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AQM Incident Procurement Vendors
Welcome commercial vendors! Are you currently under contract or interested in doing business with us? Use this portal as your one-stop shop for getting things done. Click on the “How to Sign Up” link if you are new to doing incident business with us. Click on the “Current Vendors” link if you are already under contract or responding to a solicitation from us.
Interested in doing business with the Forest Service?
Here are the basics of what is needed to become compliant with Government regulations and interact with our systems.
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Obtain an eMail Address:
If you don’t already have one, obtain a valid email address. You can obtain one from your internet service provider (ISP) or you can use one of the many free services available on the web. A valid email address is required to register with DUNS, CCR, and eAuthentication.
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Obtain a D-U-N-S® Number:
The Data Universal Number System code is required by the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR 52.204-6) and you must have this before registering in the CCR. Register online at D&B DUNS Number site for government contractors.
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Obtain an IRS TIN:
For Invoicing, payment, and tax purposes you must have a Taxpayer Identification Number as required by the IRS. For privacy and security purposes, we recommend that you do not use your Social Security Number (SSN).
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Register with CCR:
In order to do business with the Federal Government (as required by FAR 4.11), you must register in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR). You are required to validate and update CCR once per year.
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Register with the Contractor Performance System (CPS):
Contractor performance evaluations will be entered in the National Institutes of Health Contractor Performance System (NIH-CPS). In order to review and respond to your performance evaluations, you will need to register in CPS. To register, go to http://cps.od.nih.gov; once there, click on "Contractor Information" tab and follow the links/instructions.
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Register for a USDA eAuthentication account:
The individual from your company who will be signing your preseason incident agreement with the Forest Service must obtain a Level 2 eAuthentication account in order to transact business with the government.
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Register at FedBizOpps and watch for business opportunities:
Every competitive solicitation we offer is first posted to FBO. It provides you with government wide business opportunities. Every solicitation is different, so read them carefully for instructions on how to submit your bids or proposals.
Are you already doing business with us?
Major efforts are underway to simplify and streamline our systems to make it easier to work with us and to provide more efficient processing of payments. Until those efforts are completed, the steps below should help you navigate the current mix of systems.
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Aviation Contractors:
Anyone currently under contract for aviation services can work directly with your contracting officer or contracting officer’s representative (COR). For invoicing and payment purposes, you must use your eAuthentication account to access the Aviation Business System (ABS).
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Equipment Contractors:
Eventually, all preseason incident agreements will be administered in the Virtual Incident Procurement system, or VIPR. Please visit the VIPR Web site for more information. Until the agreements are awarded in VIPR, please work directly with the local Contracting Officer who is shown on your agreement form.
Future Plans
The Forest Service AQM staff is working hard to standardize the procurement process across all Regions and encourage open competition for all who participate. Efforts include a National Competitive Solicitation Plan which specifies when each type of equipment or service is scheduled to be competed with national standard specifications and a new process for Contractor Performance Evaluations.
New Systems
We are making major investments in new technology and systems which will make processing solicitations and awards more streamlined and secure. You can keep up with our progress by visiting the Virtual Incident Procurement (VIPR) project.
Announcements
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VIPR 1.0 is Coming!
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VIPR is scheduled to go live on December 5, 2008.
A VIPR Vendor Solution user guide will be available on this Web site by mid-December. In addition, the Interagency Incident Systems Helpdesk will be available to assist with eAuthentication account issues such as password resets and the VIPR application. The helpdesk is available by calling 1-866-224-7677 or by email at helpdesk@dms.nwcg.gov.
Visit this site periodically for more announcements as we get closer to deployment of VIPR.
- eAuthentication Level 2 Accounts
- Starting in 2009, all vendors wishing to obtain a preseason incident agreement (either new or existing) with the Forest Service must use the new Virtual Incident Procurement (VIPR) application.
- Using VIPR will require that vendors obtain a Level 2 eAuthentication Account. Read more about VIPR Level 2 eAuth requirements.
- If you have entered into a preseason incident agreement with the Forest Service in the past, you should be receiving a letter in the near future from your local Contracting Officer about the new security requirements including eAuthentication. A Level 2 Instructions Guide is provided here for your reference.
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