Are You Ready for the USCG BL/MSS Bid?

Here’s a chance for small businesses to get in on the ground floor of a $500K bid coming out before the end of FY23.

Facts At-a-Glance

Topic	Description
Name	Business and Logistics Management Support Services (BL/MSS)
Agency	U.S. Coast Guard (USCG)
Period of performance	10 years
Industry day	One-on-one visits occur in August, per the timeline below
RFP date	September 30, 2023 (estimated)
Value	$500M (per the draft statement of work (SOW), the total estimate may not exceed $1.4B over 10 years
Contract type	Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA)
NAICS	541611, Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (size standard $24.5M)
Competition type	Small Business Set Aside
Number of winners	Multiple awards (estimated 5 awards)
Award date	April 1, 2024
Incumbents	70Z0G319APBY04100, Business Support Services III BPA Telesolv Consulting LLC70Z0G319APAZ05500, LOGISTICS SUPPORT SERVICES BPA, D&G Support Services, LLC

USCG Business and Logistics Management Support Overview

According to the draft SOW, BL/MSS will provide a wide range of the services listed in Table 1 to support the Command, Control, Communications, Computer, Cyber, and Intelligence Service Center (C5ISC); Coast Guard Chief Information Officer’s (CIO) Office; Commandant (CG-4, CG-6, CG-7; and CG-93); and Coast Guard Cyber Command (CGCYBER).

Table 1: BL/MSS Requirements

Draft RFP Reference	Description
2.1.1	Missing
2.1.2	Acquisition Management Support Services
2.1.3	Project Management Support Services
2.1.4	Performance & Process Management Support Services
2.1.5	Service Management Support Services
2.1.6	Asset and Enterprise Logistics Support Services
2.1.7	Workforce Support Services

Timeline

Per the draft acquisition timeline released on July 14, 2023, USCG is using the timeline listed in Table 2.

Table 2: Timeline

Date	Activity
August 31, 2023	Release Industry Day Visitor Access Request (VAR) via sam.gov
September 15, 2023	Industry Day Visitor Access Request (VAR)
September 26, 2023	Post Solicitation Release Industry Day
October 9, 2023	Proposals/quotes received
November 21, 2023	Evaluation of proposals/quotes complete
February 16, 2024	Acquisition reviews and approvals complete
March 18, 2024	Equal employment opportunity clearance complete
March 25, 2024	Notification of award
March 26, 2024	Contract preparation, review/approvals, and clearance complete
April 1, 2024	Contract award

Cost and Challenges to Bid

A primary challenge is acquiring the six highly qualified key personnel that meet and exceed all USGC requirements listed in Table 3. Refer to the draft SOW (May 29, 2023) for additional guidance.

Table 3: Key Personnel Requirements

Draft RFP Reference	Name
3.1.1	Program Manager Education: Master’s degree in Business Management, IT, or Engineering Certification: Project Management Professional (PMP®) Minimum Experience: 12 years
3.1.2	Project Management Consultant Level III Education: Master’s degree in Business Management, IT, or Engineering Certification: PMP and ITIL® Foundations Minimum Experience: 8 years
3.1.3	Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt Education: Bachelor’s degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Business Management, Information Technology, Industrial Engineering, or a related field Certification: Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt Minimum Experience: 8 years
3.1.4	Business Consultant Level III (Senior) Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business Management, IT, or Engineering Certification: None, but the draft RFP has several skill requirements Minimum Experience: 10 years
3.1.5	Senior Logistics Manager Education: Master’s degree in a logistics-related field Certification: None Minimum Experience: 10 years
3.1.6	Logistician Level III (Offsite) Education: Bachelor’s degree in a Logistics related field Certification: None Minimum Experience: 10 years

In addition, USCG requires the offeror to provide personnel onsite in multiple C51SC locations nationwide, including:

• 7323 Telegraph Road, Alexandria, VA
• 300 Main Street Towers, Norfolk, VA
• Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building 1301, Oakland, CA
• 4000 Coast Guard Blvd., Portsmouth, VA
• 408 Coast Guard Drive, Kearneysville, WV
• 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave SE, Washington, DC

Evaluation Criteria Summary

USCG has not provided draft evaluation criteria to date; however, they plan to release the final RFP in September 2023.

By Brenda Crist, Vice President at Lohfeld Consulting Group, MPA, CPP APMP Fellow

Lohfeld Consulting Group has proven results specializing in helping companies create winning captures and proposals. As the premier capture and proposal services consulting firm focused exclusively on government markets, we provide expert assistance to government contractors in Capture Planning and Strategy, Proposal Management and Writing, Capture and Proposal Process and Infrastructure, and Training. In the last 3 years, we’ve supported over 550 proposals winning more than $170B for our clients—including the Top 10 government contractors. Lohfeld Consulting Group is your “go-to” capture and proposal source! Start winning by contacting us at www.lohfeldconsulting.com and join us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.