The U.S. Army is seeking feedback from IT companies to help shape the upcoming Information Technology Enterprise Solution – 4 Services (ITES-4S) contract and has published a Sources Sought Notice on SAM.gov under the following Notice ID: W519TC-23-R-ITES-4S.

ITES-4S is a follow-on contract to the venerable ITES-3S vehicle, and it has a $12.1 billion ceiling. The contract will provide the Army with a full range of IT services, including support for Army Enterprise infrastructure, IT services throughout CONUS and OCONUS locations, and IT services in Theaters of Operations.

ITES-3S was a Success

The Army has bluntly stated that the ITES-3S contract was a success far beyond what they anticipated. Throughout the process, they added task areas and labor categories to the contract vehicle. This meant the Army’s Computer Hardware, Enterprise Software and Solutions (CHESS) product office was able to broaden the scope of the contract. In the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022 alone, ITES-3S yielded 237 requests for proposal, 355 requests for information and 228 requests for proposal from small businesses.

For the ITES-4S effort, IT companies that submit feedback will have the opportunity to assist the Army in the methods and structure of the final solicitation. This will help in aligning the solicitation to industry needs and capabilities. The deadline for submitting feedback is August 31. The Sources Sought provides for the Market Survey to be competed electronically at the CHESS website (https://chess.army.mil/User/Survey) (registration required).

The contract is a major opportunity for IT companies to win a significant amount of business with the U.S. Army and is open to both small businesses and large businesses. In addition, the Army is looking for feedback on a variety of topics, including the scope of work, the technical requirements, and the evaluation criteria.

Expected Level of Effort for Deliverables (Based on ITES-3S):

  • The ITES-4S contract is expected to be structured similarly to the ITES-3S contract, with some potential changes.
  • The contract will be a Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) and will be open to the Army, the Department of Defense (DoD), and all federal agencies.
  • The contracts will include firm-fixed price, time and materials, and cost plus contracts with all work being performed under NAICS code 541519: Other Computer Related Services. The Army may decide to include other related NAICS codes for the work as well.
  • The scope of the contract is expected to mimic that of the ITES-3S contract, requesting services for a number of areas to include cybersecurity services and IT services, business process reengineering, enterprise design, integration, and consolidation, network/system operation and maintenance, telecommunications/system operation and maintenance, IT supply chain management, and IT education and training.

The Army is expected to make ITES-4S more small-business friendly by having some 8(a) set-asides and more (and higher) small business goals

The ITES-4S solicitation is expected to follow the paradigm established by the ITES-3S acquisition with separate volumes for:

  • Mission Support (30 pages maximum, including Mission Support Forms)
  • Past Performance (up to 3 pages per reference)
  • Small Business Participation (for large businesses)
  • Price (no page limit)
  • Contractual Documents (no page limit)

The Army awarded 135 contracts for the ITES-3S contract vehicle, including 85 to small businesses and 50 to large businesses.

What Do You Need to Do Now

It’s not too early to start planning for the proposal process. Having your team review the ITES-3S contract and perform a gap analysis between that contract and what we know may be requested in the ITES-4S solicitation. If you’re an incumbent of ITES-3S, be sure to answer the mail for the ITES-4S requirements and don’t become complacent. Tailor your response to the “What,” How,” and “Where” necessary to meet the requirements. Start to identify your partners (particularly small businesses) now and start the process of identifying what your pricing structure will look like.

As always, OCI can provide a wide range of services to ensure your firm is truly competitive for this important contract. We have consultants that were involved with successful ITES-3S proposal efforts and can assist you throughout the process whether it be through capture, proposal management, coordination, technical writing, graphics development, or editing and desktop publishing. We can also provide resources to assist in your pricing efforts to help ensure price competitiveness.