Updated May 16, 2022
Polaris GWAC Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Pool request for proposals (RFP)
Through review of industry feedback and engagement with the Small Business Administration (SBA), the General Services Administration (GSA) has drafted the below changes to Sections L.5.1.3.1 and L.5.2 the Polaris GWAC Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Pool request for proposals (RFP) and is seeking feedback from the small business IT community. This draft language is available within the attached document, “Polaris WOSB Request for Feedback – 13MAY2022.pdf”
We want to emphasize that this language is in “draft” form and is subject to change. We encourage interested parties to review these draft changes and provide feedback to Polaris@gsa.gov, no later than May 23, 2022. This feedback request is specific to the draft language attached.
Following review of the feedback received in response to this request, the Polaris GWAC RFPs will be amended to incorporate final language regarding this subject along with any other changes needed. Responses to questions previously submitted will also be provided with this forthcoming amendment.
The Polaris RFPs remain paused until further notice. The opening of the Polaris Submission Portal also remains on hold. Please note the proposal due date in this SAM.gov announcement has been updated from May 13, 2022 to June 30, 2022; however, the forthcoming amendment is anticipated to be released in June 2022 and will establish a new closing date which will take into account the total number of days paused. Offerors are still encouraged to pause proposal activities until the amendment is issued.
Read more on the WOSB changes here.
Polaris GWAC Small Business Pool request for proposals (RFP)
Through review of industry feedback and engagement with the Small Business Administration (SBA), the General Services Administration (GSA) has drafted changes to Section L.5.1.3.1 of the Polaris GWAC Small Business Pool request for proposals (RFP) and is seeking feedback from the small business IT community. This draft language is available within the attached document, “Polaris SB Request for Feedback – 13MAY2022.pdf”
We want to emphasize that this language is in “draft” form and is subject to change. We encourage interested parties to review these draft changes and provide feedback to Polaris@gsa.gov, no later than May 23, 2022. This feedback request is specific to the draft language attached.
Following review of the feedback received in response to this request, the Polaris GWAC RFPs will be amended to incorporate final language regarding this subject along with any other changes needed. Responses to questions previously submitted will also be provided with this forthcoming amendment.
The Polaris RFPs remain paused until further notice. The opening of the Polaris Submission Portal also remains on hold. Please note the proposal due date in this SAM.gov announcement has been updated from May 13, 2022 to June 30, 2022; however, the forthcoming amendment is anticipated to be released in June 2022 and will establish a new closing date which will take into account the total number of days paused. Offerors are still encouraged to pause proposal activities until the amendment is issued.
Read more on the small business pool here.
Updated April 7, 2022
After receiving feedback related to the evaluation of joint ventures under Polaris, GSA is currently assessing whether any changes are necessary for the RFPs. While completing this assessment, GSA is temporarily pausing the RFPs until further notice. A subsequent amendment will establish a new closing date.
Following completion of the assessment, the proposal due date will be extended accordingly. Offerors are encouraged to pause proposal activities until this assessment is completed.
During this pause, the opening of the Polaris Submission Portal is also on hold.
The due date for questions has not been changed. Please submit questions to polaris@gsa.gov no later than April 18, 2022.
Read more on the WOSB Pool here.
Updated March 28, 2022
The General Services Administration (GSA) is pleased to release the Polaris Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) Small Business Pool Request for Proposals (RFP), 47QTCB22R0001. This solicitation is the only source of official information about this procurement.
The Polaris Small Business Pool RFP consists of the following:
- Polaris Small Business Pool RFP
- SF33
- P-1 Representations and Certifications from Section K
- P-2 Joint Venture Experience Template
- P-3 FPDS-NG Sample
- P-4 Past Performance Rating Form
- P-5 GSA Form 527 Contractor’s Qualifications and Financial Information
An optional pre-proposal conference will be recorded and released online to provide an overview of the Polaris RFP. This conference will not introduce new information. Details on accessing the recording will be provided through this announcement in the coming days.
To account for the planned SAM.gov downtime for Unique Entity ID (SAM) transition, the Polaris Submission Portal (PSP) will open for registration no earlier than April 5, 2022. Prior to the PSP opening for registration, industry is encouraged to review the solicitation requirements on SAM.gov and view the upcoming pre-proposal conference.
Updated March 21, 2022
Please be advised an update regarding the Polaris GWAC RFP has been shared via the Small Business GWAC Community of Interest at https://interact.gsa.gov/group/small-business-gwac-community-interest. We encourage interested parties to review this update and continue to monitor this SAM Notice for further updates.
GSA is working closely with internal and external stakeholders to bring the first two Polaris Requests for Proposals (RFPs) to industry soon. In preparation for the upcoming solicitations, GSA considered industry questions and comments to help finalize and clarify the language in the RFPs. Attached are answers, clarifications, and updates to the RFPs since the last RFP drafts and Interact postings.
Follow Polaris updates for the Women Owned Small Business Pool here.
Follow updates for the Small Business Pool here.
Updated January 28, 2022
GSA has released both the Woman-owned small business and small business Polaris presolicitation details.
Small Business Pool
The General Services Administration (GSA), Federal Acquisition Service (FAS), Information Technology Category (ITC) is providing this presolicitation notice in accordance with FAR 5.204, for the upcoming release of the Polaris Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) Small Business Pool.
The Polaris GWAC Small Business Pool will be a Multiple Award, Indefinite-Delivery, Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ) contract to provide customized Information Technology (IT) services and IT services-based solutions. Polaris will be available for use by executive agencies and other federal government entities as listed in GSA Order OGP 4800.2I, Eligibility to Use GSA Sources of Supply and Services. Performance may occur at Government and Contractor locations worldwide, as specified in each task order. Task order contract types permitted will include FAR Subpart 16.2 Fixed-price Contracts; FAR Subpart 16.3 Cost-Reimbursement Contracts; FAR 16.601 Time-and-Materials Contracts; and FAR 16.602 Labor-Hour Contracts. The contract ordering period will consist of a five-year base period with one, five-year option that may extend the cumulative contract ordering period to 10 years.
This synopsis is the presolicitation notice for the Polaris GWAC Small Business Pool Request for Proposals (RFP). The RFP is set-aside for small business concerns as the prime contractors per FAR 52.219-6 Notice of Total Small Business Set-Aside. The NAICS code for this RFP is 541512 – Computer Systems Design Services and the associated small business size standard is $30 Million.
The System for Award Management (www.SAM.gov) is the only source for solicitation 47QTCB22R0001 – which is anticipated to be posted in February 2022. No hard copies will be provided. Please hold all inquiries until after the solicitation is posted on SAM.gov. Proposals will be due approximately 30 days after the solicitation is posted.
Woman-owned Small Business Pool
Notice ID 47QTCB22R0003
“Description
The General Services Administration (GSA), Federal Acquisition Service (FAS), Information Technology Category (ITC) is providing this presolicitation notice in accordance with FAR 5.204, for the upcoming release of the Polaris Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Pool.
The Polaris GWAC WOSB Pool will be a Multiple Award, Indefinite-Delivery, Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ) contract to provide customized Information Technology (IT) services and IT services-based solutions. Polaris will be available for use by executive agencies and other federal government entities as listed in GSA Order OGP 4800.2I, Eligibility to Use GSA Sources of Supply and Services. Performance may occur at Government and Contractor locations worldwide, as specified in each task order. Task order contract types permitted will include FAR Subpart 16.2 Fixed-price Contracts; FAR Subpart 16.3 Cost-Reimbursement Contracts; FAR 16.601 Time-and-Materials Contracts; and FAR 16.602 Labor-Hour Contracts. The contract ordering period will consist of a five-year base period with one, five-year option that may extend the cumulative contract ordering period to 10 years.
This synopsis is the presolicitation notice for the Polaris GWAC WOSB Pool Request for Proposals (RFP). The RFP is set-aside for WOSB concerns as the prime contractors per FAR 52.219-30 Notice of Set-Aside for, or Sole-Source Award to, Women-Owned Small Business Concerns Eligible Under the Women-Owned Small Business Program. The NAICS code for this RFP is 541512 – Computer Systems Design Services and the associated small business size standard is $30 Million.
The System for Award Management (www.SAM.gov) is the only source for solicitation 47QTCB22R0003 – which is anticipated to be posted in February 2022. No hard copies will be provided. Please hold all inquiries until after the solicitation is posted on SAM.gov. Proposals will be due approximately 30 days after the solicitation is posted.
Although no amendments to the RFP are anticipated, only an amendment issued on a SF30, signed by a GSA Contracting Officer, and publicly posted in connection with solicitation 47QTCB22R0003 on SAM.gov is official.
All proposals must be submitted through the Polaris Submission Portal. Registration information and submission instructions will be provided with the release of the RFP. Offerors must be registered and active in SAM.gov.
Interested parties should also be aware of solicitation 47QTCB22R0001 being simultaneously issued for the Polaris GWAC Small Business Pool.
The Polaris GWAC WOSB Pool Procuring Contracting Officer (PCO) is the sole point of contact for this procurement. Following release of the RFP, questions may only be submitted via the Polaris Submission Portal. Inquiries directed elsewhere might not be considered or responded to. GSA reserves the right to publicly discuss and publish, or simply consider, questions and comments regarding the RFP.
Requests for meetings regarding the Polaris GWAC will not be entertained prior to contract awards.
It is the sole responsibility of the offerors to periodically check the solicitation on SAM.gov for more information. All responsible and certified WOSB may submit a proposal for consideration in response to the forthcoming RFP…”
Updated September 27, 2021
Notice ID 47QTCB21N0002
“An updated draft of the solicitation submission instructions and evaluation criteria (Sections L and M) has been shared through the Small Business GWAC Community of Interest. We encourage interested parties to review the updated draft sections and provide any feedback by 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time on October 15, 2021…”
Read the announcement on SAM here.
“The Polaris team is pleased to share the updated draft of the solicitation submission instructions and evaluation criteria (Sections L and M). Substantial feedback was received to the draft RFP issued in December 2020. That feedback, along with recent customer and industry discussions, was used to make beneficial updates to the solicitation. The changes made will encourage maximum participation by small businesses, emphasize customer requirements, and reduce barriers to entry for small businesses.
Some of the most significant changes made to the solicitation based on industry feedback include:
- Inclusion of a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB) pool
- Reduction of the minimum dollar thresholds for relevant experience
- Reduction to the number of potential relevant experience project submissions
- Revisions to clarify proposal requirements
We encourage interested parties to review these updated draft sections and provide any feedback using the attached ‘Polaris Draft RFP Response Template.’ We again want to emphasize that these documents are in “draft” form and are subject to change. We value and look forward to your input. Please note, referenced attachments are not included with this release.
As a reminder, this draft release is not a solicitation for Government services. GSA does not anticipate posting questions and responses or amendments to this draft as would occur with a formal RFP. No awards will be made from this draft release and any response is voluntary. Respondents are advised that the government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this draft solicitation; all costs associated with responding to this draft solicitation will be solely at the respondent’s expense. Not responding to this draft solicitation does not preclude participation in any future solicitation…”
Source: Updated Polaris Draft RFP Sections – By SB GWAC Blogger, September 24, 2021. GSA Interact Small Business GWAC Community of Interest.
Posted August 24, 2021
“The Polaris Team is providing an updated set of responses and comments to questions from industry on the draft Request for Proposal (RFP). We received your feedback and want to share responses to some of the most frequently asked questions.
GENERAL
We did not submit a response to the draft RFP. Are we still able to submit a proposal to the formal RFP when it comes out?
- Yes, you will be able to submit a proposal even if you didn’t respond to the draft RFP. There was no requirement to respond to the draft RFP…”
“SCOPE
The draft RFP states that the government encourages contractors to continuously prospect for and establish strategic relationships, especially with innovative small businesses. Can you confirm if the prime contractor is permitted to add “un-named” subcontractors to the master contract and/or task order
- Polaris offerors are encouraged to utilize their best teaming solution to the government at both the master contract and task order levels, in accordance with the instructions in the RFP and subject to FAR 52.219-14, Limitations on Subcontracting. Awarded Polaris contractors may utilize different subcontractors for task orders than those identified for the master contract…” Read the full article here.
Source: Polaris Update – August 2021. August 23, 2021. GSA Interact Small Business GWAC Community of Interest.
