TINA - SWEEP
Contents |
TINA SWEEP
When certified cost or pricing data are required in accordance with FAR 15.406-2, the Contracting Officer requires the (Prime)Contractor to complete and submit a Certificate of Current Cost or Pricing Data. This requirement also flows down to a lower tier subcontractor if the TINA requirement is met. A part of ensuring that the estimate is current, complete and accurate and providing assurance to the signer of the certificate is the process of performing a “TINA Sweep” prior to the submittal of the certificate.
Making sure that an bid/proposal/estimate is current, complete and accurate, is important, for a number of reasons, such as:
1. The contractor does not undercharge or "cheat" themselves,
2. The US Government is not being overcharged
3. Making sure the bid/estimate is complete is very important that if the bid varies from the actual costs incurred later, all facts have been disclosed. Facts that have been missed, eliminated, (not disclosed) could be argued later that they were relevant to negotiations and the pricing of the contract.
Post award audits are used to ensure that the US Government was not overcharged. DCAA performs audits of DoD contracts. An auditor will determine if the negotiated contract price was increased by a significant amount because the contractor did not submit or disclose accurate, complete, and current cost or pricing data. To show that defective pricing exists, the auditor must establish each of the following points:
- i The information in question fits the definition of cost or pricing data, and
- ii Accurate, complete, and current data existed and was reasonably available to the contractor before the agreement on price, and
- iii Accurate, complete, and current data were not submitted or disclosed to the Contracting Officer and that these individuals did not have actual knowledge of such data or its significance to the proposal, and
4. The Government relied on the defective data in negotiating with the contractor, and
5. The Government reliance on the defective data caused an increase in the contract price.
All cost or pricing data submitted in support of negotiations must be reviewed in a TINA sweep to ensure that disclosed cost or pricing data is accurate, current, and complete as of the date of agreement on price (or a mutually agreed date close to the price agreement). Identifying more current data acquired prior to the agreement on price date (certification date), or clarifying whether certain information represents cost or pricing data is imperative during this process.
TINA SWEEP FORM
This form needs to be completed and retained.
TIMING: Timing of the sweep should be as close to the negotiation time as possible to assure that efforts are not expended unnecessarily. BD is responsible for communicating the timing of negotiations so that a compliant sweep can be completed. Completing the sweep prior to final price agreement is ideal, however it can be done at a point in time close to the final agreement, as long as it is understood that price redetermination may need to be made.
Attachment I
Cost or Pricing Data Review and Certification
"TINA Sweep" Form
RFP/Solicitation No.: Program Name:
Description: Customer Name:
Program Manager: Date of Price Agreement:
Pricing Spec.: Date of Sweep:
Contracts Rep.: Date Response Due:
Distribution:
Pricing: ______________________________________
Contracts: ______________________________________
Procurement: ______________________________________
Program Office/Bus. Dev. ______________________________________
Operations/Engineering: ______________________________________
Finance: ______________________________________
Other: ______________________________________
1. Labor Estimates
Is there current actual historical for the same or similar effort, configurations and/or quantities available that were not available when the proposal was compiled. Do those numbers vary significantly from what was proposed? If the new numbers had been utilized, would they produce cost and pricing that is significantly different than what was proposed. If yes, in addition to completing this form, you need to advise the proposal manager, project manager, program manager or other appropriate individual, so that that person can review the information, and disclose it, if necessary.
For labor, there are two elements that need to be reviewed in detail. They are:
a) The estimated Direct Labor Rates, and
b) The estimated time it takes to perform each function.
You need to have available for audit, backup for each element of labor. You also need to be able to demonstrate that these elements are estimated with accuracy, completeness, and with current information, describing the methodology and techniques utilized in the compilation of the estimates.
| Category | Responsible Area | Responsible Person | Acknowledge this area has been reviewed and it is o.k. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eng Labor | Engineering | John Smith | Reviewed and O.K. |
| Mfg Labor | Manufacturing | Jane Doe | Reviewed. Mfg Labor has been updated in bid. It is "now" o.k. |
| Example | Example | Example | Example |
Comments:____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
2. Bill-of-Materials
Have any additional quotations been received for proposed materials prior to the above date? Have any POs been placed for any proposed materials? If so, at the same price that is in this proposal. Have any new make/buy decisions been made? Is there any other related information that would be pertinent to the proposed material costs?
| Category | Responsible Area |
|---|---|
| Material | Buyer/Supply Chain |
| Outside Vendor Processing | Buyer/Supply Chain |
Critical questions are:
a) Has anything changed since the proposal was compiled that would change the cost/price in the proposal?
b) Do we have adequate documentation, and have described the methodology in the proposal that was utilized in compiling the estimate?
Comments:____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
3. Subcontracts
Have any additional quotations or proposals been received for proposed subcontract items prior to the above date? Have any POs been placed or contracts entered into for any proposed subcontracts? Have any new make/buy decisions been made? Is there any other related information that would be pertinent to the proposed subcontract costs?
| Category | Responsible Area |
|---|---|
| Subcontractors* | Buyers/Supply Chain |
a) For subcontractors where price is based on their cost and pricing data, has that information been reviewed, and is that data required to be certified?
- see 15.404.3
Comments:____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
4. Other Direct Costs
These include, but are not limited to: use of temporary agency personnel, travel and per diem costs, service center costs, lease or rental costs, and shipping costs. Do you have more current information than was used in the proposal?
| Other Direct Costs | Responsible Area |
|---|---|
| Travel | |
Comments_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
5. Indirect Rates and Factors
Are the indirect rates and factors utilized in the proposal in accordance with the latest forecast and approved for forward bidding purposes? Are current indirect rates and factors significantly different from the approved rates Cobham has? Do the rates consider future actions or other known facts that would significantly change the price? Are those factors included in the rates?
| Category | Responsible Area |
|---|---|
| Indirect Rates | Finance |
| Example | Example |
Comments_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
6. Escalation and Time Phasing
Will the work effort be implemented as proposed? Is this work to be performed over multiple years? Are escalation factors based on historical information and current outlooks and anticipated payroll increases, and material increases?
| Category | Responsible Area |
|---|---|
| Labor Escalation | |
| Material Escalation |
Comments______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
7. Additional Comments
If you feel any information not listed above may have an impact on this proposal and proposed costs and price, please list the information here.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign/Date:______________________________________________
