USDA APHIS Nationwide AE Services

This announcement is amended. Please see the 5th sentence below (paragraph 1) for an explanation as to why this notice is open to all A-E firms, regardless of size. 1. NATIONWIDE ARCHITECT-ENGINEER SERVICES INDEFINITE DELIVERY CONTRACT INFORMATION. This acquisition is being procured in accordance with the Brooks A-E Act as implemented in FAR Subpart 36.6. Firms will be selected for negotiation based on demonstrated competence and qualifications for the required work. A-E services are required for an Indefinite Delivery Contract (IDC) to provide for the primary disciplines of Architecture, Mechanical, Electrical, Civil, and Structural. It is anticipated that this contract will be awarded by September 2010. This announcement may result in multiple awards and is issued on an unrestricted basis pursuant to the Small Business Competitiveness Demonstration Program (FAR 19.10). The Government may award multiple contracts in response to this announcement at any time until one year from the closing date of this announcement. Selection shall be in order of preference from the firms considered Most Highly Qualified. All interested A-E firms are reminded that, in accordance with the provisions of PL 95-507, they will be expected to place subcontracts to the maximum practicable extent, consistent with the efficient performance of the contract, with small and small, disadvantaged firms. If a large business is selected for this contract, it must comply with FAR 52.219-9 regarding the requirement for a subcontracting plan for that part of the work it intends to subcontract. The target subcontracting goals for this contract are as follows: a minimum of 40% of the contractor's intended subcontract amount be placed with small businesses, 7% must be placed with small, disadvantaged businesses, 5% must be placed with women-owned small businesses, 3% must be placed with HUB Zone businesses, and 3% must be placed with service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses. If a large business firm is selected for this contract, it will be required to submit a detailed subcontracting plan during contract negotiations. If the selected firm intends to submit a plan with lesser goals, it must submit written rationale in the plan as to why the above goals cannot be met. The North American Industry Classification System code for this action is 541330, and the corresponding small business size standard is $4.5 million in average annual receipts. This contract will have a base period not to exceed one year with four, one-year option periods, an annual contract value of $3 million, and a total IDC value not to exceed $15 million. Work under this contract is subject to satisfactory negotiation of individual task orders. An option period may be exercised when the contract amount for the base period or preceding option period has been exhausted. USDA APHIS currently has, and may award in the future, IDC contracts to perform work that may also be encompassed by this announcement. The selection board chair will consider the selection criteria below in deciding which contractor(s) will be selected. If more than one firm is selected, the top-ranked firm will be awarded the first contract, the second ranked firm will be awarded the second contract, and so on. If necessary, secondary selection criteria will be used as a tie breaker between firms considered as technically equal. The wages and benefits of service employees (see FAR 22.10) performing under this contract must be at least equal to those determined by the Department of Labor under the Service Contract Act, as determined by the employees' office location (not the location of the work). 2. PROJECT INFORMATION: Nationwide A/E will include Architectural, Mechanical, Electrical, Civil, and Structural work for the preparation of contract drawings, specifications, cost estimates, and possible associated services such as: LEED design services, NEPA documentation and environmental assessments, designer of record services, commissioning, value engineering, design (peer) review, master planning, facility inspection for deficiencies, obtaining various required permits, construction management, geotechnical investigations, surveying, and performing Construction Inspection Contractor (CIC) services. CIC services may or may not be related to work designed by said firm if and when used. Projects will cover a variety of building types nationwide, such as offices, laboratory, animal and plant inspection stations, quarantine stations, and general utility buildings. Some work may involve only one or two disciplines, i.e., Mechanical/Electrical, where repair and/or remodeling are involved and other types of work might include incinerators, fumigation hoods, compressed gas facilities, water and sewer mains, and water treatment facilities. Some of our major facilities are located in Mission, TX; Ames, IA; Newburg, NY; Fort Collins, CO; Miami, FL; and Beltsville, MD. New buildings generally will be in the $100,000 to $5,000,000 cost range. Repair and remodeling work varies from a few thousand to $500,000 cost range. In the selection process, firms may be chosen for interviews prior to making the final selection. 3. SELECTION CRITERIA: The specific selection criteria (paragraphs a through f are primary and g is secondary and will only be used as a tie-breaker) in descending order of importance are as follows and must be documented with resumes in the SF 330. a. PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS: Firms must have major Architectural and Engineering disciplines (Architectural, Civil, Structural, Electrical, Mechanical and LEED accredited professionals). Firms (either in-house or through association with qualified consultants) must provide resumes on all key professional personnel and identify the state in which the professionals are licensed for Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, Architectural, and Structural. Firms must be capable of providing LEED design services and sustainable services. b. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE AND TECHNICAL COMPETENCE: Within this criterion, highest consideration will be given to firms with experience in the design of laboratories, bio-medical facilities, quarantine and isolation facilities, insect secure facilities, greenhouses, HEPA filtration, asbestos abatement, EPA environmental regulations, construction management, general construction design, design of emergency generators, design of new incinerators and renovations of existing incinerators. Firms must be familiar with the following design guides such as USDA/ARS Facilities Design Standard 242.01M and 242.04M, LEED, EnegyStar7 and LABs21 designs., NIH publication 88-8395 "Bio-Safety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories," The American Association for Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC) "Guide to Care and Use of Laboratory Research Animals, Guide #8523," The Animal Welfare Act, and the EPA and OSHA regulations concerning use and storage of hazardous and controlled materials, National Energy Conservation Act - Electric Meter Guidance and Green Products for Federal Procurement, and Lab21 approach for new and/or rehab projects in laboratories. c. FIRM'S CAPACITY AND CAPABILITY TO COMPLETE THE WORK IN THE REQUIRED TIME: The composition of the A/E firm and their consultants, production, and quality control systems, shall be in place and sufficient to accomplish projects in the required time frames and within budget. The A/E firm shall maintain available personnel in all design disciplines including supporting technical staffs, LEED, cost estimating, Lab21 design and CAD capability for producing contract drawings that are compatible with the latest version of AutoCAD. All documents furnished to USDA/APHIS shall be compatible with Microsoft Windows XP operating system. Firms shall indicate the major mission/function and specialty of each of its branch offices. d. PAST PERFORMANCE AND EXPERIENCE: (1) Past performance on contracts with Government agencies and private industry in terms of cost control, types of projects, quality of work, and compliance with performance schedules. (2) Applicants are required to submit references with names and telephone numbers of contact persons. (3) Experience with CODES, regulations, permits, etc. (4) Ability to reflect firm's proficiency as it relates to providing a functional, cost efficient, complete product that blends with local surroundings. e. PROPOSED PROJECT TEAM AND ORGANIZATION: (1) Firms must indicate professional recognition and work experience of key personnel. (2) Professional registration, associations and advanced degrees and specific related work of employees. (3) Capability and experience of individuals who will be administering the contracts. f. LOCATION: Firms will be required to use branch offices closest to the design project when providing CIC, DOR, commissioning services, and for the preparation of contract documents. Responses shall be made by completion and submittal of Standard Form 330 and all pertinent supplemental or supporting data. g. SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM PARTICIPATION: Extent of participation of SB, SDB, WOSB, HUBZone, SDV, HBCU/MI in the proposed contract team, measured as a percentage of the estimated subcontracting effort. 4. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS: a. Interested firms having the capabilities to perform this work must submit three copies of their SF 330, each containing Parts I and II of the SF 330 information to the address below not later than the close of business on the 45th day after the date of this announcement. If the 45th day is a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday, the deadline is the close of business of the next business day. Each copy shall be divided by tabs (dividers) separating Parts I and II, and tabs dividing the subsequent sections from each other (Note: Parts I, II, and Subsequent Sections are as defined in the SF 330 Instructions). b. SF 330, Part I, Section H (Additional Information) shall contain the following information. (1) Item 1 - Management Plan - Include the information requested in paragraph 3c above. (2) Item 2 - Capacity to complete the work. Reference paragraph 3c above. Provide a 1-2 page narrative discussing the capacity of the design firm to meet schedules, including adequacy of qualified personnel available and past experience in meeting tight design schedules. (3) Item 3 - Extent of participation of SB, SDB, WOSB, SDVOSB, HUBZone, and if appropriate, HBCU/MIs, measured as a percentage of the total estimated subcontracting effort compared to the goals identified in paragraph 1 above. c. The SF 330 shall have a page limit of 150 pages, and will have a limit of 12 projects illustrating specialized experience. A page is one side of an 8 - x 11 sheet. If a fold-out is used, each sheet of a fold-out shall count as a minimum of 2 pages. d. In order to comply with the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, all contractors must be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) to be considered for award of a Federal contract. Information regarding registration can be obtained on line at www.ccr.gov. Effective immediately, the use of DUNS+4 numbers to identify vendors is limited to identifying different CCR records for the same vendor at the same physical location. For example, a vendor could have two records for themselves at the same physical location to identify two separate bank accounts. If you do not have a DUNS number, or want to register subsidiaries and other entities, call Dunn and Bradstreet at +1 (555) 000-0000. e. Mail your firm's submission of the SF 330 to: USDA, APHIS, ASD, Procurement Branch, ATTN: James Roloff, Butler Square, 100 North 6th St Ste 510C, Minneapolis MN 55403. James Roloff can be reached at +1 (555) 000-0000, or via email: contact@example.gov. Solicitation packages are not provided. This is not a Request for Proposal. Personal visits for the purpose of discussing this announcement will not be entertained or scheduled. Please check for updates to this announcement after the publication date.