The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) issues this Request for Proposals (RFP) for a firm fixed-price construction contract to: Safety Shower and Emergency Eyewash Upgrade, Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health (RWHC), Ithaca, NY 14853 SPECIFICATIONS and DRAWINGS ARE AVAILABLE. See Attached The solicitation document, with the incorporated clauses and provisions, is issued in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Parts 15 and 36 and rated in the awarded firm-fixed price order. Interested vendors should reference the solicitation documents for all terms and conditions. No paper solicitation will be available. See solicitation for evaluation factors and submission requirements, sections L and M. Award will be Firm Fixed Price (FFP). The associated NAICS Code is 236220, Commercial and Institutional Building Construction. The small business size standard is $39.5 million. Notice of Set-Aside for Small Business Concerns: This requirement is a Total Small Business Set -Aside The Government intends to award one (1) firm fixed-price contract. SELECTION PROCESS: The Proposals will be evaluated using a Lowest Price Technically Acceptable source selection process. Potential offerors will be invited to submit their technical, past performance, and price information as described in the Solicitation, for review and consideration by the Government. The selection process will evaluate such factors (not necessarily in order): Past Performance, Technical which includes Management & Experience, and Price. Pro Forma information such as bonding and financial capability will also be required to meet the minimum requirements of the solicitation. The Government intends to award a Firm-Fixed Price Contract to the responsible Offeror conforming to the request for proposal that is determined to be the best value to the Government. The Government will utilize the Best Value Tradeoff process to evaluate the proposals. The three factors the Government will evaluate are Past Performance, Technical, and Price. The Technical factor will have three sub-factors - Similar Experience in a Laboratory Setting, Management and Operations, and Use of BioBased Products. Magnitude of Construction is between $500,000 and $1,000,000. Period of performance is 180 days after receipt of the Notice to Proceed. Bonds: If the contract exceeds $35,000, the offeror to whom award is made shall furnish a payment security, which can be a payment bond or an alternative form per FAR 52.228-13, Alternative Payment Protections. Awards exceeding $150,000 require both Payment and Performance Bonds. A bid bond is required. SITE VISIT: An organized site visit has been scheduled for- TBD Participants will meet at- All questions regarding this announcement must be submitted in writing to the Contracting Officer, via email to Mark.Volk@usda.gov. Telephone requests for information will not be accepted or returned. Biobased Products: This procurement requires the use of Biobased products to the extent that such products are reasonably available, meet agency or relevant industry performance standards, and are reasonably priced. The products should first be acquired from the USDA designated product categories. All supplies and materials shall be of a type and quantity that conform to applicable Federal specifications and standards, and to the extent feasible and reasonable, include the exclusive use of biobased and recycled products. Please visit www.biopreferred.gov for more information on the USDA Biobased Program and to reference the catalog of mandatory biobased products. DISCUSSIONS: The Government intends to award without discussions, but reserves the right to conduct discussions should it be deemed in the Government's best interest. The Government intends to post all notices/amendments related to this solicitation on government point of entry (GPE) Contract Opportunities at https://beta.sam.gov/. All interested firms must be registered on Contract Opportunities web site in order to obtain an Award/solicitation documents and all information regarding the solicitation. Hard copies of the solicitation will not be provided. It is the responsibility of the Offeror to check the website daily for any updates/amendments. Offerors are encouraged to check the FBO web site frequently in order to be notified of any changes to this solicitation. IMPORTANT NOTICE: All contractors submitting bids, proposals, or quotes on USDA solicitations must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database. Failure to register in the SAM database will make an Offeror ineligible for award. The SAM website can be accessed at www.sam.gov/portal/SAM. *The value for this project is based on a financial range. The value is listed as the highest possible cost from the range provided by a stakeholder or official project document.