§ 9-55.202

Documentation of AEC di

rect negotiated contracts.

Files of essential documents for substantially all contracts and modifications made without formal advertising, except files for small purchases (less than $2,500) see Subpart 9-3.6 shall include the following:

(a) Copy of the procurement directive, requisition or other document upon which the procurement is based;

(b) Justification of negotiation required by § 9-55.102:

(c) Copy of request for proposals, including drawings and specifications when applicable or references thereto;

(d) List of prospective contractors solicited;

(e) Abstract of proposals both oral and written;

(f) Copies of written proposals or confirming quotations received;

(g) "Findings and Determinations" required by Part 9-3;

(h) Basis upon which it has been determined that the contractor was financially and technically able to perform;

(i) Cost breakdown or other appropriate information used to determine reasonableness of price in making award, including a statement on the analysis of the price;

(j) Approval of appropriate reviewing authority when required;

(k) Conformed copy of contract or purchase order with specific reference to any unusual contract provisions and reasons therefor;

(1) Related correspondence; and
(m) Copies of any modifications.

9-56.102

Subpart 9-56.4-Policy Governing Particular

9-56.401

9-56.402

(e) Abstract of bids;

(f) Copy of successful bid;

Types of Contracts

Replacement of contractors operating AEC-owned plants or laboratories.

Replacement of service-type contractors performing services of a continuing nature for the AEC at AEC-owned locations. Selection of new onsite service contractors.

Selection of research and develop

ment contracts for work in commercial facilities.

Sec. 9-56.405

Selection of contractors for engineering and construction work. AUTHORITY: The provisions of this Part 9-56 issued under sec. 161, as amended, 68 Stat. 948, 42 U.S.C. 2201; sec. 205, as amended, 63 Stat. 390, 40 U.S.C. 486.

SOURCE: The provisions of this Part 9-56 appear at 34 F.R. 15235, Sept. 27, 1969, unless otherwise noted.

§ 9-56.000 Scope of part.

This part sets forth AEC policies for the use of Contract Proposal Evaluation Boards and policies governing particular types of contracts.

contractors,

(2) Architect-engineer including those for advance engineering; (3) Cost-type construction contractors; and

(4) Any other contractor where a judgment of relative technical and managerial capabilities of a group of firms must be made in which the primary objective is the selection of the best qualified firm.

(c) The policies and requirements of this part shall be used for the selection of the contractors for contracts referred to in paragraph (b) of this section estimated to cost less than $500,000 whenever it is considered likely that later phases of the same project will cause the contract to exceed $500,000.

(d) The policies and principles of this part are also applicable to the selection of contractors for contracts estimated to cost less than $500,000, however, less formal procedures and practices than those described in this part may be followed, depending on the circumstances in each particular selection, at the discretion of the designating official.

(e) Reserved.

(f) The policies and requirements of this part do not apply to the following:

(1) Extensions of contracts where it has been appropriately determined that formal selection procedures need not be followed;

(2) Formally advertised contracts or fixed-price negotiated contracts in which price is the primary consideration;

(3) Research and development contracts entered into under the criteria in Subpart 9-4.51 or 9-4.52;

(4) Determination as to whether a given scope of work should be performed in AEC-owned or in commercial facilities; and

(5) Determination as to which existing AEC operating contractor should perform a given scope of work.

(g) In paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section, the $500,000 limit applies to the related construction costs for A-E contracts. For A-E contracts, including selections for advance engineering work, where a related construction cost cannot be determined, the limit in the provisions applies to estimated contract cost of $50,000.

§ 9-56.002 Policy, cost-type contractor

This subpart sets forth AEC policy, concerning the use of Contract Proposal Evaluation Boards.

§ 9-56.101 Use of Contract Proposal Evaluation Boards.

It is the policy of AEC to use Contract Proposal Evaluation Boards in the selection of contractors for contracts of the type referred to in § 9-56.001 (a), (b), and (c).

§ 9-56.102 Purpose of Contract Proposal Evaluation Boards.

The use of Contract Proposal Evaluation Boards is designed to:

(a) Facilitate the selection of contractors;

(b) Provide for selection of the best contractor for a given job;

(a) Where any of the following conditions exist, contractors operating AEC-owned plants or laboratories at AEC-owned locations are subject to replacement at the time their contracts are proposed for extension, and they will not be considered for selection to continue to operate such plants or laboratories, unless that action would be contrary to the Government's interest and if other qualified firms are available:

(1) Marginal performance;

(2) Conflict of interests between commercial and contract activities when found to outweigh the advantages of using contractors who are demonstrating a sufficient interest in the field of atomic energy to have maintained their own commercial program and thus are assisting in establishing a private, competitive nuclear industry; or

(3) Overconcentration of the firm's activities in the Atomic Energy Commission's program.

(b) Where any of the following conditions apply, the normal selection process (ie., requesting proposals from industry and others) will be considered for the selection of contractors described in paragraph (a) of this section at the time such existing contracts are proposed for extension, if qualified firms are available:

(1) Where the existing operating contractor's performance is considered not better than average; or

(2) Where the circumstances underscore the high desirability of giving adequate opportunity to other organizations to compete for the business of supplying services to the AEC.

§ 9-56.402 Replacement of service-type contractors performing services of a continuing nature for the AEC at AEC-owned locations.

The policy set forth in § 9-56.401 above is applicable to the replacement of onsite service-type contractors.

§ 9-56.403 Selection of new onsite service contractors.

Normally a firm will not be considered for selection for an onsite service contract where the work to be performed under the AEC contract, together with work being performed for other Government agencies and others, would place the firm in a predominant position in a field of industrial activity germane to the contract work, unless that action would be contrary to the Government's interest and if other qualified firms are available.

§ 9-56.404

Selection of research and development contracts for work in commercial facilities.

In selecting recipients of research and development work, it is basic AEC policy to assign the work where it can be done most effectively and efficiently. Where it is otherwise appropriate to assign the work to a commercial concern, it is also the policy of the AEC to make such wide distribution of contract awards as will encourage broad participation by qualified research and development contractors performing work in their own facilities in order to:

(a) Maintain a competitive industrial base; and

(b) Prevent firms from attaining a predominant position in a major segment of the atomic energy industry. § 9-56.405

Selection of contractors for engineering and construction work. (a) It is the policy of the AEC to encourage broad participation by qualified architect-engineers and constructors in the atomic energy programs to the fullest extent practicable in order to:

(1) Avoid undue concentration of work with any firm or group of firms in a particular field of work (architectengineer or construction); and

(2) Develop and maintain a broad base of contractors with atomic energy experience and/or nuclear capability which may be used for AEC or commercial requirements.

(b) A firm currently under contract to AEC or to a cost-type AEC contractor shall not be invited to submit a proposal for work in the same field if the proposed project would be performed concurrently with the existing contract and if the estimated cost of the new con

struction work involved is in excess of $10 million or the estimated cost of the architect-engineer services is in excess of $1 million where a construction cost estimate cannot be determined. If, for cogent reasons, the designating official believes that such a firm should be invited, approval shall be obtained from the Division of Contracts. This requirement shall not apply to:

(1) Firms currently engaged only on AEC fixed-price construction contracts awarded as a result of formal advertising or invited bids;

(2) Any firm currently engaged on AEC contracts in the same field, the total of which involves construction costs of less than $10 million; or

(3) Any architect-engineer firm after it has completed title II work, exclusive of checking shop drawings, even though it still has title III inspection services to perform.

(c) Normally, only those firms which are compatible with the size and complexity of the job requirements should be invited; that is, for a small relatively simple job, firms whose resources and qualifications are far in excess of the job requirements should not be solicited, and where size and simplicity of the job permit, invitees should be limited to the geographic area of the job.

(a) AEC utilizes cost-type contractors for the operation of its facilities, for the performance of research and development, and for other services. Such contractors are generally selected for technical and managerial capabilities, and are expected to make full use thereof in order to achieve the flexibility and highquality products and services required for AEC programs.

(b) Procurement activities of AEC cost-type contractors are governed by the requirements of applicable contract provisions. Federal Procurement Regulations generally are not directly applicable to AEC cost-type contractors. There are, however, requirements of certain Federal laws, executive orders, and regulations, including Federal Procurement Regulations, which pertain to procurements by cost-type contractors. These requirements, together with implementing AEC Procurement Regulations, and certain additional AECPR's which apply to contractor procurement, are listed in § 9-59.004. In addition, AEC has established certain procurement policies for its cost-type contractors. These are found in § 9-59.003.

§ 9-59.002 Responsibility of contracting officers.

(a) Contracting officers are responsible for assuring that procurement by cost-type contractors conforms to contract requirements and provides effective and timely support to agency programs. In carrying out this responsibility, contracting officers: (1) Assure that AEC cost-type contracts include those provisions required by law or regulations, and such other provisions as are appropriate to implement AEC policies and requirements; (2) review contractor procurement systems (including policies) as required by this section and in accordance with the provisions of their contracts; (3) review individual procurement actions of certain types or above stated dollar levels established in accordance with Subpart 9-51.2; and (4) make periodic appraisals of the contractor's performance of the procurement function in accordance with criteria established by the Director, Division of Contracts.

(b) Contracting officers shall require cost-type contractors to submit written descriptions of procurement systems and methods used or proposed to be used in the contract work when:

(1) The contract is for the construction, operation, or maintenance of an AEC facility (including research and development facilities) which is segregated from the contractor's regular business;

or

(2) The contract provides for substantial procurement services incident to the construction of AEC facilities; or

(3) The contractor has set up a separate supply function under AEC contracts; or

(4) Expected procurement is considered sufficiently significant by the contracting officer to warrant such action.

(c) In reviewing cost-type contractor descriptions of procurement systems and methods, contracting officers shall assure that such statements are not inconsistent with this part.

§ 9-59.003 Policies for cost-type con.

tractor procurement.

The following policies are established for cost-type contractor procurement. Within these policies it is expected that procurement systems and methods will vary according to the types and kinds of procurement to be made, the needs of the particular programs, and the experience, methods, and practices of the particular contractor. In the development of procurement systems and methods, contractors should be encouraged to make maximum utilization of their experience and initiative to the extent consistent with the requirements of this part.

(a) Procurement systems and methods utilized for AEC contract work should be well defined and consistently applied and should accord with good business practices for the type and amount of procurement involved.

(b) Procurement should be effected in the manner most advantageous to the Government-price, quality, and other factors considered. In order to assure this objective and the award of business on an impartial basis, procurement (from sources other than Government sources) shall be effected by methods calculated to assure such full and free competition as is consistent with securing the required supplies and services. Generally, procurement actions are carried out through one of the following methods:

(1) Competitive bids or quotations and award. The competitive bid or quotation and award method of procurement, which normally assures the greatest degree of full and free competition, generally involves the following basic steps and objectives:

(i) Preparation of invitations for bids or requests for quotations setting forth the contract terms and conditions and describing the requirement clearly, accurately, and completely, but avoiding unnecessarily restrictive specifications or requirements.

(ii) Publicizing such invitations or requests by distribution to a reasonable number of prospective bidders and by such other means as may be appropriate, in sufficient time to permit the preparation and submission of bids or quotations before the time set for opening or receipt of bids or quotations.

(iii) Handling bids or quotations in a manner which provides fair and equal treatment to all prospective contractors.

(iv) Making an award to the prospective contractor whose bid or quotation, conforming to the invitation or request, will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. However, if upon evaluation of written bids or quotations it is determined to be in the best interests of the Government to enter into negotiations with prospective contractors before award, such negotiations should be conducted in accordance with (2) below with respect to according fair and equal treatment to prospective contractors.

(2) Negotiation. Procurement by this method normally should be conducted by competitive negotiations through the solicitation and evaluation of proposals, from an adequate number of qualified sources to assure effective competition, consistent with securing the required supplies or services. Negotiated procurement involves advance planning, description of procurement and delivery requirements, and consideration of the effect these requirements may have on prices and competition. Requests for proposals should describe the property or services required as completely as possible; allow sufficient time for the submission of proposals; and establish a closing date for receipt of proposals. Proposals should be handled in a manner which provides fair and equal treatment to all prospective offerors. Selection of offerors for negotiation and award shall be consistent with FPR 1-3.805 and § 9-3.805.