§ 511.401 - General.

(a) Normally, time of delivery in solicitations and contracts, except multiple award schedules, will be stated as “required” time of delivery (or shipment), expressed in specific periods from receipt by the contractor of a notice of award (or receipt of a delivery order). In multiple award schedule solicitations delivery times will usually be stated as “desired” and offerors will indicate a definite number of days for delivery.

(b) The contracting officer must be satisfied that the requisitioning office has justified, in writing, an unusually short time of delivery. This is particularly important where the time specified is so short that it may limit competition and possibly result in higher prices. Examples of justifications are:

(1) Furniture is required to outfit quarters scheduled for occupancy on a specific date;

(2) Construction material is required to meet job progress schedules; and

(3) Supplies are required at a port to meet scheduled ship departures.

(c) When a portion of the total delivery is needed early, the contracting officer should:

(1) Consider requiring that portion by the early date and the balance later; and

(2) Determine whether the portion required early and the balance should be included as separate items in the same solicitation or whether the two portions should be procured separately.

(d) When a solicitation contains a mixture of items that require different times for delivery, the delivery periods should be set forth separately and items with similar delivery time requirements should be grouped according to delivery times in the solicitation.

(e) In negotiations for multiple award schedules, the contracting officer should secure the best possible delivery time regardless of the “desired” delivery time(s) in the solicitation. For example, some offers comply with the Government's desired delivery time but others cite delivery times which are substantially shorter. The former should be negotiated to bring them in line with the latter. Variable delivery time offers (e.g., 30-90 days) should be negotiated to keep the timespan to a minimum. If the span applies to several items or several quantity breaks for one item, the items or item quantity breaks should be segregated into smaller groups which can be assigned more specific delivery times.