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

THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. THIS IS A REQUEST FOR STANDARD FORM (SF) 330 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER QUALIFICATIONS PACKAGES ONLY. ALL INFORMATION NEEDED TO SUBMIT SF 330 DOCUMENTS IS CONTAINED HEREIN.... THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. THIS IS A REQUEST FOR STANDARD FORM (SF) 330 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER QUALIFICATIONS PACKAGES ONLY. ALL INFORMATION NEEDED TO SUBMIT SF 330 DOCUMENTS IS CONTAINED HEREIN. NO SOLICITATION PACKAGE, TECHNICAL INFORMATION, OR BIDDER/PLAN HOLDER LIST WILL BE ISSUED. THE GOVERNMENT WILL NOT PAY, NOR REIMBURSE, ANY COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH RESPONDING TO THIS REQUEST. THE GOVERNMENT IS UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO AWARD A CONTRACT AS A RESULT OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. 1. GENERAL INFORMATION Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Program Contracting Activity Central (PCAC) is seeking sources and intends to award a firm fixed price design contract for Architect-Engineering (A-E) services for the development of complete construction documents, which include working drawings, specifications, and reports, and construction period services for Project # 663A4-24-703 EHRM Infrastructure Upgrades at the American Lake VA Medical Center in Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The A-E Services contract that is anticipated to be awarded will be procured in accordance with the Selection of Architects and Engineers statute [formerly known as the Brooks Architect Engineer Act], Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 36.6 Architectural and Engineering Services, VA Acquisition Regulation (VAAR) 836.6, and VA Acquisition Manual (VAAM) M836.6 Architect-Engineer Services. In accordance with FAR 36.209, Construction Contracts with Architect-Engineer Firms, no contract for the construction of a project shall be awarded to the firm that designed the project or its subsidiaries or affiliates, except with the approval of the head of the agency or authorized representative. 2. PROJECT INFORMATION This project is a 100% set-aside for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) concerns. The NAICS code for this procurement is 541330 Engineering Services and the annual small business size standard is $25.5M. A full design team is required to complete this project. The VA expects to award the anticipated A-E contract in late May 2024. The anticipated period of performance for completion of design is 324 calendar days after notice of award (NOA). The VAAR magnitude of construction is between $10,000,000 and $20,000,000. Please note that the 324-calendar-day period of performance for the design completion begins with the issuance of the NOA and that a notice to proceed (NTP) will not be issued for the completion of a design project. 3. A-E SELECTION PROCESS Firms submitting SF 330s in response to this announcement, not later than the closing date and time specified herein and in accordance with submission requirements, will be considered for evaluation. The selection will be made as follows: SF 330s will be evaluated in accordance with the primary selection criteria as stated in this pre-solicitation notice. These evaluations will determine the most highly qualified firms for this particular requirement. In accordance with FAR 36.602-3(c), at least three of the most highly qualified firms will then be notified of the Government s intent to hold discussions. All firms not invited to participate in discussions will be notified at this time. In accordance with FAR 36.607(b), any requested debriefings of successful and unsuccessful firms will be held after final selection has taken place and will be conducted, to the extent practicable, in accordance with 15.503, 15.506(b) through (f), and 15.507(c). Note that 15.506(d)(2) through (d)(5) do not apply to architect-engineer contracts. Discussions will be held with the most highly qualified firms in the form of written responses. The firms invited to participate in discussions will be notified by email and provided further instructions, including any questions or topics to address. Following the completion of discussions, the firms will be evaluated and ranked based on the primary and (if necessary) secondary selection criteria. The final evaluation and ranking will consider the SF 330 submission for each firm, as well as additional information obtained via discussions. The highest rated firm will be selected to receive the solicitation and engage in negotiations. The solicitation will be issued to the highest rated firm as a Request for Fee Proposal (RFP). All SOW attachments and site-specific documentation will be provided to the highest rated firm with the RFP. A site visit will be authorized during the negotiation process. An award will then be made as long as the negotiation of rates and hours leads to a fair and reasonable determination of the final contract price. If negotiations with the highest rated firm are unsuccessful, the firm will be notified that negotiations have been terminated. Negotiations will then be initiated with the next highest rated firm, and so on until award can be made. 4. SELECTION CRITERIA: Firms responding to this notice will be evaluated and ranked using the primary and secondary selection criteria listed below. The factors are listed in descending order of importance. The evaluation will consider how each factor is addressed and how it is formatted to coincide with the selection criteria. Primary Selection Criteria: Specialized experience and technical competence in the design and construction period services provided for infrastructure installation, renovations, EHRM Infrastructure Upgrade related experience, and/or upgrades to information technology (IT) systems (either as solely IT projects or incorporated into new space/renovation projects).Work shall include Bonding, UPS, Building Management System interfaces, assess for new and upgrades to existing HVAC, reconfiguration, expansion and renovation of existing space (demo, new construction, finishes, cable), Upgrade existing data center (electrical distribution, cable management, cabinet realignment, demo, raised flooring, finishes, HVAC distribution), communication infrastructure (new Data outlets, patch panels, upgrade to Cat 6A cable) in buildings as necessary, physical security upgrades, assess and upgrade fiber infrastructure backbone campus wide within buildings and between buildings, hazardous material abatement. The evaluation may consider other elements such as project phasing to maintain hospital operations during construction, quality control procedures and familiarity with VA Design Guides/Manuals, Master Specifications and other applicable standards. These areas shall be addressed in section H of the SF 330. Additionally, prior experience of the prime and key subcontractors working together on relevant projects, as indicated in section G, will be considered in the evaluation. Offeror shall provide a minimum of 2 (two) but no more than 4 (four) recent and relevant projects to demonstrate its specialized experience and technical competence. Relevant is defined as those task requirements identified in the RFQ s Scope of Work. Recent is de-fine as services provided within the past 5 (five) years. Each project shall include the following: Project title, location and detailed narrative describing the scope of services pro-vided including the type of work performed by the offeror and its role in the project i.e. prime contract, Teaming Partner or subcontractor Project Owner, owner s point of contact including telephone number and email address. Services & Deliverables provided under the contract/task order Period of Performance, including start and completion dates Total dollar value of the project. The evaluation will consider the management approach, coordination of disciplines and subcontractors, quality control procedures, prior experience of the prime firm and any key subcontractors working together on relevant projects, and familiarity with VA Design Guides/Manuals, Master Specifications, and other applicable standards. The information provided in sections F and G of SF 330 will be used to evaluate this factor. Do not include this information in section H, unless it is pertinent to support the information listed in the other sections. Professional qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of required services. The architects and engineers on the firm s staff representing the project or signing/stamping drawings in each discipline must possess a minimum of five years of experience and are required to be licensed, registered, or certified by a US state, the District of Columbia, or a US territory. Provide professional license jurisdiction of issue and license numbers and/or proof of licensure. At a minimum, the offeror must describe the professional qualifications and specific experience in the required disciplines. Disciplines required for this project include, but are not limited to: Architecture, Mechanical, Electrical, IT Specialist/Tele-communication Specialist (RCDD or equivalent), Plumbing, Structural, Fire Protection, Hazardous Material Abatement/Industrial Hygiene, Physical Security (note must hold the Certified Protection Professional (CPP) or Physical Security Professional (PSP) certification issued by ASIS International), Commissioning Agent, Cost Estimation, and Project Management. An Individual may cover multiple disciplines, the individual must demonstrate in each discipline fulfillment of the requirements listed in Sections C through E (min. 5 years experience & professional licensure in that discipline). The evaluation will consider education, certifications, training, registration, overall and relevant experience and longevity with the firm. Offeror must include the following statement of SDVOSB compliance when submitting the personnel proposed to perform the work under this requirement: I, [signatory authority], of [company name], certify that the SDVOSB prime contractor will not pay more than 50% of the amount paid by the government to the prime for contract performance to firms that are not certified SDVOSBs listed in the SBA certification database in compliance with VAAR 852.219-73. The information provided in sections C through E of SF 330 will be used to evaluate this factor. Do not include this information in section H, unless it is pertinent to support the information listed in the other sections. Past performance on contracts with Government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, and compliance with performance schedules. CPARS data or PPQs (if no CPARS data is available) must be provided for projects submitted under Factor 1 (Specialized Experience). CPARS data and PPQs do not count toward the page limitation. Government Past Performance Information Systems may be accessed. Evaluating past performance and experience may include information provided by the firm, customer inquiries, Government databases, and publicly available sources. Failure to provide re-quested data, accessible points of contact or valid phone numbers could result in a firm being considered less qualified. The following information is required for each project: contract/task order number, project title, prime firm name, start date, and completion date. Evaluations may also include additional performance related from the firm, customer inquiries, Government databases, publicly available sources, and additional projects in CPARS. The Government reserves the right to also evaluate past performance on previously awarded federal task orders and any other information available. Additionally, the Government will review the firm s previous ability to meet the 50% SDVOSB performance requirement on other task orders. If there is no CPARS data available, Past Performance Questionnaires (PPQs) will be accepted. Please utilize the attached PPQ document. If CPARS or PPQs are not available for submission due to extenuating circumstances (such as the contract has not been closed out therefore CPARS have not been per-formed) the firm must state the CPARS/PPQs cannot be provided and why. This is to prevent a misinformation being counted as deficiency. Note: We recommend you contact every reference listed and let them know we may contact them for information. Their timely replies would be appreciated. on contracts with Government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, quality of work, and compliance with performance schedules. CPARS data or PPQs (use attached PPQ if no CPARS data is available) must be provided for all projects submitted under Factor 1 Specialized Experience. The following information must be specified on each performance report: contract/task order number, project title, prime firm, start date, and completion date. CPARS data and PPQs do not count toward the page limitation. Government past performance information systems may be accessed. Evaluating past performance and experience may include information provided by the firm, customer inquiries, Government databases, publicly available sources, and additional projects in CPARS. Failure to provide requested data, accessible points of contact, or valid phone numbers could result in a firm being considered less qualified. Experience in construction period of services, for projects similar in scope to include professional field inspections during the construction period, commissioning, review of construction submittals, support in answering requests for information during the construction period, support of construction contract changes to include drafting statements of work, and cost estimates, attendance at weekly conference calls, providing minutes of meeting between the A-E, VA, and Contractors, pre-final inspection and site visits, generation of punch list reports ,and production of as-built documentation. The in-formation for this factor shall be provided in Section H of the SF330. The information for this factor must be provided in section H of SF 330. Knowledge of locality to include specific knowledge of certain local conditions or project site features, such as geological features, climatic conditions, local construction methods or local laws and regulations. The information for this factor is to showcase a firm s understanding of the site and locality, and not where the firm is located and how they would travel to the site. Information related to the firm s location, shall be provided in Section H, under Secondary Selection Criteria Factor 2. Capacity to accomplish work in the required time. The following information is required for this factor: a. The Offeror shall provide the percentage of time personnel referenced under professional qualifications will be dedicated toward this project. b. The Offeror shall provide the available capacity for personnel listed under professional qualifications (section E). c. The offeror shall include a draft schedule outlining how they intend to meet the period of performance outlined in the SOW. Draft schedule will not be counted toward the page limitation. d. The Offeror may include any additional resources that will be dedicated toward this project. The evaluation will consider the firm s plan and ability to meet the schedule of the overall project, as well as the firm s approach to measuring and managing capacity both prior to and during contract performance to ensure qualified personnel are available to meet the contract requirements. Secondary Selection Criterion*: Geographic location. Location of the firm, as measured by the driving distance (miles) between the offeror s principal business location and the project site. Determination of the mileage will be based on Google Maps (https://www.google.com/maps/dir/). *The secondary selection criterion is used as a tiebreaker, if necessary, in ranking the most highly qualified firms following the completion of discussions. The secondary selection criterion will not be applied when determining a firm s SF 330 submission highly qualified or not highly qualified. 5. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS: The below information contains the instructions and format that must be followed for the submission of the SF 330 Statement of Qualifications: Submit ONE (1) SF 330 Statement of Qualifications to Contract Specialist Amanda Webster at Amanda.Webster@va.gov. This must include Parts I and II and any applicable attachments. The submission must include the SF 330, Architect-Engineer Qualifications (form is available online at http://www.cfm.va.gov/contract/ae.asp). The SF 330 submission is due by 3:00 PM ET on January 31, 2024. The SF 330 must be submitted in one email and have a file size no larger than 5 MB. No hard copies will be accepted. The subject line of the email must read: SF 330 Submission - 36C77624R0053 American Lake EHRM Infrastructure Upgrades. The SF 330 submission must not exceed a total of 50 pages. This includes title page, table of contents, and any other relevant information. Any pages submitted by an offeror that exceed the limit will not be considered during the evaluation. Each page must be in Arial size 12 font, single spaced. Part II of the SF 330 and any CPARs or PPQs will NOT count toward the page limitation. A PPQ obtained for another SF 330 submission may be submitted for this project. However, if significant portions of the project have been completed since the PPQ was filled out, a new PPQ should be submitted to accurately assess the project. Firms must include the following information in section B of the SF 330 submission: 1) SAM Unique Entity Identifier 2) Tax ID number 3) Cage code 4) Primary point of contact s email address and phone number All questions must be submitted to both Amanda.Webster@va.gov and Bridget.May@va.gov with the subject line SF 330 Questions - American Lake EHRM Infrastructure Upgrades. The cutoff for question submission is 3:00 PM ET on January 15, 2023. Questions will be answered through modification to the pre-sol notice posted to Contract Opportunities at SAM.gov. This procurement is a 100% set-aside for SDVOSB concerns. Offers received from other than SDVOSBs will not be considered. Offerors must be certified as SDVOSBs by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and visible in the Veteran Small Business Certification (VetCert) database (https://veterans.certify.sba.gov/) at the time of SF 330 submission, written response submission, and award. Failure to be BOTH certified and visible in the VetCert database at these times will result in the offeror being deemed ineligible for award. NOTE: As of January 1, 2023, all SDVOSBs that were previously verified by VA's Center for Verification and Evaluation (CVE) are automatically granted certification by the SBA for the remainder of the firm s eligibility period. The SBA intends to grant a one-time, one-year extension of certification to current SDVOSBs verified by the VA as of the transfer date on January 1, 2023. This additional year will be added to the existing eligibility period of a current participant. New applicants certified by SBA after January 1, 2023, will receive the standard three-year certification period. All joint ventures must be SBA certified at the time of SF 330 submission, written response submission, and award and must submit agreements that comply with 13 CFR 128.402 prior to contract award. All prime firms must meet the NAICS code requirement specified in this notice. The Contracting Officer will verify the NAICS code in VetCert. Failure to meet the NAICS code requirement may result in the rejection of the SF 330 submission. SF 330 submissions received after the date and time specified will not be considered. Late proposal rules per FAR 15.208 will be followed for late submittals. Firms not providing the required information may not be evaluated. All information must be included in the SF 330 submission package. It is the offeror s responsibility to check the Contract Opportunities website at SAM.gov for any revisions to this announcement prior to submitting their SF 330. See attached document: American Lake EHRM SOW - FINAL. See attached document: PPQ American Lake VA Medical Center. End of Document