Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

STREAMLINED SOLICITATIONFOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS COMBINED SYNOPSIS / SOLICITATION COMPETITIVE Title: NIMH Grant Writing Workshop This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in a... STREAMLINED SOLICITATIONFOR COMMERCIAL ITEMS COMBINED SYNOPSIS / SOLICITATION COMPETITIVE Title: NIMH Grant Writing Workshop This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. The solicitation number is NIH-NIMH-21000646 and the solicitation is issued as a request for quotation (RFQ). This acquisition is for a commercial item or service and is conducted under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13—Simplified Acquisition Procedures; FAR Subpart 13.5—Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items; and FAR Part 12—Acquisition of Commercial Items and is not expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2019-01, dated December 2018. The associated NAICS code 813211: Grantmaking Foundations. This requirement is a small business set aside. Purpose and Objectives: The NIMH Office of Fellowship Training (OFT) requires training services for a virtual Grant Writing course. The training will be provided to Postdoctoral and Faculty level participants who intend to submit a grant proposal in the next fiscal year. The training will be delivered in three parts to include a Grant Overview Session (for postdocs, postbacs, predocs and Pis) that addresses basic fundamentals of grant writing, and funding institutions/ mechanisms, a Preparation and Instruction component (for postdocs, PIs, senior staff) that addresses crafting important sections of the grant proposal and finally coaching/consultation (for postdocs, PIs, senior staff) for grant writing applicable to identified targeted grant mechanisms (K99/R00, K22, Foundation grants). The NIMH Office of Fellowship Training (OFT) is responsible for the oversight of research training and career/ professional development resources for approximately 250 trainees in the Intramural Research Program (IRP). OFT provides guidance to Principal Investigators and other staff in mentoring roles to ensure that there is consistency across labs with the overall fellowship experience. One of the fundamental objectives of the office is to develop training courses to help fellows advance to the next career stage. A critical training course that OFT must provide annually is Grant Writing and common areas that are addressed include critical elements of grants, funding institutions and writing tactics. To effectively cover all of the important grant topics, a multistep series approach is taken in the form of seminars and workshops to give fellows and instructors the opportunity to have both didactic and interactive sessions. To support the training of Postdoctoral fellows and Faculty/Senior Staff, the IRP is in need of a grant focused workshop that will provide an inclusive grants experience for junior and senior level individuals. These workshops will be geared toward learning about the critical elements of grants, the different grant types, understanding funding announcements and assembling grant applications for NIH and external sources. Grant types such as Public Health Service Grants, PHS 398, including Research Career Awards, Institutional National Research Service Awards, Foundation grants and international funding opportunities will be the focus. Background: NIMH is the lead federal agency for research on mental disorders and one of the 27 Institutes and Centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the world’s largest biomedical research agency. As stated in NIMH Strategic Plan for Research, NIMH’s mission is to “transform the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through basic and clinical research, paving the way for prevention, recovery, and cure.” NIMH’s Office of Science Policy, Planning, and Communications (OSPPC) creates and implements the Institute's communication efforts, including information dissemination and media relations activities. The office also helps to promote NIMH job postings and various training activities. NIMH videos play an essential role in these efforts because they support learning through the illustration of targeted concepts and by engagingly providing much-needed context. Project requirements: Please see Statement of Work and Evaluation Criteria for more details. Anticipated Date of Delivery: The period of performance shall be for a base period of 9-months with two (2) optional successive 9-months option periods Base year: 1/1/2021 to 9/30/2021 Option year 1: 1/1/2022 to 9/30/2022 Option year 2: 1/1/2023 to 9/30/2023 The provision at FAR clause 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors – Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The provision at FAR clause 52.212-2, Evaluation – Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers; professional expertise, technical approach, organizational experience, and past performance. Technical Evaluation Criteria Item No. Evaluation Criteria Rating Standard 1. Professional Expertise The offeror must demonstrate their knowledge and professional experience as it correlates to the experience outlined in the Statement of Work (SOW) under contractor’s experience. Recent successful experience delivering a series of Grant Proposal Writing Workshops for faculty and trainees/students as described in the SOW. Examples of 2-3 workshops for NIH institutes involving a grant overview or application writing session produced by the Offeror that are applicable to this requirement should be submitted as reference and will not count toward the page limits. Proposal must include either CVs or resumes that clearly detail offerors relevant experience and knowledge of the grant writing process and accompanying instructional capabilities. 2. Technical Approach Ability of the Offeror to understand the SOW and requirements, adequately describe the proposed approach, identify problems and potential challenges, and demonstrate how the contract requirements will be met. 3. Organizational Experience The offeror must submit with their proposal a list of the last two contracts completed during the past two years and / or contracts awarded currently in process that are similar in nature to the work scope. Contracts listed may include those entered into by the Federal Government, agencies of state and local governments and commercial concerns. Newly formed entities without prior contracts should list contracts and subcontracts as required above for such key personnel. For each contract, subcontract, or reference include: (i) Name of Contracting Organization; (ii) Contract Number (for subcontracts, provide the prime contract number and the subcontract number); (iii) Contract Type; (iv) Total Contract Value; (v) Description of Requirement; (vi) North American Industry Classification System(NAICS) Code. 4. Past Performance Acceptable degree of successful performance in prior contracts. The Government will evaluate the merits of each offeror's past performance based on its reputation with its former customers. Past experience with NIH or comparable agency or company focused on grant writing and science communication preferred. Evidence can include references, testimonials from satisfied clients, letters of recommendation, etc. Provide five (3) references. Evaluation of Quotes and Award Determination The Government will evaluate all responses received on using the evaluation criteria set forth in the article titled: “Evaluation Criteria” equally weighted. Each quote will be evaluated in strict conformity with the evaluation factors, utilizing written critiques. The evaluation will be based upon the demonstrated capabilities of the prospective contractor in relation to the needs of the project as set forth in the RFQ and will use an adjectival evaluation scheme based on the following ratings: _Excellent; _Good; _Acceptable; _Marginal; _Unacceptable; _Neutral The price quoted will also be evaluated taking into consideration any price reductions, the level of effort and the mix of labor proposed to perform the task(s) being ordered. A price reasonable determination will be made and a best value analysis will be performed. The best value analysis will take into consideration the results of the technical evaluation, price evaluation, and the ability to complete the work within the Government's required schedule. The analysis will document that the award represents the lowest overall cost alternative (considering price, special features, administrative costs, etc.) to meet the Government’s needs. The Government reserves the right to issue an order to the best value of the Government, technical merit, price, and other factors considered. All aspects of a quote are subject to discussion, including price, technical approach and terms and conditions. At the completion of discussions, the contractor will ensure his technical plan and price quote reflects the mutual understandings of the requirement and if requested, submit a revised technical plan and price quote to the Contracting Officer. The technical plan should consist of the contractor’s intent and approach to this particular effort, any considerations that should be made by the government, as well as any additional information that expresses the Contractor’s position above others for this effort. The Government may request clarifying information from the schedule contractor, as it relates to its quote. If an award will be made without conducting discussions, schedule contractors may be given the opportunity to clarify certain aspects of their quote or to resolve minor or clerical errors. The Government reserves the right to make a single award, multiple awards, or no award at all as a result of the RFQ. In addition, the RFQ may be amended or canceled as necessary to meet the Government’s requirements. Base year plus two (2) option years A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer’s specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award. The Offerors to include a completed copy of the provision at FAR clause 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications—Commercial Items, with its offer. The FAR clause at 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions – Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. FAR clause at 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders–Commercial Items, applies to this acquisition. The following additional contract requirement(s) or terms and conditions as determined by the contracting officer are necessary for this acquisition and consistent with customary commercial practices. There are no additional contract requirement(s) or terms and conditions applicable to this acquisition. The Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) are not applicable to this requirement. Responses to this solicitation must include sufficient information to establish the interested parties’ bona-fide capabilities of providing the product or service. The price quote shall include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, delivery days after contract award, delivery terms, prompt payment discount terms, F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), product or catalog number(s); product description; and any other information or factors that may be considered in the award decision. Such factors may include: past performance; special features required for effective program performance; trade-in considerations; probable life of the item selected as compared with that of a comparable item; warranty considerations; maintenance availability; and environmental and energy efficiency considerations. In addition, the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size must be included in the response. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.” All responses must be received by 12/4/2020 by 12PMEST and reference number NIH-NIMH-21000646. Responses may be submitted electronically to thien.nguyen2@nih.gov and valerie.whipple@nih.gov. Any questions must be submitted by 12:00PM EST on November 30, 2020. Fax responses will not be accepted. The name and telephone number of the individual to contact for information regarding the solicitation. Thien Nguyen Thien.Nguyen2@nih. gov 301-827-0914 Attachments Attachment 1 – Statement of Work Attachment 2 – 52.204-24 and 52.212-3 Clauses Attachment 3 – Invoice Instructions