Solicitation
657-27-107JC, Replace Select Hot Water Heating System
Department of Veterans Affairs
AI summaryVA Network Contracting Office 15 wants a contractor to replace four 45-gallon hot water generators (water heaters) in a basement room at the John Cochran Division of the St. Louis VA Medical Center in Missouri, keeping hot water running during the swap, and then provide one year of guarantee-period service. It is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) set-aside with a stated construction magnitude of $500,000 to $1,000,000. Proposals are due by email on 16 Oct 2026 at 2:00 PM CT, with an original bid bond mailed to the contracting office. More in the summary
A newer version of this notice was posted Oct 15, 2026. It moves the due date from Oct 16, 2026 to Nov 3, 2026, which is the date shown on this page. See the latest version.
AI summary Beta
Summary of the version posted Sep 17, 2026. The notice was amended Oct 15, 2026. The due date moved from Oct 16, 2026 to Nov 3, 2026. Check what else changed on SAM.gov. The notice looks incomplete: Full text of the solicitation: about 137,000 characters in the middle were not provided (rest of the proposal instructions, price proposal format, safety plan factor details, representations and clauses). Check the attachments on SAM.gov.
VA Network Contracting Office 15 wants a contractor to replace four 45-gallon hot water generators (water heaters) in a basement room at the John Cochran Division of the St. Louis VA Medical Center in Missouri, keeping hot water running during the swap, and then provide one year of guarantee-period service. It is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) set-aside with a stated construction magnitude of $500,000 to $1,000,000. Proposals are due by email on 16 Oct 2026 at 2:00 PM CT, with an original bid bond mailed to the contracting office.
Who can bid (7)
- SDVOSB set-aside; must be registered in SAM and VetBiz by the proposal due date (joint ventures too)
- Bid guarantee of at least 20% of the bid price (capped at $3,000,000), then performance and payment bonds for 100% of the contract price
- Safety and environmental record: certify no more than 3 serious, 1 repeat or 1 willful OSHA violation, or any EPA violation, in the past 3 years (applies to subcontractor tiers too)
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- Signed VAAR 852.219-75 limitations on subcontracting certification; offers without it are ineligible
- VETS-4212 report filed for the preceding fiscal year
- Qualified full-time site superintendent with OSHA 30 training on site at all times, plus project manager, QC manager and safety officer with stated experience
- Small business size standard for NAICS 236220 is $45M
How to submit: Email to Gislaine.Dorvil@va.gov (Part 1 Technical Proposal and Part 2 Price Proposal as attachments); original bid bond mailed to NCO 15, Attn: Gislaine Dorvil, 3450 S. 4th Street Trafficway, Leavenworth, KS 66048, to arrive before closing. Physical copies of proposals are not accepted., due October 16, 2026, at 2PM CT (SAM.gov: Oct 16, 2026 14:00, UTC-05:00). What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (11)
- Serious: Notice and solicitation disagree on competition type. SAM.gov lists the set-aside as SDVOSB Sole Source, but the solicitation says it is an SDVOSB set-aside with proposals evaluated competitively, so confirm with the contracting officer before spending time.
- Serious: Evaluation method is stated two ways. Pages 1 and 9 say best value tradeoff, while the proposal instructions say lowest price technically acceptable with pass/fail factors, which changes how much to spend on the technical write-up versus price.
- Serious: Original bid bond must be mailed. Even though the proposal is emailed, the original bid bond must reach Leavenworth, KS before closing, and a missing bond can get the offer rejected.
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- Serious: High past performance bar for a small job. You need a prior prime contract replacing hot water heating systems at a hospital or medical facility worth $1,000,000 or more, though this job is estimated at $500K to $1M.
- Worth checking: Performance period conflicts (240 vs 120 days). CLIN 0001 says 240 days while the performance period section and SF 1442 say 120 calendar days, which affects scheduling and pricing.
- Worth checking: Subcontracting certification form appears marked for services. The attached VAAR 852.219-75 form has the Services (50%) box marked, while this is a construction job where the general construction limit is 85%, so ask the contracting officer which box applies.
- Worth checking: Performance and payment bonds at 100%. After award you need bonds for the full contract price covering the guarantee period too, within 10 days of award.
- Worth checking: Many required key personnel. You must name a project manager, QC manager, safety officer and site superintendent, each with 3 similar projects, and no person may fill more than two roles.
- Worth checking: Work in an active hospital with no loss of hot water. The new units must be running before the old ones come out, and the guarantee-period service must be done by the original installer for a full year.
- Minor: The site visit was Sep 22, 2026. Check the notice and its amendments for whether attendance was required, and whether another visit is offered.
- Minor: Wage determination number differs. The project information cites Davis-Bacon General Decision MO20260089 but the attached wage sheet is MO20260080, so check which applies for pricing.
Read from the notice and 5 attachments. Show which files.
- SOLICITATION 36C25526R0166_1.pdf (read)
- ATTACHMENT SPECIFICATIONS 36C25526R0166_1.pdf (read)
- VAAR 852.219-75 LIMITATIONS ON SUBCONTRACTING.pdf (read)
- ATTACHMENT DESIGN MANUAL 36C25526R0166_1.pdf (read)
- ATTACHMENT DRAWINGS 36C25526R0166_1.pdf (read)
Full summary
What they want
- Remove and replace four 45-gallon domestic hot water generators in the John Cochran Division sub-basement mechanical room (shown as room B018-01-JC in the SOW and B001-01-JC on the drawing)
- Plan and schedule the work so hot water service is not interrupted during the transition
- Connect the new units to existing piping, controls, electrical wiring and safety devices; pressure test and leak check
- Commission the new units: fill and purge, calibrate controls and safety devices, verify performance and document results
- Remove the four old generators and ancillary equipment, and dispose of or recycle them properly
- Deliver as-built drawings and O&M manuals, give a walkthrough and train facility staff, then close out the project
- CLIN 0002: one year of inspection and maintenance (guarantee period services) after acceptance, to be done by the original installer
- Contract type
- Fixed-price construction (payment clause is for fixed-price construction contracts); single award on CLIN 0001 plus CLIN 0002 guarantee period services; no liquidated damages
- Period of performance
- Documents disagree: SF 1442 and the performance period section say 120 calendar days for the base bid (start within 10 days of notice to proceed), but the CLIN 0001 text says 240 days. Plus a 1-year guarantee period after acceptance.
- Place of performance
- VA St. Louis Health Care System, John Cochran Division, 915 N. Grand Blvd, Saint Louis, MO 63106
- Estimated value
- Magnitude of construction stated as $500,000 to $1,000,000
- How they'll choose
- Documents conflict. The SF 1442 page, the notice and the basis-for-award line say best value tradeoff, but the proposal instructions are headed Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA), with five acceptability factors. Award is intended on initial offers without discussions.
- Offers due
- October 16, 2026, at 2PM CT (SAM.gov: Oct 16, 2026 14:00, UTC-05:00) (from the version posted Sep 17, 2026; amended since)
- How to submit
- Email to Gislaine.Dorvil@va.gov (Part 1 Technical Proposal and Part 2 Price Proposal as attachments); original bid bond mailed to NCO 15, Attn: Gislaine Dorvil, 3450 S. 4th Street Trafficway, Leavenworth, KS 66048, to arrive before closing. Physical copies of proposals are not accepted.
What they'll judge offers on
- Relevant past performance of the prime contractor (1 to 3 completed contracts replacing hot water heating systems at a hospital or medical facility, as prime, $1,000,000 or more, finished within the last 5 years)
- Technical construction experience of the prime contractor (1 to 3 projects, prime under NAICS 236220, $1,000,000 or more, offeror self-performed at least 15% of on-site labor, at an active hospital or medical facility)
- Technical qualifications of proposed key staff (project manager, QC manager, on-site safety officer, site superintendent)
- Technical construction experience of proposed manufacturer, suppliers, installer or related subcontractors
- Contractor safety plan
What to include when you submit
- Each email must be under 10 MB; if you use several, label them 1 of 3, 2 of 3 and so on
- Complete SF 1442 (blocks 10 and 14 through 20) and acknowledge every amendment, including Amendment 0001 which adds the VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting attachment
- Bid guarantee is required; a photocopy must be with the offer and the original must be received by the contracting office before closing
- Submit pricing for each CLIN, including the monthly and 12-month total for CLIN 0002 guarantee period services
- Sign and return the VAAR 852.219-75 Limitations on Subcontracting certification with the proposal
- Include the price breakdown and self-performed vs. subcontracted work calculation (Appendix 1) and the Pre-Award Contractor Safety and Environmental Record Evaluation form (Appendix 2), both listed in the table of contents
- Provide your Unique Entity Identifier; you must be registered in SAM and VetBiz by the proposal due date
- Resumes and project examples for key staff, 1 to 3 past performance contracts and 1 to 3 technical experience projects, with a point of contact for each
- Questions were due 09/25/26 at 2PM CST to Gislaine.Dorvil@va.gov
Not in the notice text
- Full text of the solicitation: about 137,000 characters in the middle were not provided (rest of the proposal instructions, price proposal format, safety plan factor details, representations and clauses)
- Which evaluation method actually applies (tradeoff or LPTA) and how the five factors are rated
- Whether the period of performance is 120 or 240 days
- Project specification sections (the file labeled specifications is the VA water boiler design manual, with the middle omitted) and the full drawings (only a title sheet and one plan sheet were readable)
- Content of Appendix 1 (price breakdown / self-performed work calculation) and Appendix 2 (safety and environmental record form)
- Whether the contract is firm-fixed-price (not stated in plain words in the text provided)
- Contents of Amendment 0001 beyond the notice saying it adds the VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting attachment
- Exact room number (SOW says B018-01-JC, drawing says B001-01-JC)
Eligibility and how to respond
- SAM.gov lists this with an SDVOSB sole-source set-aside code, but the notice asks for offers by Nov 3, 2026. Ask the contracting officer who may submit an offer. More open service-disabled veteran-owned set-asides under NAICS 236220
- How to submit, from the AI summary: Email to Gislaine.Dorvil@va.gov (Part 1 Technical Proposal and Part 2 Price Proposal as attachments); original bid bond mailed to NCO 15, Attn: Gislaine Dorvil, 3450 S. 4th Street Trafficway, Leavenworth, KS 66048, to arrive before closing. Physical copies of proposals are not accepted. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
- 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
- Sep 16, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- 255-Network Contract Office 15 (36C255), Leavenworth, KS
- Product/service code
- Z2DA · Repair or Alteration of Hospitals and Infirmaries
- Business type
- Construction & renovation (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 236220)
- Versions
5 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 15, 2026 · Amendment 0004Due Nov 3, 2026 (changed)
- Sep 28, 2026 · Amendment 0003Due Oct 16, 2026
- Sep 21, 2026 · Amendment 0002Due Oct 16, 2026
- Sep 17, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Oct 16, 2026
- Sep 16, 2026 · Solicitation (this version)Due Oct 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
- 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
Please reponsed by the specified date and time for consideration of contrat award. The solicitation is included in the attachments section of this announcement.
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