Wire Ties for USDA, AMS Cotton & Tobacco Program   2

Instructions to Vendors:

1. Completed and signed copy of SF1449 (Posted as an attachment with the solicitation on www.sam.gov).

2. Purpose: USDA intends to issue a single-award, firm fixed price with economic price adjustment, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract for period of one (1) year (base year), and one (1) option year for wire ties for the USDA, AMS, Cotton and Tobacco Program. The government anticipates issuing the award on or about April 15, 2023.

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

(i) Technical Qualification Wire tie pattern shall meet the Technical Specifications stated in the specifications and the Buy American Act sample must be received at the USDA, AMS, Cotton and Tobacco Program office (Attn: Ray Scroggins) by April 5, 2023 to evaluate the sample to verify that it meets the required specifications. If a sample does not meet the specification, the quotation will be determined to not be technically-acceptable and ineligible for award.

(ii) Experience and Past Performance The quotation shall include a list of three (3) references for contracts of the same or similar product/service. List shall include contract number, point of contact name and telephone number, description of the contract, and the approximate amount (total value) of the contract.

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: The quotation shall include:

• Price per pattern (meeting all specifications).
• Any quantity discounts.
• Estimated shipping costs for wire tie quantities and destinations shown in PART 1 SPECIFICATIONS .
• The Quotation shall specify a unit price for the base year period and a unit price for the option year period.

The resulting award will be a Firm Fixed-Price contract with economic price adjustment. Price reasonableness will be utilized in the evaluation of the Firm-Fixed Price effort. The firm fixed-price of services within this Contract shall be inclusive of shipping costs. The Government may use various price analysis techniques and procedures to evaluate price reasonableness.

Basis for Award: Award will be made on the basis of the lowest evaluated price of quotations meeting or exceeding the acceptability standards for non-price factors.

3. 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. This acquisition is a Total Small Business Set-Aside, in accordance with FAR 19.5 (Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.219-6 applies to this solicitation).

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/.

4. Completed FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (See Part 3 PROVISIONS). Note: The Offeror shall complete only paragraph (b) of this provision if the Offeror has completed the annual representations and certification electronically in the System for Award Management (SAM) accessed through https://www.sam.gov.

5. Completed FAR 52.225-2 Buy American Supplies (See Part 3 PROVISIONS).

6. Completed FAR 52.219-1 Small Business Program Representations (Vendor shall only complete if not already represented as a small business for the applicable NAICS within their SAM.gov registration.

7. A sample of the wire tie pattern must be sent to the Grading Branch by 10:00 a.m. Central Daylight Time on April 5, 2023. The address is shown below:

USDA, AMS, Cotton Division

Attn: Grading Branch, Ray Scroggins

3275 Appling Road

Memphis, TN 38133-2701

8. Past Performance The quotation shall include a list of three (3) references for contracts of the same or similar product/service. List shall include contract number, point of contact name and telephone number, description of the contract, approximate amount of the contract.

9. Quotations will be accepted via e-mail only; quotations shall be e-mailed directly to the Contracting Officer, Matthew Phillips, at Matthew.Phillips3@usda.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 Contracting Officer stating that it has been received.