This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items/services prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement and its attachments constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.

The solicitation number for this procurement is 12405B21Q0055 and is issued as a Request for Quote (RFQ).  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Southeast Area (SEA) intends to award a firm-fixed price contract in response to this Request for Quote (RFQ).    

The solicitation documents and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular FAC 2021-05 dated March 10, 2021.

This solicitation is Small Business set-aside.  The associated North American Industry Classification System code (NAICS) is 561621 and the size standard is $22.0 Mil.  The Government intends to award a firm-fixed price contract. 

The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered.  The award will be made using the best value approach.  The Government anticipates award of a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose quote conforms to the specifications that will be the most advantageous to the Government in accordance with FAR 13.106-2 considering three major areas: technical acceptance, past performance, and price. Quotes will be evaluated by performing a comparative evaluation in accordance with FAR 13.106-2(b)(3) to determine which quote represents the best as a whole. The Government has the discretion to accept other than the lowest priced quote that provides additional benefits. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers:

Factor 1: Technical Capability

1.  The offeror shall submit their technical approach and demonstrated experience/evidence of ability to successfully perform the installation of the Lenel ePACS and security system solutions.  Submit a list of all qualified key personnel and information, such as resumes and the Lenel Authorized partner (VAR) or subcontractor that is a Lenel VAR.
2. Technical capability of the solution offered to meet the Government requirement shall be evaluated based on an evaluation of the Technical Capability Factor.
3. Offeror shall meet all the requirements in RFQ and submit documentation to verify.

Factor 2:  Past Performance

1. Past performance shall provide adequate information describing the offeror’s previous experience in providing Lenel ePACS and security system solutions to the Federal Government. The offeror shall also list at least three contracts performed in the past three years from issue date of this RFQ that are of the same magnitude and complexity of this project. In addition, the Government may solicit past performance on contracts not listed by the offeror. If an offeror does not have any past performance information to submit as the entity under which the offer is being submitted, then the offeror should submit past performance data identified above under which the offeror’s key personnel have worked.  The offeror’s quote will be evaluated to determine the extent to which its past performance demonstrates the likelihood of successful performance.  The evaluation will consider both the relevance and quality of past projects.  The Government may choose to evaluate publicly available reports.   The Government may use present and/or past performance data obtained from a variety of sources. The information gathered for past performance may also be used in the responsibility determination.

Factor 3:  Price

1. Price will be evaluated in order to determine if it is reasonable, in accordance with FAR Parts 13.106-3.  Quotes should be sufficiently detailed to demonstrate their reasonableness, this includes, but is not limited to, being broken out to show material & labor costs (both by quantity and unit price), overhead, G&A, etc.

Technical capability and past performance are more important when compared to price. 

A site visit has been scheduled for Tuesday May 18, 2021 at  9:30 a.m. Eastern. Participants will meet at:

U.S. Vegetable Laboratory

2700 Savannah Highway

Charleston, SC 29414

Pre-registration to attend the site visit is required no later than Monday May 17, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern. Pre-register by email notification to NicholasLangley at [email protected]. Provide names of personnel to be inattendance, each firm is limited to two individuals. Wearing of face masks andpracticing of social distancing is required at the site visit.

All questions shall be submitted via email to [email protected] by 2:00 pm (ET) on Friday, May 21, 2021.  Quotes are due on Friday June 11, 2021 at 2:00 pm (ET) and shall be sent by email.  Quotes shall be good for 60 calendar days after close of RFQ.

QUOTE SUBMISSION INFORMATION: Quote submissions should include, but is not limited to, the items below:

1. Summary of technical approach/capability
2. List of key personnel and include resumes/certifications
3. List of components proposed to be used in the PACS
4. Warranty information
5. Detailed pricing schedule (Quotes should be sufficiently detailed to demonstrate their reasonableness, this includes, but is not limited to, being broken out to show material & labor costs (both by quantity and unit price), overhead, G&A, etc.)
6. Past performance contact information for a minimum of three references for which work was conducted which was similar in scope, magnitude and complexity to the requirements described in this solicitation:

•  i. Company Name
• ii. Company Address
• iii. Company Point of Contact Name
• iv. Contact Phone Number and E-mail Address
• v. Description of Services/Price (include contract number)
• vi. Period of Performance
• vii. If applicable, explanation of any problems or delays encountered

Offerors should check the Government Point of Entry (sam.gov) often for any solicitation attachments and amendments.

Amendment 001 is being issued to extend the due date to June 11, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. eastern. Answers to questions received by the cutoff are still being worked on and will be posted in a future amendment.