Description
A. This is a SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY. It is neither a solicitation announcement nor a request for proposals or quotes and does not obligate the Government to award a contract. Requests for a solicitation will not receive a response. Responses to this Sources Sought must be in writing. The purpose of this Sources Sought Announcement is for market research to make appropriate acquisition decisions and to gain knowledge of potential qualified Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses, Veteran Owned Small Businesses, 8(a), Hub-Zone and other Small Businesses interested and capable of performing the work. Responses to this notice shall include the following: (a) company name b) address (c) point of contact (d) phone, fax, and email (e) DUNS number (f) Cage Code (g) Tax ID Number (h) Type of small business, e.g. Services Disabled Veteran Owned small Business, Veteran-owned small business, 8(a), HUB-Zone, Women Owned Small Business, Small disadvantaged business, or Small Business HUB-Zone business (i) must provide a capability statement that addresses the organizations qualifications and ability to perform as a contractor for the work described below. (j) cost estimate, (k) warranty information, (l) product information (m) delivery information, and (n) NAC or FSS contract number. Responses from potential contractors shall be entered into the ebuy tool. B. The Government is not obligated to nor will it pay for or reimburse any costs associated with responding to this sources sought synopsis request. 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. The Government will in no way be bound to this information if any solicitation is issued. The North American Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition has been determined to be 454113 Mail-Order Houses with a size standard of 35.5m. C. Notice to Potential Offerors: All Offerors who provide goods or services to the United States Federal Government must be registered in the System For Award Management (SAM located on the web at www.sam.gov). It is desirable that any Offeror to have completed their business Online Representations and Certifications Application. Additionally, all Service Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses or Veteran Owned Businesses who respond to a solicitation on this project must be registered with the Department of Veterans Affairs Center for Veterans Enterprise VetBiz Registry located at http://vip.vetbiz.gov AND HAVE A SEAL. D. STATEMENT OF WORK BACKGROUND The VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System (VAPHS) is comprised of two campuses and ancillary facilities in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The locations of the two campuses are: 1) H. J. Heinz III Progressive Care Facility (HJH), 1010 Delafield Rd, Pittsburgh, PA 15215; 2) University Drive (UD) campus, 1 University Dr C, Pttsburgh, PA 15240; VAPHS sends out a high volume of mail, much of it comprised of appointment reminder forms and other patient notifications. Increased efficiency is needed to minimize cost and maximize the patient-care experience for each dollar spent. SCOPE Even though VAPHS sends a high volume of mail, there is not sufficient volume going to any particular zip code to obtain the best postal rates on our own. Therefore, VAPHS needs to deal with a contractor which will commingle VAPHS mail with the mail of other clients so that there will be sufficient volume to get the best rates. The contractor will never become involved with the content of the mail, but will pick it up sealed and addressed at VAPHS, sort it, and send it to the addresses printed on the envelopes. OBJECTIVE VAPHS intends to enter into a contract for pre-sorting by nine-digit Zip Code, bar-coding, and commingling mail with that of other customers so that VAPHS mail will qualify to be sent at the rate of $0.281 per piece of mail sent instead of the $0.460 per piece if we were to mail directly from our facility, at a savings of $0.179 per piece. The fee paid to the vendor would be substantially lower than the amount saved by mailing at the lower rate. TASK 1) The Contractor will process VAPHS mail in such a way as to qualify for the lowest U.S. Postal Service (USPS) rate for non-profit, bulk, first-class mail (currently $0.281 per piece). The Contractor and VAPHS will mutually work out standard operating procedures which will preclude any need for the Contractor to return mail to VAPHS instead of delivering it to the USPS. 2) The Contractor will provide all postage, transportation, and sorting services. (VAPHS will pay the actual postage per piece of mail.) 3) The Contractor shall furnish vehicles dedicated for contract use within normal working hours. Fuel, maintenance, and other operating costs for vehicles is the responsibility of the Contractor. Vehicles must be closed and secured during transport and when unattended when mail is aboard. The Contractor shall furnish all labor and ancillary equipment, such as protective covers, dollies, rollers, skids, hand trucks, ramps, pry bars, pallet jacks, truck platforms and any other tools needed to perform work under the contract. 4) The Contractor will pick up VAPHS mail at the University Drive campus of VAPHS daily, Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays, and will complete sorting and deliver the mail to the USPS in accordance with USPS regulations not later than one day after pickup at VAPHS. DELIVERY Contractor must provide a monthly invoice for work that is done under this contract. The invoices provided by the Contractor must be organized in a way that allows direct reference to specific pick-up dates, and will reference specific Purchase Order numbers. The price schedule for all goods and services rendered by the Contractor will be established in advance. VAPHS will be responsible for preparing the mail with updated addresses, and will pay up front for the costs to be incurred by the Contractor to the USPS. GOVERNMENT- FURNISHED PROPERTY VAPHS will not furnish any property in connection with this contract. Both parties will use bulk mail bins owned by the USPS when transferring possession of mail from one to the other. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE Mail pick-up by the Contractor will occur at the University Drive (UD) campus of VAPHS, 1 University Drive C, Pttsburgh, PA 15240. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE Pickup, sorting, and mailing services will occur as specified above starting on December 1, 2014 and will conclude on November 30, 2015. VAPHS desires four option periods on this contract, with an ultimate completion date of November 30, 2019.