# DLAD PGI

- PGI 16.190 Long-Term Contracting (LTC)

PGI 16.190 Long-Term Contracting (LTC)

(a) This LTC standard operating procedure (SOP) standardizes procedures for initiating and creating long-term supply contracts below $650,000. It is applicable to the contracts described in DLAD 16.190. The objective is to streamline the LTC process and provide standards as a basis to measure progress when creating long-term contracts.

(b) Push system for project selection.

(1) In a push system, management assigns available packages to the Acquisition Specialists (AS). The responsibility of tracking, monitoring, and ensuring that the organization goal is met and that each AS is processing the appropriate type, amount, and priority remains with the immediate supervisor. The acquisition lead-time standards are provided below as a guide for management to use to monitor progress. In addition, the standard provides the Agency a way to pinpoint or identify where efficiencies can be applied in the acquisition process for future Lean events.

(2) The acquisition process begins when the AS initiates the LTC project within the LTC Project Tracker under the create/add project data tab and view/update project data tab. The system generates a project number and the development start date.

(c) Pre-solicitation stage.

(1) Chronology sheet or Medical Acquisition Timeline (MAT; also known as the Troop Support Acquisition Timeline) for the Medical Supply Chain.

(i) The AS documents the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT for each LTC project for milestone events, beginning with the project development and through the life of the contract. The chronology sheet or the MAT is used to document the process flow, to communicate the acquisition events to all stakeholders, and establish touch-point accountability. Documentation must include major events and updates. CCOs and supervisors use the Chronology sheet or MAT to determine whether the LTC procedures and instructions at this PGI section are being met.

(ii) Acquisition milestones and timeline must be carefully developed because these are the key components to measuring progress and success against the standards.

(2) Market research. Market research is conducted in accordance with FAR/DFARS/DLAD Part 10. The AS conducts market research to determine the competitive environment and commerciality and develop the acquisition strategy. The AS documents the acquisition plan with the type of market research conducted and the results.

(3) Bidders list. The bidders list is developed and established based on the results of the market research, including historical sources in DPACS. The AS may validate the list of suppliers using the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database. Refer to FAR Subpart 4.11 for guidance on CCR policy. The bidders list identifies potential sources and is used as the mailing list for the solicitation. This process takes less than one day to complete.

(4) Upon completion of the pre-solicitation stage, the AS documents the Chronology sheet or the MAT.

(d) Acquisition planning.

(1) Written acquisition plan. Refer to FAR/DLAD Part 7 for acquisition planning guidance and requirements. Per DLAD 7.102, a written acquisition plan is required for all acquisitions expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. Depending on the complexity of the acquisition, the acquisition plan document takes less than one day to complete. The estimated dollar value of the procurement determines the review level needed. Refer to the acquisition response time summary table below for the review and approval requirements. A written acquisition plan template is provided in DPACS.

(i) Use one of the best value techniques found in FAR 15.101 as the basis for source selection.

(ii) The AS will use DPACS when completing all pertinent forms associated with acquisition planning. The AS ensures that a copy of any document or form completed outside of DPACS is posted in the electronic contract file (ECF).

(2) Surge and sustainment (S&S) requirements. Refer to DLAD Subpart 17.93 for policies, procedures, clauses and provisions relating to S&S requirements. S&S items are to be considered in all LTC projects above $100,000. The AS validates using the appropriate Industrial Base tool (e.g. IBMS, SPIDERS, and RMA) and incorporates surge requirements in the solicitation as appropriate. This process takes less than one day to complete. The AS consults and works with the local Industrial Specialist for assistance on S&S requirements. The AS documents the acquisition plan on how S&S coverage will or will not be supported.

(3) DD 2579, Small Business Coordination Record. The AS initiates and completes the small business form DD 2579 in DPACS. Initiating and completing this form takes less than one day. The small business representative reviews the DD 2579 and provides a response within six days. This response time includes reviews by the contracting officer (CO), small business office (SBO), and Small Business Administration (SBA). For further information on the use of DD 2579s in DLA, see 19.201. Refer to FAR Subpart 19.5 and DLAD 19.502 for guidance on small business set-asides.

(4) Justification & Approval (J&A). A J&A or equivalent is required on all procurements using other than full and open competition procedures. Initiating and completing the J&A takes one day or less. Please see response time below for approval. The Competition Advocate has 2 days to review and sign the J&A. The J&A template is provided in DPACS.

(5) Solicitation development. Prior to initiating the solicitation document, the AS uploads the LTC project from the LTC Project Tracker into DPACS. The AS utilizes DPACS to initiate and complete the solicitation and supporting documents. Any Microsoft Word Document or Excel Sheets can be incorporated as a separate attachment or can be cut-and-pasted into the “Remarks Page” of the solicitation in DPACS. The AS selects appropriate provisions/clauses in DPACS. If provisions/clauses are not available in DPACS, the information can be incorporated into the “Remarks Page” or the work statement with the appropriate Uniform Contract Format Section marking. Initiating and completing the solicitation document takes one to three days, depending on the complexity of the acquisition.

(i) The AS utilizes IBMS to obtain the S&S requirements. The AS incorporates the associated S&S CLINS as a separate attachment or in the “Remarks Page” of the solicitation in DPACS. Refer to DLAD 17.93 for the appropriate clauses/provisions when including the S&S items in the solicitation.

(6) Synopsis. The AS issues the synopsis in FedBizOps at http://www.fbo.gov/. Refer to FAR 5.203 for notice publication requirements. Typically, the notice is published 15 days before the issuance of a solicitation except for acquisition of commercial items, when the contracting officer may establish a shorter period for issuance of the solicitation, or use the combined synopsis and solicitation procedure. For other qualifying exceptions of publicizing less than 15 days, refer to FAR 5.203.

(e) Solicitation stage.

(1) Solicitation issuance. The AS issues the solicitation upon receiving approval from the contracting officer. The solicitation is published for 30 days unless an exception applies. Refer to FAR, DFARS and DLAD Subpart 5.2 for solicitation publication requirements and exceptions. The AS uses the DLA Internet Bid Board System (DIBBS) or ECF to publicize the solicitation. The AS updates the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT and the LTC Project Tracker if necessary.

(2) Solicitation amendment. Refer to FAR 15.206 when amending the solicitation. If solicitation amendment is required, the AS initiates and completes the Standard Form 30 in DPACS. If the amendment contains attachments, the AS shall import the amendment and attachments to the ECF. Initiation, approval, and publication of amendments take less than one day to complete. The AS updates the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT. The AS also updates the LTC Project Tracker if changes affect the solicitation close date and item population.

(3) Solicitation distribution. The AS issues the solicitation in DPACS or imports the solicitation to the ECF, which will then post the solicitation to DIBBS. The AS refers all interested parties to DIBBS for access to the solicitation and any amendments. No manual distribution to interested parties will be done, to maximize use of paperless environment and to facilitate effective electronic exchange. Refer to FAR Subpart 4.5 for guidance on electronic commerce in contracting.

(4) Proposal handling. Refer to FAR 15.207 for appropriate handling of proposals and information. Proposals are safeguarded from unauthorized disclosure throughout the source selection process. Refer to FAR 3.104 regarding the disclosure of source selection information (41 U.S.C. 423) and procurement integrity. The proposals are received at the location specified in the solicitation. If the solicitation specified a designated bid room, the bid custodian collects the proposals and creates an abstract showing the contractor’s name, address, and cage code. The bid custodian makes the abstracts and proposals available to the AS within one to two days of the solicitation closing date. If a designated bid room/bid custodian is not available or does not exist, the proposals are sent directly to the AS or Contracting Officer. The AS documents the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT.

(f) Proposal evaluation.

(1) Refer to FAR 3.104-4 for safeguarding the vendor’s information. Refer to FAR 15.305 for guidance when evaluating the proposals and FAR 15.307 for guidance on proposal revisions. The AS has 3-5 days to review and evaluate the proposals, depending on the number of offers received.

(2) Alternate offers. If an alternate offer is received, the AS sends the proposal to the appropriate Product Specialist (PS). The PS has one day to determine acceptability or unacceptability of the alternate offer. If PS is unable to make a determination in 1 day and additional research is required to make a determination, the AS continues to evaluate other fully compliant offers and treats the alternate offer in accordance with the applicable solicitation clause for future procurements.

(3) Contract pricing. Per FAR 15.402, prices must be determined fair and reasonable. Refer to FAR/DLAD 15.404-1 for proposal analysis techniques. Per FAR 15.406-1(b), the contracting officer shall establish pre-negotiation objectives before the negotiation of any pricing action. The AS has one to three days to conduct and complete price analysis.

(4) Surge and sustainment evaluation. Refer to DLAD 17.93 for S&S evaluation requirements. The AS will submit the CAP to the supporting Industrial Specialist (IS) for review. The IS validates the CAP using the appropriate Industrial Base Tool (e.g. eCAP, SPIDERS, and RMA). This process takes less than 1 day to complete.

(5) Subcontracting plan. Refer to FAR 19.702(a)(1) for guidance when requiring a subcontracting plan. In negotiated acquisitions, each solicitation of offers to perform a contract or contract modification that individually is expected to exceed $550,000 ($1,000,000 for construction) and that has subcontracting possibilities shall require the apparently successful offeror to submit an acceptable subcontracting plan. The AS should submit the offeror subcontracting plan to the SB office for approval. There is an on-line tool that contractors are required to use to submit reports of their performance against subcontracting plans; it is available at https://www.esrs.gov. The AS must include appropriate clauses requiring use of this Electronic Subcontracting Reporting System (eSRS) in all applicable contracts. The AS has less than one day to submit the subcontracting plan to SB for approval. The total response time for the subcontracting plan segment/small business review is 7 days; see DLAD 19.705-4(d)(7) for additional information.

(g) Pre-negotiations.

(1) Pre-negotiation briefing memorandum (PBM). Refer to FAR 15.406-1 for guidance on pre-negotiation objectives and refer to FAR 15.306(c) for guidance when establishing the competitive range. The competitive range is documented in the PBM. The AS initiates and completes the PBM to develop the government’s initial pre-negotiation position. The PBM is written clearly and concisely. The AS has 1-2 days to initiate and complete the PBM, depending on the complexity and the number of items. Whether the PBM review and approval level (which may vary, depending on the supply chain) is at the contracting-officer level or one level above that, the response time is the same: 1-2 days. A PBM template is provided in DPACS.

(i) Note that there may be times when discussion/negotiation is not necessary (e.g., vendor met all the terms and conditions of the solicitation and the proposed prices are lower than the independent government estimate). If discussion/negotiation is not necessary, the AS initiates a combined PBM/PNM and the AS has one to two days, depending on the complexity of the acquisition, to initiate and complete the combined PBM/PNM. The review and approval for a combined memorandum is the same as above. A combined PBM/PNM template is provided in DPACS.

(h) Discussions/negotiations.

(1) Conducting discussions/negotiations. Upon receiving approval of PBM from the contracting officer, the AS begins the negotiations. Refer to FAR 15.405 for guidance on price negotiations and FAR 15.306 for guidance when exchanging information with the supplier after the receipt of proposals. Discussions/negotiations take no longer than three to five days to complete. If discussions/negotiations extend beyond five days, the AS elevates the issues to the appropriate chain of command beginning with the immediate supervisor. The AS updates the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT.

(2) Final proposal revision (FPR). Refer to FAR 15.307 for guidance when obtaining the final proposal revision. The AS initiates a letter to close discussion/negotiation and obtain the final proposal revision. The final proposal revision letter takes less than one day. The final proposal revision process takes two days or less. The AS documents the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT.

(3) Price negotiation memorandum (PNM). Refer to FAR 15.406-3 for guidance when documenting the results of the discussions/negotiations. The PNM describes the final prices agreed to by the contractor and the Government, which includes documentation of the best value decision. The PNM is written clearly and concisely. The initiation and completion of the PNM takes one to two days, depending on the complexity of the acquisition. Use the PNM template provided in DPACS. Refer to FAR 15.406-3 for the elements of the PNM. For forward pricing rate agreements, refer to FAR 15.407-3.

(4) Contractor responsibility determination and performance record. Contractor responsibility and performance record determination will be in accordance with FAR Subpart 9.1. The AS maximizes the use of the existing past performance tools available (local, DLA-wide, DOD-wide) when conducting contractor responsibility determinations. The AS shall review the EPLS and may use DCRL, Dun & Bradstreet, pre-award surveys, Automated Best Value System, requests for contract performance history (CPH) to be completed by the product and industrial specialist, CCR, and other DOD past performance information. The AS use DPACS to initiate and complete the contractor responsibility determination template. If a pre-award survey is needed, the AS has less than one day to complete the pre-award survey form in DPACS and submit to the Industrial Specialist. The AS will follow-up with the Industrial Specialist and document the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT.

(i) Go to https://www.ppirs.gov/ to access the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS). Refer to http://www.epls.gov/ for Excluded Parties List System (EPLS).

(i) Award stage.

(1) Upon receiving approval from the contracting officer, the AS proceeds with the award of the acquisition. The AS uses DPACS to initiate and complete all of the necessary award documents. Documents that are not available in DPACS may be added as an attachment to the contract. Initiating and completing all of the award documents take two to five days, depending on the complexity of the acquisition. For award challenges or protests, the AS documents the Chronology sheet or MAT to include action taken, response dates or any anticipated resolution dates. Refer to FAR and DLAD Part 33 for guidance on protests, disputes, and appeals. See FAR/DFARS/DLAD 5.303 and the DLA One Book for the timing and content of public and Congressional announcement of awards.

(2) The AS documents the Chronology sheet in DPACS or the MAT; completes the Contract Action Report (CAR); establishes the guaranteed minimum funding purchase order (if not issuing a delivery order in the amount of the guaranteed minimum at the time of award of the basic contract), loads the outline agreement in SAP; provides a copy or a notice of the contract to the awardee: and ensures documents are posted in the ECF if applicable. This process takes one to two days to complete.

(j) Acquisition support technician (AST) functions. If an AST is assigned to assist the buyer, the AST performs the following tasks below. If no AST assistance is available, the buyer performs these tasks. All awards will be initiated and completed in DPACS. This process takes two days to complete.

(1) Complete letter(s) in DPACS for any unsuccessful offerors; fax or mail them.

(2) Complete small business challenge letter(s) (if applicable); fax or mail them.

(3) Update synopsis on FedBizOps website with award information.

(4) Complete guaranteed minimum funding purchase order (if not issuing a delivery order in the amount of the guaranteed minimum at the time of award of the basic contract) and establish an Outline Agreement in SAP (no later than two days after contract award).

(5) Scan pertinent documents in ECF.

(k) Elevation of issues. The AS elevates the issues that cause the milestone to slip or cause a delay in the process. Discuss with the supervisor and elevate through the chain of command, as appropriate. Some examples of known issues causing delay include technical description issues, non-cooperation of contractors, changes in workload, extended leave, or inter-office coordination problems.

(l) Management involvement.

(1) Supervisors and managers utilize the LTC metrics as a tool to track and monitor how well the supply chain is performing when establishing LTCs, and to identify areas of improvement in the acquisition process. Also, managers and supervisors use the time standards to effectively monitor the acquisition progress and determine appropriate management involvement.

(2) Buyers, supervisors, and managers utilize the LTC Project Tracker (which replaced the LTC Database) to effectively track and monitor LTC projects. This tool provides various reports, such as aging projects and LTC project in-process, to stakeholders. It can also be used as a tool to proactively identify issues, discuss progress, prevent delays in the acquisition process, and for planning purposes.

(3) The below chart is used to track and monitor Supply Chain performance. Associated reports for tracking and monitoring LTC projects are available in the LTC Project Tracker.

Stage | Green | Yellow | Red
Development | 5 days | 10 days or less | > 10 days
Pre-Solicitation | 40 days | 50 days or less | > 50 days
Issued Solicitation, Not Closed | 31 days | 40 days or less | > 40 days
Closed Solicitation, Not Awarded | 44 days | 50 days or less | > 50 days
Total | 120 Days | 150 Days | 180 days or more

(m) Coordination response time summary. The table below provides the time standard guide for review, approval, and coordination response time. In addition to the time standards for initiating and completing the acquisition documents, the AS also factors in the response times below when developing and establishing the acquisition milestones. The AS documents the Chronology sheet or MAT for response times not met since these time standards are used to track and monitor the acquisition progress.

Acquisition Process | Response Times
Package Development | 5 days
Market Research | 7 days
Small Business Coordination | 6 days
Acquisition Planning (Acquisition Plan, J&A, RFP, S&S etc…) Competition Advocate Review Contracting Officer Review | 5 days 2 days 3 days
Synopsis | 15 days
Solicitation | 30 days
Amendment (if necessary) CO review (if required) | 1 day
Proposal Evaluation and Cost/Price Analysis PPI Information Establishes Low and High S&S Evaluation Subcontracting Plan | 6 days 1 day 2 days 1 day 7 days
Pre-Negotiation Briefing Review/Approval Contracting Officer Review | 2 days 2 days
Negotiations | 5 days
Final Proposal Revision (FPR) | 2 days
Price Negotiation Review/Approval Contracting Officer Review Contractor Responsibility Determination | 2 days 3 days 1 day
Award Small Business Challenge Letter Unsuccessful notices Contracting Officer Review | 5 days 1 day 1 day 3 days
Loading of OA (outline agreement); DPACS award documents, establish guaranteed minimum funding in SAP, and other updates ( ECF, etc.) Total Acquisition Response Time | 2 days 120 days

NOTE: Commercial Solicitations may take less time for any given segment than indicated in the Table.

(n) All acquisition documents shall be sent to the Electronic Contract File except proprietary/sensitive information.