Solicitation
Building America Subject Matter Expert Technical Support
Department of Energy
AI summaryThe National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), run for the Department of Energy (DOE) by Alliance for Energy Innovation, LLC, wants building science experts for DOE's Building America program. It plans up to ten firm-fixed-price (one set price per job) subcontracts, with jobs ordered one at a time as work orders, for a 12-month base period plus four 12-month options. The response due date is November 16, 2026, 6:00 PM Mountain, and no set-aside is used. More in the summary
AI summary Beta
The National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), run for the Department of Energy (DOE) by Alliance for Energy Innovation, LLC, wants building science experts for DOE's Building America program. It plans up to ten firm-fixed-price (one set price per job) subcontracts, with jobs ordered one at a time as work orders, for a 12-month base period plus four 12-month options. The response due date is November 16, 2026, 6:00 PM Mountain, and no set-aside is used.
Who can bid
- No set-aside: open to any business. The size standard for NAICS 541715 is 1,000 or fewer employees.
- Completed Representations & Certifications form and an Organizational Conflicts of Interest statement with the proposal
- Offeror (and lower-tier subcontractors) must not use covered telecommunications equipment or services from Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, Hikvision or Dahua as a substantial or essential component of any system, unless an exception or waiver applies
How to submit: Electronic proposal sent to the NLR RFP contact, Kim Tangler, Kim.Tangler@nlr.gov. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (7)
From the version posted Oct 15, 2026.
- Worth checking: Work orders are not guaranteed. This is an indefinite-quantity subcontract: NLR may place any number of work orders and promises none, so revenue is uncertain even with an award.
- Worth checking: Small funding spread across up to ten awards. Annual funding is about $100,000 and the 5-year ceiling is $500,000 for each award, so each subcontract is small.
- Worth checking: Fast turnaround on some work orders. Some tasks may need work to start within 2 business days and final delivery within 5 business days, which needs staff ready to act.
Show all 7Show fewer
- Minor: Field testing needs an environmental review first. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews must be done by NLR before any work order for field validation or experiments can start, which can delay field work.
- Minor: Exceptions to terms can sink an offer. A large number of proposed changes, or any significant exception with no obvious benefit to NLR or DOE, may get the offer rejected as unacceptable.
- Minor: Tight 8-page technical limit. The technical proposal covers four criteria in 8 pages, and NLR may remove pages beyond the limit before evaluating.
- Minor: Amendment 1 must be acknowledged. Failure to acknowledge the amendment in the proposal cover letter may lead to rejection of the offer.
Read from the notice and 4 attachments. Show which files.
- Amendment 1 to RFP-2026-10245 10.15.26.pdf (read)
- RFP-2026-10245-10.12.26.pdf (read)
- Attachment 1- SOW dated 10.08.26.pdf (read)
- Attachment 2 - Sample Subcontract Schedule.pdf (read)
Full summary
What they want
- Design and run lab or field tests of building materials, technologies and practices: energy performance, durability, moisture and indoor air quality
- Help optimize factory-built and industrialized construction, including AI, robotics and advanced manufacturing
- Run energy and moisture-and-heat (hygrothermal) modeling and simulation studies
- Do industry and market analysis of gaps, trends, regulations, financing and retrofit cost-effectiveness
- Support market scaling through design guidance and review, community engagement and technical assistance
- Write best practices, guidelines, fact sheets, how-to guides, videos and training content
- Deliver technical reports, trade articles, journal or conference papers, presentations and webinars as each work order requires
- Contract type
- Firm-fixed-price (FFP), indefinite-quantity subcontract using a work order process; best value selection
- Period of performance
- 12-month base period + four 12-month options (60 months if all options are used)
- Place of performance
- Golden, CO, USA (as listed on SAM.gov)
- Estimated value
- Annual funding of approximately $100,000 and a 5-year ceiling of $500,000, each
- How they'll choose
- Best value selection: technical merit (four weighted criteria) and evaluated price. Merit is substantially more important than price. Amendment 1 deleted the lowest-price section 9 and confirmed section 8 as the evaluation process.
- Offers due
- November 16, 2026, 6:00 PM Mountain
- How to submit
- Electronic proposal sent to the NLR RFP contact, Kim Tangler, Kim.Tangler@nlr.gov
- Page limits
- Technical proposal: 8 pages total (resumes and proposed changes to the Statement of Work are not counted); 12-point font, 1-inch margins
What they'll judge offers on
- Technical Expertise and Industry Experience (30%): 1-3 examples of building science qualifications, and 1-3 examples of supporting technologies and practices through technical assistance, design guidance, field validation and demonstrations
- Research, Analysis and Technical Output (30%): 1-3 examples of designing and running research, with facilities and resources, and 1-3 examples of design review, energy modeling, site inspections, performance testing and cost analysis
- Collaboration and Workforce Development (20%): 1-3 examples of partnering with industry stakeholders, and 1-3 examples of addressing workforce needs with education and training materials
- Knowledge Transfer (20%): history of presenting and publishing at industry conferences, workshops and trade media, and experience writing and peer reviewing technical reports and guidance
- Price: proposed fully burdened labor rates for all labor categories
What to include when you submit
- Send the technical proposal, price form and other documents each as a separate PDF file, preferably in one zipped folder
- Add a title page with the RFP title and number, your organization, the principal investigator or project manager, and postal address, phone and email
- Put the "Notice for Handling Proposals" text on the title page
- Organize the technical proposal in four sections that match the four merit criteria; send proposed changes to the Statement of Work as a stand-alone attachment
- Provide 1-3 specific examples under each merit criterion
- Complete the Labor Rate Break-Down Proposal Form with fully burdened rates for every labor category, supporting documents for each, and lower-tier subcontract labor priced separately; price and delivery terms must stay valid for 90 days from the date of the offer
- Complete the Representations & Certifications form
- Complete either the Organizational Conflicts of Interest Representation Statement or the Disclosure Statement, as applicable
- Include a cover letter that accepts or takes exception, with reasons, to the sample subcontract schedule, period of performance, standard terms and intellectual property terms, and states acceptance of the Statement of Work or any change with reasons
- Acknowledge Amendment 1 in the proposal cover letter
- Do not include the ACH/Wire banking form with the response; it is requested after award
- Written technical questions must reach NLR by October 26, 2026; answers will be issued to all recipients in an amendment
After award, you must have
- Workers' compensation insurance, with proof given to NLR before work starts, unless exempt under state law From Attachment 2 - Sample Subcontract Schedule.pdf:
…the Subcontractor shall procure adequate workers’ compensation…
Current contractor
No incumbent is named. NLR intends to award up to ten subcontracts; no sources sought or market research results are given.
Not in the notice text
- The time of day for the October 26, 2026 deadline for written technical questions is not given
- Labor categories and the Labor Rate Break-Down Proposal Form are on the NLR website, not in the attached files
- The full Standard Terms and Conditions (Appendix B-2), Intellectual Property Provisions (Appendix C-1 or C-2) and Travel Requirements (Appendix E) are on the NLR website; the attachment only links to them
- Whether travel will be needed is left to each work order
- The attachments do not say how many hours or what mix of work orders to expect
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside: any business, large or small, can bid unless the notice says otherwise.
- How to submit, from the AI summary: Electronic proposal sent to the NLR RFP contact, Kim Tangler, Kim.Tangler@nlr.gov. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 15, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- Alliance for Energy Innovation, LLC - DOE Contractor, Golden, CO
- Product/service code
- AG41 · Energy R&D Services; Energy Information, Policy and Regulation; Basic Research
- Business type
- Engineering, architecture & research (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 541715)
- Versions
2 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 15, 2026 · Amendment 0001 (this version)Due Nov 16, 2026
- Oct 12, 2026 · SolicitationDue Nov 16, 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
Terms on this notice: Solicitation
Full notice text from SAM.gov
**Please see Amendment 1 dated 10/15/2026.** NLR seeks to engage leading technical subject matter experts (SMEs) to help buildings industry stakeholders scale up and meet demand for lower-cost, high-quality buildings. SMEs will support DOE’s Building America program, both its just-launched new construction support program and existing support programs for building envelope retrofits. The new construction support program will provide technical assistance to help partners erect high-quality buildings faster and at lower cost, ultimately delivering savings to everyday Americans. NLR seeks leading subject matter experts (SMEs) in research, field validation, analysis, dissemination, and technical support efforts to help builders, manufacturers, contractors, and other industry stakeholders scale up and meet demand. This work will focus on factory optimization, product design and materials innovation, and digital tools and modeling. For envelope retrofits, this work will help reduce first costs and lower utility bills in existing homes by focusing on technical topics including, but not limited to, addressing moisture, humidity, and infiltration through envelope upgrades and whole-home solutions. Across both areas, SMEs will also conduct modeling and analysis, data collection, industry analysis, and market scaling support. This work will include knowledge transfer to provide actionable guidance and information to industry stakeholders. For over 30 years, DOE’s Building America Program has been a source of innovations and best practices needed to deliver affordable and efficient homes. NLR supports DOE’s Building America Program through scientific leadership and building science expertise to ensure high-quality, impactful results from Building America’s research efforts.