This is a Public Announcement in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Part 36.6, Architect-Engineering Services. Interested firms shall submit qualifications based on the Phase 1 requirements of this announcement. Upon receipt of qualifications submissions, the Department will conduct a technical evaluation in accordance with the selection criteria in FAR 36.602-1. If, upon evaluation of these submissions, there are a sufficient number of small businesses with the required demonstrated competence and qualifications, the procurement may be considered for a small business set-aside. This notice is issued in order to complete a Brooks Act Phase 1 technical evaluation. It does not constitute a request for proposal, or a commitment on the part of the government to issue a solicitation for the services identified below. Offerors are advised the government will not pay for information submitted in response to this request for qualifications, nor will it compensate offerors for any costs incurred in the development/submission of its qualifications package. As noted above, the procurement may be set aside, in some capacity, for small businesses. The decision will be based on whether a sufficient number of small business enterprises are determined to be the most highly qualified offerors, at the conclusion of the (Brooks Act) Phase 1 technical evaluation. The U.S. Department of State (DOS), Office of Logistics Management, on behalf of the Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO), anticipates the award of at least three indefinite quantity/indefinite delivery contracts to provide cost estimating services. Each contract shall consist of a one-year base period with four one-year optional service periods. The Government guarantees a minimum of $50,000 in task orders over the life of each contract. The total amount of orders issued under each contract shall not exceed $750,000 per year. The contractor shall perform tasks in generating conceptual, budgetary, and/or detailed cost estimates and life cycle cost analyses. Typical tasks may involve travel to diplomatic posts, conducting facility and/or infrastructure assessments at posts, interviewing post engineering staff, researching local cost data and construction methodologies, generating studies and project development surveys, and completing cost estimates. Currently, OBO uses SAGE/Timberline Cost Estimating System using the OBO work breakdown structure and this should be the primary estimating tools used by the contractor. The cost estimates shall be produced in both ASTM E 1557-09 "Standard Classification for Building Elements and Related Sitework - Uniformat II" and in CSI Masterformat. The cost estimating software used must be in an electronic format that is easily convertible to Microsoft Excel. The contractor may also be required to provide support services, in a minor/secondary capacity, in the Washington, DC area, over the life of the contract. The following disciplines are required, at a minimum: architectural, structural, civil, mechanical, electrical, physical security, and site work. The contractor's professional staff should belong to one or more of the following professional societies and organizations: American Society of Professional Estimators; Association of Cost Engineers; International Cost Engineering Council; Society of Cost Estimating and Analysis; AACE International; Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors; Association of South African Quantity Surveyors; Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors; Canadian Institute of Quantity Surveyors; or demonstrate a minimum of five years' experience estimating building construction in all its facets. The minor/secondary on-site staff augmentation will include, but is not limited to the following: Provides or assists in the development of detailed cost estimates for a wide range of projects from inception to post award and project completion; prepares, reviews, and analyzes A/E and Contractor construction estimates and bids; prepares reports and drafts correspondence and attends project meetings; travels to and from post(s) to compile local pricing data, view proposed construction sites, and to assist in meetings with contractors and local authorities; and other duties and responsibilities as deemed appropriate in meeting needs of COST customers. After short-listing by a Technical Evaluation Panel (TEP), firms may be required to make a presentation to the AE Council/Selection Board in Rosslyn, VA. Firms which meet the requirements of this solicitation are invited to submit: (1) cover letter, (2) three copies of Standard Form 330, Architect-Engineer Qualifications, and (3) three copies of a qualification statement, in Block H of the SF-330, addressing the evaluation factors listed below. Offerors shall clearly identify their business size (small, large, 8(a), women-owned, etc.) in the first paragraph of its cover letter. Offerors shall be considered large businesses if the business status is not provided. The assembled content for the submission shall be in 8 " x 11" format and include tabbed divider sheets for each section. The primary text font size shall not be smaller than 10 pt; photo titles, subtext, etc. shall not be smaller than 8 pt. For each project identified in the responses to the evaluation criteria, provide the name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address of a client representative and identify which members of the proposed team participated on the project. Firms responding to this announcement on or before the closing date shall be considered for selection using the following evaluation criteria - 100 points maximum: a) Professional qualifications of required disciplines, stated above, necessary for satisfactory performance of required services. Organizational ability demonstrated through a written plan to assemble qualified teams consisting of the necessary disciplines to provide cost estimates and life cycle costs to meet the contractual requirements. Such plans include a listing of permanent staff and letters of agreement to hire supplemental personnel if needed and copies of their professional resumes - 25 points maximum. b) Specialized recent experience, within the last three years, and technical competence in cost estimating design/bid/build and design/build construction projects located outside the United States, based upon minimal concepts and bridging documents. Experience and demonstrated ability to estimate initial and life cycle costs for facility and infrastructure projects. A working knowledge of both UNIFORMAT and CSI is required. Provide examples of no more than seven projects - 25 points maximum. c) Capacity to accomplish the work in required time. Organizational capability to assemble multiple (two or three) qualified teams and provide estimating services for task orders with minimal advance notice (three-week average) - 20 points maximum. d) Past performance demonstrating experience in conducting cost estimating of multi-disciplines and life cycle cost studies. Quality Management and Control: Submit internal quality control procedures and standards for contract deliverables - 10 points maximum. e) Experience and/or demonstrated ability to estimate initial and life cycle costs for projects located outside of the United States - 10 points maximum. f) Experience and/or demonstrated ability to conduct planning studies, requirement analyses and project risk assessments - 10 points maximum. This is neither a request for proposal nor a design competition. Since a contract may result in an award over $500,000, large businesses will be required to submit a small business subcontracting plan prior to contract award. The small business size standard North American Industry Classification System code is 541330, $14.0 million average. In order to be eligible for award of this contract, the successful offeror must possess, or be eligible to obtain, a Defense Security Service (DSS) Secret Facility Clearance (FCL), with Secret safeguarding capability, issued in accordance with the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual (NISPOM), DOD 5220.22-M. Personnel requiring access to classified information or Controlled Access Areas (CAAs) at DoS locations must possess a Secret personnel security clearance issued by DSS. Offerors already possessing the necessary FCL should submit their appropriate Commercial and Government Entity Code with their submission. If an uncleared short-listed offeror is recommended for selection, the Department of State will sponsor the uncleared firm for an FCL. Firms which form joint ventures must also comply with the above FCL requirements. Each entity comprising the joint venture must be issued an FCL, as well as the joint venture. Sponsorship does not guarantee that the firm will receive the clearance. Until the selected firm has been issued at least an Interim Secret FCL, and received DSS approval to safeguard classified documents, they will not receive the classified portions of the RFP requirements package. A period of 90 calendar days, from the date of sponsorship, will be allowed for an uncleared contractor to obtain a Secret FCL. If the firm has not obtained the FCL after 90 days, the government may terminate negotiations with the offeror, and may move to select another short-listed firm for award. Foreign firms are not eligible for FCLs. Only U.S. firms organized and operating in the U.S. or Puerto Rico, or a U.S. possession or trusted territory, are eligible for facility clearances. U.S. firms which are determined to be under Foreign Ownership, Control or Influence (FOCI) are not eligible for an FCL unless actions (as directed and approved by DSS) can be taken to effectively negate or reduce associated FOCI risks to an acceptable level. This process often takes more than the 90 calendar days allotted for clearance. Information on the clearance process can be found on the DSS website, at http://www.dss.mil, under Industrial Security. Certain team subcontractors/consultants may also require FCLs and personnel security clearances. The Department may sponsor one uncleared design subcontractor/consultant, at the request of an uncleared selected lead firm. Any other uncleared team subcontractors/consultants must be sponsored by the selected firm, only after that firm receives its own FCL. Selection shall be in accordance with the Brooks Act, P.L. 92-582 (40 U.S.C. 1101-1104). After the successful offeror has been selected, the resultant contract award will be contingent on the conclusion of successful negotiations. Offerors may find a copy of the SF-330 at the following website: http://www.gsa.gov/portal/forms/type/SF. Offerors are advised that inaccurate or incomplete submissions, or those not meeting the submission requirements, may result in immediate disqualification. All submissions must be received by 11:00 a.m., Eastern Daylight Time, on March 23, 2017. Requests for clarification must be received, in writing, by Mr. Brian Mulcahy, not later than 2:00 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time, on February 28, 2017. The e-mail address to submit clarification questions is [email protected]. Clarifications received after the deadline, and telephone requests for information, shall not be accepted. The mailing address, including hand-delivery and courier service (Federal Express, UPS), is as follows: Mr. Brian Mulcahy, U.S. Department of State, Office of Logistics Management, 1735 North Lynn Street, Room 425E, Arlington, VA 22209.