14 FAH-2 H-320
ACQUISITION PLANNING
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
(Office of Origin: A/OPE)
14 FAH-2 H-321 GENERAL
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
a. Acquisition planning is the key to effective use of
public funds and the economical accomplishment of program objectives. The
Department seeks to ensure this concept by mandating annual preliminary forecast
plans (PFP) and encouraging early and open
communications with representatives of the acquisition office before the
submission of formal requests for contract services. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 48 CFR 7.102 and Department of State Acquisition Regulation
(DOSAR) 48 CFR 607.102 prescribe policy
for acquisition planning.
b. Acquisition planning begins before the fiscal year
has begun in order to provide improved scheduling of actions, increased control
of fourth-quarter obligations, and opportunities for consolidating
requirements. Failure to schedule the acquisition workload may result in an
inordinate number of contract awards being made in the closing months or weeks
of the fiscal year, which places a severe burden on the requirements office and
acquisition office personnel.
14 FAH-2 H-322 ADVANCE ACQUISITION
PLANNING AND PRELIMINARY FORECAST PLANS (PFPS)
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
a. An important element in acquisition planning is the
advance acquisition planning process, which is initiated with a PFP. All
offices must submit a PFP for any acquisition with an estimated value exceeding
the simplified acquisition threshold. See 48
CFR 2.101 for the definition of the simplified
acquisition threshold or consult with your contract specialist or contracting
officer. The PFP is submitted to the Office
of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) for consolidation into
a Department-wide forecast.
b. Advanced procurement
planning provides an opportunity to increase small business participation,
enhance competition, conduct effective procurements, secure good pricing, and
plan adequately for contract award and administration.
14 FAH-2 H-323 ACQUISITION LEADTIME
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
a. The acquisition cycle begins with advance
acquisition planning and initiation of the procurement request and ends with
the acceptance of the supplies or services and final payment to the
contractor. The contracting officers representative (COR) should initiate the
procurement request package as far in advance of required delivery or the
commencement of services as possible to allow for contracting "lead time.
b. The contracting office
must have adequate time for the performance of the many steps involved
in the contracting process. It takes time to process a procurement request to
the point of issuing a solicitation; for offerors to prepare and submit
bids/proposals; for evaluation and subsequent negotiation; and for awarding the
contract. Many contracting offices publish
dates by which the procurement request must be received in order to allow for
award by the end of the fiscal year. These dates are established to allow for
adequate lead time.
14 FAH-2 H-324 MARKET RESEARCH
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
a. Market research is the
process used for collecting and analyzing information about capabilities within
the market to satisfy agency needs.
b. Market research is required to:
(1) Promote full and open competition;
(2) Ensure that the U.S. Government satisfies its
needs in a cost-effective manner; and
(3) Determine whether commercial items are available
to meet the U.S. Governments needs.
c. Market research must be
conducted in two separate stages:
(1) By the requirements office before new requirements
documents are developed; and
(2) By the acquisition office before offers are
solicited.
14 FAH-2 H-324.1 Collecting
Information
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
a. The extent of market research and analysis will vary
depending on the urgency, value, and complexity of the proposed acquisition.
Some of the types of information to collect are:
(1) Availability of supplies/services suitable as is,
or with minor modifications, for meeting the need;
(2) Availability of companies to perform the work
required;
(3) Terms and conditions and warranty practices under
which commercial sales of the supplies/services are made;
(4) Requirements of controlling laws and regulations;
(5) Availability of
items that contain recovered materials and items that are energy efficient;
(6) Distribution
and support capabilities of potential suppliers, including alternative
arrangements; and
(7) Whether the
item is commercial or not.
b. Some potential sources of market information
include, but are not limited to:
(1) Technical personnel, commodity specialists, price
analysts, and other in-house experts on the supply or service and its market;
(2) The Internet;
(3) Catalogs or periodicals;
(4) Industry buyers of the same or similar supplies
and services;
(5) Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps)
sources sought notices or local ads and surveys of potential suppliers; and
(6) Trade and professional associations.
14 FAH-2 H-324.2 Application of the
Information
(CT:COR-34; 06-02-2015)
a. Market information may be used in all pre-award
duties, including (but not limited to):
(1) Reviewing the proposed specification or statement
of work to ensure that it encompasses the acceptable
supplies or services, if any, in the market;
(2) Determining when to buy;
(3) Establishing delivery schedules that are realistic
in terms of market conditions and practices;
(4) Suggesting sources for the solicitation mailing
list (not a list to limit competition);
(5) Determining whether to purchase or lease;
(6) Identifying quantity breaks;
(7) Determining whether sources capable of satisfying
the requirements exist;
(8) Determining whether commercial items are
available;
(9) Determining the extent to which commercial items
could be incorporated at the component level; and
(10) Determining the practices of firms engaged in
producing, distributing, and supporting commercial items, such as terms for
warranties, buyer financing, maintenance, packaging, and marking.
b. Although market research is required before new
requirements documents are developed, the COR should be careful not to solicit
(or be perceived as soliciting) a price quotation or proposal for the actual
supplies or services to be acquired. Therefore, before initiating market
research, the COR is encouraged to contact acquisition personnel to coordinate
the scope of their market research. Not only is this involvement critical to
the acquisition process, but it could preclude the possibility of the COR
taking an action that causes a contractor to incur costs, or develop unreasonable expectations of receiving a
contract award, especially since the U.S. Government may be held liable
for those costs.
c. The COR must inform vendors of the market research
procedures used by the U.S. Government (reference
FAR 48 CFR 15.201 and 48 CFR 10.000). In addition, vendors should be advised that
the U.S. Governments requirements discussed as part of market research are
subject to change, and any technical exchange of information at this time
cannot be considered in the subsequent U.S. Governments technical evaluation.
14 FAH-2 H-325 THROUGH H-329 UNASSIGNED