0- IFB Laundry-Ware Wash- Bidder Qs and SPO Answers- 9-4-14.pdf

IFB-CM-15-001 Laundry and Ware Wash Products

Bidder Questions and State Purchasing Office Answers

In accordance with the RFP Section 1.2, Issuing Office and Official Means of Communication;

Section 1.5, Schedule of Activities; and 1.6, Inquiries and Questions, this document represents the compilation of Vendor questions received and the Colorado State Purchasing Office (SPO) answers. This is referred to as the “Q & A” process.

Q1: We want to add some products to the list in the Market Baskets that are comparable to the products shown in the history section and for additional green products. Would you provide an unlocked version of Attachment 3 Bidder Response Workbook?

A1: State Purchasing Office (SPO) Response: The workbook’s format cannot be altered in anyway by the Bidder. Please indicate the additional products offered in the IFB Section 3.18, Value-Added or Optional Programs response in the technical portion of your bid.

Q2: In section 4.3 is the cost bid to be printed with the technical part?

A2: SPO Response: No. The cost bid portion of a Bidder’s response is separate from its technical bid (in hard copy format and as an electronic file) and is packaged separately from the Technical portion.

The cost bid portion consists of the Bidder’s text response to RFP Section 3.20, Cost – Bid Pricing and the Bidder Response Workbook (Attachment 3) for the Non-Market Discount (Tab 2- Discounts) and the Market Baskets (Tab 3-Laundry and Ware Wash /MB) for the products it offers.

(Bidder is to include a hardcopy of Tabs 2 and 3 in its bid and the Workbook electronic file.)

The Technical portion is the Bidder’s response to RFP Sections 3.1 through 3.19 and Tab 1-Regions of the Bidder Response Workbook (Attachment 3) identifying the Regions the Contractor intends to provide services. (Bidder is to include a hardcopy of Tab 1 in its bid and the Workbook electronic file.)

Q3: There are specific vendor products listed on the Market Baskets. Are you accepting bids on comparable products from other manufacturers/vendors?

A3: SPO Response: Yes, the Bidder is expected to submit either that item or a comparable product. As stated in part in RFP Section 3.20, Cost – Bid Pricing, “The Market Basket for Laundry Products (“Part A”) and Ware Wash Products (“Part B”) represents an item makeup representative of past usage and item preference for that category. Market Baskets include our best estimate of the highest use and most essential items. The included products represent a viable set of standardized products which should account for a high percentage of spend. Any brand name items in the Market Baskets may be substituted with items equal to or better than the item listed.

Historical usage showed that a vendor’s product number and description was one which had a majority of usage and other vendors’ products for the same item were incorporated into the total number of sales. For example: vendor A sold 3900 units for SKU item #123 for laundry detergent X, vendor B sold 1100 units for the same item, and vendor C sold 450. The sales were combined under vendor A’s SKU number and the common description for a total of 5,450 shown as historical sales.

Page 1 of 3 Pages

Q4: Please provide a list of participating agencies and locations.

A4: SPO Response: A list of buyers (“Ordering Entities”) cannot be provided. Itemized information at vendor sales level for individual items to individual customers is proprietary and confidential. (For definition of “Ordering Entities”, refer to RFP Section 6, Definition of Terms.) The Market Baskets for the laundry and ware wash products represent historical information for Ordering Entities statewide.

Please refer to the following sections of the bid for greater clarification.

RFP Section 3.20, Cost Bid - Pricing, “The Market Basket for Laundry Products (“Part A”) and Ware Wash Products (“Part B”) represents an item makeup representative of past usage and item preference for that category. Market Baskets include our best estimate of the highest use and most essential items.

The included products represent a viable set of standardized products which should account for a high percentage of spend.”

RFP Section 2.1, Background, Historical Usage, “Historically, laundry and ware wash products purchased through the current awarded price agreements generate over $622,000 in annual spend (see below); which is based on sales reported by current Contractors. (Additional spend may be generated through non-contracted Vendors and may account for an additional $20,000 annually.) This high-volume customer base enables the State to negotiate exceptional rates and benefits. Any volume information (spend or quantity) provided by the State are estimated figures only and are intended to assist potential Contractors in understanding the scope of the State’s category needs. The expenditures reflect past usage and may fluctuate up or down. The State does not obligate itself to any or all quantities indicated nor does it guarantee future spending at these levels.”

Breakout of SFY 2014 Purchases: ___$___ _%_ State Agencies $458,223 74% Institutions of Higher Education $33,067 5% Political Subdivisions $130,962 21%”

Q5: Please provide a list of current pricing for core items.

A5: SPO Response: Pricing for current State Price Agreements for Laundry and Ware Wash products can be found on the ColoradoBIDS website under the category for “Industrial Supplies”:

www.colorado.gov/bids . (Open the “How to Order/Agreement Pricing” section and click on the link to the respective pricing pages for the various current Contractors.)

Q6: Dilution ration for laundry is listed as “Amount per use (dilution ounce per gallon).” The industry standard for laundry dilution ratio is amount of product to clean 100 lbs. of linen. Please advise if the State would change the laundry dilution ratio to reflect the amount of product needed to clean 100 lbs.

of linen.

A6: SPO Response: There is no change in the stated dilution ratio methodology of “Amount per use

(dilution ounce per gallon).” According to industry standards, there are various methods to determine dilution ratios for laundry. The “100 lbs. of linen” or “by 100 weight” method is one of several and is used primarily to calculate the cost of cleaning a load, not how much chemical is used for a load. This dilution ratio of chemical to water method is also informational for Ordering Entities. Dilution ratio is based on many factors: soil level, water level, water condition (hard/soft), size of the washing equipment, size of the load, concentration/formulation of the chemical, etc. For the purpose of determining equal comparison in this IFB, the dilution ratio is based on how much chemical to water is needed considering the following factors: low water level for detergents and bleach, higher water levels for rinse; and moderate levels for soil, water condition; and 50 lbs. of linen.

Page 2 of 3 Pages http://www.colorado.gov/bids

Q7: On page 10 the State requests “All products in final, diluted-use concentration levels must have a multi-step flash (MSF) rating of 1 or 0.” Can the State please advise as to what method is used to arrive at the rating of 1 or 0?

A7: SPO Response: The flash point relates to the temperature, the point of when a chemical will ignite

(“open or closed cup” measurements). Alcohol and petroleum based products are most often found in cleaning compounds such as degreasers, solvents, etc. The flash point is often used as a descriptive characteristic of a liquid with combustible properties, and it is also used to help characterize the fire hazards of liquids. “Flash point” refers to both flammable liquids and combustible liquids. There are various standards for defining each term. Liquids with a flash point less than 60.5 or 37.8 °C (140.9 or

100.0 °F) — depending upon the standard being applied — are considered flammable, while liquids with a flash point above those temperatures are considered combustible. Every liquid has a vapor pressure, which is a function of that liquid's temperature. As the temperature increases, the vapor pressure increases. As the vapor pressure increases, the concentration of vapor of the flammable liquid in the air increases. Hence, temperature determines the concentration of vapor of the flammable liquid in the air.

The flash point of a flammable liquid is the lowest temperature at which there will be enough flammable vapor to ignite when an ignition source is applied. The combination of the liquid state and the vaporous (fumes) state is the “multi-step flash” which takes into consideration the combustibility of the two states.

The rating of “1 or 0” is determined by the combustibility level where “0” means it doesn’t combust, it is inert; and where a “1” rating is a low level of combustibility indicating a high temperature or/and direct flame to ignite. For example: a common household glass cleaner which contains 4% alcohol with a flash point of 180.0 °F in closed cup environment containing concentrated fumes. Although combustible, it is rated at a 1 level.

Q8: Regarding the one percent handling fee, can the manufacturer pay this fee or does it have to be paid by the contract holder?

A8: SPO Response: The Administrative Fee of one percent (1%) is paid to the State by the awarded

Contractor based on total purchases made by all Ordering Entities utilizing the State Price Agreement.

What arrangement the awarded Contractor makes with its manufacturer is their own business decision.

Q9: Please provide the full usage reports for all market basket items and non-market basket products.

A9: SPO Response: See answer “A4” above.

--end--

Page 3 of 3 Pages