ABMC Flower Program

Questions & Answers / Clarifications

This document contains vendor questions and government responses regarding the "74330226R0016 Flower Program Questions" solicitation.

• Contract Value/IGCE: ABMC does not provide estimates or an IGCE; vendors should quote fair and reasonable prices.
• Cuba Fulfillment: Flowers will not be delivered to Cuba, including the Santiago Surrender Tree, as it is not a cemetery and not within the scope of the Flower Program.
• Enhancements (CLIN 0004): Proposed capability enhancements are welcome under CLIN 0004.
• Order Volume Data: ABMC has not had this program before but estimates approximately 2,000 orders annually, with peak volumes around WWI/WWII commemorative dates.
• SLAs/Penalties: Terms will follow FAR Part 12; vendors are encouraged to propose appropriate SLAs and financial remedies.
• Customer Service: ABMC expects general customer service and responsiveness; specific response-time targets are at the contractor's discretion. Multilingual support may be needed but is at the contractor's discretion.
• Refunds/Chargebacks: CLIN 0002 is FFP for fulfillment and delivery; processes are not subject to ABMC approval. The contractor is responsible for order management capabilities.
• Florist Relationships: ABMC does not have formal relationships with floral vendors but provides a public list on their website.
• Platform Hosting: The contractor shall host the platform within their cloud infrastructure.
• Compliance: FedRAMP Moderate or equivalent is required. PCI-DSS SAQ-A is sufficient with a tokenized third-party payment gateway. Section 508 Certification is required.
• Data Privacy: The contractor is responsible for meeting privacy requirements for countries where cemeteries are located, including GDPR.

This Q&A document clarifies key aspects of the solicitation, including scope, pricing expectations, operational requirements, and compliance, which will inform vendor proposals.

Solicitation / RFP / RFQ

The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) is seeking proposals for a floral arrangement ordering and delivery platform. The full details of this requirement are in the attached Performance Work Statement (PWS).

• A platform for floral arrangement ordering and delivery.

• Proposals must address all aspects outlined in the PWS.

• Specific inclusions for the Technical Volume: Executive Summary, Company Profile and Relevant Experience, Detailed Response to the Scope of Work, Three references with similar scope experience, Implementation Timeline, and Service Level Agreement (SLA) terms.

• Alternative CLIN structures are permitted if in the Government's best interest.

• ABMC intends to utilize a predominantly firm-fixed-price contract type, with time & materials option CLINs as outlined in the PWS.

• Proposals must be submitted via email to nerenga@abmc.gov.

• Questions must be received no later than 14 January 2026.

• Proposals are due no later than 4:00 pm EST on 03 February 2026.

• Product demonstrations may be requested between 9-11 February.

• Proposals will be evaluated on a best-value approach, considering: Past performance, Technical proposal (including capability, compliance, management plan, schedule, interface, customer service, data protection), and Price (including cost-effectiveness and clarity).

• Not specified in this document.

• The attached document is the Performance Work Statement (PWS).

• Offerors must note within their proposal if any portion of the PWS cannot be addressed or complied with.

• Prices may be submitted in any preferred local currency. ABMC is exempt from all taxes, including VAT, with agreements provided upon request.

• Prices must be broken out by cost line and traceable to requirements, including setup, licensing, and ongoing support costs. An invoicing schedule should also be included.

Statement of Work (SOW) / Performance Work Statement (PWS)

To implement a modern, secure, and Section 508 compliant online and phone-based floral arrangement ordering platform for delivery to ABMC locations worldwide. The goal is to enable customers to efficiently order flowers online or by phone for placement at specified gravesites by ABMC personnel.

This contract covers the development, fulfillment, and maintenance of an online floral ordering system. Key areas include:

• CLIN 0001 (Online Platform Development and Maintenance): Design, develop, secure, and deploy a user-friendly, ABMC-branded online and phone-based ordering system. This includes platform architecture, UI/UX, integration with ABMC's Burial and Memorialization Database (BMeD), a secure payment gateway, Section 508 compliance, and administrative dashboards.

• CLIN 0002-4002 (Fulfillment and Delivery): Operate a global network to fulfill customer orders by providing floral arrangements for delivery to all 26 ABMC cemeteries. Responsibilities include receiving orders, routing to florists, sourcing and preparing arrangements, delivering to cemeteries, and providing customer notifications. ABMC staff will place arrangements at gravesites.

• CLIN 0003-4003 (Hosting, Maintenance, and Support): Provide ongoing hosting, operation, security, and maintenance of the floral ordering platform, including monitoring, incident response, customer support, and data privacy compliance.

• CLIN 0004-4004 (Optional Enhancements): Time & Material CLIN for optional ABMC-directed enhancements or expanded functionality.

• Platform Uptime: Minimum 99.5% during evaluation window.

• Delivery: Efficient and reliable delivery within agreed windows, with minimal exceptions.

• Quality: Freshness guarantee for high-quality floral arrangements.

• Customer Service: Strong capabilities including handling inquiries and complaints, with prompt response times.

• Reporting: Monthly fulfillment and performance reports, including order volumes, on-time delivery, and exceptions.

• The platform period of performance is twelve (12) months following go-live, with four (4) option years.

• Delivery and placement of floral arrangements will be performed at 26 ABMC sites around the world.

• Section 508 Compliance: The platform must meet Section 508 / WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility features.

• Security: Secure payment processing and protection of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) in accordance with federal laws.

• Branding: ABMC branding and content integration, with no third-party advertisements.

• Sustainability: Floral arrangements must use only organic material; no plastics or packaging are permitted.

• Contractor Registration: Registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) database is required.