Government*Horizons Inc. Training Series™

FAR Part 12: Commercial Items Contracting

March 4-5, 2009
Arlington, VA

This course is recommended for 16 Continuous Learning Points towards FAC-C, FAC-COTR, and FAC-P/PM certification and maintenance. A certificate of completion will be awarded to participants who attend the workshop.

Register for both FAR Part 12 (March 4-5, 2009) and FAR Part 13 (March 2-3, 2009) and save $100 on registration. See registration for details.

Registration: 7:30 AM
Program Starts: 8:00 AM
Wrap-Up: 4:00 PM

Course materials, continental breakfast (coffee and pastries) and refreshments included.

About This Course:

The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) establishes a mandatory preference for the Federal Government to purchase products and services available in the commercial marketplace using commercial terms and conditions. Since the passage of the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994, federal agencies have sought to comply with its mandatory requirements in various ways. This course reviews both the regulatory requirements and the practical application of the commercial acquisition process in the federal marketplace.

This course covers the entire acquisition process for commercial items, starting with the planning phase, including market research, source selection, contract administration and wrapping up with contract close-out. It includes focus on the type of products and services covered by the regulatory definition of a commercial item, the procedures used by the Federal Government to acquire those items, the terms and conditions used in solicitations and contracts, and the special price analysis methods used to determine that offered prices are fair and reasonable.

Who Should Attend:

• Contracting Officers/ACOs
• Procurement Specialists/Analysts
• Government Buyers
• Contracting Officer Technical Representatives
• Industry and Agency Contract Administrators 
• Legal Teams 
• Small Business Contracting Representatives
• Industry Business Development Teams
• Procurement Specialists
• Procurement Analysts

Course Outline:

1. OVERVIEW
1. The Current Landscape
1. Procurement Reform
2. FASA/FARA/SARA
3. FAR Changes
2. COMMERCIAL ITEM DEFINITION
1. Products
2. Services
3. Case Law
3. ACQUISITION PLANNING PHASE
1. Market Research 
1. Market research resources
2. Techniques for conducting the research
3. Results of market research 
2. Defining Needs
1. Describing agency needs
2. Requirements documents: order of precedence
3. Using market research in needs definition 
4. COMMERCIAL ITEM SOLICITATION
1. Acquisition Methodologies
1. Simplified Acquisition
2. Sealed Bid
3. Negotiated
2. Contract Type
3. Federal Contract Formats
4. Solicitation format
1. Provisions and clauses
2. Terms and conditions
3. Tailoring terms and conditions 
5. Evaluation and award
5. CONTRACT ADIMINISTRATION
1. Inspection, acceptance and warranties
2. Commercial payment practices
3. Termination under FAR Part 12 procedures
4. Adequate assurance of performance
5. Actual or liquidated damages
6. Disputes 

About Your Instructor:

Laura Willetts

Ms. Willetts has over 12 years of federal acquisition experience in the disciplines of contracting, financial management and A-76 studies. She is the President of Alura Consulting and Training, a small business, acquisition training and consulting firm headquartered in the greater Washington D.C. metropolitan area. Previous to founding Alura Consulting and Training, Ms. Willetts was Vice President of Contracts at ManTech Information Systems and Technology. While at ManTech, she also was the Chief of Acquisition Consulting and Training for AcqCenter, a division of ManTech Information Systems and Technology. AcqCenter provides government customers turnkey, full service acquisition solutions including consulting, training and software applications.

Ms. Willetts was a warranted contracting officer for the Central Intelligence Agency where she supported a diverse set of customers, including the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA). As a contracting officer, she assisted and conducted several best value competitive source selections, performed cradle to grave contract administration functions and worked on the Agency’s contract automation working group. Upon leaving Government service, Ms. Willetts joined the acquisition-consulting field where she has provided acquisition-consulting services to a variety of customers including NSA, CIA, DLA, NRO, USPS, FAA and DESC. She has assisted in document development including Source Selection Plans, Evaluation Guides, Statements of Work, proposal instructions, etc. Prior to joining ManTech, she provided acquisition support throughout all phases of the A-76 study including: market research, assisting with the development of the Performance Work Statement (PWS), assisting with the transition phase and providing support throughout the Administrative Appeals Process to the DLA and other customers.

Ms. Willetts is also a senior instructor, researcher, writer and consultant for The George Washington University’s (GWU’s) Educational Services Institute International. Ms. WiIlletts received a Master in Science, Contract and Acquisition Management from Florida Institute of Technology. She is also a Certified Professional Contracts Manager.

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