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THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. THIS IS A REQUEST FOR STANDARD FORM (SF) 330'S ARCHITECT-ENGINEER QUALIFICATION 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.

The only attachments being provided at this time are the SOW and PPQ.

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, reports and construction period services for Project # 630-23-703 EHRM Training and Admin Support Space project located at the VA Medical Center Manhattan, located at 423 East 23rd Street, New York, NY 10010. 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 Part 36.6 “Architectural and Engineering Services” and VA Acquisition Regulation 836.6. 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 Concerns (SDVOSB). The NAICS Code for this procurement is 541330 “Engineering Services” and the annual small business size standard is $25.5M. This project requires a full design team to complete this project. The projected award date for the anticipated A-E contract is July 2023.

The anticipated period of performance for completion of design is 144 calendar days after Notice of Award (NOA). The VAAR magnitude of construction is $10M to $20M. Please note that the 144 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. The solicitation support services, and construction period services will be option items that will be exercised after the award of the construction project.

3. A-E SELECTION PROCESS:

Firms submitting SF 330’s 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:

1. 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 (3) 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), debriefings of successful and unsuccessful firms will be held after final selection has taken place and will be conducted (if requested), 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.


2. 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, to include any questions or topics to address. Following the completion of discussions, the firms will be evaluated and ranked based on the primary and secondary selection criteria (if necessary), and the most highly rated firm will be selected and subsequently sent the solicitation. The final evaluation and ranking will consider the SF330 submission for each firm, as well as additional information obtained via discussions.


3. RFP and Negotiations: A site visit will be authorized for the highest rated firm 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 are not successful with the highest rated firm, 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.

1. Primary Selection Criteria:

1. Specialized experience and technical competence in the design of network infrastructure installation, renovations, and/or upgrades to information technology (IT) systems (either as solely IT projects or incorporated into new space/renovation projects). Work shall include networking back bone fiber optics, structured cabling, electrical distribution upgrades, uninterruptable power systems (UPS), electrical bonding, building management systems/building automation systems (BMS/BAS), HVAC, telecommunication room renovations/expansions/relocations, data center reconfiguration, electronic and physical security upgrades, and all such systems and components as may be necessary to achieve project goals. Other specialized experience includes experience in critical path scheduling, fire protection, construction infection control proto-cols, energy conservation and sustainable design practices. Include Government and private experience on project similar in size, scope and complexity and experience with project phasing to maintain hospital operations during construction. The evaluation may consider the management approach, coordination of disciplines and subcon-tractors, 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.

1. Professional qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of required service. 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 (5) 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 shall describe the professional qualifications and not less than five (5) years of experience in the required disciplines. Disciplines required for this project include, but are not limited to: Architecture, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Structural, Civil, 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), Cost Estimation, and Project Management. The evaluation will consider education, certifications, training, registration, overall and relevant experience and longevity with the firm.

Offer must include the following statement of SDVOSB compliance when submitting the personnel proposed to perform the work under this requirement:

“I [signatory authority]______________________, [company] __________________ certify that the team proposed to perform under this requirements demonstrates the capability of 50% SDVOSB performance in compliance of 48 CFR 852.219-10.”

1. Capacity to accomplish work in the required time. The evaluation will consider the firm’s plan and ability to meet the schedule of the overall project, as well as the available capacity of personnel in key disciplines. Provide the available capacity of required disciplines by providing current project workload, inclusive of all projects awarded during the previous 12 months and the full potential value of any current indefinite delivery contracts.

1. 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, see attached PPQ (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 requested data, accessible points of contact or valid phone numbers could result in a firm being considered less qualified.

The following information is required for all projects: contract/task order number, project title, prime firm, 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.

Note: We recommend you contact every reference listed and let them know we may contact them for information. Their timely replies would be appreciated.

1. Knowledge of the locality to include specific knowledge of certain local conditions or project site features, such as geological features, climatic conditions, local construction methods, construction firms and trades labor availability, and local laws and regulations.

1. Experience in construction period services for projects similar in scope to include 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.

1. Secondary Selection Criterion*:
   
   
   
   
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         1. Geographic location. Location of the firm, as measured by the driving distance (miles) between the Offeror’s principal business location and the VA Medical Center (VAMC) Manhattan. 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.

1. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

The below information contains the instructions and format that shall be followed for the submission of the SF 330, Statement of Qualifications:

• Submit ONE (1) SF 330, Statement of Qualifications, via email to the Contract Specialist Amanda.Webster@va.gov. This shall include Parts I and II of the SF 330 and any applicable attachments.


• The submission must include the SF 330, Architect/Engineer Qualifications (form is available on-line at http://www.cfm.va.gov/contract/ae.asp).


• The SF 330 submission is due on or before April 14, 2023, at 1:00 PM ET.


• The SF 330 shall be submitted in one email and have a file size shall be no larger than 5 MB. No hard copies will be accepted.


• The subject line of the email shall read: “Manhattan SF330 R0062”


• The page limitation of the SF 330 shall not exceed a total of 35 pages. This includes title page, table of contents, and any other relevant information. Each page shall be in in Arial size 12 font, single spaced. Part II of the SF 330 and any Contractor Performance Assessment Rating System (CPARS) reports will not count as part of the page limitations.


• A PPQ from previous projects may be submitted for this project. If significant portions of a project have been completed since the previous PPQ was filled out, a new PPQ should be submitted to accurately assess the project.


• All SF 330 submissions must include the following information either on the SF 330 or by accompanying document: 1) Cage Code; 2) Unique Entity Identifier (UEI); 3) Tax ID Number; 4) The E-mail address and Phone number of the Primary Point of Contact.


• All questions shall be submitted to Amanda.Webster@va.gov with the subject line “Questions Manhattan SF330 R0062” The cutoff for question submission is March 24, 2023, at 1:00 PM ET. 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 Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) concerns. Offers received from other than SDVOSBs will not be considered. Offerors must be verified 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 SF330 submission, written response submission, and award. Failure to be BOTH visible and verified at these times will result in the offeror being deemed unacceptable and 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. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (NDAA 2021) grants a one-year grace period for self-certified SDVOSBs until January 1, 2024. During the grace period, self-certified businesses have one year to file an application for SDVOSB certification and may continue to rely on their self-certification to compete for non-VA SDVOSB set-aside contracts. Self-certified SDVOSBs that apply before January 1, 2024, will maintain their eligibility through the expiration of the grace period until SBA issues a final eligibility decision.

• All joint ventures must be SBA verified at time of submission and 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 shall 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: https://www.sam.gov/ for any revisions to this announcement prior to submission of SF 330s.

See attached document: SOW - AE Design - 630-23-703 2-7-22.

See attached document: PPQ - EHRM Design - Manhattan.

End of Document

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