NLM Lister Hill Center (LHC) Auditorium Booking and Management

AMENDMENT #1: The purpose of Amendment 1 is to add the Response to Vendor Inquiries. *********************************************************************** This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation is being issued as Request for Quotations (RFQ) NIHLM2015504SRE. The resultant order will be a firm-fixed price purchase order. In accordance with FAR Parts 12 and 13.5, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Library of Medicine (NLM) intends to procure professional services to assist in managing the scheduling and all non-audiovisual arrangements for the Lister Hill Center (LHC) Auditorium. This acquisition is a Women Owned Small Business Set-Aside. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code is 541611-Administrative Management and General Consulting Services. Background The Lister Hill Center (LHC) Auditorium is a unique, 176-seat facility equipped with sophisticated audiovisual equipment and a projection system. As a unique biomedical communication facility, the LHC Auditorium has been utilized for specialized events that require its high-tech capabilities. Such events include conferences, symposia and workshops that require multimedia equipment. Approximately 115 functions are scheduled annually, ranging from one-hour lectures to week-long scientific conferences. Purpose and Objective The purpose of this acquisition is for NLM OCPL to acquire professional services to assist in managing the scheduling and all non-audiovisual arrangements for the LHC Auditorium, which is used by NLM, NIH, HHS, other government agencies, and select non-governmental organizations. The NLM OCPL seeks assistance in coordinating with Government staff to manage the use of the LHC Auditorium located on the NIH Main Campus in Bethesda, Maryland. Contractor Responsibility Independently, and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all necessary services, qualified personnel, materials, supplies, and equipment, not otherwise provided by the Government as needed to complete the Statement of Work (SOW) tasks. All work performed under this procurement shall be monitored by the NLM Contracting Officer's Representative (COR). Contractor Tasks The Contractor shall perform the following tasks: - Coordinate and manage the scheduling of events and all non-audiovisual arrangements to be held in the LHC Auditorium and the LHC lobby - Obtain all required clearances for LHC Auditorium events - Conduct pre-meeting walk-throughs with meeting planners as requested, to ascertain needs and orient the meeting planners to the LHC auditorium and lobby capabilities - Conduct e-mail exchanges and telephone conversations with meeting coordinators and other individuals regarding auditorium availability and capabilities - Perform data entry into NLM Audiovisual Program Development Branch (APDB) Project Support System (PSS) (event management) regarding audiovisual requirements for meetings - Provide on-site meeting management support and troubleshooting for meetings lasting four (4) hours or longer and at other special events, as requested by the NLM COR - Perform miscellaneous administrative duties to include but not be limited to submitting reservation requests to the Executive Office (EO), approving requests, updating as warranted digital information about and forms for booking the LHC Auditorium, contacting NLM staff regarding set-ups, security, schedules, and caterers - Although some SOW tasks may be performed off-site, the Contractor shall collaborate with the NLM COR to establish a consistent "office hours" schedule. The Contractor shall work on-site for a consecutive 3-hour block during normal business hours (7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.), Monday-Friday except Federal holidays - Provide a qualified, trained back-up person to perform the SOW tasks on short notice when the auditorium booking and management agent is unavailable - On an as-needed basis, the Contractor shall be on-site early mornings (6:00-7:30 a.m.) to launch sessions, or stay late (6:00-9:00 p.m.) when meetings feature receptions or poster sessions - Submit invoices electronically to the NLM COR on a monthly basis. The invoices shall include a description of activities and the total number of hours worked. Place of Performance The work under this SOW shall be performed at the NIH Main Campus, NLM/LHC at 8600 Rockville Pike, Building 38A, Bethesda, MD 20894. At the discretion of the NLM, work may also be performed off-site. Period of Performance The period of performance shall be September 30, 2015 to September 29, 2016 with four (4) additional 12-month option periods. Contract Type The resultant Purchase Order shall be firm-fixed price contingent on the fixed unit rate for 1,560 hours per twelve (12) months. Operational Hours The work shall be performed for up to thirty (30) hours per week (totaling 1,560 hours per twelve (12) months) during normal business hours, Monday-Friday, excluding Federal holidays. These hours can vary widely on a weekly basis. Government-Furnished Materials The Government will provide the following: workspace, computer, telephone and other electronic equipment as necessary. Government-Furnished Property At the discretion of the NLM, the Contractor may work remotely a portion of the time. The Government may furnish a Government-owned BlackBerry phone to the Contractor for use in direct performance of the contract. TECHNICAL EVALUATION FACTORS Technical factors are of paramount consideration in the award of the purchase order; however, price is also important to the overall award decision. All evaluation factors other than price, when combined, are significantly more important than price. The Government can make tradeoffs among price and technical factors in determining which Quoter offers the best value by awarding to other than the lowest price Quoter or other than the highest technically rated Quoter. Quoters are advised that award will be made to that Quoter whose quote provides the best overall value to the Government. TECHNICAL EVALUATION CRITERIA In determining which quote represents the best value and results in the lowest overall price alternative (considering price, special features, administrative costs, etc.) to meet the Government's needs, the Government shall evaluate quotes using the following technical evaluation criteria, which are listed in the order of relative importance with weights assigned for evaluation processes: 1)Understanding the Requirements/Technical Approach (40 Points) - Demonstrate quality and clarity of the methodological approach involved in fulfilling the scope of work to coordinate auditorium event planning and execution - Demonstrate general approach to coordinating auditorium events and associated performance objectives under the potential contract - Demonstrated understanding of the Government's intent for this procurement and the feasibility of approach to address its overall goals - Demonstrate soundness of approach to incorporate Government input on the project 2)Personnel/Staff Qualifications (40 Points) - Demonstrate qualifications, experience and availability of all proposed personnel, including any consultants and/or subcontractors, and evidence of relevant past work in events planning and/or management of a meeting facility similar in size and scope to the Lister Hill Center (LHC) Auditorium - Demonstrate project manager with knowledge of facilities booking management and the capability to lead a proposed team to successfully fulfill the NLM project - Demonstrate track record of competent facilities management in line with the goals and objectives of the proposed requirement - Demonstrate strong oral and written communication skills developed through education, professional experience, or both - Demonstrate evidence that proposed team can successfully perform facilities booking and management, including training of auditorium manager and the provision of qualified back-up staff for manager, as needed, that possess experience with computer mail and calendaring systems. 3)Organizational Capabilities, Experience and Commitment; Facilities and Resources (20 Points) - Demonstrate evidence of corporate capability to organize and manage resources and personnel effectively - Demonstrate experience managing the scheduling and all non-audiovisual arrangements for large meeting facilities with stakeholder input at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) or an organization of similar size and scope - Demonstrate successful experience working with diverse people and groups, both public and private, on the planning side and the execution side, and also a diverse array of clients, both public and private - Demonstrate adequacy of mechanisms in place to provide technically qualified staff on a quick turnaround basis, as needed, and to provide assigned personnel assigned that possess experience in logistics planning, site visits, meetings, conferences, or other similar events. - Demonstrate organizational commitment to quality of product and deployment of necessary resources to meet the project requirements - Demonstrate experience and capability to solve facilities management planning problems and trouble shoot last-minute changes and challenges Past Performance An evaluation of the offeror's past performance will be conducted. The evaluation will be based on information obtained from references provided by the offeror and other relevant past performance information obtained from other sources known to the Government. The past performance shall demonstrate the Offeror's background experience with projects of a similar size and magnitude. The Offeror shall provide: - A minimum of three (3) references to include organization name, address, telephone number, Contracting Officer's name and telephone number, Program Manager's name and telephone number, a description of services provided, contract number, contract type, and the contract value. - The Offeror shall demonstrate previous experience in health communications planning, message development, social marketing, evaluation, media and other outreach activities with projects of a similar size and magnitude. FEDERAL ACQUISITION REQULATION (FAR) CLAUSES The following provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition and are incorporated by reference. Full text may be found at https://www.acquisition.gov/Far FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation-Commercial Items FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items FAR 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items FAR 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes and Executive orders All interested parties shall submit electronic responses to Sheila Edmonds at sheila.edmonds@nih.gov. Responses must be received no later than 3:00 P.M. EST on Tuesday, August 25, 2015, and shall not exceed 10 single-sided pages in length, exclusive of the cover page and letter, table of contents, appendices, and resumes. Please reference solicitation number RFQ-NIHLM2015504/SRE on all correspondence to this notice. Inquiries regarding this notice shall be submitted electronically to sheila.edmonds@nih.gov and shall be received by 2:00 P.M. EST on Tuesday, August 18, 2015. The proposal submitted in response to this RFQ shall be prepared in two (2) parts and be clearly identified as a "Technical Proposal" and "Business Proposal." Proposals shall be in sufficient detail to permit proper evaluation, negotiation and/or acceptance thereof. The technical proposal must not contain reference to price; however, resource information (such as data concerning labor hours and categories, materials, subcontracts, etc.) must be contained in the technical proposal so that the Contractor's understanding of the Statement of Work may be evaluated. In order to receive an award, Contractors must have valid registration and certification in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and the Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA) through the System of Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov.