Introduction

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is one of the largest and most diverse federal agencies in the world, with a mission to provide engineering solutions to the nation’s toughest challenges. USACE operates and maintains hundreds of water resource projects, military facilities, environmental restoration programs, and civil works projects across the country and abroad.

To support its mission, USACE relies on a network of qualified and experienced architect-engineer (A-E) contractors who can provide a range of design and engineering services, including cost engineering. Cost engineering is the application of scientific principles and techniques to estimate, analyze, and control the cost of projects throughout their life cycle.

One of the current opportunities for A-E contractors to provide cost engineering services to USACE is the AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted, which is a multiple award task order contract (MATOC) with an estimated value of $10 million. The solicitation number is W9123721RSS09, and the duration of the term is one year base plus four one-year options.

In this article, we will provide a brief historical background of the previous RFPs that preceded this opportunity, a description of the RFP and its requirements, an analysis of who should participate and why, and an overview of the challenges and risks involved in pursuing this opportunity. We will also explain how GDI Consulting, a leading provider of capture and proposal services to government contractors, can help you win this contract by leveraging our expertise, experience, and proven methodologies.

Historical Background

The AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted is not the first contract of its kind that USACE has issued. In fact, USACE has a long history of procuring A-E services for cost engineering through various contracting vehicles and methods.

Some of the previous RFPs that preceded this opportunity are:

  • W9128F-17-R-0020: AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services to Support Omaha District (2017). This was a small business set-aside contract with a ceiling value of $9 million and a duration of five years. The contract was awarded to four firms: Construction Cost Systems Inc., Project Time & Cost LLC, Project Time & Cost International LLC, and VectorCSP LLC.
  • W9128F-16-R-0019: AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services to Support Omaha District (2016). This was an unrestricted contract with a ceiling value of $9 million and a duration of five years. The contract was awarded to four firms: Construction Cost Systems Inc., Project Time & Cost LLC, Project Time & Cost International LLC, and VectorCSP LLC.
  • W9128F-15-R-0015: AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services to Support Omaha District (2015). This was an unrestricted contract with a ceiling value of $9 million and a duration of five years. The contract was awarded to four firms: Construction Cost Systems Inc., Project Time & Cost LLC, Project Time & Cost International LLC, and VectorCSP LLC.
  • W9128F-14-R-0004: AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services to Support Omaha District (2014). This was an unrestricted contract with a ceiling value of $9 million and a duration of five years. The contract was awarded to four firms: Construction Cost Systems Inc., Project Time & Cost LLC, Project Time & Cost International LLC, and VectorCSP LLC.
  • W9128F-13-R-0006: AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services to Support Omaha District (2013). This was an unrestricted contract with a ceiling value of $9 million and a duration of five years. The contract was awarded to four firms: Construction Cost Systems Inc., Project Time & Cost LLC, Project Time & Cost International LLC, and VectorCSP LLC.
  • W9128F-12-R-0002: AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services to Support Omaha District (2012). This was an unrestricted contract with a ceiling value of $9 million and a duration of five years. The contract was awarded to four firms: Construction Cost Systems Inc., Project Time & Cost LLC, Project Time & Cost International LLC, and VectorCSP LLC.

As we can see from these examples, USACE has been using the same contracting vehicle (AEC IDC), ceiling value ($9 million), and duration (five years) for cost engineering services since 2012, and has been awarding the contract to the same four firms since 2014. This indicates that USACE has a stable and consistent demand for cost engineering services, and that the incumbent contractors have a strong performance record and customer satisfaction.

However, this also means that the competition for the new AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted is likely to be fierce, as the incumbent contractors will try to retain their market share, and new entrants will try to challenge their position. Therefore, it is essential for any potential offeror to have a clear understanding of the RFP and its requirements, and to develop a compelling and differentiated proposal that showcases their value proposition and competitive advantages.

RFP Description

The AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted is a MATOC that will provide cost engineering services to support USACE Mobile District and other USACE districts within the South Atlantic Division (SAD) and other geographic locations as required. The services will include, but are not limited to:

  • Cost estimating
  • Cost analysis
  • Cost control
  • Cost risk analysis
  • Value engineering
  • Scheduling
  • Earned value management
  • Life cycle cost analysis
  • Cost engineering training

The services will cover various types of projects, such as civil works, military construction, environmental restoration, interagency and international support, contingency operations, and others. The projects may be located within the continental United States (CONUS) or outside the continental United States (OCONUS).

The RFP was issued on September 30, 2023, and the proposal due date is November 15, 2023. The solicitation number is W9123721RSS09. The contract type is firm-fixed-price (FFP) or cost-plus-fixed-fee (CPFF), depending on the task order. The contract duration is one year base plus four one-year options. The estimated value of the contract is $10 million.

The RFP requires offerors to submit a technical proposal and a price proposal. The technical proposal consists of four factors: corporate experience, past performance, key personnel qualifications, and management approach. The price proposal consists of a sample task order pricing and a labor rate matrix. The RFP states that the award will be made to one or more offerors whose proposals are determined to be most advantageous to the government, considering both technical and price factors. The technical factors are significantly more important than price.

Who Should Participate

The AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted is an attractive opportunity for any A-E contractor who has relevant experience and expertise in providing cost engineering services to USACE or other federal agencies. The opportunity offers a potential revenue stream of $10 million over five years, with a possibility of repeat business and follow-on contracts. The opportunity also offers a chance to establish or enhance a long-term relationship with USACE, one of the largest and most diverse federal customers in the market.

However, not every A-E contractor who is interested in this opportunity is qualified or competitive enough to pursue it. To participate in this opportunity, an offeror must meet certain minimum requirements, such as:

  • Having a valid CAGE code and DUNS number
  • Being registered in SAM.gov
  • Having an approved accounting system
  • Having adequate financial resources and bonding capacity
  • Having relevant corporate experience in providing cost engineering services similar in size, scope, and complexity to the RFP requirements
  • Having positive past performance references from previous or current customers who received cost engineering services similar in size, scope, and complexity to the RFP requirements
  • Having qualified key personnel who have professional registration or certification in cost engineering or related fields, such as certified cost consultant (CCC), certified cost engineer (CCE), certified cost professional (CCP), certified estimating professional (CEP), certified value specialist (CVS), project management professional (PMP), etc.
  • Having a sound management approach that demonstrates how the offeror will plan, organize, staff, direct, control, monitor, and report on the cost engineering services

In addition to meeting these minimum requirements, an offeror must also be able to differentiate itself from other offerors by highlighting its unique value proposition and competitive advantages. Some of the possible ways to do this are:

  • Providing innovative solutions or best practices that can improve the quality, accuracy, timeliness, or efficiency of the cost engineering services
  • Offering lower prices or better value for money than other offerors
  • Demonstrating superior technical capabilities or credentials than other offerors
  • Showing a deep understanding of USACE’s mission, goals, challenges, and expectations
  • Presenting relevant success stories or testimonials that showcase the offeror’s past achievements or customer satisfaction
  • Establishing strong relationships or partnerships with USACE or other stakeholders involved in the projects

Challenges

Pursuing the AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted is not without challenges or risks. Some of the potential challenges that an offeror may face are:

  • High competition: As mentioned earlier, the incumbent contractors have a strong track record and customer loyalty, and may be reluctant to give up their market share. Moreover, new entrants may also try to enter the market by offering lower prices or better solutions. Therefore, an offeror must be prepared to face a high level of competition and be able to demonstrate its superior value proposition and competitive advantages.
  • Complex requirements: The RFP requires offerors to provide a wide range of cost engineering services for various types of projects, both CONUS and OCONUS. The offerors must also comply with various standards, regulations, and guidelines that govern the cost engineering profession and the USACE projects. Therefore, an offeror must have a thorough understanding of the RFP requirements and be able to provide accurate, reliable, and consistent cost engineering services that meet or exceed USACE’s expectations.
  • Limited information: The RFP provides limited information about the scope, magnitude, and location of the projects that will be supported by the contract. The offerors are expected to use their own sources and assumptions to estimate the level of effort, resources, and costs required for the contract. Therefore, an offeror must have access to reliable and relevant data and information that can support its proposal development and pricing strategy.
  • Tight schedule: The RFP was issued on September 30, 2023, and the proposal due date is November 15, 2023. This gives offerors only about six weeks to prepare and submit their proposals. Therefore, an offeror must have a well-defined and efficient proposal process that can ensure timely delivery of a high-quality proposal.

These challenges are not insurmountable, but they require careful planning, preparation, and execution. An offeror who can overcome these challenges and submit a compelling and responsive proposal will have a higher chance of winning the contract.

Conclusion

The AEC IDC for Cost Engineering Services Unrestricted is a lucrative opportunity for any A-E contractor who has relevant experience and expertise in providing cost engineering services to USACE or other federal agencies. The opportunity offers a potential revenue stream of $10 million over five years, with a possibility of repeat business and follow-on contracts. The opportunity also offers a chance to establish or enhance a long-term relationship with USACE, one of the largest and most diverse federal customers in the market.

However, the opportunity also comes with challenges and risks that require careful planning, preparation, and execution. The offerors must meet certain minimum requirements, such as having relevant corporate experience, past performance, key personnel qualifications, and management approach. The offerors must also differentiate themselves from other offerors by highlighting their unique value proposition and competitive advantages. The offerors must also deal with complex requirements, limited information, high competition, and tight schedule.

This is where GDI Consulting can help you win this contract. GDI Consulting is a leading provider of capture and proposal services to government contractors. We have extensive experience and expertise in providing cost engineering services to USACE and other federal agencies. If you are interested in pursuing this opportunity, please contact us today at www.gdicwins.com. We will be happy to discuss your needs and expectations, and provide you with a customized solution that can help you win this contract.