Communications and Operations Research & Analysis (ORA)

Sources Sought for Re-Competition of Communications and Operations Research Analysis (CORA) Support Services The Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center) is seeking 8(a) Small Business Offerors with Communications and Operations Research & Analysis (ORA) technical expertise capabilities; as well as Program Management and Financial/Administrative Management capabilities. These activities will include direct technical support for a variety of Communications and ORA programmatic requirements; the preponderance of this work will take place on site at the Volpe Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Volpe Center Federal personnel supported by contractor resources carry out research and development, engineering, and analysis of transportation systems and policy issues on a fee-for-service basis for a variety of sponsors within the U.S. Department of Transportation; other Federal, state, and local Government agencies; and other organizations. New and continuing sponsor requirements change rapidly, often making it difficult to project resource requirements with accuracy. The current Volpe Center project portfolio consists of approximately 800 active projects. The projects vary in number, scope, and substance over the course of any year. The Volpe Center's staffing strategy uses a combination of Federal and contractor employees to meet the broad range and quantity of skills needed to support projects. Through on-site technical support service contracts and other contracts, the Volpe Center can respond to uncertain, long-range requirements of these technical programs Any contract award(s) as a result of the re-competition of CORA may cover both (1) a majority of the existing on-site requirements and (2) other new requirements which can range from small, less complex requirements to new, more complex requirements. Projects generally address issues of national importance, requiring an appreciation of local, national, and international transportation issues and trends; a multi-modal perspective; and an understanding for the various public and private interests at work within these areas. Due to the changing nature of the extensive and diverse portfolio of projects, resources must be easily accessible, agile, and flexible in terms of skill sets required. The contractor workforce must be responsive to changing technical requirements and quickly provide Communications and ORA capabilities that will enable the Volpe Center to take advantage of opportunities for new work. Communication services will consist of business and technical activities, which may include: 1. Writing and Editing; 2. Graphics design; 3. Web Design and Development; 4. Communications Strategy Development and Stakeholder Engagement; 5. Conference Planning and Logistics; 6. Financial and Administrative Program Support; 7. Team Development/Training execution; 8. Video/Photographic Project Support; and 9. Printing and Production Support. Operations Research and Analysis (ORA) will consist of business and technical activities, which may include: 1. System Analysis and Policy Impacts; 2. Industry Analysis; 3. System Operational Performance; 4. Technological Advances; 5. Strategic Framework; 6. Program Evaluation; and 7. Engineering Support. Project Management support may include the following: 1. Capability to manage all projects through an established job order system; 2. Provide project planning and management capabilities; and 3. Establish processes for coordinating the activities and results of resources and project teams. Financial/Administrative Management support may include the following: 1. Capability to oversee the financial management and administration of costs to provide data and methodologies for estimating annual costs, demand for labor, and labor category rate setting to ensure recovery of costs (also referred to as cost recovery); and 2. Capability to meet project performance requirements, including but not limited to management of wide-ranging information technology and facilities/security-related requests Interested Offerors are requested to submit a capabilities package demonstrating their experience and have the ability to provide said services at multiple, simultaneous sites nationwide. All capability information shall include: Contract number; Customer (Government agency, private industry); Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) name, telephone and fax numbers; contract value and type of contract; period of performance; and description of product/services. Information provided should be detailed in the area(s) above so the Government can assess the ability of the company to provide the described services in each of the work areas described. All of the information sought should be conveyed in no more than six (6) pages. Page size is set at 8 X 11 and text should be no smaller than 11 point. Each response must reference the Sources Sought title. All capable business concerns who are interested shall submit responses. Interested small businesses shall indicate whether they are certified 8(a) Small Business. As a result of recent changes to Federal Acquisition Regulations Part 19, small business concerns must ensure that their status certifications are up to date. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 541990 with a small business annual sales size standard of $15M. Interested parties must respond to this announcement in writing within 15 days of publication. Telephone requests will not be honored. All responses must be submitted via e-mail to Brian Toth at Brian.Toth@dot.gov AND Regina Rockwood at Regina.Rockwood@dot.gov. Electronic attachments to the e-mail should be submitted in Microsoft Office 2007 (or later) productivity application formats or any format that can be imported by Microsoft Office. ______________________ THIS NOTICE IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. This notice is for information and planning purposes only and is a market research tool to determine the availability and adequacy of potential business sources prior to determining the method of acquisition and possible issuance of a Request for Proposal. The notice does not constitute a solicitation for bids, quotations, and proposals and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. The information provided herein is subject to change and in no way binds the Government to solicit for or award a competitive contract. The Government is not obligated to and will not pay for any information received from potential sources as a result of response to this Sources Sought notice. The Government will not pay for any materials provided in response to this synopsis and submittals will not be returned to the sender. Submissions must be disclosable to the public, or the submitter should provide a summary statement that can be disclosed to the public with fuller supporting information that is clearly marked as restricted. The Government will use customary means to safeguard proprietary information, but only when such information is (1) clearly marked as proprietary; (2) is, in fact, information that could not have been obtained from another party or source; and (3) is otherwise deserving of such treatment under standards and processes described in the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Executive Order 12600. For information about the Volpe Center, refer to the Volpe Center website at http://www.volpe.dot.gov.