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June 09, 2010 - Vol. 3, Issue 24
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GSA announced Wednesday, June 2, 2010 it has established 12 new blanket purchase agreements for office supplies under the Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative. The announcement states that will help federal agencies meet mandates to cut procurement expenditures by seven percent for the current and 2011 fiscal years. According to the press release: “President Barack Obama charged all government agencies with reducing procurement expenditures by 3-1/2 percent for both FY 2010 and 2011. The new agreements will help achieve this goal since discounts increase as collective purchases grow across the federal government. The pricing structure in the new agreements more fully leverages the government's buying power. The estimated savings that can be achieved through these BPAs is $48 million per year for a four year total of $192 million, a seven percent savings.” “These agreements show how FAS skillful negotiations can, and do, leverage the buying power on behalf of agencies governmentwide,” said Steven J. Kempf, Acting Commissioner of the GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service. “The expertise and care the contracting team displayed have driven the prices down and opened doors for sustainable technologies and environmentally preferable products, while providing substantial opportunities for small business.” The 12 agreements are broken down into three distinct pools offering a wide range of solutions. Pool One’s seven vendors offer office supply catalogs emphasizing a combination of socioeconomic solutions, sustainable product offerings and price. Pool Two is comprised of two companies providing office supply catalogs with an emphasis on sustainable product offerings and low prices. Pool Three is three companies offering discounted prices on toner catalogs that focus on socioeconomic solutions, sustainable product offerings and price.
The new SIN 51 500 for Managed Print Services (MPS) is now available as well as an update to SIN 51 501 Needs Assessment and Analysis Services: SIN 51 500 Managed Print Services
Managed Print Services (MPS) includes equipment and services required to manage imaging output that may include printing, scanning, copying, and fax devices in a system that monitors and reports status, needs and usage trends on regular basis. The MPS plan may be based on a needs analysis completed under SIN 51 501. Services may include but are not limited to creating a business plan solution that incorporates recommendations for each existing piece of equipment (including removing/retirement/recycling/disposal). The plan may be phased to allow for an orderly progression to the new output environment. The plan should take into account the usage and floor plan of the equipment.
Maximum Order $1,000,000 SIN 51 501 Needs Assessment and Analysis Services
Needs Assessment and Analysis Services consist of a comprehensive assessment of the customer's existing objectives, capabilities and, funding obligations which will provide agency's recommendation(s) on how to meet or exceed organization's overall performance by providing total office equipment/document management solutions. Needs Assessment and Analysis Services provide for professional support in analyzing and developing customer requirements. Regardless of the specific approach and strategies described in the technical proposal for each work segment, the work in general shall include consulting services, and other related services. (Add these 2 new paragraphs) Needs Assessment - The purpose of the needs assessment is to determine the optimal print solution for a particular organization within an agency, based on the existing workflow and output environment. Needs assessments may include data collection from the existing devices, as well as end users. Device data can be collected manually, and/or through data collection tools such as enterprise software deployment and/or USB discovery devices. The data collected in this process will show the amount of output produced for any given organization. Identification of these needs will assist in pricing and establishing best value criteria for the implementation phase, and analyze the footprint of the defined fleet to determine optimal placement of equipment. Fleet Assessment - Fleet assessments shall include the collection of device information and performance data on the defined fleet through manual assessments and/or software deployment. Assessments shall also include surveys and floor plans of all devices. This phase should identify the equipment (and related MIB data) that may or may not be covered by available MPS software suites. Fleet assessments should identify potential software compatibility issues with non-native software deployments, and individual and total energy consumption of the existing fleet.
The solicitation will be refreshed soon to reflect the changes.
GSA has issued the “Modernization of Federal Acquisition Service’s Environmental Symbols” that was announced the week of May 31. The purpose is to update the environmental symbols GSA uses in electronic catalogs such as GSAAdvantage! and GSA Global Supply. The implementation date will not be until early 2011, though GSA would like to provide contractors with enough lead time to review their product list and obtain certifications (as applicable) before the effective date. More details about how to submit new product designations will be available at vsc.gsa.gov closer to implementation. There are a number of symbols that will be retained, added, and deleted. Retained:
Comprehensive Procurement Guideline (CPG Item), ENERGY STAR, FEMP, S.N.A.P., EPEAT, PRIME Item, NESHAP, Green Seal Added:
WaterSense, BioPreferred, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), GreenGuard, Biodegradable, Low VOC, EPA Primary Metals Free Deleted:
Recycled Content, Biobased, Non-Toxic, CA South Coast Air Quality Management District, U.S. EPA Environmental Technology Verification, Environmentally Friendly Many of the symbols being added are listed in recent Executive Orders. Those being deleted were found to be rather vague terms, covered by new and more well-defined standards, or not specifically mandated for federal procurement.
A recent amendment to the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act would give “special consideration” to hiring federal employees for new and ongoing work. The amendment would allow agencies to take work from a contractor if an agency has federal employees who have done the work, if a contract was awarded non-competitively or if a contractor has done a poor job. For new agency functions, federal employees would be assigned the job first. Better news for contractors is that the amendment also forbids in-sourcing quotas for civilian agencies, unless they are based on analysis. The Defense Authorization bill already limits this practice for the Department of Defense.
Recently introduced by Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), the Small Business Training in Federal Contracting Certification Act of 2010 (S. 3444) would require small-business training for contracting officers. In particular, the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) would establish a certification program to teach employees about small business set-aside programs that offer special competitions among specific types of small companies, such as service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses and companies owned by women. The program also would train contracting officers on how to determine the company size standards for a procurement and choose the appropriate the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes. The legislation would have the Federal Acquisition Institute carry out the program. S. 3444 has been referred to the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, where it awaits further action.
If you got your digital certificate (now necessary for making modifications on many GSA Schedule contracts) though ORC, be sure that you don’t forget or lose the password. If you do, there is no way that it can be reset by you - or ORC - and you must apply for and reinstall a new digital certificate on your computer. Contact your WMG Consultant for details on Digital Certificates.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has exceeded its veteran-owned small business and service-disabled veteran-owned small business contracting goals since FY07, but faces challenges in continuing to meet its other small business contracting goals, including HUBZone and woman-owned, according to a GAO report. Its increase in veteran contracting was “largely associated with the agency’s greater use of the goals and preference authorities” established by the 2006 Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act; however the VA has struggled to ensure compliance with the Act’s requirements that interagency agreements include veteran preference language. Source: GAO Report to Congressional Committee GAO-10-458
>> Link to Original Source
FedSources Consulting, a Washington Management Group company, announced today it has moved its offices into Washington D.C. – into the heart of the government market – along side its parent company, The Washington Management Group (WMG). The move puts FedSources Consulting in the middle of the highest-priority federal decisions and activities, and provides easier access to its facilities for industry and government clients. “With the depth of government analysis we provide, it became increasingly important to be here in Washington, D.C. – downtown – where many of the largest contracting decisions are made,” said Bill Gormley, president and CEO of FedSources Consulting. FedSources Consulting’s new address is: 1990 M Street NW
Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20036 In conjunction with the move, FedSources Consulting has launched a new website that highlights the firm’s core competencies and provides detailed information about the depth and breadth of services it provides. Core Services
FedSources Consulting focuses on five core government-analysis services: 1. Pipeline Master Plan. FedSources Consulting researches, analyzes, and validates opportunity information and delivers it in a complete master plan.
2. Market Sizing. FedSources Consulting delivers market sizing information as well as recommendations for target agencies based on our assessment of our clients’ government “sweet spot”.
3. Tailored Agency Profiles. FedSources Consulting delivers in-depth agency profiles tailored specifically to clients’ business priorities and sales goals.
4. Client Satisfaction Surveys. FedSources Consulting surveys clients’ government customers – on the phone, as an outside research firm – to get an unbiased determination of their level of satisfaction with the client’s work.
5. Acquisition Identification. FedSources Consulting identifies potential acquisition targets based on in-depth analysis of clients’ core competencies, agency requirements, and the competitive landscape.
Complete Action Plan
As a FedSources Consulting client, you get an action plan. We give you a complete foundation for your government business strategy, from highly qualified opportunities to tailored agency profiles to acquisition recommendations. That plan is based on in-depth research – phone conversations with government representatives– that uncovers critical information not accessible by simple web searches. To find out how to become a FedSources Consulting client, call 202-833-1120 or visit ww.fedsourcesconsulting.com.
Recent college graduate looking for a position as an Event Planner or within Human Resource Management that will provide the opportunities to demonstrate leadership, organizational, and customer service skills. For more information, please contact Patrick Morrison at WMG (pmorrison@washmg.com)
New Event! Doing Business with the Federal Government presented by Tim Murphy (PA-18)
Wednesday, June 14, 2010
Please join Congressman Tim Murphy for this special event created for small businesses looking to enter into or expand their presence in the federal marketplace. During this event you will learn the role of GSA in promoting small business participation in government contracting, agencies’ views on small business opportunities and traits of successful contractors. To register for this event, please contact Elaine Klofta at (412) 344-5583 or elaine.klofta@mail.house.gov FedSources Executive Breakfast – Get to know your CIO
Featuring David Bowen, Assistant Administrator and Chief Information Officer,
Federal Aviation Administration
June 17, 2010
Hilton McLean Tysons Corner
Tysons Corner, McLean, VA.
For more information go to:
http://www.fedsources.com/Services/Events/brk_bowen.aspx GSA Network Services Conference 2010
June 21 – 24, 2010
Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL.
For more information go to:
http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/eventView.do?viewType=DETAIL&eventId=5594&occurId=2481 FedSources & Lohfeld Consulting – Capture Management Training Seminar
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Offices of FedSources, McLean, VA.
For more information or to register go to:
http://www.fedsources.com/Services/Events/Lohfeld_Capture_Management_Training_062410.aspx Shay Assad Breakfast Event
Wednesday June 30, 2010
Shay Assad, Director of Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy, will speak to the Coalition for Government Procurement (CGP) about current DOD policies and use of non-DoD contracts on June 30th, 2010 at the Marriott Crystal Gateway in Arlington. This is a great opportunity to hear directly from DoD and obtain insight into the agencies procurement strategies. Click here https://netforum.avectra.com/eWeb/DynamicPage.aspx?Site=CGP&WebCode=EventDetail&evt_key=b24e6639-d992-4068-a6da-33f85249f4bc&msm=d37e4e2a-2052-4d60-a6de-33e0ebf54fad&cst=68083e68-2a19-4548-bce1-3829f66961f5&ent=a1bfceac-5c09-433b-b976-457dadb305ac for more information and to register.
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