Solicitation
Project Number 657-507, Correct Seismic Deficiencies for Building 14, Marion VAMC, Illinois Construction of New Boiler Plant and Demolition of Existing
Department of Veterans Affairs
AI summaryOnly service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) can bid on this Veterans Affairs job to build a new boiler plant and demolish the old one. The work is at the Marion VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Illinois and must finish within 730 calendar days after the notice to proceed (NTP). One firm-fixed-price (FFP: one set price, whatever the work ends up costing) contract will be awarded; the response due date is November 6, 2026, 1:00 PM Eastern. More in the summary
A newer version of this notice was posted Oct 22, 2026. See the latest version.
AI summary Beta
Summary of the version posted Oct 19, 2026. The notice was amended Oct 22, 2026. Check what else changed on SAM.gov. This summary may miss requirements: 1 of 9 attachments weren't read (S02 - 657-507_VA Marion Seism Defics_Bid Drawings 09-30-2026.pdf). Check the attachments on SAM.gov.
Only service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) can bid on this Veterans Affairs job to build a new boiler plant and demolish the old one. The work is at the Marion VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Illinois and must finish within 730 calendar days after the notice to proceed (NTP). One firm-fixed-price (FFP: one set price, whatever the work ends up costing) contract will be awarded; the response due date is November 6, 2026, 1:00 PM Eastern.
Who can bid
- Be a service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB). The clause title in the table of contents refers to certified veteran-owned small businesses.
- Be small under the size standard of $45M for NAICS 236220 (Commercial and Institutional Building Construction)
- Comply with VA's limitations on subcontracting clause for construction (VAAR 852.219-75), which includes a certificate of compliance; the percentages are not visible in the text read
Things to watch (8)
- Serious: Service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB) set-aside only. Only SDVOSBs can bid; a firm without that status cannot compete for this award.
- Worth checking: Large job with bid guarantee and bonds clauses. The estimated size is $20,000,000 to $50,000,000, and the solicitation has a section on bid guarantee and bonds plus a clause on helping veteran-owned firms get bonds; the amounts and whether they are required were not visible.
- Worth checking: The site visit was Oct 20, 2026. Check the notice and its amendments for whether attendance was required, and whether another visit is offered.
Show all 8Show fewer
- Worth checking: Questions (RFIs) due October 30, 2026. Requests for information are due 1:00 PM Eastern on October 30, 2026; the response due date is November 6, 2026. Questions about scope, alternates and bonds go through this step.
- Worth checking: Alternate 1 road named differently in two documents. The statement of work and price schedule call Alternate 1 deleting asphalt replacement on East Periphery Drive, while the specifications name Copeland Drive and make Alternate 2 build on Alternate 1. Ask the contracting officer which governs.
- Worth checking: Asbestos and lead paint in the old plant. The pre-demolition report found asbestos-containing materials and lead-containing paint, and the demolition requires hazardous material mitigation; that adds licensed abatement work and cost.
- Minor: Historic building survey must be done before the project starts. Building 14 sits in a National Register historic district, and VA's agreement with the state historic office requires survey fieldwork before work may start, which can affect the start date.
- Minor: Work on an active hospital campus with set hours. Work is limited to normal hours unless the Marion VAMC Engineering Service approves otherwise in writing, the work is phased, and utility shutdowns need approval.
Read from the notice and 8 attachments. 1 of 9 not read. Show which files.
- Instructions for 20 OCT 2026 B14 Site Visit.docx (read)
- S02 - 36C10F26R0085_1.pdf (read)
- S02 - 657-507_VA Marion SeisDefic_Final Bid Specs 9-1-2026.pdf (read)
- 657-507_Marrion_CorrectSeisDef - Appendix-HAZMAT 1.pdf (read)
- 657-507_Marion_CorrectSeisDef - Appendix - SHPO MOA 1.pdf (read)
- 657-507_Marion_CorrectSeisDef - Appendix - Geotech Report 1.pdf (read)
- 657-507_Marion_CorrectSeisDef - Appendix - Geotech Report GMHA Seismic Report 1.pdf (read)
- 657-507_Marion_CorrectSeisDef - Appendix - Geologic Hazards Report 1.pdf (read)
- S02 - 657-507_VA Marion Seism Defics_Bid Drawings 09-30-2026.pdf: not read (it couldn't be opened): open it on SAM.gov
Full summary
What they want
- Build the new boiler plant (Building 14): about 10,310 sq ft over three floors, with three new 250 HP gas-fired boilers, fuel oil backup, and a diesel generator
- Prepare a new site of about 0.7 acres: earthwork, parking lot, fencing and gates, fuel oil tank yard, utility changes, road realignment, and a steam tunnel
- Install all building systems (mechanical, heating and cooling, electrical, telecommunications, plumbing, fire protection) and start up and commission them
- Cut over utility services from the old plant to the new one
- Demolish the old plant (about 6,200 sq ft, built in 1940), including mitigation of hazardous materials, and return the footprint to green space
- Price two deductive alternates: deleting asphalt replacement on a campus road, and removing the maintenance garage and shop addition
- Before work starts, send the construction schedule, an Accident Prevention Plan, and a Contractor Quality Control (CQC) Plan for written approval
- During work: daily meeting and daily report to the contracting officer's representative (COR), 21 days' written notice for shutdowns, and permits for hot work, crane lifts and confined space entry
- Contract type
- Firm-fixed-price (FFP); design-bid-build construction (the Government supplies the plans and specifications); one contract to be awarded
- Period of performance
- 24 months (730 calendar days) from the notice to proceed
- Place of performance
- Marion VA Medical Center grounds, Marion, IL
- Estimated value
- Between $20,000,000 and $50,000,000 (estimated magnitude of construction under the Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR) 836.204, per the SF 1442 text)
- Offers due
- November 6, 2026, 1:00 PM Eastern (from the version posted Oct 19, 2026; amended since)
What to include when you submit
- Complete the offer section on the back of Standard Form 1442 (SF 1442), the Solicitation, Offer, and Award form for construction
- Price the single base item 0001 (QTY 1.00, unit JB) and give a price for each of the two deductive alternates on the price schedule
- Send questions as requests for information (RFIs) by October 30, 2026, 1:00 PM Eastern
- Check the full solicitation for the bid guarantee and bond terms, the evaluation criteria and how to submit; they were not visible in the text read for this brief
After award, you must have
- Get site access authorization from the VAMC Engineering Service for every employee, including security badging through the VAMC Police Department, before they enter the site From S02 - 36C10F26R0085_1.pdf:
…appropriate authorization from the VAMC Engineering Service (up to and including the issuing of…
Not in the notice text
- Parts of the solicitation were not available in the text read for this brief: the proposal submission instructions, basis of award, evaluation criteria, and bid guarantee and bond terms in S02 - 36C10F26R0085_1.pdf. Check them on SAM.gov.
- Whether the October 20, 2026 site visit is required is not stated in the visible text; the specifications say bidder site visits are by appointment with the Medical Center Engineering Officer.
- How to submit the offer (portal or email) and any page limits
- How the award is decided and which evaluation factors apply
- Whether a bid guarantee, and performance and payment bonds, are required, and the amounts
- The subcontracting percentage limits under the VA limitations on subcontracting clause
- A Davis-Bacon wage determination (federal construction pay rates) is attached; which part of it applies to Williamson County, Illinois is not visible in the text read
- Drawings and the other specification sections were only partly visible
Eligibility and how to respond
- Only service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) certified through SBA's VetCert can bid as the prime contractor. Not certified through VetCert yet? Apply on VetCert (SBA), or start with the SDVOSB guide. More open service-disabled veteran-owned set-asides under NAICS 236220
- How and where to submit is in the notice text and its attachments on SAM.gov.
- Construction contracts over $2,000 pay at least the local Davis-Bacon wage rates, from the wage determination in the solicitation. Price your labor from it: How to price a government contract, and how Davis-Bacon differs from the Service Contract Act.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 19, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- Office of Construction & Facilities MGMT (36C10F), Washington, DC
- Product/service code
- Y1DZ · Construction of Other Hospital Buildings
- Business type
- Construction & renovation (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 236220)
- Versions
4 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 22, 2026 · Amendment 0003Due Nov 6, 2026
- Oct 19, 2026 · Amendment 0002 (this version)Due Nov 6, 2026
- Oct 8, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Nov 6, 2026 (changed)
- Oct 7, 2026 · SolicitationDue Oct 6, 2026
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
- How to respond to a solicitation (8 steps)
- How to read a government solicitation
- How to price a government contract
- Open SDVOSB set-aside contracts
Terms on this notice: Solicitation, SDVOSB (service-disabled veteran-owned small business), Set-aside
Full notice text from SAM.gov
The Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) has a need to improve seismic conditions at the Marion VAMC in Illinois. The contractor shall provide all planning, labor, materials, equipment, supervision and expertise required for the complete construction of the new boiler plant (Building 14) as well as the demolition and removal of the existing plant, both of which reside on the grounds of the VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Marion, IL. The contractor shall refer to the Project #657-507, Correct Seismic Deficiencies B14 plans and specifications for details on all requirements of construction. All work will be performed in accordance with this SOW, the project documents as well as all applicable local, State, Federal and VA codes and standards. The purpose of this update is to add directions for the 20 OCT 2026 site visit. See attached strip map word doc
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