Wire Ties for the USDA, AMS, Cotton & Tobacco Program   3

Purpose: USDA intends to issue a single-award, firm fixed-price, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract for period of five (5) years for wire ties for the USDA, AMS, Cotton and Tobacco Program. The government anticipates issuing the award on or about March 31, 2025.

Evaluation of Quotes: The following factors shall be utilized to evaluate quotations:

(i) Technical Qualification The bale bags must meet the Technical Specifications stated in the specifications and the Buy American Act. One (1) 10 gauge 10' wire bale tie and one (1) 10 guage 10' 3 wire bale tie must be received at the USDA, AMS, Cotton and Tobacco Program office at the following address by 5:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 to evaluate the samples to verify that it meets the required specifications:

USDA, AMS, Cotton and Tobacco Program

Attn: Ray Scroggins

3275 Appling Road Room No. 2

Memphis, TN 38133-2701

If a sample does not meet the specification, the quotation will be determined to not be technically acceptable and ineligible for award. Vendors are solely responsible for any costs associated with submitting samples, including any shipping costs; USDA will not reimburse Vendors for samples submitted for evaluation.

(ii) Experience and Past Performance Vendors must use Attachment 2 Vendor Experience & Past Performance Sheet and include a minimum of two (2) but no more than five (5) references for contracts of the same or similar product/service. Vendors must complete the Customer Identification section within the attachments for each reference provided.

Past Performance will be evaluated for all projects submitted to demonstrate similar experience to ascertain the probability of successfully performing the required efforts of the Statement of Work. The past performance evaluation will be specifically based upon the satisfactory completion of services performed to the services required under this solicitation, the record of conforming to contract requirements and standards of good workmanship, and the commitment to customer satisfaction. The Past Performance evaluation will also take into account any past performance information regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience or subcontractors that performed major or critical aspects of the requirement when such information is relevant. For joint ventures, past performance records of both firms will be considered. In the case of an offeror without a record of relevant past performance or for whom information on past performance is not available, the offeror will not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably on past performance.

(iii) Price - Price Quotation: Vendors must utilize the Attachment 1 Price Quotation Spreadsheet that is attached to the solicitation to submit their price quotation.

The resulting award will be a Firm Fixed-Price contract with economic price adjustment. The Government may use various price analysis techniques and procedures to evaluate price reasonableness.

Basis for Award: The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers:

Technical and past performance, when combined, are significantly more important than cost or price.

Instructions to Vendors:

All Vendors must be registered in the System for Award Management (www.sam.gov). The Vendor's SAM.gov Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) shall be specified within the quotation.

The UEI will be utilized to obtain the Contractor's SAM.gov Federal Contractors Registration within the System for Award Management (SAM) at http://www.sam.gov, in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.204-7. The Contractor's registration within SAM must be current and active in SAM at time of quote and award. The online SAM Certification and Representations for business size determination must qualify as a small business in accordance with the applicable NAICS code 332618 Other Fabricated Wire Product Manufacturing (2022 NAICS), with a Small Business Administration (SBA) size standard of 500 employees. The applicable Product Service Code (PSC) is 9545.

Please note that registering in the SAM database is free of charge. Free SAM registration assistance can be obtained by calling the help desk toll free at 866-606-8220. Free assistance can also be found at your local Association of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (APTAC) office, please visit the following website to find an APTAC center: https://www.aptac-us.org/contracting-assistance/.

Vendors must submit the following documents to the Contract Specialist, Matthew Phillips via e-mail at Matthew.Phillips3@usda.gov prior to the closing time/date of the solicitation as stated within SAM.gov. Please be aware that the size of the email may take longer to send. If over 2MB, you may need to send more than one email. Please make sure that you receive an email back from the Contract Specialist stating that it has been received:

• Completed and signed copy of SF1449 (Posted as an attachment with the solicitation on www.sam.gov).
• Standard Forms (SF) 30 (If any Amendments are issued)
• Completed Attachment 1 - Solicitation 12639525Q0061 Wire Ties Price Quotation Spreadsheet
• Completed Attachment 2 - Vendor Experience and Past Performance Sheet
• Completed Attachment 3 - Vendor FAR Representations Solicitation 12639525Q0061 (Note: Attachment 3 does not relate to an evaluation factor for award; however, failure to submit a completed Attachment 3 may render a Vendor's quote ineligible for an award).