Solicitation
CFLHD Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) for Architect-Engineer Design Services
Department of Transportation · Federal Highway Administration
AI summaryPhase 1: qualification packages (Standard Form 330 (SF 330), the architect-engineer qualifications form) are due November 20, 2026, 2:00 PM Mountain (4:00 PM Eastern). Only short-listed firms notified by the Government go on to Phase 2 oral presentations in Lakewood, Colorado. CFLHD (the Federal Highway Administration's Central Federal Lands Highway Division) plans up to three architect-engineer (A-E) contracts of the indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) type, where work comes as separate task orders. The shared limit is $60,000,000 over five years. More in the summary
A newer version of this notice was posted Oct 26, 2026. See the latest version.
AI summary Beta
Summary of the version posted Oct 20, 2026. The notice was amended Oct 26, 2026. Check what else changed on SAM.gov.
Phase 1: qualification packages (Standard Form 330 (SF 330), the architect-engineer qualifications form) are due November 20, 2026, 2:00 PM Mountain (4:00 PM Eastern). Only short-listed firms notified by the Government go on to Phase 2 oral presentations in Lakewood, Colorado. CFLHD (the Federal Highway Administration's Central Federal Lands Highway Division) plans up to three architect-engineer (A-E) contracts of the indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) type, where work comes as separate task orders. The shared limit is $60,000,000 over five years.
Who can bid
- Prime and all subconsultants must be licensed and registered in the 14 states CFLHD serves
- Be permitted by law to practice architecture or engineering, and submit proof
How to submit: Email one PDF to CFLContracts@dot.gov (maximum email size 30 MB), with the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) number and the firm's name and address in the email. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (8)
- Serious: Two-phase selection: only short-listed firms reach Phase 2. Phase 1 is the SF 330 package due November 20, 2026; Phase 2 is an in-person oral presentation only for firms the Government notifies, so a firm that is not short-listed is out. No Phase 2 date is given.
- Serious: License and registration in all 14 states for the prime and subconsultants. A small firm that is not registered in all 14 states, or whose subconsultants are not, may not meet this requirement.
- Worth checking: Set-aside differs between SAM.gov and the documents. SAM.gov says no set-aside is used, while the notice text and RFQ say at least one of up to three awards is reserved for a small business. Ask the contracting officer which governs.
Show all 8Show fewer
- Worth checking: Proof of authority to practice and joint venture agreement. Missing proof that the firm is permitted by law to practice, or a missing joint venture agreement, can get a firm dropped from the evaluation.
- Worth checking: Broad experience requirement across all disciplines. The top factor asks for recent rural two-lane highway work in environmentally sensitive areas across all of the listed disciplines (A) through (K), which usually takes a team of subconsultants.
- Worth checking: 50-page limit and strict format. The package is limited to 50 pages, and the RFQ says a package that does not follow the instructions may be rejected as non-responsive.
- Minor: Work is not guaranteed beyond the minimum. Each contract has a $25,000 minimum guarantee; the Government makes no promise about the number of task orders, and the $60,000,000 limit is shared by all awardees.
- Minor: Oral presentations in Lakewood, Colorado. Phase 2 interviews are in person at the CFLHD building, and key staff from the prime and subconsultants should be available; the date is not stated.
Read from the notice and 1 attachment. Show which files.
- AE IDIQ 2026 RFQ Final.pdf (read)
Full summary
What they want
- Project management for road projects: coordination with CFLHD, scope, schedule, budget and quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC)
- Highway design with context-sensitive methods: studies, preliminary and final design, plans, specifications and estimates (PS&E)
- Environmental compliance studies, reports and permit applications (National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Water Act and others)
- Geotechnical engineering, bridge and structural design and inspection, and hydraulic and hydrologic engineering
- Pavement and materials services, surveying and mapping, and right-of-way and utility services
- Post-design support during CFLHD-led construction and transportation planning
- Deliver in MicroStation DGN, HEC-RAS and/or SMS, OpenRoads Designer, ESRI ArcGIS, Microsoft Office, Google products and Masterworks eDelivery formats
- Contract type
- Indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) with firm-fixed-price task orders negotiated one by one; up to 3 awards
- Period of performance
- Five years total
- Place of performance
- Projects across the 14 states CFLHD serves: Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Wyoming; SAM.gov lists Lakewood, CO
- Estimated value
- Shared maximum of $60,000,000 across all awards over five years; minimum guarantee of $25,000 per contract
- How they'll choose
- Qualifications-based selection (Brooks Act): firms are ranked on qualifications, and price is not evaluated in the first phase. Short-listed firms give oral presentations in Phase 2.
- Offers due
- November 20, 2026, 2:00 PM Mountain (4:00 PM Eastern) (from the version posted Oct 20, 2026; amended since)
- How to submit
- Email one PDF to CFLContracts@dot.gov (maximum email size 30 MB), with the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) number and the firm's name and address in the email
- Page limits
- Whole package: 50 pages total (8.5 x 11). Cover letter: 1 page. Item F: 10 projects. Cover, cover letter, Part II forms, tabs, table of contents, back covers and section dividers do not count.
What they'll judge offers on
- Specialized experience and technical competence: projects completed in the last 6 years on rural low-volume two-lane highways in environmentally sensitive areas, covering all disciplines (A) through (K), with work for agencies in CFLHD states
- Project delivery process: QA/QC program, project-management-led structure, and successful multidiscipline task orders
- Professional qualifications of the firm, staff and subconsultants
- Innovative project delivery: design process improvements, risk and opportunity management, scalable approaches
- Workload management and capacity: strategy and past processes, firm and subconsultant size standards, and how small business participation will be encouraged
- Past performance in the last 6 years: quality, schedule compliance and working with Federal, State and Local agencies
What to include when you submit
- Send one electronic PDF with the completed SF 330; the front cover shows the firm's name and address, the solicitation number and the closure date
- Section 1 is a one-page cover letter
- Section 2 is SF 330 Part I with Items A through I: an organizational chart under Item D, with the prime and all subconsultants listed under Item C
- Item E: resumes of key personnel only, with each person's role (lead or support) on relevant projects
- Item F: up to ten projects, each with scope, schedule, size, cost, project staff and subconsultants and their roles, plus quality, budgeting, timeliness and innovative delivery; change Item G to match
- Section 3 is SF 330 Part II, with a bookmark for each firm
- Show experience within the last 6 years for the specialized experience and past performance factors
- Include proof the firm is permitted by law to practice architecture or engineering (a registration, or a summary of eligibility where the state has no registration)
- Joint ventures: include a copy of the joint venture agreement (not counted in the 50 pages)
- Number pages consecutively; use Times New Roman, body text 10 pt or larger, table text 8 pt or larger
- Do not send brochures or capability statements
After award, you must have
- Professional documents must carry a Professional Engineer and/or Registered Land Surveyor license for the state where the project is located From AE IDIQ 2026 RFQ Final.pdf:
…require a Professional Engineer and/or a Registered Land Surveyor license relative to the…
- Large businesses selected for award must submit a subcontracting plan; none is needed with the SF 330 From AE IDIQ 2026 RFQ Final.pdf:
Subcontracting plans will be required by the selected large businesses in accordance with…
Not in the notice text
- Phase 2 oral presentation dates are not stated; firms will be notified if short-listed
- Required labor categories will be specified in the later request for proposals
- Task order examples or expected workload by state are not given
- How many of the up to three awards are reserved for small business beyond at least one
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: Email one PDF to CFLContracts@dot.gov (maximum email size 30 MB), with the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) number and the firm's name and address in the email. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
- Architect-engineer services tied to buildings or construction are usually bought under the Brooks Act: the agency ranks firms on qualifications from an SF 330 first, then negotiates a price with the top firm. How A/E contracts work.
- Service contracts usually set minimum pay rates (the Service Contract Act). Price the labor with the SCA price calculator.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 20, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- 6982AF Central Federal Lands Divisi, Lakewood, CO
- Product/service code
- C1LB · Architect and Engineering – Construction: Highways, Roads, Streets, Bridges, and Railways
- Business type
- Engineering, architecture & research (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 541330)
- Versions
3 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 26, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Nov 20, 2026
- Oct 20, 2026 · Solicitation (this version)Due Nov 20, 2026 (changed)
- Sep 29, 2026 · PresolicitationDate Oct 15, 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
Architect and Engineering (A-E) Services The Federal Highway Administration, Central Federal Lands Highway Division (CFLHD), anticipates soliciting and awarding multiple Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts for A-E services with a partial small business set-aside. CFLHD provides engineering and construction services on projects in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming on behalf of Federal Land Management Agencies and other Agencies. These Agencies include: the National Park Service (NPS); USDA Forest Service (Forest Service); U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS); Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Tribal Governments; Bureau of Land Management (BLM); Department of Defense (DOD); U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE); and the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR). The shared capacity of the IDIQs will be $60 million. The acquisition will be solicited and awarded on a competitive basis and is being made under the North America Industry Classification Code 541330 and is open to all business concerns. The planned duration for the contracts is a total of five years. Projects are typically located in environmentally sensitive areas that necessitate context-sensitive design techniques and processes. Project topography type and climatic zones vary greatly including coastal, mountainous, desert and plains regions. Projects will primarily involve improvements to low-volume and low-speed roadways ranging from 3R (resurfacing, restoration and rehabilitation) to full reconstruction. The geographic jurisdiction of CFLHD includes, but is not limited to, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.
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