Fill and Sign the Ri Tax Amended 2016 2019 Form

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF ACQUISITION OFFICER GSA Acquisition Workforce Forum --Informing the GSA acquisition workforce on the latest acquisition news and events! CAO Corner by Emily Murphy INSIDE THIS ISSUE “Service, Service, Service” “Utilizing the expertise of GSA’s dedicated 12,000 plus nationwide workforce, I intend to show that GSA can provide services quantifiably better (and) faster and save taxpayers’ dollars.” These are the words of our new Administrator, Lurita Alexis Doan. Note the word “services.” I believe that maintaining customer service at all levels within GSA can help us achieve our Administrator ’s expectations to our government agency customers, taxpayers and business partners. So how is the OCAO planning to provide services to you, our acquisition workforce? First, we are standardizing the definition of Clinger-Cohen compliant for our acquisition workforce and core requirements for Contracting Officer warrants so employees will know exactly how they are rated and why. Next we are taking steps to centralize the workforce training and Contracting Officers’ Warrant Program to bring consistency to these programs to ensure our employees’ needs are satisfied in a timely, streamlined manner. “I have no doubt that GSA can, should, and will remain the government’s premier acquisition agency.”--David L. Bibb EDITION TWELVE SUMMER 2006 From the Desk of the Editor 2 Lurita Doan Sworn in as 18th GSA Administrator 3 OCAO Update 3 Introducing the Office of National and Regional Acquisition Development 3 APW Enhancements Launched 3 Professional Development 4 GSA Expo 4 Green Procurement at GSA Expo 5 JWOD at GSA Expo 6 Greater Southwest Region 3rd Annual Acquisition Day 7 Gloria Sochon Praised by OFPP 8 COR/COTR Training Offered by FAI/DAU 8 FAI Offers Free Contracting Classes 9 Hurricane Relief 9 NCR Honors Hurricane Relief Volunteers 9 Small Business Corner 10 Administrator Doan Attends NCR’s Small Business Conference 10 Alliance South Small Business Conference10 Small Business GWAC Web Conference 11 Small Business e-Systems Demo 12 OSBU Participates in Annual Procurement Conference 12 Small Business Matchmaker Event 12 Green Procurement 13 Earth Day 2006 at Central Office 13 Earth Day at Rocky Mountain Region 14 Heartland Team Receives “Reclaim to Fame” Award 14 Wind Power Round Table 15 Greening Rooftops Conference 15 IAE Corner 16 FedTeDS in the FAR: What it Means to You 16 Section 508 Update 17 New Features of Buy Accessible Wizard 17 GSA and JWOD Strategic Alliance 18 The New JWOD Catalog is Here! 18 NISH NPA Custodial Certification Process 18 Did You Know? 19 Check It Out! 20 Page 1 The next steps in our service agenda include the development of employee training plans, improving employee performance management and recognition tools, and championing acquisition employee recognition programs to assist and inspire everyone to achieve their best. Within our goal to achieve acquisition excellence we want to put our employees’ needs first, retain our employees and gain the reputation, as Ms. Doan stated, “… (as) one of the best places to work in government.” An additional part of our service is developing the right tools for the right job to make sure you can provide high quality service to your customers. To date we have launched the following to help improve our acquisition environment. • • • • • • • FAR Case 803 Source Selection Acquisition Planning Wizard Consolidated Acquisition Tools across Services GSAR updates e-Offer (electronic contracting) Solicitation Writing System Business Case/Study Developing Transactions Management Playbook From the Desk of the Editor by Judy Steele Transition is the theme of this edition of the newsletter and the GSA Expo is the spotlighted event. We welcome Lurita Alexis Doan as the first female Administrator of GSA. In a recent address to the Coalition for Government Procurement, Ms. Doan responded to the question of how a master’s degree in Renaissance literature would help her as Administrator of GSA by commenting that the Renaissance was about ideas and change—that it was an important period of transformation and rebirth. This is what also faces us at GSA. Part of this transition is the return of Jim Williams who will now be the first Commissioner of the new Federal Acquisition Service (FAS). OCAO is also undergoing transformation, a major change being the creation of the new Office of National and Regional Acquisition Development. Gloria Sochon has returned to CO as FAI undergoes more transformation including changes to FAI Online. GSA Expo was a huge success and we feature three articles reviewing Expo events including coverage of Green Procurement and JWOD at Expo. The newsletter also includes What’s next? The answer to that question is updates on the Acquisition Planning Wizard transformational solutions to our acquisition (APW), FedTeDS in the FAR, Section 508, process. We are in the early stages of the Buy Accessible Wizard, and the new NISH deploying a national study to reinvent the Custodial Certification Process. We hope you acquisition process based on today’s will find this issue of the “Forum” to be helpful standards of excellence. Want to learn more in informing you on some of the changes about our study? Stay tuned to our next CAO underway at GSA. Please forward any Corner! comments, suggestions and articles for the newsletter to the Editor, Judy Steele, at judy.steele@gsa.gov. The “Forum” is here to meet the needs of the GSA acquisition community and we can’t do that without your input! Finally, we must say a big “Thank You” to David L. Bibb for his support of the newsletter over the past few years. • Page 2 Lurita Doan Sworn in as 18th GSA Administrator On May 31, 2006, Lurita Doan was sworn in as the first woman to be Administrator of GSA. Mrs. Doan, a native of New Orleans, was until July 2005 the President, CEO, and founder of New Technology Management, Inc. NTMI provides installation and integration of border surveillance technology to the federal government. Before entering the field of computer technology, Mrs. Doan taught at several colleges in the Washington, DC, area and in Louisiana. Mrs. Doan holds a bachelor’s degree from Vassar College and a master’s degree in Renaissance literature from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Following the official swearing-in ceremony, Mrs. Doan addressed her plans for GSA’s future stating, “Together we will restore GSA’s leadership as the premier contracting and service provider. To be the best, we are going to need to improve all of our services and better understand and anticipate the requirements of our customers. But we can do it.” OCAO UPDATE responsibilities in the areas of policy development and acquisition workforce management as the Office of National and Regional Acquisition Development. Bettie Feit was named as the Acting Director for this new office. Bettie and those associates on detail to OCAO will be working within the following areas: Applied Learning Center, Center for Acquisition Excellence, GSA Acquisition Career Management, and Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI). The team has already begun various acquisition workforce projects including developing a GSA intern program, working on next phases of the Applied Learning Center, Contracting Officers’ Warrant Program (COWP), and developing online training and classroom courseware for internal and external customers, to name a few. As our acquisition workforce grows and develops within GSA, it is important that we continue to train our internal workforce as well as external customers. Through the OCAO and the Office of National and Regional Acquisition Development we will be providing the necessary training and development tools. For more information, contact Rachael Stevens at rachael.stevens@gsa.gov or 202208-1261. APW Enhancements Launched On May 5, 2006, OCAO launched Acquisition Planning Wizard (APW) v3.2. This new version of the APW provides several enhancements based on user suggestions On May 1, 2006, OCAO received several and lessons learned. Many associates detailees from the FAS Office of Acquisition provided excellent and constructive feedback Management, Training and Support Center. during the beta testing and we hope that the These detailees will assist OCAO with end result reflects your good work. Thanks meeting current statutory and regulatory again to those who participated! Introducing the Office of National and Regional Acquisition Development Page 3 What’s new with APW? The new version APW v3.2 features: • • • • • • • • • • • • Improved plan summary screens, notifications and event tracking for your team and the ability to send notices to specific members of your team as needed, including a blackberry accessible version of the plan (coming soon!) Improved ability for additional Coordinators, Concurrors, and Approvers to comment and signoff on plans as well as the ability to indicate when optional roles are Not Applicable Improved ability to ensure complete concurrence before routing for Approval Improved ability for APW Administrators and Planners to transfer plans during staff transitions and to mark plans as Cancelled Improved instructions based on beta test feedback Improved Help based on beta test feedback Enabling of both MS Word and Adobe PDF documents until plan is Approved (then PDF only) Improved Wizard buttons for [Save][Save and Exit][Exit Plan] Streamlining of the new information screen required by the APW v3.2 to identify your Region/Service on first login Highlighting of the new Plan Status screen showing the Plan Lifecycle and the status of all Team Participants’ concurrences for Team Participants and Approvers Improved layout of the Team Participants screen Improved examples, briefings, and support By the end of August, we anticipate that you will also be able to include Agency Partner (non-GSA) staff in your planning team as Coordinators. This will help streamline the approval process and achieve acquisition excellence. Why use APW? Acquisition planning is critical to successful program management and improves the quality of products and services delivered. APW walks you through each element of the planning process in an intuitive, helpful manner. It helps you determine the correct acquisition plan type and approval authority, and it provides best practices guidance. All of this means that APW provides you a great tool that supports effective program management and ensures compliance with GSA Order OGP 2800.1 and the FAR. The concurrences, coordinations, and approvals in the wizard are designed in conformance with OGP 2800.1. If you are not familiar with this order or want to refresh your knowledge, you can find it on Insite under Reference & Resources/Acquisition Policy Library. Who do I call for help? For questions related to using the wizard or its operations, contact the APW Help Desk at 866-279-6435 or apwhelp@devis.com. For policy questions related to acquisition planning, please contact Gloria Sochon at gloria.sochon@gsa.gov or 202-219-0311. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT GSA Expo Held in San Antonio, Texas, May 15 through 18, GSA’s Expo 2006 was a tremendous success. Our thanks to all the GSA folks who worked so hard to bring in our customers, then came to San Antonio from every region, every center and business line, nationPage 4 wide. They served as Room Monitors, Speakers, Floor and Hall Ambassadors, and especially Flagship Kiosk Staff. Even with the current governmentwide travel constraints, the 2006 Expo had the second largest total attendance in Expo history—10,247! Customer attendees said the Expo was good value for their limited dollars, as they were able to choose from 207 training classes with Continuous Learning Points (CLPs). They earned more than 16,570 hours of training credit (25% more than 2005), all towards their annual continuing education requirements. Our attendees also had the opportunity to network with over 3,000 product experts from the 600 GSA contract-holding companies in the exhibit hall. They were able to comparative shop and order online during the show. These vendor partners reported hundreds of business leads from the Expo, totaling potential sales of over $31 million—twice the number of sales reported at last year’s Expo. The GSA Expo, now in its 12th year, was hosted by the Greater Southwest and Rocky Mountain Regions. As we transition into a new organization and a new future, the Expo continues to be the touchstone for our outreach efforts, bringing both our federal customers and our vendor customers together to see the collection of hardworking people that together present one face to these customers. For more information, contact Harry Butler at harry.butler@gsa.gov or 703605-5717. See you next year in Orlando! Green Procurement at GSA Expo The Environmental Track of the GSA Expo was a tremendous success with workshops focusing on buying green products, operating greener buildings, and new ways of working with clients as they define and furnish their workspace. At the request of previous attendees, most of the sessions were repeated so as to enable the maximum attendance. The ten-hour “GSA Makes Being Green Easy —Your Legal Responsibility,” was presented by Sandy Jones, GSA/ Southeastern Regional Environmental Coordinator; Dana Arnold with the White House Task Force on Recycling; and Linda Mesaros, Department of Agriculture BioBased Products Representative. Ms. Arnold focused on the laws and executive orders requiring federal agencies to purchase green products and services. Ms. Mesaros discussed the designated requirements to buy bio-based products and what was available. The first half of “Greener Buildings Through Better Operation” was presented by Sandy Jones who focused on green cleaning and recycling. The recycling portion covered electronics, batteries, metal office furniture, carpet, and construction materials in addition to the traditional recycling of paper, aluminum cans, plastic and glass bottles. This was followed by a discussion of how GSA is implementing “Green Cleaning” practices in our buildings in order to have a healthier working environment. Ann Kosmal, an architect with GSA’s Sustainable Design Program, Office of Applied Science, discussed best green building practices. Topics included how GSA is working with our customers to make it easier for them to have greener office space, ways to meet the new energy guidelines, and how space design and the use of green products makes a difference in the working environment. “How the Right WorkPlace Serves the Client” was presented by Kevin Page 5 Kelly. This class gave attendees an understanding of the advances GSA has made over the past two years in defining customer requirements and illustrated new ways of working with clients as they define and furnish their workspace. All of the presentations can be found online at www.expo.gsa.gov—click on training and follow the links. For more information, contact Sandy Jones at sandy.jones@gsa.gov or 404331-1841. JWOD Training Sessions. Three JWOD training courses were offered and delivered twice each: JWOD Program Overview—How to Leverage the JWOD Program to Fulfill Your Needs; Buyer’s Guide to SKILCRAFT® and Other JWOD Products – How to Get the Quality, Value and Convenience You Need; and How to Contract for JWOD Services – A Primer. The training sessions were wellattended and, in fact, the SKILCRAFT Buyers Guide session was standing room only. Booth attendees provided the program representatives with positive comments regarding the value the Expo attendees placed on the JWOD training sessions. GSA Meetings. National Industries for the Blind (NIB), one of the central nonprofit agencies within the JWOD Program, made presentations to Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) vendors at each of the three meetings hosted by partnering GSA Acquisition Centers: Office Supplies (New York City), General Products (Fort Worth), and Center for Facility Maintenance & Hardware (GSA JWOD at GSA Expo Kansas City). NIB’s message was one of “thank you” to those MAS vendors who are The JWOD Program had a strong presence currently selling JWOD products. NIB also at this year’s GSA Expo. The Expo was a had the opportunity to invite MAS vendors who great success, and enabled the JWOD are not currently authorized to sell JWOD Program to demonstrate its value to federal products to “jump on board” with the program. customers and distribution partners. As a result, many MAS vendor representatives requested to proceed with JWOD Solutions Center. For the second JWOD authorization. year, all participants of the JWOD Program united under a single booth. For the first time, Support of Multiple Award Schedule the JWOD Solutions Center integrated the Vendors & Co-Branding Partners. Many program’s products and services. For JWOD-authorized multiple MAS vendors example, the Office Solutions area provided reflected their partnership with JWOD information on the quality SKILCRAFT® signage, samples and products for display. products available for any office requirement Grainger, an authorized JWOD hardware and and on the types of JWOD administrative and industrial products distributor, included a related services performed in an office JWOD training session as part of its booth setting. The JWOD Solutions Center was offering. honored by visits from GSA senior management and many other key customers Tours of San Antonio Lighthouse. The and business partners. San Antonio Lighthouse is one of the JWOD Page 6 Program’s flagship nonprofit agencies employing people who are blind, and is a longterm quality supplier to GSA for many items such as Free Ink Roller Ball pens and a wide range of mechanical pencils. Several GSA associates had an opportunity to visit the San Antonio Lighthouse and see first-hand the capabilities and work ethic of their workforce. A big thank-you is in order to the GSA staff who plan and execute such an outstanding educational and exhibit opportunity for federal customers and GSA suppliers alike. The JWOD Program remains grateful for the opportunity to participate in such a meaningful way. For more information about JWOD programs, contact Stephanie Lesko at slesko@jwod.gov or 703-603-2146. For more information about NIB, contact Dan Carson at dcarson@nib.org or 703-3100509. Joe Jeu, Assistant Commissioner, Office of Global Supply, receives award from Dan Carson, NIB GSA Global Supply receives “Partner in Excellence” Award. NIB presented Joe Jeu of GSA Global Supply (GGS) with an award for his department’s support of the JWOD Program. In addition to serving as the largest distributor of JWOD commodity items, GGS has been a key supporter and sponsor of new JWOD products. The GSA Expo Team--a Job Well Done Greater Southwest Region 3rd Annual Acquisition Day Greater Southwest Regional Administrator Scott Armey hosted the Region’s 3rd annual Acquisition Day on April 6, 2006. Featured speakers included Rob Burton of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy; David Drabkin, Federal Acquisition Service; Joe Jeu of the GSA Global Supply; Director of the PBS JWOD Open House. Held on the first full day of EXPO, these break-out sessions were designed to provide all Expo attendees with the opportunity to informally meet with representatives from NIB, NISH (serving people with a range of severe disabilities) and the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled, the federal agency which oversees the JWOD Program. A resounding success, the Open House attracted a standing-room-only crowd of customers, MAS vendors and GSA associates who came to learn more about the JWOD Program and to discover its George Prochaska, Scott Armey and David Drabkin at Acquisition Day opportunities. Page 7 Procurement Division, Matt Urnezis; and Director of the FSS Contract Management Center, Jeff Koses. James McCullough of the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) spoke about DAU certification levels and training opportunities. Deputy Regional Administrator George Prochaska, and Assistant Regional Administrators Marcella Banks (FTS), Jim Weller (FAS) and Tyree Varnado (FAS) also made presentations. Other regional associates led specialized training sessions for the more than 200 associates in attendance. PBS associate Barbara Varley was commended for gaining a Klinger-Cohen waiver by passing the testing associated with the Applied Learning Center course work. For more information, contact George Prochaska at george.prochaska@gsa.gov or 817-978-4235. team through the transition to Ft. Belvoir, managing the interagency groups to support training initiatives, and guiding the process of acquiring training services using the new Acquisition Workforce Training Fund. Burton noted that as a result of Sochon’s outstanding efforts, FAI will be able to deliver more than 180,000 hours of training in the next year at no cost to agencies to help ensure that the acquisition workforce will be prepared to meet current and future challenges. FAI promotes capability building and professional development of the federal acquisition workforce through knowledge sharing, management tools, learning opportunities, training events, seminars, state of the workforce reports, and by coordinating governmentwide research. FAI also partners with Chief Acquisition Officers, Chief Human Capital Officers, and agency Acquisition Career Managers to identify and address issues critical to the success of federal acquisition professionals. For more information, contact Karen Pica at karen.pica@dau.mil or 703-805-2333. Audience at Acquisition Day COR/COTR Training Offered by FAI/ DAU FAI Online University users may have noticed that some courses were taken offline effective Gloria Sochon Praised by OFPP March 15, 2006. FAI Online University will continue to run the COR Mentor Program, At the April 13, 2006 meeting of the Chief which awards approximately 24 hours Acquisition Officers Council, OFPP Associate continuous learning points. The COR Mentor Administrator Robert Burton praised GSA’s Program is comprised of 18 duties that a Gloria Sochon, the outgoing Director of FAI. Contracting Officer Representative (COR), Sochon was commended for leading the FAI also known as a Contracting Officer’s Page 8 Technical Representative (COTR), might be assigned. It is required coursework for COTRs in GSA. The course can be accessed at www.faionline.com. FAI removed other training modules from FAI Online University in an effort to update its offerings. FAI Offers Free Contracting Classes Other recommended modules found in the CoP are: • CLC007 Contract Source Selection (1 hour) • CLC018 Contractual Incentives (3 hours) • CLC013Performance-Based Services Acquisition (6 hours) • CLC004 Market Research (3.5 hours) GSA contracting officers and contracting specialists and others with contracting responsibilities are encouraged to take advantage of the sessions scheduled through the end of FY2006. A list of courses can be found at http://www.fai.gov/resource/ classtrain.htm. Students who are interested in these courses, or their supervisors, should contact Patricia Miller at patricia.miller@gsa.gov or 202-501-2518, to proceed with the registration process. FAI is sponsoring contracting classes under the SARA training fund. These classes are pre-paid from the fund and are at no cost to GSA; GSA is responsible only for associated travel costs. These courses follow the DAU The Defense Acquisition University (DAU) contract training program as required by offers COR training via the Acquisition OFPP Policy Letter 05-01 and meet training Community Connection, http://acc.dau.mil. requirements for the Federal Acquisition There are several beneficial learning modules Certification in Contracting. A limited number located in the Community of Practice (CoP) of predecessor courses for Level 1 training for CORs. The most recent offering, CLC106 (Acquisition Planning 1, Contract Formation COR Training, is an eight hour overview for 1, and Contract Administration 1) are included CORs. There are also two learning modules to provide an opportunity for workforce that provide a general overview of contracting: members who started the predecessor CLC011 Contracting for the Rest of Us curriculum to complete these courses. (approximately 2 hours and earns 2 continuous Workforce members who need to complete learning points) and CLM024 Contracting the predecessor Level 1 courses should do Overview (approximately 8 hours and earns 8 so in FY 2006 to ensure they obtain the training continuous learning points). from a DAU-equivalent provider. Additional learning modules will be posted in the CoP as they are developed and deployed. For more information, contact William Wilson at william.wilson@gsa.gov or 703-805-2338. Joseph Schu, PBS, addresses honorees HURRICANE RELIEF NCR Honors Hurricane Relief Volunteers NCR Acting Regional Administrator Ann Everett and Acting Assistant Regional Page 9 Administrator for PBS, Rob Graf, honored 18 regional PBS associates who volunteered for deployment to the Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma at a ceremony on April 4, 2006. Volunteers provided humanitarian relief and critical technical assistance to their GSA colleagues in various communities in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, South Florida, and Gulf Port and Jackson, Mississippi. Congratulations for a job well done to Ron Scott, Lisa Gregory, Angela Johnson, Wanda Nolen, Don Brown, Michelle Parrish, Gary Shipley, Yvette Green, Sonia Mena, Mary Hewson, Donnita Mennealy, Stacey Griffith, Roger Perrault, Chris Burns, Duane Lambert, Sharmaine Brennan, Monica Sias and Charles Garris. For more information, contact Duane Fulton at duane.fulton@gsa.gov or 202-708-7991. schedule contractor, marketing your GSA schedule, strategies for doing business with PBS, and procurement opportunities with FTS were offered. An exhibit showcase was open to participants and one-on-one counseling by GSA experts in PBS, FSS, and FTS was provided. More than 24 prime contractors and representatives from Departments of Homeland Security, Justice, Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the Department of Justice participated in the conference. For more information, contact Shaunta Johnson at shaunta.johnson@gsa.gov or 202-708-5804. Mildred Quinley looks on as Patrick Gartland, Small Business Advocate, SBA, addresses conference Alliance South Conference Small Business The Southeast Sunbelt Region was joined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and thirteen other partner agencies March 28 through 29, in the third Administrator Doan Attends NCR’s annual Alliance South Small Business Small Business Conference Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Over 400 On June 9, 2006, Administrator Lurita Doan small business owners attended this small joined NCR Acting Regional Administrator business conference, which was hosted by Ann Everett at NCR’s Small Business Director of the Regional Office of Small Procurement Conference in Washington, DC. Business Utilization, Mildred Quinley. The This was the first small business event event provided vendors opportunities to meet attended by Mrs. Doan since her GSA buyers and contracting officers from federal, appointment and was attended by state, and local governments, as well as local approximately 200 small business owners military bases and large companies to discuss from the metro DC area. Educational business opportunities. Educational sessions workshops on how to become a GSA provided current information on emerging new SMALL BUSINESS CORNER Page 10 Matchmaking sessions at the Conference Steve Triplett, Assistant Regional Administrator, FSS, Heartland Region opened the meeting by welcoming 319 individuals representing 301 of 423 companies that are 8(a) STARS Industry Partners. Misty Claypole updated the audience on the contract including modifications, subcontracting reports, ordering information and exercising the first option. Tia Meredith-Ash provided updates on business development that included roles and responsibilities of Small Business GWAC Center personnel, customer training, top ten customer agencies, initiatives and events. Patrick Queen provided updates on sales reporting and announced the new electronic payment system, www.pay.gov. At the end of the updates, a question and answer session took place. standards. The highlight of the event was the Matchmaking Meetings, where each attendee had the opportunity to schedule a meeting with two of approximately 25 purchasing agencies that agreed to participate in this program. The second day of the conference featured training workshops for contracting officers, including how to use GSA Advantage!TM and e-Buy, as well as construction project delivery methods. The training provided participating contracting officials with valuable CEU credits toward their warrant status. For more The first 8(a) STARS program meeting was information, contact Dinora Gonzalez at face to face and gave the industry partners dinora.gonzalez@gsa.gov or 404-331-3031. three attendance location options: Virginia, Maryland and Missouri. To maximize participation and reduce travel costs, it was decided to offer an alternative to traveling— live web conferencing, which proved to be effective and economical. The Small Business GWAC Center was able to meet its objective of industry partner outreach and Small Business GWAC Web Conference provide pertinent contract information in an interactive forum. Industry partner participation The Heartland Region’s Small Business increased with a cost savings in excess of Governmentwide Acquisition Contract $50K over the previous year. For those unable (GWAC) Center held the 8(a) STARS to attend, the web conference was available (Streamlined Technology Acquisition for replay for an additional 40 days. If there Resources for Services) GWAC Program are further replay requests, contact the Small Managers’ meeting live on the internet in a Business GWAC Center at 877-372-8732. web conference April 5, 2006. Speakers from For more information, contact Mike Brincks the Small Business GWAC Center included at michael.brincks@gsa.gov or 816-926Mary Parks, Director; Misty Claypole, 8(a) 7217. STARS GWAC Administrative Contracting Officer; and Tia Meredith-Ash, Business Development Specialist. Patrick Queen, Contracting Officer from the Atlanta GWAC Contract Management Center, also participated. Page 11 making sessions with program managers and procurement representatives. The conference Pat Brown-Dixon, chairperson of the Greater also offered one-on-one counseling for small Kansas City Federal Executive Board’s Small business representatives. There were over Business Committee, held the April meeting 2,500 conference participants, 1,300 of them at the regional headquarters of the being small businesses. The National Office Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). OSBU staffed an exhibit booth, along with Dave Turner, SBA Commercial Market/ associates from the National Capital Region’s Procurement Center Representation Small Business Center, PBS, and the FSS conducted an online demonstration of the new Program Support and Small Business electronic Subcontract Reporting System Branch, IT Acquisition Center, and the (eSRS), the dynamic search feature of the Services Acquisition Center. For more Central Contractors’ Registry (CCR) system, information, contact Yolanda Johnson at and SBA’s SUBNet system, where Yolanda.johnson@gsa.gov or 202-501-0445. subcontracting opportunities are posted by government prime contractors. Attendees Small Business Matchmaker Event included acquisition professionals from EPA, GSA, Department of Health and Human The PBS Upstate New York Service Center Services, Marine Corps, and Department of represented the Northeast & Caribbean Agriculture. For more information, contact Region at the first annual Western New York Mike Brincks at michael.brinks@gsa.gov or Spring Matchmaker event in Buffalo on May 816-926-7217. 10. The small business networking event, sponsored by the SBA, the Service Corps of Retired Executives, and the newspaper OSBU Participates in Annual “Business First,” attracted approximately 600 Procurement Conference attendees representing a broad spectrum of small businesses in Western New York. Kim The Office of Small Business Utilization Aromola and Mitchell Gasbarra represented (OSBU) participated in the 16th annual GSA and met with businesses interested in OSDBU Procurement Conference April 20, learning more about GSA contracting 2006, in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. The opportunities and doing business with the conference was sponsored by federal Offices government. Using a wireless internet of Small and Disadvantaged Business connection and a notebook computer, Utilization (OSDBU) and the Federal Gasbarra and Aromola provided real-time Business Council, Inc. The conference demonstrations of important websites such as provided networking and educational GSA schedules, Forecast of Contracting opportunities for small businesses and Opportunities, FedBizOpps.gov, and CCR. brought small businesses, large corporations For more information, contact Renee Miscione and government agencies together in one at renee.miscione@gsa.gov or 212-264place. In addition to networking opportunities, 0424. four seminars were held on emergency response contracting, doing business with the government/teaming and partnerships, women-owned business success stories, and service-disabled veteran-owned small business success stories. GSA participated in the pre-scheduled Procurement MatchSmall Business e-Systems Demo Page 12 had displays ranging from toner cartridge recycling, green cleaning, and community gardening to wildlife habitat protection. A welcome newcomer to this year’s festivities was a neighbor, the American Institute of Architects (AIA), located across the street from GSA. In recognition of Earth Day, AIA GREEN PROCUREMENT selected ten projects that “...reduce environmental impacts through strategies Earth Day 2006 at Central Office such as reuse of existing structures, With 1500 attendees enjoying warm sunshine connection to transit systems, low impact site and clean air, Earth Day 2006 was an development, energy and water conservation, undisputed success in Washington, DC. Held use of environmentally preferable construction in Rawlins Park, between the GSA Central materials, and design that improves indoor Office and the Department of Interior (DOI), air quality…” (AIA Committee on the on April 20, this year’s Earth Day was a Environment). collaboration of various partners, including federal agencies, non-governmental Prior to the Rawlins Park celebration, GSA’s organizations, the State of Maryland, the DC National Capital Region held its first annual Government, Prince George’s County, Stewardship Award ceremony. The recipient Maryland, and Fairfax County, Virginia. Two of the inaugural award was the Construction schools also attended the event and provided Material Recovery Coalition (CMRC). This musical entertainment: Magnolia Elementary organization, of which GSA is a partner, is School of Prince George’s County, Maryland, elaborating a handbook and website to and the Melvin Sharpe School located in facilitate the recycling and reuse of materials generated from building construction and Washington, DC. renovation. Observed annually, Earth Day is both a celebration of our natural resources and a renewal of our commitment to protect the environment. This year’s event featured 35 booths, including six from GSA, highlighting hands-on, practical ways to care for the environment. The GSA exhibitors were the Telework Program, Energy Center of Expertise, Landscape Program, Pine Seedlings Giveaway (donated by the State of Maryland), Recycling Program, and Acting Regional Administrator Ann Everett presents Sustainable Design. FSS displayed five the CMRC founder, Iris Amdur, with the NCR Stewardship Award as David Bibb, David Winstead, alternate fuel vehicles that can be leased and DOI Director of the Office of Environmental Policy through the GSA Fleet Management Division. and Compliance, Dr. Willie Taylor, look on DOI had seven booths, including the Fish & Wildlife Service and National Park Service, In the spirit of the day, organizers collected while the Office of Personnel Management cans, bottles, batteries, and cell phones for provided a popcorn machine and a dynamic recycling or reuse. The DC Government’s sound system. Non-profit and private groups booth promoted an electronics recycling event Page 13 which was held on Saturday, April 22, the actual Earth Day. GSA added the cell phones and batteries collected at Rawlins Park to the DC Electronics Recycling event, which itself received more than four tractor trailer loads of computer equipment and televisions from area residents! All of this went to be refurbished, or disassembled and recycled, by the Federal Prison Industries, also known as UNICOR. For more information, contact Mark Sajbel at mark.sajbel@gsa.gov or 202260-5320. Earth Day at Rocky Mountain Region Region 8 hosted its 4th annual Earth Day Celebration April 20, 2006, at the Denver Federal Center (DFC). All local GSA associates, DFC tenants, and the general public were invited to attend the celebration. Roughly 120 people visited the event tables and Xeriscape seminar. Event day flyers sporting the theme “Begin a Passion for the Future” provided a dual function: one side contained event information and the flip side contained useful tips on recycling and disposal of hazardous household wastes. This year’s celebration focused on environmental conservation awareness and education. Region 8 showcased its Environmental Management System and Sustainability and the Denver Federal Center’s Storm Water Management Plan. The PBS DFC Service Center also displayed its 2004 Construction and Demolition Waste Management Award and the 2005 Environmental Award for leading the way towards sustainability. Other tables included posters depicting simple ways of recycling household trash into fun and creative craft projects A Xeriscape seminar presented by Denver Water educated attendants about creative approaches to water conserving landscapes. (Xeriscape is landscape design for dry conditions, commonly known, as reported in the June 10, 2006, “The Washington Post” Green Scene, as the practice of installing drought-resistant plants, delivering water to them efficiently and keeping their root balls moist as long as possible.) Other Earth Day participants included DRCOG RideArrangers, Rocky Mountain Rail Road Historical Foundation, Department of Energy, Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado and XCEL Energy. Future Earth Day celebrations look towards broadening the vendor/tenant participation, recycling/reuse ideas and organic gardening for the home. For more information, contact Dena Curry at dena.curry@gsa.gov or 303-236-8000, extension 5026. PBS Commissioner David Winstead, Marsha Walkup and Jean Dodd (R6 recipients), Mary Ruwwee R6 PBS ARA, PBS Assistant Commissioner Tony Costa at ceremony Heartland Team Receives “Reclaim to Fame” Award The PBS Reclaim to Fame award was presented to the Heartland Region’s PBS project management team for the new Citizenship and Immigration Service’s (CIS) build-to-suit lease in Lincoln, Nebraska, at a ceremony March 20, 2006. Steve Stanberry, Leasing Branch Chief; Dennis Clemons, Page 14 Realty Specialist; and Marsha Walkup, former Regional Account Manager, were recognized for their efforts. The “Reclaim to Fame” awards celebrate GSA’s dedication to practicing construction waste recycling. The CIS facility in Lincoln is contracted to be a Silver-Rated LEED building with many environmentallyfriendly features. Additionally, more than 10 percent of the construction materials were made with recycled materials and more than 75 percent of construction waste was diverted from landfill disposal. For more information, contact Mike Brincks at michael.brincks@gsa.gov or 816-926-7217. of Texas. Attending the conference were wind farm developers, utility providers, financial investors, representatives of DOE and NREL and others interested in how to expand government use of renewable energy. For more information, contact Kevin Myles at kevin.myles@gsa.gov or 817-978-9942. Hastings Keith Federal Bldg., New Bedford, MA Greening Rooftops Conference The International Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities Conference was held in Boston May 10 through 12. Lance Davis of the PBS Office of Applied Science Inside the CIS facility in Lincoln, NE was chosen by peer review to speak about the Green Roofs of GSA. Planted roofs are most easily described as ballasted roof Wind Power Round Table systems where the ballast is soil and plants. April 12 through 13, 2006, GSA’s Greater GSA has systems that are designed in trays Southwest Region hosted a Government/ using extensive systems (about 4" thick) with Wind Power Generation Industry Round Table sedums (a plant genus containing several Discussion in Fort Worth, Texas. The purpose species suited for use in green roof of this discussion was to explore and identify construction). Sedum species are a common ways the Region and Wind Project choice for rooftop applications because they Developers could work cooperatively together have high water-retention capability, an ability to provide wind farm-generated electricity to to filter pollution, and are hardy and intensive power GSA’s buildings in deregulated areas systems. GSA has over a quarter million square feet of planted roof in our inventory and another quarter million square feet in design including a living wall. Sean Orgel, John Buckley and Jim Devir of the New England Region were at the GSA booth and helped educate the participants about GSA planted roofs and sustainable design. For more information, contact Lance Davis at lance.davis@gsa.gov or 202-208-2038. Page 15 control over who has access to your solicitation information. When aggregated, this sensitive, acquisition-related data may pose a threat to national security if misused. FedTeDS, however, allows Contracting Officers (COs) to use the internet to IAE CORNER disseminate sensitive information in a secure FedTeDS in the FAR: What it Means to way and eliminate the need to create and distribute CDs or paper documents. You? In order to know when to use FedTeDS, you must first be able to recognize sensitive material. FedTeDS does not dictate what is considered sensitive, but some examples include, but are not limited to: construction drawings of federal buildings; drawings of “The final rule amends the FAR to bridges and dams; command and control require contracting officers to make system specifications; Continuity of solicitation-related information that Operations Plans; and schedules, work hours, requires limited availability or and security clearance requirements. As a distribution available to offerors rule of thumb, sensitive data is any piece of electronically via the Federal Technical information that you are not comfortable with Data Solution (FedTeDS), unless just anyone in the world accessing and certain exceptions apply. FedTeDS maintaining on file. provides secure, user identification and password protected access to Step 2: Determine whether your business solicitation-related data that should not opportunities require distribution of be made available to the public on the sensitive information Governmentwide Point of Entry (GPE) [FedBizOpps] website.” (FAC 05-009) The following case provides a specific Effective May 19, 2006, FAR Part 5 was changed to support the use of FedTeDS, a system under the Integrated Acquisition Environment (IAE). example of when a CO should use FedTeDS to disseminate data: suppose the Pentagon were planning major changes which required vendors to access a floor plan in the initial stages of the project and then, at a later date, Step 1: Define what you consider to be modifications that concern new security sensitive information around the Pentagon’s perimeter. These pieces individually may not seem all that FedTeDS is essentially a password- dangerous. However, someone who wants to protected, web-based tool that government take the time to gather the information and users need to securely distribute sensitive connect the dots can create a detailed picture data related to their acquisitions. As a of the facility that a CO would never give out program under IAE, FedTeDS is designed to on his or her own. Therefore, this business be a companion site with FedBizOpps, the opportunity requires the CO to utilize single government point-of-entry for federal FedTeDS in order to protect the data and government procurement opportunities. ensure that unauthorized groups or Because business opportunities are individuals, such as terrorists, do not misuse inherently public, there is no monitoring or the information. Now that FedTeDS is in the FAR, you will need to take the following steps to comply with the mandate: Page 16 Accessible tools designed to help make compliance with Section 508 as easy as possible. Today, we are pleased to announce that GSA will make the data save To enter the system, government users must and reuse features available to any registered have a FedTeDS Username and Password. federal user of the “public Internet Wizard” by In order to obtain login identification, the the end of September 2006. This action will government user must register via the make it even easier for agencies to take FedTeDS homepage (www.fedteds.gov). A advantage of all the functions of the Buy FedTeDS administrator within the same Accessible Wizard for Section 508 at little or Agency, Organization, and Location as the no cost. Agencies will have two options for Government User must review the completed using the Wizard, both with the ability to save registration form and determine whether to and reuse acquisition information relevant to approve or reject the request. If approved, Section 508: 1) an intranet Wizard installed the Government User may then login to the within the agency’s network, or 2) the Internet system to upload and/or release solicitation Wizard with data storage capability provided information. If no administrator exists for that by GSA and access rights to stored data particular Location, then the FedTeDS team managed by the agency. More information can arrange a briefing with representatives about how to become a “registered federal from the Location in order to begin the user” will be provided as we get nearer to the implementation process and identify an implementation date. appropriate administrator. For assistance, contact Richard Clark at Considerable cost advantages of using the new internet capability provided by GSA are richard.clark@disa.mil. realized because agencies: Current and Future Usage. At this time, • do not have to go through a Certification & Accreditation (C&A) process; any CO needing to distribute sensitive data is required to use FedTeDS. To comply with • are not responsible for implementing new updates to the Buy Accessible Wizard; this ruling, you should act on the above listed and, steps. These actions will give you a head start • do not have to have dedicated technical on incorporating FedTeDS into your resources. acquisition process and protecting your data. For more information, contact Lisa Cliff, IAE Office of Communications, at This action by GSA also provides a single integrated.acquisition@gsa.gov or 703-872- application platform any agency can use without requiring individual agency 8593. customization. The Wizard will be usable in any operating environment. For more information about the Wizard and other Buy Accessible tools go to www.buyaccessible.org or contact Terry SECTION 508 UPDATE Weaver at terry.weaver@gsa.gov or 202-501New Features of the Buy Accessible 4906. Wizard Step 3: Register for a FedTeDS Username and Password and arrange an overview session Over past issues of the newsletter we have provided information about the Buy Page 17 NISH NPA Custodial Certification Process GSA AND JWOD STRATEGIC ALLIANCE The New JWOD Catalog is Here! The new 2006 Javits-Wagner-O’Day (JWOD) Program Catalog is the federal customer’s reference guide to quality JWOD mandatory source items with descriptions and ordering instructions for nearly 3000 SKILCRAFT® and other JWOD products. To order your copy of the 2006 JWOD Catalog, you may call Customer Service at 800-433-2304 or send an e-mail to customer_service@nib.org. Please be sure to specify whether you would like to receive a print copy of the catalog or an electronic version CD-Rom. SKILCRAFT® and other JWOD products and services are provided by nonprofit agencies that employ people who are blind or have other severe disabilities. Over 600 community-based nonprofit agencies associated with National Industries for the Blind (NIB) and NISH (serving people with a wide range of severe disabilities) furnish products and perform necessary services for federal civilian and military customers under the auspices of the JWOD Program. A costeffective way to help people who are blind or severely disabled achieve greater independence, the JWOD Program provides the federal government with quality products and services, delivered on time, and, at a fair market price. For more information on the JWOD Program, please visit www.jwod.gov or contact Stephanie Lesko at slesko@jwod.gov or 703-603-2146. NISH, a central nonprofit agency that serves people with a range of severe disabilities under the JWOD Program, in conjunction with Daniels Associates (a leading independent consultant with extensive custodial industry experience) has developed a nonprofit agency (NPA) custodial certification process. The initiative is an effort to ensure that all NISH-associated NPAs consistently provide high-quality custodial service to their federal customers. To that end, the certification process will examine areas such as quality control and assurance, customer satisfaction, contract management and experience, strategic planning, training, compensation and regulatory compliance. NISH will certify NPAs that implement state-of-the-art custodial practices, document their management processes, implement customer-focused quality assurance systems and meet all regulatory requirements of the JWOD Program. Certified NPAs will successfully complete a thorough review of business practices to ensure all elements of their custodial business and quality assurance systems are integrated to provide greater efficiency and customer satisfaction. Certification represents an NPA’s ongoing commitment to continual professionalism, process improvement and customer satisfaction in the provision of custodial services to the federal government. By implementing this requirement, NISH hopes to increase contract job opportunities for people with disabilities, increase the industry expertise and knowledge base of NPAs performing JWOD custodial services, enhance and improve the recognition of NPA employees, managers, and supervisors providing custodial services, and maintain JWOD Program status as the federal governPage 18 ment’s vendor of choice. Following the completion of the certification process, NISH will provide the NPAs with resources and assistance to address those areas identified as opportunities for improvement – various custodial manuals, sample quality control plans, computerized estimating tools, a videotape lending library and on-going training courses. Another resource available to NISH NPAs is the NISH Centers of Excellence (COE) Program. DID YOU KNOW? The Integrated Acquisition Environment’s (IAE’s) own Teresa Sorrenti recently won two awards for her leadership as Program Executive of IAE. On April 26 she received NISH created the COE Program for the the 2006 Interagency Resources Management purposes of improving quality and innovation Conference (IRMCO) Award presented in a in established business lines and to better ceremony at the 45 th annual IRMCO foster new business development and Conference in Williamsburg, Virginia. On May implementation of industry practices in a 1, 2006, “Government Computer News” number of selected business lines. COE- (GCN) announced that Teresa was selected selected NPAs with a history of successfully from more than 90 candidates as one of 12 implementing quality programs, satisfying individuals to receive the 2006 GCN IT customers, and meeting all JWOD regulatory Leadership Award. The GCN Award was requirements are designated as “mentors” presented at a ceremony held May 24th in who provide training and technical assistance Washington, DC. to selected protégé NPAs. These COEs create and implement performance quality and customer satisfaction programs that meet established industry standards and quality benchmarks. NISH NPAs apply to be COE protégés and receive detailed, personalized training. In addition, all COEs develop a webpage, accessible by all NPAs, which contains documentation, best practices and Wyatt Kash, Editorial Director, GCN, presents Teresa detailed information to assist the NPAs in Sorrenti with GCN award improving the services they provide to federal customers. Information about NISH, the custodial certification, and the COE is available at www.nish.org. For more information on this article, contact John Carmichael at jcarmichael@nish.org or 571226-4652. An article on Custodial Certification Process Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), written by Gisele McAuliffe, provides more information on the process in the August 2005 NISH magazine, “Workplace.” Page 19 ***** We thank our guest authors for their contributions to this newsletter. Guest authors express their own views, which are provided for the information of our newsletter readers. We welcome any comments, suggestions, and articles. We also welcome any CHECK IT OUT! individually authored articles on acquisition “Check It Out!” highlights upcoming issues that would be of interest to the GSA conferences and events of interest to the GSA acquisition audience. Please contact the acquisition community. If you’d like to have Editor, Judy Steele at judy.steele@gsa.gov your conference or event listed in this column, with comments or suggestions. please send an e-mail to the Editor, judy.steele@gsa.gov with the pertinent Office of the Chief Acquisition Officer information including a point of contact. 1800 F Street, NW Washington, DC 20405 itsGOV-Technology Buying at Year-End July 26, 2006 Ronald Reagan Building Washington, DC www.itsGov.com NCMA’s 44 Annual Aerospace and Defense Contract Management Conference “Getting the Work Done: The Government-Industry Team in Transition” July 27-28, 2006 Garden Grove, CA w w w. n c m a h q . o r g / m e e t i n g s / A D C 0 6 / registration.asp th Editor Judy Steele Policy Editors The FAR Staff Page 20