R -- SOURCES SOUGHT: Environmental Commitments and Software Integration

SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS: THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT SYNOPSIS ANNOUNCEMENT; A MARKET SURVEY FOR INFORMATION ONLY. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION FOR PROPOSALS AND NO CONTRACT WILL BE AWARDED FROM THIS SYNOPSIS. NO REIMBURSEMENT WILL BE MADE FOR ANY COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH PROVIDING INFORMATION IN RESPONSE TO THIS SYNOPSIS OR ANY FOLLOW-UP INFORMATION REQUESTS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS SYNOPSIS IS TO GAIN KNOWLEDGE OF POTENTIALLY QUALIFIED SOURCES AND THEIR SIZE CLASSIFICATIONS (SMALL BUSINESS, LARGE BUSINESS, ETC.) PLEASE DO NOT REQUEST A COPY OF A SOLICITATION, AS ONE DOES NOT EXIST. The Government is seeking, for preliminary planning purposes only, qualified, experienced sources interested in performing the services identified in the Statement of Need (SON). The Government is requesting that interested concerns furnish the following information: (1) Company name, address, point of contact, telephone number and e-mail address. (2) Type of business, i.e., small, small disadvantaged, woman-owned, HubZone, serviced-disabled veteran-owned small business, large business, etc. under North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) 541511 which contains a size standard of $21,000,000.00. (3) Under which NAICS does your company usually perform all the services identified in the attached SON? Please include the rational for your answer. (4) Which of the following would you see as your role in the performance of this potential requirement? (a) Prime Contractor; (b) Subcontractor; or (c) Other, please describe. (5) Based on the SON , what type of contract would you like to see? (a) Firm-fixed-price (FFP); (b) Fixed-price incentive fee (FPIF); (c) Labor hour contract or (d) Combination of the above (please describe); or (e) Other (please describe). Please include the rationale for your answer. (6) Provide no more than three (3) references for no more than three (3) of the most recent and relevant contracts performed within the last three (3) years. Include name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address of references. Also, provide a brief description of the work performed, contract number, total contract value, and period of performance. Contracts must be same or similar to the work described in the SON. (7) Please comment and make recommendations on the optimum length of the total contract performance period, with option years based on your experience with contracts of this nature. Please include reasons for your answer. (8) Please describe any customary commercial contract terms or conditions you feel would make any resulting contract more effective. E-mail responses to this request for information are preferred, and should be sent to: contact@example.gov. All questions must be submitted in writing and forwarded to the aforementioned point of contact. Mailed responses should be submitted to the attention of Michael Johnson, Western Federal lands, 610 East Fifth Street, Vancouver, WA 98661. The due date and time for responses to this synopsis is 3:00 pm Central Standard Time on February 2, 2005. STATEMENT OF NEED I. Introduction The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Office of Federal Lands Highways (FLH) is striving to improve its ability to communicate, track, and assure implementation of environmental commitments for highway improvement projects. To that end, FLH is seeking to document current practices in the three FLH Divisions, identify and evaluate best practices among State DOTs, and design and implement an environmental commitment tracking system. Information on FLH is available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/flh/index.htm. In the fall of 2002, FHWA's Office of Project Development and Environmental Review sponsored the Domestic Scan Tour on Environmental Commitment Implementation (Domestic Scan). The Domestic Scan focused on successful practices and procedures for following through on environmental commitments made during and after the NEPA process. Examples of best management practices are presented in the final report that is intended to assist states, FHWA Divisions, environmental resource agencies, and the private sector in successfully implementing environmental commitments through project design, development, construction, and maintenance. The final report, dated July 2003, is available at http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/domScanRpt/execsumm.htm. This report is the foundation for the work requested herein and should be thoroughly reviewed prior to the kickoff meeting. Examples of commitment assurance practices and tracking mechanisms are particularly relevant. II. Tasks Task 1 - Kickoff Meeting Within 15 days after award, the contractor's key technical staff (assume 2 people) shall meet with FHWA staff at the Western Federal Lands (WFL) office located in Vancouver, WA, for a half-day meeting to discuss in broad terms the depth of coverage anticipated for the major tasks and the overall work plan for the project. At least 2 days prior to the meeting, submit a proposed work plan. The proposed work plan shall include the following: - A detailed schedule for major tasks, the primary activities within major tasks, and all deliverables. - Listing of State DOT's that have developed/implemented tracking systems to assure that environmental commitments are communicated and implemented, and provide a brief description for each system. (The Domestic Scan final report and FHWA's State Environmental Streamlining Practices Database, http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/es6stateprac.asp, are good references.) It is assumed that all preliminary information required for this task can be obtained from websites available to the general public. If personal contact with agency or industry staff is deemed necessary to obtain information, the Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) will initiate and lead all discussions. - Descriptions of software or technologies in use or available to communicate and track environmental commitments. - Concepts for pilot implementation. - Concepts for FLH-wide implementation. - Recommended changes/improvements to the Statement of Work. Submit a final work plan for the project based on discussions and input received from the kickoff meeting. The schedule for future tasks assumes the kickoff meeting will be held by May 2, 2005. Deliverables: - Draft Work Plan (1-ecopy provided 2 days prior to kick-off meeting) - Final Work Plan (1 e-copy provided within 2 weeks of meeting) - Meeting summary (1 e-copy provided within 1 week of meeting) Task 2 - Understand and Document Current Practice and IT Platforms in each FLH Division. Work through the COTR to schedule one day for meetings with each FLH Division. This will provide an opportunity to meet with design, environmental compliance and project management staff responsible for delivery of transportation improvement projects, and IT staff responsible for providing and maintaining hardware/software systems to facilitate delivery of transportation improvement projects. Prepare and submit agendas and interview questions for distribution prior to scheduled meetings. The primary objectives for these meetings are listed below: - Understand and document existing practices and tools used by each Division to communicate, track, and assure implementation of environmental commitments. - Understand and document existing IT structure and protocols used by each Division. - Identify needs and opportunities for improvement with a primary focus on integrating existing processes and IT structure into an automated tracking system that can be implemented across all three Divisions. The Division meetings shall be completed by June 30, 2005. The contractor's key technical staff shall attend (assume 2 people). Deliverables - Agendas and interview questions. (1 e-copy 2 weeks prior to each meeting) - Summary of findings. (1 e-copy within 2 weeks of the last meeting) Task 3 - Benchmarking Identify 4 State DOTs that have developed/implemented environmental commitment tracking systems that may serve as best practices examples for FLH. Work with the COTR to identify appropriate contacts within the DOT and the respective FHWA Federal Aid Division Office to schedule meetings with the DOT. All communications required to schedule these meetings will be performed by the COTR. The primary objectives for these meetings are listed below: - Understand how and why the tracking systems were implemented. - Document advantages and disadvantages of the respective tracking systems. - Understand operation and maintenance costs. - Identify systems or features that would meet FLH's needs. - Develop and support recommendations for FLH. Use benchmarking results and results from Task 2 to generate specific recommendations for development and implementation of an environmental commitment tracking system. Make a PowerPoint presentation on the findings and recommendations to FLH at the Easter Federal Lands Highway Division (EFL) in Sterling, VA. The contractor's key technical staff shall attend (assume 2 people). The presentation shall be conducted by September 30, 2005. Deliverables - Summary of findings and recommendations. (1 e-copy within 2 weeks of last benchmarking meeting) - PowerPoint presentation (1e-copy) - Meeting summary (1 e-copy provided within 1 week of presentation in EFL) Task 4 - System Development Within 3 weeks of the Task 3 presentation in EFL, FHWA will provide feedback and direction regarding recommendations submitted in Task 3. Develop environmental commitment tracking system for FLH Divisions. (The preliminary vision is for a tracking system that meets the following minimum criteria: - Accessible to all (internal and external) - User friendly (navigation, data entry, report generation) - Automated notifications (link action requirements to e-mail system) - Maximizes use of existing IT support structure - Expansion potential to FLH-wide environmental management systems Materials documenting environmental commitments for 3 sample FLH projects will be provided by the COTR. Use these samples to showcase the developed system. Make this presentation to FLH at the Central Federal Lands Highway Division (CFL) in Lakewood, CO. The contractor's key technical staff shall attend (assume 2 people). The presentation shall be conducted by January 31, 2006. Deliverables - Showcase presentation summary (1 e-copy provided 2 weeks prior to the meeting in CFL) - Meeting summary (1 e-copy provided within 1 week of meeting in CFL) Task 5 - Pilot Implementation Work through COTR to initiate and implement a 1-year pilot in the Western Federal Lands Highway Division (WFL) located in Vancouver, WA. Work with WFL IT and project delivery staff to install the system, provided appropriate access, and meet unique WFL needs. Plan and conduct 1 training session to educate WFL users. Assume 20 participants for a 4-hour course. Prepare and provide all training materials. Implement pilot and conduct training course by April 14, 2006. Deliverables - Training materials (1 e-copy and 1 hard copy 2 weeks prior to training course) Task 6 - Pilot Evaluation and Recommendations At the end of the 1-year pilot, conduct user interviews and prepare written evaluation of the pilot. Work through the COTR to schedule interviews. All interviews will be conducted in 1 day. Prepare recommendations for improvement and implementation in CFL and EFL. Submit pilot evaluation report by May 1, 2007. - Pilot evaluation report (1 e-copy within 2 weeks of the final interview) Task 7 - FLH-Wide Implementation Within 3 weeks after completing Task 6, FHWA will provide feedback and direction regarding recommendations submitted in the pilot evaluation report. Work with WFL to implement recommendations as approved by FHWA. Work with CFL and EFL IT and Project Delivery staff to install the improved system, provide appropriate access, and meet the unique needs of CFL and EFL. Plan and conduct a training session in CFL and EFL to educate users. Assume 20 participants for a 4-hour session. Prepare and provide all training materials. Complete system implementation in CFL and EFL, and conduct training by July 27, 2007. Deliverables - Training materials (1 e-copy and 1 hard copy 2 weeks prior to each training course) Government Furnished Property and Services The following materials will be provided: - Environmental documents and permits for 3 FLH projects.