1. Federal Acquisition Service
Connections II Overview
Connections Program Office

2. Agenda Connections II Overview What is Connections II
Features – including SCRM and Sustainability

3. CONNECTIONS II Overview
Global contract (awarded Oct 2011), ceiling $5 B
Multiple Award ID/IQ (base 3 yrs and six 1-yr options*), FAR 15 acquisition
20 Pre-competed Contractors
9 are small businesses
Task / Delivery Order Driven
Fair Opportunity
Must include all 20 primes – on average 3-5 respond
For set-aside, must include all 9 small businesses
* Note: Task orders can go up to 5 years after contract end

4. CONNECTIONS II Scope
Provide connectivity from the user’s desktop to the point of interconnection of the customer’s network service providers.
Increased focus on capability of providing enterprise-wide solutions.
Includes all labor, products and solutions necessary to support the integration of telecommunications, networking and network-centric applications at the LAN, building, campus, and enterprise level.
Network services, including services that provide transport and access to and between customer sites, are OUT OF SCOPE.

5. The “Big” Picture

6. CONNECTIONS II – A Better Vehicle
Provides enterprise-wide integration capability from EXPERIENCED telecom vendors
Geographic scope is GLOBAL
Equipment provided under the contract can meet Supply Chain Risk Management practices
Sustainability (incorporated Green) Requirements
Davis-Bacon & Service Contracting Act language incorporated
Task Order Flexibility – ability of vendors to propose “un-priced items” in task orders – reduces/eliminates base contract modifications
Complementary to Networx
Task Orders can be fixed price or T&M
Access to Secret, Top Secret & TS/SCI cleared personnel
Customer choice of Direct Order or GSA Assistance

7. CNX II Supply Chain Risk Management
Creating a track-able and traceable supply chain
Utilizing qualified suppliers
Verifying genuine ICT (Info and Comm Technology) products - not counterfeit or illegally modified
Proper labeling of remanufactured or repaired products
Valid licenses for products
Tracking standards (NIST)

8. CONNECTIONS II Sustainability
Helping agencies meet government energy goals
Designing a working environment that requires less energy, is less toxic, with less waste (LEED, EPEAT)
Solution longevity - more time to replacement - extended warranties
Recycle (De-manufacturing) and Reuse
Standards (ISO Environmental Management) – more efficient operations

9. Connections II Complements Network Services Contracts to Provide Overall Communications and Network Focused Solutions

10. CONNECTIONS II as an Integrator
CONNECTIONS II can be used as an Integrator to:
Coordinate with access, transport, and equipment vendors
Monitor end to end performance
Time to repair, downtime, meeting service levels
Supply agency with real-time insight into measures
Coordinate trouble handling/definition
Look for trends in performance
Act as single POC with all involved contractors
Propose procedures to address problems
Report / Recommend / Develop business cases / Return on Investment (ROI) analysis
Might use Networx for IXC, local access/transport, Schedule 70 for equipment (or other combinations)
States collect taxes on purchases through merchants and vendors in those States. The taxes are assessed by the State, however the merchants and vendors act as the tax collection point and as such, determine when to assess tax and when not to.
States set tax laws and regulations through legislation
Vendors are expected to collect tax in accordance with established State tax laws and regulations, unless the State exempts IBA charge cards from taxes
Laws may change very suddenly and merchants and vendors rely on point of sale employees, who may not have updated information
Merchants and vendors may choose to err on the side of caution and assess taxes even for CBA cards or in States where IBA cards are exempt (reclamation option available to agencies)
Some merchants may also indicate exemption when there is no eligibility

11. CONNECTIONS II Prime Contractors
A&T Systems*
HP Enterprises Services
American Systems Corp.*
Netcom Technologies, Inc.*
AT&T Technical Services
Nextira One Federal dba Black Box 
Avaya Government Solutions
Qwest Government Services dba Century Link QGS
BAE Systems Information Solutions
The Centech Group, Inc.*
Concert Technologies*
URS Federal Services, Inc. (APPTIS)
CRGT (Ciber)
Vector Resources*
EPS Corp.*
Verizon Federal
Futron*
VISION (GTI)*
General Dynamics Information Technology
Harris IT Services
CONNECTIONS II contractors can add sub-contractors at any time
Asterisk denotes small business
Please see for contractor contact information

12. Top Customers in Connections II
State
DOT
DHA
EPA
Army
DOL
Treasury
DOI
Justice
DOE
Navy
HUD
SSA
Corp of Engineers VA
DOD
DHS
GSA
Air Force
SEC

13. CONNECTIONS II Procurement Process
Ordering Contracting Officer (OCO) Ordering Options
Self-service
Delegation of Procurement Authority required
easy, fast, on-line, 48 hour turnaround
Assisted-service (DPA required for GSA OCOs too)
Gather requirements
Develop Task Order / Delivery Order Request (BOM, SOW or SOO) & other required acquisition documents
Ensure “Fair Opportunity” throughout the process
Issue order
Manage delivery

14. Request a Connections II Delegation of Procurement Authority
Warranted contracting officers must fill out this form to request a Delegation of Procurement Authority (DPA) for Connections II. It takes approximately five minutes to fill out.
Before requesting a DPA
Before you can request a DPA, you must review these documents:
Delegation of Procurement Authority Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) (PDF, 275k, 04/16/2012)
Eligibility to use GSA Sources of Supply and Services (PDF, 46k, 10/12/2011)
Fair Opportunity Guide (PDF, 338k, 04/16/2012)
Customer Slides (PowerPoint, 3,200k, 10/25/2011)
After requesting a DPA
GSA will review the form and initiate the Delegation(s) of Procurement Authority;
You should receive delegation confirmation within two business days; and,
After receiving the confirmation, you will be able to issue task orders on Connections II.
Information Form Field
First name… .
Submit

15. Un-priced Items and CONNECTIONS II
Under the CONNECTIONS II contract un-priced items were anticipated and are allowable. Information on proper use of un-priced items is discussed in Section G.3.1(e) of the contracts. General Information:
On individual task and delivery orders, un-priced items need to be evaluated on an individual item basis and labeled appropriately
Un-priced items will be governed by the same terms and conditions of the contract as CONNECTIONS II CLIN items
Maximum allowable amounts will be established by task order as outlined by the OCO
Un-priced items will be on the task order; need not be on contract

16. CONNECTIONS II One-Stop-Shop Website
Key Information on Portal
FAS Points of Contact
Industry Partner Points of Contact
CONNECTIONS II Contract
Delegation of Procurement Authority for OCOs
Roles and Responsibilities
Fair Opportunity Guideline
Statement of Work (SOW) Examples
Contractor Addresses for RFQs
Link to CONNECTIONS II CLIN Checker
Website:

17. Existing SOW Templates
IPv6 Transition
Domain Name Service (DNS) Security
Unified Communications
Cabling
Voice OA&M
Network OA&M
Managed Mobility
Network Transition Support
Distributed Antenna Systems
Land Mobile Radio &
Network Surveillance
Wireless Access Points (pending)
Telecom Expense Management (coming soon)

18. CONNECTIONS II Summary
Telecommunications and Networking contract
High degree of flexibility and customer choice
Equipment, Services and Solutions driven
20 prime contractors and their subs
GSA value add with assisted service
Task Order driven - enhances competitive process
Dovetails well with GSA transport contracts

19. Contact Info
Hillary LaMay
Denise LaPierre

20. Questions ?