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TechBios GSA 8(a) STARS GWAC Contract
Information Technology Services
Contract Awarded pursuant to solicitation 6FG-03-RAV-002
Contract Number GS-06F-0432Z
TechBios was successful in its bid for
the GSA 8(a) STARS contract and is authorized to provide services under the following
Functional Areas:
- FA1 NAICS 541511 Customer Computer Programming Services
- FA2 NAICS 541512 Computer Systems Design Services
- FA3 NAICS 541513 Computer Facilities Management Services>
- FA4 NAICS 518210 Data Processing, Hosting and Related Services
- FA5 NAICS 541519 Other Computer Related Services
8(a) STARS is a multiple award, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract vehicle
and contains the following features:
- 3-year base with two, two-year option periods;
- Directed task orders up to $3 million each for federal civilian agencies are allowable pursuant to 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(5);
- Directed task orders up to $3 million each for Department of Defense activities are compliant with Section 803 of the 2002 National Defense Authorization Act;
- 8(a) credit can be transferred back to client agency via Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS)
- Program ceiling: $15 billion
- Non-protestable
- Order placement: GSA FTS Client Support Centers or Delegation of Authority from Procuring Contracting Officer
- Geographic coverage: Continental United States, some Worldwide
Benefits
- Hardware, software, and services may be procured as part of an integrated solution
- Support small business and meet procurement preference goals
- Pre-competed, easy to use contracts
- Availability and access to proven small business and 8(a) technology providers
- Short procurement lead time
- Low user fee, 0.75 percent
- Small Business GWAC Center provides information technology (IT) specialty contract administration
The 8(a) STARS contract is the GSA Small Business Government Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) Center’s most recent contract vehicle and is designed to promote small business utilization when purchasing technology solutions for the federal government.
The new 8(a) Streamlined Technology Acquisition Resources for Services (STARS) GWAC is a small business set-aside contract for technology solutions. Announced last summer as 8(a) Federal Acquisition Services for Technology (FAST2) Solicitation No. 6FG-03-RAV-0002 and recently renamed to 8(a) STARS, it replaces the current 8(a) FAST small business contract scheduled to expire October 31, 2004.
How to Order from the 8(a) STARS
There are two ways to order from the 8(a) STARS GWAC: Direct Order or through GSA FTS.
DIRECT ORDER-Delegations of Authority
Federal agencies that wish to conduct their own procurements may use the 8(a) STARS GWAC through a delegation of authority. Delegations of authority are easy to request. Only two pieces of information are needed to get started:
- a request via e-mail from an e-mail account having a “.gov” or “.mil” suffix listing the name(s) of the party(ies) for whom authority is being requested; and
- a copy of the warrant for each contracting officer for whom authority is being requested. The warrant(s) may accompany the e-mail as a scanned attachment, or may be faxed separately
The Small Business GWAC Center will then validate the information received and issue a Memorandum of Agreement, which includes the delegation of authority. Training will be provided to all personnel involved in the acquisition and a written delegation of authority to the covered contracting official will be issued. The contracting officer’s concurrence on the delegation is required. For information on delegations of authority or to request a delegation, please e-mail 8a@gsa.gov or call toll free (877) 327-8732.
GSA FTS-3 Steps
Doing business with GSA, Federal Technology Service (FTS) requires just three documents:
- A signed interagency Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Service Agreement
- Statement of Work (SOW) – used for technology or telecommunications services projects including the Functional Area under which it falls
- Funding document which includes the FTS fee for services
Client/customer approval for the items described in SOW based on the price and availability proposed by an industry partner is required.
GSA FTS Client Support Centers:
- Provide direct client interface and support
- Issue and manage delivery and task orders against contracts
- Procure on behalf of federal customers
Information about GSA FTS is available on the web at www.gsa.gov/fts or by calling (703) 306-6000.
Small Business Government Wide Acquisition Contracts Center Responsibilities
GSA is designated by OMB to issue the GWACs under our purview, and with that designation rests oversight responsibility such as: review of task orders for scope as well as proper procurement practices. This year’s re-designation was granted with the understanding that GSA will provide sound financial and procurement management for each of the GWACs: Annually, GSA reports the following to the OMB: number of tasks that are fair opportunity, number of tasks that include performance-based statements of work, task order types, level of competition, exceptions to the fair opportunity process, award values, and socio-economic breakdown.
The 8(a) STARS procuring contracting officers are the only individuals authorized to modify 8(a) STARS contract terms and conditions. Delegations of authority may be obtained only from a Small Business GWAC Center contracting officer.
Only warranted Contracting Officers that have been delegated authority to issue orders against the 8(a) STARS contract may issue orders directly with contract holders. Only a warranted contracting officer having Order authority may make any required change to a previously issued Order and the change must be in writing. For further information, contact Center personnel at 8a@gsa.gov or call toll free at (877) 327-8732.
Competition Requirements
The total estimated value of a procurement including options should be considered in developing an acquisition strategy. Tasks shall not be split to avoid threshold limitations. Incremental funding may be used if the total task order is awarded and the dollar amount of the work is more than the client has available at the desired start time. Pricing for the project is totaled and assigned on the task, but the pricing is charged incrementally as it becomes available. The overall scope of work and pricing does not change from the original proposal. Incremental funds are added by modifications, but modifications may not extend the period of performance or increase the total dollar value of the task. The basic task and any modifications must stay within scope.
Section 803 Application
The 8(a) STARS contract vehicle was awarded under the provisions of Section 8(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)) and FAR Part 19.8. Based upon the statutory authority for directed 8(a) awards to be placed at or below the $3 million competition threshold, the contracting officer may waive and can easily document the competition waiver for orders at or below the competition threshold placed against the 8(a) contracts. However, the competition requirements of DFARS 216.505-70 are still applicable for orders above the competition threshold of $3 million for 8(a) contracts unless the contracting officer waives this requirement on the basis of a written determination that - (1) one of the exceptions described in FAR Part 16.505(b)(2)(i) through (iv) applies to the order; or (2) a statute expressly authorizes or requires that the purchase be made from a specified source. The GSA Office of Governmentwide Policy has determined that directed orders at or below the competitive threshold placed against the 8(a) STARS contracts meet the qualification for exception to competition outlined in Section 803 of the 2002 National Defense Authorization Act.
Tasks under the Competitive Threshold of $3 Million
In accordance with FAR 19.804-2(a)(10)(1), Sole Source Ordering is available up to the competitive threshold of $3 million based on the contractor’s self-marketing efforts or past performance. Contracts were pre-competed in accordance with FAR 19 resulting in multiple awards. The Ordering Contracting Officer shall make a determination of price reasonableness for each order. Based upon the statutory authority for directed 8(a) awards to be placed at or below the $3 million competition threshold, the ordering contracting officer may waive and can easily document the competition waiver for orders at or below the competition threshold placed against the 8(a) contracts.
Tasks greater than $3 million competitive threshold
Fair opportunity to compete shall be provided to all contract holders in the applicable Functional Area on all orders exceeding the competitive threshold, unless one or more of the four statutory Fair Opportunity exceptions found in FAR 16.505 applies. Exceptions shall be documented in accordance with FAR 16.5. These are the only exceptions.
- The agency need for the supplies or services are so urgent that providing a fair
opportunity would result in unacceptable delays;
- Only one awardee is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the
level of quality required because the supplies or services ordered are unique or
highly specialized;
- The order must be issued on a sole-source basis in the interest of economy and
efficiency as a logical follow-on to an order already issued under the contract,
provided that all awardees were given a fair opportunity to be considered for the
original order; or
- It is necessary to place an order to satisfy a minimum guarantee.
For orders greater than the threshold of $3 million, competitive award criteria will be established in the RFQ/RFP (price will always be a factor). Past performance was a part of the criteria for award for these contracts, however contracting officers are encouraged to use it as part of the criteria for evaluation as well. References and past performance information for specific vendors can be requested from the contract holder. Either best value/tradeoff or low price-technically acceptable evaluations are authorized at the RFQ/RFP level, with a preference for the former. The government may require oral presentations at the order level. The government may evaluate quotations without discussions; therefore, each initial quote should contain the best terms.
A down-select approach is acceptable when all contract holders in the applicable functional area are notified of a requirement to determine their interest in competing on a particular task. The RFQ/RFP is then sent to those contract holders who responded with a statement of interest. The Center is available to assist on any 8(a) STARS procurement.
Subcontracting
Since this contract vehicle is set-aside, all subcontracting shall be shown on initial quotes. In accordance with the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 13 CFR 125.6 a small business concern contracting for services has agreed that, the concern will perform at least 50 percent of the cost of the contract incurred for personnel with its own employees. The location of the full text
of this CFR can be found at http://www.sba.gov/library/cfrs/13cfr125.html. This is also stated in the contract in FAR Clause 52.219-14, Limitation on Subcontracting. All contract holders are responsible for managing the balance of workload being performed under their contracts.
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