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Tag: GSA

Industry Looking to GSA for Guidance

Agencies are pressuring GSA to provide guidance for meeting deadlines to modernize telecommunications. The  pandemic has delayed many agency transitions, thus making those deadlines nearly impossible to meet. (FEDSCOOP, May 12, 2020)

COVID-19 slowed task order awards under the Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contract, the government’s $50 billion telecom and network modernization channel. In some cases where task orders have been awarded, agencies can’t provide contractors clear instructions. Many believe the task order award delays impede the move from Networx, Washington Interagency Telecommunications System 3, and local service area contracts.

Legacy contracts are set to expire in May 2023. The GAO expects 19 of the agencies who spend the most on EIS to be transitioned over by the legacy expiration date; however many will not meet the GSA’s more aggressive 30 September 2022 deadline. (ibid)

Allen Hill, executive director of telecom services in the Office of IT Category at GSA believes agencies will make GSA aware of the effects of the pandemic, and GSA will in turn work with agencies on a case by case basis. (ibid)

The Department of Defense has their own strategy. They are beginning to rely on the lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA) source selection for EIS. DoD plans to report the methodology used to award contracts and task orders in June, once the Federal Procurement Data System modification is complete. Meanwhile, the Defense Information Systems Agency executed six EIS awards last month. Most EIS solicitations are “best value” yet agencies need to balance the overall cost of their transition with the time for implementation. (ibid)

Unfortunately, when agencies speed up transition, companies have less time to address task order requirements properly. This puts the risk on industry to provide the best value while accurately responding to agency requirements. Many task orders were written prior to the pandemic, therefore contractors are forced to address network issues while teleworking. The time it takes to address issues is naturally increased. (ibid)

“Agencies are encouraged to examine any gaps in their network infrastructures and ensure they make appropriate adjustments to their EIS task orders to provide needed capabilities. Modern IT demands modern infrastructure,” Hill stated. (ibid)

Have questions concerning a delayed task order or need one? Give us a call.

GSA Extends Contract Data Reports Transition

GSA is extending the transition period for Contract Data reports in beta.SAM.gov. We don’t have a final transition date yet, although it’s expected later this year. This applies only to the reports function of FPDS.gov; everything else will remain as is. (GSA Interact, May 12, 2020)

GSA wants users to familiarize themselves with beta.SAM.gov while reports are available on both platforms. Furthermore, they want users to provide input on running reports. GSA is providing videos, FAQs, and reference guides to assist with the transition. (ibid)

GSA sees the following benefits to beta.SAM.gov:

  • Increased maximum number of rows returned from 30,000 to 150,000 rows in each report
  • Increased maximum number of years of reportable data from five years to 12 years
  • Additional data fields available for creating ad hoc reports
  • Tools for sharing ad hoc report structure with others, such as attributes and filters
  • Report Builder, a “wizard” that helps create new ad hoc reports
  • Intuitive tools to build, save, and share reports (ibid)

GSA used earlier feedback to determine the need for additional time before making the final transition to beta.SAM.gov. They will continue to take all feedback into consideration while transitioning. Any user can still use the feedback button to participate.

Trying to figure out if your reports will change and if you can retrieve them on the new platform? Give us a call.

 

GSA, Pandemic Style

GSA is moving quickly to enact several initiatives while responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because the current state of emergency necessitates the Federal Acquisition Service to purchase medical supplies and other equipment at a fast clip, Contracting Officers have no choice but to react with a fair amount of speed and flexibility. (Federal News Network, May 1, 2020)

This includes:

  • changing policies for prompt payment and onboarding/offboarding of contractors
  • construction of the new e-commerce marketplace platform, which was paused during the first few weeks of the pandemic, is now moving forward, albeit at a much slower pace
  • monitoring other initiatives possibly impacting by the pandemic, such as Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS)
  • continuing corrective actions on Alliant 2 revised proposals
  • expanding the small business innovation research (SBIR) program, part three

Some government markets, like travel, have declined; however cleaning products and enhanced screening services have increased exponentially. (ibid)

Any questions about getting your product or service in front of government buyers? Give us a call.

GSA Allowing Some non-TAA Compliant Products

Demand for essential supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic has escalated to the point that GSA Senior Procurement Executive (SPE) has issued a Class Determination and Findings (D&F) that temporarily allows procurement of non-Trade Agreement Act (TAA) compliant products through the GSA Schedule contracts. Unavailability of the Federal Supply Classes found in GSA’s SPE memo dated 3 April 2020 is cited as the rationale for the change in contractor procedures. (GSA Interact, April 15, 2020)

All MAS contractors with access to products under these FSCs and able to meet the urgent need should submit a stand-alone modification request via eMod. Information and detailed instructions for submitting the modification along with required templates can be found on the GSA.gov, MAS Contractor and Modification Requirements page. (ibid)

The Federal Acquisition Service will email contractors to which the D&F may apply . If you do not receive an email or your authorized negotiator is not up to date, please contact your Procurement Contracting Officer (PCO). A PCO listing may be found by searching your contract number or company name on gsaelibrary.gsa.gov.

Are you able to meet the urgent needs of the government but do not know how to navigate the MAS Contractor and Modification Requirements? Give us a call.