Inactive Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Set-Aside (FAR 19.14)

DESCRIPTION: This is a Pre-Solicitation Notice for the establishment of an Architect-Engineering (A-E) contract with services to be performed at the Grand Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAM... DESCRIPTION: This is a Pre-Solicitation Notice for the establishment of an Architect-Engineering (A-E) contract with services to be performed at the Grand Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) located at 2121 North Avenue, Grand Junction, CO 81501. This requirement is being set-aside to Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) firms. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL; NO SOLICITATION PACKAGE WILL BE ISSUED UNTIL AFTER AN EVALUATION HAS BEEN MADE ON THE PROVIDED SF-330s. The SF-330 can be downloaded through the GSA Forms Library at: http://www.gsa.gov/portal/forms/type/TOP, scroll down to locate and click on the SF-330 hyperlink entitled, Architect-Engineer Qualifications. Written questions pertaining to this requirement should be submitted no later than 2:00 PM. MT, Oct 30, 2020. Interested firms should submit their current SF-330, Parts I and II, to joseph.wingfield@va.gov. The SF-330s are due no later than 2:00 PM, MT, Nov 25, 2020. SCOPE OF WORK: This project requires the services of an architect experienced in pathology laboratory requirements including assessing needs and planning for temporary accommodation of the laboratory function during construction. Team engineers must have special knowledge of central-plant-supported heating and cooling systems and central telecommunications infrastructure. The AE must subcontract with a Commissioning Agent acceptable to the VA based on experience with VA requirements and standard systems and with pathology laboratories. The Pathology Laboratory has 5,202 DGSF and requires 8,448 DGSF based on the CAI space calculator; actual shortfall may be greater. Existing area is poorly laid out, causing inefficient work, lack of privacy for patients, and security issues. There is insufficient storage, including insufficient refrigerated storage. There is insufficient structural support for the variety of equipment the Laboratory requires. There is insufficient mechanical space to support the laboratory. AHU12, which serves Pathology lab, has exceeded it expected useful life of 20 years. Coils were replaced in 2006 and current capacity is 42 tons. Ductwork is undersized and cannot deliver this capacity. Supplemental chillers have been required in the lab every summer since 2015, exacerbating space issues. The hospital requires a functioning pathology laboratory 24/7, and laboratory cannot operate in place during construction. This project will renovate the space currently occupied by the laboratory and cardiopulmonary departments to create a larger laboratory. Approved scope of renovation is 9,000 SF. The design of the new laboratory must address all the deficiencies and support both existing and planned equipment with regards to utilities and structural reinforcements needed to have future flexibility in where heavy equipment can be placed. The Laboratory requires multiple climate-controlled areas and negative pressure rooms. Reference the following attachments: FCA deficiencies, lab equipment list, and Lab Remodel Request. The AE must assess capacity of all existing utilities and identify and incorporate into the design any needed improvements. Steam and chilled water will be provided to the new air handler unit from the existing central plant. The existing building automated system is old and special consideration will be required for how the new air handler unit will communicate with the existing system. All existing sanitary piping above and below the renovated space must be replaced as part of the design. The AE must investigate and determine the requirements for the temporary laboratory and incorporate the requirements into the construction documents. Plan the sustainment requirements for mobile laboratory operations (transport of samples and reports, etc.) The Construction Contractor coordinate and pay for the temporary laboratory. The NAICS code for this procurement will be 541330, Engineering Services. The current small business size standard for 541330 is $16.5 million. OFFERORS WILL BE EVALUATED ON THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA: The submitted SF-330s will be evaluated on the following criteria: This acquisition will be in accordance with FAR Part 36.602-1 and VAAR Part 836.601-1. The following evaluation criteria will be used to evaluate SF-330 technical proposals: The A/E must demonstrate its qualifications with respect to the published evaluation criteria for all services. Evaluation Criteria (1) through (4) are considered most important and equal among themselves; Criteria (5) and (6) are of slightly less importance than (1) through (4), but are equal value among themselves; Criteria (7) and (8) are the least important and listed in descending order of importance. Specific evaluation criteria include: 1. Professional Qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of required services. 2. Specialized experience and technical competence in the type of work required, including, where appropriate, experience in energy conservation, pollution prevention, waste reduction, and the use of recovered materials. 3. Capacity to accomplish the work in the required time. 4. Past Performance on contracts with Government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work and compliance with performance schedules. 5. Location in the general geographical area of the project and knowledge of the locality of the project; provided, that application of this criterion leaves an appropriate number of qualified firms, given the nature and size of the project. 6. Use of Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small businesses. 7. Experience in construction period services. Criterion 1 - Professional Qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of required services Offerors will be evaluated in terms of the qualifications, competence and experience of the key personnel and technical team proposed to accomplish this work. Additionally, offerors will be evaluated on their record of working together as a ream. Key personnel are individuals who will have major contract or project management responsibilities and/or will provide unusual or unique expertise. Provide a balanced licensed and or certified workforce in the following disciplines Architecture, Medical Planner, Structural, Mechanical, Electrical, Fire Protection Engineering and Commissioning. Lead designer in each discipline shall be registered but does not have to be registered in the particular state of this project. Submission requirements: Provide resumes for all proposed key personnel. Resumes are limited to one page each and should cite project specific experience and indicate proposed role in this contract. Provide professional registration, certification, licensure and/or accreditation. Indicate participation of key personnel in example projects in the SF-330 Part 1 Section G. Criterion 2 - Specialized experience and technical competence in the type of work required, including, where appropriate, experience in energy conservation, pollution prevention, waste reduction, and the use of recovered materials. Offerors will be evaluated on specialized experience and technical competence, to include offeror s proposed personnel, in the performance of services similar to those anticipated under this contract with regard to: Experienced in pathology laboratory requirements including assessing needs and planning for temporary accommodation of the laboratory function during construction. Special knowledge of and experience with central-plant-supported heating and cooling systems. Special knowledge of and experience with central telecommunications infrastructure. Submission requirements: Provide up to five (5) projects completed or substantially completed within the past five (5) years that best illustrate specialized experience of the proposed team in the areas outlined above. Example projects shall note project s square footage. All projects provided in the SF-330 must be completed by the office/branch/regional office/individual team member proposed to manage and/or perform work under this contract. To enable verification, firms should include the DUNS number along with each firm name in the SF-330 Part 1, Section F Item 25 Firms from Section C Involved in this Project, block (1). Include a contract number or project identification number in block 21. Include an e-mail address, and phone number for the point of contact in block 23(c). Include in the project description the contract period of performance, award contract value, current contract value, a summary of the work performed that demonstrates relevance to specialized experience as outlined above. If the contractor served as a subcontractor on a project, indicate the value of the work they provided towards the performance of the overall project. If a project was performed by a joint venture, and not all joint venture partners are on the team proposed for this contract, the offeror/team should specifically address the work performed by the joint venture partner offering/teaming on this contract. Likewise, if the offeror/team member worked as a subcontractor on a project, the description should clearly describe the work actually performed by the offeror/team member and the roles and responsibilities of each on the project, rather than the work performed on the project as a whole. If the project description does not clearly delineate the work performed by the entity/entities offering/teaming on this contract, the project could be eliminated from consideration. NOTE: If the Offeror is a joint venture, information should be submitted as a joint venture; however, if there is no information for the joint venture, information should be submitted for either joint venture partner, not to exceed a total of five (5) projects for this criterion. Projects shall be submitted on the SF-330. For submittal purposes, a task order on an IDIQ contract is considered a project, as is a stand-alone contract award. Do not list an IDIQ contract as an example of a completed project. Instead, list relevant completed task orders or stand-alone contract awards that fit within the definition above. Examples of project work submitted that do not conform to this requirement will not be evaluated. Failure to provide requested data, accessible points of contact, or valid phone numbers could result in a firm being rated lower. All information for Criterion 2 should be submitted in Part 1, Section F of the SF-330. The Government WILL NOT consider information submitted in addition to Part 2, Section F in evaluating Criterion 2. Criterion 3 - Capacity to accomplish the work in the required time. Firms/teams will be evaluated in terms of their ability to plan for and manage work under the contract and capacity to accomplish the work in the required time, to include capacity within the key disciplines required by this project. Additionally, offerors will be evaluated on the volume of work awarded by the VA during the 12 months before the closing date. Submission requirements: Describe the firm s ability to concurrently perform and manage multiple projects in different locations to meet aggressive schedules, multiple disciplines, and control costs and the firm s capacity to accomplish multiple projects simultaneously. Criterion 4 - Past Performance Offerors will be evaluated on past performance with Government agencies and private industry in terms of work quality, compliance with schedules, cost control, and stakeholder/customer satisfaction. Additionally, offerors will be evaluated on the reputation and standing of the firm and its principals with respect to professional performance, general management, and cooperativeness. Offerors will be also evaluated on their record of significant claims against the firm. Evaluating past performance and experience will include information provided in Past Performance Questionnaires (PPQs) or CPARS/ACASS for Criterion 1 projects and may include other information provided by the firm, customer inquiries, Government databases, and other information available to the Government including contacts with points of contact in other criteria. Failure to provide requested data, accessible points of contact, or valid phone numbers could result in a firm being rated lower. NOTE: Past performance information for projects listed under Criterion 1. Submission requirements: SUBMIT A COMPLETED CPARS/ACASS EVALUATION FOR EACH PROJECT UNDER CRITERION 1. IF THERE IS NOT A COMPLETED CPARS/ACASS EVALUATION, the Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) included in this notice is provided for the offeror or its team members to submit to the client for each project the offeror includes under Criterion 1. AN OFFEROR SHALL NOT SUBMIT A PPQ WHEN A COMPLETED CPARS/ACASS IS AVAILABLE. IF A CPARS/ACASS EVALUATION IS NOT AVAILABLE, ensure correct phone numbers and email addresses are provided for the client point of contact. Completed PPQs should be submitted with your SF-330. If the offeror is unable to obtain a completed PPQ from a client for a project(s) before the response date set forth in this notice, offerors should complete and submit with their responses the first page of the PPQ (Attachment), which will provide contract and client information for the respective project(s). Offerors may submit a PPQ previously submitted under a different Notice/RFP (legible copies are acceptable) if it is on the same form as posted with this Synopsis. Offerors should follow up with clients/references to ensure timely submittal of questionnaires. If requested by the client, questionnaires may be submitted directly to the Government's point of contact, Network Contracting Office 19, Attn: Joseph Wingfield via email at joseph.wingfield@va.gov prior to the response date. Offerors shall not incorporate by reference into their response PPQs or CPARS previously submitted in response to other A/E services procurements. However, this does not preclude the Government from utilizing previously submitted PPQ information in the past performance evaluation. Criterion 5 - Location in the general geographical area (Cheyenne WY 82001) and knowledge of the (Cheyenne VAMC); provided, that application of this criterion leaves an appropriate number of qualified firms, given the nature and size of the project. Provided that the application of this criterion leaves an appropriate number of qualified firms, given the nature and size of the contract, firms/teams will be evaluated on the locations of their office or offices that will be performing the work under this contract. Submission requirements: Indicate firms/teams location, including main offices, branch offices and any sub consultants offices and demonstrate how this will be advantageous to the Government. Criterion 6 Use of Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small businesses. The extent to which potential contractors identify and commit to the use of Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB), Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (VOSB), and other types of small businesses as subcontractors will be evaluated. Submission requirements: Describe what SDVOSB are planned to be used on this project and list SDVOSB, VOSB and other types of Small businesses used as subcontractors on the projects listed in Criterion 1 and this project. Include description for this criterion in Section H of the SF 330. Criterion 7 Experience in Construction Period Services. Professional field inspections during the construction period, review of construction submittals, support in answering requests for information during the construction period, and support of construction contract changes to include drafting statements of work, and cost estimates will be evaluated. Submission requirements: Indicate from projects submitted in Criteria #2 the extent and magnitude of the construction period services regarding the areas stated above included in those projects. SELECTION INTERVIEW: Interviews shall be scheduled with firms slated as the most highly qualified. Firms slated for interviews will be asked a series of established questions. Elaborate presentations are not desired. GENERAL INFORMATION: All design and work will conform to the current edition of the VA Master Specifications and VA Design Standards as published at the following site: www.cfm.va.gov; ASME, OSHA, IBC 2009, NFPA and NEC building codes and standards. Coordinate all work through the COR of Facilities Management Service. Contractor is responsible for all cleanups and refuse disposal throughout the construction period. The A-E firm will prepare drawings and specifications in sufficient detail such that qualified outside General Contracting companies can prepare accurate and timely proposals for the desired construction work. Microsoft Project scheduling and management software will be used by both the A-E and Contractors to allow for regular tracking of schedules and work by the VA Medical Center. Schedules with MS Project will be regularly sent to the COR upon project initiation and whenever significant changes occur in the schedule. The estimated magnitude of construction is between $5,000,000 and $10,000,000. The A-E will provide an initial estimate of cost to perform the above work and will design only those items that can be provided within the cost limitation. The Medical Center must remain operational throughout the construction period and a detailed sequence of work will be provided by the A-E to minimize impact of the construction. The A-E will provide documents at each submission as indicated in the statement of work. The NAICS code for this procurement will be 541330, Engineering Services. The current small business size standard for 541330 is $16.5 million. Requirement for Electronic Submission Unless paper offers are specifically authorized, all responses to this pre-solicitation notice must be submitted electronically as described below. The only acceptable paper form for this requirement is the receipt of past performance questionnaires. Failure to comply with this requirement may jeopardize the possibility of receiving an award for the contract due to non-compliance with the terms of the solicitation. You must submit your electronic offer, and any supplemental information (such as spreadsheets, backup data, technical information), using any of the electronic formats and media described below. In addition, contractors are notified of the award via an electronic Notice of Award e-mail. The award document will be attached to the Notice of Award e-mail. Acceptable Electronic Formats (Software) for Submission of Offers Files readable using the current Microsoft* Office version Products: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Access. Spreadsheet documents must be sent in a format that includes all formulas, macro, and format information. Print or scan images of spreadsheets are not acceptable.  Please see security note below for caution regarding use of macros. When submitting construction drawings contractors are required to submit one set in AutoCAD and one set in Adobe PDF. (Purpose: contracting can open the PDF version and engineering can open AutoCAD files) Files in Adobe* PDF (Portable Document Format) Files: When scanning documents scanner resolution should be set to 200 dots per inch, or greater. Other electronic format.  If you wish to submit an offer using another format than those described in these instructions, e-mail the Contracting Officer who issued the solicitation. Please submit your request at least ten (10) calendar days before the scheduled closing date of the solicitation.  Request a decision as to the format acceptability and make sure you receive approval of the alternate format before using it to send your offer. Please note that we can no longer accept .zip files due to increasing security concerns. E-mail Submission Procedures: For simplicity in this guidance, all submissions in response to a solicitation will be referred to as offers. Subject Line: Include the solicitation number, name of company, and closing date of solicitation. Use only one of the terms Quotation, Offer, or Bid depending on the solicitation type. Size: Maximum size of the e-mail message shall not exceed five (5) megabytes. The SF330, in its entirety, shall not exceed one email of 5MB. The SF330 (not including past performance questionnaires) are limited to 30 pages. Only one email is permitted unless otherwise stated in this paragraph or in writing by the Contract Officer submitting the solicitation. The Microsoft Outlook © Email time/date stamp will be used to date and time stamp offers for the official record of receipt for the submission. The date and time stamp in recipients inbox is the official record of receipt. Security Issues, Late Bids, Unreadable Offers Late submission of offers are outlined at FAR Parts 52.212-1(f), 52.214-7, and 52.215-1(c)(3). Particular attention is warranted to the portion of the provision that relates to the timing of submission.  Please see FAR 15.207(c) for a description of the steps the Government shall take with regard to unreadable offers.  To avoid rejection of an offer, vendors must make every effort to ensure their electronic submission is virus-free. Submissions or portions thereof submitted and which the automatic system detects the presence of a virus or which are otherwise unreadable will be treated as unreadable pursuant to FAR Parts 14.406 and FAR 15.207(c ). The virus scanning software used by our e-mail systems cannot always distinguish a macro from a virus. Therefore, sending a macro embedded in an e-mail message or an e-mail attachment may cause the e-mail offer to be quarantined. You may send both the spreadsheet and the spreadsheet saved in PDF format to ensure that your proposal is readable. Password protecting your offer is not permitted. The Contracting Officer will file the offer electronically which will allow access only by designated individuals. Important Notice: Apparent successful offerors must apply for and receive verification from the Department of Veterans Affairs Center for Verification and Evaluation (CVE) in accordance with 38 CFR Part 74 and VAAR 819.70 by submission of documentation of Veteran status, ownership and control sufficient to establish appropriate status, offerors must be both VISIBLE and VERIFIED by the Department of Veterans Affairs Center for Verification and Evaluation at the time of proposal submission. Failure to be both VERIFIED by CVE and VISIBLE on VetBiz at the time of proposal submission will result in the offeror s proposal being deemed non-responsive. All offerors are urged to contact the CVE and submit the aforementioned required documents to obtain CVE verification of their SDVOSB status if they have not already done so. 852.219-10 VA NOTICE OF TOTAL SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS SET-ASIDE (JUL 2019)(DEVIATION) (a) Definition. For the Department of Veterans Affairs, Service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concern or SDVSOB: (1) Means a small business concern (i) Not less than 51 percent of which is owned by one or more service-disabled Veterans or, in the case of any publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more service-disabled Veterans or eligible surviving spouses (see VAAR 802.201, Surviving Spouse definition); (ii) The management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more service-disabled Veterans (or eligible surviving spouses) or, in the case of a service-disabled Veteran with permanent and severe disability, the spouse or permanent caregiver of such Veteran; (iii) The business meets Federal small business size standards for the applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code identified in the solicitation document; (iv) The business has been verified for ownership and control pursuant to 38 CFR 74 and is so listed in the Vendor Information Pages database, (https://www.vip.vetbiz.va.gov); and (v) The business will comply with VAAR subpart 819.70 and Small Business Administration (SBA) regulations regarding small business size and government contracting programs at 13 CFR part 121 and 125, including the nonmanufacturer rule and limitations on subcontracting requirements in 13 CFR 121.406 and 125.6, provided that any reference therein to a service-disabled veteran-owned small business concern (SDVO SBC), is to be construed to apply to a VA verified and VIP-listed SDVOSB. The nonmanufacturer rule and the limitations on subcontracting apply to all SDVOSB and VOSB set-asides and sole source contracts. (2) Service-disabled Veteran means a Veteran, as defined in 38 U.S.C. 101(2), with a disability that is service-connected, as defined in 38 U.S.C. 101(16). (b) General. (1) Offers are solicited only from eligible service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concerns. Only VIP-listed service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concerns (SDVOSBs) may submit offers in response to this solicitation. Offers received from concerns that are not VIP-listed service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concerns shall not be considered. (2) Any award resulting from this solicitation shall be made to a VIP-listed service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concern that meets the size standard for the applicable NAICS code. (c) Representation. By submitting an offer, the prospective contractor represents that it is an eligible SDVOSB as defined in this clause, 38 CFR part 74, and VAAR subpart 819.70. Pursuant to 38 U.S.C. 8127(e), only VIP-listed SDVOSBs are considered eligible. Therefore, any reference in 13 CFR part 121 and 125 to a service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concern (SDVO SBC), is to be construed to apply to a VA verified and VIP-listed SDVOSB and only such concern(s) qualify as similarly situated. The offeror must also be eligible at the time of award. (d) Agreement. When awarded a contract (see FAR 2.101, Definitions), including orders under multiple-award contracts, or a subcontract, an SDVOSB agrees that in the performance of the contract, the SDVOSB shall comply with requirements in VAAR subpart 819.70 and SBA regulations on small business size and government contracting programs at 13 CFR part 121 and 125, including the nonmanufacturer rule and limitations on subcontracting requirements in 13 CFR part 121.406 and 125.6, provided that for purposes of the limitations on subcontracting, only VIP-listed SDVOSBs shall be considered eligible and/or similarly situated (i.e., a firm that has the same small business program status as the prime contractor). An independent contractor shall be considered a subcontractor. An otherwise eligible firm further agrees to the following: (1) Services. In the case of a contract for services (except construction), it will not pay more than 50% of the amount paid by the government to it to firms that are not VIP-listed SDVOSBs. (2) Supplies or products. (i) In the case of a contract for supplies or products (other than from a nonmanufacturer of such supplies), it will not pay more than 50% of the amount paid by the government to it to firms that are not VIP-listed SDVOSBs. (ii) In the case of a contract for supplies from a nonmanufacturer, it will supply the product of a domestic small business manufacturer or processor, unless a waiver is described in 13 CFR 121.406(b)(5) is granted. (3) General construction. In the case of a contract for general construction, it will not pay more than 85% of the amount paid by the government to it to firms that are not VIP-listed SDVOSBs. (4) Special trade contractors. In the case of a contract for special trade contractors, it will not pay more than 75% of the amount paid by the government to it to firms that are not VIP-listed SDVOSBs. (5) Subcontracting. Any work that a VIP-listed SDVOSB subcontractor further subcontracts will count towards the percent of subcontract amount that cannot be exceeded. For supply or construction contracts, cost of materials is excluded and not considered to be subcontracted. For mixed contracts and additional limitations, refer to 13 CFR 125.6. (e) Joint ventures. A joint venture may be considered an SDVOSB if the joint venture is listed in VIP and complies with the requirements in 13 CFR 125.18(b), provided that any reference therein to service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concern or SDVO SBC, is to be construed to mean a VIP-listed SDVOSB. A joint venture agrees that, in the performance of the contract, the applicable percentage specified in paragraph (d) of this clause will be performed by the aggregate of the joint venture participants. (f) Precedence. For any inconsistencies between the requirements of the SBA program for service-disabled Veteran-owned small business concerns and the VA Veterans First Contract Program, as defined in VAAR subpart 819.70 and this clause, the VA Veterans First Contracting Program requirements have precedence. (End of clause)