DescriptionThe U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center), Cambridge, MA, intends to issue a solicitation for construction support services for fire life safety system upgrades at Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Control Towers at various locations across the United States. The solicitation is being competed as a small business set-aside and is intended for multiple awards.This work will require contractors to provide construction services for fire life safety systems (FLS) at various Air Traffic Control Towers (ATCTs), Base buildings, and other similar facilities at a National level over a period of five years. This work will consist of providing the necessary personnel and materials to implement Fire Life Safety system upgrades to comply with OSHA standards at single egress ATCTs. Work requirements will typically involve providing various data submittals to include detailed shop drawings, work plans, Health and Safety Plans, Quality Assurance plans, equipment data sheets, training, and testing plans, specific to a facility construction upgrade. The construction work will typically involve installing hardware systems/components/equipment with UL listed systems for Class A fire detection and alarm systems, repairs to fire barrier through penetrations with fire stopping systems, fireproofing of unprotected steel beams, installing/repairing smoke pressurization systems, removal of existing Halon systems, sprinkler system repairs and upgrades, installation of fire and smoke dampers, fire rated doors/ walls/ ceiling assemblies, related mechanical/electrical/carpentry upgrades, updating of portable fire extinguishers and egress signage, including other small miscellaneous FLS upgrades.

Contractors shall be required to meet specific qualifications and experience with respect to general contractors, fire alarm installations, fire stopping, fire proofing, electrical, and plumbing work. Fire alarm (FA) installations shall be supervised by minimum NICET Level III technician, and other workers shall hold a minimum NICET Level II. The FA installation company shall also have at least 5 years of installation experience for the type of manufacture hardware installed. Electrical and plumbing work shall be supervised by licensed electricians/plumbers and have at least 5 years experience, including installing Class A fire alarm wiring/electrical. Fireproofing shall be installed using factory trained, certified workers on manufacturer systems, and have a minimum of 3 years experience installing fire proofing. Fire stopping shall be installed using factory trained, certified workers, and have a minimum of 3 years experience with installing fire stopping systems. General contractors shall have a minimum of 3 years of overall experience managing similar types of project work involving high rise / ATCT tower, or telecommunications facilities and be willing to work night shifts to minimize disruptions. The Contractor will also be required to work in secure, controlled-access ATCTs and facilities that are operationally active and will require background personnel checks. Work schedules shall require some or all night shift hours of work to install or upgrade systems and limit disturbance to Air Traffic operations and personnel depending on the activity levels at the facilities.The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code is 236220 for this acquisition with a small business size standard of $31.0 million. The estimated release date of the solicitation will be June 30, 2008. Proposals will be due approximately 60 days following the issuance of the solicitation. The solicitation will be issued on an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity Multiple Award basis with the ability to issue firm-fixed-price task orders. The term of the ordering period of the contracts will be five years from date of award. The Volpe Center uses electronic commerce to issue RFPs and amendments to RFPs. Paper copies of the RFP or amendments will not be available. The solicitation and any documents related to this procurement will be available on the FedBizOpps website at the following address: http://www.fedbizopps.gov and on the Volpe Center Acquisition Division home page at the following address: http://www.volpe.dot.gov/procure/index.html. Potential offerors desiring to receive electronic notification of the solicitations posting and availability for downloading must register at the Volpe Center site. Contractors are warned that when they register to receive solicitations, amendments and other notices, the responsibility for providing the Government with an accurate and complete e-mail address lies with the contractor. The Government will make no additional efforts to deliver information when the system indicates that transmissions cannot be delivered to the email address provided. No hard copies of the solicitation will be mailed. For questions concerning the acquisition, contact the Contract Specialist in writing by email at roland.regan@volpe.dot.gov. ANY INQUIRIES VIA TELEPHONE WILL NOT BE HONORED. All contractors must be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) in order to receive an award from a DOT Agency. Contractors may access the site at http://www.ccr.gov to register and/or obtain information about the registration process. Additionally, solicitation Representation and Certifications are no longer provided within the solicitation and must be submitted online through the Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA). ORCA is a web-based system that centralizes and standardizes the collection, storage and viewing of the Representations and Certifications required by the Federal Acquisition Regulations. Potential offerors are highly encouraged to complete the online provisions within the Representations and Certifications at the earliest, at https://orca.bpn.gov. This notice is for informational purposes for Minority, Women-owned, and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs). The Department of Transportation (DOT), Short-Term Lending Program (STLP) offers working capital financing in the form of lines of credit to finance accounts receivable for transportation related contracts. Maximum line of credit is $750,000 with interest at the prime rate, as published daily in the Wall Street Journal, plus 1.75 percent. For further information, call (800) 532-1169. Internet address: http://osdbu.dot.gov/.