject line and be signed, dated and submitted electronically (via e-mail only) and shall be transmitted to Caroline A. Fowler, Contracting Officer at: caroline.fowler@eeoc.gov with a cc: to Gregory Browne, Alternate Contracting Officer at: gregory.browne@eeoc.gov. Telephone inquiries or responses are not acceptable. Files must be sent as a Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format document attachment via e-mail to Caroline A. Fowler, Contracting Officer at: caroline.fowler@eeoc.gov, with a cc to Gregory Browne, Alternate Contracting Officer at: gregory.browne@eeoc.gov. Quoters are solely responsible for ensuring their quotation is received at the designated place and time for receipt of quotations. Communications: Communication with officials other than the Contracting Officer or Alternate Contracting Officer indicated above, may compromise the competitiveness of the acquisition and result in the cancellation of the solicitation and/or exclusion of your quotation. Quotations shall be submitted in three (3) separate volumes as follows: Volume 1 - Technical Capability; Volume 2 - Past Experience; and, Volume 3 - Price. Pricing must be submitted using the line item structure in the above Schedule of Supplies and Services of this RFQ. No pricing information shall be included in Volume I - Technical and Volume II - Past Experience quotations. The submission shall be clearly indexed and logically assembled. Each volume shall be clearly identified and shall begin at the top of a page. All pages of each volume shall be appropriately numbered and identified by the complete company name, date and solicitation number in the header and/or footer. A Table of Contents should be created. Files shall use the following Page Setup parameters: Margins: Top, Bottom, Left, Right - 1"; Page Size: Width - 8.5 " and Page Size, Height" 11". The following additional restriction apply: (1) Each paragraph shall be separated by at least one blank line; and (2) A standard Times Roman, 11-point minimum font size applies. The quotation page limits are as follows: Technical Quotation -10 pages maximum; Past Experience: 5 Page Limit; and Price Quotation - No page limit applies. Quotations that exceed the page limits above will be considered non-responsive and will not be given any further consideration for award. Page numbers, headers and footers may be within the page margins ONLY, and are not bound by the font requirements. Company Logos are prohibited with the exception of the Title Page. Any index, table of contents, glossary, product literature, etc., will not be included in the maximum page limitation. The Government will not reimburse interested parties for any cost associated with responding to this business opportunity. Quoters shall submit a firm-fixed price quotation response to provide the on-line social science research database subscription services. All responsible sources may submit a quotation which shall be considered by the EEOC. QUOTATION (QUOTE) ACCEPTANCE PERIOD : The quoter shall propose a minimum acceptance period of sixty (60) calendar days to allow for evaluation before awarding a contract. BASIS FOR AWARD: Award for this requirement will be based on a best-value basis and the Government will award to the responsive, responsible contractor whose quotation is most advantageous to the Government, using the lowest price technically acceptable approach. The anticipated contract award date is in March 2016. EVALUATION FACTORS FOR AWARD: The Government will use the following factors to evaluate quotes. Quotations will be rated on a go or no-go basis using the following factors: Technical capability and past experience: Factor I: Technical Capability: Standards: The quoter must provide the required online social science research database subscription services during the specified periods (base plus four option years) to all Commission staff. The required databases or equivalent or similar databases includes the following: Academic Search Complete, Business Source Complete, EconLit with Full Text, Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print, PsycArticles, PsycINFO, Psychology and Behavioral Science Collection, Race Relations Abstracts, and SocINDEX with Full Text. All of the currently available databases (resources) listed above are requied to satisfy the need for social science research at the Commission. The quoter must provide a single search platform which provides: a large volume of social science resoources with extensive coverage of all types of literature in the social science, including business, economics,psychology and sociology; a large volume of peer-reviewed literature; and a large percentage of full text. The search interface must offer the ability to search by author, title, keyword, subject index terms, abstract, and publication name. Also present, must be the ability to narrow searches by: date of publication; type of source which must include peer-reviewed literature; and sources which are full text. The search interface must offer the following critical techniques: truncation; wild cards; proximity; phrase and full Boolean capability. In addition, at least two options for conducting a search must be offered: (1) a search form allowing the user to enter search terms, any fields (such as title or source) and Boolean logic directly; and (2) a guided search which allows a user to employ pull-down menus to select Boolean logic, date or other limitations, and search fields (such as author or subject). The search results display function must provide the ability to sort results by relevance or date (oldest publication date to newest and vice versa). The search results must offer the ability to display, download, print or e-mail a bibliography of citations, with or without available abstracts. In addition any full text resources should be available to display, download, print or e-mail in PDF and/or HTML. All quoters must provide a complete list of all required databases when responding to the RFQ. All quoters must provide a complete list of search and display fields for review for every database (as identified in the list requested above) when responding to the RFQ. All quoters must demonstrate their capabilities to provide the required online social science research database subscription services (as identified in the list provided in this solicitation) by providing the Government trial database access to the offered subscriptions for ten (10) business days after the solicitation closing date. The quoter must include instructions to obtain access as part of their quotation. The access provided is strictly for evaluation purposes only. The Government shall not receive any benefits from the 10- business day access. This will be used if selection cannot be made based on the quoter's quotation alone. Quotations will be evaluated on the quoter's ability to provide all of the required services during the specified periods (Base plus four 1-year option periods). Factor II: Past Experience: Standards: The quoter must provide a minimum of two (2) government or non-government references of past experience for same or similar services awarded within the past two (2) years. Information for each reference shall include the following: 1. Name and address of government agency or other non-government client; 2. Name, title, email, and telephone number of Contracting Officer or other point of contact; 3. Name, title, email and telephone number of client's program or project manager, if applicable; 4. Contract number, period of performance, and total dollar value of contract, and 5. Description of services provided. Factor III: Price: Once the quote has been determined to be "technically acceptable", award will be based on lowest price. Each Factor listed above shall be addressed with quoters written response when responding to this RFQ. Failure to do so will eliminate the quoter from consideration. Notice: The Government intends to evaluate quotations and make award without discussions (except clarifications as described in FAR 15.306(a)), therefore, the quoter(s) initial quote should contain the quoter's best terms from a price and technical standpoint. The Government reserves the right to conduct discussions, if the Contracting Officer later determines them to be necessary. APPLICABLE FAR PROVISIONS AND CLAUSES - FAR Provisions : The FAR Provision 52.204-7, System for Award Management; 52.204-16, Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting; The provision at 52.209-7, Information Regarding Responsibility Matters applies to this solicitation. The provisions at 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items; 52-212-2, Evaluation-Commercial Items; and 52.217-5, Evaluation of Options apply to this solicitation. The quoter shall include a completed copy of the provisions at 52.212-3, Offerors Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items with his/her quote. FAR Clauses : The following clauses shall apply to this solicitation: FAR 52.252-2, Clauses incorporated by Reference; Clause 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items and Clause 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Order-Commercial Items, are incorporated by reference. Clause 52.203-6, Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government, Alternate 1; Clause 52-204-10, Reporting Executive Compensation and First-Tier Subcontract Awards; Clause 52.204-13, System for Award Management Maintenance; 52.204-18, Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance; Clause 52.209-6, Protecting the Government's Interest when Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended or Proposed for Debarment; Clause 52.209-9, Updates of Publicly Available Information Regarding Responsibility Matters; Clause 52.209-10, Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations; Clause 52.222-3, Convict Labor; Clause 52.222-19, Child Labor Cooperation With Authorities and Remedies; Clause 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities; Clause 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity; Clause 52.222-35, Equal Opportunity for Veterans; Clause 52.222-36, Equal Opportunity for Workers with Disabilities; Clause 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Veterans; Clause 52.222-40, Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act; Clause 52.222.50, Combating Trafficking in Persons; Clause 52.223-18 Encouraging Contractor Policies to Ban Text Messaging While Driving; Clause 52.225-13, Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases; Clause 52.232-33, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer- System for Award Management; Clause Transfer.52.233-3, Protest After Award; Clause 52.233-4, Applicable Law for Breach of Contract Claim; and 52.232.40, Providing Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors are incorporated by reference. To obtain the above provisions/clauses in full text, please visit www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html. The following FAR clauses are incorporated in full text: FAR Clause 52.217-8: Option to Extend Services - The Government may require continued performance of any services within the limits and at the rates specified in the contract. These rates may be adjusted only as a result of revisions to prevailing labor rates provided by the Secretary of Labor. The option provision may be exercised more than once, but the total extension of performance hereunder shall not exceed 6 months. The Contracting Officer may exercise the option by written notice to the Contractor within 30 calendar days prior to contract expiration (End of Clause); FAR Clause 52.217-9: Option to Extend the Term of the Contract - (a) The Government may extend the term of this contract by written notice to the Contractor within 30 calendar days prior to contract expiration; provided that the Government gives the Contractor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 60 calendar days before the contract expires. The preliminary notice does not commit the Government to an extension; (b) If the Government exercise this option, the extended contract shall be considered to include this option clause; (c) The total duration of this contract, including the exercise of any options under this clause, shall not exceed 60 months in duration. Method of Payment : The Government intends to make payment via electronic Funds Transfer.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/EEOC/OCFOAS/PMD/EEC45016Q0014/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: EEOC Nationwide, United States
- Record
- SN04064860-W 20160330/160328234811-68862419a09f77df0af6204110125c39 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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