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Multi-year Service Contracts?


SRose

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My name is Susan Rose with the Institute for Defense Analyses.  I am working on a study for Congress regarding best practices/lessons learned in the use of longer term - I.e. greater than 5 years - multiyear service contracts (see attached).  We are having difficulty finding anyone who has used multiyear service contracts.  If you have used multiyear service contracts and are willing to be talk to us about it, please contact me.

Thank you.

Section 854 NDAA FY18 Longer Term Multiyear Service Contracts.pdf

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By multi-year I am referring to the contracts defined in FAR part 17.  I am aware of multi-years used for purchasing weapons systems, but as mentioned above, only one for services.  I had thought we might find some that were for performance base logistics, or maintenance, repair and overhaul, but we haven't.

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Notice that FAR Part 17 says it implements policies set forth in 10 U.S.C. 2306b.  However, multiyear service contracts are described in 10 U.S.C. 2306c.  Looking at what 2306c says multiyear service contracts can be used for have you inquired about DoD GOCO contracts, FFRDC contracts and DoE M&O contracts?  They seem to possibly fit what you are looking for.

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On 8/14/2018 at 12:43 PM, SRose said:

My name is Susan Rose with the Institute for Defense Analyses.  I am working on a study for Congress regarding best practices/lessons learned in the use of longer term - I.e. greater than 5 years - multiyear service contracts (see attached).  We are having difficulty finding anyone who has used multiyear service contracts.  If you have used multiyear service contracts and are willing to be talk to us about it, please contact me.

Thank you.

Section 854 NDAA FY18 Longer Term Multiyear Service Contracts.pdf

Did you query FPDS? One of the fields is for multiyear contracts. I just found tons of records for multiyear service contracts.

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10 hours ago, SRose said:

Thank you.  We have talked to Army Contracting.  We have talked to many DoD offices.  So far, we have found one multi-year service contract.  We were hoping to potentially find one outside of DoD.

 

Are the Systems Contracts for the “Chemical Weapons Demilitarization Program” and specifically the “Chemical Demilitarization–Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives Program” considered multi year contracts for Services?  I know of two contracts that were awarded in circa 2001 are are ongoing  

The Army Contracting Command Rock Island is the PCO. The PEO is located at Edgewood Arsenal.

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Guest Vern Edwards

This is what she means:

Quote

“Multi-year contract” means a contract for the purchase of supplies or services for more than 1, but not more than 5, program years. A multi-year contract may provide that performance under the contract during the second and subsequent years of the contract is contingent upon the appropriation of funds, and (if it does so provide) may provide for a cancellation payment to be made to the contractor if appropriations are not made. The key distinguishing difference between multi-year contracts and multiple year contracts is that multi-year contracts, defined in the statutes cited at 17.101, buy more than 1 year’s requirement (of a product or service) without establishing and having to exercise an option for each program year after the first.

I don't know that there have ever been many such service contracts. Don says he's found a lot of records of them. It's up to the researchers to find sources for their research, especially if they're being paid.

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Vern, I was mistaken. But after reading Susan’s original post and her link,  she appears to be looking to evaluate multi year service contracts awarded for longer than five years. And the legislation mentioned examples such as Energy Savings Performance Contracts.  

“SEC. 854. PILOT PROGRAM FOR LONGER TERM MULTIYEAR SERVICE CONTRACTS”

If so, She could contact the US Army Corps of Engineers Engineering and Support Center in Huntsville, AL. They have been and are currently involved in ESPC programs. 

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Guest Vern Edwards
6 hours ago, joel hoffman said:

Vern, I was mistaken. But after reading Susan’s original post and her link,  she appears to be looking to evaluate multi year service contracts awarded for longer than five years. And the legislation mentioned examples such as Energy Savings Performance Contracts.  

I asked her if she was interested in multi-year or multiple year. She said multi-year. I gave you the definition of multi-year. That's all I know.

You've mentioned the Corps. If she's interested, she'll contact them, don't you think?.

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SEC. 854. PILOT PROGRAM FOR LONGER TERM MULTIYEAR SERVICE CONTRACTS.

From the conference report:

Quote

The Secretary of Defense would also be required to enter into an agreement no later than 90 days after enactment of this Act with an independent organization with relevant expertise to study best practices and lessons learned from using services contracts for periods longer than 5 years by commercial companies, foreign governments, and state governments, as well as service contracts for periods longer than 5 years used by the Federal Government, such as Energy Savings Performance Contracts. Such Energy Savings Performance Contracts provide an existing example of longer term multiyear service contracts and are an alternative financing mechanism designed to accelerate investment in cost effective energy conservation measures in existing federal buildings.

If you are told to look at ESPCs, EERE will tell you where to go.

Joel:

Would utility contracts be considered service contracts?  If so, I'm sure there is some branch of DoD that can identify each one.

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Thank you all for your suggestions. 

We have looked at ESPCs.  They fall under a different authority, but we have talked to people using them to learn about their best practices.  I am very familiar with FPDS.  However, the data in the check box is not reliable.  I am not sure what people are using the check box for, but they aren't actual multi-years.  We have actually found other long term service contracts (under working capital funds, utilities, the ESPCs mentioned above) and talked to the offices managing them, but they are not using the multi-year authority.  It has been a surprise to us that the multi-year option appears to be so seldom used for service contracts.  Posting here was a bit of a hail mary.

We will definitely check out the chemical demilitarization program, it certainly seems to be a good candidate.  Thank you Joel Hoffman.

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44 minutes ago, bob7947 said:

SEC. 854. PILOT PROGRAM FOR LONGER TERM MULTIYEAR SERVICE CONTRACTS.

From the conference report: [ ]

If you are told to look at ESPCs, EERE will tell you where to go.

Joel:

Would utility contracts be considered service contracts?  If so, I'm sure there is some branch of DoD that can identify each one.

Thanks, Bob. Not sure about straight contracts to purchase utililities such as electricity, gas, water, etc.

However, DOD has been in the process of privatizing their government owned utility systems, including operations and maintenance, for quite awhile now. I don’t know if many or any of them are not privatized. These are long term service contracts.  Although Installations administer the contracts after award, I think that the Services have somebody writing and awarding the contracts.  The US Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineering and Support Center (CEHNC) in Huntsville, AL has a Center of Expertise or similar designation who (when I worked  at the Center, in Chemical Demilitarization) developed those contracts and awarded or supported award of them for Installations and other clientele. 

In addition, DoD has privatized much of their Military Family Housing, including turning over possession of existing Government owned housing area to the Contractors. Those are long term contracts. 

And - as I said yesterday, the Chemical Weapons Disposal Program involves long term Systems contracts, including services.  To my recollection, they were classified as service contracts, with design and construction, too.  

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Susan,I believe that all of my examples have specific authorities but may be useful examples for your lessons learned efforts.  

It appears that you are looking for example that specifically are classified as multi-year . It appears that the general authority for longer multi-year service contracts was instituted as a limited, Pilot program and perhaps you are trying to find those test contracts. For DoD, there should be somebody in the Pentagon at DoD or Service Level that is aware of which projects were using the Pilot Program authority.

Good luck. 

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12 minutes ago, bob7947 said:

Joel:

Title 10 USC 2306c (b) lists services under that section.

10 U.S. Code § 2306c - Multiyear contracts: acquisition of services.

Yes. I think that Susan is trying to find the FY 2016 Pilot program contracts that are called for In Section 854.

Using limited Pilot program authority with reports back to Congress has been a common practice for many years. 

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Joel,

Yes, I agree that all the suggestions are helpful to understanding best practices.  We have been talking to offices using those contracts.  The NDAA calls for pilots for service contracts longer than 5 years, and DPAP hopes that our study will help inform it.  What I am trying to find right now, are any examples of contracts actually using the multi-year authority for service contracts.  It appears to be very rare and we have found just one.

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SRose:

In your original post you wrote:

Quote

 I am working on a study for Congress

In the law, it says

Quote

the Secretary of Defense shall enter into an agreement with an independent organization with relevant expertise to study best practices and lessons learned from using services contracts for periods longer than five years by commercial companies, foreign governments, and State governments, as well as service contracts for periods longer than five years used by the Federal Government, such as energy savings performance contracts (as defined in section to section 804(3) of the National Energy Conservation Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 8287c(3)).  (emphasis provided)
 

Are you working for Congress on another sudy or are you working for the Secretary of Defense in accordance with the law?

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13 minutes ago, SRose said:

Joel,

Yes, I agree that all the suggestions are helpful to understanding best practices.  We have been talking to offices using those contracts.  The NDAA calls for pilots for service contracts longer than 5 years, and DPAP hopes that our study will help inform it.  What I am trying to find right now, are any examples of contracts actually using the multi-year authority for service contracts.  It appears to be very rare and we have found just one.

Okay - to clarify, you are not only looking for pilot program contracts exceeding five years, you are looking for any service contracts that are or should be specifically classified as multi-year service contracts. Is that correct? 

EDIT: as Bob has indicated, it isn’t clear from your posts the scope of what you are hired to study or who you are hired by.  Apparently, DPAP. 

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I am NOT looking for pilot program contracts (they are not doing them yet).  I am sorry that that was not clear.  I am looking for service contracts that are specifically multi-year contracts of whatever length.  We are trying to understand when and why that specific authority is used.  It appears to be used very rarely.  I hope that clears it up a bit.

We have found many other types of contracts (ESPCs, services under working capital funds etc.) that have been very helpful to us.

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