Announcement | GSA Seeks Ideas About How to Improve Building Operations Practices Across the Government

Submitted by GSABMO Blogger on Tuesday, December 17, 2013 - 3:38 PM

In 2013, Building Maintenance and Operations (BMO) was selected as one of five new commodity categories to be considered as a potential Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative (FSSI). GSA, in addition to a team comprised of representatives from 18 federal agencies, is now in the process of developing a government-wide program designed to improve the way the federal government purchases and manages these types of services.

GSA and the agency commodity team are looking for demonstrated best practices from the building maintenance and operations industry to help guide the organization with the development of a new government-wide Building Maintenance and Operations (BMO) services program (e.g. could potentially encompass services related to HVAC, elevator maintenance, janitorial services, grounds maintenance and utilities infrastructure).

Through an official Request for Information (RFI), GSA is soliciting feedback from private firms and related professional associations about best practices already under consideration as a potential part of a government BMO solution. Also requested are additional recommendations about how cost and operations savings could be reached and measured through a BMO-focused strategic sourcing solution, either through demand management strategies, improved performance management and/or better acquisition.

Click here to view and download the RFI document and additional instructions. Questions and white papers/official response documents should be submitted to the program’s Contracting Officer at fssi.bmo@gsa.gov. Requests for clarification must be submitted no later than Wednesday, January 15, 2014. The period for response is scheduled to close on Friday, January 24, 2014. However, if you do not plan to submit a response but have a general suggestion that can help us, please share it here on Interact in the Comments section below (you must be logged-in).

In addition, GSA will host a follow-up, virtual Building Maintenance and Operations Listen to Industry Day on Wednesday, January 29, 2014, to further discuss the government’s strategy and provide the opportunity for interested industry stakeholders to speak with members of the commodity team to provide additional input. Stay tuned here to find out additional information about this event--coming soon!

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Building Maintenance & Operations (BMO) Government-wide Strategic Sourcing Solution

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Comments

asax@alsi.us.com

1. Use the industry standard cleaning production rates (BOMA, IFMA) for all GSA Janitorial Contracts. This will improve quality control across the board and all vendors will be required to staff properties appropriately. 2. Utilize the latest Infection Control Technology in all types of properties to maintain a virus free environment and reduce employee absenteeism. Major benefits in reducing the costs to our health care system, as well, which in turn can reduce premiums the federal agencies have to pay. 3. Clean air Technology should be utilized in all properties where employees work. This, again will reduce absenteeism. This is a very cost effective system.

Posted 02/10/2014 11:04 AM

GSABMO Blogger

Derek: Thanks for your question. The four potential solutions to date, besides BMO, are Rental Cars, Furniture, Large Desktop Publishing and Cyber Security. Human Resources Services and Training also is under consideration. All of these programs are in the very early stages of investigation and development by GSA and have yet to receive the designation of being an official Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative by the U.S. Strategic Sourcing Leadership Council.

Posted 01/08/2014 11:07 AM

derek.supple@jci.com

This is not really a request for clarification regarding the BMO RFI, but out of curiosity, what are the other 4  new commodity categories considered for FSSI (in addition to BM&O)?  Are those outlined somewhere?

Posted 01/08/2014 10:48 AM

BornsteinSong

My suggestion, at this time, is to use the FSSI to enhance competition rather than restrain competition as is evidenced by the FSSI for OS2. I am also particularly concerned that GSA will continue its practice of awarding FSSI BPAs to a select few while leaving the vast majority at-risk of financial distress, business failure, and the resulting job losses which hurt the US Economy. There are ways to enhance competition while maximizing taxpayer savings and minimizing damage to the small business federal contracting community. I hope that GSA will go down that path.

Posted 01/03/2014 12:05 AM

williamsraj

I agree that there should be some way to ensure that favoritism is rooted out of the government contracting process when awarding contracts to people they know. In order to avoid unfair tilting of the playing field to the advantage of a few friend companies, a couple suggestions include: distancing reviewers of RFPs/RFQs to the opposite part of the country or to assign numbers to the RFPs after blanking out offeror names so that the Source Selction Board is unaware of the identity of the Companies they are reviewing. This is my two cents worth on the issue of fair allocation of scarce contracts that could result in the selection of the best proposal as opposed to a proposal from friends who may not be as qualified.

Posted 12/18/2013 3:20 PM

Warrenw

Facilities Management should be centralized, because it will give the Government better sources and keep local Agencies from working out deals with certain companies, like they have always done in the past

Posted 12/18/2013 10:32 AM

Building Maintenance & Operations (BMO) Government-wide Strategic Sourcing Solution

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