Office of Acquisition and Grants, 1710 GWYNN OAK AVENUE, = BALTIMORE, MD, 21207-5279

99 -- 50 INCH DIAMETER ROLLS OF 11 INCH WIDE PAPER SOL SSA-RFQ-99-3981 DUE 090999 POC KATHLEEN SPANGLER, 410-965-9511 WEB: Download Solicitation when/if available, http://www.ssa.gov/oag. E-MAIL: Contracting Officer, SSA/OAG, KATHLEEN.SPANGLER@ssa.gov. This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotations are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This is a simplified acquisition, 100% small business set-aside, issued as a request for quotation (RFQ), number SSA-RFQ-99-3981. This request for quotation and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 97-12. All responsible small business sources may submit an offer, which shall be considered by the agency. The standard industrial classification code (SIC) for this acquisition is 2621. The small business size standard is 750 employees. REQUIREMENT: Three hundred and twenty-four (324) 50 inch diameter rolls of 11 inch wide paper, white form bond, perforated at 8 =BD-inch intervals, to be used on a Roll Systems Incorporated (RSI) unwinder. The paper must have a minimum weight of 20 lbs with at least 20% post- consumer recovered material, must consist of at least 80% chemically pulped wood, free from any contaminants that may have been added to the paper in its previous application. The smoothness of the paper must range between 70-150 Sheffield Units. The paper must have pinfeed holes at the sides (not factored into the 11-inch width) and be wound on six-inch cores. Rolls must be spliceless and all rolls wound in the same direction. FAR Clause 52.209-4 First Article Approval -- Government Testing -- Alternate I, applies to this requirement: FIRST ARTICLE APPROVAL -- GOVERNMENT TESTING (SEP 1989) -- ALTERNATE I (JAN 1997) (a) The Contractor shall deliver 3 rolls of Lot/Item within 10 calendar days from the date of this contract to the Government at SSA, Middle River, 2800 Eastern Blvd., Baltimore, Maryland 21220 for first article tests. The shipping documentation shall contain this contract number and the Lot/Item identification. The characteristics that the first article must meet and the testing requirements are specified elsewhere in this contract. (b) Within 15 calendar days after the Government receives the first article, the Contracting Officer shall notify the Contractor, in writing, of the conditional approval, approval, or disapproval of the first article. The notice of conditional approval or approval shall not relieve the Contractor from complying with all requirements of the specifications and all other terms and conditions of this contract. A notice of conditional approval shall state any further action required of the Contractor. A notice of disapproval shall cite reasons for the disapproval. (c) If the first article is disapproved, the Contractor, upon Government request, shall submit an additional first article for testing. After each request, the Contractor shall make any necessary changes, modifications, or repairs to the first article or select another first article for testing. All costs related to these tests are to be borne by the Contractor, including any and all costs for additional tests following a disapproval. The Contractor shall furnish any additional first article to the Government under the terms and conditions and within the time specified by the Government. The Government shall act on this first article within the time limit specified in paragraph (b) of this clause. The Government reserves the right to require an equitable adjustment of the contract price for any extension of the delivery schedule or for any additional costs to the Government related to these tests. (d) If the Contractor fails to deliver any first article on time, or the Contracting Officer disapproves any first article, the Contractor shall be deemed to have failed to make delivery within the meaning of the Default clause of this contract. (e) Unless otherwise provided in the contract, the Contractor -- (1) May deliver the approved first article as a part of the contract quantity, provided it meets all contract requirements for acceptance and was not consumed or destroyed in testing; and (2) Shall remove and dispose of any first article from the Government test facility at the Contractor's expense. (f) If the Government does not act within the time specified in paragraph (b) or (c) of this clause, the Contracting Officer shall, upon timely written request from the Contractor, equitably adjust under the Changes clause of this contract the delivery or performance dates and/or the contract price, and any other contractual term affected by the delay. (g) The Contractor is responsible for providing operating and maintenance instructions, spare parts support, and repair of the first article during any first article test. (h) Before first article approval, the acquisition of materials or components for, or the commencement of production of, the balance of the contract quantity is at the sole risk of the Contractor. Before first article approval, the costs thereof shall not be allocable to this contract for (1) progress payments, or (2) termination settlements if the contract is terminated for the convenience of the Government. (i) The Government may waive the requirement for first article approval test where supplies identical or similar to those called for in the schedule have been previously furnished by the Offeror/Contractor and have been accepted by the Government. The Offeror/Contractor may request a waiver.(j) The Contractor shall produce both the first article and the production quantity at the same facility. The contractor shall provide three test rolls of paper immediately after award. The rolls will be held in SSA's printer area for three days to allow for proper acclimatizing. The rolls will then be used on SSA's IBM 3900 Printer Systems to ensure that the paper meets all requirements for surface stability, vapor emissions, print quality maintenance and fusing quality. TESTING SCENARIO FOR ROLLED PAPER: The paper must meet all specifications of this requirement. The core must function properly on a RSI unwinder, without shifting of the paper or jamming. More than one non- compliant roll in test group constitutes failure. Once SSA gives final approval of the test rolls, the Government will have an additional 30 days to ensure that the paper has no detrimental effects on the printing equipment. If the paper fails to meet any criteria during that period, SSA reserves the right to cancel the contract. The contractor shall be responsible for any roll that cannot be used within 10 inches of the core, or for which the core does not function properly, at no additional charge to the Government. The rolls must be packaged three to a pallet, paper or shrink wrapped and secured to the pallet with =BD-inch wide nylon strapping. The pallets must have dimensions of 36inches X 52 inches X 5.25 inches high, with stops at the rear of the pallet to prevent dropping of the rolls during loading onto the carts. Pallets must accommodate a standard pallet jack lifting mechanism with forks measuring 42 inches long X 4 inches wide X 1.75 inches high. Each pallet must be clearly marked with both the national stock number (NSN) 7530-00- 000-0463, inventory control number (ICN) 668540 and the purchase order number. The items shall be delivered F.O.B. destination to the Social Security Administration's Middle River Warehouse in Baltimore, Maryland 21220. Delivery of all shipments shall be made between the hours of 8:00AM and 3:00PM, Monday through Friday, excluding Saturday, Sunday and all Federal Holidays. No supplies shall be provided beyond the quantities specified in the written order unless or until a modification is issued by the contracting officer. Offerors must certify in writing that the paper contains at least 20% post-consumer recovered material; that it has a composition of at least 80% chemically pulped wood ; free from contaminants; and smoothness of the paper is 70- 150 Sheffield Units. FAR Clause 52.212-1, "Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items" is incorporated by reference on page 1 of the Solicitation/Contract Order for Commercial Items, FormSF-1449. There are no addendums to these provisions. The provisions at FAR Part 52.212-2, Evaluation -- Commercial Items apply to this acquisition. The Government will award a contract resulting from this request for quotation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. To be considered for award under this solicitation, offerors must offer a firm, fixed unit and total price per roll and per thousand sheets. EVALUATION CRITERIA: The offers will be evaluated to assess compliance with the specification set forth in this solicitation and for price. AWARD IN AGGREGATE; The award of any contract as a result of this solicitation will be made in the aggregate. The total evaluated price will be based on the unit price multiplied by the estimated quantity. In event of a tie, award will be made to the vendor offering the greatest percentage of recovered materials. The offeror must certify what the percentage of total material utilized in the make up of this item, is recovered materials. A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the quote, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Offerors are advised to include a completed copy of the provision at FAR Part 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications- Commercial Items, with their quote. The provisions at FAR Part 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items apply to this acquisition. There are no addendums to these provisions. The following provisions at FAR Pat 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items apply to this acquisition: (a)(1), (a)(2), and (b) (1), (5) and (11) through (16) and (23). Offers in response to the RFQ shall be submitted by September 9, 1999, 3:00PM Eastern Standard Time, addressed to the Social Security Administration, Office of Acquisition and Grants, Attn: Kathleen Spangler, 1710 Gwynn Oak Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland. Posted 08/30/99 (D-SN374024). (0242)

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