2.0  General Instructions

(a)  This section of the ITO provides general guidance for preparing proposals as well as specific instructions on the format and content of the proposal. The offeror's proposal must include all data and information requested by the ITO and must be submitted in accordance with these instructions.  The offer shall be compliant with the requirements as stated in the Statement of Work (SOW), Statement of Objectives (SOO), Performance Work Statement (PWS), System Specification, Contract Data Requirements List (CDRL), and Model Contract. Non-conformance with the instructions provided in this ITO may result in an unfavorable proposal evaluation.

(b)  The proposal shall be clear, concise, and shall include sufficient detail for effective evaluation and for substantiating the validity of stated claims.  The proposal should not simply rephrase or restate the Government's requirements but rather shall provide convincing rationale to address how the offeror intends to meet these requirements.  Offerors shall assume that the Government has no prior knowledge of their facilities and experience and will base its evaluation on the information presented in the offeror's proposal.

(c)  Elaborate brochures or documentation, binding, detailed art work, or other embellishments are unnecessary and are not desired. Similarly, for oral presentations, elaborate productions are unnecessary and not desired.

(d)  The proposal acceptance period is specified in Section A of the model contract/solicitation.  The offeror shall make a clear statement in Section A of the proposal documentation volume that the proposal is valid through this date.

(e)  In accordance with FAR Subpart 4.8 (Government Contract Files), the Government will retain one copy of all unsuccessful proposals.  Unless the offeror requests otherwise, the Government will destroy extra copies of such unsuccessful proposals.