Issue date: December 20, 2012 Submittal Due Date: January 22, 2012 @ 10:00 am Agency: UNICOR, Federal Prison Industries, Inc. Office Furniture Group 400 first Street NW Washington, Dc 20534 Room 7012 POC: Tatea Cavanaugh, 202-305-7302 Tatea.cavanaugh@usdoj.gov Linda Kerr, 9\814-362-4155 Linda.kerr@usdoj.gov UNICOR, Office Furniture Group (OFG), is soliciting prequalification proposals from vendors for a Certification Body to audit to the BIFMA e3 level rating standard. UNICOR Office Furniture Group (OFG) has twelve (12) manufacturing facilities located throughout the United States. Currently UNICOR OFG is seeking conformance for products out of the Milan, MI facility only with the anticipation to expand the scope to products out of other facilities at a later date. The targeted completion timeline is February 2013. Please respond to the questions below and return via email to Tatea.cavanaugh@usdoj.gov by 10:00am Tuesday January 22, 2013. Additional questions or communication should' be sent by email to Tatea.cavanaugh@usdoj.gov . All material in this request are considered confidential and shall not be used by the Respondent for any reason other than responding to this request. This request does not obligate UNICOR OFG to pay any cost that any Respondent incurs in the preparation of its response. All cost associated with the preparation of a response to this request will be borne solely by the Respondent. All submitted responses shall become the property of UNICOR OFG and will not be returned. Experience 1. Describe your experience with the BIFMA e3 standard. Include number of clients and number of product lines you have certified. 2. Are you active members of the Joint Committee? Describe your level of involvement. 3. Please provide at least two references we can contact.( Name, phone number and email address) 4. What other third-party certification services do you offer? 5. How many BIFMA e3 auditors do you have? Where are they located? 6. Describe your audit philosophy. Support 1. What support services do you offer your clients as they seek certification? Is there a separate charge for these services? 2. What level of interaction can I expect between your firm and our company during the document review? 3. Describe how my certification will be managed. Will UNICOR OFG have a single point of contact? 4. To what degree are you willing to help us (at no added charge)? For example, will you pre-review documents to be sure we are on the right track? Will you answer questions over the phone? Will you participate in our internal planning meetings? 5. Will my consultant be able to contact you (with our permission) with questions before the audit? During the audit? After the audit? Is there a charge for this? Interpretation 1. Describe your process for resolving interpretation conflicts and other differences of opinion. 2. How do you keep up to date with the latest interpretations? 3. How do you handle differences in interpretations between the client and the lead auditor? 4. How do you ensure consistency in interpretation from one auditor to the next? 5. How would you handle this situation: During the initial certification audit, your auditor approves an interpretation and grants points for an individual credit in the Standard. At the surveillance, a new auditor from your company disagrees with the interpretation of the first auditor and wants to take the point away. Auditors 1. Will we have the same auditor throughout the certification process? What about surveillance audits? 2. How many auditors will be onsite? 3. How do you select auditors for BIFMA e3? May we see the auditor's resume? May we conduct a phone interview with the auditor? 4. Do you use contract or staff auditors? 5. Multi-attribute sustainable product assessment standards are new and most auditors have not had experience with them. How do you train your auditors on the e3 standard? Audit Schedule/Plan 1. How far in advance of the audit will we receive an audit schedule/plan? 2. How long does it take to schedule a certification site audit once a contract is signed? Audit Process 1. Describe your audit process including scheduling, audit plan, corrective actions, etc. 2. What level of documentation do we have to submit for the document review? 3. What level of detail in documentation is required to earn points? 4. Once I submit documentation, how soon will I get feedback on whether or not it conforms? 5. Describe your approach to confidentiality issues related client documentation. 6. Under what situation would you have to audit a supplier facility? 7. Do you document recommendations or opportunities for improvement in our BIFMA e3 system during the audit? 8. Will the auditor note regulatory non-compliances, recommendations, or opportunities for improvement outside of the BIFMAe3 standard during the audit? 9. Do you issue non-conformances? If so, how are they defined? 10. How does the Certification Body handle Corrective Actions (how much detail is required, how much time is allowed to correct, what may trigger the need for additional on-site auditing)? 11. How are appeals administered when we and the auditor can't reach consensus on an interpretation or approach? 12. Define the process/requirements if we... - Add product lines to an existing certification? Is a full certification needed? - Add new product lines manufactured at a certified facility? - Add new product lines manufactured at a non-certified facility? After the Audit 1. How long does it normally take for a client of yours to become certified from the start of the audit to issuing the certification?. 2. Once the audit is completed, how long will it take to receive a certificate? Will the certification appear on your website? 3. How often do you update the list of certified companies and products on the levelcertified.org website? 4. Who owns the final Reports? Does your company claim ownership, or is it ours? Pricing 1. For comparison purposes, list the following items separately. Initial Certification: •· Fee for document review •· Fee for onsite audit (including number of days) •· Report fee (if any) •· Travel fee (estimate for hotel, airfare, etc.) •· Travel time (if any) •· List any other fees separately Surveillance Fee (per year) •· Fee surveillance document review •· Fee for onsite audit (including number of days) •· Report fee (if any) •· Travel fee (estimate for hotel, airfare, etc.) •· Travel time (if any) •· List any other fees separately Recertification •· Fee for document review •· Fee for onsite audit (including number of days) •· Report fee (if any) •· Travel fee (estimate for hotel, airfare, etc.) •· Travel time (if any) •· List any other fees separately 2. Are there "Extra Fees" above and beyond the initial quoted price, such as lab fees, penalties, etc. 3. . Provide a blank copy of your contract or service agreement and your certification policy. 4. How is the amount of audit time determined? 5. What is the term of certification (e.g., three years)? Is it based on a calendar year, fiscal year, or on the date we were certified? 6. What is your pricing policy if we... -Add product lines to an existing certification? Is a full certification needed? -Add new product lines manufactured at a certified facility? -Add new product lines manufactured at a non-certified facility? 7. What discount do you offer if I contract additional certifications (e.g., ISO 14001, indoor air emissions) with you? 8. When the Standard is revised, do you require a recertification? 9. When the Standard is revised, how long will be have to come into conformance with the new requirements? 10. Is there a cost for an expedited certification? Is so, what is the cost? 11. Are there any cancellation charges? 12. How do you price out multiple products at one facility or multiple faculties for one product? 13. If an auditor in-training is part of the visiting team, will we being charged for their training time or travel expenses? 14. How close is the auditor to the facility(ies) involved in certification? Technical Questions 1. How do you interpret the BIFMA e3 4.0 discussion on Gate-to-Gate in relation to the product scope/boundary for our target products? 2. What is your company's approach to defining product groupings/bracketing? 3. What is your company's approach to defining "representative/worst-case scenarios" for testing or measuring? 4. Please explain your understanding and approach to Normalizing vs. Absolute baselines a. . What is your approach to required documentation for the performance period for improvements against baseline; do you accept calendar year and fiscal year options? b. How do you approach baselines and performance periods with new facilities? 5. Can credit documentation be submitted prior to the pre audit review process? All questions must be submitted in writing, no questions will be answered verbally. Respondents must submit responses via email to: tatea.cavanaugh@usdoj.gov or mail to: UNICOR. Federal Prison Industries 400 First Street NW Room 7012 Washington, DC 20534 Attn: Tatea R. Cavanaugh
