VHA Black Hills Health Care System Air Balancing and Testing Solicitation

Solicitation / RFP / RFQ

This solicitation is for Air Balancing and Testing Services to support the VHA Black Hills Health Care System, including facilities in Fort Meade, Rapid City, and Hot Springs, South Dakota. The services are required to ensure environmental systems and conditions meet specified standards.

• Conduct Testing, Adjusting, and Balancing (TAB) of heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.

• Provide thorough reports of testing methods, findings, and recommendations.

• Perform semi-annual complete testing of facilities (July/August and January/February).

• Conduct follow-up testing and provide reports within 15 calendar days of site completion.

• Notify the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) if a room fails to meet criteria and schedule a follow-up visit.

• Technicians must be experienced, and the lead technician must be certified by AABC, TABB, or NEBB.

• Instrumentation must meet accuracy/calibration requirements established by industry standards.

• All TAB work must adhere to ASHRAE Handbook "HVAC Applications" and specific criteria outlined in the SOW.

• Services may be required on Saturdays or Federal Holidays, with COR approval.

• Contract Type: Firm-Fixed-Price, Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ), Single Award.

• Contract Period: 5 years, with proposed pricing periods from 07/01/2026 to 06/30/2031.

• Minimum Guaranteed Amount: $5,000.00.

• Maximum Contract Ceiling: $335,000.00.

• Offers must be submitted electronically via email to Jeffrey.Brown8@va.gov by the specified due date (03/20/2026, 17:00 CDT).

• Offers must be in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format for text documents and Microsoft Excel for spreadsheets.

• Submissions are divided into Volume I (Pricing) and Volume II (Technical/Past Performance).

• Evaluation Approach: Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA).

• Key deadlines: Questions due by March 12th, 2026. Site visit on March 11th, 2026.

• This acquisition is unrestricted.

• Offerors must provide documented evidence of employing at least two TAB technicians who are current members of AABC, TABB, or NEBB.

• NAICS Code: 238220 - Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors.

• Size Standard: $19 Million.

• A site visit is scheduled for March 11th, 2026, covering all three locations.

• Vendors must coordinate site visits by contacting Kevin.Fravel@va.gov and James.Bradley3@va.gov.

Wage Determination

This document is a U.S. Department of Labor Wage Determination (No. 2015-5367, Revision No. 30, dated 12/03/2025) applicable to the state of South Dakota, specifically for the counties of Custer, Meade, and Pennington. It outlines the minimum wage rates and fringe benefits required for various occupations under the Service Contract Act (SCA).

• Occupational Wage Rates: Provides a comprehensive list of job classifications with corresponding minimum hourly wage rates.
• Fringe Benefits: Specifies required fringe benefits, including:
  • Health & Welfare: $5.55 per hour (or $222.00/week, $962.00/month).
  • Health & Welfare (EO 13706): $5.09 per hour (or $203.60/week, $882.27/month) for contracts also covered by EO 13706.
  • Vacation: 2 weeks after 1 year, 3 weeks after 10 years, 4 weeks after 15 years of service.
  • Holidays: A minimum of eleven paid holidays per year.
• Executive Order 13706 (Paid Sick Leave): Applies to contracts awarded on or after January 1, 2017, requiring 1 hour of paid sick leave per 30 hours worked, up to 56 hours annually. Details on usage for personal illness, family care, and domestic violence situations are provided.
• Executive Order 13658 (Minimum Wage): Applies to contracts awarded between January 1, 2015, and January 29, 2022 (and not renewed/extended after January 30, 2022). Requires a minimum wage of $13.30 per hour (or the higher SCA rate) for 2025, with annual adjustments.
• Hazardous Pay Differentials: Details an 8% differential for high-hazard work with ordnance/explosives and a 4% differential for lower-hazard work.
• Uniform Allowance: Outlines requirements for providing and maintaining uniforms, including reimbursement rates if employees bear the cost.
• Conformance Process (SF-1444): Provides instructions for contractors needing to classify and propose wage rates for occupations not listed in this determination, requiring submission via Standard Form 1444.

This document is critical for understanding the minimum labor costs associated with performing services under a contract in the specified South Dakota counties. Bidders must factor these wage and fringe benefit requirements into their proposals to ensure compliance and accurate cost estimation.

Other / Unclassified

This document is a U.S. Department of Labor Wage Determination (No. 2015-5377, Revision No. 30, dated 12/03/2025) for the Service Contract Act. It specifies the minimum wage rates and fringe benefits required for various occupations performing services in specific counties of South Dakota (Bennett, Butte, Corson, Dewey, Fall River, Gregory, Haakon, Harding, Jackson, Jones, Lawrence, Lyman, Mellette, Oglala Lakota, Perkins, Stanley, Todd, Tripp, Ziebach).

This document is crucial for any bidder responding to a solicitation that requires services covered by the Service Contract Act in the specified South Dakota counties. It outlines the minimum hourly wage rates and fringe benefits (health & welfare, vacation, holidays) that must be paid to employees performing contract work. Bidders must incorporate these wage and benefit requirements into their proposals to ensure compliance and accurate cost estimation. The document also details specific notes regarding Executive Orders 13706 (Paid Sick Leave) and 13658 (Minimum Wage), hazardous pay differentials, uniform allowances, and the process for requesting additional classifications and wage rates (SF-1444).