S -- Grounds Maintenance

Capable sources are sought to perform Grounds Maintenance Services for AFRL Rome Research Site (RRS) NY. This is a Sources Sought Notice and is not a Request for Proposal (RFP). No solicitation is being issued at this time and this notice shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach. Any information provided to the Government as a result of this sources sought notice is voluntary. Responses will not be returned. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges to the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission of responses or the Government?s use of such information. The information obtained from responses to this notice may be used in the development of an acquisition strategy and future RFP. The Air Force is considering whether to set aside this Firm Fixed Price (FFP) acquisition for certified 8(a), HUBZone, and/or Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business sources. If adequate responses are not received, the acquisition may be solicited on an unrestricted basis. This is a sources sought notice for planning purposes only, respondents will not be notified of the evaluation. This acquisition includes, but is not limited to, providing all personnel, equipment, tools, supervision, and other items and services necessary to ensure that grounds maintenance is performed at Rome Research Site in a manner that will maintain healthy grass, trees, shrubs, and plants and present a clean, neat, and professional appearance. The contractor's work force shall perform all services associated with general ground maintenance duties. The contractor shall take precautions to prevent scalping, uneven mowing, cutting by equipment, and damage to trees and shrubs. The contractor shall repair damaged turf and replace flowers, shrubs, and trees damaged during mowing operations. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 561730 with a Small Business Size Standard of $6,500,000 average annual revenue. Estimated performance period will be a one year basic contract with four (4) option years. Estimated acreage covered under this requirement is 45 acres. The Service Contract Act applies to performance of this contract. Applicable wage determination will be the latest revision of 05-2383 for Oneida County, NY. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS: (a) positive statement of your intent to submit a proposal for this solicitation as a prime contractor; (b) evidence of experience within the past five years of work similar in magnitude and scope; (c) minimum equipment of two (2) Jacobsen HR-15 Hydro (or equal) with stone guards, two (2) Hustler Excel 400 Bac Vacs (or equal), and at least a 200 gallon water truck; (d) past performance information for work cited above to include contract numbers, project titles, dollar amounts, points of contact, and telephone numbers; (e) SBA letter of certification as applicable; and (f) whether your firm is a SBA certified 8(a), HUBZone, or Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business concern. You must be an approved SBA firm at the time of this sources sought announcement to submit a response. For more information on the definition or requirements, refer to http://www.sba.gov/. Special attention should be given to the proximity requirement. Due to the nature of site conditions, the Government reserves the right to require the contractor to respond within 24 hours to emergency requests. A firm?s location within a 100 mile radius of AFRL Rome NY is desired and firms will be evaluated against this distance requirement. Firms outside the radius should be prepared to demonstrate ability to meet the emergency response time. The issuance date for this solicitation is anticipated for February 2008 on the Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) web site at http://www.fedbizopps.gov. Contractors are reminded that should this acquisition become an 8(a) set aside, FAR 52.219-18 with DFARS 252.219-7010 Alternate A, Notification of Competition Limited to Eligible 8(a) Concerns applies. If this acquisition becomes a HUBZone set aside, FAR 52.219-3 Notice of Total HUBZone Set Aside will apply. If this acquisition becomes a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Set Aside, FAR 52.219-27 Notice of Total Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business Set Aside will apply. All responses must be submitted in sufficient detail for a decision to be made on a certified 8(a), HUBZone, and/or Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business set aside. Failure to submit all information requested may result in an unrestricted acquisition. Firms that meet the requirements described in this announcement are invited to submit their documentation to the attention of Ms. Janis Norelli, Small Business Specialist, tel 315-330-3311, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome NY, 13441-4514. Please direct all technical questions to Bryant Soule, tel 315-330-4723 (Bryant.Soule@rl.af.mil). All information must be received before 3:00 PM EST THURSDAY 20 DECEMBER 2007 to be considered for selection. E-mail responses will be accepted. NOTE: IN ORDER TO RECEIVE AN AWARD FROM ANY RESULTANT SOLICITITATION, SHOULD ONE BE ISSUED, THE SUCCESSFUL OFFEROR MUST BE ACTIVELY REGISTERED IN CENTRAL CONTRACTOR REGISTRATION (CCR - http://www.ccr.gov), ONLINE REPRESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS APPLICATION (ORCA - http://orca.bpn.gov), AND WIDE AREA WORKFLOW (WAWF - https://wawf.eb.mil).