National Office of Job Corps Internet Services

Sources Sought Notice for Request for Information (RFI) Number 1631-OJC-23-ODC-0100. The government reserves the right to compete any acquisition resulting from this notice. This sources sought notice is for planning purposes only and does not commit the Government to pay for the information requested, issue a solicitation, or award a contract. No solicitation document exists at this time. A determination by the Government to proceed with the acquisition as a set-aside is within the discretion of the Government. This notice is for small business and other than small business concerns. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL The United States Department of Labor, Employment & Training Administration, National Office of Job Corps is conducting market research related to a potential upcoming procurement of a Cost-Reimbursement contract vehicle to provide Internet service to all Job Corps campuses in the United States, including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. It is expected that the selected vendor will perform, at minimum, the following functions: - Identify viable Local Exchange Carriers (LECs) for each Job Corps location; - Enter into agreements with LECs to provide bandwidth (minimum speeds will be identified in the Performance Work Statement); - Manage the invoicing and billing process with each respective LEC; - Monitor the delivery of internet service to each Job Corps location; - Mitigate any interruption in Internet service; - Work with individual LECs to restore service in the event of interruption within a minimum time period as described in the Performance Work Statement; - Communicate to the Government as directed, in detail, all monthly charges incurred; and - Participate in meetings with Government personnel as directed by the COR and/or Program Manager. The Government expects to identify potential vendors through the following NAICS Codes: 517111, 517112, 517121, 517810, 518210, and 519290. It is anticipated that a Cost-Reimbursement-type contract with one twelve-month base period and possible option periods will be awarded. If a new vendor is selected to satisfy this requirement, it is expected that a transition period will be built into the contract to mitigate lapses in Internet services to Job Corps locations. The contractor shall have demonstrated experience in the delivery of Internet services through third-party agreements with LECs and ensuring a 99.5% active signal rate to each location. The contractor shall also be able to deliver Internet through LECs to urban, suburban, exurban, and remote/rural areas on a national scale; as Job Corps has physical plant locations in the 48 contiguous United States in addition to Alaska, Hawaii, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Contractors will be expected to provide all material, services, and necessary personnel to execute the requirements as described in the potential solicitation and resultant contract. Note that no property nor workspace will be provided by the government upon award of any contract. Background Job Corps (JC) is an education and training program whose goal is to help disadvantaged youth between the ages of 16 and 24 enter living-wage employment, advanced education, and training, apprenticeship, or the military. The program's major service components include basic reading and math skills, vocational/technical training, residential living, health care, health education, counseling, and job placement assistance. These comprehensive services are delivered at over 120+ operating Job Corps centers nationwide through a program structure that unites federal agencies, state agencies, private vendors, unions, and businesses. All contractors doing business with the Federal Government shall be registered in Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database which is located on the System for Award Management website, SAM.gov. The website for registration is http://sam.gov. All active CCR records have migrated to SAM. Interested contractors responding to this RFI will be required to indicate their ability to successfully manage and implement requirements as described above. FOR A CONTRACTOR TO BE DEEMED CAPABLE, THE CONTRACTOR MUST BE FOUND CAPABLE IN ALL 10 REQUIREMENTS LISTED BELOW. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. ?Statement of Qualifications / Capabilities Statement 1. Does your organization have demonstrated capability of delivering Internet services to a variety of locations as described above on a national level, including the Continental United States, District of Columbia, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico? 2. Describe your organization's experience in delivering Internet services as described in #1 above, especially when (1) encountering varying physical plant characteristics and challenges, and (2) in remote locations with outdated infrastructure. 3. Does your organization have any geographic limitations in potentially providing the services described above, e.g., no resources in Northeastern United States, inability to perform work at Job Corps centers in Hawaii, Puerto, Rico, Alaska, etc.? 4. Describe your organizational process for hiring personnel. Are you able to provide technical staff in remote, rural, and urban locations? How quickly are you able to replace staff (please discuss in the context of average position backfill time)? 5. Describe your organizational experience managing and ensuring data integrity. 6. If your organization were to respond to a solicitation of this type, what percentage of work would you anticipate subcontracting to other vendors? 7. Describe your organizational financial management experience of a Cost-Reimbursement-type contract. 8. Does your organization have access to financial resources sufficient to satisfy requirements of this type for the first 60 days of operation or the ability to obtain them, e.g., a $1 million line of credit, evidence of a positive cash flow, etc. 9. Describe your organization's infrastructure for corporate oversight and support and management/corporate services. 10. Describe your organization's experience with interacting with Federal Government personnel. What is your expected communication strategy with the Federal Government? THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL? All interested parties are invited to submit in writing, by the closing date indicated below for receipt of responses, a package entitled "Statement of Qualifications / Capabilities Statement (which must include the contractor's indication of their ability to fulfill requirements). The Statement of Qualifications/Capabilities Statement package must be transmitted under a cover letter. The response must be specific to each of the capability requirements listed above. The submittals shall not exceed 5 total pages, in double-spaced 12-point Times New Roman font. The capabilities statement package must be transmitted under a cover letter and must cite the following information at a minimum: 1. Response to RFI Number 1631-OJC-23-ODC-0100 2. Company Name, Address, and Company Point of Contact 3. DUNS Number 4. Business Size Standard/Classification and socio-economic status, if applicable 5. NAICS code certifications 6. GSA contract number (if applicable). The closing date for the receipt of responses is 5:00pm, Eastern Standard Time on June 2, 2023. Send your responses to David Webb and NaShaunte Graham at the following email addresses, webb.david.a@dol.gov and Graham.NaShaunte.J@dol.gov. PLEASE NOTE: THE SUBJECT LINE OF YOUR EMAIL MUST STATE: "Response to Sources Sought Notice DOL-1631-OJC-23-ODC-0100." No questions in connection with this notice will be accepted. Only submit responses to the Qualifications and Capabilities requirements provided above. The government reserves the right to compete any acquisition resulting from this notice. This sources sought notice is for planning purposes only and does not commit the Government to pay for the information requested, issue a solicitation, or award a contract. No solicitation document exists at this time. A determination by the Government to proceed with the acquisition as a set-aside is within the discretion of the Government. General Instructions: Only one submission will be reviewed per vendor for this RFI. That submission can respond to one or all questions above. Only electronic submissions will be accepted. Emails with attachments larger than 5 MB shall be broken down into multiple emails with no one attachment exceeding 5 MB. Each electronic submission shall include: RFI number and - Capability Statement in the Subject Line If the submission includes more than one electronic email, please include the file number and total files being submitted (e.g., File 1 of 4, File 2 of 4, etc.) in the Subject Line In the body of the email, include a Point of Contact (POC), phone number and email address of the person to be contacted regarding any correspondence between the Government and the Vendor. This person should be a primary contact and capable of addressing questions or issues associated with the submission and content of the Capability Statement. Include a brief summary of email content, Vendor name and firm's mailing address The Capability Statement attached to the email Capability Statements shall not exceed 15 pages, Times New Roman, Font Size 12, based on the criteria in 3.0, excluding the Cover Page. Marketing materials may also be submitted. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL.