Inactive
Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)
Notice ID:F3YCAK0198A001
Q&As 8/12/2020 The three largest and most respected LED sign manufacturers in the US are Optec, Daktronics and Watchfire. The boot up requirement for a 16MM Daktronics sign at 4’ 8” x 13’ 5” is 17 amp...
Q&As 8/12/2020 The three largest and most respected LED sign manufacturers in the US are Optec, Daktronics and Watchfire. The boot up requirement for a 16MM Daktronics sign at 4’ 8” x 13’ 5” is 17 amps per face. For a 16MM Watchfire sign at 4’ x 13’ the boot up requirement is 16.8 amps. The Optec sign requires 19 amps. As you can see none of the US manufacturers can provide a sign that meets your 13.8 amp limitation. I think your project has been spec’d on Vantage signs. Vantage calculates their power requirements in a manner that’s quite different from the other US manufacturers. The standard most manufacturers follow is to provide the maximum overall potential capabilities of each LED chip at 100% brightness. This is the requirement for UL/ETL and will be the number on the plate placed on the back of each display. With the sign running on a brightness censor in most cases the sign will operate at 40-50 percent power during daylight and as little as 5-10 percent at night. Some manufacturers set the max brightness not to exceed a particular level to lessen the overall draw. This is a setting adjusted in the sign firmware that will allow the sign to operate at lower power level. And initially that will look just fine. But the brightness of an LED pixel will degrade over time. As that degradation begins to become evident, the user can adjust the brightness levels using the sign software to compensate for that loss. Your bid states a requirement for 10,000 NITs. That’s a good brightness level for a sign in Oklahoma. But when the sign is brand new, it won’t require a full 10,000 NITs to compete with direct sunlight. You can operate the sign as a much lower NIT level – using the sign software. As the sign ages and brightness begins to degrade, you’ll be able to compensate for that with the sign software. The extra NITs available will allow you to adjust the sign brightness over its lifetime to make sure the sign is bright and clear. Adjusting the power settings in the firmware cannot be done remotely. You will need a service call to update the firmware -- or what we see in most cases with Vantage signs is -- the controller will have to be replaced entirely. This is not something covered by your warranty. Optec can make the same adjustment to their firmware as the Vantage signs. That would allow you to operate the signs at 13.8 amps. But I want you to be aware of the impact that will have on the brightness of your sign over its lifetime. TAFB Technical POC: We do not see any issues with our current power supply supporting the displays. Q&As 8/5/2020 1.) A "7 year warranty" requirement is mentioned, can you confirm whether this is for parts only, or on-site labor/workmanship as well? Seven (7) year warranty on structure, parts, labor and support 2.) Are there any other required documents or formatting for submitting quotes aside from the "CSS" word document provided? The response page is required. In order for a vendor’s quote to be considered, they must meet the technical requirements IAW the attached PWS at the time of quote submissions. 3.) 30 day ARO - Does this mean 30 days to complete work from award? Is there any possibility of extending this to 45-60 days? 30 days ARO is requested. PoP can be submitted and will be reviewed. Proposal deadline is extended to 14 Aug 2020 @2:00 PM CST. Please see the revised attached PWS and CSS. Please forward all questions to the POC. Additional Q&As 7/30/2020 The size specs provided create a difference of 50 sq. ft. possible to meet project requirements, is the existing structure engineered to withstand the wind load of a 90 sq. ft sign? What is the size of the current LED display? Yes, the structure should be able to handle the size difference. Just because we have a larger range, it doesn’t mean that we need to go that large. We are just giving companies latitude in what they choose to quote. Current displays are older lightbulb style displays. A site visit can determine specific specs. For a letter to be read at 100 yds we would need 4 lines with a minimum of a 14" letter per line making our required sign size at least 60" Would you like us to conform to the 48" standard or the 4 lines at 100 yards standard? The requirement has a size range giving contractors latitude to quote the size display the feel best meets the total requirement. A 7-year warranty on these signs is incredibly uncommon - would there be a consideration for the industry standard 5 yr. warranty? Companies should submit quotes that meet the overall requirement. If all warranties come in at only 5 years then this will be a consideration for adjustment. The request for a 4G connected sign without the monthly data access falling on you creates a serious potential problem for multiple reasons - do you have a plan for an additional contract to be signed that would prevent the sign supplier from disconnecting your data once the sign is paid for in full? what would that contract look like? Companies have multiple service agreements available and the lifetime 4G access would be contractually captured in this contract. It appears this is just to be a message center. No Graphics or Video capabilities are desired? Although this is a messaging service, having future graphic capability will enable the marquees to be used for additional information flow. Is it acceptable for the back to back displays to be duplicate screens? or shall all 4 LED units' program independently? Yes. Each set of screens should display the same thing. SITE VISIT: A site visit is scheduled for Tuesday, 4 August 2020 / 10:30 a.m. Central Daylight Time (CDT) for those interested. To participate, email the point of contact (POC), no later than (NLT) Monday, 3 August 2020 / 12:00 p.m. CDT and provide the name of the individual (one per contractor) that will be attending. The site visit will begin at 10:30 p.m. CDT, so please be prompt. The meeting location is at the BLDG 3001 Front Lobby (the flag pole entrance of BLDG 3001 Tinker AFB, OK). In order to gain access to Tinker AFB, please have a valid contractor badge (if this is an issue include this information in the email to the POC). A MASK IS REQUIRED. QUESTIONS: All questions resulting from the site visit are required to be submitted via email NLT Tuesday, 4 August 2020 / 2:00 p.m. CDT to the POC. Answers to the questions submitted will be consolidated and posted on 5 August 2020 / 2:00 p.m. CDT to this posting. Pictures attached to help with understanding the project. Also, black screens are the only parts needing replaced. The posts and signage on top will not need replacing. See attached Combination Synopsis/Solicitation (CSS) and Performance Work Statement (PWS)
