Proposal Info

Specification Value

RFQ no. NICHD -ASB -2022 -09

RFQ Name NICHD Application & Web Development Support Services

RFQ Type RFQ

National Institutes of Health

Eunice Kennedy Shriver
RFQ Department
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
(NICHD)

Proposal Due Date and April 01, 2022

Time 12 noon

Questions Due Date and March 23, 2022

Time 12 noon

RFQ Mode of Submission Electronically via email

Courtney Warren
Point of Contact
Courtney.Warren@nih.gov

Contractor facility/site
Place of Performance
Meetings as requested

Base Period: April 17, 2022 – April 16, 2023

Period of Performance Option Period 1: April 17, 2023 – April 16, 2024
Option Period 2: April 17, 2024 – April 16, 2025

Set Aside 100% SMALL BUSINESS SET ASIDE

Level 6: Public Trust - High Risk

Security Clearance Level 5: Public Trust - Moderate Risk
Level 1: Non-Sensitive

NAICS 541519

Key Personnel Program Manager

 Specification Value

Sr. Web Developer (Web Developer III)

Sr. Application Developer (Web Developer III)
Sr. Software Engineer (Principal Software Engineer)
Senior Business Intelligence Developer (Web Developer III)
Senior Section 508 Analyst (Web Developer II)
Advance Tech Program Manager
Content Specialist II
Functional Analyst III
Program Manager (Task level)
Q/A Specialist
Q/A Tester
Senior Analyst
Senior Systems Programmer I
Graphic Designer II
Web Developer I
Senior Software Architect

Task Order Type Time and Materials (T&M)

Background
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development (NICHD) is seeking a contractor to provide application and
web development support services. The project involves developing, maintaining, and supporting
various applications and websites for NICHD staff. The project is a 100% small business set-
aside and will be awarded as a Time and Materials (T&M) task order with a 12-month base
period and two 12-month option periods. The contractor will be responsible for providing
qualified personnel, materials, and facilities to perform the tasks outlined in the Statement of
Work (SOW). The project requires adherence to various government regulations, including
FISMA, EPLC, SDLC, and Section 508 compliance. The contractor will also be responsible for
ensuring the security and privacy of all government information and systems accessed or used
during the performance of the contract.

Scope
The project involves providing application and web development support services to the Eunice
Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). The
Contractor will furnish all necessary services, qualified personnel, materials, and facilities to
perform the tasks outlined in the Statement of Work (SOW) and Deliverables & Reporting
Requirements documents.

Tasks include:
  Application development and support
 Maintenance and support of websites
 Section 508 compliance

The Contractor will be responsible for managing and overseeing the activities of all Contractor
personnel and subcontractor efforts. The Contractor will provide full-time support services
during normal business hours, as well as additional support including remote/on-call support for
non-core business hours and weekends. The Contractor will also be responsible for complying
with all Federal, HHS, NIH, and individual IC COVID-19 policies related to health and safety.

Task Areas

Application Development and Support

 Overview: The contractor will be responsible for developing and supporting applications
for NICHD staff.
 Key Responsibilities:
o Adhering to government regulations such as FISMA, EPLC, SDLC, and Section
508 compliance.
o Demonstrating knowledge of the applicable hardware and software systems to be
used by NICHD staff.

Maintenance and Support of Websites

 Overview: The contractor will be responsible for maintaining and supporting websites for
NICHD staff.
 Key Responsibilities:
o Adhering to government regulations such as FISMA, EPLC, SDLC, and Section
508 compliance.
o Demonstrating knowledge of the applicable hardware and software systems to be
used by NICHD staff.

Section 508 Compliance

 Overview: The contractor will be responsible for ensuring that all applications and
websites are compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
 Key Responsibilities:
o Adhering to the NIH and HHS Section 508 Compliance requirements.
o Demonstrating knowledge of the applicable hardware and software systems to be
used by NICHD staff.

Submission Instructions
Proposal Submission:
 Deadline: Proposals must be submitted electronically via email to Ms. Courtney Warren
at Courtney.Warren@nih.gov no later than 12 noon, April 01, 2022.
 Format: Proposals must be submitted in two volumes: "Volume I - Technical" and
"Volume II - Business". Each volume must be separate and complete.
 Page Limits:
o Volume I - Technical: Should not exceed 50 pages (writing on one side of the
page). Page limitation excludes qualifications of personnel (resumes/CVs), charts,
and appendices. Past performance should not exceed 5 pages for each example
provided.
o Volume II - Business: No page limitations.
 File Formats: Electronic submissions shall be made using Microsoft Word, Microsoft
Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Project, and PDF only. Charts, graphics, etc.
may use smaller fonts if they are easily legible.
 Font and Margins: Proposals should be prepared in English with Arial Font of 12 point,
and the top, bottom, left, and right margins should be 1".
 Content:
o Volume I - Technical:
 Include information regarding how the project will be organized,
managed, and staffed.
 Explain how the management and coordination of staffing will be
accomplished.
 Address any activities requiring subcontractor support.
 Include a list of names and proposed duties of the professional personnel
and administrative staff assigned to the project.
 Allocate proposed staff hours for each individual against each task or
subtask for the project (this information may be presented in a spreadsheet
format).
 Discuss the general background, experience, and qualifications of the
organization.
 Discuss current or proposed facilities, electronic systems, and equipment
that will be used in the performance of these tasks.
 Fully describe the technical and administrative aspects of accomplishing
each task and include the Offeror's familiarity with similar work.
o Volume II - Business:
 The proposal shall be based on your current GSA Contract (MAS) labor
categories and rates.
 If proposing any discount(s) to the published rates, indicate the percentage
of the discount being applied; however, be sure to calculate the hourly
rates to two decimal places. Multiply rates by hours to arrive at a total for
each proposed labor category.
 If your prices change during the given period, divide the hours
proportionally between the two time periods. Formulas used in the
electronic Excel file submission must be visible and intact.
 Presume a start date of April 15, 2022, as the performance of work
activities.
 Past Performance Information:
 o Provide a list of three Federal contracts that you currently have: (1) ongoing or,
(2) completed within the past 12 months.
o Indicate which contracts and subcontracts are most related (i.e., similar in
technical requirements and complexity) and how they are related to the proposed
effort, as well as which contracts/subcontracts were performed by the division of
your company (if applicable) that will perform the proposed contract.
o Provide customer's name, mailing address, email address, and telephone number
of the Government Project Officer or private sector Project Manager most
familiar with the Offeror's performance record.
o Provide contract number, type, date of contract, places of performance, delivery
dates or period of performance, and total original and present or final contract
value.
o Provide a detailed description of contract work and comparability to the proposed
effort with reference to specific comparable SOW elements, where applicable.
o Identify and explain major technical problems and how they were overcome.
o List any major deviations or waivers to technical requirements that were granted
by the customer.
o Include a frank discussion of experiences (if any) that resulted in lessons learned
and/or new processes that improved performance or had significant positive (or
adverse) impact over the life of the contract.
o Identify and explain completion successes and delays, including adherence to
program schedules.
o Provide an assessment of the performance (technical, schedule, and cost) on these
past programs.
o Identify cost management history; identify and explain any cost overruns and
underruns, and cost incentive history, if applicable.
o Provide the average number of personnel on the contract per year and percent
turnover of personnel per year for performance.

Specific Instructions for Proposal Sections:

 Volume I - Technical:
o Key Personnel:
 Program Manager
 Senior Web Developer (Web Developer III)
 Senior Application Developer (Web Developer III)
 Senior Software Engineer (Principal Software Engineer)
 Senior Business Intelligence Developer (Web Developer III)
 Senior Section 508 Analyst (Web Developer II)
o Non-Key Personnel:
 Advance Tech Program Manager
 Content Specialist II
 Functional Analyst III
 Program Manager (Task level)
 Q/A Specialist
 Q/A Tester
  Senior Analyst
 Senior Systems Programmer I
 Graphic Designer II
 Web Developer I
o Include an organization chart that displays responsibilities and relationships of all
professional project personnel.
o The Government requests an opportunity to review the CVs/resumes of proposed
key personnel.
 Volume II - Business:
o The proposal shall be based on your current GSA Schedule contract labor
categories and rates.
o If a discount off your published rates is proposed, indicate the percentage of the
discount applied; however, be sure to calculate the hourly rates to two decimal
places. Multiply rates by hours to arrive at a total for each proposed labor
category.
o If your prices change during the given periods, divide the hours proportionally
between the two time periods. Formulas used in the electronic Excel file
submission must be visible and intact.
o Presume a start date on or about April 17, 2022, and work on contractor site
location.
o The proposed annual costs (labor categories, rates, hours, Other Direct Costs – if
any) should agree with the proposed staffing plan in the Technical Proposal.
o The business proposal must include all related costs/pricing information to
demonstrate the Offeror's understanding of the requirements and tasks of the
solicitation.

Quotation Considerations:

 For proposal preparations purposes only, the Government has provided an estimate of
each labor category as shown in Table 1: Base Period, Table 2: Option Period One, and
Table 3: Option Period Two.
 Offerors are advised to submit proposals with the Labor Categories and Level of Effort to
sufficiently perform the tasks based on the Offeror's technical approach and experience.
 Offerors are advised to propose a mix that best meets the requirements as listed in the
Statement of Work.

Table 1: Base Period (Hours)

Labor Category Minimum Estimate Maximum Estimate

Advance Tech Program Manager 1,128 1,692

Content Specialist II 1,880 2,820

Functional Analyst III 3,148 4,722

 Labor Category Minimum Estimate Maximum Estimate

Principal Software Engineer 4,152 6,228

Program Manager 12,706 19,059

Q/A Specialist 1,940 2,910

Q/A Tester 2,916 4,374

Senior Analyst 10,076 15,114

Senior Systems Programmer I 6,250 9,375

Graphics Designer II 1,560 2,340

Senior Software Architect 806 1,209

Web Developer I 7,522 11,283

Web Developer II 2,532 3,798

Web Developer III 17,952 26,928

Total Hours 74,568 111,852

Table 2: Option Period One (Hours)

Labor Category Minimum Estimate Maximum Estimate

Advance Tech Program Manager 1,128 1,692

Content Specialist II 1,880 2,820

Functional Analyst III 3,148 4,722

Principal Software Engineer 4,152 6,228

Program Manager 12,706 19,059

 Labor Category Minimum Estimate Maximum Estimate

Q/A Specialist 1,940 2,910

Q/A Tester 2,916 4,374

Senior Analyst 10,076 15,114

Senior Systems Programmer I 6,250 9,375

Graphics Designer II 1,560 2,340

Senior Software Architect 806 1,209

Web Developer I 7,522 11,283

Web Developer II 2,532 3,798

Web Developer III 17,952 26,928

Total Hours 74,568 111,852

Table 3: Option Period Two (Hours)

Labor Category Minimum Estimate Maximum Estimate

Advance Tech Program Manager 1,128 1,692

Content Specialist II 1,880 2,820

Functional Analyst III 3,148 4,722

Principal Software Engineer 4,152 6,228

Program Manager 12,706 19,059

Q/A Specialist 1,940 2,910

Q/A Tester 2,916 4,374

 Labor Category Minimum Estimate Maximum Estimate

Senior Analyst 10,076 15,114

Senior Systems Programmer I 6,250 9,375

Graphics Designer II 1,560 2,340

Senior Software Architect 806 1,209

Web Developer I 7,522 11,283

Web Developer II 2,532 3,798

Web Developer III 17,952 26,928

TASK AREA 5 1,200 1,800

Total Hours 75,768 113,682

Other Direct Costs (ODCs):

Maximum
Period Minimum Estimate
Estimate

Base Period $100,000.00 $150,000.00

Option Period One $100,000.00 $150,000.00

Option Period Two $100,000.00 $150,000.00

Total $300,000.00 $450,000.00

Questions and Responses:

 All questions regarding this RFQ must be submitted electronically (via email) to Ms.
Courtney Warren at Courtney.Warren@nih.gov no later than 12 noon, March 23, 2022.
Please reference the specific area of the RFQ letter or attachment when asking a question.

Late Submissions:
  Proposals may be withdrawn by written notice received at any time before award.
Withdrawals are effective upon receipt of notice by the Contracting Officer.
 Proposal in response to this solicitation will be valid for the number of days specified on
the solicitation cover sheet (unless a different period is proposed by the offeror).

Contact Information:

 For Questions: Ms. Courtney Warren, Courtney.Warren@nih.gov

 For Proposal Submissions: Ms. Courtney Warren, Courtney.Warren@nih.gov

Note: No specific Submission Instructions were found in the RFP document regarding the
submission of the Representations and Certifications. However, the document states that
Offerors must complete the Representations and Certifications in the System for Award
Management (SAM) website. The SAM website may be accessed at: http://www.sam.gov.

Evaluation Factors for Award

Offerors are advised that an award under this solicitation will be made to the Offeror whose
proposal is determined by the Government to represent the best value to meet the Government’s
needs.

All evaluation factors, other than cost or price, when combined are significantly more important
than cost or price. However, cost or price may become a critical fact or in source selection in the
event that two or more Offerors are determined to be essentially equal following the evaluation
of all factors other than cost or price. In any event, The Government reserves the right to make
an award to the Offeror whose proposal provides the best value to the Government.

The technical evaluation will be based on the demonstrated capabilities of the Offeror set forth in
the Technical Proposal. The Government will use an adjectival rating scale on all
quotes/proposals.

The Government reserves the right to make an award without discussions if overall best value
can be clearly determined and if not, other Offeror would have a reasonable chance at award if
discussions were conducted.

Offerors will be evaluated in accordance with the factors set forth below.

ADJECTIVAL RATING

The Government will evaluate the Technical Proposal using the following adjectival rating.

Adjectival Description

Outstanding Significantly exceeds most or all solicitation requirements for this factor or
(O) subfactor or overall. Response exceeds a “Good” rating. The risk of
 Adjectival Description

unsuccessful contract performance is extremely low.

Fully meets all solicitation minimum requirements and exceeds many of the
solicitation requirements for this factor or subfactor or overall; OR exceeds
a small number of the minimum requirements but to a significant degree or
Good (G)
in a valuable way for this factor or subfactor or overall. Response exceeds
an “Acceptable” rating. The risk of unsuccessful contract performance is
very low.

Fully meets all solicitation minimum requirements for this factor or

Acceptable subfactor or overall. Areas where the proposal exceeds the minimum
(A) solicitation requirements, if any, are of little or no value to the Government.
The risk of unsuccessful contract performance is low.

Less than “Acceptable.” Does not meet all solicitation minimum

requirements for this factor or subfactor or overall. The proposal indicates a
Marginal (M) superficial or vague understanding of the program goals and the methods,
resources, schedules and/or other aspects essential to contract performance.
The risk of unsuccessful contract performance is moderate.

Technical proposal has many or significant deficiencies and/or substantial

omissions for a factor or subfactor or overall AND/OR the proposal
Unacceptable
demonstrates a lack of understanding of the program goals, methods,
(U)
resources, schedules and/or other aspects essential to contract performance.
The risk of unsuccessful contract performance is high.

FACTOR 1: TECHNICAL APPROACH

Offerors will be evaluated on their ability to provide sufficient detail to substantiate the validity
of all stated claims. Further, the Offeror should indicate that it can comply with each requirement
of the solicitation and explain how compliance is achieved. Offerors will be evaluated on their
clarity, completeness, and the overall breadth and depth of the quote will be evaluated in the
context of being representative of the Offeror’s capabilities. Data previously submitted, or
presumed to be known, i.e., previous projects performed for NIH cannot be considered unless
such information is provided. The Offeror will be evaluated on their ability to provide the
services proposed, to integrate the various functions outlined in the SOW and to deal with
problems that may be encountered.

Statements such as "the Offeror understands," "the Offeror has a long history of outstanding
support", along with responses that paraphrase the solicitation, may be considered inadequate.
Phrases such as "standard procedures will be employed" or "well-known techniques will be
used," without a specific Government or industry reference, may be considered unacceptable.

 Sub-Factor 1.1: Application development and support

 o Specific methods and techniques to be employed with respect to these tasks
including adherence to government regulations such as FISMA, EPLC, SDLC and
Section 508 compliance
o Knowledge of the applicable hardware and software systems to be used by
NICHD staff as described in the Statement of Work and Statement of Work
Appendix I
 Sub-Factor 1.2: Maintenance and Support of Websites
o Specific methods and techniques to be employed with respect to these tasks
including adherence to government regulations such as FISMA, EPLC, SDLC and
Section 508 compliance
o Knowledge of the applicable hardware and software systems to be used by
NICHD staff as described in the Statement of Work and Statement of Work,
Appendix I
 Sub-Factor 1.3: Section 508 Compliance
o Specific methods and techniques to be employed with respect to the Section 508
Compliance for the applications and websites including adherence to the NIH and
HHS Section 508 Compliance requirements
o Knowledge of the applicable hardware and software systems to be used by
NICHD staff as described in the Statement of Work and Statement of Work,
Appendix I

FACTOR 2: MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

The Offeror will be evaluated on their narrative detailing a staffing approach for proposed key
personnel and non-key personnel. Additionally, Offeror’s methodology for retaining and
recruiting staff to fill vacancies for this requirement will be evaluated.

The offeror will be evaluated on its ability to identify associated risks, constraints, and issues that
may be faced and provide their strategy to mitigate each risk. Finally, Offeror’s methodology for
providing training on their own expense and identifying qualified personnel that possess relevant
training and certifications to support the tasks in the SOW will be evaluated.

The Offeror should demonstrate in the proposal thoroughness and effectiveness of the overall
plan for the transition and conduct of the task activities, including recognition of the scope of
activities, relative duration of activities and interdependence of task activities.

The Offeror should provide evidence of experience and expertise in detail management
procedures, quality control procedures, resource allocation and management methodology to be
used to meet the performance requirements of the SOW.

FACTOR 3: PERSONNEL

The Offeror will be responsible for employing qualified personnel both key and non-key to
perform the required services by this SOW. The Offeror will represent/acknowledge that all key
personnel assigned to this SOW can work independently and with the demonstrated knowledge,
skills, and expertise in their respective areas necessary to perform all assigned duties. If the
Offeror personnel do not possess the expertise necessary to perform the tasks required under this
SOW, then the Offeror will be responsible for seeking appropriate training required which they
fund. Key personnel are those personnel considered essential to successful Offeror performance.
The Government will approve initial contactor key personnel at time of award.

The Offeror will be evaluated on resumes of the following Key Personnel and Other Personnel.
If the proposed labor categories differ from below, the Offeror will be evaluated on their ability
to map them accordingly.

 1. Program Manager (Key Personnel)

o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 With at least 10 years of management experience and at least 3 years of
experience managing projects with similar size and scope for Federal
Government
 Active Project Management Institute (PMI) certified Project Management
Professional (PMP) certification
 Extensive experience managing information technology evaluations
 Extensive experience developing and tracking schedule, cost, and risk for
projects with similar size and scope in an Information Technology
environment
 Understanding of Federal Government policies and procedures and
demonstrated ability to meet fast turnaround deadlines
 Understanding of Federal Government contracting and billing processes
along with experience in cost control management
o Education Preferred:
 Master’s degree in technical and/or business administration. A Bachelor’s
degree in an associated field and 4 additional years of IT project
management experience is acceptable in lieu of a Master’s degree.
 2. Sr. Web Developer (Key Personnel)
o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 With at least 10 years’ experience with grants and council-related
applications
 Experience with MVC 5, jQuery, K2 Blackpearl and Bootstrap
 With at least 5 years’ experience with Drupal 8/9 in Azure, including
DevOps automation with Behat/Cypress, Travis CI, and Jenkins/Azure
DevOps Pipelines
 With at least 5 years’ experience with SharePoint 2016/2019
 Experience with claims-based authentication using NIH Login
o Education Preferred:
 Master’s degree. A Bachelor’s degree and 2 years of additional related
experience is acceptable in lieu of a Master’s degree.
 3. Sr. Application Developer (Key Personnel)
o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 With at least 10 years’ experience in .Net and SharePoint
2013/2016/2019/SPO, along with MVC, Ajax.
 With more than 5 years’ experience with K2 Blackpearl
  Experience with ActivePDF products, Telerik Radcontrols and
iText/iTextSharp, SharePoint Search
 Experience writing web service calls to SAM.gov, NIH POTS, NIH
NPMP, and other enterprise systems
o Education Preferred:
 Master’s degree. A Bachelor’s degree and 2 years of additional related
experience is acceptable in lieu of a Master’s degree.
 4. Sr. Software Engineer (Key Personnel)
o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 With more than 10 years’ experience architecting, administering, patching,
and configuring SharePoint on-premises 2010/2013/2016/2019.
 Experience configuring SharePoint Online. Experience migrating
SharePoint sites from on-premises to SharePoint Online.
 Experience configuring and managing F5 Silverline Web Application
Firewall (WAF) Proxy, SSL, Threat Profiles settings as well as trouble
shooting firewall and connectivity issues.
 With more than 5 years’ experience supporting Drupal in Azure, creating
resource groups, provisioning VMs, and associated resources, managing
firewall rules via Network Security Groups.
 With more than 5 years’ experience supporting FISMA security
assessment and authorization activities.
o Education Preferred:
 Master’s degree. A Bachelor’s degree and 2 years of additional related
experience is acceptable in lieu of a Master’s degree.
 5. Sr. Business Intelligence Developer (Key Personnel)
o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 With more than 10 years’ experience with SQL Server and/or Oracle
 With more than 4 years’ experience with Qlik Sense/QlikView
 With more than 5 years’ experience retrieving data from Federal enterprise
data warehouses
o Education Preferred:
 Master’s degree. A Bachelor’s degree and 2 years of additional related
experience is acceptable in lieu of a Master’s degree.
 6. Sr. Section 508 Analyst (Key Personnel)
o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 With more than 10 years expertise in reviewing websites, applications,
webinars, emails, and multimedia for 508 Compliance and making PDFs,
websites, videos, and documents 508 compliant.
 Experience conducting 508 Compliance training.
 Experience with JAWS and NVDA screen readers, WAVE and aXe web
accessibility tools, Color Contrast Analyzer, Validity HTML Checker,
MAGic zoom tool, Dragon Naturally Speaking, Acrobat Pro,
CommonLook PDF, and PAC (PDF Accessibility Checker).
 Extensive experience providing remediation support including but not
limited to conducting and recommending remediation for applications,
websites, PDFs, blast emails, videos, podcasts, audio-slideshows, online
 surveys, Word docs, and Excel documents using a standard checking
process that incorporates HHS requirements for Section 508 compliance
 Extensive experience in ensuring that all sites meet the standards for
accessibility by individuals with disabilities (Section 508 of the
Rehabilitation Act) as well as all applicable Federal, HHS, NIH, and
NICHD standards for security and privacy
o Education Preferred:
 Bachelor’s degree in computer science, information systems, engineering,
business, management, other related discipline or equivalent
 Other Personnel
o General Experience and Additional Knowledge Areas Preferred:
 Project manager with at least 10 years of experience leading software
development and maintenance of applications similar to NICHD
applications as listed in the Statement of Work
 Project manager with at least 10 years of experience leading website
development and maintenance of content management systems similar to
NICHD websites as listed in the Statement of Work
 Analyst with at least 5 years of experience in business analytics and
process re-engineering
 QA Specialist with at least 5 years of experience
 Extensive experience creating standard operating procedures, guidelines,
and other documentation
 Extensive experience conducting user training and workshops for the
enterprise and local systems
 Understanding of Federal Government policies and procedures and
demonstrated ability to meet fast turnaround deadlines
 Experience configuring, maintaining, and documenting systems in
compliance with FISMA
 Experience of Cloud technologies including IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS
 Significant experience in Azure cloud
 Significant experience with architecting and migration of the applications
and content management sites to the Cloud
 Extensive experience with architectural design, implementation, and
maintenance activities for new and existing applications and multi-tiered
websites and applications development with similar size and scope
 Extensive experience with analyzing, implementing, and streamlining
where required the Enterprise Performance Life Cycle (EPLC) process as
well as other System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) process
 Extensive experience conducting usability research and analysis, including
planning, facilitating, and conducting user and stakeholder interviews,
documentation, training, and reporting
 Proven experience and ability to diagnose and investigate unique and
complex systemic problems
 Extensive experience customizing, implementing, and supporting the
SharePoint Server and Drupal content management systems, as well as
 experience with both stand-alone, replication and clustering
implementations
 Experience leading the website projects from Concept Design,
Information Architecture, User Interface Design, Design and Code
Development, Final Production, User Testing, to Preparation and
Finalization for Launch
 Significant experience with back-end integration of database systems with
projects in similar size and scope
 Experience in responsive design and development
 Experience in social media
 Experience in content syndication
 Extensive experience with posting content to Government websites
 Extensive experience in ensuring that all sites meet the standards for
accessibility by individuals with disabilities (Section 508 of the
Rehabilitation Act) as well as all applicable Federal, HHS, NIH, and
NICHD standards for security and privacy

PAST PERFORMANCE

The offeror must provide three (3) examples of relevant contracts or Task/Call Orders similar in
size, scope, and complexity to the Statement of Work, performed as a Prime contractor or
Subcontractor. The examples should include the following information:

 Contract/Order Number
 Period of Performance
 Contract/Order Value
 Indicate if performed as a Prime Contractor or Subcontractor
 Technical POC (Name/Email/Telephone Number)
 Contractual POC (Name/Email/Telephone Number)
 Project Description
 Relevance to Section C. Statement of Work

Each Offeror will be evaluated on its performance under existing and prior contracts for similar
services during the past three years. The Government will focus on information that
demonstrates quality performance for projects with similar size and complexity of this
requirement, specifically acquisition support services.

Past Performance will not be scored, but the Government’s conclusions about overall quality of
the Offerors past performance will be influential in determining the merits of the Offeror’s
proposal and in selecting the offeror whose proposal is considered most advantageous to the
Government.

The Government reserves the right to consider information from any other sources when
evaluating the Offeror’s past performance.

PRICE
Offeror(s) price proposal will be evaluated for reasonableness against the rates of their respective
GSA contract under FAR Part 8.4. Although price reasonableness has been established for the
labor categories under the GSA Federal Supply Schedule contract, the cost/price analysis based
on the level of experience and expertise being proposed under a labor category may deem a price
to be unreasonable to perform the requirement(s). A price proposal found to be unrealistically
low or unrealistically high may be considered to reflect a lack of understanding of the
requirements. Offerors are cautioned that unreasonably high or unrealistically low proposed
prices may be grounds for eliminating a quotation from consideration for award.

EVALUATION OF OPTIONS

It is anticipated that any contract awarded from this solicitation will contain option provision(s)
and periods(s). In accordance with FAR clause 52.217-5 Evaluation of Options, (July 1990) the
Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by addition the total price for all options to
the total price of the basic requirement, except when it is determined in accordance with FAR
17.206(b) not to be in the Government’s best interests. Evaluation of options will not obligate the
Government to exercise the option(s).

SELECTION FOR AWARD

Offeror should be aware that the Government will perform a “best value analysis” determined
through the trade-off process and the selection for award will be made to the Offeror whose
proposal is most advantageous to the Government, taking into consideration the technical factors
listed above and the total proposed price across all contract periods.

Attachments and Exhibits

The RFP document lists the following attachments:

Attachment Number Title Description

1 Statement of Work (SOW)

2 Reporting Requirements and Deliverables

3 NIH RC-2 Invoice Instructions

4 Electronic Invoice Instructions

5 Return-To-Work Guidance

Key Personnel
This RFP document outlines specific requirements for Key Personnel to be assigned to the
project.

Key Personnel Positions

Position Mandatory
Required Qualifications Responsibilities
Title Requirements

- At least 10 years of
management experience and
at least 3 years of experience
managing projects with
similar size and scope for
Federal Government - Active
Project Management Institute
- Facilitate
(PMI) certified Project
Government-Contractor
Management Professional
communications. -
(PMP) certification -
Serve as the primary
Extensive experience - Must be
technical and
managing information available during
managerial interface
technology evaluations - normal duty
between the Contractor
Extensive experience hours. - Must be
Program and the Contracting
developing and tracking able to meet with
Manager Officer’s
schedule, cost, and risk for government
Representative (COR)
projects with similar size and personnel within
located at NIH NICHD.
scope in an Information 24 hours to
- Have full authority to
Technology environment - discuss problems.
act for the contractor on
Understanding of Federal
all contract matters
Government policies and
relating to daily
procedures and demonstrated
operations.
ability to meet fast
turnaround deadlines -
Understanding of Federal
Government contracting and
billing processes along with
experience in cost control
management

Sr. Web - At least 10 years’ - Develop and maintain - Must be a

Developer experience with grants and websites and current employee
council- related applications - applications. of the contractor.
Experience with MVC 5,
jQuery, K2 Blackpearl and
Bootstrap - At least 5 years’
experience with Drupal 8/9 in
Position Mandatory
Required Qualifications Responsibilities
Title Requirements

Azure, including DevOps

automation with
Behat/Cypress, Travis CI, and
Jenkins/Azure DevOps
Pipelines - At least 5 years’
experience with SharePoint
2016/2019 - Experience with
claims -based authentication
using NIH Login

- At least 10 years’
experience in .Net and
SharePoint
2013/2016/2019/SPO, along
with MVC, Ajax. - At least 5
years’ experience with K2
Sr. Blackpearl - Experience with - Must be a
- Develop and maintain
Application ActivePDF products, Telerik current employee
applications.
Developer Radcontrols and of the contractor.
iText/iTextSharp, SharePoint
Search - Experience writing
web service calls to
SAM.gov, NIH POTS, NIH
NPMP, and other enterprise
systems

Sr. - More than 10 years’ - Develop and maintain - Must be a

Software experience architecting, software systems. current employee
Engineer administering, patching, and of the contractor.
configuring SharePoint on-
premises
2010/2013/2016/2019. -
Experience configuring
SharePoint Online.
Experience migrating
SharePoint sites from on-
premises to SharePoint
Online. - Experience
configuring and managing F5
Silverline Web Application
Firewall (WAF) Proxy, SSL,
Threat Profiles settings as
Position Mandatory
Required Qualifications Responsibilities
Title Requirements

well as trouble shooting

firewall and connectivity
issues. - More than 5 years’
experience supporting Drupal
in Azure, creating resource
groups, provisioning VMs,
and associated resources,
managing firewall rules via
Network Security Groups. -
More than 5 years’
experience supporting
FISMA security assessment
and authorization activities.

- More than 10 years’

experience with SQL Server
and/or Oracle - More than 4
Sr. Business - Develop and maintain - Must be a
years’ experience with Qlik
Intelligence business intelligence current employee
Sense/QlikView - More than
Developer systems. of the contractor.
5 years’ experience retrieving
data from Federal enterprise
data warehouses

Sr. Section - More than 10 years - Ensure all applications - Must be a

508 Analyst expertise in reviewing and websites are current employee
websites, applications, compliant with Section of the contractor.
webinars, emails, and 508 of the
multimedia for 508 Rehabilitation Act.
Compliance and making
PDFs, websites, videos, and
documents 508 compliant. -
Experience conducting 508
Compliance training. -
Experience with JAWS and
NVDA screen readers,
WAVE and aXe web
accessibility tools, Color
Contrast Analyzer, Validity
HTML Checker, MAGic
zoom tool, Dragon Naturally
Speaking, Acrobat Pro,
CommonLook PDF, and PAC
 Position Mandatory
Required Qualifications Responsibilities
Title Requirements

(PDF Accessibility Checker).

- Extensive experience
providing remediation
support including but not
limited to conducting and
recommending remediation
for applications, websites,
PDFs, blast emails, videos,
podcasts, audio-slideshows,
online surveys, Word docs,
and Excel documents using a
standard checking process
that incorporates HHS
requirements for Section 508
compliance - Extensive
experience in ensuring that all
sites meet the standards for
accessibility by individuals
with disabilities (Section 508
of the Rehabilitation Act) as
well as all applicable Federal,
HHS, NIH, and NICHD
standards for security and
privacy

Resume Requirements for Key Personnel

 Format: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Microsoft Project
only.
 Content: Education, background, expertise, and recent experience for the past three
years.
 Page Limit: No more than three pages per personnel.

Clearance Requirements

 Personnel Security Clearance Levels:

o Level 6: Public Trust - High Risk: Contractor/subcontractor employees assigned
to Level 6 positions shall undergo a Suitability Determination and Background
Investigation (MBI).
o Level 5: Public Trust - Moderate Risk: Contractor/subcontractor employees
assigned to Level 5 positions with no previous investigation and approval shall
 undergo a Suitability Determination and a Minimum Background Investigation
(MBI), or a Limited Background Investigation (LBI).
o Level 1: Non-Sensitive: Contractor/subcontractor employees assigned to Level 1
positions shall undergo a Suitability Determination and National Check and
Inquiry Investigation (NACI).
 Facility Clearance Requirements: Not explicitly mentioned in the RFP document.
 Time Constraints: The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer in advance when
any new personnel, who are subject to a background check/investigation, will work under
the contract and if they have previously been the subject of national agency checks or
background investigations. Contractors may begin work after the fingerprint check has
been completed.

Other Personnel-Related Information

 Staffing Levels: The Offeror shall specify the names and categories of personnel
proposed to complete the proposed tasks and the amount of time they will be assigned to
tasks set forth in this requirement.
 Subcontractor Personnel Requirements: The technical proposal must address any
activities requiring subcontractor support.
 Key Personnel Replacement Policies: The key personnel specified in the resultant
contract are considered to be essential to work performance. At least 30 days prior to
diverting any of the specified individuals to other programs or contracts (or as soon as
possible, if an individual must be replaced, for example, as a result of leaving the employ
of the Contractor), the Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer and shall submit
comprehensive justification for the diversion or replacement request (including proposed
substitutions for key personnel) to permit evaluation by the Government of the impact on
performance under this contract. The Contractor shall not divert or otherwise replace any
key personnel without written consent of the Contracting Officer. The Government may
modify the contract to add or delete key personnel at the request of the Contractor or
Government.

Additional Information

 The Government requests an opportunity to review the CVs/resumes of proposed key

personnel.
 The Offeror will be evaluated on its ability to identify associated risks, constraints, and
issues that may be faced and provide their strategy to mitigate each risk.
 The Offeror will be evaluated on its methodology for providing training on their own
expense and identifying qualified personnel that possess relevant training and
certifications to support the tasks in the SOW.
 The Offeror will be evaluated on its methodology for retaining and recruiting staff to fill
vacancies for this requirement.
 The Offeror will be evaluated on its narrative detailing a staffing approach for proposed
key personnel and non-key personnel.
  The Offeror must provide three (3) examples of relevant contracts or Task/Call Orders
similar in size, scope, and complexity to the Statement of Work, performed as a Prime
contractor or Subcontractor.

Red Flags

Personnel Requirements

 Stringent Requirements for Key Personnel Resumes: The RFP specifies detailed
experience and knowledge requirements for each key personnel position, including
specific software and technology expertise. This could be a Red Flag for smaller
companies or those lacking individuals with the exact combination of skills.
 Specific Clearances (Personnel and Facility): The RFP mandates background
investigations for all contractor personnel, with varying levels of scrutiny based on
position sensitivity. This could be a significant hurdle for companies with limited
experience in government contracting or those unable to meet the required security
standards.
 Mandatory Training: The RFP requires all contractor personnel to complete specific
HHS/NIH training courses before performing any work. This could be a Red Flag for
companies with limited resources or those unable to quickly onboard new employees
with the required training.

Technical Challenges

 Complex Technical Requirements: The RFP outlines a wide range of technical

requirements, including expertise in various software platforms, cloud technologies, and
security protocols. This could be a Red Flag for companies lacking the necessary
technical depth or those unfamiliar with the specific technologies used by NICHD.
 Section 508 Compliance: The RFP emphasizes Section 508 compliance for all
deliverables, requiring a thorough understanding of accessibility standards and testing
procedures. This could be a Red Flag for companies with limited experience in
accessibility compliance or those lacking the necessary testing tools.
 FISMA Compliance: The RFP mandates FISMA compliance for all systems and data
handled under the contract, requiring a robust security program and adherence to specific
security controls. This could be a Red Flag for companies with limited experience in
FISMA compliance or those lacking the necessary security infrastructure.

Contractual and Administrative Challenges

 Challenging Deadlines and Timelines: The RFP sets tight deadlines for proposal
submission and question responses, potentially limiting the time available for thorough
proposal development and research.
 Stringent Past Performance Criteria: The RFP requires detailed past performance
information, including specific examples of similar projects and customer contact details.
 This could be a Red Flag for companies with limited experience in government
contracting or those lacking strong past performance documentation.
 Ambiguous or Contradictory Statements: The RFP contains some ambiguous or
potentially contradictory statements regarding the scope of work, pricing, and evaluation
criteria. This could lead to confusion and misinterpretation, potentially impacting
proposal compliance.
 Unique and Emphasized Requirements: The RFP emphasizes specific requirements,
such as the use of existing GSA contracts, the need for a dedicated Program Manager,
and the importance of COVID-19 compliance. These requirements could be challenging
for companies lacking the necessary resources or experience.

Other Red Flags

 Limited Use of Data: The RFP restricts the use and disclosure of proprietary data,
potentially limiting the ability of the contractor to leverage existing knowledge or
expertise.
 Data Rights and Ownership: The RFP clearly states that all data, code, and
documentation developed under the contract belong to the government. This could be a
Red Flag for companies seeking to retain intellectual property rights or those concerned
about the potential for future use of their work.
 COVID-19 Requirements: The RFP includes specific requirements related to COVID-
19 testing and compliance with NIH policies. This could be a Red Flag for companies
with limited experience in navigating government health and safety regulations or those
facing challenges in meeting these requirements.