Replacement of Chillers, Kearneysville, WV

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has a construction requirement for furnishing and installing two new water-cooled chillers, two new condenser water pumps, and four new condenser chilled water pumps at the USDA Appalachian Fruit Research Station (AFRS) located in Kearneysville, WV. The award will consist of a Base Clin and two (2) Option Clins. Base is for furnishing and installing two new water-cooled chillers and associated piping, valves, etc. Option 1 is for furnishing and installing two new condenser water pumps and associated piping, valves, etc. Option 2 is for furnishing and installing four new condenser chilled water pumps and associated piping, valves, etc. General Information SOLICITATION (12305B24R0005): The solicitation to be issued as Request for Proposal is anticipated to be posted to SAM.gov on or about December 2, 2024. The contract is anticipated to be awarded in January 2025. Note: All dates are tentative and for planning purposes only. The Period of Performance on the contract will be 90 calendar days after receipt of the Notice to Proceed. The NAICS code for this procurement is 238220 Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors; Small Business Size Standard is $19 million. The solicitation will be a Total Small Business Set-Aside. Magnitude of Construction for this project is between $500,000 and $1,000,000. BONDS: If the contract exceeds $35,000, the offeror to whom award is made shall furnish a payment security, which can be a payment bond or an alternative form per FAR 52.228-13, Alternative Payment Protections. Awards exceeding $150,000 require both Payment and Performance Bonds. A Bid Bond will be Required. SITE VISIT: A site visit will be held during the solicitation period for the project. Details regarding the site visit will be provided in the solicitation. SOLICITATION PROCEDURES: The proposed contract will be a competitive firm-fixed-price contract procured in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 15 Contracting by Negotiation and Part 36 Construction and Architect-Engineer Contracts. Proposals will be evaluated using the lowest price technically acceptable approach. All questions regarding this announcement must be submitted in writing to the Contract Specialist, via email to janie.roney@usda.gov. Telephone requests for information will not be accepted or returned. BIOBASED PRODUCTS: This procurement requires the use of Biobased products to the extent that such products are reasonably available, meet agency or relevant industry performance standards, and are reasonably priced. The products should first be acquired from the USDA designated product categories. All supplies and materials shall be of a type and quantity that conform to applicable Federal specifications and standards, and to the extent feasible and reasonable, include the exclusive use of biobased and recycled products. Please visit www.biopreferred.gov for more information on the USDA Biobased Program and to reference the catalog of mandatory biobased products. DISCUSSIONS: The Government intends to award without discussions but reserves the right to conduct discussions should it be deemed in the Government's best interest. Pursuant to FAR 36.211(b), information regarding USDA's definitization of equitable adjustments for change orders under construction contracts may be found at https://www.usda.gov/da/ocp/ppd/policies-regulations/far. The Government intends to post all notices/amendments related to the solicitation on the government point of entry (GPE) Contract Opportunities at www.sam.gov. All interested firms must be registered on Contract Opportunities web site to obtain the solicitation documents and all information regarding the solicitation. Hard copies of the solicitation will not be provided. It is the responsibility of the Offeror to check the website daily for any updates/amendments. Offerors are encouraged to check the SAM website frequently to be notified of any changes to this solicitation. IMPORTANT NOTICE: All contractors submitting bids, proposals, or quotes on USDA solicitations must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database at the time of offer submission and at time of award, and must maintain an active SAM registration during performance and through final payment. Failure to be registered in the SAM database will make an Offeror ineligible for award. The SAM website can be accessed at https://sam.gov.