In This Week's Newsletter:

• Opportunity Spotlight of the Week: Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Flexible Innovation for Rapid Engineering (FIRE)

• Four To Follow: Get the lowdown on four interesting pursuits

• AI Corner: Proposal Managers’ Selection - Best Gen AI Platform of 2025

• Pricing Insights: What are “Indirect Rates?”

• Capture Corner: Capture Approach: Teaming for Small Businesses

Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Flexible Innovation for Rapid Engineering (FIRE)

Contact Katie: [email protected]

The DHS, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has the need for a contractor to provide support services in the development of new enhancement and/or modernization of existing capabilities for information technology systems and applications. This $100M, Full and Open effort will have a Draft RFP being released on or around August 2025, with an estimated Final RFP release in December 2025 via GSA Schedule. The projected award date for this effort is October 2026. Reach out to Hinz Consulting for Capture, Proposal, and Price-to-Win (PTW) support.

Four to Follow:

1. Department of Energy (DOE), Los Alamos Legacy Cleanup Contract II (LLCC II). The DOE has a continued need for a Contractor to complete the cleanup of legacy contamination and waste resulting from nuclear weapons development and government sponsored nuclear research at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). This $2.2B Full and Open effort is anticipated to be released Q2 FY 2025, with an anticipated award timeframe of June 2026. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for updates

2. Department of the Army, US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) High Performance Computing Modernization Program Integrated Technical Services Unrestricted (HPCMP)(HITS-U): USAE has a need for essential DSRC operations support, delivery of HPC capabilities, enterprise and user support requirements, and program and project management support services. This $698M Full and Open effort is anticipated for release in April 2026 with an estimated award in early 2028. Sample Tasks were released by USACE on April 16, 2025. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for further information.

3. Department of Energy (DOE), Technical and Administrative Support. The DOE Office of Enterprise Assessments has a need for specialized support services, to include providing procedures and systems support, meeting facilities, assistance in preparation of presentations, editing, graphics support, and other administrative support services as needed. This $216M Small Business Set-Aside is estimated for release in Q3 FY 2025, with an anticipated award timeframe of September 2025. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for any modifications to the dates.

4. Department of Army, Communications Electronics Command (CECOM) Worldwide Field Support. CECOM is seeking comprehensive logistics, sustainment, and maintenance services to support current and future C5ISR systems and equipment. These mission-essential services are crucial for the Joint Warfighter, U.S. coalition forces globally, and other government agencies. USACE is currently working on providing a Draft RFP and will be putting out a notice for Industry Days in the near future. This $518M effort is anticipated for Final Release in Q3 2025 with a projected award timeframe of September 2025. The competition type is currently unknown. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for more information.

Proposal Managers’ Selection - Best Gen AI Platform of 2025

Contact Josh: [email protected]

Procurement Sciences' GenAI platform has emerged as the Gen AI platform of choice in the realm of government contracting. Designed to streamline the entire procurement process, this platform leverages cutting-edge generative AI to automate tasks such as proposal creation, compliance reviews, and business development. With intuitive workflows and real-time insights, it empowers organizations to craft high-quality RFP responses, optimize capture activities, and make data-driven decisions. By centralizing data and documents in a secure environment, Procurement Sciences ensures efficiency and transparency, making it a trusted partner for government contractors.

What sets Procurement Sciences apart is its tailored approach to government contracting. The platform's AI-driven features, such as Smart Matching and natural language search, enable users to discover and track relevant opportunities effortlessly. Its ability to learn from past bids and predict tailored opportunities saves time and resources, giving users a competitive edge. Additionally, the platform offers robust deployment options and is already in production with more than 250 leading government contractors—including three of the top ten. It supports both on-premises and cloud-based hosting, enabling organizations of any size to comply with stringent security requirements such as FedRAMP, CMMC, and CUI while safeguarding sensitive data.

Procurement Sciences' commitment to innovation and excellence has earned it recognition among Proposal Managers and Writers. By combining advanced technology with practical solutions, it not only automates processes but also enables organizations to operate strategically and achieve sustainable growth. 

To learn more about Procurement Sciences can fit your own needs, visit here to schedule a meeting.

What are “Indirect Rates?”

Contact Tom: [email protected]

The short answer: indirect rates are costs that are not directly tied to a specific contract but are essential to performing the work. You could say they’re simply the cost of doing business—but let’s take it further and break down what these rates are and how they’re used.

Indirect rates include Fringe, Overhead (OH), General & Administrative (G&A) and Materials & Subcontract handling (M&S).

Who owns Indirect Rates?

Applying the correct indirect rates is the responsibility of the Pricing team during all cost/pricing activities. However, Pricing should confirm with the Accounting and Finance Department that the most current rates are being used.

If a competitive proposal requires new indirect pools and rates, Accounting and Finance is responsible for modeling them—and will work directly with the Capture Manager to develop and validate the new rate pool.

Key Indirect Cost Pools

Fringe Benefits

• Represents a comprehensive and competitive benefits program designed to meet the short- and long-term needs of employees and their families

• Includes disability and life insurance; health, vision, and dental coverage; 401(k) matching; education and professional development assistance; paid time off (PTO) for holidays, vacation, and sick leave

• When calculating fringe costs in labor rates, the fringe rate is typically applied to unburdened (direct labor/salary) costs. Some companies may offer multiple fringe benefit packages—such as full, minimum, or declined coverage.

Contractor Site Overhead

• Covers costs incurred when employees perform work at the contractor’s site.

• Includes indirect labor; cell phones; outside printing services; office supplies not provided by the customer; office rent, IT equipment, network-related expenses; equipment depreciation, postage, and shipping; office equipment repair and maintenance

• For estimating purposes, the contractor site overhead rate is applied to unburdened direct labor costs.

Customer Site Overhead

• Applies when employees work at a customer-provided location. It includes similar items as contractor site overhead—such as indirect labor, mobile phones, and outside printing—but excludes any costs for space, equipment, or supplies that the customer provides.

• Key exclusions are office rent; IT and network infrastructure; shipping, postage, and equipment depreciation.

• Like contractor site overhead, the customer site overhead rate is applied to unburdened direct labor costs.

General and Administrative (G&A)

• Captures the costs related to overall company management and administration.

• Includes indirect labor for bid & proposal efforts and marketing; associated fringe benefits; accounting, legal, HR, and executive support; travel and general business expenses; a portion of facilities and infrastructure costs.

• Allocated on a total cost input (TCI) basis—spreading the expense over direct labor, travel, ODCs, and M&S handling. However, G&A does not apply to the base cost of direct materials or subcontractors.

Materials and Subcontract (M&S) Handling

• Covers the internal effort required to manage subcontractors, independent contractors, and material acquisition.

• Includes administrative time, oversight, and procurement support—not the actual cost of the materials or services.

• The allocation base for M&S handling is the total cost of subcontractors, independent contractors, and materials.

Want to make sure your proposals are cost-competitive and compliant? Confirm you're using the right indirect rates—and partner with Finance early in the pricing process! 

Capture Approach: Teaming for Small Businesses

Contact Nick: [email protected]

Establishing teaming agreements with other businesses is often a smart strategy for breaking into new markets, enhancing your proposal evaluation, and positioning your organization for future opportunities.

There are many reasons why forming teaming relationships makes sense. This article highlights some of the top Dos and Don’ts when it comes to identifying and working with teaming partners.

Teaming as the Prime Contractor

You’ve identified an opportunity that aligns with your organization’s strategic growth objectives—but there are capability gaps or risks that could impact your PTW. To strengthen your position, you bring in partners with complementary strengths. Here’s what to keep in mind:

Do:

• Define your value proposition to potential subcontractor

• Seek businesses with complementary capabilities and relevant past performance in your target agency or contract vehicle

• Use tools like SAM.gov, FPDS.gov, GovWin, etc., to analyze historical data

• Put an NDA in place prior to discussing sensitive opportunity details

• Clarify and agree on level of effort expected during the Capture and Proposal phases

• When appropriate, attempt to secure exclusivity (not required at the IDIQ level, but especially relevant at the task order level)

Don’t:

• Limit your search only to large businesses

• Give away workshare without a strategic reason

• Expect full Capture or Proposal support without discussing scope and workshare

• Overpromise or misrepresent available workshare

Teaming as a Subcontractor

When you’re a small business looking to join a team, you’re not the only one. Differentiating your value early and clearly is essential if you want to land on the winning team.

Do:

• Build a strong value proposition based on capabilities, customer knowledge, and performance

• Ensure you’re covered by an NDA

• Engage early--but only when you’re ready to clearly articulate your value

• Advocate for meaningful workshare

• Join multiple teams where allowed; Save exclusivity for task order commitments

Don’t:

• Rely on your socioeconomic status—it’s not enough, and SB subcontracting goals are declining under the new administration

• Go exclusive at the IDIQ / MAC level unless you have a clear strategic reason

• Assume your Prime will manage 100% compliance and execution—know your responsibilities

Bottom Line:

Whether you’re leading a bid or joining a team, teaming is a strategic tool—not just a compliance checkbox. Choose your partners wisely, know your value, and structure relationships that improve your odds of winning and performing successfully. 

• May 4-10: National Small Business Week SBA - Virtual

• May 5-8: SOF Week in Tampa, FL

• May 13-16: VETS25 Conference in Orlando, FL

• May 18-21: BPC Nashville 2025 in Nashville, TN

About Hinz Consulting

Hinz Consulting provides services across the full business development cycle:

• Proposal Consulting

• AI Services

• Strategic Pricing

• Training

• Capture

• Competitive Intelligence

• BD Transformation Consulting

• Process/Methodology Consulting

• Tools and Templates

• Production Services

• Small Business