Preaward Surveys of Prospective Contractors

Before awarding a contact, the Government must determine whether the proposed winner is responsible and sufficiently capable of performing the contract. To help make that determination, the Government often performs a Preaward Survey. This survey, covering technical, production, quality assurance, financial capability, and accounting systems is conducted in sufficient depth to assure that the contractor has the ability to meet the requirements of the solicitation. This survey, while not usually onerous, should be taken seriously as the Government's assessment of "responsibility" is a requisite to awarding the contract.

Tips for Preparing for a Preaward Survey

Select a focal point to interface with the Government team. This person should be empowered to speak for the company and be intimately familiar with the details of the solicitation and the company proposal.
Identify any known disparities between the Government solicitation and the company proposal that should be resolved during the initial meeting.
Be prepared to demonstrate actual technical capability. If the company does not yet possess the required technical capability, be prepared to demonstrate how you will develop the necessary technical capability.
Have your production plans ready and available for the survey team.
Make sure your plant facilities and equipment are available and operable.
Be prepared to show that you can meet the transportation, packaging, and other conditions of the solicitation.
Make sure your workers have the proper skills or be prepared to demonstrate that you can hire the necessary skills expeditiously.
Gather and make available documentation to show satisfactory past performance.
Be prepared to demonstrate a capability to meet contract schedules.
Gather financial documentation including the company's current profit and loss, balance sheet, cash flow forecast and other pertinent information.
Make sure that lead times for materials and subcontracts are consistent with final delivery schedule.
If the contract is other than firm fixed price or if it is firm fixed price and you are requesting progress payments, prepare adequate documentation to demonstrate that costs can be collected by contract.
Review your quality control program and make sure that it is workable and consistent with the quality requirements stated in the contract.
Perform a "responsibility" self assessment using the same form that the government will use.

Forms the Government will Use to Perform a Preaward Survey

Click on the Form Number to download a .pdf copy.

SF 1403 - General
SF 1404 - Technical
SF 1405 - Production
SF 1406 - Quality Assurance
SF 1407 - Financial Capability
SF 1408 - Accounting System