Government specifications and bid documents are filled with abbreviations, some of which are not obvious. Below is an alphabetical list of many of them. It may be helpful for you to keep this page open beside you when you download/read through bid documents.
A-E: Architect-Engineer, ARO: After Receipt of Order, BAA: Broad Agency Announcement--A notice from the government that requests scientific or research proposals from private firms concerning certain areas of interest to the government. The proposals submitted by the private firms may lead to contracts., BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics--An organization in the U.S. Department of Labor. BOA: Basic Ordering Agreement--A general outline of the supplies or services to be provided by the contractor. BOD: Bid Opening Date--The final date that a bid must be received by the appropriate government office. BPA: Blanket Purchase Agreement--An agreement between the government and a vendor. The agreement gives the government the option to purchase goods or services from the vendor when needed on a on-call basis. CAGE: Commercial and Government Entity Code--An identification code assigned to the awardees of DOD contracts. The codes are used by DOD for record keeping purposes. Offerors do not need a CAGE code to submit a bid for a contract. CBD: Commerce Business Daily. CFR: Code of Federal Regulations--A collection of publications that contains regulations for all Federal Departments and Agencies. CICA: Competition in Contracting Act-A law that requires full and open competition for Federal contracts. CID: Commercial Item Description, CNT: Contract COB: Close Of Business, COE: Corps of Engineers--An organization in the U.S. Department of the Army. CONUS: Continental United States DARO: Days After Receipt Of Order, DCSC: Defense Construction Supply Center--An organization in the U.S. Department of Defense. DEL: Delivery, DESC: Defense Electronics Supply Center--An organization in the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency., DFAR: Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations--Procurement regulations used by organizations in the Department of Defense. Also called Defense Acquisition Regulations (DAR), DGSC: Defense General Supply Center--An organization in the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency. DISC: Defense Industrial Supply Center--An organization in the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency. DOD or DoD: Department of Defense, DTD: Dated, ECP: Engineering Change Proposal, EDI: Electronic Data (or Document) Interchange--Electronic exchange of information, paperless office. FAR: Federal Acquisition Regulation--Procurement regulations used by both civilian and defense organizations., FAT: First Article Testing--When DOD buys certain goods they may perform extensive tests on the first item delivered. FFP: Firm Fixed Price--A type of contract under which the government agrees to purchase goods or services at a set price. FFRDC: Federally Funded Research & Development Center--A facility funded by the government that conducts research and development work. The facility is operated by a university or a related non-profit organization. FIRMR: Federal Information Management Resources Regulation--Government-wide regulations that govern the purchase of computer goods and services. FMS: Foreign Military Sales, FSC: Federal Supply Classification--A code number used by the government to identify various items of equipment which are purchased by the government. FSN: Federal Stock Number--A code number used to identify documents sold by the U.S. Government Printing Office, Superintendent of Documents. FSS: Federal Supply Service--An organization in the U.S. General Services Administration. GAO: General Accounting Office, GFE: Government-Furnished Equipment GFM: Government-Furnished Materials, GOCO: Government-Owned, Contractor Operated
GSA: General Services Administration IAW: In Accordance With, IFB: Invitation for Bid--A solicitation issued by the government to prospective bidders. An IFB describes what the government requires and how the offerors will be evaluated. Award is based on the lowest bid. Negotiations are not conducted. LSA: Labor Surplus Area--A Federal program to set-aside certain contracts to businesses located in areas with high unemployment. NLT: No Later Than
NSN: National Stock Number--A unique number assigned by the General Services Administration which catalogs a wide range of items by commodity, group, and class. NSNA: No Stock Number Assigned o/a: On or About
OICC: Officer in Charge of Construction OSD: Office of the Secretary of Defense. OSDBU: Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. PIN: Pre-Invitation Notice--A summary of a solicitation package sent to prospective bidders, who may then request the entire solicitation package. P.L.: Public Law, P/N: Part Number
PO: Purchase Order. POC: Point of Contact. R&D: Research and Development. RFP: Request for Proposal--A solicitation issued by the government to prospective offerors. An RFP describes what the government requires and how he offerors will be evaluated. Negotiations may be conducted with offers. Award is based on a combination of lowest price and technical merit. RFQ: Request for Quotation--A request for market information by the government, used for planning purposes. ROICC: Resident Officer in Charge of Construction. SBSA: Small Business Set Aside--A solicitation restricted to competition completed only among small businesses. SDB: Small And Disadvantaged Business--A small business that is owned and operated by a socially or economically disadvantaged individual.
SF: Standard Form SIC: Standard Industrial Classification--A code number used by the government to classify goods or services by their principal purpose. SOL: Solicitation--A document that describes the specifications of what the government requires. A solicitation is usually an IFB or a RFP. SOW: Statement of Work--A description of the government's requirements for purchasing a good or service.
