From CCP to FCP, we have the latest on GSA’s newest attempt to reform the way GSA Contract updates are submitted, reviewed, and posted to GSA Advantage.
Background
GSA Advantage uploads have long been a thorn in the side of GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Contract holders. Upon award of your GSA MAS Contract and approval of contract modifications, you are required to upload your pricing and, if applicable, catalog to GSA Advantage. The Schedule Input Program (SIP) is the most commonly used method to complete this task. However, contractors can also opt to use an Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) to conduct the upload. Both options come with challenges.
Common Catalog Platform (CCP)
Whether you use SIP or EDI, the need to complete a GSA Advantage upload may become obsolete over the next year. Last year, we wrote about GSA’s newest program, the Common Catalog Platform (CCP). CCP will not only replace SIP and EDI, but will also streamline the process for submitting, modifying, reviewing, and approving GSA Contract modifications.
CCP Renamed FAS Catalog Platform (FCP)
Earlier this month, GSA announced the Common Catalog Platform has a new name, the Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) Catalog Platform (FCP). Despite the name change, the platform is moving full steam ahead. GSA plans to begin the pilot next month and continue it through September of 2023. Assuming the pilot is successful, GSA will likely roll out FCP in phases to all GSA MAS Contracts in fiscal year 2024.
FAS Catalog Platform Highlights
Timeline, Pilot, & Platform Overview
- The FCP pilot is scheduled for March 2023 through September 2023.
- Only companies that offer office supplies under Special Item Number (SIN) 339940OS4 are eligible to participate in the pilot.
- Unless you hold the Office Supplies OS4 SIN, FCP will not apply to you until October 2023 at the earliest.
- FCP will validate your Product File prior to submitting to GSA.
- FCP will also provide you with market research data that was previously only available to GSA Contracting Officers. This data will allow you to make changes prior to submitting to GSA. and will also give you the opportunity to add notes regarding any pricing.
- Upon approval and signature of a modification, FCP will automatically publish the approved updates to Advantage, eliminating the need for a separate upload through SIP or EDI.
How to Prepare for the FAS Catalog Platform
Again, unless you hold the Office Supplies OS4 SIN and are participating in the pilot, you will not likely be impacted by the FAS Catalog Platform until fiscal year 2024 at the earliest. That said, there are a few things you can do now to prepare:
- Ensure your list of Authorized Negotiators is current. This is something you should do periodically regardless of FCP.
- Watch the FCP demonstration video to learn more and preview the new platform.
- Following the approval of your next contract modification, submit a “full catalog replacement file” to move your catalog to GSA’s Authoritative Catalog Repository (ACR). There are some caveats to this. This is only applicable to product catalogs that have not submitted a “full catalog replacement file” since October of 2022 and do not have any active Temporary Prices Reductions. Read the GSA Interact post that discusses the catalog replacement file here.
Stay Tuned for Updates
Our team has been around long enough to remember previous attempts to reform the way pricing is submitted, processed, and uploaded to GSA Advantage. Financial and travel services providers who held a GSA Schedule around the 2011 timeframe may recall the Formatted Price List (FPL).
In 2016, GSA announced a similar pilot program for the Formatted Product Tool (FPT). If your company offered furnishings, floor coverings, audio/video solutions, or scientific equipment on the GSA Schedule between 2016 and 2018, you may be familiar with FPT. However, due to mixed feedback from users, the rollout of the pilot was delayed and eventually cancelled in September of 2018.
While previous attempts failed to survive beyond the pilot phase, we are cautiously optimistic about the future of GSA’s latest program. For updates on the FAS Catalog Platform, subscribe to our newsletter and join the Catalog Management Community on GSA Interact.
